Her cousin didnt reply.
Spying the movement again, Isabella gauged the distance between her and the stairwell. Grandpa Corrigan said she should face her fears. No problem, she could do that. Shed face the spot where shed seen the snake from the far side of the entry hall.
She glanced over her shoulder. It wasnt in Katies nature to play games. If her cousin wasnt answering, that meant she couldnt hear, ergo, shed probably left the house for a smoke.
Still walking backward, Isabella retraced her steps to the front door.
Going on a diet tomorrow, she decided, squeezing through. Katie, are you out here?
But there was no one on the porch or in the weed-choked yard. And nothing to see or hear except gusts of wind, a sky full of purplish clouds and several thick branches pressed against the windows to her right.
Terrific, she murmured and ran the list of possibilities.
Katie never smoked indoors, so, yes, shed have come out here to light up. But she wouldnt leave the property without a word, and theyd only been apart for a few minutes, so she couldnt have gone far. On the other hand, the floor inside was a minefield of rubble and broken furniture. She might have ventured into a room, tripped and hit her head.
Isabella slid damp palms along the sides of her pants. Grandpa C swore snakes wouldnt bite unless distressed. But then Grandpa C had marched up to and fearlessly across enemy lines numerous times in the Korean War. His idea of danger varied greatly from that of his granddaughter.
Easing back inside, she hung her shoulder bag and camera on the newel post and started for the room with the carved molding. It wasnt a gargoyle as Katie had suggested, but an angel, one with vacant orbs for eyes and an expression that sent an unexpected chill fluttering over her skin.
Because the space ahead was shuttered, she had to feel for a wall switch. A weak light appeared at the far end of the room. Directly ahead, however, the shadows remained virtually impenetrable.
Not quite so much to love about my job at the moment, she reflected, then raised her voice. Katie, can you hear me?
Something shifted behind her, and she spun. But there was no one in the doorway or beyond that in the entry hall.
Exasperated by her overreaction, she regrouped and made her way carefully along the wall.
Wind whistled through cracks in the shutters. A branch banged against the siding at random intervals. The floorboards sagged and protested.
Ahead of her, a chunk of plaster toppled from a mound she could barely make out. Next to it, she spied what looked like a huddled body.
Her heart spiked. Keeping her hand on the wall and her sights fixed, she approached it.
A door at the far end of the room creaked, causing her to look up.
She realized her mistake instantly. With her concentration thrown forward, she had no time to react when her foot landed on airand her momentum sent her tumbling into the blackness below.
FROM THE SHELTER OF a damaged shutter, the man outside watched the woman inside stumble and fall. Served her right, he thought, twitching an irritable shoulder. Now maybe shed leave.
He couldnt do business with a snoopy female hanging around. Bad enough that big galloot from the coach house kept tromping around the perimeter of the property. With luck, hed topple off a cliff and, if she didnt die here, take the blonde and her camera with him. Maybe some clever third person could make that happen.
On the other hand, he might not be thinking this through quite right. Lose the woman, lose the chase rabbit. Was that the best-case scenario for him?
A slow grin lit his face and made his black eyes glitter. Bad luck for the rabbit might be a lucky stroke for him. Let the woman be the focus, the diversion, the target. Leave him free to go about his business.
As he melted into the thickening twilight, the man found himself hoping the pretty blonde rabbit wouldnt die too soon.
ISABELLAS MIND REELED. What kind of moron put a single step in the middle of whatever this room was? Ballroom, grand hall, dining room? More to the point, why hadnt she brought a flashlight from the car?
As her vision cleared and the pain of her hands-and-knees landing receded, the shape ahead resolved itself into a filthy tarp. Which relieved her because it wasnt Katie and set her nerves back on edge because there was still no sign of her cousin.
An obvious thought occurred as she pushed herself upright. Katie never went anywhere without her cell phone.
She pulled out her own cell phone and punched in Katies number. Waited. Hissed at the pain in her left ankle when she stood, then reminded herself she deserved it for not paying attention to her surroundings.
Four rings later, Katies voice mail picked up. Frustrated, Isabella left a message, closed her phone and, walking carefully, picked her way to the back of the room.
