Eyewitness

Chapter Fifteen

Devon choked and retched beside him. His hand cupped the back of her head and he pressed her face against his chest. He hadn’t wanted her to see this. Elena had been Devon’s friend. And she’d been Michael’s guardian for the day.

He slammed his fist against the slimy cave wall. It was his fault. He’d encouraged Devon to leave Michael here when their son should’ve been with them. He didn’t know the first thing about fatherhood.

Devon dropped to a rock near Elena’s body. “Oh, my God. She’s dead. She’s dead. Where’s Michael?”

She’d covered her face, but now her head jerked up. “Maybe he threw Michael off the rocks. Maybe he’s already dead.”

Kieran crouched beside her and gripped her arm. “Stop. Michael’s not dead. We’ll find him.”

She turned wide, glassy eyes toward him. “We need to find him. We need to call the police. Do you think Evans will listen to me now?”

“Of course.” As Devon stood on shaky legs to retrieve her phone from her pocket, Kieran studied the crime scene. Pelicano had bashed Elena on the side of the head with a rock. One side of her head was sticky with blood. She may have seen it coming since one arm was outstretched, her fingers curled into a claw.

“Kieran, I can’t find my phone. It must’ve fallen out of my pocket when I fell. Do you still have yours?”

“Mine ran out of juice yesterday. Yours might still be by that rock. There’s not a lot of water yet.”

He leaned forward to peer at the wet sand beneath Elena’s fingers, not yet stiff with rigor mortis. She’d scratched at the sand.

Devon sobbed behind him. “I can’t find my phone. We’re wasting time.”

He held up his hand. “Hold on. There’s something here.”

She leaned over his shoulder, her breathing erratic and raspy. “It’s sand, wet sand.”

“No, look.” With one knuckle, he nudged aside Elena’s cold fingers. “It’s writing, Devon. She wrote something before she died.”

Devon gasped and plunked onto the sand next to him. “What is it?”

He traced over the letters with his fingertip. “The letters C and an H. C, H. Ch-something. That’s not even Sam’s name.”

Devon gripped his arm, her fingernails biting into his flesh. “C, H. Columbella House. He took Michael to Columbella House.”

Kieran pushed up to his feet taking Devon with him. “Why would Sammy Pelicano take Michael to Columbella House?”

“I don’t know, but if Elena carved those letters into the sand with her dying breath, then they mean something.” She slipped from his grasp. “We need to check Elena’s pockets for a phone.”

Kieran dipped back down and patted Elena’s pockets and then turned her over to check the other pockets. “Empty. Don’t worry about the phone right now. We need to get up to Columbella.”

As they climbed over the first set of rocks, the water rushed in, soaking their shoes. Kieran scooped up Devon and lifted her onto the next boulder. “If we’d entered this cave ten minutes later, the water would’ve washed away Elena’s message. Luck is on our side.”

When they got clear of the cave, Devon tugged on his arm. “We can’t go charging through the front door of the house if he’s in there with Michael.”

“What do you suggest?”

“You don’t remember, do you? You don’t remember the secret passage up from the beach through the basement of the house.”

“If I don’t remember, I’m glad you do. Lead the way.”

Devon crossed the beach path to the other side of the cave and the rocks. The old house loomed above them, seemingly unreachable.

“The house is built into the rock. The first St. Regis had the builders tunnel down into the side of the cliff.”

Devon led him into a shallow indentation in the side of the cliff. From the outside, it looked like another sea cave farther up the beach, but as they slipped into the entrance, a door appeared at the end of the passageway.

“Is it locked?”

“It’s broken, like most everything at Columbella.”

The sea air had rotted the solid wood door, but it still looked impenetrable.

Devon grasped the metal handle and yanked upward. “I can’t do this by myself. You need to lift the door while I turn the handle.”

Kieran crouched down and slid his hands in the space beneath the door. On the count of three, he heaved the door up and heard a click. He staggered backward as the door swung outward.

“Be careful. There are steps up to the basement.”

He wedged the door shut behind them, and squeezed past Devon to the first step. “You stay behind me. I’m the one with the gun.”

Their wet shoes squelching on the cement steps, they ascended to the bowels of Columbella House.

When he’d stayed here while watching Devon and Michael, he’d never ventured into the basement. He’d poked his head in the door once, but that had been enough. Dank and cold, the basement had given off a malevolent vibe.

It was no different now.

They reached the level floor, and Kieran helped Devon up the last few steps. Without a flashlight, the darkness closed in on them. They edged their way across the floor, littered with memorabilia from a few generations of long-ago St. Regises.

Devon’s hand found his and she squeezed it. “Please tell me we’re not too late for Michael.”

“I just found my son. We can’t be too late.” He said the words to comfort Devon, but he believed them with his whole being. Fate had led him here to Coral Cove, to this house for this moment.

