Tales of Chills and Thrills: The Mystery Thriller Horror Box Set (7 Mystery Thriller Horror Novels) (90 page)

Riley stopped and glanced over his shoulder. “But what will I
do?”

Tara answered quickly, “You can just be there. I will know that
you’re with me, even when I can’t see you.”

Riley turned to face them and realized that he stared at two
friends. “In seventy years I’ve never been away from this house and this land.
I don’t know if it’s even possible.”

Bowden chuckled low in his throat. “You won’t know unless you
try.”

“True,” Riley replied.

“Let’s get some sleep,” Bowden suggested. “We won’t be able to
rent a boat until seven or eight, I don’t think, so we might as well get some
rest.”

Tara nodded. “I could really use some.”

She yawned and Bowden yawned a second later. Tara left the two
men and went to her room. They watched her from the hallway until she
disappeared up the stairs.

“She’s really something,” Bowden said.

Riley glanced over at him, concerned about his interest in her.
“You’re almost twice her age.”

Bowden’s head snapped up. “What? Oh. She’s beautiful, too. I
wasn’t thinking about that though.”

“Really?” Riley asked skeptically.

“Yeah. I was actually thinking how lucky you were.”

“Me?”

Bowden sighed and shook his head. “What, you can’t tell that she
loves you?”

Riley froze. He had never considered it. “How can she love me?
Technically I don’t even exist.”

“I don’t mean physically. I guess she’s connected with the
person… um, your inner being?”

Riley looked over at the stairs. “Don’t ask me. I can’t even
figure myself out.”

Chase laughed. “Nobody can, my friend. Nobody can.” He looked at
the couch in the living room and motioned at it. “I guess I’ll sleep there.”

Bowden threw the pillows from the back of the couch onto the
floor to give himself more room to sleep. He kicked off his shoes and let out a
long sigh as he lay down. “Do you sleep?” he asked the ghost.

“No.”

“Then wake me at seven.”

Riley watched the big man close his eyes. The skin on his face
sagged as he relaxed. His mouth opened slightly as he dropped into a deep
sleep.

Riley turned away and walked up the stairs.

The door to Tara’s room was slightly ajar, which was something
new for her. She usually left it closed. He walked in and saw her curled up
under the covers. Bowden’s shirt lay discarded on the floor and the black
slacks that Tara had worn for so many hours were draped over the end of the
bed.

Riley sat next to her and wondered about the words Bowden had
said. Did she really love him? He stared at her face and sadly shook his head.
Even if she loved him, what could he do? He had no way to return that love and
she would grow older, while he would be thirty-two forever.

He saw her eyelids flicker and knew that she was dreaming. He
hoped it was a pleasant dream, one that would ease the pain of the day. Too
many people died for something that still remained unknown. And one person was
still missing. Michelle. She was Tara’s best friend. The eighteen-year-old had
only looked at the good things in life, and Riley hoped she still could.

He sighed. He didn’t like that line of thought. He hoped that
Michelle was still alive. He knew that Cooper was still trying to track her
down and that Bowden thought about it constantly. He wondered if he could take
a more active role in trying to find the girl and nodded as he answered his own
thoughts.

The air in the room shifted as it was disturbed by cold air.
Riley could feel the movement of the air but didn’t know how he could feel it.
He realized that someone had opened the front door and he stood up slowly as he
tried to figure out who it could be. He wondered if Bowden was awake.

Riley walked to the top of the stairs and looked down. A man
stood just inside the door with one hand on the knob as he closed it silently.
In his other hand he held a gun.

15

The man held the gun near his face with the barrel pointed up at
the ceiling. He looked familiar to Riley, but when he lowered the gun a little,
Riley didn’t know who it was. As the gun came down he noticed the square jaw
and curly blond hair. Sam squinted as he tried to verify who he thought it was.
He noticed the flat nose, the athletic build, the 5-foot-eleven inch frame.

It looked like Adam Fonck, but Adam was dead. Riley looked
closer. There was something different about the eyes. They were closer together
and deeper than Adam’s. The man took a step into the foyer and saw Riley. His
head snapped up and he straightened his arm, pointing the gun at Riley.

“Who are you?” the intruder whispered hoarsely.

“The Gray Ghost.”

The man paused and looked at him. “What?”

“Who are you?”

“Kent Fonck. What are you doing in this house?”

“I guess you could say that I live here.”

Kent smiled. “A friend of Tara’s? Is she home?”

“Yes, but we’re not going to wake her up.”

“She’s my cousin, you idiot. I’ll wake her up if I want to.”

Riley shook his head. “A friend of Tara’s wouldn’t sneak into
the house with a gun.”

“I don’t mean her any harm.”

Riley was getting a bad read from Kent. He decided to test his
feelings and asked the next question, watching closely for a reaction. “You
know someone tried to kidnap her today?”

“Really?”

Riley smiled. The reaction told him everything. There was no
hint of surprise or concern. Kent already knew.