The door to her left stood ajar. It screeched like an angry crow when she moved it. As she crossed the threshold, she told herself the feeling of being watched came from her mind, not from the premature darkness that had begun to spread throughout the house.
Beyond the weathered walls, purple clouds had given way to brooding black, and she could hear the wind picking up. The first raindrops hit the windows as she started along a dusty corridor towardwhat elseanother door.
A veritable maze of interconnecting hallways, the ground floor seemed to go on forever. She passed through two kitchens, a pantry, a massive library, three dining rooms and a dozen other spaces whose purposes eluded her.
Part of her could visualize Darkwood Manor as a Corrigan-Ross property, but a much larger part was struggling with the certain knowledge that Katie wouldnt have ventured in this deep alone.
Spotting a thin door, she wedged it open. Uneven stairs topped by a rickety wooden railing descended from dusky shadow into fathomless black. Welcome to the cellar, she realized. Yuck.
Hesitating, she tapped her fingers on the jamb, then hit the light switch. I cant think of a single reason why youd be down there, Katie, but on the off chance youve lost your mind, Ill check it out. And be really pissed off if I find you.
From a point far below, she detected a scrape, possibly a trace of smoke. When she leaned forward, a moaning floorboard blotted the sound out, but she knew what shed heard, and it hadnt been the foundation settling.
A bulb at the bottom provided only a weak wash of light, barely enough to make out the mud floor. Although the stairs looked sturdier than the railing, shed encountered dry rot before and fully anticipated it here. Still, what choice did she have?
She set her foot on the first step. When it didnt splinter, she moved to the next. And the next.
Her scraped palm stung against the stone wall. Her breath wanted to hitch. She wouldnt let it, but couldnt stop the prickles that raced over her skin.
Not going to freak, she promised herself. Just please dont let it be a snake pit down
She broke off, sucking in a startled breath as the handrail and one of the treads cracked in tandem.
Her foot shot through the plank, forcing her to grab the portion of railing still attached to the wall. That it held surprised herbut not as much as the arm that hooked her waist and hauled her upright before her trapped ankle snapped in two.
For a moment, Isabellas head swam. Then her brain clicked in and she swung her head to face a man. Possibly young. Definitely strong.
He smelled good, she noted, like soap and skin and the rain outside. While she couldnt make out his features, she spied the glimmer in his eyes.
You dont want to go down there, Ms. Ross.
Suspicion crowded out fear. Who are you? How do you know my name?
Doesnt matter.
It does to me. She pushed on his arm. When he refused to release her, she twisted sideways. Look, I appreciate the rescue, but Im fine now, and I really dont have time to play games.
Instead of slackening his grip, he drew her closer until his mouth moved against her temple. Best use of that time you dont have would be to get in your car and leave.
She gave him a determined shove. Id love to if youd let me go.
Stop squirming and listen. You need to go back to Boston. No questions, no detours, just get on the highway and drive.
When she continued to struggle, he used the fingers of his other hand to capture her chin. Do it, Isabella. Now. While you can. Then he drew her closer still, set his mouth next to her ear and added a soft, If you want to live, you need to get as far away from this house as possible.
Chapter Two
He vanished before she could question him further. Vanished as hed been trained to do by the government. As hed been able to do long before anyone had thought to train him.
He knew the melodrama hadnt worked. He hadnt expected it would. But short of tying a blanket over her head and tossing her on a southbound train, it was the best he could manage.
He wasnt supposed to be in the house. Hed promised his uncle he would look around discreetly, without fuss. Fuss led to attention, and that would send the rats scurrying.
If theyd been ordinary rats, he wouldnt have cared. He still wasnt sure why he did, but his uncle was concerned, so it wouldnt hurt him to skulk for a while.
If it turned out Haden was right, something should probably be done. Maybe by him, maybe by someone else. The who here depended on how the local authorities reacted to a hot blonde in a long, black leather coat, with skin that shouted peaches and cream and eyes so blue hed been struck by the color fifty feet away.
The woman had courage. He admired that. She was determined, likely stubborn. Couldnt fault those qualities. She also had a body under that black coat
Blanking his mind to the fantasy, he watched her from his crouch on the sheltered side of the house.
