Riddles that Kill Page 17

  No!

  The last place Maria wanted Karl to go sniffing around was her dresser with her Glock sitting on top.

  Hurry, Rod. Hurry.

  Sensing her new onset of apprehension, Karl sneered at Maria and stood up straight. “You don’t like that idea much, do you. Makes me wonder what might be in that dresser of yours.”

  The minute Karl turned around to walk to the dresser Rod would be spotted. Maria wasn’t sure how his marble rolling pin would fare against Karl’s knife. Probably not so well.

  “Okay,” said Maria loudly, “I can get you the money.”

  Karl quit turning and shot her a sickly grin. “Glad to see you’ve changed your mind, but that’s not going to stop me from seeing what’s in your dresser that you don’t want me to find.”

  Rod crossed the threshold of her bedroom. He held the rolling pin up.

  Faster!

  “But—” began Maria.

  Her ploy to distract Karl didn’t work. The man turned to walk to the dresser, saw Rod, and instantly pulled his knife out. “Hey!”

  “Hey, you,” said Rod, a look of terror on his face.

  “You lookin’ for trouble? Cause you found it.” Karl wielded the knife in front of him, not like an expert, but he most definitely had used it before.

  On the other hand, Rod gripped the rolling pin like it was his childhood security blanket.

  “You’d better … uh … drop the knife,” said Rod, who had raised the rolling pin in front of his chest.

  “Don’t think so. Why don’t you come get it from me?” Karl laughed.

  Rod hesitated for only a second and then launched himself at Karl.

  Maria shouted, “Careful, Rod!” Her heart thumped in her chest like a flat bicycle tire, going around and around on a hot asphalt road. She was light-headed and sweating. It was one thing for her to get stabbed a few times, but not Rod. He wasn’t a fighter.

  At the last moment of the attack, Karl swung his knife low and swiped in the direction of Rod’s gut, but before the blade made contact Rod dropped one end of the rolling pin, causing it to fall down and block Karl’s weapon.

  Chink.

  Without missing a beat, Rod used the man’s close proximity to tentatively kick him, almost as if he was gauging what his reaction might be. Karl’s eyes dipped and that is when Rod took full advantage by swinging the rolling pin up under the man’s chin, connecting first with the soft flesh under the jaw and then continuing the force upward. Maria heard the crunch as Karl’s head flew backward and his lower teeth crashed into his upper ones.

  Karl stumbled back and groaned, but kept a grip on the knife.

  Maria’s eyes widened at the succinct execution and gracefulness of Rod’s moves. He had barely broken into a sweat.

  Maria continued to tug at her ropes. If she could get loose she could stop this in an instant with her gun on top of the dresser, but the knots held fast.

  This time it was Karl who bolted forward, on the attack like an injured animal. He roared and pointed his blade straight at Rod’s heart.

  Please no! Maria watched helplessly.

  Rod jumped aside, the tip of the knife barely missing his chest. And then Maria watched spellbound as Rod used his right hand with fingers together to karate chop the side of Karl’s neck, just above the collar bone.

  Karl bellowed.

  Playing on forward momentum, Rod jumped into the air and shot his leg outward, connecting his foot with the side of Karl’s leg, causing the man to topple to the floor sideways. As Karl fell, he slashed the knife in the air, trying to connect with some of Rod’s flesh, which he did.

  Rod’s forearm oozed blood that dripped on Maria’s bedroom carpet, but he didn’t seem to notice. Finally sweating and breathing more heavily now, a look of intense concentration framed his face.

  Karl dropped to the floor, spun around and was up a second later. The man was more flexible than he looked.

  “You’re dead,” he barked. As if he were brandishing a sword, he dragged his knife back and forth through the air at an amazingly fast speed.

  Rod looked confused for a second until he brought up the rolling pin he was still holding, reared his arm backward, and let the pin fly into the air. The marble log soared toward Karl, who dropped the knife in order to deflect the oncoming object.

  Within seconds, Rod had made a well-placed side kick to Karl’s gut and a powerful elbow jab to the man’s nose. He fell to the floor, blood gushing from his face.

