Love Inspired Suspense March 2015 - Box Set 1 of 2: Protection Detail\Hidden Agenda\Broken Silence (35 page)

TWENTY

E
d hung up with his friend Archie just as Bailey came back into the living room. The whole situation was becoming precarious, and he didn't know whom he could trust anymore. Archie had never let him down before, though.

Finding the information seemed a futile task. Now there was that dead body that had washed up on the shore. Ed had a feeling that the man was Arnold, the dockworker. What he didn't know was why he might have been killed or by whom. Had the man betrayed them? Made a fatal mistake that had sealed his destiny?

Even more worrisome was the fact that Ed's picture was in the man's wallet. Would he be framed for this? The state police had been called in, and there would be an investigation into the matter. This was more than one sheriff on the island could handle. Who knew what other kind of evidence had been planted? He certainly didn't.

Just then, someone knocked at the door. Ed motioned for Bailey to stay back; he would answer, just in case. He was surprised when he saw Todd standing on the stoop there.

“I have those windows. I'm sure you're anxious to replace that wood in your kitchen, especially since they're calling for thunderstorms over the next several nights.”

He opened the door more. “Please. Come in.”

Todd glanced at Bailey and nodded. “Bailey. How are you?”

She smiled, though the action looked strained. “Hanging in.”

“I heard about the body that washed up on the shore. It's been the talk of the island.”

Ed had to play it cool so he didn't raise suspicions. “Crazy, isn't it?”

“Yeah, stuff like that doesn't happen around here. It's already got everyone on edge. Between that and all the visitors we've seen around here lately.”

“Visitors?” Ed asked.

Todd nodded. “Yeah, this usually isn't tourist season, but there have been some people staying at the bed-and-breakfast in town. They don't really seem like the remote-fishing-island type of people, more like the New York City type.”

“Anyone know why they're here?” Ed kept his voice even.

Todd shrugged. “
Were
here. They left two days ago. They were supposedly on a marriage retreat.”

“So, it was a man and a woman?” Bailey asked, glancing at Ed.

“Yeah, a younger couple. Anyway, almost everyone in town was speculating about them. You know how small towns are.” Todd sat down his toolbox on the kitchen table.

Ed crossed his arms and leaned against the counter. “I suppose I'm the source of some of the speculation.”

Todd laughed, but the noise sounded too forced. “I can't deny it. Rumor has it that you were running around in Europe, cavorting with kings and diplomats.”

“People have wild imaginations, don't they? And here I am, just a boring lawyer.”

Todd glanced back at Bailey. “And, of course, everyone thought Bailey would leave. Now they think the two of you have fallen in love or something.”

Bailey let out a nervous laugh. “That's crazy.”

“She's been a real godsend helping me out around here,” Ed said.

“I'm getting paid,” Bailey added.

Todd raised his eyebrows. Perhaps they were objecting too much.

He turned back to Ed as he unloaded his tools. “You selling this place?”

Ed shrugged. “I'm considering my options.”

“Lots of people would like to have their hands on a piece of property like this.”

“But not everyone could live without a car or access to a shopping mall.”

“I can't argue with that.” Todd turned back to the window. “So, anyway, this should take maybe an hour to put the windows in and caulk around the edges.”

Ed nodded. “I'll give you a hand.”

At this point, he didn't trust anyone easily. No way was he leaving this guy here by himself.

“Ed, can I have a moment?” Bailey asked.

He nodded and stepped down the hallway.

“Let me have a few minutes alone with him,” she said.

“Why would I do that? I don't know if I can trust him. I don't want to leave him alone with you. He knew this house, Bailey. He's been in and out. He's a suspect in my mind.”

“He might talk to me,” she insisted. “Let me give it a shot.”

“You really want to do this?” Ed stared at her, wanting to protect her, but knowing he had to trust her, as well.

She nodded. “I do.”

Ed stepped back. “Okay. But I'm staying close, just in case.”

* * *

Bailey and Ed walked back into the kitchen. Bailey took a deep breath, trying to tap into her best acting skills. She reminded herself of the life-and-death implications of doing this and prayed that God would forgive her for this charade she was putting on.

