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A week later, Rand switched on the blinker and turned off the highway, heading east. The morning sun shone in through the bug-splattered windshield. He pulled down the visor to shade the glare from his eyes.
“Rand, why did you turn? I thought Devil’s Tower was straight up highway eighty-five.” Echo stretched and yawned.
“You’re right, it is north, but we have to go into the Black Hills for what I have planned.”
“And what is that?” she asked, moving over closer to him.
Rand relaxed as Echo gently began kneading his shoulders. What a week it had been! A roller coaster, actually.
“You’re taking all this so well. I don’t know how I would do under the same circumstances.”
He looked over at her. With her hair down, she looked so fresh and... The only word that popped into his mind was—contented.
“I think you’ve done pretty great yourself. First, my sister tries to take over your body and mind, and then Wiley drags you down into that tunnel with him. You’re a strong woman, Echo Brennen.”
A soft smile pulled at her full, rosy lips. Glancing in the rearview mirror, Rand looked for traffic. Seeing none, he pulled the car off to the side of the road.
“Rand, what are you doing?” Echo asked quietly.
“This,” he said, taking her in his arms. He kissed her slowly, his mouth memorizing the shape and texture of hers. He hadn’t expected her to taste so sweet, and he sent his tongue into her mouth. A soft moan rose from Echo’s throat, spurring him on. His kiss had a desperate quality to it. Desperate and needy.
He separated his mouth from hers and rested his forehead against hers. Reaching under her fall of hair, he tipped her head to look deep into her eyes. “I love you, Echo. If you love me back, I can face anything.”
The sparkling tears in her eyes surprised him.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
She shook her head slightly. “Nothing is wrong. I just love you so much, Rand. It tears at my heart to think of all the pain you’ve gone through.”
He leaned back against the driver’s seat. “Today will be a healing experience. The Native Americans in this area think Devil’s Tower is a spiritual place. It’s only fitting that Ann has her wish. That’s why we’re going to hire a helicopter to fly us over the tower.”
Rand smiled at Echo’s response. Her jaw dropped with shock. “Rand...a helicopter? I’m afraid of heights.”
He laughed. “So am I! I thought I’d have you to give me courage. This could be interesting.”
Echo smiled over at him and touched the curly hair that had come loose from the band holding it back. “I still can’t believe you and buzz-haired Randy are the same guy.”
“You didn’t give me a chance to show you how romantic I could be back then.”
“Yeah, well...my loss.”
Rand turned on the ignition. Looking over his shoulder for cars, he moved onto the highway. That there weren’t any wasn’t unusual in this neighborhood. He guessed an average would be one vehicle every ten miles.
The pine forests of the Black Hills merged with the grasslands of the rolling plains, and they started the incline up one hill after another.
Echo watched Rand. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking with his eyes hidden behind dark glasses. “Rand, do you want to talk about it?”
He nodded without looking toward her. “It’s so difficult, Echo. I thought I knew myself, and learning that Wiley is my father...what kind of man treats his son like he treated me all my life?”
Echo shrugged, unable to find the words to comfort him. “I don’t know, Rand. Self-centered?”
“That and a lot more. I always wondered why Mother put up with his high-handed ways. She told Ann and me repeatedly that our father ran off and left her when she found out she was pregnant. I had always thought she was married to the man!” The muscle in his jaw throbbed. “I can’t help but think Wiley had something to do with Paul killing Ann.”
“I know. But Wiley’s completely lost his mind, Rand. There is no information you can get from him at this point. You have to know in your heart that everything Ann showed me in the visions was true.” Her heart went out to Rand and there was nothing she could do to ease his grief. She couldn’t even give him a conclusion. Since Paul McGuire’s death, she felt Ann was gone from her soul. Echo couldn’t bring Ann back to talk to Rand.
“Do you want me to drive?” she asked. Rand’s knuckles were white as he gripped the steering wheel.
Rand took a deep breath and blew away the tension. She saw his shoulders lower slightly. “I’m fine.”
They drove along in silence for a while, then Rand uttered, “I can’t believe my father was a murderer.”
Echo shook her head in wonder. “But those women got even, Rand.”
“I have to contact the lawyer about turning the ranch over to me and then dealing with the coal company. The lawyer says Ann didn’t sign the papers. Paul represented himself as owner of the land. Ann said she found out about the sale after he’d done it. She must have confronted him on the trip to Hawaii.”
“How could Paul do that, Rand? The ranch wasn’t in his name.”
“A good copy machine makes forgery a snap. What I don’t understand is how could Paul kill Ann for money? She wouldn’t have divorced him over selling the mineral rights on the north section of the ranch. God only knows why, but she loved him.”
Echo shook her head. That man didn’t deserve her love. He was a supreme abuser. Paul took advantage of Ann and Alexis.”
Rand shot a quick, questioning glance at her before returning his gaze to the road. His voice filled with tight hatred. “What did he do to Alexis?”
“He tried to blackmail her into sleeping with him on the night of the funeral.”
He threw a startled glance her way. “I don’t know, Echo. You have to have dirt on someone before that would work. I can’t imagine he would know anything about sweet Alexis.”
Taking a deep breath, Echo spoke. “Alexis had been acting strangely every time we talked about Paul. She finally broke down last night and told me the whole story. Last year, when your mother was dying, Paul met Alexis in the park. Her husband had battered her again. It took little sweet talking to throw her into his arms.”
“My God! How could my sister love someone like that? And poor Alexis,” the words caught in his throat, “she doesn’t deserve all of this either.”
Echo felt the knot in her stomach grow painfully as he talked, but he needed to do just that. “Rand, before we close the page on this, I must ask you something.”
