The Drifter (22 page)

“C
AROLYN!”

“Get away from me, Joss! Don't come any closer!”

Carolyn stumbled backward and nearly fell. She could see him moving toward her, his eyes dark and narrowed—and behind him she could still see what was left of Molly McClure.

“Carolyn, don't be stupid—I found her like this—”

“Like you found my mother? Like you found me in the attic? Like you found Hazel before you killed her?”

“Hazel? What the hell are you talking about?”

Overhead the sky exploded with lightning. Carolyn felt rain on her face, and she lifted her voice above a burst of thunder.

“Molly saw you that night, and that's why you had to shut her up, isn't it? Because you're back again, and she recognized you.”

“What are you
talking
about?”

Joss strode toward her, his hands outstretched as though to calm her down. Glancing wildly around, Carolyn spotted a huge chunk of driftwood and grabbed it.

“I'll use this if I have to—I swear I will—now
stop!
”

Joss did. He shook his head, cheeks flinching in anger.

“Something's going on here, Carolyn, but I'm not the one you should be worried about—”

“I'm not going to listen to you anymore! I'm going to call the police!”

“No, wait! Don't go back to the house!”

But Carolyn turned and ran. Behind her she could hear the thud of his feet on the sand, and then he had ahold of her arm, trying to turn her around. Screaming, she managed to pull out of his grasp. As Joss wrestled her for the club, she jerked it free for a split second and swung it hard into his ribs.

She heard him gasp—saw him stagger. Dropping her weapon, she wheeled away, but he grabbed her from behind, and they both pitched into the water. Carolyn lashed out at him as he tried to pin her arms. She felt a sting at her neck, and sand ground into her skin.

“Stop it, Carolyn—just listen to me!” Joss began, but again she managed to wriggle out of his grasp and sprinted up the beach.

The rain was pouring now, the sky as black as midnight. Carolyn kept running, terrified he would follow, not knowing where she was headed. As she put distance between them, she kept waiting for him to chase after her, but when nothing happened, she finally slowed down to catch her breath.

She had no idea where she was—how far she'd gone.

As she flattened herself against the face of the cliff, she gazed back at the winding stretch of jagged coastline and saw only a hazy outline beneath billowing layers of fog. Panic went through her, but she forced it away, reminding herself she couldn't get lost as long as she followed the shore. Straining her eyes through the heavy mist, she thought for one second that she might have seen Joss in the far, far distance, but then he disappeared into the shadows, leaving her alone.

I've got to get back to the house
—
I've got to call the police
—

Once more she started off, trying to find the path that would lead her up the cliff to safety. She didn't want to admit she was lost—didn't want to admit she must have passed her house long ago—totally disoriented now in a maze of fog and rain and shadows.

She never expected to see a light.

Just the faintest flicker … a quivering blur through the darkness.

Ghost light
…

Carolyn watched it, too terrified to move. It glimmered weakly … faded … came to life again—and for one split second she could almost feel ghostly arms clutching her with cold, dead fingers. She tried to scream but couldn't. The light moved sideways, then back, bobbing through the fog.

Slowly Carolyn followed it.

Exhausted, soaked through to her skin, she felt herself moving closer and closer, drawn by some hideous curiosity. As she drew near to it at last, it suddenly sputtered and went out.

Carolyn stared in disbelief. She couldn't have imagined it—it had been there only a second before. Fighting back panic, she flung herself toward it and came face to face with a solid wall of rock.

Of course
—
a cave!

Her heart raced in her chest. Pressing her hands against the rock, she felt her way along for several feet, then froze as sounds floated eerily out to her through the fog.

“You shouldn't have lost that paper! That half of the note was all we had—”

“Forget the paper—I know it by heart anyway.”

Carolyn felt a wave of giddiness wash over her. She could see the mouth of the cave now—a yawning black hole throbbing with light and shadow from within. She could see the wooden crates heaped around the entrance … and even with the wind and rain and crash of the sea, she could recognize the voices that were arguing.

“Suppose
she
finds the paper!” Nora snapped. “Suppose she finds the treasure!”

“We've practically torn that house apart, and
we
can't even find it!” Andy threw back.

They both sounded angry. As the storm raged louder around her, Carolyn could only pick out bits and pieces of their conversation.

“I want her gone,” Nora said. “Joss—”

Thunder drowned out the rest. Flattening herself against the rock, Carolyn crept closer, straining to hear. The crates blocked her way, so she carefully climbed on top of them, leaning as close as she could to the entrance.

“—going to find that treasure—last thing I do!” Nora's voice rose sharply. “—captain hid—somewhere in the house—worth a fortune!”

Andy faded back in. “—more important things to worry about.”

“—not my fault they wanted this shipment tonight!” Nora's tone was icy. “—not my fault—wasn't planned—wasn't part of the schedule, but I always come through, don't I? Not like some—”

“If you mean Molly, it's your own fault she's starting to talk again. How many times have I told you, you can't depend on her to keep her mouth shut—even if she
is
full of rum and pills—”

Another crash of thunder cut through their discussion. Frustrated, Carolyn inched closer. Andy and Nora were sounding more agitated by the minute, and their shadows quickened along the entrance to the cave.

