The Black Feather (25 page)

Suzanne looked frantically around and spotted the shears. She scurried over to pick them up and hurried back to Thad. “I have some garden shears that should do the trick.”

“Okay, but go easy, honey. I’m trusting you to be careful. I don’t have a lot of feeling left and I wouldn’t want to lose any digits that might come in handy later.”

She had to admire his sense of humor knowing how uncomfortable he must be. Suzanne knelt there, carefully snipping, feeling the first rush of relief fill her as the tape fell away and Thad began to slowly work his muscles free. She saw him grit his teeth against the discomfort of the blood beginning to flow back into his limbs. She sat back on her heels and waited until he began to ease the tape away from his eyes himself. They both winced when several strands of his hair came away. He was covered in dirt and grimy with sweat, but thankfully she didn’t see any sign of blood.

“Did David do this to you?”

“I doubt it. I sent him along with your mother to the docks to look for you, so I could go for the phones. I knew something had to be wrong when you didn’t call me. I went to Liam’s golf cart the minute they left.”

“So you have the phones. Thank the lord.”

Thad shook his head.

“Save your prayers. I had them for a few seconds, but that was before someone hit me from behind. The next thing I became aware of was being in the state you just found me. Only I happened to be further down the hill before you got here. I take it you don’t have the phones, either.”

“No. Can you walk? I think it might be a good idea to get you in the house. I’m sure you’d like some water and a shower.”

“Water in any form sounds pretty good right now,” he agreed, and dragged himself to his feet.

They’d just walked inside when the front door flung open carrying with it enough anger to fill the room. David and Bobbett were so busy verbally swiping at each other they didn’t seem to realize they weren’t the only two people in the house.

“I swear to God that is the last time I’m going on another wild-goose chase with you!” she yelled.

“Fine by me! Turns out your daughter is about as reliable as you are,” he shouted in return.

“Don’t you dare compare me to her. She probably got herself lost somewhere. I’m not that stupid.”

Suzanne stepped forward.

“Nice to see you, too, Mother.”

Bobbett yelped, and staggered back a couple of steps.

David looked at Suzanne and scowled.

“It’s about time you showed up.” He frowned at Thad. “Why are your clothes so dirty?”

“I had company right after you left. Caught me from behind. Bound me up and tossed me down the hill like yesterday’s garbage. Suzanne arrived a little bit ago and helped me get free.”

David turned to her.

“I’m assuming you’re here because your father told you where to find the phones. Do you have them?”

“No. They were in the colonel’s golf cart. Whoever clobbered Thad must have taken them.”

“In the golf cart? Is that so? Why should I believe you?”

She blinked.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me. How do I know you’re not lying?”

She saw the subtle movement of his hand to where she knew he kept his sidearm. But knowing David was playing his dual role made Suzanne throw caution aside. She walked over to where he stood and glared up at him, her eyes sparkling with fury.

“You can believe me because I wouldn’t lie about something that could make the difference between life and death.”

She poked him in the chest with her finger.

“Can you say the same thing about yourself?” 

Twenty-five

Suzanne might have gone on chastising David if Thad hadn’t coughed and cleared his throat loud enough to make her realize she needed to shut up.

“I could use a glass of water, Suzanne.”

Tension in the room had everyone’s eyes flicking back and forth between each other. Suzanne’s teeth clamped down on her bottom lip while she watched to see how David was going to react to her outburst. He finally appeared to understand his error in challenging her and lowered his hand to his side. She knew what this effort at controlling himself must have cost him considering his predicament.

“Hey, take it easy. We’re all a little on edge here. No need to get on the defensive. I was just asking. You were supposed to tell me about the phones after you talked to your dad, remember?”

“I know, but I thought it would be better to leave you at the clinic to protect my mother and Muriel.”

Did she say, ‘protect’? Suzanne almost choked on the word knowing what he really planned to do to them.

“If I’d known Thad was coming back I would have had you come here with me.”

Amazing how the lies just kept flowing like streams of water over smooth rocks. So much for claiming she didn’t lie, but she reminded herself she lied to protect, unlike David who lied to do harm.

“Okay, I get that, but I’d like to know what kept you so long in coming here. You left the clinic way before any of us did.”

“I’ll tell you, but first I want to get Thad some water and then he needs to go clean up.”

“I’ll take the water, but I’d be interested in hearing where you’ve been all this time before I shower.”

She nodded and walked quickly to the kitchen, filled the biggest glass she could find with water, and brought it back to him. He drained it immediately and shook his head when she offered to get more.

Suzanne knew she couldn’t stall any longer with everyone watching and waiting for her explanation.

