Caroline Burnes - Babe in the Woods

Rebecca locked her gaze with Brett’s and spoke softly. “Joey didn’t trip and fall. Someone hit him with a board and tried to kill him.”

Brett’s face drew into a frown. “That’s nuts. Who would want to hurt the simpleton?”

“That’s a good question,” Rebecca said. “And I’m sure Sheriff Colson will find the answer to it.”

“Who would want to hurt Joey?” Brett repeated almost as if he were talking to himself.

“Don’t repeat that information to the rest of the crew,” Rebecca cautioned him.

“Because you’re afraid they’ll quit?”

“Because one of them may have done it,” Rebecca said, once again watching Brett for any sign of guilt.

“I’ve worked with these men on two other digs.” Brett was having no difficulty working himself into indignation. “They have no reason to injure Joey.”

It was interesting that Brett defended his men. Rebecca took it as a good sign. “Nonetheless, it’s best if they don’t know that Joey was attacked. The construction workers are also going to be questioned. If someone on the estate is guilty, it’ll be easier to find out who it is if they don’t think we’re suspicious.”

“Except it puts my workers in some jeopardy,” Brett pointed out. “They have a right to know that someone is on the loose at Blackthorn, whacking people in the head.”

Rebecca felt her throat close. She hadn’t said that Joey was hit in the head. “Brett, don’t argue with me. Just do what I tell you. In the end, I’m the one responsible, not you.” She walked away, hoping that her little act of bravado had covered her intense concern about Brett and his involvement with what had happened to Joey. As soon as she got a chance to talk to Dru, she’d repeat the entire conversation.

Although she was tired, she knew she wouldn’t be able to rest. She went up to the shell of the house. Progress was being made, but it seemed slow to her.

The contractor had built a makeshift staircase to the upper floor, and though she’d given strict orders to all but the carpenters not to venture to the upper levels, she climbed up herself.

The vista was incredible. The house Aurelia and Marcus were building wasn’t huge—at least not like the former plantation that had stood on Blackthorn. But it was an imposing structure that seemed to rise from the high bluff overlooking the river. The exterior walls would be made of cement blocks poured in specially designed molds to give the appearance of limestone. Once finished, the house would be indestructible. Those inside the walls of Blackthorn House would have the most spectacular view of the Mississippi in the whole area.

Leaning against a four-by-four support, Rebecca gazed down at the early sunlight on the “father of waters,” as the Indians had called the Mississippi.

Movement at the base of the cliff caught her eye. Probably a deer. She leaned out, trying to get a good look. She caught only a glimpse, but something about what she saw troubled her. There was too much white for a deer. The animal she saw moved in a jerky fashion, not with the smooth, bounding grace of a whitetail.

The man burst out of a clump of shrubs and darted into another. He was almost at the river, and when he got there, he looked in both directions before dragging a small boat out of the bush and jumping into it. In a matter of moments, he was swirling away in the current.

“Damn!” Rebecca watched as he disappeared in the tree-covered lee of the river. She left the window and hurried back to the caretaker’s cottage. It was too late to catch whoever was on Blackthorn property illegally, but maybe they’d left some clues behind.

DRU WAS pleasantly surprised when the telephone rang on his desk at three forty-five and he heard Rebecca’s breathless voice. He’d just been thinking of her. But when she reported what she’d seen, he told her to hold on, he was on the way.

The two deputies who’d worked the assault on Joey were off duty, so Dru called two others to work the physical evidence at the riverbank, if there was any.

He didn’t wait for them to get their gear. He got in his car and drove straight to Blackthorn. Rebecca looked both excited and tired, and he had to stop himself from the impulse to put his arms around her.

“It was directly below the house,” she said, starting toward the river.

Dru didn’t have to wait long for his men. They pulled up and began to ease down the steep bluff that overlooked the powerful river.

“Should we go with them?” Rebecca asked.

Dru shook his head. “The best thing we can do is stay out of their way. If they find something, they’ll let me know.”

“I can’t help but wonder who’s trespassing so freely on Blackthorn,” Rebecca said. “I saw him. He’s slender with sandy-brown hair. And he seems to know his way around here fairly well.”

“I talked to Joey,” Dru said. “He just didn’t see anyone. He’s eager to come home, though.”

Rebecca rubbed her right eyebrow with her finger. “Brett says it isn’t safe for Joey here. He says Joey’s going to get hurt.” She met Dru’s gaze. “And that it would be my fault if I allowed him to stay in a dangerous place.”

Dru shook his head lightly. “Joey’s a grown man, Rebecca. He’s a little slow, but he knows Blackthorn better than anyone else. He’s as safe here as anywhere else.”

“What about last night?”

“The person who struck Joey wasn’t lying in wait for him. Joey interrupted something. And in all likelihood saved the lives of those three horses.”

Rebecca couldn’t deny that. “I just don’t want him hurt. He’s such a kind man….”

“And one who knows how to keep his eyes open now that he’s aware of danger.”

Rebecca’s smile was like the sun slipping out from behind a cloud. “You make me feel better, you know.”

“You don’t deserve to feel bad,” he said simply.

“I wonder what’s going on here?” Rebecca said. “The treasure has been found. There’s no reason for anyone else to be slipping through the woods, causing trouble.”

“But someone is—or at least someone is slipping through the woods,” Dru pointed out, wondering himself if there were two separate incidents—the attack on Joey and some kids trespassing on Blackthorn for a thrill. He wasn’t so certain the “trespasser” was harmless.

The two deputies came up from the bluff. “We got a cast of a footprint,” one said, “but that’s about it. A male. About a size 11, worn running shoes. It’s distinctive if we can find the shoe. There’s a small place on the bank where someone’s been tying up a boat. It’s been used more than once.”

Dru nodded. “Good work.”

“Can you recommend a good security agency?” Rebecca asked. “I’ll hire a watchman to guard that landing.”

One thing Dru liked about Rebecca was her ability to land on her feet. When something happened, she figured out a way to fix it. But he wasn’t ready yet to post a guard.

“If we’re lucky, the intruder isn’t aware that he’s been seen. He didn’t see you in the scaffolding, did he?”

Rebecca shook her head, her expression showing curiosity about where he was going.

“Then he may believe he hasn’t been discovered at the landing. If that’s true, he’ll come back.”

“Which is exactly why I want someone down there to stop him.”

“But it may be our best opportunity to catch him,” Dru said with a grin. “If we’re waiting for him up here.”

He saw the two deputies look at each other. The glance was covert, and in an instant they were impassive again. Rebecca obviously saw it too.

“I doubt the Adams County Sheriff’s Department will stake out my property to prevent a trespasser,” she said.