The Minister's Maid (3 page)

He nodded, his expression blank as he looked at the photo on the counter. "Where is it now?"

"In the tunnels," she said, referring to the maze like warren that ran beneath the ranch. "And if it was just the money, I'd give it back, though it wouldn't stop him from killing me. But there's something else..." she stopped, unwilling to put all her secrets on the line. Maybe it wouldn't be necessary, if they could just keep Derek away from her hiding spot.

"What else? I need to know everything." Ian stepped closer, his nearness intimidating even as it made her want to lean into his warmth.

She shook her head. "We just need to keep him away from that chest. If we can do that, what's in it doesn't matter."

* * *

Ian turned away, barely resisting the urge to shake Betsy senseless. "Come on," he said, turning back to face her. "I need you to be transparent with me. If you don't trust me..."

She shook her head, anguish in those big green eyes. "If it were just me affected, I'd tell you in a heartbeat. But there's someone else involved, and the less people who know anything about it, the better. Just let it go, Ian. Please." She tilted her head to the side and he shook his head at her pleading stare.

"Fine. I'll let you have your secret for now. Will you at least tell me where you hid the chest? We should make sure Derek hasn't gotten to it already."

She bit her lower lip again, her gaze shifting to the floor. "Well, I would. The thing is, I'm not sure exactly where it is."

"You're kidding, right?" Ian threw his hands up in frustration. "If we don't know where it is, how the heck are we going to find it? How do you forget where you hid a chest full of money?"

Betsy shrugged. "I said it was in the tunnels. I brought it here, but I wasn't the one who actually hid it. A friend and I...um, were drinking in my suite one night and talking about how funny it was that Derek thought he was a pirate. I showed her the chest. When I passed out, she hid it somewhere in the tunnels as a practical joke. She was leaving for Europe the next day, and was on a plane before I realized the chest wasn't in my closet anymore."

Ian closed his eyes briefly, rubbing his nose. "So where is your friend now? How do we get a hold of her?"

"Last I heard she was on her way to Africa. She loves to travel, and rarely stays in one place for long. Unfortunately it's pretty hard to actually get a hold of her, so I lost touch with her awhile back. I have no idea how we'd reach her now. But there's another way to find the chest, I think."

"I'm all ears," Ian said, leaning against the counter. He was beginning to wonder if the whole story was just something Betsy made up. It sounded far too fantastical to be real, but he couldn't afford not to take it seriously, just in case even part of it was true.

She paced in front of him, hugging her arms to her chest as she avoided his gaze. "Keep in mind that we'd had a lot to drink," she said, her cheeks coloring a rosy hue. "And this place tends to get to you, with all the fantasy themes. When you consider both of those, it's really not that surprising--"

"Just spit it out."

"My friend made a map so I could find the chest when I needed to. A...um...well, a treasure map, sort of. It's a list of clues that lead to the...uh, treasure, so to speak."

Ian shook his head again, a long sigh escaping as he straightened. "Let me get this straight. Your ex was so delusional that he hid coins in a wooden chest, which you then stole. You got drunk one night with a friend who hid the treasure and left you what amounts to a map? Do you have any idea how crazy all this sounds? How do you know your friend didn't take the chest with her? Where does she get all that traveling money?"

Betsy punched him in the arm. "She's a sociologist, so she gets grant money for traveling. And she wouldn't just steal from me like that. We were best friends, dammit. I thought you were supposed to trust people, being a preacher and all."

"You never looked for the money though? Weren't you just a little concerned?"

She shrugged again. "Not really. I wasn't going to spend it anyway, I was saving it for retirement. I figured it was probably safer wherever it was than in my closet, so..."

Ian rubbed his neck. "So you want to stay here, where a killer is after you, to protect a chest that you're not even sure is here anymore." She nodded, and he continued. "If we can prove the chest isn't here, will you let me take you somewhere safe?"

"I guess so."

He sighed again, running a hand through his hair. He should get her out of there now, money and secrets aside. But knowing her, she'd just find a way to come back without him, putting herself in even more danger.

