Shadow of Vengeance (55 page)

Melissa froze. Moonlight chased shadows across her wide eyes and gaping mouth. Then her body violently shuddered. Rachel shoved her off, then quickly moved to her feet. As she stared at the convulsing woman, she used the back of her coat sleeve to wipe the mud and snow from her face.
 

She’d beaten the bitch, but there was no sense of triumph, only loss. If what Melissa had said was true, the killer had taken the man she loved.
 

Melissa’s body stopped jerking, then stilled. Rachel gave her a swift kick to the side. Nothing. Good. She walked a few feet and scooped up her glowing phone. Before she could hit her speed dial, heavy footfall drew near.
 

“Rachel,” Jake shouted.
 

She turned and caught the beams from flashlights dancing along the trees. “Over here,” she rasped, then cleared her throat. “Over here!”

Jake and one of Marty’s men rushed to her. While Jake pulled her close, the officer checked Melissa. He whistled, then shook his head. “Death by pencil. Never thought I’d ever see something like this.”

Jake pulled away and gripped her shoulders. “I want to kick your ass for going after her yourself.”

“Go ahead and try. I’ve got another pencil in my pocket.”

He wiped a stray tear off her cheek. “Owen’s freaking out. I almost kept him tied up to keep him from going after you.”

Hope flared in her chest as she grabbed his hands. “He’s okay?”

“He will be.”

“Sheriff,” the officer called.

They turned and stepped toward the rocks she’d slammed into during her fight with Melissa.
 

The officer aimed his flashlight down into a wide hole. “What do you make of this?”

Rachel peered into what she assumed was an old well and immediately saw a femur. She swallowed against the bile rising in her throat, took a step back, and then started to walk away. “I think we found the missing boys.”

Jake caught up with her. “Let me help you back.”

She shrugged him off and forced her legs to move faster, then faster until she took to a full sprint. When she reached the front of the house, she slowed, saw Owen sitting on the front porch step, then rushed to him.
 

He winced as he pushed off the step, then pulled her into his arms. “What the hell were you thinking?” He hugged her tight and made every blow she’d taken from Melissa come alive in the worst way. “She’s dangerous…she could have killed you.”

“She’s not so dangerous anymore,” she said with a mixture of remorse and relief.

He pulled back, and gently cupped her face. “I’m sorry.”

“It was me or her.” She touched his swollen jaw. “Owen, I…when I thought…”

He placed a soft kiss on her lips. “Later. I’m not going anywhere. Ever.”

Chapter 23

Rachel sat in the chair next to Owen’s ER bed and took a sip of coffee. When she winced, he cracked a smile. “That bad?”

She set the cup on the stand next to his bed. “It’s worse than the stuff you’ve brewed.”

“So, I’ve got that going for me,” he said, and propped his good arm under his head. “We’ll be out of here soon. And I guarantee once we’re back at Joy’s, she’ll—”

“She’ll do what?” Joy edged around the corner and kept her teary eyes on Rachel. “Pamper the hell out of you?” She touched Rachel’s face, examined the bruises on her cheeks, before folding Rachel into her arms. “You okay, Shorty?”

Rachel nodded. “Just some scrapes and bruises.”

Joy drew back and held Rachel’s hands. “Is that a self-diagnosis or did an actual doctor tell you that?”

Rachel released a tired chuckle. “Yes, an
actual
doctor examined me.”

Joy looked over her shoulder and glanced at Owen. She let go of Rachel’s hands then moved to the bed. “That’s one hell of a goose egg.” She nodded to his forehead, then sucked in a breath when she looked at his forearm.
 

“It looks worse than it is,” he said, more concerned with Rachel than himself. She’d killed a person. Yes, out of self-defense, but would the guilt over taking a life eat at her?

“Says the man who just took thirty stitches to his arm and another fifteen to his thigh.” Rachel stood next to Joy. “Plus, he has a concussion.”

