Chapter Twenty-Seven

On Saturday, I decided to visit Lacey, a plan my aunt did not endorse with any enthusiasm.

“Are you sure you want to do this right now? It’s bound to bring up uncomfortable emotions,” she said, studying me as I slipped a light jacket over my T-shirt and jeans.

“Yeah, I’m sure. I want to hear the truth from her lips.” I grabbed the car keys from the ceramic bowl on the hall table. “I need to know that I was right about her and Charles. Just to settle that in my mind.”

Aunt Lydia pursed her lips. “Well, don’t forget the flowers.”

I picked up the newspaper-wrapped bundle filled with early roses and lilacs that I’d cut from our garden and dropped it into a clear glass vase that had once held an arrangement Hugh had sent to my aunt. “Are you sure you want to give this up?”

“It’s fine. Just something the florist bought in bulk,” Aunt Lydia said. “I know Hugh wouldn’t mind. Now if I gave away that Ming bowl he gifted me at Christmas …”

“You’d never do that,” I said, knowing that it would always hold a place of honor in the center of the dining room table. “All right, I’ll see you a little later. Anything you need me to pick up on the way home?”

“As a matter of fact, there is.” Aunt Lydia pulled a piece of paper from the pocket of her slacks. “I was planning to go out later to buy items I need for meals over the next few days, but if you don’t mind …”

“Oh, that’s right.” I gave her a knowing look. “Hugh’s coming tomorrow and staying over through the May Day festival on Tuesday, isn’t he? You must be planning some special meals. I know how he adores your cooking.”

A faint brush of pink tinted my aunt’s cheeks. “I like to treat all my guests well.”

“Some more than others, but I understand.” As I took the list from her hand, I leaned in and kissed her cheek. “It’s okay. Everyone’s thrilled with your relationship. We all think it was about time you found love again.”

“Oh, go on with you,” Aunt Lydia said, waving me away. “And speaking of love,” she called after me as I headed for the front door, “I hope you and Richard have resolved the issues that have cropped up between you over the past few weeks.”

“We have.” I turned to her and winked before opening the door. “And then some.”

“Out,” said my aunt sharply. But she was smiling.

*   *   *

I arrived at the hospital just as Chris and Hope were leaving Lacey’s room.

“How’s she doing?” I asked.

“Pretty good, all things considered,” said Hope.

Chris looked me over. “Sorry about your ordeal, Ms. Webber. I’m really glad you’re okay. Trish too.” He scuffed his sneaker against the tile floor. “I heard you found the Frye treasure in some cave.”

“Yeah. It came in handy, actually.” I met his inquisitive stare. “I suppose you know the authorities plan to give it back to Delbert Frye. He doesn’t have any children, but I imagine he might share it with his extended family.” Lucky for Alison, I thought with a little frown.

“Guess that’s only fair,” Chris said, looking down at his feet. “It really was more like a game for me and Ethan, you know. We weren’t serious about keeping the coins. It was just something Ethan found exciting. A treasure hunt—how many people get to go on one of those?”

“I understand,” I said. “I wasn’t really thinking that you or Ethan would hurt anyone over such a thing, although Ethan with his rifle did give me pause.”

“But he’s a responsible gun owner,” Chris said. “He’d never shoot a person. Heck, most of the time he doesn’t even shoot game. He really just likes to go out into the woods by himself to enjoy the peace and quiet and appreciate nature.”

“I’m sure,” I said, turning to Hope. “Did you get everything you need from the archives?”

“We did. Thanks.” Hope glanced over at Chris. “And we have a little surprise. Something to honor Professor Raymond that we’re going to announce during the May Day festival. I hope you’ll be there.”

“I will. Richard’s studio is going to be participating in the festivities, you know. The girls, anyway.” I shifted the vase of flowers from one arm to the other. “Too bad Lacey can’t be there to see them perform, but I guess she won’t be up to it.”

“Probably not,” Hope said. “Although she’s trying to convince the doctors to allow her to go. But if she can’t make it, I plan to film it on my phone so she can watch it later. Okay, Ms. Webber, I guess we should be going. See you Tuesday.”