The dank moisture of the basement walls seeped into his flesh, chilling his bones. The remnants of past lives usually emitted an air of quaint comfort, but this memorabilia exuded hostility or at least an air of mystery and impenetrability.

He shook it off. He didn’t come here to analyze the St. Regis history. He’d come here to rescue his son. And if he knew anything, it was how to bring down an enemy.

They picked their way through the debris to the basement stairs that led to the house. As they crept upward, Kieran said, “I already know that door is unlocked-broken. Now I just hope it doesn’t creak.”

He pushed it open with Devon hovering behind him, her breath hot on his back. The hinges protested, but only mildly.

Kieran stuck his head into the hallway that divided the kitchen from the curving staircase. He put a finger to his lips and closed his eyes, blocking out the sounds of his own breathing and his thundering heart, blocking out Devon’s labored breathing behind him.

He listened to the house.

And then he heard it. Voices. Low, conspiratorial, hushed, harsh.

He tilted his head back, his nose in the air like a bloodhound on the scent. His nostrils flared. His muscles coiled. Every one of his senses clicked into high alert.

He pulled his weapon from his waistband and prowled forward on the balls of his feet.

He moved silently toward the voices coming from the library-that scorched testament to another man’s lunacy. He held his arm out behind him to keep Devon back, but she knocked it away.

They both crouched outside the open door to the library, and Kieran pressed the side of his face against the wall. They must be inside the burned-out secret room. The voices continued, now within hearing range.

“Are you sure the doctor broad was telling you the truth?” A gruff voice, roughened by cigarettes and by hard time…and not Sammy Pelicano’s.

Pelicano answered, “You told me yourself, the old lady said something about giving it to the kid and Elena verified that. I think he has it. I warned you not to hurt him, but you had to pull that stunt with the bathroom.”

“What can I say? He saw me off Johnny Del’s old lady, and then escaped up that shaft in the wall.”

“The kid obviously hadn’t told anyone what he saw. He never even told his therapist, although he did tell her about the money. And we need him alive to find that money.”

“Well, wake him up then. The sooner we’re out of here, the better. His hot mama along with that dangerous- looking dude with the eye patch will be coming back from the city any time now.”

“No reason to think they’ll come looking here. Especially since you shot at her the other night.”

“I already told you, Sammy. I didn’t shoot at her. I’m not dumb enough to leave any bullets that can be traced.”

“No, just dumb enough to throw a Molotov cocktail through the window of a public bathroom.”

The older man grumbled. “Wake up the kid already.”

Kieran allowed one drop of relief to settle in his belly, but he didn’t allow it to ease the tension that had seized his body, the tension he’d need to take out two enemies.

He couldn’t see Michael from his position against the wall, couldn’t see Pelicano and Mrs. Del Vecchio’s killer.

But he didn’t need to see.

“Wake up, kid.”

Kieran’s blood boiled when he heard the slap, and Devon stiffened beside him. He’d been so focused on the action in the hidden room, he’d almost forgotten Devon holding up the wall beside him. He wanted her far away from here, but wrenching her away from Michael would be an impossible task.

“Wake up.”

Michael murmured and cried out.

Devon shifted beside Kieran, and he put a steadying hand on her twitching shoulder.

“Where’s the bag with the money, kid?”

Sammy’s partner cleared his throat and coughed. “We know the old lady gave it to you.”

Michael started sniffling and rage poured through Kieran’s system. His finger tightened on the trigger of his weapon. His other hand curled into a fist.

Michael’s high, clear voice rang out. “It’s outside.”

Devon sagged against the wall, and Kieran’s lips tightened into a grimace. Was Michael telling the truth? Did he ever have any money?

He slipped a sidelong glance at Devon, who had one hand clamped over her mouth. Could it be true? Devon would’ve told him.

The older man snorted. “Outside? We’re supposed to believe that?”

Michael’s voice, steadier now, continued. “Outside with the shells. I left it there ’cuz I didn’t want it anymore. Granny Del put it in my Thomas backpack.”

Kieran’s mind clicked back to his rescue of Michael from the rocks-a small figure weighed down by a colorful backpack, a backpack he claimed he’d lost.

He licked his lips. Could Michael convince these two to walk out of this room? Their greed should be enough of an incentive.

“What shells? What are you talking about? It’s on the beach?”

“On the wooden thing outside with chairs. My daddy sat in those chairs.”

The balcony. Had Michael left his backpack on the balcony that first day Kieran had revealed himself? A backpack full of money?

“His daddy?” Johnny Del’s old partner growled. “I thought he didn’t have a daddy.”

“It’s the guy with the patch, who’s probably on his way back from the city while we’re standing here wasting time. Take us there, kid, and we’ll let you go and won’t bother your mommy anymore.”

