***
Cora woke up with Nick’s arms holding her close, keeping her warm in the cool house. She stretched, feeling the reminders of their night of lovemaking. It was a very nice feeling.
Curling up with him in bed, naked, was a very nice feeling too. It could turn dangerous if she lay there too long. She slowly slid away from him, found her clothes, and got up so he could sleep. If she were tired from this week, he must be running on fumes. He had skipped sleep even more than her.
She took a quick shower and towel dried her hair before heading to the kitchen. She found a bag of coffee beans and started a pot. A beautiful summer day was beginning outside. The sun was rising over the tree line and burning off the light mist around the house.
“Morning,” Nick said behind her.
Turning and standing on tiptoe, she wrapped her arms around his neck. She couldn’t get enough of him.
When she leaned back and met his gaze, she could read his concern. His eyes were so expressive when he wanted them to be.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Herald has an extra gun, and I’d like you to carry it.”
The determination on his face wouldn’t let her argue. On top of that, she knew he was right. “Okay, but I don’t have a clue how to use one.”
Nick pulled a gun out of a drawer and motioned for her to step closer. He demonstrated how to turn the safety on and off, load it, aim, and pull the trigger. Stepping behind her, he wrapped his arms around her and positioned her hand correctly. “It helps to support your gun hand with the other. Ideally, to get a good aim at something, you should use a rest. I pray you won’t ever need to use this information, but I can’t risk it. Here, practice aiming at a few things.”
Cora nodded, taking aim at the handle of the front door and then at a tree out the kitchen window. She tried, but couldn’t, forget those scary seconds at Keith’s house. She had wished for a gun then, something she never thought she would wish for in her life.
“Coffee’s done,” she said, while nervously checking the safety on the gun and setting it in the corner of the counter. He was watching her while he poured coffee for them, so she added, “I’ll take it with me.”
Nick nodded and handed her a container of powdered creamer. “There’s no milk or creamer, but I have this if you don’t mind it.”
“You have everything here. That worked out nicely,” she said.
“I like to be prepared. I actually set everything up here in case I needed to bring you here to hide out. This was supposed to be your safe house while I figured out how to get Jerry out too.” He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I planned for several different possibilities…”
She was shocked and touched by how he had been trying to protect her the entire time.
“But Alexander followed us,” she said, finishing his thought. Adam came in the front door as she spoke.
“Morning to you both,” he greeted. “I know we didn’t hear anything during the night, but I thought I’d check for any signs that someone was here.”
“I don’t think there’s any way Keith or Alexander can know about this place.” Nick poured another cup of coffee and handed it to Adam.
“You’d be surprised,” Adam said, “I think we should get out of here, go somewhere completely unconnected with any of us.”
“They can’t look everywhere, but you’re right, we shouldn’t push our luck.”
Cora had her cup to her mouth for a sip, but something made her pause. Looking everywhere. After sleeping so well, she felt like she’d missed something. She was supposed to look for something…from her dad! “My file.”
Nick stopped midsentence while talking to Adam. “What?”
“On the way to the hospital, my dad said to look at my file. I think he meant the CD I found at his house.” Nick and Adam both raised their eyebrows at her. “I can’t believe I forgot about it.”
“Well, it’s not surprising you forgot, not after everything,” Nick said. He shared a look with Adam before turning back to her. “Do you have it here?”
Her shoulders sank. “I found it at Dad’s house… and then Alexander found me.”
The light faded in Nick’s eyes too, but then relit. “If he has it, he isn’t tracking us down. That’s probably what he needs.”
“He doesn’t know he has it.” She rinsed her mug and placed it in the dishwasher. Caffeine was the last thing she needed right now. “I wasn’t sure who I could trust. I kept it hidden until the morning I went to Keith’s house, and then I put it in the glove box in Alexander’s car before he got in. So hopefully he doesn’t know it’s there.”
“That’s it,” Adam said. “We need that CD.”
