Part 20 (2/2)
The moment the door closed, Kristen's knees buckled and she sanktothe narrow bed. A vision of Salva flashed in her mind and she began to shake. And that's when she knew that what Blu had said was true-she wanted the Blu Deviltosave her and Amanda. She wanted him to rip Salva apart and save them from a fate worse than death.
”Kris?”
The door opened and Kristen dabbedather eyes and triedtodry her cheeks. ”Yes.”
Rose came forward, Amanda toddling beside her. ”Brodie called. He said he and Mort are on their way.”
Amanda wiggled and squirmed until she'd climbed into her mother's lap. Kristen's arms went around her daughter. ”You've been very kind, Rose. Thank you for letting us stay in your home.”
”Will you be all right while I go down and check on Bessy?”
”Yes.”
”Allright, then. You wash your face, and freshen yourself up. I'll take Amanda with me. Come on, sweetheart, comewith Grandma Rose.”
When Kristen emerged from the bedroom an hourlater, she found Brodie and Mort sitting at the table with her daughter. They were sharing cookies and milk; Amanda was the server, dunking the peanut b.u.t.ter cookie in the milk, then feeding the snack first to Brodie, then to Mort-they were all sharing the same cookie. Her daughter was laughing as Brodie was trying to eat her fingers along with the cookie.
Kristen stood in the doorway and watched. The men were so taken with her little girl that she again felt like crying. Amanda's life had had so little laughter init,and she'd been forced to accept so many rigid rules. Here, it was all about feeling safe and being happy, just like Blu had said.
Brodie saw her first, and stood quickly. ”You want to join us?”
Kristen nodded, then took the chair between her daughter and Mort. Amanda immediately dunked a cookie in the gla.s.s of milk and stuck it in front of her mothertotake a bite. Kristen did, and so the game continued.
”Rose is still downstairs,” Mort told her around his next bite. ”She told us to come up with Mandy.”
Kristen glanced at Mort's handsome face, then Brodie's. Last night she hadn't gotten a good look at him. He'd sailed her back to River Bay and escorted her here, but frankly, she'd been too upset with Blu for leaving her to notice anything or anyone. Only now there was timetoa.s.sess Blu's friends. She'd read inone of the newspaper articles that Mort had been one of the kidnapped kids that Blu had rescued. He hadn't had a home to go back to so the Blu Devil had given him his. She'd also read that Brodie Hewitt had risked his life to protect Margo and Blu during that terrible time. The paper claimed he was lucky to be alive.
Taking in the older man, she noted that Brodie wasn't as tall as Blu, but he was just as tough appearance-wise. Older than Blu, his hair was already starting to turn gray. His green eyes were striking and intelligent, and Kristen liked his rogue's smile. But she wasn't so sure about the unusual tattoo on his arm that depicted a stylized raven.
”We're leaving first,” he suddenly told Kristen, glancing her way and seeing that she'd been staring. ”Mort will take Mandy to the shelter once we're gone.”
Kristen didn't say anything.
Brodie reached for a bag that sat on the floor and put it on the table. ”Once you change, we can leave anytime.”
Kristen took the bag and peered inside. Along with a red skirt and white blouse was a short black wig and a brimmed straw hat. When she looked back at Brodie, he shrugged. ”You're supposetolook like a customer leaving the store with tonight's supper. Blu's idea. Me, I'll leave first and pick you up a couple blocks up thestreet.”
Again Kristen said nothing, but then she noticed a similar bag sitting on the floor nexttoMort. ”And does Amanda turn into a boy.”
Mort grinned. ”Sure, why not? Blu's-”
”Idea.”
Kristen felt a sudden surge of hope. Maybe all thiswas goingtowork. Maybe trusting the Blu Devil had been the answer from the very beginning, and that's why she'd been drawntohis picture back on the island.
ThePrincess sailed around Algiers Point at five thatafternoon. As Angel had said, Maland's yacht would be hard to miss. From where he stood on the deck of theDemon's Eye,Blu sent the binoculars over the bald-headed crew. He kept scanning, in hopes of catching a glimpse of Maland, but after a second, then a third round of detailed scoping, he concluded that the b.a.s.t.a.r.d was below deck.
”Wow!” Mort made a low whistle from somewhere behind Blu. ”That's some fancy boat.”
”Oui,some fancy boat,” Blu agreed, moving his binocularstothe bow where a beautiful naked siren figurehead bucked the wind. It was true, the likeness was incredible. Maland's craftsmen had captured Angel's innocence as well as taken the timetodetail three feet of wild, flowing hair.
He'd always known that Angel's abuse had been both physical and mental-that she'd endured a crazy kind of madness few women would have been able to survive. Seeing her image riding Maland's yacht told Blu just how crazy that madness had been.
His stomach knotted in reaction and yet he kept his anger contained. At the appropriate time he would vent his outrage and let it go, but that would be later. It would be a private unleas.h.i.+ng, and it would mark the end of Salvador Maland. But for now, while he waited for the next step in his plan to unfold, he would remind himself that Angel had survived Maland's treachery for three long years.
Survivedwas the important word. Her strength had been quiet, but nonetheless powerful enough to see herand Mandy through the hardest oftimes. Once Maland was out of her life, she would be all right.
Blu checked his watch. If his plan stayed on schedule, they should be seeing Curt Aldwin within the hour. He pulled his cell phone from his back pocket and called Brodie at Margo's house. As soon as he heard his friend's voice, he said, ”How's Angel doing?”
”She's been pretty quiet. That's good, right?”
”Maybe. Keep your eyes on her.”
”That won't be hard to do.”
”You're not her type,” Blu heard himself say.
”Yours, either.”
That was true enough, Blu thought. She deserved someone a whole lot better than he could ever be.
”She needs a gentle hand,” he heard himself say.
”I can be gentle.”
”Dammit, Brodie, just keep your hands to home, your fantasy caged, and your eyes open. Got it?”
Brodie chuckled. ”I got it. Everything okay on your end?”
”He's here.”
”Then he swallowed the bait?”
”It looks that way. Call me if you need something.” Before Brodie could irritate him further, Blu disconnected, then punched in another number. ”You see what I see?”
”With both eyes. Now we wait.”
”That's right,” Blu agreed. ”Now we wait.”
Kristen gauged the distance to the tree from the upstairs window, took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and pitched herself out the two-story window of Ryland and Margo Archard's lovely home in the Garden District. As the st.u.r.dy limb came within reach, she wrapped her arms tightly around it and hung on, then swung herself uptostraddle the limb.
It was dark out, just barely. The cloudy sky made it seem later than it really was. Kristen took a minute tocatch her breath. Her request had been nothing out of the ordinary. It wasn't as if she'd asked to say good-night to Amanda in person. She had simply asked Brodie if she could phone the shelter and speak toher daughter before she went to bed. But the surprised look on his face when she'd made the simple request had immediately made Kristen suspicious. Then her suspicion had turnedtoworry when he'd made a lame excuse about Blu telling him they shouldn't use the phone. At that moment Kristen knew she hadtosee for herself that Amanda was safe at the shelter.
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