Chapter 46

Box up items like seasonal clothing and Christmas decorations and move them to a storage unit.

With one final lunge forward, I was within reach of the cover. Now all I had to do was get enough leverage to push the door out. I hoped it didn’t have any kind of lock on it. I wedged my knee under me and shoved my shoulder against it.

The cover fell forward and bright light hit me—along with some gloriously fresh air. It had stopped drizzling and the sun had come out. I tried to pull myself out of the chute and looked up to see the stunned faces of Aunt Kit and Mrs. Webster. I don’t know who was more shocked—them or me.

Aunt Kit grabbed my arms and helped work me out of the chute. Coal dust covered me from head to toe, some of which had now come off onto her.

I pointed behind me. “Nita is still in there.”

Mrs. Webster took hold of my arm to steady me. “Girl, what in tarnation is going on?”

“Let’s get Nita out and then I’ll explain.”

Nita, with Aunt Kit’s help, came tumbling out of the chute and collapsed onto the grass. “Am I ever glad to see you two,” she said.

“How did you come to be here?” I asked them, still astounded to find them just when we needed them.

Aunt Kit answered first. “When I didn’t find you at home, I sat at the kitchen table to have some lunch and found the notebook you were using to record your findings. Since you said it would be okay, I read your notes and was stunned to see what you had written regarding Anne and your plan to check out her house. When you didn’t answer your cell phone and then neither did Nita, I got concerned. I called Mrs. Webster to ask if she had seen either of you. I told her I was coming here, and because she was alarmed, she insisted on coming with me. I picked her up on the way. We thought you’d come and gone when we saw Anne’s car driving away.”

Mrs. Webster frowned and looked disapproving. “We were trying to decide what to do next when you popped out of the earth. I’ve never seen such an entrance.”

“You just saw Anne driving away?” I couldn’t believe she hadn’t taken off earlier. With us being imprisoned in the basement, she didn’t need to rush to get packed and away. She took her time, thinking she had gotten away with theft—and murder.

“Did you see what direction she headed?” I looked up and down the street.

“She turned right at the end of the street. That would’ve put her going in the direction of the Interstate,” Aunt Kit said.

We couldn’t let her get away. “Quick. Maybe we can cut her off before she gets to the Interstate. I know a shortcut over the mountain.”

We scrambled into my little car. I started the engine and checked my rearview mirror for cars coming down the road behind us. That’s when I saw my reflection in the mirror. My hair was coated with coal dust, and dark streaks covered my face where I had wiped it with my grimy hands.

No time to worry about that now. I glanced over at Nita, who was equally as dirty.

“Nita, find your cell phone and call Detective Spangler. Tell him our location and that we’re chasing Ian and Damian’s killer.” I took a left turn at the end of the street and headed in the opposite direction Anne had taken. With any luck, we could make it to the Interstate before she could get there.

“Aunt Kit, what color and type of car did Anne have?” I went careening around the next corner.

“A silver Lexus.”

Anne must have been doing well with those paintings.

I could hear Nita talking into the phone while I focused on driving. “This isn’t the greatest route, but it cuts off a lot of miles. We should get to the road leading to the Interstate before she does.” At least I hoped so.

Aunt Kit had a death grip on her bag. “That’s if we get there in one piece.”

Mrs. Webster looked like she was having the time of her life. “Can you please tell us now more about what’s going on? Why did you come out of the basement the way you did?”

“Yeah and looking like escapees from a coal mine?” added Aunt Kit. “I don’t think you’re ever going to get your upholstery clean again.”

Good old Aunt Kit, worried about my upholstery as we chased down a cold-blooded killer.

“After Mrs. Webster recognized the painting, we suspected Anne of stealing the paintings and murdering Ian Becker and Damian Reynolds to cover her trail. When someone said she was going away, we knew we needed to act fast to find evidence of the painting thefts. If we could, we might be able to connect Anne to the murders.”

“In case she was going on the lam,” Nita added.

“We found Anne was gone and the door unlocked, so we went it. Anne came back, locked us in the basement, and turned out the lights.”