  A carpet cleaner would definitely be a must.

  Karl moaned. Rod ran to the knife that had landed next to Maria’s bed.

  “Quick,” said Maria, “cut my ropes.”

  Seconds later the cords around her wrists and ankles snapped apart. Maria shook them from her arms and feet as quickly as she could and ran to the dresser, picking up her Glock and feeling its familiar handle in her palm. The sensation was comforting.

  She spun around and aimed the gun at Karl who still lay on the floor. “Karl, I’ve got a gun aimed at your head. Don’t even think about moving an inch.”

  Rod’s phone was next to his ear. “Pete,” he said, “how far away are you?” He listened for a few seconds and then answered, “Good. She’s out of danger now. Karl’s contained. See you in a minute.”

  He ended the phone call and looked at Maria. “Pete will be here in less than a minute. Are you okay?” He panted, trying to catch his breath.

  “Yes,” said Maria, an incredulous look on her face she couldn’t hide. “Where on earth did you learn to fight like that?”

  Try as he might, Rod couldn’t stop a grin from growing ear-to-ear. He unsuccessfully humbly shrugged. “I did a little Tae Kwan Do as a kid. Ever since the confrontation at the cave with Sherri Mercer I started lessons again. I think I’ve taken to it pretty well.”

  “I would have to agree,” said Maria, stunned.

  Rod put his cell phone back into his pocket. “But, I think I’d better go sit down on the couch if that’s okay. I’m feeling a little light-headed. It was my first real fight.”

  “Sure, but open the door for Pete first. I think I just heard him on the porch.”

  As Rod walked out of the room, Maria couldn’t help but think how unfair life was. Here she was accidentally married to a man who had just saved her life and things were so awkward between them she didn’t even dare hug and tell him thanks.

  Less than thirty minutes later Karl was booked in the Kanab jail—again. The FBI was questioning him, and Maria and Rod had been excused, Rod so he could get the cut in his arm looked at by a nurse and Maria so she could go file paperwork on the incident.

  Maria walked Rod out of the front of the police station. He had, after all, saved her from a rather horrible experience that might have turned nasty. She owed him at least a police escort to his car. As she followed him to the driver’s side, she asked, “You know, we haven’t even had a second to talk. Why were you at my house this afternoon anyway? Not that I’m complaining. I appreciate you saving me.”

  Rod fumbled with his car keys. “Yesterday evening, when you and I spoke, you said you’d be willing to come to Mr. Walden’s with me to see if he’s hiding something—if that’s why he wants to leave Kanab so badly. I called you but couldn’t get you on the phone. Pete said you might be at your house so I stopped by.”

  “Thank heavens for Pete.” Maria sighed. “He seriously needs a raise.”

  Rod looked at her a bit funny. “Yeah, he probably does.”

  “And thank heavens for you, too.” Maria blushed. “I didn’t mean to say it was all Pete’s doing.”

  Now it was Rod’s turn for his cheeks to turn pink. “I never said you did.”

  Maria thought to speed the conversation along before she completely insulted him. “And how did you know Karl was inside?”

  “I saw his dirt bike. He’d parked it in a hurry around the side of the house, but it was in plain view approaching your place from the south, which I was. I remembered you said yo
u’d been chasing him last night and he was on a dirt bike. An alarm went off in my head.”

  “You know what I call that?”

  “No.” Rod had found the right car key at last and had slid it in the keyhole.

  “I call it instinct. Yours is strong.”

  “Huh.” By the look on Rod’s face, he’d clearly enjoyed the compliment. “So, my ‘instinct’ told me to look into your kitchen window. At first, I didn’t see anything going on. At least, not in the kitchen. I also had a pretty clear view into the living room and didn’t see anyone. From my vantage point I could only see a sliver into the bedroom. After watching a moment, I was pretty sure I saw movement in there.”

  “Instinct again.” Maria playfully pushed his shoulder. As if she’d touched fire, she recoiled her hand. Sometimes it was hard to remember their relationship was over.

  Rod didn’t seem to notice. “I knew where you hid your emergency key, so I let myself in the front door. The minute I was in the living room I could hear Fossum’s voice.”

