Word Has It (Wordplay Mysteries Book 1) Page 15

  Wanda spun the car around and headed back toward Woodway to warn Todd.

  As she turned right from 8th, they saw his cruiser heading in the opposite direction. The red and blue police lights on his rack flashed and the whoop-whoop of his siren blared as he did a 180 turn.

  “Oh, great.” Wanda pulled over and stopped as he edged up behind her car. He opened his door and strolled to her driver side in his patrol-on-duty walk. He wore jeans and a polo shirt, but his badge and gun hung from his belt.

  She rolled down the window and waved at him.

  Todd cocked his Stetson back off his forehead, flicked on his flashlight, and peered inside the driver’s window.

  The sudden white light hurt Wanda’s eyeballs. She used her arm to shield them. “Todd what’s with the light?”

  “Where are yours?”

  She had forgotten to turn the headlights back on. Adam leaned over. “Hey, Todd. We turned them off in case the burglars were on the grounds and saw them.”

  He nodded. “Hello, Adam. Thought you were meeting Chief Brooks.”

  “I am still taking Adam to meet him. I wanted to flag you down and tell you to turn off your headlights as well.”

  Todd straightened up. “I don’t think they would care since we are not on the property.”

  Two cars passed by, and in the moonlight, Wanda saw them rubberneck.

  Just great. Now the whole town would know she had been pulled over by her nephew. By noon people would be saying she was speeding, or drunk, or who knows what. Her reputation as neighborhood watch chairperson would be ruined.

  Wanda pictured the whispers and shaking heads as she walked down the street to the grocer’s or to Sally’s. Would Betty Sue and Evelyn be ashamed to be seen with her?

  She had a new appreciation of how her sister must have felt. She should call her. Maybe visit her―for a few months.

  Todd tapped his fingers on the open window edge. “Okay, Aunt Wanda. I’ll give you a warning. But I want you to go home. Adam, you come with me.”

  Adam jumped from the passenger seat and headed back with Todd to the squad car.

  Wanda watched in her rearview mirror as they got in and turned to head back to the mansion. She thumped the steering wheel, her pride bruised. How dare Todd dismiss her like that.

  She wiped a tear from forming in the corner of her eye and then clicked on her headlights. But as she waited to turn around, a thought hit her, as they often did.

  Adam didn’t know where the entrance to the cave lay, just that it existed. The woods, though only five acres deep, were dense with oak, cedar-elms and ash trees. It could take days to find the entrance.

  They needed manpower. Time to rally the troops. Wanda pulled up to Hazel’s house, edged into her driveway, and stopped. The windows on the first floor still shown with light. Thank goodness she was a night owl.

  Wanda dialed her number. “Hey, Hazel. I need your help. Can you put on a pot of coffee?”

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  After she explained everything to Hazel, Wanda texted each of the four evening neighborhood watch captains to come ASAP to Hazel’s house. Despite the late hour, they arrived within ten minutes. All had been doing their patrol at the time. What she didn’t expect was that they’d each show up with another neighborhood patrol person and also a loaded weapon.

  Then again, this was Texas. Kids as young as four used cacti as target practice for their BB guns. Up until recently it was not uncommon for boys, and some girls, to pull into the school parking lot after an early morning dove hunt, rack their shotguns in the truck, and then walk to class.

  Hunting was part of a Texan’s DNA. Most of these people probably carried weapons in their vehicles, a habit passed down when their daddies lived in even more rural areas and feared stepping out of the car onto a rattle snake or copperhead.

  Hazel stepped up to the plate as the perfect hostess. They were greeted with the aroma of freshly brewed coffee and warm chocolate chip cookies.

  Wanda held the brief meeting in the living room. She explained about the cave.

  “Where is it?” Ray O’Malley removed his cap and scratched his head. “Never heard of it until now.”

  The others all agreed they had not either.

  “Arthur is not sure, but obviously, it is well-hidden since after all of these decades it has been a secret.”

  Ray raised his hand. “What if we find it?”

