A Memory Worth Dying For (37 page)

“Shane. You’re a respected man of the community. Don’t make us shoot you. You’re surrounded. Give yourself up.”

“Go away, Brent! I have to finish what I started.”

A car pulled up behind them, and a man wearing a bullet proof vest got out and ran up to the cruiser. Richard Darnell. The department’s negotiator. Daniel’s faith took a nose dive. Richard was just out of the academy. How could they place Marti’s life in the hands of someone so green?

Brent turned to the young man and nodded.

“What do we have, Chief?”

“Shane Duke—a murder suspect. It’s possible he has a woman as hostage.”

The man nodded and waved away the microphone Brent handed him. Instead, he raised his voice so Shane could hear him. “Mr. Duke. This is Richard Darnell. I remember you from the Cattlemen’s Association. You and I are members of the same group, I think. Isn’t that right?”

No answer.

“Mr. Duke. I’m here to help you. Will you let me do that?”

At first, Daniel thought Shane wasn’t going to respond, but finally he yelled, “I don’t need help. I just need everybody to go away and let me finish what I started.”

“You know the police aren’t going to do that, Mr. Duke, but I’ll try to help you if you’ll let me. The policemen out here aren’t thinking about what you want, but I’m here to listen to
you
. So will you let me help you?”

“It’s too late. I’ve gone too far. There’s nothing you can do.”

“There’s always hope, Shane. Do you care if I call you Shane? We’ll just leave the police out of it, and you and I can talk. Now, would you come out so we can talk—just the two of us?”

“Don’t you understand? It’s too late. I’ve already killed somebody.”

Daniel’s face went hot then cold.
No! Not Marti! Please, God, not Marti.

“It doesn’t matter what you’ve done, Shane. There’s always hope. Let’s forget the past and start over right now so no one else will get hurt.”

The silence smothered Daniel’s optimism.

“It’s too late for me . . . and Mary too. We both . . . did things.”

“What things have you done, Shane? Maybe I can help you fix those things.”

“No. It’s too late for Mary.” Daniel could hear Shane crying. “She just wanted to help Veronica. Since they were little, Daniel belonged to Veronica. Then that hussy came along and took Daniel away.” Rage forced Shane’s voice to swell in volume. “But, Mary knew how to fix it. She knew if Marti was convicted of a crime, she’d go to prison. Then Daniel would fall in love with Veronica, and everything would be okay. But they let Marti go. And Mary was afraid she would stay around because of the baby. So she took the baby too. And, that stupid nurse. She just had to stick her nose in.”

Brent looked at Daniel. “He killed the nurse,” he whispered.

Daniel backed up against the car and pressed both hands to his head.
Lord, please help us find Marti, and please protect her.

Behind them, the ambulance pulled up to the scene a short distance away and stopped.

“So you love Mary, don’t you, Shane?”

Shane’s cries filled the air. “She was everything to me. That’s why I had to do it. I had to make everybody see what a good person Mary was. I couldn’t let Marti go on chasing after Daniel. I had to make her go away. So . . . I brought her here. Mary would know what to do. When I’m done with her, you can have me.”

Daniel’s head jerked up. He looked at Brent, and his eyes told him they were thinking the same thing. “Marti’s still alive, but that’s her grave he’s digging,” Brent whispered.

Daniel jumped to his feet, and Brent wrestled him down. “No, Daniel. Wait. If you go out there, he’ll shoot you. That won’t do Marti any good. We still don’t know where she is.”

“I have to find out what he did with her.” Daniel’s voice broke on the last word, and he slumped against the car.

Richard continued. “Do you think Mary would want you to kill anyone else, Shane? She’s such a sweet person. Do you think she likes murder?”

“No. I know she doesn’t.” Shane’s voice grew quiet. “And, I’ve already murdered two people.”

“Two people?”

“Jordan was stupid. He was so scared he’d be convicted of stalking Marti that he stole Zach’s knife and left it under her bed so they’d think it was Zach trying to kill her. Zach gave Jordan the keys to Marti’s balcony door, and Jordan framed Zach. Then he murdered him so he couldn’t squeal. He also tried to leave my shoe prints at the shed with an old pair of my shoes he found in the trash—to make it look like I started the fire. The fool. I told him to make it look like an accident.”

Daniel’s heart sped up. He didn’t mention Marti. Maybe she wasn’t dead yet.