She went over the part for David’s benefit about her leaving the clinic in the laundry van, spending the night at the pier, and taking the early morning ferry to the island.

“That still doesn’t explain why you weren’t in this house when your mother and I got here.”

Suzanne gave him an impatient look.

“I’m getting to that. I was only a few houses away driving a golf cart when I happened to look over just as an elderly woman fell coming out of her house. I stopped to help her. She had a badly sprained ankle and needed assistance getting back inside. Once I got her to a chair she told me her husband was bedridden with cancer. I could see that the ankle was swelling and causing her pain. I stayed to make an icepack and see that she was settled before I came here.”

“And discovered the phones had been taken.”

“Yes.”

“You should have come here first,” David insisted. “If you had, the phones might have still been in the golf cart. Now we have nothing, damn it!”

“The woman couldn’t get up on her own, David. I couldn’t very well leave her like that.”

“You could have gone back to her after you had the phones.”

“She did what she thought was best at the time,” Thad said.

“That’s easy for you to say.”

“That’s right,” Bobbett said, pouting at Suzanne. “Davy was going to take me to Hawaii when he got his bonus money. Now you’ve probably blown it for us because you decided to play nursemaid to some old woman you don’t even know.”

Thad frowned at her.

“You mentioned something about that money before. Am I missing something?”

“No. She’s a little confused,”

David hastened to answer.

Bobbett rounded on him.

“What do you mean by that? Are you, or are you not going to take me to Hawaii, David Hamilton?”

“While you two are discussing that, why don’t you go take your shower, Thad?” Suzanne suggested.

“I’ll follow you and you can give me your clothes, so I can run them through the washer and dryer.”

He nodded, and they started upstairs with the sound of Bobbett accusing David of being a welsher ringing in their ears. Suzanne slumped against the closed door as soon as she entered the bedroom.

“Jeez, it’s a wonder those two haven’t killed each other the way they keep going at it.”

Thad’s mouth curved into a ghost of a smile.

“Not exactly a match made in heaven.”

“I thought David was actually going to draw his weapon there for a moment.”

“I think he was tempted. He’s scared now because he knows the Montanes will be running out of patience, and when they do they’ll come after him. He can’t afford to reveal his true intentions until he still thinks he has a chance to get the phones.”

Thad began to strip off his soiled clothes.

“The phones, the phones,” Suzanne muttered. “I’m getting to the point where I’m going to start putting my hands over my ears like Quasimodo did when he heard the bells, the bells.”

“You kind of worried me when you started to go off on David.”

“That was really dumb. He just makes me so mad I feel like wringing his neck, especially when . . .”

Suzanne stopped in midsentence as the last article of Thad’s clothing dropped to the floor. All thoughts of phones and anything else flew right out of her head at the sight of him standing there naked.

“A woman who looks at a man like you’re doing is asking to be kissed.”

“Be my guest.”

“I’m filthy.”

Suzanne raised on her toes and put her hands on his shoulders. “I don’t care.”

Thad pulled her to him and dipped his head to her mouth. She reminded herself to be careful knowing his lips were probably still tender from the tape. They kissed, drawing strength and warmth, enjoying the pleasure of these precious few moments alone. She moved back with reluctance and by the state of his body, Suzanne knew Thad was ready for more than just a few kisses.

“Come and shower with me.”

Raised voices drifted upstairs followed by the sound of breaking glass.

“That’s a lovely suggestion and there’s nothing I’d like more, but I think I’d better get back downstairs before those two do some serious damage to Nanadoo’s things.”

Thad gave her a playful slap on her backside when she bent to scoop his dirty clothes off the floor.

“Come back if you don’t have to take too long playing referee.”

“I just might do that,” she said and left the room wondering how much longer she was going to have to tolerate the two combatants awaiting her.

“What do you suggest we do now?” David demanded to know, as soon as Thad joined them again.

Bobbett’s mouth gaped open at the sight of him clad only in a bath towel. Suzanne couldn’t very well blame her mom remembering how her own tongue had practically flopped out of her mouth the first time she saw him like that. Thad leaned his hip against the back of the couch and crossed his arms over his bare chest.

“Suzanne, who else besides the Harolds and yourself might have a key here?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe the neighbors. My godmother kept a spare on the patio, but I moved it.”

“Do you think it’s possible anyone might know where the key was before you took it?”

“I don’t know. I’d have to ask Nanadoo if she mentioned it to any of her friends.”

“How about delivery people? Would they have permission to leave something inside the door if your godmother and the colonel knew they wouldn’t be home?”