Kieran clenched his jaw. They had no intention of letting Michael go. Just like his captors hadn’t had any intention of letting him go. Sometimes a man had to take extreme measures.

The shuffling in the room sent Kieran behind one of the dust covers, where he pulled Devon in beside him. He crouched on his haunches, peering through a slit in the white cover, every muscle in his body coiled.

Sammy came through the door first, a gun dangling from his hand, shoving Michael in front of him. An older man followed, his face craggy with the lines of a misspent youth.

Kieran touched Devon on the shoulder and mouthed, “Michael.”

She nodded, and he knew he could count on her to keep their son out of danger. She’d done a helluva job for the first four years of Michael’s life…with no help from him.

As the group passed in front of the table, Kieran lunged for Sammy’s legs. He hit him in the knees with a crack, ripping him from Michael’s side.

Devon shot out like a flash and yanked Michael toward the desk covered with the white sheet.

Sammy screamed. “Go after the kid.” Then he raised his gun and Kieran smacked his arm toward the ceiling. A shot rang out and plaster rained down on them.

The older man moved in on the desk where Devon was clawing at the dust cover and trying to reach for Michael at the same time. Kieran used his body to block them from the man’s approach and then reached back and shoved Michael into Devon’s arms. “Grab him.”

As the older man barreled forward, fists first, a shot rang out.

Something skimmed Kieran’s arm, but he took no notice. Fury pumped through his system, but he’d learned to focus after four years in captivity.

He swept his arm upward, cracking Sammy’s elbow, driving the barrel of the gun toward the ceiling again. At the same time, Kieran swung his body around and landed a kick to the older man’s midsection. The man doubled over and staggered back.

Sammy squeezed a third shot off at the ceiling and then leveled the gun at Kieran. Grabbing his wrist, Kieran shoved Sammy against the table with Devon and Michael crouched beneath.

The gun felt hot between their bodies, and Sammy still had his finger curled around the trigger. Kieran’s nails bit into Sammy’s forearm until his grip slackened and a life-and-death struggle ensued over the direction of the weapon.

Devon yelled, “Look out, Kieran!”

The older man lunged at Kieran’s back, slicing his shoulder with a blade. Kieran drove his other shoulder into Sammy’s chest and the gun blasted between them.

Sammy’s blood soaked Kieran’s shirt. He spun around and ducked another plunge of the knife grasped in the old man’s hands. He grabbed one of his arms and twisted it behind him. Then in one quick movement, he stepped behind him and wrapped an arm around his throat. The man clawed at his arm with one hand, choking. Then he raised the hand with the knife and gripped the blade between two fingers. He drew his arm back, ready to launch the blade at Devon and Michael crouched beneath the table, fear coming off them in waves.

He was brutal. He was an animal. He had to save his family.

With one sharp twist, Kieran broke the neck of the man threatening his family.

THE SEA BREEZE PLAYED with the ends of Kieran’s dark hair, shoved behind his ears. He’d removed his bloody shirt. His shoulder and upper arm sported fresh, white bandages, courtesy of the EMTs.

One ambulance and one coroner’s van waited to take away the two dead bodies in Columbella House, and another ambulance was awaiting Elena’s body from the cave.

Chief Evans scratched his chin. “So your son’s the one who witnessed the murder?”

Devon glanced at Michael and shook her head at the chief. Was the man a complete idiot?

“Yeah, I saw that old man kill Granny Del.” Michael kicked his toe against the crumbling step of the porch.

“I wish you would’ve told me, sweet pea.” Devon brushed a finger along Michael’s smooth cheek.

He hunched his shoulders. “I was scared.”

“It’s all over now.”

“Is Dr. Elena coming back?”

Kieran gave a quick shake of his head, but Devon didn’t need his advice on this one. “Dr. Elena is sad that her friend wasn’t really a friend, so she went on a vacation.”

Apparently, Michael hadn’t witnessed Elena’s murder in the cave. He didn’t need to deal with the death of another person in his life right now.

“Sure you don’t need to go to the hospital?” The EMT put the finishing touches on Kieran’s bandage.

“Nope, but I want you to check out my son. They shot him up with something to knock him out.”

“It was a big needle, Daddy, but I didn’t cry.” Michael held out his two index fingers about six inches apart.

“You’re one tough hombre.” Kieran picked up Michael and deposited him on the edge of the ambulance. “But it’s okay to cry. It’s okay to admit you’re scared.”

The EMT shined a flashlight in Michael’s eyes, and Kieran stepped away from the ambulance, pulling Devon with him.

“Chief Evans, did you say Detective Marquette was on his way?”