I nodded and offered my goodbyes before turning and heading into Lacey’s room.

She was sitting up, her back supported by two pillows as well as the raised head of the bed.

“Hi, Ms. Webber,” she said in a voice as raspy as a frog’s croak.

Of course, she’d been intubated for some time, so it was no wonder her throat was raw. I examined her, noting her chopped-off hair, extreme pallor, and hollows under her cheekbones. But despite the ravages of her recent travails, I was surprised to realize something I hadn’t noticed before—how much she resembled a younger Marlis Dupre.

I guess Charles has a type, I thought with a wry smile. Which made it even more odd that he’d ever taken an interest in me. I looked nothing like the lithe, blue-eyed blondes he seemed to favor.

I shook my head. Maybe I had been just a diversion, or perhaps Charles had been intrigued by the challenge of molding me into an acceptable girlfriend. At least in terms of sophistication, if not body type and coloring.

“Hello, Lacey. I’m so glad to hear you’ll make a full recovery.”

“Thank goodness.” Lacey adjusted one of her pillows so she could sit up straighter. Her blue eyes followed me as I unwrapped the flowers from the newspaper and arranged them in the vase. “I heard what Charles did to you and Trish.” Her golden eyelashes fluttered. “I’m so sorry.”

“It wasn’t your fault.” I held up the vase. “I’m just going to fill this with some water. The flowers are from my aunt’s garden,” I added as I walked into the small bathroom connected to her room.

Returning to the room, I placed the vase on the plastic-topped table next to the bed.

“They’re beautiful,” Lacey said, her eyes brimming with tears. “Thank you.”

“You’re quite welcome.” I pulled up a metal chair and sat next to her bed. “Charles had a lot of victims. You as much one as anyone.”

A tear slid down Lacey’s cheek. “I loved him. I really did.”

“So did I, once.” I took hold of one of Lacey’s hands. “He completely fooled me. I guess he did the same to you.”

Lacey nodded. “And it’s worse than you think.” She used her free hand to wipe away more tears. “I’ve already told the deputies all this, so you might as well hear it too.”

“What’s that?” I released her hand and sat back in my chair.

“Charles was the reason I was wandering around the woods, injured and disoriented.” Lacey met my surprised look with a lift of her chin. “I don’t know what he told you, but I went to see him that Friday of the bonfire. That’s why I begged Ms. Virts for a ride up into the woods. I knew the secondary trail would lead me to Charles’s house and I wanted to see him.” Lacey sniffed back a sob. “I was desperate to talk to him.”

“Had you seen him since the accident that killed Marlis?”

“No. Not once. Of course, I didn’t realize it at the time, but he blamed me for hitting her. Just because he found my silly knitted hat at the scene.”

“I know. He told me.”

“But the truth was, I’d left the hat at his loft one time when we … when I visited him. I guess his girlfriend just pulled it out of the closet and wore it that morning.”

“That was something she’d do, according to Charles.”

“I guess so, although Charles swore he didn’t know what happened to my hat when I texted him about it, even though all the while …” Lacey yanked a wad of tissues from the box on the side table. “He never contacted me after the accident,” she said, dabbing at her eyes with the tissues. “I thought it was just for the sake of keeping up pretenses. So that when we finally went public with our relationship after I graduated, it wouldn’t look like we’d been involved before.”

“Had he told you he was going to leave Marlis?”

“Yeah. He said that a lot, even though he never made any effort to do anything about it. Then she was killed, and I realized we had to give it time. But after a while, I got pretty frantic. I hadn’t heard from him at all, even after the funeral and his European trip. When I found out he was back here, staying at his mountain property, I decided to visit him. To demand answers.”

“So you confronted him that Friday afternoon. But then you disappeared. How’d that happen?”

“At first, I thought everything was fine. Charles seemed glad to see me. He told me that he was actually working out a plan where we could be together permanently, even before my graduation, without causing a scandal. But he said he had to go out of town for some concerts first and begged me to stay at his place until he got back.”

“Which you apparently did.” I thought back to Brad’s comments about Lacey’s condition when she’d been found. Her words explained the anomalies. She hadn’t been exposed to the elements for days and days. She’d been hiding out at Charles’s house until Tuesday or Wednesday of the following week.