“I'm going to go grab some things outside,” Ed told Todd, continuing toward the back door. “I'll be right back.”

“No hurry,” Todd mumbled.

Bailey tried to look casual as she stood against the kitchen island.

Todd looked over and smiled. “You sticking around?”

“Why not?” She observed Todd, wondering if he was the person behind the footsteps Mary Lou had heard. He was too thin and lightweight, she concluded. Yet he wasn't telling the truth about something.

Todd pried the plywood from the window. “Yeah, why not?”

“I need to be honest, Todd. I have a question for you.”

“Ask away.”

She paused for just a moment, praying that she'd have the right words and approach. “Did you put in a walkway in the hayloft for Mr. Carter?”

His eyes flickered with surprise, but he kept working, not missing a beat. “Actually, I did.”

“When did you do that?”

“Mr. Carter asked me to about a month ago.”

“Why didn't I know about that? It seems odd that he would have kept that from me.”

Todd shrugged. “I don't know. The whole project only took a day. I think you'd gone over to the mainland to pick up his prescriptions or something.”

“Did he say why he needed a walkway up there?”

Todd shook his head. “It wasn't my business. He told me not to tell anyone about it, though.”

Wasn't that interesting? There was something else that Todd knew that he wasn't sharing. Bailey wanted to know what. Before she could ask, Ed stepped back inside.

“Bailey, I just remembered something I need to get in town. I was wondering if you could go with me.”

She stared at him, trying to read him. She wasn't through questioning Todd yet. Yet she could tell by Ed's gaze that he needed to talk to her.

“Sure,” she finally muttered.

“We'll be back in thirty, forty minutes,” Ed told Todd.

As soon as they were outside, Bailey turned to Ed. “What was that about?”

“We're not really leaving,” Ed whispered as they stepped outside. “I heard the conversation from outside. He's hiding something.”

“Yeah, I thought the same thing. I didn't have a chance to get enough information out of him before you interrupted.”

“We're going to wait in those trees over there. If my hunch is correct, he's going to go out to the garage and do some investigating himself. Especially if he knows something.”

“You think?”

He nodded.

They started down the pathway leading into town, but then skirted around the property of the house until they reached the side yard. They squatted there and waited.

Bailey thought about telling Ed about her conversation with her sister. She thought about mentioning that a man who looked like Micah had shown up at her sister's place. But if she shared that information, Ed might ask too many questions. He might put too many details together and realize that Bailey was more involved in this than she'd admitted.

The questions and choices battled in her mind. She wanted to be honest with him. But she also had to look out for her family. Her head pounded as she weighed her options.

Just when Bailey thought for sure that Ed was wrong, Todd stepped out the back door. He looked from side to side, as if searching for anyone watching. When he didn't see anyone, he stepped onto the grass and headed straight for...the garage!

“Just what is he up to?” Bailey muttered.

“He might be the culprit in all of this. You said he lied about not being in town, right?” Ed whispered.

She nodded. “Yeah, Samantha said she saw him. He told me he was out of town.”

“Did you say he's former military?”

Bailey nodded. “He sure is.”

“That only solidifies my suspicions.”

As Todd disappeared into the garage, Ed stood. “Come on. We've got to stay quiet, though.”

Bailey nodded. Ed took her hand and pulled her behind him. They stayed low as they approached the garage. Slowly, they slid in through the open barn door.

Footsteps sounded overhead. Someone was up there.
Todd
was up there.

Ed put a finger over his lips, motioning for her to be quiet. Bailey nodded as Ed pulled out his gun and crept toward the wooden ladder leading upstairs. With stealthlike quietness, he climbed upward. Bailey stayed behind, waiting for his signal to follow.

A moment later, he came back to the ladder. “I don't see him,” Ed whispered.

“What do you mean? Where'd he go?” Bailey asked.

Ed shook his head. “I don't know. He's not up here.”

Bailey climbed the ladder, desperate to see for herself. She knew she'd heard those footsteps. Todd was here somewhere. He didn't just disappear.