“Yeah. When he called to let us know the true identity of Sam, he told me he was taking a helicopter. That was over two hours ago, so he should be here anytime now. After you called me, I gave him an update.”

Devon folded her arms. “If you had taken me seriously to begin with, maybe my son could’ve been spared further trauma.”

“I don’t think so, Devon. By the time you got here, Sammy Pelicano had already drugged your little boy and dragged Dr. Estrada into that sea cave.”

Devon glanced at Kieran. “So who was that other man, the one who murdered Mrs. Del Vecchio?”

“Not sure yet.” The chief lifted a shoulder. “But Marquette dug up some evidence that Sammy Pelicano was keeping company with one of Johnny Del’s old cellmates.”

“We figured something like that.” Kieran winced as he rolled his shoulder. “You know, the old guy kept insisting to Pelicano that he didn’t take a shot at Devon in Columbella House.”

Evans snorted. “Why would he admit it? Men like that are so accustomed to lying, it’s like second nature.”

Devon wrinkled her brow. “He had a point in there, Kieran. Why shoot me if it was Michael they wanted?”

“Tell me something.” The chief chewed on the toothpick shoved into the corner of his mouth. “Why did Pelicano keep Michael alive? If their plan was to get rid of the witness, why didn’t they?”

Devon gasped and grabbed Kieran’s arm. “The money. Do you believe he ever had the money?”

“What money?” Evans’s gaze darted between her and Kieran.

“He must have. He told Elena about it, didn’t he?”

“Looks like I missed all the excitement.” Detective Marquette strode toward them, his shirtsleeves rolled up and sweat dotting his brow.

“You’re just in time.” Devon jumped from the porch and walked toward the side of the house. “We think Granny Del may have given some of her husband’s stash to Michael.”

“What?” He and Chief Evans spoke in unison.

Devon continued her march to the side of Columbella House and the balcony over the sea. “That’s why they kept Michael alive, thank God. They wanted him to take them to the money, to make sure he had it.”

“Where would a kid keep hundreds of thousands of dollars?”

“In a Thomas the Tank Engine backpack, where else?”

The four of them made their way onto the balcony where Devon had spent her first moments with Kieran. Where Michael had left his prized backpack.

Her heart skipped two beats when she spotted the colorful pack in the corner of the balcony next to the basket of shells he’d examined on that day an eternity ago. It certainly didn’t look like it could contain hundreds of thousands of dollars.

She pounced on the pack and unzipped it with unsteady hands. She peered inside and fell back on her heels. “Oh, my God.”

The three men crowded in beside her and Kieran reached into the pack. He drew out his hand and opened it. The small diamonds in his palm glittered and danced with fire in the setting sun.

“Why? Why would Granny Del give him these diamonds?”

“’Cuz she liked me.” The EMT released Michael’s hand and he skipped across the wooden slats of the deck. “She always gave me stuff.”

Devon pulled Michael into her arms and squeezed him so hard he squirmed. “How did I not know this was going on?”

Kieran dropped the diamonds back in the bag and dangled it in front of Detective Marquette, who snatched it out of his hands. He and Chief Evans, heads together, made their way back to the front of the house.

Kieran dropped to the deck and sat cross-legged beside her and Michael, wrapping his arms around both of them. “How were you supposed to know about a couple of handfuls of diamonds?”

“When did she give them to you, Michael?”

He hunched his shoulders and his lower lip quivered. “She was nice.”

“I know Granny Del was nice to you, but she had some bad friends.” She kissed the top of his head. “Were you afraid to tell me because you were in the dumbwaiter where you weren’t supposed to be?”

He nodded, and she bit her lip. Her fear caused words of anger to flood her mouth, but she swallowed them. He didn’t need a scolding right now… Maybe later, and maybe from his father this time.

“Did you like that hospital food?” She smoothed the tip of her finger along the curve of his ear.

Michael’s eyes widened. “Yeah. I liked the pudding.”

“Good, because we’re sending you back there just to be on the safe side.”

“And Daddy, too?” Michael tapped his finger against Kieran’s bandages.

Kieran stretched up to his full height and scooped up Michael from the wooden deck. “Sure, I’ll be there with you.”

“What happened to the bad guys?”

“The bad guys are gone, Michael. They won’t be around to scare you anymore.”

Michael curled one arm around Kieran’s neck. “You made them go away.”

“Yep.”

Devon scrambled to her feet and skimmed her hand along Kieran’s shoulders. “Daddy will always be there to protect you, Michael.”

Kieran leaned over and kissed her cheek. “I’ll always be there to protect both of you… If you’ll have me, scars and all.”

She returned the kiss to his chin. “I’ll take you just the way you are.”

And as she gazed into his dark eye, she still saw a hard man, a damaged man, a man with a quick temper and a steel edge…but still the man of her dreams.