“Yeah. Charles told me that I had to stay out of sight for his plan to work. He ordered me not to contact anyone.” Lacey blew her nose before tossing the tissues into the trash can under the side table. “He even took my phone. So I ‘wouldn’t be tempted,’ he said.”

“Then he smashed your phone and tossed it.”

“That’s what the authorities assume.” Lacey’s lips twitched into a grimace. “But like a good little girl, I hid out, waiting for him. I didn’t contact anyone. Not even when I saw on TV that people were looking for me.” She shook her head. “That’s all I had for information, you know. Charles doesn’t have a landline up there, and his computer was password-protected.”

“You stayed out of sight because you trusted him?”

“Yeah, stupid me.” Lacey closed her eyes for a moment. “I still thought everything was fine between us. That we had a chance for a future together. I know he’s a lot older than me, but that never mattered. He said we were destined to be together. That we were soulmates.”

I flinched. I’d heard those words from Charles too. Early in our relationship, before everything changed. “When did he return to the house?”

“Tuesday afternoon. I was so happy to see him …” Lacey buried her face in her hands, and for a moment all I could hear was her breathing. She lifted her head. “But as soon as he came through the door, he verbally attacked me. Said he knew I’d hit Marlis with my car and run away. Shoved the hat in my face and demanded that I confess.”

Her eyes were as tortured as an animal caught in a trap. I laid my fingers on her tensed right arm. “It’s okay. I get the gist. You don’t have to tell me anything more.”

“I do. I have to. I want you of all people to know the truth.” Lacey shook off my hand and leaned forward, pressing her palms against her knees, which were buried under several thin hospital blankets. “Of course, I had no idea what he was talking about. I said something about losing the hat at his apartment, but he was in such a rage I don’t think he even heard me. He said that he’d only asked me to stay at his place so he could ‘deal with me properly’ after his concerts.” Lacey glanced over at me. “That’s when I got scared.”

“I can understand why,” I said, thinking about Charles’s face when he’d threatened me and Trish.

“We were standing in the kitchen, near that marble-topped island. He lunged at me and I instinctively fought back. But I guess I lost my balance because I slipped and fell backwards, banging my head. I hit the floor. Everything after that is all mixed up, but I do remember someone else bursting into the house. I guess Charles forgot to lock the front door. Anyway, I looked up and saw Professor Raymond hovering over me.”

I sat bolt upright in the hard chair. “Mona was there?”

“Yeah. She screamed at Charles. Something about ‘knowing his secret and here was the proof.’ I was so disoriented, I’m not exactly sure what happened next except that Professor Raymond pulled me to my feet and somehow dragged me out the back door.” Lacey rubbed her forehead. “I don’t know how she got away from Charles, but he didn’t have a gun or anything at that point, so maybe he just let us go. We staggered across the lawn and into the woods. Everything was flashing before my eyes and it felt like I was in a dream …”

“More like a nightmare,” I muttered, then offered Lacey an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. But one thing I don’t understand—wasn’t there a lot of blood on you and the floor? You sustained a serious head injury, from what I’ve heard.”

“No, it never bled. Well, not externally. I only had an internal brain bleed. Which is probably why Professor Raymond felt she could move me.”

“Just so you know”—I tapped my fingers against my knee—“Charles did confess to killing Mona. He told me he threw on his gloves and took a gun from Delbert Frye’s shed.”

Lacey nodded. “That makes sense, because he came after us with a rifle. Not immediately, so I figured that he had to take time to grab the gun from somewhere.” Lacey took a deep breath. “Professor Raymond really did try to get me away, but I was feeling worse and worse, to the point where I couldn’t stand. I slumped to the ground somewhere in the woods and she couldn’t pull me up. Then I heard footsteps and Charles’s voice and knew he’d found us. I thought I was a goner for sure.” As Lacey turned to face me, another stream of tears cascaded down her hollowed-out cheeks. “Professor Raymond screamed at him that I was dead. It was a clever bluff. She knew I wasn’t”—Lacey roughly dashed the tears away with the back of her hand—“but I guess she hoped to fool Charles so he wouldn’t shoot me.”

