Undercover Christmas Read online

  Marni started to argue but he cut her off. “What if Lilly’s dangerous as hell? What if she’s behind all these accidents? After her baby died, she blamed everyone. She was convinced for a while that Vanessa had purposely killed it.” He sighed. “I didn’t tell you this, but Lilly had an accident during her pregnancy. She fell down the stairs. She blamed Vanessa. Said Vanessa somehow…tripped her. Then later, when the baby died—”

  “No wonder there doesn’t seem to be any love lost between Lilly and Vanessa,” Marni said thoughtfully. “If Lilly really believes Vanessa purposely tripped her—That’s what Hayes meant about it not happening again. I just wonder what that scene was about at the funeral. It seemed so…strange.”

  “The point is,” he continued, “Lilly has a lot of bitterness in her. She hated Jabe. Not that I blame her. When it came out that her baby wasn’t Hayes’s, Jabe threatened to throw her out on the street.”

  “You don’t really think she killed Jabe?” Marni asked in surprise.

  “Jabe had so many enemies in that house, who knows. But Lilly was definitely one of them. And let’s face it, Jabe’s guard was already down because of the painkillers. Lilly would have seemed so harmless to Jabe. He might not have realized she put painkillers into his drink. A woman could have helped Jabe pull the trigger after the amount of painkillers he’d ingested.”

  When Monte Decker confessed, would he link Lilly to his crimes? Dayton? Or someone Chase was overlooking?

  They finished their meal and Chase ordered them both flan for dessert.

  “Your father mentioned that you’re a Jane Austen fan,” Marni said out of the blue.

  “I used to read Austen to my mother when she wasn’t feeling well. She never got tired of hearing Pride and Prejudice.”

  Marni reached across the table, smiling as she took his hand and squeezed it. “You never cease to amaze me, Chase Calloway.”

  He saw the love in her eyes, unconditional, and said the words that had filled his head and his heart for days. “I love you, Marni.”

  The words instantly brought tears to her eyes. Her smile widened. “Do you believe in Christmas wishes?” she asked.

  His heart gave a leap and he realized with a start what day it was. Christmas Eve. And he hadn’t gotten Marni anything for Christmas.

  “Surely you wished for more than that,” he said. “I wanted to buy you something special.”

  “Chase,” she said, meeting his loving gaze with one of her own. “Telling me that you love me is the best, most special Christmas present you could have given me.”

  As they left the restaurant, Chase found himself wanting to give her any and everything she wished for. But could he give her the one thing he knew she wanted more than anything on earth?

  They started across the road to his pickup and Chase heard a sound that made his blood freeze solid.

  A car, engine revved to the max. As it bore down on them, Chase felt that split second feeling of d#233;ja vu.

  Chase grabbed Marni and flung them both into the snow-filled barrow pit beside the road. The car sped past, the wheels so close Chase could hear them throwing up chunks of ice. The car rounded the corner and was gone.

  “Are you all right?” Chase cried, getting to his feet.

  She nodded as he helped her up. She looked shaken but unhurt. “What about you?”

  He nodded, too, relief filling him that she was all right.

  “Hold me?” she said, stepping into his arms.

  He wrapped his arms around her and they stood that way for a long time.

  “Don’t you think we’d better call the sheriff?” she said, pulling back to look at him.

  “Did you see the person driving the car?”

  She shook her head.

  All he’d seen was a dark car. He hadn’t seen the driver this time. He glanced toward the restaurant The road was empty, the curtains drawn behind the windows.

  He’d wanted to believe that Marni was safe. Monte Decker was in jail. As far as the family knew, Elise McCumber had lost her baby. So why had someone just tried to run them down?

  Maybe it had nothing to do with Jabe Calloway’s first-born grandchild. Maybe it was much more personal. Lilly still had reason to hate Marni even if Marni was no longer pregnant And Dayton had reason to hate them both. Or maybe the hit-and-run hadn’t even been for Marni. Maybe it had been someone who didn’t want him to find out who killed Jabe Calloway.

  AFTER THEY’D GIVEN their statements to Sheriff Danner, Chase drove back to the apartment, trying to form a plan. Monte Decker wasn’t talking yet, the sheriff said. And it was Christmas Eve. But more important, Marni was still in danger.

  He heard her filling the tub, the sweet rich scent of the vanilla bubble bath he’d bought for her at the store filling the air.

  He went to stand in the open doorway and watch her undress, reveling in the sight.

  She smiled at him as she climbed into the tub. “Did you want to join me?”

  Yes. He ached to join her. But he wanted her safe even more than he wanted to make love to her.

  He could no longer stand the thought of her risking her life further. Every instinct in him fought to protect her, to rush her to safety, but he knew no place would be safe until the killer was caught.

  He raked a hand through his hair and looked at her. “I want this over with.”

  “So do I.”

  He stepped to the tub and she pulled him down for a kiss. He smiled at her as he straightened, his love for her overpowering every emotion. “Give me a second and I’ll join you.”

  He headed toward the kitchen for two glasses and a bottle of wine.

  That’s when he noticed for the first time the light flashing on the answering machine. For just an instant, he almost ignored it. But it might be the sheriff with good news. He hit play.

  “Elise.” A woman’s voice, slurred with either booze or emotion. “I know who killed Jabe.” Chase cursed silently. Lilly’s voice. “I have proof. I also have Jabe’s will, the one he wrote the day he died. But they’re never going to let me leave here alive. They keep me doped up. If they knew I was calling you now—” A sound in the background. “Oh, I should have known it would be you—” A thud. Something heavy hit the floor. The phone bounced on the hardwood. Someone picked it up before it could bounce again. Silence. Then they hung up.

