The Ugly Duckling (33 page)

“What happened here?”

“Maritz. He’s been stalking Tania, waiting for you to come back.”

She felt as if she had been punched in the stomach. Her fault. She had brought this down on Tania. She and Joel had tried only to help her, and she had brought the monster into their lives. “She’s dead?”

He shook his head. “She’s in the hospital with a broken ankle.”

The relief that surged through her made her limp. “Thank God.” She looked back at the yellow tape and a wave of fear washed down her. “Joel?”

“He wasn’t here.” He took a deep breath. “But Phil was. Maritz had disabled his car and Phil took it to the garage. The mechanic told him someone had tampered with one of the intake lines below the carburetor. He borrowed the service station’s truck and barreled back here in time to save Tania.” His lips tightened grimly. “But not himself. Maritz killed him. But they struggled long enough to give the security company men time enough to get here. Maritz had to leave before he could finish Tania.”

Phil. Sweet, sunny Phil. She felt tears rise to her eyes as she remembered how gentle he had been with her in the hospital. She whispered, “I liked him so much.”

“So did I.” Jamie cleared his throat, but his eyes held a suspicious moisture. “He was a great guy.”

“I want to see Tania. Will you take me?”

“That’s why I’ve been waiting around.” He took her elbow and led her toward the car. “Nick told me not to let you out of my sight until he could get here.”

“You talked to him?”

“Three hours after you left for the airport. He was ready to strangle me … and you.”

“You were here already? You
knew
they were in danger.”

He shrugged. “The funeral director had disappeared. We wanted to be certain Joel and Tania were safe.”

“But they weren’t safe.” She got in the passenger seat. “And neither was Phil.”

“Do you think I don’t feel bad enough?” he said roughly. “Phil was my friend.”

“I don’t care how bad you feel. Maritz killed Phil and tried to kill Tania because he wanted to get at me. And Nicholas didn’t even tell me.”

“Because we knew you’d come back here. Nick wanted to keep you safe.”

“What right did he have to—” She broke off. There was no sense in arguing with Jamie when it was Nicholas who was to blame. “I don’t want to talk anymore. Just take me to Tania.”

“S
he’s on the fifth floor,” Jamie said as he drew up in front of the hospital. “Do you want me to come with you?”

“No.” She got out of the car and slammed the door.

Joel was in the hallway outside Tania’s room.

“You look terrible,” Nell said. “How’s Tania?”

“Broken ankle, lacerations, shock,” Joel said. “She saw Phil stabbed to death.” He smiled bitterly. “Other than that, she’s just fine.”

“It’s my fault.”

“I’m the one who forgot to turn the alarm on when I left for the day. The bastard just walked into the house.” He shook his head. “He just walked in.”

“I’m sorry, Joel.”

“She almost died.” He gave her a stony stare. “Stay away from her. I don’t want you near her.”

She flinched. She couldn’t blame him for his resentment, but it still hurt. “After today I promise not to see her until all this is over. I just want to tell her how— May I see her?”

He shrugged. “After Kabler is through talking to her.”

Her glance flew to the door. “Kabler is here?”

“He got here a few minutes ago. He said he had to question her about Maritz.”

“Do they have a chance of catching Maritz?”

“Kabler says he’s probably already on a plane out of the country.”

“But Tania saw him do it. What about extradition?”

“Extradition is good only if they can find him.”

“He’ll go back to Gardeaux for protection.”

He shook his head. “I don’t know. I just want him to stay away from Tania.”

“So do I.” She touched his arm. “Surely he wouldn’t dare come back now that he’s been identified.”

“No? The bastard’s crazy. He could do anything. He’s been watching her, stalking her, and he just walked into the house and—” He broke off. “Just have your say and get away from her. She’s had enough of—”

“I expected you, Mrs. Calder,” Kabler said as he closed the door of the hospital room behind him. “Where’s Tanek?”

“I came alone.” She asked Joel, “May I go in now?”

“As soon as I check to make sure Kabler hasn’t done any damage.” He went into Tania’s room.

“Too bad about young Phil,” Kabler said. “You knew him well?”

“Yes. No, I guess not. What are you doing here?”

“I’ve had a man monitoring the situation here in
Minneapolis since we heard about Birnbaum’s disappearance. You remember I was curious about his involvement?”