Rand glanced in her direction. “What is it, honey?”
“Yes, well, it’s about the ghosts...the angels.”
“Oh.”
“So...do you believe me?” She felt herself holding her breath, waiting for his answer.
“After that redhead poked me in the butt, do you think I could doubt? No way. They’re real, all right.”
Echo turned to look out the window. She could just make out the head and arm of the Crazy Horse memorial.
“I just wonder if there’s room at the hotel for all of us after we’re married.”
Echo snapped her head in his direction. “Are you asking me to marry you?”
He grinned at her. “Yes, I am. And I won’t push you off the balcony like old Wiley did to Magnolia if you tell me no.”
Echo shuddered. “What a time to bring that fact up. I feel so sorry for my angels. To think he killed the others out in the tunnel. Wiley sure blabbed it all to the authorities.”
“He held it in for a lot of years. Guilt’s a funny thing,” Rand interjected. “So, will you marry me?” He turned the car into the parking lot of the tour office and parked.
“Of course, I’ll marry you. If we make it out of the helicopter ride, that is. But there is something I want to tell you first, Rand. It’s about James. James’ death. And my guilt.”
“If you must, then go for it.”
“May fifteenth will be etched into my mind for the length of my days,” she began.
Rand shut the car off and turned so he could see her. He could tell she didn’t know how or didn’t want to proceed with the conversation. Everything about her seemed to close off. Her shoulders slumped, her elbows clamped her ribs, and she stared at the dash.
“Stop, let’s forget it, it’s not important.” He leaned toward her.
She raised her eyes, straightened her shoulders, and moved her head slowly from side-to-side. Something within her had changed infinitesimally.
“No. I want to go on. You’ve got a right to know. Talking about this is helping me. The pain isn’t as sharp as it once was.”
Leaning back against the seat, Rand nodded. “Okay, but if it gets too much for you, please stop.”
Echo smiled softly, then continued, “That night at eleven o’clock, James still hadn’t gotten home from playing golf earlier in the day. I knew what had happened. I’d seen a binge coming on for quite a while. I got in my car and drove to his favorite bar. He wasn’t there. Hours later, I found the car along interstate ninety. I didn’t see him until I was right up to the car. He had toppled over onto the passenger seat.”
Rand sat silently, listening to her.
Echo combed her fingers through her hair, lifting it off her shoulders as she leaned back in the seat. “He was drunk on his butt. I shook him awake and he turned on me. He flew out of the car. I tried to jump back out of the way, but he was quicker than I was. He slapped me hard enough to bounce me off the hood of the car.” She dropped her hair and bit her trembling lip to gain control.
“I had changed so much! Instead of taking his abuse, my whole being filled with hatred. I loathed the pathetic man in front of me. He saw my hatred...my absolute loathing of him. My God, Randall, you should have seen his eyes, the shock that registered there. He laughed at me, then his eyes narrowed, and he said, ‘I’m going to beat that ‘better-than-you’ look off your face.’ But when he whipped back his arm to hit me with his fist, the motion and his inebriated state caused him to stumble...into the path of a car. He was killed instantly.”
Randall couldn’t swallow—couldn’t even breathe. The anger he felt at the man who had abused the beautiful woman beside him was enormous.
“And you’ve been feeling guilty about his death ever since? You didn’t kill him. It was an accident. He deserved to die for the pain he put you through all those years.”
“You don’t blame me?”
“Hell no. That series of errors was all his fault. You are innocent.”
“Rand, thank you for that,” Echo said, wiping away her tears. “This is the first time I’ve ever felt free from the nightmare.”
“Anytime you need to talk about it, I’ll listen. I love you.”
“I love you, too, Rand,” she whispered.
“Okay, kid,” he said breathlessly, “we have to do this next step for Ann. Let’s go face it.”
~ * ~
THE SUN WAS CASTING long shadows when Echo stepped out of the car back at The Yellow Bordello. She felt so alone now that Ann’s spirit was no longer with her. After scattering Ann’s ashes from the helicopter, she couldn’t think of anything to say. Rand had done little better. The ride home was incredibly quiet.
It was good to be home. She felt the nightmare was finally over. Echo and Rand walked up the sidewalk, hand-in-hand.
“Hello, you two.”
Echo nearly skidded to a stop at the top of the porch. Sheriff Hodges sat in the swing waiting for them.
“Sheriff. What brings you out tonight? I get a little leery when I see you.” Randall squeezed her hand but said nothing.
“I had a long talk with Wiley this morning. The doctor has him on some kind of medication for his mind. He’s more coherent. I found out the reason he framed you, Halstead. He had a forged will. With you and Paul McGuire out of the way, he’d own the ranch. I’d say he’d wanted to own the ranch for years, but your mother wouldn’t let him into her life, and she definitely wouldn’t have shared the ranch with the man.”
Rand hesitated, but Echo felt his hand grip hers painfully. “Wiley is completely deranged.”
“Well, if he’d got you the electric chair, he would have had everything. I thought you’d like to know.” The sheriff stood. “Well, g’night to you then.”
Echo waited until she heard the officer’s car door slam shut before she spoke. “Is this mess ever going to end?”
Sighing, Rand offered, “Of course it is...what else can happen?”
“I’m worn out,” Echo sighed. She trudged across the porch and opened the door. When she entered the foyer, she let out an ear-splitting squeal. “Rand! The mural. You’ve got to see this!”
Rushing through the door, Rand stopped in his tracks right behind her. She could hear him breathing in huge, gulping gasps as he looked at the images in front of them.
Ann and the angels, dressed in gossamer gowns, radiated happiness from the restored mural.
The Angels of the Night had made it to the other side. Finally.