Fear Familiar Bundle (55 page)

It was too late now for arguments over gun control. He only knew that if someone armed and dangerous was after Cassandra, he'd protect her with his life.

The moon gave fair illumination as he started the long trek up to the apple orchard. He knew how Cassandra avoided the place. What could have drawn her up there at night, alone?

His long legs and steady pace ate up the distance. Even though his lungs burned with the effort, he pushed on. At the same time he kept his ears alert for any unnatural sound.

As he ran, he mulled over the carnie, Ray. There was something about the man that didn't click. He'd used poor Sarah Welford, no doubt about that. But he didn't strike Adam as a killer.

He didn't deny having met Cassandra in the lounge, and he'd been straightforward about dumping her on the side of the road. He'd acted as if she'd gotten her due, but he hadn't lied. If he'd been killing women up and down the mountain, would he have been so blatant about his behavior? It simply didn't fit.

On the other hand, the mayor of Gatlinburg was a man who troubled Adam. Simpson's calculated attacks on Cassandra revealed a deep-seated personality flaw to Adam. The man was terrified of Cassandra.

He had something to hide, and he was afraid Cassandra would unearth it. Adam's suspicions pointed directly to the murder of the women.

Beaker was in it up to his neck. No lawman in his right mind would take confidential information such as the things Cassandra had told him and give them to a television talk show host. It bordered on a criminal action. When all of this was over, Beaker was going to have some serious questions to answer about his conduct.

Adam puffed on, forcing one leg in front of the other. He was at the beginning of the orchard. He passed the first several rows of trees and the land leveled out, allowing him to drag air into his burning lungs.

The gun was snug in his waistband with extra bullets in his pocket. Each time he drew a breath, he felt the hard steel. He slowed his pace, trying to remember the layout of the orchard as Cassandra had described it. He also had to listen to see if he could hear any sound of her presence.

Without knowing what kind of situation he faced, he didn't want to call out to her. He dropped back to a walk and began to move from tree to tree.

Night sounds were all around him. Insects whirred, their choruses broken by the flutters and rustlings of birds and small animals moving through the protection of darkness.

If there was a human sound, he couldn't detect it. He moved forward, listening, watching. Where would she go? The orchard was big, and she could be anywhere in it, if she was even on the mountain.

He was on the point of calling her name when the night was splintered by the anguish of a scream.

Adam froze, and then broke into a run. It was Cassandra's voice, and she sounded as if she were being torn apart.

The scream echoed in the night as he raced forward. He broke through a line of trees and what he saw stopped him completely. Cassandra and the cat were outlined on a huge rock. She was kneeling with the cat at her side, a flashlight beam pointed at the rock. Slowly she reached forward and picked something up.

Rocks dug into Adam's hands as he pulled himself up the mountain of stone to where Cassandra knelt. Against the backdrop of the starry night and the moon, she appeared to be captured in some ancient ritual of grief. "Cassandra," he said gently. When she didn't respond, he put his arms around her. "What's wrong?" he asked. She was rocking back and forth slowly, clutching something in her hand.

"She's dead, Adam. Somehow, he killed her."

"Who?" In the darkness he couldn't tell if she was injured, or confused, or coming out of a nightmare.

"JoAnn," she whispered. "See."

The hair she held in her hand was about four inches long and luxuriant, tied at one end with a red ribbon. It was obviously human hair and very much resembled JoAnn Reed's beautiful tresses.

"He left it here for me to find," Cassandra said. Her voice was soft, almost inflectionless. "He's taunting me. He was at the house tonight, and he left a fake bomb in the kitchen. He did it to prove to me that he could. He was outside the whole time, watching. He laughed at me."

"Let's get home," Adam said. They were very unprotected on the rock, and Running Stream was alone in the house. He'd known the man they sought was insane, but he'd never experienced the full reality of the killer's craziness until he saw the hair. The killer was obviously performing a ritual scalping of the women he victimized. The man was sick, and extremely dangerous.