“I was here when you grabbed her.”

Kent shrugged but his brows furrowed over his eyes. “Were you
the one who chased me? You look younger than I thought.”

“No. That was someone else.”

Kent let out a long sigh. “You know, I thought all the killing
was over.”

“Meaning?”

“I’ll have to kill you too.”

Riley laughed and Kent cocked his head to one side.

“What’s so funny?”

“You. You’re ready to kill me because I know that you tried to
kidnap Tara, but when you told me that, you confessed to killing Adam.”

“Up yours.” Kent pulled the trigger.

The sound was deafening and smoke and fire erupted from the
barrel of the gun as the round ripped through Riley’s form. Riley flinched,
jerking his head back and bringing his right hand up to knock the fedora from
his head. He smiled as he straightened up and looked down at the gunman.

Riley poked his finger into the hole in his forehead. “Good
shot,” he said, grinning.

Kent’s eyes bugged out from
the deep sockets, showing white all the way around the iris. He looked down
into the barrel of the gun and then glanced back up at Riley who was now
laughing out loud and uncontrollably.

Hearing the shot, Bowden woke with a start, heart racing. He
tore out into the hallway, saw Kent, and drove his shoulder into Kent’s side.
They fell at the base of the stairs, and Bowden grabbed Kent’s hair firmly in
his right hand and pounded him in the face with his left. His knuckles cracked
solidly on Kent’s jaw as the younger man tried to shrug him off. He spread his
legs to stabilize his position and dropped another left into the side of Kent’s
head.

Kent rolled slightly, from his right side onto his back, freeing
his right arm. He still held the gun in that hand and he used it as a club. He
swung it around and Chase managed to get his left hand up. Part of the blow was
deflected by Bowden’s forearm but his head stopped the rest of it.

Dazed, he fell to the side and Kent tried to scramble out from
under him. Chase clung desperately to the younger man’s jacket, trying to pull
him back underneath. A seam in the jacket gave way with a long, seam-popping,
rip.

He watched for Kent’s gun hand and when it came up again, he
swept Kent’s arm under his own, trapped it against his side and smashed the
bicep with his right first. Kent screamed as the muscle in his arm constricted
from the shock. Bowden punched the muscle again and the gun fell from Kent’s
limp fingers.

Kent shoved his left arm up under Bowden’s throat and wrenched
his damaged arm out of Bowden’s grasp. Bowden lost his grip but was still on
top. He swung a right at Kent’s face. Kent ducked and Bowden connected with the
top of Kent’s skull.

Blood trickled from Kent’s
nose and Bowden punched the red spot with a short, wicked left jab. Kent’s head
rocked back from the impact and blood splattered onto Bowden’s shirt. He drew
his hand back to deliver another blow, when Kent raised a knee into Bowden’s
groin. His face turned white and Kent threw him off. He reached out, grasping
Kent as he fell to the side, off the stairs,  and down onto the foyer
floor, dragging Kent with him. He had hold of Kent’s coat and another seam gave
as the jacket was stretched across Kent’s shoulders.

Riley watched wordlessly as the two men fought below him. He
could see that when the two landed by the front door, that Kent would be on top
and Bowden would be in a bad position. He launched himself from the top of the
stairs.

Kent glanced up and saw Riley running at him. He slipped out of
his jacket and bolted through the door. With the coat suddenly released, Bowden
fell, rolled over and rested his head on the floor, moaning softly.

Riley watched Kent run down the driveway to his car, which was
parked near the road. As soon as he was certain that Kent wasn’t coming back,
Riley turned his attention to Bowden.

“How you feeling?”

Bowden glanced up and then closed his eyes. “Nauseous,” he
gasped.

“Yeah. You took a couple of good lumps.”

Bowden moaned.

“You going to be okay?”

“Just give me a minute.”

Riley looked up and saw Tara at the head of the stairs. He
motioned for her to come down and then whispered to Bowden. “Tara’s coming. You
want her to see you like that?”

With a groan, Bowden pushed himself to a sitting position. “This
doesn’t help the nausea any.”

Riley laughed. “I think you’ll live.”

Tara dropped to her knees beside Bowden and gently touched the
bump over his left ear. He winced, drawing away from the gentle fingertips.

“Does that hurt?” Tara asked.

Riley laughed.

“What are you laughing at?” Bowden shot at Riley. “Of course it
hurts.”

“Let me get you some ice for that.” Tara jumped up and ran to
the kitchen.

“You want ice for your groin?” Riley asked.

“Shut up.” They started to laugh and Bowden stopped, placing
both hands on his head. He kicked the coat that lay near his feet. “That’s
twice he’s gotten away from me. He was at my hotel when I got out of the
hospital.”

“Well, um, actually that’s the third time. He also got away from
you when he kidnapped Tara. But who’s counting?”

Bowden sat up. “That’s him? Then he’s one of Vincent’s sons.”

“Kent.”