Nick didn’t look up when he said, “Cora, you would have said if you opened the file, or files, right?” He rubbed his stubble, forming plans already.
“I didn’t get the chance. I never even took it out of the bag. The bag! It had a note and a key with it, but I’m not sure if they mean anything to us.”
Nick threw his hand out in surprise, spilling coffee in the process. “The key! On the phone Keith said he wanted the key.”
She gasped. “Do you think Alexander or Jerry put that money in a safe deposit box?” Cora finally understood the importance of the key, but she didn’t think Alexander locked the money away. “Alexander was depositing money slowly into the trust fund with my name on it. Then the money disappeared into a safe deposit box, and my dad had the key. Do you think my dad discovered Alexander’s activities and moved the money?”
“So Keith couldn’t accuse Jerry of stealing it?” Nick spoke thoughtfully. “I think that’s it. So in a way, Jerry did steal the money from Alexander.”
“He moved someone else’s stolen money.” Adam let out a sad laugh. “Guess it’s all how you look at it.”
Cora pictured the rest of the story. “Then Alexander threatened Jerry, but he didn’t get his money so he went to Keith. He accused Jerry of stealing the money from Keith. Jerry didn’t have any way to prove that Alexander was behind it.”
“Jerry was trapped. That’s when Alexander presented the idea of kidnapping you. What could Jerry do?” Nick asked.
“Wait.” Cora suddenly wasn’t so sure. “At that point, he could have explained what happened and told Keith where his money was.”
“And look guilty as sin.” Adam knew Keith and the rest of the family. “Keith would’ve shot him on the spot.”
“I think we’re on the right track finally,” Nick said. “And now we know why Keith wants to get a hold of Cora.”
Half an hour later, they crowded into Herald’s car again and headed back to Eugene. Adam drove this time. Herald’s gray hair stuck up everywhere as he gulped his coffee. Cora felt a twinge of guilt that he was involved. It looked like it was taking a toll on him. Nick noticed too. He squeezed Herald’s shoulder. “Thanks for helping us. I’m sorry I got you involved.”
Herald turned in his seat and she caught sight of a gleam in his eyes. “You’d do the same for me, Nick, and I’m glad I’m helping you stand up to Keith and the rest of them. It feels good.”
Adam whooped in agreement. “You can say that again.”
It was amazing that Nick and Adam were both good people despite the family they came from. Thank goodness they had each other growing up.
“I’ve been wondering,” Nick whispered to her, “just how did you get off that mountain?”
Her eyes lowered. Nick’s hand cupped her face so she’d look at him. “Please don’t worry about it, I was just curious.”
After a minute’s thought, Cora decided to tell him. “I jumped in the river and floated my way down to a road.”
A crease formed between Nick’s eyebrows. “Didn’t that take a while?”
She nodded as the memories of that day filled her mind. “Then I found a ride back to Eugene and went to my dad’s house.”
“And found the CD.” Nick filled in the rest for her, but then he caught somet
hing in her expression, maybe hurt. He brushed her hair back from her face. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“It’s not that.” She paused. “Not really... My mother’s seashell collection was broken all over the floor.”
“I’m sorry, babe. That’s rough.”
Nick could understand what it was like to lose a link to her mother. They fell silent while she lay on his chest with her arm around him.
In the front seat, Adam was in the midst of an explanation to Herald about the CD that Cora had found at her father’s house. They’d gotten ready and jumped in the car so quickly that they hadn’t explained everything to him.
Herald glanced back and realized Nick and Cora were listening too. “So if we find his car, we’ll find the CD?”
“I’m betting he’s ditched that car by now.” Cora thought aloud. “But since he didn’t put any personal items in the glove compartment, I don’t think he would have looked in there. Maybe it was a rental.” Maybe, she hoped, the CD was still in the glove compartment or in a lost and found somewhere.
“Our only hope is that he didn’t see the CD.”
“Say we get it, then what?” Adam asked. “We need to all be on the same page.”