Very gently, Adam took the hair from her hand and carefully put it in the pocket of his jacket. He helped Cassandra off the rocks, and Familiar followed, as lithe and agile as ever.

"Before we go home, I have to do one thing," he said as he led Cassandra toward the place where Running Stream said the cave would be. He had to check it out to see what Bounder was involved in. He owed Running Stream that much. There was no telling what she would have to face in the future.

He didn't like the idea of the hair. It was symbolic scalping. The first thing that had come to his mind was an Indian revolt. It would be the first thing most people thought about. Either Bounder and his friends had stepped too far over the line, or it was possible that someone was trying to set them up. For the moment, he didn't know what he believed.

"There's a cave here. I promised Running Stream I'd check it out," he said as he led the way.

Cassandra didn't ask a question. She followed him as he wound his way through the trees. For a short distance Familiar followed, then suddenly darted ahead, crying loudly.

"If we had any element of surprise, Familiar has blown it," Adam grumbled as they crept forward.

The face of the mountain was completely dark. There were areas so black that they appeared to be holes or mouths, but they were only indentations. Adam patiently searched for the opening. Beside him, Cassandra searched low while he felt high. They'd have to do it by touch.

Familiar's meow was a steady aggravation. The cat raced from them to a distance farther along the wall of the rock. Then he dashed back to them and yowled louder.

Exasperated, Cassandra followed the cat to the point where he stopped and disappeared into a crevice in the side of the mountain.

"I think we've got it," she said. "Flashlight?"

"No," Adam said. "Wait until we're inside. Someone might be out there trying to follow us. We don't want to make it any easier than we have to."

Adam stepped through the opening first, with Cassandra right on his heels. In the total darkness of the cave, the cat brushed past Adam's leg and gave a rumbling cry. Adam clicked on the flashlight.

The prone body of Bounder was flung against one side of the cave wall. His arm was twisted in a funny angle, and in the flashlight's gleam he was unnaturally pale.

Cassandra rushed to him while Adam steadied the light. A quick check of his carotid artery indicated he was still alive, but his pulse was weak. His right arm was broken, Cassandra knew that without touching him, and he was unconscious. She ran her hands along his legs while Adam held the light. They were clean and straight, but as she moved up his body she found numerous cuts and scrapes, nothing too serious until she saw the gaping head wound. He'd been soundly bashed on the left side of his head.

"He probably broke his arm in the fall against the cave wall," Cassandra whispered. "We need an ambulance. I can't tell about internal injuries."

"Could they find this location if they came up here?" Adam asked.

Cassandra thought a moment. "Maybe, maybe not. He's losing blood slowly but steadily from the head wound. We have to get him home, and quickly." She bent down to examine his arm.

Adam's hand closed on her shoulder and stayed her. "Before we do anything, consider that Bounder might be the killer."

Cassandra's hair arced around her head as she swung to face him. "I don't believe that."

"I know you don't want to, but it might be true."

"Then who knocked him out?"

Adam dropped the flashlight and moved his hands from her shoulders down her arms as he knelt beside her. "I don't want it to be true, but I want you prepared. Okay?"

She nodded, giving her attention once again to the injured man. "You're right. We have to consider every possibility. Running Stream warned me to keep all doors open. I wonder if she knew I'd be suspecting her son?"

"She's a smart woman. She knows Bounder might be involved in something bad."

"But not murders," Cassandra insisted.

"While you're working on his arm, I'm going to have a look around this place." The cave descended into cavernous blackness. Adam had no idea how deep the chamber was, or what might be hiding in there. He wanted to check it out before there was an unpleasant surprise.

The cave was narrow at the opening, but it widened out and the ceiling soared to a large cavern. The darkness ate the beam of light; the cave was bigger than he'd anticipated.

Footsteps echoing, Adam moved forward. The flashlight picked up whorls and scars in the earth where it appeared something heavy had been dragged away, but the cave was empty.

"Adam, he's coming around." Cassandra's voice echoed eerily in the empty cavern.

Adam ran the light over the interior as thoroughly as possible before returning to Cassandra's side. She held Bounder's head in her lap, and the young man was moaning and beginning to stir.

