Luke studied Borenson’s body. “What did Borenson have or know that Charles Grant wanted? He was tortured over a period of time. Some of these cuts look days old.” He backed out of the room. “Close the door so we can breathe. Good work, Nancy.”
“Thanks. This bunker was hidden.” She shut the heavy steel door, then pulled a second pocket door from the wall. “It looks like a real wall when it’s pulled all the way across. Mansfield had his sliding wall half open, so we found his bunker fast. When I saw this wall I knew it was the same. There might be other hidden rooms in this house.”
“Bobby could still be here, hiding. Keep looking.” Luke climbed the stairs, but before he had a chance to dial Chase, his phone began buzzing. It was Chase, and from the road noise, he was in his car. “It doesn’t look like Bobby’s here,” Luke said, “but Borenson’s body is. He’s been tortured. Germanio can arrest Charles Grant.”
“Contact Germanio, have him make the arrest. Did you find anything on Bobby?”
“No, but we’re still looking.” Luke heard a tenseness in Chase’s voice that had his pulse scrambling. “Is Susannah all right?” The thought of her facing that house again made him sick. But Talia believed they’d found a connection to Darcy, so Chase had okayed it. Luke didn’t think he could have, so it was a good thing Chase was in charge.
“She’s fine,” Chase said. “It’s that cop Agent Grimes saw in Charlotte, Paul Houston. We got his photo. Luke, it’s the guy Susannah described to the sketch artist.”
Luke’s jaw dropped. “What? An Atlanta cop raped Susannah in New York?”
“That’s what it looks like. But there’s more. This morning Paul Houston was assigned to guard Daniel’s house when he got home from the hospital. Houston specifically requested it.”
Luke’s blood ran cold. “Oh my God.”
“Daniel’s fine. I called him as soon as I knew. Apparently there was a problem with his dog making a mess in his house. Your mother called one of your cousins.”
Luke exhaled in relief. “Nick. He’s got a carpet-cleaning business. Is he all right?”
“He’s fine. He hadn’t gotten there yet, so Daniel and Alex went to stay with your mother. Your mother’s fine, too. Everybody’s fine, except me. I’m working with APD’s IA, but I want this guy watched now, so I drove out to Daniel’s. Five minutes ago Houston got a call on his cell phone and left. I’m following. He’s headed west, driving very fast.”
“Toward us.”
“Maybe. I’ve pulled together a tag-team pursuit, so he won’t detect the tail. I’m hoping he’s going to meet Bobby. Call Susannah, make sure she knows about him. Finish your search and stay within the limits of the warrant. I don’t want Charles Grant slipping off our hook. I’ll call you when I know where Paul Houston is going.”
Dutton, Monday, February 5, 1:30 p.m.
Bobby couldn’t stop grinning. Susannah was exactly where she wanted her, kneeling. That Susannah was kneeling next to piles of cash was the sugar on top.
“Where is Agent Scott?” Susannah asked stonily.
Bobby had to hand it to her. After the initial shock, Susannah didn’t show a flicker of fear. “She’s not dead, if that’s what you’re asking. I didn’t even shoot her. Yet.”
Susannah’s eyes narrowed. Gray eyes, Bobby thought, not blue like our father’s. Or like Daniel’s or Simon’s and mine.
“How much money is in the safe?”
Susannah shrugged coolly. “Couple of thousand. Maybe more. Take it and go.”
Bobby smiled. “I will. But first you’re going to open every safe in this house.”
Susannah’s chin lifted. “Open them your goddamn self.”
Bobby’s foot shot out, kicking Susannah under the chin. She landed on her back, Bobby’s foot on her throat. “I said,” Bobby snarled, “you’ll do it.” Bobby applied pressure to her throat, aiming her gun at Susannah’s head. “Now get up. The next time you give me lip, I put a bullet in Agent Scott.”
Bobby grabbed a fistful of Susannah’s hair and yanked her to her feet. To her credit, Susannah didn’t whimper. The little woman had proven to be tougher than she looked and not to be underestimated. Bobby shoved her out of the study, past Talia Scott, who was only half conscious after being tasered, gagged, handcuffed, and hog-tied.
Halfway up the stairs, Bobby heard a faint ringing and Susannah stopped short. “That’s my cell. It’s probably Agent Papadopoulos. If I don’t answer it, he’ll worry.”
Bobby considered it. Once she’d killed Susannah, she’d have to kill Papadopoulos sooner or later. He was the kind of man who wouldn’t rest until she, Bobby, was punished, especially if Susannah was dead. Which she soon would be.
However, Bobby preferred to deal with Papadopoulos at a time and place of her own choosing. Dealing with two small women was one thing. Papadopoulos was a big man and would likely come with a posse of his own. “Does your cell phone have a speaker?”
“Yes.”
“Then answer it.” Bobby knelt next to Agent Scott and put the gun to her head. “Be very careful what you say, little sister, or her blood will be on your hands.”
Bobby had the satisfaction of watching Susannah grow pale.
“It’s stopped ringing,” she said.
“Then call him back. Tell him you found the records you were looking for. Tell him that you and Agent Scott are starting back to Atlanta. And be convincing.”
Susannah reached for her purse.
“Uh-uh-uh,” Bobby scolded. “I remember your purse from yesterday.”
“I’m not armed,” she said quietly. “Not anymore.”
“Well, I’m not taking any chances. Bring the purse here and dump it on the floor in front of me. Do it now.” Susannah obeyed and Bobby looked through her things. No gun. “Fine. Put out your hands.”
Susannah glanced at Agent Scott, then held out her hands. Bobby found the sound of snapping cuffs satisfying. “Now call your man. Use the speaker.”
Susannah obeyed once more. “Luke, it’s me. Sorry, I wasn’t close to my phone.”
There was a sigh of relief. “I was getting nervous. Where are you?”
“At Mama and Daddy’s, but not for much longer. Talia and I found what we were looking for, so we’re just about to head back to Atlanta.”
“You found the records, then? A connection back to Darcy Williams?”
“We sure did. I’ll see you back at the office.”
“Susannah, wait. Am… am I on the speaker phone?”
“Yeah, I’m sorry. My arms are pretty full, so I hit the hands-free button.”
“Where is Talia?”
“Out at the car,” she improvised, and Bobby nodded approval. “She took a load of books we found in Daddy’s office. Ledgers and diaries.”
“Then why are your hands full if Talia’s got all the books?”
Susannah faltered. “I… I’ve got a box,” she said, injecting a note of brightness into her voice, “filled with some of Mama’s things that I want to keep.” She hesitated. “I love you, Lukamou,” she said quietly. “I’ll see you later.” She hung up, her hands trembling.
“How sweet,” Bobby said with a sneer. With her strong arm she dragged Agent Scott to a crawlspace beneath the stairs and locked her in, then on second thought, opened the door and shot her in the leg. Scott’s cry was muted by the tape on her mouth. Bobby cast an amused glance at Susannah, who looked as horrified as she’d hoped. “Leigh Smithson gave the rundown on the GBI team. She said Talia Scott was extremely formidable and not to be underestimated. A veritable Houdini at escaping.”
“You shot her,” Susannah said furiously. “She was no threat to you.”
“Like I said, I’m not taking any chances. A shot in the leg will slow her down if she decides to run. Now get up those stairs and start remembering the birthdays of all the Vartanian relatives I never got to meet. We have four more safes to open.”