Purposeful strides carried her along the driveway to the front gate and through it to the other side. She didnt use an umbrella, and she didnt bother to belt her coat. She had the shoulder bag hed rifled, her 2K camera and, he imagined, an expression on her face that matched her body language.
A reluctant smile tugged on his lips the longer he watched her. Too bad nothing would come of it, but then he was used to nothing, and what he did haveprimarily his unclemore than compensated for the lack.
Her car engine roared. The tires spit wet gravel as she turned it toward Mystic Harbor, Maine, a town where he and more than one of his ancestors had been born.
His name was Donovan Black. Like it or notand he definitely did nothe was connected to Darkwood Manor. Which was why, no matter how tempting Ms. Isabella Ross might be, he would never be connected to her.
YOURE NOT GOING TO do anything, are you? Isabella stared down at a thirtysomething man with a crooked nose and very large teeth. You have more important matters to attend to than searching for a woman, a stranger, that no one, including you or your deputies, has seen. In any case, Darkwood Manor is situated on the fringe of your jurisdiction, so maybe shes crossed the county line by now. Problem solved. Have a nice night, maam.
The mans smile didnt falter. Could be youre right there, Ms. Ross. Could also be youre inventing a crime to drum up publicity for a new hotel.
Exasperation won out. Thats ridiculous. My family doesnt stoop to publicity stunts. We go about things the old-fashioned way. We advertise. And we only do that when a hotel is up and running. Not only is Darkwood Manor not in that category, it isnt even a hotel.
Yet.
Isabella held fast to her Irish temper. Sheriff Lucas, Ive had a really crappy afternoon. Im not asking you to launch a full-scale search for Katie, I just want you to take a few minutes and look into her disappearance.
Cant do much in a few minutes, now can I, Blondie?
Excuse me?
Sorry. Ms. Ross. His smirk belied the apology. Now, Ive been patient, and Ive listened to your story with an open mind.
So open, Isabella thought, that it had drained from his head.
You say you and your cousin drove up here this afternoon from Boston.
I said we drove up from Portland.
Via Portland, but you live and work in Boston. You also said you came here then drove to Darkwood in separate vehicles. Why is that exactly?
Isabella refused to let him rattle her composure. Ive already explained. Katie was going on to Bangor. I was stopping here. Two destinations, two vehicles.
And your cousins vehicle, like your cousin herself, is currently unaccounted for?
Yes.
That doesnt suggest anything to you?
Her eyes narrowed to dangerous slits. It suggests that both Katie and her car are missing.
The sheriffs smile grew strained. A stronger suggestion would be that something at Darkwood Manor spooked her. When she couldnt find you, she gave in to her fear and ran.
Shes not answering her cell phone.
Maybe she dropped it in her rush to escape. People have been known to leave all manner of personal possessions behind as they scramble back through those gates. Dont get me wrong, Im not a believer myself, but more than a few folks hereabouts swear the manors haunted.
Oh, good. Isabella mustered a false smile. Here comes the ghost story. Katie wasnt spirited away, Sheriff, and she didnt run out on me.
You think someone kidnapped her and stole her car.
I think thats a more plausible explanation than believing she ran from a ghost.
Yet, in spite of herself, her conviction wavered. To bolster it, she jammed her hands in the pockets of her coat. Whose spirit is supposed to haunt the place?
Take your pick. Aaron Dark, builder and owner. Aarons wife, Sybil, who ran off with another man. The unborn child some swear she was carrying. Hell, it could be Darks sister took up residence after she died, as penance for having her brother locked away.
Interesting. But you dont believe any of those stories, so it cant be fear thats stopping you from driving out there with me.
He gave her an insulting once-over. Do you drink, Ms. Ross?
She wouldnt react, she told herself, would not lose it because some pasty-faced sheriff was either too lazy or too jittery to help her.
So instead of answering his question, she tipped her head to the side. Tell me, Sheriff Lucas, is there something untoward going on at Darkwood Manor? Some illegal activity that might necessitate Katies removal from the house and cause me to be warned off?
The sheriffs open mouth closed with a snap. You didnt mention that you were warned off.