21
For the hundredth time, Joel berated himself for using the necklace to hide the numbers. He should have hidden them somewhere else or memorized them. But that was why he’d engraved the numbers on the necklace—he couldn’t memorize anything.
And now Bailey wasn’t at the house and neither was the locket. He’d searched high and low for it and was returning to the hospital in hopes of finding Bailey by herself. He held up his hand to block his side mirror when lights from behind blinded him. When the vehicle pulled out to come around him, Joel slowed to let it pass.
Abruptly it swerved in front of him and stopped. He slammed on the brakes, stopping inches from the bumper. What was going on? A wreck maybe? Or a deer? The area was full of the four-legged creatures.
The driver of the car jumped out and ran his way, brandishing a gun.
Joel threw the car in reverse, and an alarm screamed. He jerked his gaze to his rearview mirror. A car blocked his escape.
“Get out!”
Ski masks. They were hijacking his car. Or they were going to kill him.
He pulled the keys out of the ignition and opened the door. “You can have it,” he said, holding the keys out.
“I don’t want your car. Get out.”
Joel’s blood froze at the Mexican accent. He swallowed the nausea that raced up his throat. It was over. He stumbled out of the car, and the man jerked his arm behind him, forcing Joel to face the car. “What . . . what do you want? Who are you?”
“Your worst nightmare.”
That voice. It was the man he’d lost the hundred grand to—Enrico. Joel’s legs threatened to buckle.
“Do you have the money?”
“N-no, but I will soon.”
“Good. But now I want more. The Montoya girl and Bailey Adams.”
“I . . . I can’t. They’re at the hospital. Someone is always with them.”
“Figure out a way. You see how easy it was to get to you. You have twenty-four hours.”
He licked his lips. “If I agree, what do I do with them?”
“Eagle’s Nest. Room 106.”
Suddenly pain ripped his head, and stars exploded in his brain.
When he came to, he was on the ground and the men were gone. He climbed back into his car and rested his head on the steering wheel until the dizziness passed. He felt the back of his head and cried out. There was a bump the size of a goose egg where they’d hit him.
How did they know where he was? They’d been following him. What made him think the calls had been coming from Mexico? If he didn’t do as they said, they would kill him. He was as certain of that as he was that Edward or Angel would kill him if he helped kidnap Maria and Bailey.
He only had one option. Get into Edward’s account and take enough money to disappear forever.
He massaged his temples. Why did they want Maria and Bailey? Ransom. What he owed these men was peanuts compared to what they would ask for Maria. But why Bailey? She had no money.
It didn’t matter. If he didn’t get the necklace, it would be their lives for his.
His cell phone rang, and he checked the caller ID and groaned. His mother. “Hello?”
“Where are you? Your father is asking for you.”
“I’m in Logan Point. Maria is still in the hospital and . . .” What would be bad enough for her to not expect him? “She has a virus, and I think I’m catching it,” he lied. “But if you want me to come back to Corning tonight, I will.”
“No! Your father can’t afford anything like that right now. You stay there until you’re sure you don’t have the bug.”
“I will. And I hope Dad does okay tomorrow with the surgery.”
“I’ll tell him you wished you could be here.”
You do that. “Thanks, Mom. I’ll call you in the morning.”
He tapped on his navigation app and typed in Eagle’s Nest, Logan Point, Mississippi. Once he had the directions, he placed his phone in the cup holder and started the car. Fifteen minutes later, he pulled into the almost deserted parking lot of an aging motel located on Logan Lake. Bars covered the windows, and the parking lot was deserted except for a road grader and a dump truck. Must be the place that the road crew repaving the bypass was lodging.
If he were picking out a place to stash someone, this would be the place.
Angel stood at the side of the bed, watching the rise and fall of his daughter’s chest as she lay sleeping. He’d missed too much of her life, the good and the bad. She’d been a month shy of her second birthday when he was shot, so he’d missed a lot. He smiled, remembering her first steps and how she’d said Dada before Mama. Claire had been so jealous and proud at the same time.
It especially rankled that Joel had been the one to replace Angel in Maria’s life. And that Edward had become involved in his family. Certainly wouldn’t have happened if he’d been there to stop it. He hoped his uncle didn’t come back to the hospital tonight; he was unsure if he could stomach Edward another minute.
Edward was a fool if he thought Angel believed his story, although he’d have to admit Edward had been quite convincing earlier. Someone who didn’t know what he was capable of would probably believe him. Angel wasn’t ready to dismiss what he’d believed for fifteen years and what his father had believed before that.
But what if we were both wrong?
Angel turned as someone knocked at the door and pushed it open. Ben Logan. And he looked serious. “What can I do for you, Sheriff?”