  “When.” Wanda held up a finger. “When we find it. Because we must, tonight.”

  Everyone nodded and murmured in agreement.

  She quieted them with her slightly raised voice. “You all should have my cell phone number since I just texted you to come here. Text me in reply and tell me approximately where you are if you stumble upon the entrance. I will contact the police who are also searching.”

  Everyone checked their phones. Then they divided into pairs. Wanda joined Melissa and Jerry Suntych. He had been a county bailiff before retiring.

  “One more thing.” She glanced at each face. “Be safe. Please. The last thing this town needs is another shooting. Now let’s pray before we head out.”

  Everyone stood, formed a circle, and bowed their heads. Then they walked across the street and fanned out in pairs, each taking a quadrant of the woods. Wanda led the Suntychs to the most southern part, nearest to Aurora’s house. To think the cave extended that far from the mansion was a stretch, no pun intended, but she had read that some priest holes in England measured up to a quarter mile long. Being this far south reduced her chances of coming across Adam and Todd anyway.

  But what if one of the other teams ran into them?

  She shook that thought away. She didn’t have time to worry over it. If it happened, she’d handle it then. After all, she told Todd that she had heard him tell her to stay in the car. She never agreed to do so.

  They walked along in silence, Jerry showing them the hunting skill about stepping flat-footed to avoid the crackling of twigs and leaves. The threesome searched under bushes, watched for any upturned ground around boulders, and even searched around the humongous roots of the old cypress trees closer to the lake’s bank. Nothing.

  After twenty minutes Wanda stopped and checked her phone for the umpteenth time. Not one message. She plopped on a log and sighed.

  Melissa joined her.

  “Don’t get discouraged. It must be really well hidden to have gone undiscovered for this long. I mean, the way the kids roam these woods, you’d have thought one of them would have discovered it.”

  “That is exactly what has me puzzled. Why has it not been? Even Chief Archer thought it a wives’ tale until he saw the entry in the mansion that led to the cave.”

  Jerry stood quietly nearby, his eyes scanning the woods as if protecting them.

  Wanda followed his gaze to the clearing. From there she could detect the security lights on Aurora’s property. How involved was she in all of this? Had she been supplying them with food and necessities for the past week? Why?

  The thought of Carl and her possibly doing away with Robert Stewart returned. But until tonight all Wanda had as proof was a thirty year-old note in a yearbook. How many people ever stayed in love with a high school heartthrob anyway?

  Even less believable would be the cheerleader Aurora having feelings for the wallflower Carl. There had to be another connection . . .

  The fear that this might be all a huge mistake crawled into her throat. What if no one had been in the Ferguson mansion at all? And even if they found the entry to the cave, it didn’t mean they would find anything, or anyone in it.

  What did she expect? To walk in on Carl and Butch splitting up the jewels around a kerosene camping stove?

  She rubbed her temples. If this ended up a bust, moving out of town would definitely be her only option―like to Honduras, maybe Australia.

  “Brain working overtime?”

  She noticed Melissa studying her. “Maybe. Guess we should head on.” As she rose and brushed herself off
, it finally hit her . . . again. Why did these thoughts always come out of nowhere? Divine intervention?

  “What if the entry is not in the woods?”

  “What do you mean?” Jerry came closer.

  “The one place kids are never allowed to play, except on Halloween, is where?”

  The Suntychs answered at the same time. “The maze.”

  Melissa silently clapped her hands in excitement. “Mr. Ferguson always monitored it well on Halloween, he said so no one would get lost for long. Maybe it was so no one would discover the secret entrance.”

  “And the rest of the year his Dobermans roamed it to discourage any curious town folk.” Wanda snapped her fingers. “So, what if Carl shot that guy coming out of the woods, not going in.”

  “Wait. Wasn’t he shot in the back?”

  “That’s right, Jerry. But he could have seen Carl and turned to run into the woods for protection.”

  “True.” Jerry bobbed his head.

  “That would mean Bubba headed for the cave entrance hidden in the maze. He saw Carl, started to run back into the cover of the woods and Carl stopped him in his tracks.”