"The pain is going to be intense," Cassandra warned. "I don't have a thing to give him."

"If he can stand it, we'll try to get him back to your house."

"I can stand it," Bounder said softly.

"What happened?" Cassandra pressed her hand on Bounder's forehead, gently encouraging him to remain prone for a few moments longer. She knew the first effort to move would awaken the pain in his broken arm.

"I came up here to check on the materials." He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth against the pain. For a second, he almost fainted, but he ground out the next words. "There was someone hiding here. Whoever it was hit me with something and…I don't remember." His voice grew hazy.

"Then they threw you against the rock wall," Cassandra told him. "How long have you been here?"

"I don't know. I woke up several times, but when I tried to move, I blacked out again. I heard things. Crying and moaning. I knew I had to get away before I died."

"It's okay now," Cassandra comforted him. She cast a look at Adam.

"Bounder, we need the truth now. Who hurt you? Was it one of your friends?"

"No. The truth is, I don't know who it was. I never saw them." He stifled a cry as he forced himself into a sitting position with Cassandra's help. He swayed for a moment as if he might yield to the pain, but he didn't. "We have to get out of here. Now."

"What were you hiding here on Cassandra's property?"

"Parts for a bomb." Bounder panted from the pain.

"Explosives!" The word escaped Adam like a slap.

Bounder shook his head. "Everything but. We were going to get the dynamite later this month."

"Bounder!" Cassandra's whisper revealed her disappointment.

"I wouldn't have let them bring the dynamite to your land, Cassandra. We just had the housing for the bombs."

"Why bombs?" she asked.

"To scare the tourists. We didn't want to really hurt anyone, just frighten them away."

"The second earring? Where did you get it?" Adam interrupted. "What do you know about the murders?"

"I found it in the orchard. I knew it was a match to the one I found at your home."

"Then why didn't you tell me?" Cassandra's question was quietly put, but it carried a lot of raw emotion.

"I meant to. But I thought I'd watch the orchard and trap the killer myself. I wanted to do it because…"

"To show Billy and Stalker," Cassandra supplied. "Because if you could do something such as capture the killer, you'd get notice and attention. An Indian who did something important. It would make your friends rethink their plans." It all fell so neatly into place.

"I was stupid," Bounder said slowly. "My pride and my arrogance got in the way of my thoughts."

As he finished speaking, Familiar came out of the darkness and rubbed against his good hand. The cat purred loudly, then bit him gently and tugged on his hand.

"He's trying to get you up," Cassandra said. She bent down for the cat, but he dodged her hands. Familiar disappeared into the blackness of the cave.

"We'd better get him out of here," Adam whispered to Cassandra. He didn't like the cave, the feeling that something could come out of the dark from any direction and attack them.

Bounder sensed Adam's uneasiness. "Leave me, and take Cassandra to safety. Whoever attacked me could come back. I deserve whatever happens to me."

"You wanted to do the right thing," Cassandra consoled him. "The only one who has suffered is you. No matter what, we aren't going to leave you. I'm afraid the pain is going to be terrible when you try to stand."

"I've been stupid but I won't be weak." Bounder leaned forward, and Cassandra and Adam both helped him to his feet. His face showed the power of the pain, but he didn't stumble or falter.

"It's going to be a long walk," Adam warned. "If you need to rest, let us know."

Bounder nodded, and motioned for Cassandra to lead the way out. He fell in behind her, followed by Adam.

At the door of the cave, Familiar darted from the darkness and sank his claws into Adam's pant leg.

"Hey," Adam said, scooping the cat into his arms. "Now isn't the time for games. Let's get down the mountain." With Familiar protesting, he tucked the cat in his arms and hurried to catch up with Bounder. The young man looked as if he might fall at any moment, yet he continued to walk.

Bounder stumbled at a rough place in the path, and Adam was forced to release the cat so he could grasp the young man before he fell.

Free, Familiar scampered back up the path toward the cave. He gave one plaintive cry as he turned and looked back at Cassandra and Adam.