"Okay," he said, holding out a hand. "Let's get the map."

* * *

Betsy followed Ian down the long, dim hall, past the elevator shaft and the entrance to the tunnels. When they finally reached the door to her suite, he put a finger to his lips and motioned for her to stand against the wall beside the door. He pushed the door open slowly, and Betsy couldn't help but think that it should be Harley with her, checking out her place to make sure it was safe. At least he carried a gun. What was Ian going to do if he found someone? Pray for him?

She shifted her stance, the cold from the polished cement floor seeping into her stocking feet. Glancing down at herself, she shook her head. She'd need to change out of the tiny French maid costume before they went anywhere. Jeans and a t-shirt would be much more appropriate for crawling around the dirt tunnels.

Ian poked his head around the door frame. "It looks clear - come on." He disappeared just as quickly, and she followed him inside, closing the door behind her. When she turned, it was all she could do not to collapse right then and there in defeat.

"Whoa," she breathed, trying to comprehend the magnitude of the chaos before her. She wasn't a neat freak by any stretch of the imagination, but still. She'd never trash a room this badly. At least not on purpose. "He was here, wasn't he?"

"Looks that way. Even you aren't this messy." Ian grinned at her, clearly trying to lighten the mood. She rubbed her arms, fear and cold creeping under her skin like some parasite. She couldn't move, could barely breath. Why couldn't Derek just stay in prison like he was supposed to?

His smile fading, Ian moved in front of her, blocking the view and momentarily breaking the paralyzing effect. "Hey, it's gonna be okay." He pulled her into his embrace, hugging her briefly before stepping back and squatting down a little to look her in the eye. "We can't stay here, Bets - we need to move quickly. Do you know where the map is?"

She nodded, forcing herself to focus. "I have a floor safe in the bedroom. It's in there." She brushed past him and headed for the hallway, then stopped when she realized he was following her. Turning around, she shook her head. "You wait out here. I need to change clothes while I'm at it."

"No." Ian shook his head.. "I'm not letting you out of my sight - he could be hiding anywhere. I won't look, but I'm coming in with you."

She shrugged, wondering what would happen if he did peek. Good things for her, no doubt. "Suit yourself." Continuing to her bedroom, she considered changing first, but the chance to show the good reverend what he was missing was too good to pass up.

Moving the nightstand over a foot or so, she knelt down and pried up a couple loose floorboards. Leaning over and giving Ian a great, unobstructed view of her ass as her uniform slid up, she took her time putting the combination in. Finally she swung the door up, and took out a folded sheet of paper.

"Got it!" she said, holding it up triumphantly as she turned around.

Ian was gone.

Chapter 3

"If you can't stand the heat, stay out of the fire!" Betsy yelled toward the doorway Ian had been standing in just moments before. Shaking her head, she went to the closet and hurried into her favorite pair of jeans, a long-sleeved t-shirt, socks and good cross-trainers. Dressed more appropriately for creeping around in dirt tunnels, she grabbed the map off the bed where she'd left it and went to find Ian.

As she made her way to the living room, she mused at how her mood had turned around. Circumstances being what they were, she was surprised to realize it was excitement building in her stomach, rather than fear. At least until she saw the two men standing in front of her fireplace. It was definitely fear that made her insides turn then, and she approached cautiously.

"About time you joined us, Bets," Derek said, holding Ian at gunpoint and looking pointedly at the paper in her hand. "I assume that's the map your friend drew? You just be a good girl and hand that over, and I'll let your boyfriend here live."

"Run, Betsy," Ian hissed, only to earn an elbow in the side that doubled him over. Betsy clenched the paper harder, looking down to find an entire corner crinkled, with a small tear half-way up the page. Had
she
done that?

She shook her head. "You'll just kill him anyway. I'm not going anywhere. And I'm not giving you the map either."

Derek laughed. "I figured you'd be difficult. Why don't I just take care of your friend here, and you and I will go find the treasure together. Hell, maybe if you're good, I'll give you a second chance. I wouldn’t mind you warming my bed again..."