  “Bubba?”

  “Exactly. Bubba Huffman was the man that was killed that night. Tommy Reynolds, the guy who was killed in the park, used to live on the dairy farm and work odd jobs on the grounds as a teenager. He hung out with Bubba and Adam Archer’s stepbrothers, one of which is Carl.”

  Jerry nodded. “I remember Tommy Reynolds. A troublemaker. He was quite a few grades above me. Still, he had a reputation. Scrub Oak’s own James Dean.”

  “I’ve heard that.”

  Melissa touched her shoulder. “Wait. You think Carl killed him, too?”

  “It’s possible, I guess, though I hate to admit it. Bubba Huffman and Tommy Reynolds led his brother, Colton astray back in the day. My guess is they were part of the gang that robbed the jewelry store in Burleson.”

  “Well, it makes sense.” Jerry shrugged.

  Wanda felt the adrenaline returning. “And if Tommy discovered the entry to the bootlegger cave while he worked on the grounds as a teen, it would also make sense he and this gang would head there to lay low. Let’s go.”

  They power-walked from the edge of the woods to West Elm and headed up 8th Street. By the time they got to the lane, Wanda’s calves burned but she kept on going. The gate remained open, but this time two patrol cars were parked at the edge. Good. Todd and Adam must have convinced Chief Brooks and Jim Bob to walk up the lane as well.

  They crossed the lawn crouching low to the ground, stopping momentarily to crouch behind statuaries, bushes, and the gazebo. At last, the three got to the beginning of the maze.

  “Do either of you recall how to get to the center?” Wanda glanced at the couple.

  “I think I do.” Jerry started inside. “I have always had a good sense of direction.”

  “Great. I’ll follow you two then.”

  A few minutes in, Wanda realized she did not have any sense of direction at all. The moon shone high above now, casting shadows along the hedge branches, like eerie short hands ready to grab and snare her. She kept her eyes to the ground directly in front of her to avoid the creepiness from getting to her.

  Suddenly, she no longer followed the Suntychs. When had she lost them? Tagging along in the rear in silence, they probably hadn’t realized she dropped out of sight.

  Oh, dear. Where was she? The hedges held no clue. She spun around and peered down a path that seemed identical to the one she walked. Should she venture ahead or try to retrace her steps?

  Who did she kid? She had no clue as to where she had come so far. She whispered their names. “Jerry? Melissa? Where are you?”

  Only the swoosh of the hedge leaves in the summer night breeze responded. Swallowing down her anxious thoughts, she kept going, remembering her task. Look for anything that might be an entrance to a hidden cave.

  As she bent to peer into a small break in the hedges, a squawk and fluttering of feathers halted her with a gasp. A bevy of quail scurried across her path, probably just as frightened as she felt.

  She wobbled to a concrete bench and slumped onto it, pressing her hand to her double-time thumping heart. Calm down, calm down.

  The little girl fear of losing her parents in the amusement park begin to surface. She fought it back. They had found her then. Someone would find her now.

  She sniffled and hid her head in her hands. Inside her mind, the little girl version of herself cried out for mommy and daddy. Then a quiet voice reminded her she had a Daddy―one who was wiser, all knowing, and more powerful than any father on earth.

  Sucking in a deep breath, she called on Him for help.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Voices. Men’s voices. They were whispered, but she heard them plainly. And the voices grew louder.

  Wanda realized they were in the maze with her. Were they coming in or going out? Police or burglars? She didn’t know. But she better hide.

  She crawled under the bench and wiggled her back half into the hedges. From her new viewpoint all she could she was the ground in front of her, but in the moonlight, maybe most of her body would remain hidden. Thank goodness she had worn dark colors.

  The voices became more distinct and she heard footsteps.

  “I tell you the cops are inside the mansion. We can’t go back that way.”

  Carl’s voice. She recognized it.

  “That doesn’t mean they know about the secret door into the cave.” The second man’s voice sounded more gruff, harsh. Could it be the notorious Butch McClain? Wanda’s heart skipped, half in fear, half in excitement.