  “And then you saved me with the rolling pin.” Maria laughed and then spoke quietly. “I really owe you one. Thanks, Rod.”

  “Nothing that you wouldn’t have done,” Rod mumbled, opening the door.

  Maria grinned at him. “If you ever decide to give up your law career, you may have a future in the police force.”

  “Hah!” Rod held out his hands. “No gun, remember?”

  “Yeah, well. I’m still working on it.” A grin traveled across her face. “I’m happy to go see Walden with you right now, but don’t you need to have someone look at that cut on your arm?”

  “I’ll get it looked at later. It’s not that deep.”

  “Okay, then I’ll do the paperwork about Karl later, too.” More than ever, Maria didn’t think Karl was the kidnapper. As far as she was concerned, her trip to Jarbidge was still on for later that evening, in five hours to be precise, unless she heard from the FBI that Karl confessed and they’d found Justin. The phone conversation she had with the kidnapper ate at her.

  “Let’s go give Walden a visit then. I don’t know if it will pan out, but he’s been acting so weird. Distancing himself from me. John and I have been associates for a while now. I’ve worked on projects with him before. Now he acts like he doesn’t want anything to do with me and he has to get out of this place or he’ll die.”

  “I didn’t know you were friends from before.” Maria walked around the car and got into the passenger seat.

  Once inside the car, Rod started the engine and said, “Yeah, I’ve known John for several years. We first met in Phoenix. He’s a top-notch developer, but I’ve never seen him act like he has the past few weeks. It’s like he’s had a total turnabout of personality. Can that happen to a man his age? Like could he get some mental illness that would turn him into a crazy kidnapper?”

  “I think just about anything can happen to anyone who is under enough stress. If he’s not acting like himself, I definitely think we should have a talk with him. I have a little bit of time right now.” Maria glanced at her watch. She had to make sure she left herself time to catch her plane that evening to Jarbidge.

  Luckily, the ride to Mr. Walden’s was short. Going most places in Kanab didn’t take long. Once they arrived, Rod parked and somehow got out and walked around the car before Maria had finished putting her cell phone back into her backpack. He opened the car door for Maria and she thanked him. He always had been good at that sort of things—standing up when she entered a room, having her go first when ordering a meal. Once a gentleman, always one.

  Circles of wet perspiration inched out from beneath the armpits of Mr. Walden’s wrinkled dress shirt. While that sight was not exactly unusual this time of year, it was unusual for Mr. Walden, who had always seemed concerned and invested in his appearance.

  Mr. Walden had curtly invited them in and continued to pack as if they weren’t even there. If he was hiding the fact he was leaving, he wasn’t doing it very well. His intentions were clear. And Rod wasn’t having much luck talking to the man either.

  ‘I’m telling you Rod, I can’t stand it anymore. It feels like I can’t breathe here. Don’t you feel that way? You told me you did.”

  “Well, yes. Sometimes.” Rod glanced at Maria to see if she was looking or listening, which of course she was. “But then I remember that I have responsibilities and things I need to take care of before I just get up and leave. We’ve got a kidnapping case going on here. This is serious stuff. Why are you trying to leave now?”

  “The kidnapping has nothing to do with me. I’ve drained the reservoir. I followed the protocol given by the government. Once details get figured out with the construction project I’ll come back. As it stands, we’re going to have to completely move the location of the reservoir to protect the burial ground.” Mr. Walden shivered. “But for now, my hands are tied. There’s no reason for me to be here.”

  “Did you know that one of the main suspects wanted for the kidnapping was hiding out near the reservoir?” Maria asked.

  “No.” John Walden continued haphazardly shoving clothing into his suitcase. “I had absolutely no idea. Just another reason for me to get out of here.”

  Maria carefully watched the man’s non-verbal cues as he continued to argue with Rod about whether or not it was a good time to leave Kanab. The man wasn’t guilty; he was scared. He exhibited high anxiety levels. And he wasn’t being forthright about why he was leaving. He was holding something back, but Maria was sure it wasn’t guilt over a kidnapping.