She leaned against the wall. “Evidently your man didn’t monitor it close enough.”

“You weren’t aware that Maritz was stalking Ms. Vlados?”

“Of course I didn’t know,” she said impatiently. “Do you think I’d let her run the risk of—”

“Easy.” He held up his hand. “I’m just asking. Since Reardon was on the scene, it appears that Tanek knew.” He shook his head. “I told you he couldn’t be trusted. If he used Ms. Vlados for bait, do you think he wouldn’t use you?”

“He didn’t use her for bait.”

“Then why didn’t he tell you?” He shook his head in despair when she didn’t answer. “You still believe him.”

“He wouldn’t put Tania in danger.”

“Did he tell you what he found out from Nigel Simpson?”

“Yes.”

“No, he didn’t. You wouldn’t be so calm about it.” His lips tightened as she turned away. “I’m not going to let this happen again. Meet me downstairs in the lobby when you’re finished talking to Ms. Vlados.”

“Why?”

“I’m going to show you proof that Tanek can’t be trusted. Not for a minute.”

She watched him walk away. She was furious with Nicholas, but she had instinctively defended him. What a fool she was. Clutching at her trust in him as if it were a lifeline.

She had never felt so alone.

“You can go in now.” Joel stood in the open doorway. “But only for a few minutes. She needs to rest.”

Tania looked pale and terribly fragile propped up against the white pillows.

Her words, however, were brusquely characteristic. “Stop looking like that. There’s nothing much wrong with me. My ankle will be fine.”

“I guess you know how sorry I am.” Nell came forward. “I never dreamed this would happen. It should have been me. I was the one he was after.”

“Don’t flatter yourself. Maybe at first, but he found me a very appealing victim.” She smiled without mirth. “He thinks I’m special. Isn’t that nice?”

“How can you joke?”

Tania’s smile vanished. “It’s the only way I can cope,” she whispered. “I don’t think I’ve ever been that frightened. He just kept coming at me. I couldn’t stop him. It was like that with you, wasn’t it?”

Nell nodded.

Tania’s eyes filled with tears. “He killed Phil.”

“I know.”

“Phil saved me and Maritz killed him. I saw one of those horror movies once about a bogeyman whose sheer evil kept him alive. No matter what happened.” Tania’s hand tightened with bruising force on Nell’s. “He just kept on going, killing. It wasn’t like that in Sarajevo. They didn’t have faces. Maritz has a face. But he looks so ordinary, like anybody else.”

“I’m upsetting you. I’d better go. Joel will have my head.”

Tania tried to smile, but it was a weak effort. “Yes, he’s being very protective, isn’t he? Maybe you’d better go. I’m not very good company right now. Keep in touch.”

“I will. I promise.” She bent down and brushed a kiss on Tania’s cheek. “Get well.”

Tania nodded.

“Nell.”

Nell stopped at the door.

“Be careful,” Tania whispered. “He really is the bogeyman.”

T
anek stood waiting outside the door. “How is she?”

“Not good,” Nell said coldly. “How did you think she’d be? She was almost killed and saw Phil stabbed to death in front of her eyes.” She started down the hall.

“Where are you going?”

“Now? I need a cup of coffee. Seeing Tania like that wasn’t pleasant.” She needed more than coffee. She was shaking and she mustn’t let him see it. She knew how good Nicholas was at attacking any weakness. She turned into the waiting room and fumbled in her purse for change for the coffee machine. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

“The hell it isn’t.” He punched quarters into the machine and watched as black liquid poured into the paper cup. “Why didn’t you wait until I got back? I would have brought you here.”

She took the cup from him. “I couldn’t be sure, could I? You didn’t even tell me that Maritz was stalking her.”

“We didn’t know. Not for sure.”

“You were sure enough that you sent Jamie here.”

“It was just a safety measure. I didn’t want another Medas.”

She sipped the black coffee. “Well, you got one. Phil’s dead.”

He nodded. “And how do you think that makes me feel? I’m the one who brought him here.”

“Frankly, I don’t care how you feel.”

His lips tightened. “All right, I didn’t tell you everything. I didn’t want you to come running back here.”

“That wasn’t your choice.”

“I made it my choice. I didn’t want you dead, dammit.”

“If I’d have been here, Maritz would have gone after me instead of Tania.”

“Exactly.”