  The steps came closer and she saw two pairs of shoes. One had boots on, the other scuffed running shoes with grungy, frayed shoestrings. Both wore jeans, crusted at the bottom with dirt. The odor of male sweat reached her nose. She pinched it with her fingers.

  The feet stopped. One pair turned to face the other pair. “I don’t like this. I know I saw two people in the woods. They’re looking for us, man. You shouldn’t have gone to that woman’s house.”

  The second voice, Carl’s, raised a bit, almost into a snake’s hiss. “Look. You don’t tell me what to do, okay? We needed food, and she owes me so I knew she’d oblige. Remember, that old lady schoolteacher noticed you in the grocer’s. We don’t want that happening again.”

  “Yeah, yeah. Okay.” The sneakered feet kicked some of the ground.

  Ah ha, it was Butch. She closed her eyes for a minute to calm her nerves. Then she heard him speak again.

  “So, what do we do? Go back to the cave?”

  “Yeah. Odds are they won’t find us. If they start coming from the house, we can make a quick exit and head to Aurora’s basement. I have a key.”

  “Right.”

  The feet turned away.

  Wanda scooted out from under the bench. As she did something hard pressed against her hip. Her phone. She’d forgotten she had it in her pocket. Of all things.

  She quickly texted Todd and the captains. Cave entrance in maze. Have spotted Butch and Carl. Hurry.

  She decided to follow them, her ears on high alert as she lagged behind enough to remain out of sight but still barely hear their footfall. At least, the night breeze had subsided so the hedge leaves no longer rustled. Thank you for that, God.

  Then she remembered Melissa and Jerry. She had to find them before they came upon the thieves. Jerry had a weapon, and she was confident in his expertise in using it, but she didn’t want them to be in danger. Not on her watch.

  As she rounded a corner, she saw the men stop and peer back. Wanda plastered herself against the hedges to stay in the shortening shadows and held her breath

  “You hear something?” She recognized Butch’s gruff growl.

  “Nah. You?”

  “Guess not. Probably one of those stupid quails again.”

  She waited until she heard the footfall resume then followed a bit further down the path and saw them turn right.


  When she got to the edge, a hand grabbed her mouth. She struggled to scream but a male voice whispered in her ear.

  “Shh. It’s me, Jerry.”

  He released his hand and she gulped in air.

  “You scared the bejeebers out of me. Where is Melissa?”

  He motioned with his head down another path. Finger to his lips he beckoned her to follow him.

  Wanda hesitated. She wanted to catch up to Carl and Butch, find the cave entrance, and . . . what? Helpless and unarmed, what could she do? Nothing but put herself in harm’s way.

  Resigned, she nodded and followed him. He found Melissa and the three wound their way to the entrance of the maze in time to meet Todd and Adam.

  Wanda rushed to them. “They are in the maze, headed back into the cave.”

  Jerry came up behind her. “I know the way now. Come on.”

  Todd and Adam nodded and the three headed back in.

  Melissa let out a small whimper.

  Wanda grabbed her hand. “All we can do is wait and pray.”

  They sat on the grass, cool and slightly damp from the dew. Melissa tapped her fingers onto her knees and kept taking deep breaths. “I thought by retiring and moving back here where he grew up, I would no longer have to worry about him.” She let off a nervous laugh.

  “It’ll be okay.” But Wanda’s gut twisted as well. Lord, don’t let anything happen to Todd, either.

  Several more men came dashing across the grounds. Ray O’Malley arrived first. “The Chief and Jim Bob are in the tunnel coming from the house. They’ve got them trapped.”

  “How do you know?”

  He pulled out a small listening device. “Figured out the radio channel they use to communicate. Don’t tell them, though.” He winked.

  Everyone else grinned.

  Shouts rang out. And then gun fire.

  Bam, bam, bam.

  One of the shots ricocheted off a statue, sending a puff of marble dust into the night air.

  Melissa let out a small whelp.