“And the boy?” Joy asked. “How’s he? Walter said he was cut up pretty bad.”
 

Owen glanced across the ER. Less than ten feet away, the doctors and nurses tended to Josh behind a closed curtain, prepping him for a room. “Where is Walter?”

“Parking the car. Now about that boy.”

“Physically, his doctor thinks he’ll be okay,” Rachel said. “He’s dehydrated. His left foot and toes are broken, and he has a laceration along his chest. As far as they can tell, no muscle or organ damage, but they still need to run a CT scan and want to keep him for a few nights.” She hugged herself and stared at him. “He was lucky.”

Josh was more than lucky. What Xavier Preston had had in store for the boy was vile and perverse. But what Melissa had planned to do…Owen slid his eyes closed and tried to erase the image.

“Heads up,” Jake said.

Owen opened his eyes and looked at the sheriff.
 

Jake thumbed behind him toward the ER’s wide, glass doors. “Marty’s been watching the parking lot. He called and said Bob Conway’s on his way in.”

“You’re not going to arrest him in front of Josh, are you?” Rachel asked, her eyes wide and holding the hint of disbelief. “The kid’s been through enough. I think you’re better off waiting until his dad leaves the ER.”

“What are you guys talking about?” Joy asked. “And don’t give me none of that police business crap.”

When no one answered, Owen cleared his throat. “We believe Bob Conway tortured Preston when he was a student at Wexman.”
 

So your dad raped my dad?
Melissa’s haunting question rang through Owen’s mind. He didn’t
believe
Conway had tortured Preston, he
knew
in his gut the man had taken a Hell Week hazing to a level so foul, it had corrupted Preston’s mind.
 

“While the doc was taking care of Owen,” Rachel began, keeping her voice low. “I borrowed Jake’s laptop and looked into Wexman’s database. It’s the same one Owen and I went through earlier this week. Only we were looking at students who’d
graduated
from the university. Because Preston is the killer behind Hell Week, I looked to see if he’d gone to school there. Turns out, he was at Wexman the same time Conway was, too.”

“Conway could have saved his son this morning,” Jake said with loathing.

Rachel turned when the ER doors slid open. “And here he is now. What are you going to do, Jake?”

The sheriff looked away and hooked his thumbs on his belt. “I’ll wait.”

“Where is he?” Bob rushed to them and grabbed Jake’s arm. “Where’s my son?”

Rachel pointed. “Behind that curtain.”
 

Without another word, Conway hurried over, then ripped the curtain back. “Josh. Oh my God.” He stood at the end of Josh’s hospital bed and fisted his hands. “Son…I…your mother and I have been so worried.”

Josh licked his cracked lips, then twisted his mouth in a mocking smile. “Liar,” he accused, his voice surprisingly strong considering everything he’d been through this past week.

Conway glanced over his shoulder at them, then quickly back to his son. “That’s the medication talking. You’ve been through a lot. Let me talk to your doctor. I want to have you moved to a
real
hospital.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you.” The heart rate monitor hooked to Josh’s chest began to ping in quick successions. “You make me sick.”

“Josh, I’m not about to allow your mother to see you like this,” Conway said, his tone forceful and warning. “You need to shut your mouth and get your rest.” He turned toward the doctor who had been working on Josh. “How long before he can be moved from this shithole?”

“You’re a rapist!” Josh’s face twisted with agony as he tried to push off the bed. The nurse and doctor quickly pushed him down. “Because of you, nine people died,” he shouted. “
I
almost died. And now…you’re dead to me.”

As if the boy had never spoken, Bob Conway shook his head. “I’m having him removed from here within the hour,” he said to the doctor. “Have him ready.”

“Sheriff,” Josh called, his voice desperate, pleading. “Are you hearing this? This man is a rapist.”

Jake looked to Rachel. “So much for waiting. Call Marty and tell him we’re ready for him,” he said, then went after Conway.