“The ballistics came back on the bullet taken from Geoffrey Franks. Nine millimeter.”
“It’s not from my gun,” Angel said. “Have you questioned my uncle?”
“Haven’t been able to catch up with him.”
“Stick around, he’ll probably be back shortly.”
Ben nodded. “I’d like to test your gun.”
Angel shrugged. “Sure. I’m not worried. But can it wait until morning, after I take Maria home? I want to have a way to protect her here at the hospital.”
“Leave protecting her to me. I need it tonight. Along with Danny’s.”
“Have you spoken to him?”
“Not yet, thought I’d see you first.”
Angel pulled up his pants leg and unbuckled the gun strapped to his calf and handed it to Ben.
“You wore that into the hospital?”
Angel shrugged.
Before Ben could comment, Edward stepped into the room. “What’s going on?”
Angel slid his pants leg down. “Nothing,” he replied. “Sheriff, I’d like you to meet my uncle, Edward Montoya.”
“Sheriff?” Edward queried Angel with his eyes.
“He’s investigating the murder of Geoffrey Franks. You knew him, didn’t you, Uncle?”
Edward removed his leather gloves, one finger at a time, before he answered. Then he removed his overcoat before shifting his gaze to Angel. “I did, but how did you know that?”
He hadn’t known; it had been an educated guess. “Danny told me Franks was the purchasing agent for Maxwell Industries, and Montoya Cerámica produces their pottery, so it stood to reason.”
Ben took out a pen and notebook. “Did you know him very well?”
Edward folded his arms across his chest. “He was a business acquaintance. My assistant, Joel McDermott, knew him much better than I.”
“What do you know about the rifles he sold to someone in Mexico?”
“Nothing.”
“How about a company by the name of Blue Dog?”
“Nothing at all.”
Like his uncle would admit it if he did. “I’m sure my uncle carries a pistol. You might want to see what caliber.”
Edward leveled a cool stare at him. “No businessman in Mexico goes without protection.” He turned to Ben. “But since I am not in Mexico, I do not have a gun.”
Ben looked up from his notepad. Angel thought he was going to challenge him, but the sheriff let it go. Angel would bet money his uncle had some type of gun on him.
“When was Franks killed?” Montoya asked.
“Sometime last night,” Ben said. “Do you mind telling me where you were between 5:00 p.m. yesterday and 8:00 this morning?”
Edward rubbed the back of his neck. “I was with Phillip Maxwell until after eight, then I drove into Memphis to the Peabody.”
“Anybody see you there?”
“Possibly. I went to the bar for a couple of hours, then returned to my room.”
Like everyone else, his uncle didn’t have an alibi.
“Franks was killed with a 9mm gun. You’re certain you don’t have one on you?”
“I’m certain, and I had no reason to shoot him, anyway. Do I need my lawyer?”
Ben looked up at him. “I don’t know. Do you?”
The tenseness in the room was cut when the door swung open and the nurse came in. “Time for vitals.” She halted. “I’m sorry, do I need to come back?”
“No, I think I’m finished here,” Ben said. He eyed Edward. “I may want to talk with you again.”
Angel turned to see his uncle’s response. Edward’s mouth pressed into a thin line, then he curtly nodded. “I’ll be expecting it.”
“How long do you plan to be in the area?”
“Several more days. Like I said, I’m staying at the Peabody in Memphis.”
“Contact me before you leave.” Ben nodded and walked out the door.
Angel turned to the nurse as she charted Maria’s blood pressure and temperature. It worried him that she had barely roused and was now back asleep. “How is she?”
“Pressure is good, and her temperature is going down.”
“Why is she sleeping so much?”
“More than likely the medication for nausea.” She smiled reassuringly at him. “By morning she should be back to her old self.”
“So you think she’ll be able to go home tomorrow?”
The nurse smoothed Maria’s sheet. “Probably. Let me see if the doctor wrote her discharge papers.” The nurse looked over the chart. “I see he wants a chest x-ray before she leaves, and if it’s clear, he’ll release her within the hour. A porter will come get her first thing tomorrow and take her down to x-ray.”
“Why has he scheduled this?”
“With all the vomiting, she could have aspirated.”
“Aspirated?”
The nurse touched her chest. “Gotten particles into her lungs. He’ll want to make sure that didn’t happen.”
“Excuse me, but the door was open.”
Angel wheeled around.
“Chavez,” Edward said. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m looking for Sheriff Logan. His deputy said he was here.”
“Well, he’s not,” Angel said.
“I’m sorry about your daughter.” The Mexican detective turned to leave, then halted. “Thank you for coming by the motel last night. I’d like to continue the discussion when your daughter is better.”