He stepped back a little and raised the gun higher, so it was pointed dead center at Ian's chest. Betsy knew he was just crazy enough to pull the trigger.

"No!" She rushed forward and he turned the gun toward her, squeezing off a shot at nearly the same time she tripped on a rug and fell to the floor. When she looked up, she saw Ian tackle Derek from the side, and both men went down as another shot rang out. Staying low, she crawled behind the couch as the gun slid across the floor from the other side. She shoved it under the couch and pushed to her feet just as Ian grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward the door.

Running behind Ian, she was nearly out in the hall before something tugged hard on the paper in her other hand. Horrified, she heard the sound of paper ripping as Ian yanked her across the threshold and pulled the door shut, then set off down the hall at what seemed like top speed. His grip on her wrist was like a steel manacle and she had no choice but to keep moving or she'd fall on her face. It was impossible to hear whether Derek was following them or not, but she risked a quick glance back as Ian pulled her into the stairwell that lead down to the tunnels and the passage was clear.

"He got part of the map," she gasped when Ian finally stopped to open the access door. She stepped inside when it swung open and automatically reached for the flashlight kept just inside every tunnel entry. When the door clicked shut, she switched on the light and pointed it toward the torn paper in her hand. "Dammit. He's got the whole first half."

* * *

"Come on," Ian said, starting down the tunnel. "Let's worry about a place to hide first, and then we'll figure out what to do about the map."

His broad back had already disappeared into the pitch black beyond when Betsy finally looked up, and she swung the flashlight his way as she hurried after him. Grateful she'd changed clothes, she tried to keep pace with his long stride, her tennis shoes scuffing across the dirt floors.

She followed as Ian veered sharply to the right, then left before going straight until they came to a smaller wooden door that looked as old as the ranch.

"Where are we going?" she asked as she watched him struggle with the key for a moment. The door finally swung open, and she shined the flashlight into the older parts of the warren underneath the ranch. She'd never been down that far - Harley had always said it was unsafe. He and Ian had scouted them out when they'd first moved in, and while there were plans to eventually have an entire suite of guest areas down here, they were still working on expansion plans.

"Not too much farther," he said, closing the door and locking it before he led the way forward. "I have a place up ahead - kind of a hideout, I guess. Harley and I fixed up one of the rooms for when we needed to just sort of hide for awhile. I think it turned out pretty nice, myself." He took a left down a short corridor, stopping at yet another door near the end. "Here we are." He pushed the door open and stepped back, gesturing for her to go first.

Betsy trained the single beam of light in her hand through the doorway, moving slowly into the room. Swinging the light in a wide arch, she was impressed by all the furniture the guys had managed to bring down. A couch, several chairs, even what looked like a queen sized mattress.

"Wow, you really put a lot of work into this." A click sounded behind her, followed by a gentle hum and as she turned to face Ian, dim lanterns came on all around the room, bathing everything in a gentle white glow. "Nice touch," she added, smiling at him.

He tilted his head in acknowledgment. "Thank you. The generator runs off the low current in the stream, so we don't have to haul gasoline. We also have it attached to a solar panel up above - the ceiling isn't all that thick here, which makes it easy to punch holes in, but there's a certain amount of risk with that too. Don't want the whole thing to cave in..."

He was so cute talking about generators and solar panels, Betsy thought as she flipped off the flashlight. So much more relaxed than normal, even though they were technically supposed to be on the run by now. She laid their half of the treasure map on a round wooden table nearby, and set the flashlight on top of it. Then she turned to him and shook her head.

"I know I'm supposed to leave you alone, and dammit, I tried. But you're just so...so..." Preparing herself for rejection yet again, she advanced on him, and to her surprise he stood his ground. "You know this is going to happen, right?" she practically whispered the words, but it was clear from his expression that he'd heard just fine. "We don't have a choice, Ian. You may as well just get over it, because this...thing, between us?" She smoothed a shaking hand up over his chest, the fabric of his shirt rough against her palm. "It's meant to be."