Ashes, Ashes, They All Fall Dead (32 page)

His hand touched hers and she felt him lean toward her. “I don’t think Tonya can take much more of this,” he whispered. “We can’t keep going in circles when you and I both know the way out has to be in another part of the mine. We have to go down the main tunnel.”

Tessa sighed. “All right. I’ll quit complaining. We’ll do it your way.”

His warm lips pressed against the side of her face. “Thank you.”

She shoved herself off the floor, wincing as the throbbing started anew in her right foot. “Tonya, Matt thinks he may be able to find a way out of here. Ready to try?”

A loud sniffle was her only answer.

Tessa braced her hand against the wall on her left. “Let’s go.”

“W
HAT DO YOU
suppose he did with Ginger?” Tessa slumped to the floor underneath another ventilation shaft. The light had faded long ago. It was nighttime outside. The only way she knew she was under a shaft was because of the rush of fresh air, like an air-conditioning vent set on low. The mine was getting colder and colder. She had her jacket on again, but Matt had given up his to keep Tonya warm.

There’d been no sightings of Hargrove, thank God, but Tessa was beginning to wonder if it was because they’d made their way so deep into the mine that they were in an area he’d never consider exploring.

And she was beginning to wonder if they’d ever find a way out.

“Who’s Ginger?” Tonya asked. She’d finally quit sniffling. This was the first time she’d said anything coherent since they’d started out.

“My golden retriever,” Matt said. “She disappeared from my home in Savannah around the same time you were abducted. Tessa and I saw her tied up outside just a few minutes before we were forced into the mine.”

Footsteps sounded behind them. Matt whirled around. A light bounced off the wall of the nearest side tunnel.

“He’s back. Let’s get out of here,” he whispered.

Tonya whimpered again.

Tessa and Matt both reached for her and pulled her along with them away from the light.

The footsteps were closer, louder, moving much faster than Hargrove had moved before. The light bounced crazily, almost to the tunnel entrance.

“Run,” Matt whispered.

He and Tessa took off, pulling Tonya between them, running their hands down the sides to guide them forward.

“Hey, wait, stop!” a voice called out behind them.

“We’re here to help you,” another voice called out.

A bright light, much brighter than Hargrove’s flashlight, shined down the length of the tunnel, illuminating the three of them.

“Tessa, Matt, stop!”

Matt and Tessa both skidded to a halt, pulling Tonya to a stop between them. They turned around.

Tonya’s eyes widened in terror, blinking against the bright light. “We have to run!”

Tessa blinked back the tears that threatened to fall as she shared a smile with Matt. She pulled Tonya against her in a tight hug.

“It’s okay, sweetie. You’re safe. That isn’t the man who abducted you. Those are miners, and the man in the middle is an FBI agent, my boss.”

Chapter Fifteen

Day Seven

T
HE
EMT
TENDED
Tonya Garrett in the back of the ambulance as the sun began to spread its first rays through the woods around them. Since Tonya’s physical injuries were mainly bumps and bruises, Casey had asked her if she could stay for a few minutes to answer questions before going to the hospital for a more thorough evaluation. She’d reluctantly agreed. So, while Casey waited for the EMT to finish, he questioned Tessa about everything that had happened.

Matt sat on a fallen log watching the controlled chaos going on around the opening to the mine, while Tessa sat a few feet away. Another EMT had already cleaned and bandaged her side where the bullet had grazed her, and he was currently bandaging her foot.

She spoke in low tones to Casey, answering question after question in spite of the exhaustion evident by the dark circles under her eyes. If Casey didn’t leave her alone soon, Matt was determined to set him straight about letting Tessa get the rest she needed and deserved.

The cops who’d found Matt and Tessa’s car had quickly realized exactly what had happened by following their trail through the woods to the collapsed mine shaft opening. But it had apparently been a huge and lengthy ordeal to track down the mine’s previous owners and find maps from over two decades ago to figure out where other openings might be. And then it had taken even more time to get the vehicles, miners, and equipment in place for a rescue.

Casey clasped Tessa on the shoulder. “I’m sure we’ll find Hargrove soon, or Hoffman, whatever name he’s using these days.” He looked over at Matt. “I suspect you’re right about them being the same person. Seems obvious. I’ve got a BOLO out on both names. Every law- enforcement officer in the Tri-State area will be on the lookout for him. You did a great job, both of you.”