But when she reached the loft, what Ed said was confirmed. It was empty.

“What's going on?” Bailey whispered.

“I wish I knew.”

Just then, the wall slid open and Todd stood there, an unreadable expression on his face.

* * *

“Please. I can explain,” Todd started, raising his hands in the air. “Just don't shoot me.”

“Then start talking,” Ed groused.

“Your dad asked me to build this room. I didn't ask any questions. I just did as he asked.” He stood in the doorway on the other side of the loft, frozen.

Ed observed how the wall was still made with old wood, so based on outer appearances, no one could tell there was anything different. He'd done a good job concealing the space.

“So, why did you sneak up here now?” Bailey asked.

“Mr. Carter told me I couldn't tell anyone this was here. Anyone. But now he's dead, and I wondered if there was something in here that I should know about.”

“Why would you need to know about anything?” Ed asked.

“What if there were explosives in here? Or dead bodies? I don't know. Everyone on the island thought your dad was a spook. I had no idea what was in here. But now that he's not here, I thought it deserved a check.”

Ed pointed with his gun toward the wall. “What's in there?”

Todd shrugged. “It's a darkroom.”

“A darkroom?” Certainly Ed hadn't heard correctly.

Todd nodded. “Like a photographer might use to process pictures.”

“And you're telling me my dad, who was in his sixties, came out here, climbed that ladder and went into a darkroom?” Something wasn't adding up. Ed just couldn't see his father doing that. Not unless it was for a really important reason.

“I never saw him do it. I can't imagine who else this room would be for.”

Ed turned to Bailey. “You have any idea what this is about?”

“I'm just as perplexed as you are,” she admitted. “It doesn't make any sense.”

“You've got to believe me when I say I'm not guilty of anything here,” Todd insisted. “I just wanted to check things out, make sure everything was okay in here.”

“Todd, you told me you got back to the island on the day after the storm. Someone else told me they saw you here before the storm. Why did you lie?” Bailey asked.

”I didn't,” he said. “I did come back two days before the storm. Then some people on the mainland hired me to help them board up their homes and prepare for high winds we were supposed to have, so I left again.” He looked back and forth from Bailey and Ed. “What's going on here? Why do you have a gun anyway?”

“I can't tell you that.”

“What...what are you going to do now?” Todd stared at the gun still.

“I haven't decided.” Just as he said the words, something clicked in Ed's mind.

He knew why his father had a darkroom. He also knew why he had the microscope and the other equipment. There was only one reason his father would have risked coming up here. Only one reason why his father would want a hidden room.

“Todd, please go finish the window. I'll handle things here.”

“You're not going to shoot me?”

Ed shook his head and put his gun away. “Of course not. What do you think, that I'm some kind of barbarian?”

Todd didn't say anything else. He simply scrambled past and hurried down the ladder.

Ed stared into the opening of the room. He knew exactly what he needed to look for. He just prayed to God he could find it.

TWENTY-ONE

S
tepping into the room, Ed began looking around. Everything had fallen into place in his mind.

He searched through all the equipment, but didn't find anything. That meant his father had hidden the information, and that he'd hidden it well. Maybe too well. Like a needle in a haystack, which was fitting, since they were in a loft in a barn.

“Can you tell me what's going on?” Bailey asked. She leaned against the doorway with her arms crossed.

Ed paused, leaning against the table. “I can't tell you.”

She shook her head, disillusionment in her gaze. “After everything we've been through together, you can't tell me?”

He wished he could. He really did. And most of the time, he thought he could trust Bailey. But every once in a while, he caught a glimpse of something in her eyes. Something that she was hiding.

And until he knew what that something was, he couldn't tell her about his realization. It was too risky. There was too much at stake.

“I'm sorry, Bailey. As soon as I can, I'll tell you.”

She shook her head and straightened. “You're serious?”

He nodded, unable to ignore the accusation and hurt in her gaze. “It's complicated.”

“I'd say.” Her voice sounded just above a whisper.

He leaned closer and lowered his voice. “Bailey, why don't you tell me your secret? Then I'll share mine.”