“And who made you God, Nicholas? What right do you have to make decisions like that?”

“I did what I had to do.”

She finished the coffee in two swallows and tossed the cup in the wastebasket. “And I’m doing what I have to do.” She left the waiting room and walked toward the elevator.

He followed her. “Where are you going?”

She didn’t answer.

“Look, I can see why you’re upset, but what happened doesn’t alter the basic situation. Maritz may be under Gardeaux’s wing by now. We should stick to the plan.”

She punched the elevator button. “I don’t think that plan will work anymore. It requires a certain amount of trust.”

He met her eyes. “You may not believe it now, but you’ll trust me again.”

“I hope I’m not that much of a fool.” She went into the elevator and stopped him as he started to follow her. “No, I don’t want you to come with me.”

He nodded and stepped back. “Okay, I can understand how you’d need some space.”

She felt a flicker of surprise. She hadn’t thought he’d give up so easily. The door shut between them, and she leaned back against the side. She felt as bruised and exhausted as if she’d been in a battle and there was still Kabler to face.

Kabler was coming out of the gift shop when she got off the elevator. “Mighty Morphin, the Red Ranger,” he said when he saw her glance at the sack
he was carrying. “For my kid. They’re hard to find in the stores in my neck of the woods.”

“I don’t think this is what you were going to show me,” she said.

“I saw Tanek go up. What did he—”

“You said you had something to show me.”

He took her arm. “It’s not here.” He led her out of the hospital to the parking lot. “You look tired. Just relax and trust me.”

Why not? She supposed she did trust him. She had to trust someone. She got into his car, leaned back in the seat, and closed her eyes. “I’ll relax, but you’d better not. Nicholas let me leave too easily. I’d bet Jamie Reardon is somewhere around. He’s driving a gray Taurus rental car.”

“He’s five cars back. It doesn’t matter. He can follow only so far.”

“S
he’s with Kabler?” Nicholas swore beneath his breath. “Keep on their tail. What the hell’s he doing with her?”

“I can’t keep on their tail. I’m calling from the airport. They just boarded a private jet that’s taxiing down the runway.”

“Can you find out their destination?”

“A DEA charter? Given a little time, maybe. Spur-of-the-moment? No way.”

Nicholas had known that was not an option, but he was grasping at straws. Besides, he had a good idea where they were going. He hadn’t thought Kabler would go that far. “I’m on my way. See if you can charter a flight and be gassed up and ready when I get there.”

“I guess I know what flight plan we’re going to file.”

“Bakersfield, California.”

T
he large Victorian house was set back from the street, surrounded by spacious lawns and towering oaks. It looked timeless, gracious, and dignified in the deepening twilight.

“Go on,” Kabler said.

“I don’t believe you,” Nell whispered. “It’s not true.”

Kabler came around and helped her out of the car. “See for yourself.”

Nell slowly walked up the steps of the huge wraparound porch and rang the bell.

Through the etched flowers on the glass door, she could barely see a woman coming down a staircase.

The carriage lantern beside the door suddenly lit the porch and the woman peered through the barely transparent glass.

The door swung open. “May I help you?”

Nell was frozen. She couldn’t speak.

A tiny frown marred the perfection of the woman’s forehead. “Are you selling something?”

“What is it, Marla?” A man was coming down the steps.

She was going to faint. No, she was going to be sick. Oh, God. Oh, God.

The man put his arm affectionately around the woman’s shoulders. He smiled. “What can we do for you?”

“Richard.” She barely managed to get the name past her lips.

The man’s smile vanished. “You’re mistaken. You must have the wrong house. I’m Noel Tillinger, and this is my wife, Marla.”

Nell shook her head as much to clear it as to negate
the man’s words. “No.” Her stunned glance shifted to the woman. “Why, Nadine?”

Nadine’s gaze suddenly narrowed on her face. “Who—”

“Stay out of this, Marla. I’ll handle her.”

“I think she’s been handled enough,” Kabler said from behind her. “And not too kindly.”

Richard’s eyes widened. “Kabler? What the hell are you doing here?”

Kabler ignored him, his gaze on Nell. “You okay, Mrs. Calder?”

She wasn’t okay. She wasn’t sure anything would ever be okay again. “I didn’t believe you.”

Richard’s gaze swung back to her. “Nell?”