“We’ll see what’s on it,” Herald said while turning to Adam. “Then you and I can copy it and go to the police if we find useful evidence. I’ll call the detective in charge of the case and see what new information has surfaced. Who knows, maybe they found the gun. Maybe they found some other evidence at the crime scene that vindicates Cora. After all, she’s a lot shorter than Keith . . . and Jerry’s blood was all over her. That doesn’t happen if you’re across the room.”
“Great plan,” Adam said, “if we can find that car.”
Why had she left it there? At the time, it seemed the best way to keep it safe. Now it turned out it was the best way to lose it or hand it over to Alexander.
“Right. First things first.” Nick turned to Cora. “Do you remember the make of the car?”
She searched her mind, annoyed that she didn’t take note of every detail. Admittedly, she was focused on a more important goal that day: rescuing her father.
“Oh, yeah. It was expensive. Sporty, silver paint, and something new.”
Nick glanced at Adam and said, “Sounds like Keith’s BMW, doesn’t it?”
“Alexander did borrow it a lot.”
Cora laid her face in her hands and rubbed her eyes. Maybe it was an easy break to know where the CD was, but Keith’s garage was one of the worst possible places to break into right now.
“How will we get it back?” she asked them while Herald asked, “What are we up against?”
“Guards, an alarm system, and surveillance.”
Cora felt her lungs tighten. They were nearing town and she feared they were on another crazy mission. They could just run, but that would leave Jerry. She couldn’t pull him out of the hospital. “Look how it turned out before.”
“We don’t have to sneak into the garage. That might be impossible.” Nick was still working through the details in his head and Herald turned around so he would be able to hear. “Okay . . . Adam watches the house and calls me when any of the vehicles leave, and we follow it. When someone leaves the car, I can hide in the trunk. Once they return to Keith’s, I’ll be in the garage and can search through the other cars.”
“How will you get back out?” Cora exclaimed. “And what if they find you?” They’d kill him.
“I’d have to wait till someone takes the car back out again. I can’t think of another way.”
Herald remained silent in the driver’s seat. Adam glanced at Nick in the mirror, but he didn’t argue. She didn’t want to risk his life. When she met his gaze, and saw his determination, she knew he needed this. He wanted to bring them down. She needed to clear her father.
Adam pulled over in town so he could get out and make his way to the Holloway property on foot. Herald jumped in the driver seat in case Nick needed to hide. They drove the other way, discussing the plan. Actually, Nick was planning and she was trying to think of another option. Adam called within the hour.
Nick listened for a minute and then told them, “It’s our lucky day! Two vehicles left, including the BMW. We can intersect them on 34th.”
Herald turned around and sped off.
“How many cars does one man need?” Cora asked. “Wait, forget that. We’re just lucky he decided to take the BMW out.” Relief washed over her as she realized that Nick didn’t need to endanger himself with his original plan. He’d just have to try to break into the car without getting spotted.
A few minutes later, they spotted the white Avalanche and BMW and followed the cars at a safe distance, with both Nick and Cora crouched down on the floor in back seat.
“I think they’re pulling over up ahead. Good, a parking deck,” Herald announced.
He turned and parked on the other side of the level, watching in his rear view mirror as several men from each vehicle got out and left together.
“Wonder what they’re up to.” Nick lifted himself to peer through the back window.
“I’d like to know too, but let’s just find that CD and run.”
“I like that idea,” Cora agreed. “I’ve put all of you in enough danger already.”
Nick squeezed her shoulder. “You didn’t, Cora.”
She met his gaze, understanding. He had a look of steel determination in his eyes.
Herald made a sweep past the vehicles, making sure no one stayed behind to watch them, and then parked several spaces down.
“Do you still have a key?” she asked him. It had just occurred to her that maybe he could let himself in instead of breaking into the car.
“Thanks to Adam.” Nick slipped out his door and crept toward Keith’s vehicles.
“Oh, no!” Cora grabbed Herald’s shoulder and pointed through the back window. “I think that’s Terrance, and he’s headed our way.”
Chapter Fifteen