“But he shot her.” I pulled more tissues from the box and handed them to Lacey.

“Yes. I couldn’t force my eyes open at that point, but I heard the shot and felt the thud as her body hit the ground.” Lacey held the tissues to her face for a moment before looking at me. “I knew, somewhere in my mixed-up mind, that she’d sacrificed herself to save me. So I told myself I had to stay still, to pretend to be dead, until Charles left. Which he did soon enough. I still don’t know how he thought my death would be explained, because obviously I couldn’t have been written off as a hunting accident. Maybe he was too wound up at that point to care.”

“It’s pretty clear he isn’t as smart as he likes to think,” I said, meeting her agonized gaze.

“No, he isn’t. Fortunately for me.” Lacey tossed the second wad of tissues into the trash. “I came to a little while later. I was still dazed but could see again, even if everything was blurry. I checked over Professor Raymond, but she had no pulse and she was so cold … I was sure she was dead, so I just staggered to my feet and walked away, leaving her there.” Lacey sucked in a deep breath. “I do feel bad that I didn’t stay with her body.”

“Don’t. If Charles had returned …”

“That was the only clear thought in my mind—to get away. So I just wandered. I really don’t remember much. I think I hid in some bushes and then under a rock ledge during the two nights I was lost, but I’m not sure. I just know that Charles never found me.”

“He did go out looking,” I said, recalling Delbert Frye’s report about someone crashing through the woods on Thursday morning. “But I think he was also trying to establish a pattern of sounds similar to what happened Tuesday afternoon.”

“Always thinks he’s so clever.” Lacey’s tone dripped with bitterness.

“In error, obviously.” I took hold of the hand she’d left dangling off the side of the bed. “At some point you fell over Mona’s body again?”

“And screamed. That’s how those deputies found me, I suppose.”

“Thank goodness they did.” I examined her drawn face. “It isn’t your fault, you know. Charles would’ve shot Mona regardless.”

“I know. It just seems so … impossible.” Lacey lowered her eyelids, veiling her eyes. “I truly loved him. And we shared so much. I thought I knew him.”

Her words hit me like a thorny branch to the face. “I understand. Trust me, I do.”

“I thought you might.” Lacey twitched her lips into a tremulous smile. “I knew you’d dated him, before Marlis was in the picture.”

“And apparently, after,” I replied.

“I figured. But I foolishly thought I was different. He told me …”

“That you were special? The one he’d been looking for? The love he really needed?”

Lacey ducked her head. “Yeah. That.” She tightened her grip on my hand. “I guess we were both fooled, huh?”

“And Marlis as well, poor thing.” I squeezed Lacey’s fingers before releasing her hand. “It had nothing to do with any of us, you know. It was all Charles. We were just game pieces he moved around.”

“I see that now.” Lacey leaned back against her pillows and stared up at the ceiling. “I bet he thought I wouldn’t recover.”

“I’m not sure he thought that through,” I said. “I don’t know what he expected to happen if you did. He had to know you could blow a hole in all his alibis. Of course, I suppose it’s possible he planned to leave the country before that happened.”

“Maybe.” Lacey’s expression grew thoughtful. “He also probably thought it didn’t matter. I bet he believed I loved him so much that I would protect him. Despite everything.”

“Which just goes to show how wrong he was about you.”

“Yeah, ’cause I would have exposed him, even if he hadn’t been caught. Even if he’d tried to sweet-talk me into continuing our relationship.” Lacey looked over at me, her eyes blazing. “I heard Professor Raymond hit the ground. I touched her cold, lifeless body. After that, it wouldn’t have mattered if Charles had crawled to me on his hands and knees and sworn that he’d love me and only me forever. No matter what I felt, or how it broke my heart, I would’ve still betrayed him. It hurts so badly, even now, but I’ve vowed to make him pay for what he did.”

“And that’s why you will get past this and live and thrive,” I said. “While he rots in prison.”

Lacey nodded. “That’s right, let him rot,” she said, with the first genuine smile I’d seen on her face during my visit. “Let him be the one to disappear this time. With no one left to care if they ever see him again.”