  “Where are you headed?” Rod asked him. “You’d better at least leave the police your contact information. If not, you’ll have the FBI after you.”

  Being in Mr. Walden’s presence seemed to aggravate Rod more and more. His speech had quickened since they’d arrived and now he was pacing back and forth. He had been calmer during the kitchen rolling pin fight.

  Maria hung back to give the two men more space. It was hard to tell which of them was more irritated. Since the minute they had arrived, Rod’s anxiety levels had also shot up. Both he and Mr. Walden seemed amped up on some kind of stimulant. There was something very odd about the way both of them were behaving. Almost crazed.

  Rod brought his hands up to his arms and began rubbing his skin. “Dang, John. Why do you keep it so cold in here?”

  Maria had been thinking the exact opposite. The place was stifling hot and there was no air conditioning running. Who in their right mind didn’t have their AC going at two o’clock in the afternoon in the middle of a desert?

  Mr. Walden exhaled quickly. “I think my thermostat is broken. I can’t seem to get my furnace to work. It’s been cold for days.”

  Delusional. There was no better word to describe what Maria was watching.

  “Here, let me give it a try.” Rod walked over to where the thermostat control hung on the wall. He began pushing buttons rapidly.

  “Are you sure you’re both cold?” Maria asked. Maybe the men were sick?

  “Freezing,” answered Mr. Walden. Rod didn’t look up to answer. He seemed obsessed with breaking the thermostat.

  That settled it. Rod had been practically normal just minutes before. He couldn’t be sick. Maybe there was some kind of carbon dioxide leak going on. Those could make people act and do crazy things. But why wasn’t it affecting her?

  “Why can’t I make this work?” Rod slapped the wall by the thermostat unit.

  “You can mess around with that all you want, but I’m getting out. I’ve had it.” As Mr. Walden slammed the luggage top down, Maria caught sight of the first thing that made sense in this room. It was the black shadow of a man, lurking in the far corner. It was the same shadow Maria had first seen in the Kanab jail. Later, it had invaded her sleeping hours. She had thought perhaps it was the ghost of Ryan, her fallen comrade in Tehran. But why would he be here?

  Ignored by Rod and Mr. Walden, Maria slowly approached the shadow, holding out her open-palmed hand—a non-threatening gestu
re to signal she meant no harm.

  Ten feet. Eight. Five.

  Maria was close enough to the shadow to almost touch it. As she grew closer, the shadow’s coloring changed from black to grey and then to a sepia tone. While the face still was blurry, Maria knew the shadow wasn’t Ryan. She was relieved and disappointed at the same time. Ryan had been such a great friend—perhaps even a little more. She would have liked to have said goodbye.

  The figure she saw was not her contemporary. While he was still in his youth, he was from a time long, long ago. Another era. A different culture.

  Bare-chested on top, the man wore a skirt made from plant leaves, feathers, and some kind of fur—rabbit probably. On his feet were sandals with straps made from what looked like human hair.

  Another step closer and the man’s head came into focus. Smack dab in the middle of his forehead was a gaping bloodied hole four inches long. The spectral image didn’t make a noise, but he reached out his hand, mimicking the open palmed position of Maria’s.

  It was an invitation to take it. Maria delayed only a half second before grasping the shadow man’s fingers with her own. A war exploded into her mind.

  Literally.

  Men and women, dressed in the same kind of attire as the shadow man, screamed. Spears plunged deep into torsos. Rocks and sticks—anything blunt—were being thrown relentlessly into the group of natives who were ill-prepared for the attack.

  Maria’s shadow man held the hand of a beautiful young woman. Her long dark hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall of onyx shimmering in the light. Fear draped her face. They were running away from the slaughter. Away from death.

  Maria felt his misery. His love for the woman. His need to keep her safe.

  And his failure at doing so.

  The woman at his side screamed. The shadow man turned. A stone spear head poked out of her chest. Blood oozed down her front. The shadow man dropped to his knees.

  Despair.

  Grief.

  And then pain.

  A tomahawk sliced through the air and sank deeply into the front of shadow man’s skull.