Her face went slack, and he knew he'd hit the nail on the head. She
did
have a secret. Was she working for the other side? Did she have some kind of personal stake in all of this?

“I can't,” she whispered. Her eyes looked tortured as she looked up at him. Her voice trembled.

He closed the space between them, wishing he could read the look in her eyes a little better. She almost looked scared. But what reason would she have for being scared? “Why not? Why can't you tell me, Bailey?”

“It's complicated,” she said, echoing his earlier words.

The two stared at each other a moment until finally Bailey stepped back, tears pouring down her cheeks. “I'm going to go make myself useful.”

Ed's heart clutched with a mix of grief, betrayal and distrust. He never wanted to see Bailey cry again...but until they were both able to be honest with each other, he couldn't guarantee it wouldn't happen again.

* * *

Three hours later, Bailey's anxiety only continued to increase. The deadline that bully had given her was tomorrow. If she didn't find that information tonight, then her sister would die. Ed obviously knew something, but he wasn't sharing. Part of her couldn't blame him.

But despair was threatening to overtake her. She had to keep her sister safe; she simply had no idea how.

After Todd left, the state police stopped by to ask questions about the body found on shore. She and Ed remained cordial to each other, but it was obvious a wall had gone up between them.

As soon as it turned eight, Bailey stood and stretched. “I'm going to turn in for the evening. It's been a long day.”

Ed nodded from the recliner, where he'd absently been staring at the fire. “Good night, then.”

Just as she took a step away, he called her back. Bailey paused, holding her breath, secretly hoping that he would share something with her—something that would help.

“I just wanted you to know that my friend Micah may be stopping by tomorrow. He said he found out something, but he wants to share that information in person.”

Alarm jolted through her. Was Micah who he claimed to be? Or was he working for the bad guys?

She nodded weakly, desperately needing to think things through. “Got it,” she finally muttered.

Ed's gaze stayed on her, asking her silent questions that she didn't answer. He knew she was acting strange, and she wished more than anything that she could tell him the reasons why. But she couldn't. Not now. Maybe not ever.

She waited an hour after she heard Ed retreat to his room downstairs. The house finally went silent. She pictured Ed exhausted and falling into a deep sleep. That was probably wishful thinking, however. He was like a loyal guard dog—always on alert, always watching and anticipating.

Her best guess was still the library. Moving quietly, she opened her door and stepped out into the hallway. She gently pulled the door shut behind her and began tiptoeing down the hall.

Ed seemed to have animal-like instincts at times; she prayed he wouldn't hear her now.

She reached the library without a sign of anyone behind her. Maybe—just maybe—this would work. She could hope, at least. But if Ed found out she was keeping this secret, she feared he might kick her out of the house and never trust her again.

Not only would this “mission” be lost, but so would the start of what could have been a great relationship with Ed. She'd felt secure, protected, cherished even. She hadn't felt that way in a long time—maybe ever. Though they'd only known each other a short time, she already couldn't imagine her life without him.

Moving quickly but quietly, she started from scratch, as if she'd never searched this room before. She looked in books, under knickknacks, in every crevice of the desk there.

She found nothing.

What was she even looking for? Papers? Files? A jump drive or a disk? She had no idea, which only made this more complicated. Maybe this information was on a picture. Would that explain the photo lab in the barn? She didn't know, and her head was spinning from exhaustion and stress.

Finally, she sat back on the floor, feeling defeated. She had no idea. She'd searched every part of this room she thought possible. Where did she go from here?

She closed her eyes and replayed Mr. Carter's last days, the days when he was still mobile. They'd gone for a couple of walks on the bay. They'd sat on the porch. They'd spent a lot of time in front of the fireplace.

Other than that, they'd done their usual. She'd read to him. They'd eaten meals together. He'd told her about the different places he'd been in the world.

Was there a clue in any of that? She didn't see how there could be.

She refused to let the tears that wanted to spill over escape onto her cheeks. She wasn't going to give up. Not yet. She'd fight this until the end.

She started back up to her room, needing to regroup. At the last minute, she headed up to the widow's walk. It'd been her sanctuary for weeks and maybe now it would help clear her head.