“Thanks, Casey.” Tessa winced as the EMT put the last piece of tape in place to hold a temporary splint on her bruised and sprained foot.

Since Casey didn’t look like he was going to stop grilling Tessa any time soon, Matt decided to put some much needed distance between them. It was either that or slug Casey for his complete lack of concern over his agent’s welfare. Couldn’t the man see how tightly wound she was? She wasn’t just exhausted. She was still reeling from the shock of finding out about her biological mother and father and everything else that had happened. Matt didn’t need to be a shrink to know she needed some downtime, alone, to absorb it all.

He decided to check on how everything was going down in the mine. He strode toward the police officer stationed at the mine’s entrance, writing on a clipboard to document everyone going into and out of the shaft. But just as Matt reached the opening, one of the miners ran out, his eyes wide with excitement.

“We’ve got a body,” he said.

Casey cut off his conversation with Tessa and ran toward the entrance. He and the miner disappeared inside.

Tessa hobbled over, apparently intent on following her boss.

“Wait,” Matt said. “You should sit and rest. Or better yet, go with Tonya to the hospital. I still think you need that foot x-rayed.”

“I’m fine. And I’m going inside.” She sounded indignant, as if he was questioning her abilities.

He sighed. So they were back to that: her playing the experienced FBI agent to his low-born private investigator. The closer they’d gotten to the surface as the miners had led them out, the more distant and formal she’d become. It was as if she was an entirely different person whenever her co-workers or other law-enforcement personnel were around her. Especially Casey.

Tessa gave her name to the officer with the clipboard and was about to step inside when a miner ran out.

“They’re coming out,” he exclaimed.

Tessa was forced to back out of the way. A moment later a group of four miners carried a rescue basket out of the mine with a body lying inside, covered with a sheet.

The EMT who’d worked on Tessa’s foot flipped the sheet back and felt for a pulse in the man’s neck. He shook his head.

Tessa gasped when she saw the man’s face. “That’s the man who sealed us in the mine and shot at us. I assume he’s Hargrove, but he never admitted his name.” She frowned and shook her head. “I don’t understand. What happened? This doesn’t make sense.”

Casey held a mining badge ID next to the man in the basket. “The picture the mining company gave us of Hargrove is old, but I don’t have any doubts. This is definitely Don Hargrove.”

“But how?” Tessa asked, seemingly incapable of accepting Hargrove’s death. “What happened to him?”

Matt joined the group surrounding the body.

“He’s got a dent in his right temple,” the EMT said. “He must have fallen and hit his head on a rock. I’m no expert, but I’d estimate he’s been dead for several hours. He probably died sometime during the night or very early this morning.”

Tessa shook her head, as if she still couldn’t believe what was right in front of her. Matt imagined it was hard for her to accept that someone she’d thought of for months, years, while consumed with the Ashes letters, could be as vulnerable as anyone else. The monster in her dreams had been vanquished too easily for her to feel like he was really defeated, like he was really dead and could never hurt her again.

“He’s just a man,” Matt whispered. “He’s human, even if he’s a monster. He really is dead.”

She briefly closed her eyes and nodded. The sun finally made its way through the trees, and Tessa blinked at the light. “Game over,” she whispered, sounding on the verge of laughter.

Matt gave her a sharp look. “Are you sure you’re okay? What are you talking about?”

She rubbed her hands up and down her arms. “Casey gave me a week to work with you to find the killer. He told me, ‘Day seven, game over.’” She shivered and looked down at Hargrove’s body again. “Game over.”

She stepped away just as Matt was about to put his arm around her shoulders.

Casey called out to Tonya, sitting in the back of the ambulance.

“Miss Garrett, is this the man who abducted you and locked you up in the mine?”

The crowd backed up, giving her a clear view.

She turned away. “That’s him.”

A cheer went up around the clearing.

Casey grinned and shook the hands of the agents and officers surrounding him. “We got him. It’s over.”

He waved one of the female FBI agents over to the ambulance and joined her at the opening.

