Tess Gerritsen - The Mephisto Club

“Okay,” she said. “How do I find this house?”

“Mrs. Felway will call you with directions.”

“What about Sansone and Maura? What are they going to do?”

“They’re all heading to the same place. They’ll meet you there.”

It was one in the afternoon when they crossed the Massachusetts state line, into New Hampshire. Lily had hardly said a word since they’d checked out of the motel that morning in Oneonta. Now, as they drove north into the White Mountains, the only sound was the squeak of the wipers scraping snowflakes off the windshield. She’s too nervous for chitchat, thought Jane, glancing at her silent companion. Last night, in their shared motel room, Jane had heard all the tossing and turning in the next bed, and today Lily’s eyes were sunken, her face gaunt enough almost to reveal the whiteness of bones through that pale skin. With a few extra pounds on her, Lily Saul might be pretty. But now, when Jane looked at her, what she saw was a walking corpse.

That may be exactly what she is.

“Are you going to stay with me tonight?” The question was so soft, it was almost lost in the sweep of the wipers.

“I’m going to check out the situation,” said Jane. “See what I think about it.”

“So you might not stay.”

“You won’t be alone up there.”

“I suppose you want to go home, don’t you?” Lily sighed. “Do you have a husband?”

“Yeah, I’m married.”

“And kids?”

Jane hesitated. “I have a daughter.”

“You don’t want to tell me about yourself. You don’t really trust me.”

“I don’t know you well enough.”

Lily looked out the window. “Everyone who really knew me is dead”-she paused-“except Dominic.”

Outside, the falling snow was a thickening veil of white. They climbed through a dense forest of pine, and for the first time Jane felt uneasy about whether her Subaru could handle the road if this snowfall continued.

“Why should you trust me?” said Lily with a bitter laugh. “I mean, all you know about me is that I tried to kill my cousin. And screwed it up.”

“That message on Lori-Ann’s wall,” Jane said. “It was meant for you, wasn’t it? I have sinned. ”

“Because I have,” murmured Lily. “And I’ll never stop paying for it.”

“And the four place settings on her dining table. That was meant to represent the Saul family, wasn’t it? A family of four.”

Lily wiped a hand across her eyes and looked out the window. “And I’m the last one. The fourth place setting.”

“You know what?” Jane said. “I would have killed the son of a bitch, too.”

“You would have done a better job.”

The road grew steeper. The Subaru struggled up the mountain, tires churning through ever-deepening fresh powder. Jane glanced at her cell phone and saw zero bars. They had not passed a house in at least five miles. Maybe we should turn around, she thought. I’m supposed to keep this woman alive, not strand her in the mountains where she’ll freeze to death.

Was this the right road?

She squinted through the windshield, trying to see the top of the hill. That’s when she spotted the lodge, perched like an eagle’s nest on the cliff’s peak. There were no other homes nearby, and only this one access road led up the mountain. At the top there would surely be a sweeping view over the valley. They passed through a gate, left open to admit them.

Jane said, “This looks about as secure as you can get. Once that gate’s locked, this place is unapproachable. Unless he has wings, he can’t reach you up here.”

Lily stared up at the cliff. “And we can’t escape,” she said softly.

Two vehicles were parked in front of the lodge. Jane pulled up behind Sansone’s Mercedes and they climbed out of the car. Pausing in the driveway, Jane stared up at rough-hewn logs, at a peaked roof soaring into the snow-swirled sky. She went around to the trunk for their bags and had just slammed the trunk shut when she heard a growl right behind her.

The two Dobermans had emerged like black wraiths from the woods, moving so silently that she hadn’t heard their approach. The dogs closed in with teeth bared as both women froze in place.

“Don’t run,” Jane whispered to Lily. “Don’t even move.” She drew her weapon.

“Balan! Bakou! Back off!”

The dogs halted and looked at their mistress, who had just emerged from the lodge and was standing on the porch.

“I’m so sorry if they scared you,” said Edwina Felway. “I had to let them out for a run.”

Jane did not holster her weapon. She didn’t trust these animals, and clearly they didn’t trust her. They remained planted in front of her, watching with eyes black as a snake’s.

“They’re very territorial, but they’re quick to figure out who’s friend and who’s foe. You should be fine now. Just put away the gun and walk toward me. But not too fast.”

Reluctantly, Jane holstered her weapon. She and Lily eased past the dogs and climbed up to the porch, the Dobermans watching them every step of the way. Edwina led them inside, into a cavernous great room that smelled of wood smoke. Huge beams arched overhead, and on the walls of knotty pine hung the mounted heads of moose and deer. In a stone fireplace, flames crackled at birch logs.

Maura rose from the couch to greet them.

“At last you made it,” Maura said. “With this storm blowing in, we were beginning to worry.”

“The road coming up here was pretty bad,” said Jane. “When did you get here?”

“We drove up last night, right after Frost called us.”

Jane crossed to a window that looked out across the valley. Through the heavy curtain of falling snow, she caught glimpses of distant peaks. “You’ve got plenty of food?” she asked. “Fuel?”

“There’s enough for weeks,” said Edwina. “My friend keeps it well stocked. Right down to the wine cellar. We have plenty of firewood. And a generator, if the power goes out.”

“And I’m armed,” said Sansone.

Jane had not heard him walk into the room. She turned and was startled to see how grim he looked. The last twenty-four hours had transformed him. He and his friends were now under siege, and it showed in his haggard face.

“I’m glad you’ll be staying with us,” he said.

“Actually”-Jane glanced at her watch-“I think the situation looks pretty secure.”

“You’re not thinking of leaving tonight,” said Maura.

“I was hoping to.”

“It’ll be dark in an hour. The roads won’t be plowed again till morning.”

Sansone said, “You really should stay. The roads will be bad.”

Jane looked out, once again, at the falling snow. She thought about skidding tires and lonely mountain roads. “I guess it makes sense,” she said.

“So the gang’s all here for the night?” asked Edwina. “Then I’ll go lock the gate.”

“We need to drink a toast,” said Edwina, “in memory of Oliver.”

They were all sitting in the great room, gathered around the huge stone fireplace. Sansone dropped a birch log into the flames, and papery bark hissed and sparked. Outside, darkness had fallen. The wind whined, windows rattled, and a sudden downdraft blew a puff of smoke from the chimney into the room. Like Lucifer announcing his entrance, thought Jane. The two Dobermans, who were lying beside Edwina’s chair, suddenly lifted their heads as if scenting an intruder.

Lily rose from the couch and moved closer to the hearth. Despite the roaring fire, the room was chilly, and she clutched a blanket around her shoulders as she stared into the flames, their orange glow reflected in her face. They were all trapped there, but Lily was the real prisoner. The one person around whom the darkness swirled. All evening, Lily had said almost nothing. She had scarcely touched her dinner, and did not reach for her glass of wine as everyone else drank the toast.