Bowden nodded and grabbed the jacket that was on the floor. He
was searching the pockets when Tara slapped some ice on the side of his head.

Riley watched him pull a cell phone out of the pocket and stare
at it. The phone was still on and Bowden pushed the redial button. Riley could
hear the ringing through the handset and heard another man answer.

“What now?”

Bowden’s brows closed together. “Bill?”

“Who else do you think it is? I’ve been stuck in this hotel room
for three days watching this stupid broad while you’ve been out…”

Bowden pushed the end button and smiled. He wrote the number
down in his notebook and looked up at Riley.

“Brotherly love,” he said. He winked and took his cell phone out
and dialed.

“Hello Detective,” he said into the phone when Cooper answered.

Riley could still hear both ends of the conversation and he saw
that Tara could too. She slid a little closer to Bowden.

“What’s going on, Chase? I went to the hospital and they told me
that you left before they had a chance to check you out.”

“Yeah, well I was in a hurry.”

“So where are you now?”

“I’m back at the Miller house. Hey. I’ve got another favor to
ask.”

“That’s the only reason you ever call.”

“I need a phone number traced. It’s to a hotel. I need the name
of the hotel and the room number.”

“What’s the number?”

Bowden gave it to him.

“Hold on a minute.” There was a click on the other end of the
line as Cooper placed him on hold.

Three minutes later Cooper picked up the line again. “Okay. I’ve
got it, but here’s the problem…”

“What’s that?” Bowden asked.

“You’re much closer than I am. If I give you the location then
you’ll… well….”

“You want to be in on it?”

“Of course and I don’t want you blowing our investigation.
Something tells me that I should get a search warrant.”

“You won’t need one. You have exigent circumstances.”

“Why’s that?”

“Michelle Fonck is in that room, being held against her will.”

Cooper didn’t speak right away. “You sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“Okay. The number belongs to The Longtree Motel. It’s in south
Bellevue off I-90.”

Bowden moved the phone away from his mouth and looked at Tara.
“Do you know where that is?”

She nodded.

“What room?” he asked Cooper.

“153.”

“See you there.” He hung up the phone, then struggled to his
feet, his teeth clinched and a groan escaping from his lips.

“You okay?” Riley asked.

Bowden nodded. “You coming?”

“I can’t. It’s almost light.”

Bowden picked up the gun
that Kent had dropped and tucked it behind his waistband. He limped down the
hallway to the couch where he had been sleeping and picked up the chart. He
held it up.

Riley recognized it instantly. “Now?” he asked.

“We’ll be going straight to the island.”

“Yeah, look, good luck, huh?”

Tara stared at him for several seconds.

Bowden opened the door. “Let’s go.”

They walked out to the car and Riley watched from the window. He
saw Tara glance back as she sat down in the passenger seat of Bowden’s latest
rental. White smoke escaped from the exhaust pipe and vanished into the air, as
Bowden raced the car down the driveway and out onto the road.

Riley watched the car until
it was out of sight and then moved back into the empty house. He ran his hands
over the front of his coat and turned in a half circle. He realized that he had
nothing to do. Slowly, he walked up the stairs and retrieved the fedora. He
lifted it, spun it in his fingers and placed it on his head. He nodded to
himself as he ascertained a fact that he had hid from himself for many years.
He was alone.

Bowden was on I-90 when his cell phone rang. He dug it out of
his pocket and searched for the little green button. He pushed it to receive
the call and raised the phone to his ear. As he did this, he glanced at the
speedometer. 93 mph.

“Hello?”

Bowden could hear a siren coming from the other end.

“Chase? Hey, I was headed to my car and saw a marked unit. I’m
on my way with one uniform. We just blew across Mercer Island. Where you at?”
Cooper was yelling over the noise of the siren and was so loud that Tara heard
him in the passenger seat.

“We’re about ten minutes out,” she said loudly. “Well, the way
he’s driving it will be about five.”

“I’m about five out,” Bowden said.

“All right, look, we’ll probably be about two minutes behind
you. Stop at the desk and verify the room number.”

Bowden changed lanes and passed another car. “Okay. Tell the
uniform to pick it up if he’s not in the triples.”

Cooper laughed into the phone. “I’m way ahead of you.”

Tara pointed at a green sign posted along the freeway. “That’s
the exit we want.”

He caught a glimpse of the sign, noticing that the exit was in
one mile. He started changing lanes to get to the right side of the road, and
seconds later pressed on the brake to slow the car down. He hit the exit ramp
at 75 mph and slowed as he approached the light. Tara pointed and gave
directions, and a minute later he parked the car at the front door of The
Longtree Hotel.

He jumped out of the car. As soon as he touched the pavement,
his right leg buckled. He stiffened it to stop his fall and felt his quads
cramp. Spinning around, he grabbed the roof of the car, grimacing as pain swept
up his leg to his brain.

Tara climbed out the passenger side and looked over the roof of
the car at him. “What’s wrong?”