“And wouldn't everyone be shocked to know she's your sister?” Andy gave a sharp laugh. “—touching the way you look after her. Blood thicker than water and all that—”

“Shut up and work!” Nora yelled. “The boat's coming—eleven. We've got all these guns to move by then—expecting shipment—Canada—morning—”

“Don't worry. They'll get their shipment—always do.”

“—getting too dangerous. I want her taken care of, understand?—not going to wait anymore—”

“Be patient,” Andy snapped at her. “Carolyn's tough—but she's not impossible.”

“
—just the thing to break her,” Nora said.

Fear pounded sickeningly through Carolyn's veins. As shadows moved across the cave entrance, she gasped and drew back just in time. Andy hurled a crate out onto the sand. Nora stood just behind him, her dark hair loose around her gaunt face, dressed in pants and a bulky sweater. As the thunder subsided for one brief instant, Carolyn pressed back into the shadows and heard clearly what they were saying.

“Just what did you have in mind?” Andy asked.

And Nora laughed … a horrible, frightening sound that made Carolyn's blood run cold.

“Why, Joss, of course. After all … with him dead, who'll be there to save her?”

25

T
HEY MOVED BACK INTO THE CAVE.

As Carolyn slowly unmolded herself from the rock, she could hear Andy and Nora talking again, but she couldn't make out what they were saying.

For a long time she just stood there.

They're smuggling guns to Canada
.

They're looking for the captain's treasure
.

Her breath caught in her throat, and she gave a sob.

They're going to kill Joss
.

With a sinking heart, she remembered the horrible sound her club had made as she'd swung it into Joss's side.

I've got to find him … I've got to warn him!

Carolyn stood helplessly, her eyes straining through the darkness.
Which way did I come from? Which way should I go?
Preparing to jump down, she took a step backward. Without warning, several of the crates shifted beneath her and turned over, throwing her headlong across the pile. There was a crash as she landed, and then to Carolyn's horror, the sounds of running from inside the cave.

Scrambling up, Carolyn bolted.

She raced through the rain and fog, stumbling across the wet sand, splashing through the waves as they roared and crashed upon the shore. Shadows smothered her, swirling around her like lost phantoms. The wind shrieked and moaned, and the cliffs rose up and up, blocking all hope of escape. She wanted to scream Joss's name, scream for help, but she didn't dare, for fear that Andy or Nora would hear her.

Joss has to still be there
—
please let him still be there
—

An image of Molly's face rose into her mind—the bulging eyes, the horror in that glazed stare—and
I'm sorry, Joss, I didn't know
—
I didn't know
—

Carolyn stopped, looking around in confusion. Nothing was even remotely familiar—she couldn't even see the water anymore, though from the sound of it, she knew it was dangerously close.

She fought down panic. Could she have already passed the spot where she'd seen Joss and Molly? Surely not, it had seemed so far away.…

Stop it … calm down
. All she had to do was find the cliffs; all she had to do was follow the curves and angles around the shoreline. Then she'd find Joss. Then she'd find the cliff path that would take her back to the house where she could call for help.…

The beach glowed eerily as lightning burst over the water. Thunder rumbled, and the rain began to beat harder.

Carolyn turned in a slow circle, desperately trying to think.
Oh, Joss, where are you?

Then suddenly he was there.

Shadowy … formless as fog … he materialized from the darkness and stood blocking her path. With a scream Carolyn jumped back, then stared at him in amazement.

“Joss! We've got to get out of here, we've got to call the police! Do you hear me? They're going to do something to you—Andy and Nora—I heard them say so, only they didn't know I was listening—”

And he was closer now, she could see the long sleeves of his sweater, and his hair blowing wild and dark across his face, and suddenly she felt his hands on her arms and they started to tighten … slowly … slowly … until his grip was unbearable, and she struggled but couldn't get free—

“Stop it!” she cried. “Joss, stop it! You're hurting me!”

But it wasn't Joss's voice that laughed as something slammed hard against her skull … that laughed and laughed as the fog rushed thickly, mercifully through her brain—

“Don't be silly, Carolyn,” Nora scolded. “Joss would never hurt you.”

26

“I
DON
'
T SEE THE POINT OF BRINGING HER HERE
,” N
ORA
fumed, knotting rope around Carolyn's ankles. “We should have just thrown her into the sea and been done with it.” She gave one last tug, watching in satisfaction as Carolyn winced from the pain.

On the other side of the room Andy barely looked at them.

“I thought the whole idea was
not
to attract attention to the beach,” he said tersely.

He lifted the lantern he was holding, jaundiced light flickering over the musty walls of the attic. From somewhere behind him fine sprays of rain misted in, and as a burst of thunder shook the house, his eyes briefly met Carolyn's before he turned away.

“She'll be safe here,” he added. “At least till we decide what to do with her.”

“Safe?” Nora gave a hoarse laugh. “Why keep her safe when we're going to kill her anyway?”