“Miss Garrett, this is Special Agent Kent. She’ll accompany you to the hospital. We’ve already called your parents and they’re on their way. Agent Kent will stay with you until they arrive.”

The EMT started to close the doors.

Tonya’s eyes got big and round. “Wait!”

Her eyes filled with tears as she looked at Tessa and Matt. She climbed down from the ambulance, ignoring the EMT’s efforts to stop her.

Matt and Tessa hurried to her, Tessa limping but refusing Matt’s offer of an arm to lean on.

“Thank you,” Tonya whispered in a tear-clogged voice. “Thank you for saving me.” She wrapped her arms around both of them and gave in to deep, wracking sobs.

It took several minutes before Tessa and the EMT could coax Tonya back into the ambulance and send her on her way.

Matt leaned against one of the police cars. “Tessa, if you’re ready to leave, I’ll get an officer to take you back to the hotel. They’re still processing our rental car as part of the crime scene. And you need to get off that foot and get some rest.”

She looked like she was going to argue with him, but then her shoulders slumped. “You’re right. I’m exhausted. But I’m sure you are too. Aren’t you going to come with me?”

“I’ve got to look for Ginger.”

Her hand flew to her throat. “I forgot about her. I’m so sorry. I hope you find her, and that she’s okay.”

He nodded, not at all sure that was the case. He still didn’t know why Hargrove had taken his dog, but the man didn’t strike him as the type to go to that kind of trouble unless he’d intended to use her to some kind of advantage. Matt could only hope that whatever plans Hargrove had had for Ginger, he hadn’t been able to enact them because he’d been killed. With any luck she was tied up somewhere, maybe muzzled so she wouldn’t bark. Matt wasn’t leaving until he’d done everything he could to find her.

Tessa shoved her bangs back from her face, smearing some coal dust across her cheek. “Thank you, Matt. In spite of what my boss says, I know
you’re
the reason Tonya is alive and safe. And you’re the reason we all survived down in that mine. I owe you a debt I can never repay.”

He smiled and reached out to wipe the smear off her cheek, but she took a quick step back, her eyes widening in alarm. She looked at Casey, and the other agents, before looking back at Matt. The message was clear: She didn’t want him to touch her in front of anyone she knew.

Matt stiffened and dropped his hand to his side. “You don’t owe me anything, Tessa. Not one damn thing.” He turned and headed into the trees.

T
WO DAYS LATER,
with the investigation in Stoneyville wrapped up, Casey and his team flew back to Savannah, but not before learning the results of the autopsy on Don Hargrove. He had terminal lung cancer, a diagnosis he’d received while living in Alabama, in the same house Casey had staked out.

If Hargrove hadn’t died in the mine, he’d have died within a couple of months. Casey figured that was another trigger, why he’d escalated to the point where he’d risked the trip to Savannah and kidnapped Tonya Garrett. He’d wanted to force Tessa’s hand so he could make sure he killed her before he lost his chance. As to why he wanted to kill his daughter, no one was sure, unless he resented her for running away. Who knew what reasons ran through the mind of a sociopath?

Pictures of Hargrove had been sent to some witnesses in Priceville, who’d positively identified him as Isaac Hoffman. The reason Hoffman had changed his identity to Hargrove and later back to Hoffman was still a mystery, but at least they knew for sure they were one and the same man.

Matt and Tessa stayed an additional day in Madisonville, giving Tessa’s side and sprained foot more time to heal. And giving Matt more time to find Ginger. He’d called all the dog pounds and humane societies within a hundred miles of Stoneyville, leaving his contact information. And he’d posted dozens of flyers with Ginger’s picture and Matt’s cell-phone number. But so far no one had called. He hated leaving without her, but he had a business to get back to, and Tessa was due to return to the office tomorrow. They couldn’t put their trip off any longer. So they packed their bags and headed to the airport to catch a flight back to Savannah.

Matt threaded his way through the crowd waiting to board the plane and stopped beside Tessa.

She gave him a questioning look.

“They said it’ll be a two-hour delay while they replace a missing part,” he said.

“We should have left when Casey and the others did.”

“Your body needed time to heal.”

She nodded her agreement. “Well, if we have to sit in the airport for two hours, we might as well get a drink. My treat. Sort of a good-bye toast.”