“That’s ridiculous. No one gives access to their house key to delivery people,” David argued.

“They might if they trusted them perhaps after having them come here on a regular basis over a long period of time. And speaking of the key – how is it that you were able to get in here?”

David’s eyes moved toward Suzanne.

“Don’t get all ticked off, but I took it out of your purse when we were here before and had a copy made. I thought it’d be a good idea to have it in case you weren’t around. Turns out I was right when you didn’t show up. What’s the big deal about the key anyway?”

“The big deal, as you call it, is the fact that there are no signs of forced entry. Yet someone is coming and going in this house when no one is supposed to be home, which leads me to believe they’ve been in the area all along watching the place. Suzanne, I’d like you to question the neighbors and find out if they’ve noticed anyone hanging about.”

“Okay.” She started to walk away, but stopped and slapped a hand against her forehead. “I forgot to tell you with so much going on. I found another black feather inside my toy horse before I saw you.”

They both turned to David when he hissed out a noisy breath. Bobbett wrinkled her nose.

“What’s going on with the black feathers? Are there birds molting all over the place or something?”

“Have you seen a black feather yourself, Mrs. Conway?”Thad asked in a polite voice.

She answered, despite David’s warning glare.

“We found one on the driver’s seat in our rental car in Cabo and another one in our hotel room. Why do you ask?”

He looked at David.

“I take it you know what the black feather means and who sent it?”

“Yeah, but I thought it best not to say anything and upset Bobbie.” He looked at Suzanne. “You never told me you’ve seen them, too.”

“Would someone please tell me what you’re talking about?”

“It’s the Montanes way of saying they’re watching us, Mother.”

“You already know that, so why are you all acting so weird?”

David whirled to face her.

“Because it means something bad is going to happen when they leave a feather. We’ve got to get those phones.”

“That’s what we’re trying to do,” Thad reminded him.

“Not by sitting here, we’re not.”

Suzanne looked at Thad.

“I’ve been thinking what you said about Nanadoo possibly giving a key to a longtime delivery person. The only one I can think of is the water guy. They’ve been having bottled water delivered to the house for years.”

“Then we need to find out more about him.”

“You take care of that, Novak while I go with Suzanne to question the neighbors.”

“No offense, but I think I’ll have better luck on my own. The people here know me. They may feel a little intimidated by you.”

“She has a valid point,” Thad remarked. “You do seem a little agitated.”

“Hell yes I’m agitated, and so should you two be.”

David faced Suzanne. “I’m going to feel a lot less agitated if you find out something useful and bother to tell me.”

She heard his veiled warning and had to stop herself before the words she really wanted to say popped out of her mouth. Once again, the insult of having to stand there facing a man she knew to be a traitor implying that she might be one too, poked at her like a sharp barb.

The gall that he could demand she help him when he was secretly planning to give the phones away made her fingers itch to slap him. Indignation warred inside her fighting a battle with her anger making her answer him in a cold, clipped voice.

“I’ll give you all the information you deserve,” she said and stormed out of the house.

Suzanne stopped on the porch and took a couple deep breaths trying to calm down. She couldn’t very well go to the neighbors looking like she was going to attack them. David deserved to be the recipient of bodily harm right now. She didn’t care what the Montanes did to him. He hadn’t earned the right to any leniency for being so money hungry and especially for being a would-be murderer.

Of course, now that the phones were gone, whoever took them may have already delivered them to the Montane brothers and David would be out the money anyway. Questioning the neighbors could be a waste of time, but Suzanne wanted to do everything she could before she faced her father again.

She started down the steps slowly inhaling more breaths and felt in better control by the time she arrived at Mrs. Neal’s condo. She rang the doorbell three times before the woman answered.

“Hello, Mrs. Neal. Remember me, Suzanne Conway, Nesta’s goddaughter?”

“Why yes. How nice to see you, but I’m sorry to say you’ve missed them. They’re on vacation.”

Yes, I know. I was wondering if you . . .”

“Why don’t you come in, dear? I have cookies in the oven, and I wouldn’t want them to burn.”

She walked away leaving Suzanne to close the door and follow her to the kitchen. Suzanne watched her shove her hand into a mitt before opening the oven door to take out a baking sheet.

She frowned at the cookies. “I guess they need to stay in a bit longer. I forgot to set the timer.”

Suzanne looked and saw that the cookies hadn’t baked at all. A quick peek at the stove told her the timer wasn’t the only thing Mildred had forgotten to set. No heat came from the oven. She glanced at the recipe card on the counter and turned the dial to the correct temperature while Mildred’s back was turned.