“Ask him if Jordan was the one stalking Marti,” Brent whispered.

“Was Jordan the one stalking Marti, Shane?”

“Yes. Mary had proof he robbed a jewelry store years ago when the security guard was murdered. Jordan did time in prison for murder when he was younger, so the courts would’ve given him the death penalty if they could prove he was the one who killed that guard. Mary held that over him to force him to keep Marti away from Texas. Then when Mary died, I offered him half of her insurance money to scare Marti away, but Marti came back anyway. She had to die. And Jordan was stupid, so I took care of him at the shed. Everybody thought I was at the horse auction because I registered to bid.”

Daniel could hear him sobbing.

“But, Mary doesn’t like murder. Mary won’t like what I did. She’ll be angry, and I don’t want her to be angry. I want her to know I’m trying to help her. It’s too late though, isn’t it? My Mary.”

They could hear his sobs, and his words got progressively softer. “There’s no hope.”

“There’s always hope, Shane. Come out so we can talk.”

“No. It’s too late. I’ve already done it. There’s no hope now. Marti’s dead. I’m done.”

They had to strain to hear Shane’s last words, so they all jumped when the piercing sound of a shot rang out from behind the gravestone. Daniel jumped in horror. Had he shot Marti? He strained to see Shane and was shocked to see Shane’s body slumped down beside the gravestone.

“Who fired that shot?” Brent demanded into the radio.

“He did, sir. He shot himself.” There were a few minutes of agonizing silence while the men hurried closer to check on Shane. “He’s dead, sir.”

When Daniel heard their words, he rushed to the grave. He fell on his knees and began tearing at the dirt with both hands. “Marti! Marti, I’m here!” One of the other officers found the shovel and began digging as well. “God, please don’t let her be dead.”

Brent came over to help. “Be careful, she may be right under the surface.”

It seemed to take an eternity before they hit something besides dirt. They quickly uncovered the black plastic and Daniel jumped into the shallow hole beside it.

Daniel tore into the plastic with his bare hands and cried when he saw Marti’s face. Her eyes were closed, her face was cut and bruised, and her hair was matted with sweat. He gently tugged the tape from her mouth and pushed the hair out of her face. He leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Marti. Wake up, sweetheart.”

Brent pulled him back. “Let the EMT’s work on her, Daniel.”

Daniel squatted back on his feet, breathless. The EMT moved up beside him and put his fingers on Marti’s neck. He looked up at Daniel. “She has a pulse.”

A wave of thankfulness washed over him. “Thank you, Lord. Thank you.”

Daniel and the EMT worked to open the plastic bag and gently lift her out onto the ground. They placed an oxygen mask over her face as Daniel knelt beside her and caressed her cheek. In a few minutes, she opened her eyes in panic and moaned. He leaned in and whispered. “It’s okay, honey. You’re going to be okay.” He hugged her. “I love you, Marti.”

When her eyes found his, her struggling stopped, and her body relaxed. The deputy cut the ropes around her hands and she reached for Daniel. He leaned over and pulled her to him tightly. “I thought I’d lost you, but I prayed to God, and He answered.”

Marti leaned toward him and melted in his arms. Daniel held her and prayed out loud. “Thank you, Lord, for saving my wife. Thank you.”

SEVENTY-FIVE

EVERY MUSCLE IN MARTI’S BODY
ached, but she wasn’t going to complain. She was thankful to be alive. She moved slowly in the bed and cringed when her sore muscles cramped. One eye was still swollen, but she could tell the swelling was down from last night. She hated to look in the mirror—afraid she might look even worse than she felt.

“Take it slow and easy, Marti, and you’ll be as good as new.” That’s what the doctor said late last night when she arrived at the hospital.

She pulled the sheet off her body and slid to the edge of the bed. Rain outside the window made pinging noises on the window ledge, so she hobbled across the room to glance at the gray clouds in the sky. Dawn was just beginning, and the faint light over the horizon was barely visible behind the rain-drenched clouds.

Thoughts of Shane entered her head, and instead of anger or fear, she felt only pity. His life had been filled with one catastrophe after another. No wonder he snapped. “Lord, forgive Shane. I want to. He was trying to be kind in his own way. And, thank You, Lord, for sending Daniel to save me. You answered my prayer. I’m sorry for doubting You.”