“That must mean Anne was the one who attacked you at the empty house?” Aunt Kit seemed stunned by all these revelations about Anne, especially since she had been spending so much time with her recently. “Now it makes sense why she was always asking me about what you and Nita were discovering with your investigation.”

“I’m thankful that she didn’t stab Laura like she did the other two.” Mrs. Webster said.

Nita gasped. “She might have if Aunt Kit hadn’t befriended her. Maybe she has some redeeming qualities after all.”

Aunt Kit grunted. “She sure had me fooled. Frankly, I think anyone who could kill two people in cold blood and rob a helpless woman is a bit insane.”

Mrs. Webster grabbed the back of Nita’s seat as I navigated another sharp bend in the road. “Watch it girl.” She straightened her hat, which had fallen over her face. “Anne fooled most people with her sweet and helpful manner. It goes to show you people are willing to commit serious crimes regardless of their age. She didn’t hesitate to take advantage of Doris’s increasing dementia.”

“I still can’t get over her locking us in that cellar, in the dark, without anyone knowing where we were.” Nita was still outraged. “Fortunately, Laura remembered those old houses had coal chutes. If it weren’t for her, we’d still be down there.”

“There’s the highway,” I said, pointing ahead. When we reached the intersection, I stopped at the stop sign. We either had missed Anne or she would be coming along anytime now. No cars were behind us, so we were able to sit and wait. I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel, impatient for Anne to drive by.

“There’s her car,” Aunt Kit shouted, pointing to a silver vehicle.

I saw it pass in front of us and quickly turned to follow it. “Nita, please tell Detective Spangler that we have Anne in our sights near the intersection of Adams Road and the highway. We are heading east toward the Interstate.”

We stayed a couple of cars behind Anne. She wouldn’t have any reason to recognize my car, but I didn’t want to take any chances. Besides, she thought Nita and I were tucked away nicely in her basement and wouldn’t suspect we were right behind her.

Nita sat forward in her seat. “She’s put her right turn signal on. We aren’t near the Interstate yet. Where could she be going?”

“I don’t know, but we’re following right behind her.” I slowed down to stay out of sight.

Mrs. Webster hit the back of my seat with her hand. “She’s signaling a left turn now.” The excitement of the chase was getting to her. I had to admit it was rather like being in a movie.

As we got closer, we saw Anne pull into a self-storage facility. She stopped at a metal gate, lowered her car window, and looked like she was entering a code. The gate slid open and she drove inside with the gate closing behind her.

“After her,” urged Mrs. Webster. “She probably has the rest of the paintings stored in there. We can catch her red-handed.”

“We can’t get in there without a code.” Mrs. Webster probably was right and the paintings were stored there. Anne wasn’t leaving the area without them. I was even more determined now to prevent her from getting away.

“She may have gotten in, but she won’t be getting out.” I pulled my car in front of the gate and blocked the exit.

Nita’s cell phone rang, and she answered it. “Yes, we know where she is. We’re at the self-storage facility just off the highway. Yes. Okay.” Nita hung up. “Detective Spangler said they’re on their way.”

We sat in place for about ten minutes, impatiently waiting for Anne to come out.

“Here she comes,” Mrs. Webster said, spotting the Lexus approaching the exit.

I opened my car door. “Get out quick in case she decides to ram the car.” It wouldn’t surprise me at all if she did. We all jumped from the car and stood beside it, facing the gate.

The metal gate slid open. Anne started to move forward and stopped when she saw my car blocking her exit. That’s when she spotted us standing close by. The look on her face was worth crawling up the coal chute for. It would have been impossible for her eyes to widen any wider than they did.

Anne opened her car door and stepped out as though to get a better look and confirm it was us blocking her path.

“You again,” she screeched and then said something I wouldn’t repeat. She looked around her as though searching for a weapon. Finding nothing, she removed one of her shoes and threw it at us. It bounced off the hood of my car leaving a ding. Now she’d really made me determined to get her.