Quietly, she climbed the spiral staircase. At the top, she found comfort in the fact that the area was relatively uncluttered. The only things in the space were a small padded bench and a plant that she'd promised to water. At least she had no fear of someone hiding up here.

That didn't stop apprehension from filling her as she took her first step.

No, no one would be hiding, but being up here did make her feel exposed. Since it was so dark outside, no one should be able to see her, she told herself.

She sat on the bench and pulled her knees to her chest, praying for some kind of answer or solution. She was plain out of ideas.

If that information were in the house, where would Mr. Carter have put it? They'd searched everywhere. Even the garage, the closets, drawers, under rugs and behind paintings.

The only place they hadn't searched was...up here.

This area was so empty, so sparsely decorated, that the thought had never occurred to them.

She stood. It was incredibly dark, but her eyes had adjusted some to the blackness. Her options were limited, but it was worth a shot.

She lifted the cushion of her bench and held her breath.

There was nothing there.

She flipped the bench over and examined the bottom.

Again, nothing.

Next, she looked under the rug and under the potted plant. She didn't find anything and familiar desperation began to set in.

The last thing she did was to pull the potted plant out of the decorative pot it had been placed in.

What she saw there made her suck in a deep breath.

It was a small, clear bag.

With something inside.

She carefully lifted it and broke the seal at the top. Inside, there were two envelopes. The first one had Ed's name on it. The second one had hers.

Her hands trembled as she opened the letter and pulled out a folded piece of paper. She held the note close, trying to make out the handwritten words. It was no use. It was just too dark, too hard to see.

She'd have to take the letters down to her room and read her letter there.

Anticipation zipped through her muscles and bones.

If this weren't the “information,” maybe it would offer a clue as to what that information was or how to find it.

It made sense now. Mr. Carter knew she loved it up here. He had to figure she'd eventually discover this hiding spot. In fact, he'd said something about taking this plant with her if anything ever happened to him. She'd never put it together before.

She had to get downstairs and—

“I'll take those,” someone said.

Bailey gasped and jumped back a step.

She looked up to see a man and woman standing at the door by the stairway. The man pointed a gun at her, while the woman had her hand outstretched, waiting for the letters. The woman was petite and thin with short black hair and a heart-shaped face. There was nothing heartlike about her eyes, though. They looked cold, calculating and like she could strike at any minute.

“Who are you?”

The man smirked. “Last-minute changes to a person's will can raise red flags.”

Those were the same words that... Bailey swung her gaze toward the man and gasped. She fully expected to see A.J. Andrews.

But it wasn't. Or was it? He looked different. There was no cleft chin. His cheekbones weren't as high. His hair wasn't as full.

“A.J.?”

“The real A.J. Andrews is dead. He had an unfortunate accident. The man you spoke with at the office was my younger brother. Most people call me Sanderson.”

“You're behind all of this?”

He smiled at her as if the answer to that question was obvious. “I figured in good time you'd lead me to the information. Good work, Bailey.”

Bailey shook her head and pulled the letters closer to her chest. “They're just goodbye letters. Not information.”

“If they're just goodbye letters, why don't you hand them over? It shouldn't be a big deal,” the woman crooned, raising a thinly arched eyebrow.

“It's a big deal because they're mine, not yours.” Bailey had to buy time. She had to think!

Sanderson cocked the gun. “Are you willing to give up your life for those letters?”

Bailey's shoulders tightened. “You're going to kill me anyway. I'm not naive.”

The woman reached into her pocket and threw something at Bailey. She braced herself for a flare, an explosion...pain. Instead, she saw a flashlight roll at her feet.

“Read it out loud,” the woman instructed.

“Who are you anyway?” Bailey asked as she reached down for the light.

“I wouldn't ask many questions right now,” the woman said.

Bailey flicked the light on, trying to control the tremble in her hands.

The man and woman blocked the only entrance and exit from the room. They had a gun, and Bailey didn't. There were two of them and one of her.

This wasn't good, and she had no idea how to get out of the situation.