She didn’t know what to think about what she’d heard last night. She was so sure she heard Daniel thanking God for saving his
wife
. Yet, that couldn’t be right. If Daniel had known she was his wife, he wouldn’t have been holding her and carrying her to the ambulance. Maybe he said “life”
instead of “wife.” She must have misunderstood.

She still shuddered when she thought about that black plastic bag, but God’s peace was slowly taking away the feeling of terror when she thought about the graveyard and that shallow grave.

A candy striper came through the door with a hospital tray in her hands. “How about some breakfast, Ms. Rushing? I know it’s a little early, but you’re the first on my floor and the only one awake.”

Marti ran her fingers through her hair. “Thank you. I’ll try to eat something.”

The volunteer smiled. “I’ll put it right here beside the chair if you’d like to sit here and eat. I’ll come back for the tray.” She laid the tray on the bedside table and pulled out a large ice pack from her cart. “Your young man asked me to bring this for that eye. A young rascal might be happy with that shiner, but a nice lady like you probably wishes it would go away.”

“My young man? Do you mean Daniel?”

“I mean that tall, handsome fella who stayed by your bedside all night, that’s who I mean. He got a phone call about thirty minutes ago and said to tell you he’d be back soon. I think it was a police detective—something about a woman named Veronica and a little boy named Chris.”

Marti’s heart sank. She gave the volunteer a trembling smile as she left and tenderly sat down in the chair beside the bed. Daniel had gone back to Veronica.

“Lord, I failed. What would you have me do now?”

Trust me.

“All right, Lord. I’ll try.”

She sighed and lifted the lid off the plate. The smell of eggs, grits, and toast made her stomach growl. The last meal she’d had was the afternoon before in the hospital. She took several bites of eggs and closed her eyes in appreciation. When she opened them again, Pastor Sammons was walking by her doorway. He glanced in the door as he went by but took a step back and stood in the doorway.

“Marti! What are you doing here?”

She smiled. “It’s a long story, Pastor Sammons. Are you here visiting someone?”

“Anabelle Struthers finally had her baby—a girl.”

Marti grinned. “Hallelujah for her—after all those boys.”

The pastor came and sat down beside her. “That’s quite a shiner you got there. You didn’t fall off a horse again, did you?”

Marti grimaced. Gossip sure flew around this town. “I’ll explain sometime,” she said with a smile.

Pastor Sammons grinned. “Hey, I wanted to come to the ranch and see you before you left. I know Saturday will be hard for you, and I thought you might be planning to leave before then.”

Marti leaned her head to the side. “Oh really?”

The pastor lowered his head and studied his shoes. “With the wedding and all.”

Marti’s chest heaved up and down. The wedding? Daniel and Veronica? Was it still this Saturday? A wave of cold shivered through her body, and she couldn’t think what to say.

After Daniel’s attention last night at the cemetery, she wasn’t ready to accept his getting married. “I thought . . . I mean . . . he hasn’t mentioned . . .”

Pastor Sammons patted her hand. “I’m sorry, Marti. Maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned the wedding.”

“I really thought he’d called it off.”

“Called it off? No, not that I know of. I haven’t heard anything different from Veronica, and I just saw Daniel early this morning. He didn’t say anything about calling it off.”

“Oh.” The pain in her heart got stronger and squeezed the breath out of her lungs. She had to think about something else before she fainted. “Is it supposed to rain all day? Do you know, Pastor Sammons?”

He looked at her and searched her eyes. “Are you okay, Marti?”

“I’m fine, sir. Thank you for stopping in to see me. It’s been good seeing you again. I’ll let you know before I leave Texas.”

The preacher looked surprised, but stood and patted her arm. “Goodbye, Marti. I’ll keep you in my thoughts and prayers.”

“Thank you.” She knew the words were mumbled and insincere, but it was all she could manage at the moment.

After he left, she sat looking at the meal in front of her. It smelled like burned rubber, and she pushed it away.

She’d been so sure she heard Daniel say he loved her at the cemetery. The way he kissed her and held her—happy to find her alive—she thought he cared about her a little—at least enough to call off the wedding. Maybe he remembered the accident and wasn’t willing to forgive.

All the work she and Gerald had done to help Daniel remember what happiness and love felt like—none of it had worked. Gerald told her that Daniel’s memory had finally returned, but being able to remember had not changed his mind about love. He would marry Veronica and be miserable, and there was nothing she could do about it. She’d run out of time.