“This is preposterous,” Conway ranted as Jake read him his rights. “What the hell are you arresting
me
for?”

“Obstruction of justice, Mr. Conway.” Jake finished cuffing the man, and started to lead him away. “You knew this morning who had your son and didn’t say a thing.”

“Bullshit. I didn’t know anything.”

“He knew?” Josh cried. “What do you mean, he
knew
?”

“Look,” Conway began. “I didn’t know, but when I heard Preston was dean, I suspected.”

“And you didn’t say anything?” Josh’s face contorted with hatred. “Let me guess. You called your lawyers and put them on damage control. You wanted to make sure my kidnapping, my
kidnapper
, wouldn’t ruin your precious reputation.”

“Just keep your mouth shut,” Conway ordered. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Josh laughed, but without humor. “No. I do.” He laid his head against the pillow. “You know what Preston told me?”

“Shut up, Josh. I’m warning you.”

“He said that you were the one who put Hell Week into motion twenty-five years ago.” Josh closed his eyes and tilted his mouth in a small, wry smile. “He said you’d know fear. That you’d comprehend at the most heinous level…because for every action, there is always a reaction.” He opened his eyes. “He said I had to die for
your
sins. And you were going to let it happen to save your sorry ass.”
 

“I wasn’t going to let you die.” Conway jerked away from Jake’s grip. “I was trying to protect
us
.”

“No. You were protecting
you
.” Josh closed his eyes. “Just go away. I want no part of you.”

Jake forced Conway to move. “I’ll be free in a matter of hours,” Conway shouted over his shoulder. “We’ll talk this out. Everything will be fine. You and me, we’ll be fine. We’ll—”

The glass doors closed behind Conway and Jake, cutting off anything else the man had to say. Owen looked across the room. Josh met his gaze. “At least Preston showed some remorse,” the boy said. “My father…I blame him for this.”

Rachel went to Josh’s side and held his hand. “What your dad did was wrong. But he didn’t kill those other kids or kidnap you.”

“No.” Josh pressed his head deeper into the pillow. “He just created the monster who did.”

Owen’s chest tightened as Rachel smoothed the boy’s hair from his face and kissed his forehead. Josh had a long road ahead of him. What his father had done, what Preston and his daughter had attempted to do, would likely require years of therapy.
 

Rachel stepped out of the way to allow the nurses and doctors to transfer Josh to a room. After they moved the boy out of the ER, she walked across the room and stood next to his bed. She looked exhausted, and he hated the scrapes and bruises marring her pretty face. He hated that she’d gone through what she had tonight, but would never doubt her
emotional
qualifications again. If anything, she’d proved to be one of the strongest people he’d ever known. She’d challenged herself, took risks and came out the victor. Hell, she’d challenged him and forced him to realize he could be a better man. That he needed to be if he were to prove to her they belonged together.
 

When she glanced at him, he reached for her hand. She leaned forward and took it, then closed her eyes and rested her forehead on their joined hands. He rolled slightly, and feathered his fingers through her short hair. When her warm tears fell along his skin, his throat constricted. She hurt. Not just on the outside. He wanted to take that hurt and swallow it whole. He wanted to tell her he loved her, and that she didn’t have to heal alone.

“Rachel…”

She shook her head against their hands. “Not yet.”

Back at Preston’s, she’d been willing to admit something, but he’d stopped her. There’d been too many people around, and as much as he’d wanted to confess everything he’d been holding back, he’d wanted them to be alone where they could be open and honest with each other. Now
she
was the one holding back.
 

He rubbed the tension at the base of her neck. “Like I told you before, I’m not going anywhere. When you’re ready, I’ll be here for you.”

Because…I love you
.
   

*

Detective Nick Merretti entered my room. The somberness in his dark brown eyes filled my soul with fear and anxiety. “What happened?” I typed as quickly as my mouth would allow.

Bunny rushed to my side and held my hand. “Did they find her?” she asked him.

He nodded. “Yes.”