  Chase looked up to see Marni standing in the bathroom doorway in only a towel. He took one look at her face and knew they were going back to the ranch.

  Chapter Nineteen

  They drove through the moonless night, the stars distant, the sky a black hood. Marni sat on the bench seat beside Chase, staring out the window at the ice-glazed highway, her heart a fierce thunder in her chest.

  Not far out of Dry Creek, the pavement turned to snow-pack. Christmas lights disappeared with the farmhouses. Soon there was nothing but rolling snow-covered hills and sagebrush, rocky bluffs and creek bottom. And eventually, she thought, Calloway Ranch. And Lilly.

  Marni felt Chase’s trepidation. Someone in this family still wanted one or both of them dead. Tonight’s near hit-and-run proved that. Was Lilly behind it as Chase thought? Or was she in just as much trouble—or more—than they were?

  They’d tried to call the ranch but the phone was off the hook.

  “You know this could be a fool’s errand,” Chase had said before they left the apartment.

  “Even you’re worried about Lilly,” she said, looking over at him as she picked up her coat.

  Now he drove the pickup, the headlights probing the darkness ahead, the tires busting through the occasional drift where the snow had blown across the country road.

  As they followed the creek, the dark silhouette of the mountains disappeared, snow filled the sky, obliterating everything, giving Marni the impression of driving into a bottomless pit

  They crossed the narrow bridge. Marni could feel Chase’s tension, as strong as her own. Through the snowfall, she saw Calloway Ranch, a dark beast that
seemed to hunker in the storm, waiting for something. Or someone.

  “This house gives me the creeps,” Marni said, more to herself than Chase as he parked the pickup in the yard. A single light shone in the house. Unless Marni missed her guess, it was coming from Jabe’s library.

  “I guess I don’t need to tell you I don’t like this,” Chase said. “But I wasn’t about to leave you at the apartment alone.” He had insisted on calling the sheriff before they’d left; a deputy was supposed to meet them out here. But there was no sheriffs car parked with the other cars in front of the house.

  “We should wait for the deputy,” Chase said.

  “It might be too late by the time he gets here.” It might already be too late.

  Chase let out a low curse as he opened the glove box and pulled out a flashlight. He shoved it into his jacket pocket next to his .357 in the holster under his arm, then reached across the seat to take Marni’s hand in his. He gave it a quick squeeze before he opened his door.

  They walked up the steps to the porch, their breaths white clouds in front of their faces. Chase knocked. Silence and snow enveloped them and the house. He tried the door. It opened to his touch and he looked over at Marni, and frowned.

  “This feels too easy,” he whispered.

  “Lilly might have left it open for us,” Marni said.

  Chase didn’t look relieved by that thought. Were they walking into a trap? Was this something Lilly had planned all along, sucking in Marni just as Chase suspected?

  They stepped into the foyer. Light spilled out of the open door of the library. And the sound of voices, several raised in anger. Vanessa’s and Dayton’s voices. They were shouting, so it wasn’t surprising they hadn’t heard Chase knock.

  The two stood facing each other in front of the fire. Felicia sat in a chair off to the side, a wineglass in her hand, a sour look on her face.

  “What is this, a falling-out among thieves?” Chase said from the doorway.

  The three turned in surprise.

  “What are you doing here?” Dayton demanded.

  “We came to see Lilly,” Marni said.

  “Whatever for?” Felicia laughed and took another drink.

  “Haven’t you caused enough trouble for one day?” Vanessa snapped. She swept across the room to the liquor cabinet, tossed in several ice cubes, then splashed bourbon into her glass.

  “So you heard about Dayton’s little baby scam,” Chase said. “Or were you in on it from the beginning?”

  Vanessa shot him a withering look. “I most certainly was not. But what choice did he have under the circumstances?” Her cheeks were flushed, her hair not quite as perfect as it usually was. She’d discarded her widow black for a jewel-tone dress that fit like an expensive glove.

  “The choices we make are what life’s all about, don’t you think, Vanessa?” Chase said, settling his gaze on Dayton. Dayton squirmed.

  “Chase is convinced that I killed Father,” Dayton whined to his mother.

  Vanessa looked shocked. Marni watched her, surprised at how nervous she seemed. “Why in God’s name would Dayton do that?”

  “To keep Jabe from changing his will back,” Chase said calmly. “For the money.”

  “Where is Lilly?” Marni asked, growing more worried by the minute. Something felt wrong, horribly wrong.

  The ice in Vanessa’s drink rattled. “She should be down any moment. To open Christmas presents.”

  “I think we’d better go look for her,” Chase said.

  “Good luck,” Felicia said. “Who knows where the little waif is hiding.”

  Marni knew Felicia was right If Lilly didn’t want to be found, they’d never find her in this house. But if she was in trouble somewhere—

  “Lilly is fine,” Vanessa said with obvious aggravation. “I don’t know why you’re so concerned with her, why you’re so concerned with my family.” Her gaze came to rest on Marni’s flat stomach. “There seems to be no reason for it”

  “Lilly’s probably passed out somewhere,” Dayton said with disgust as he plopped into a chair.

  “We got a strange phone call from her,” Chase said. “She said she knew who killed Jabe. She also said she has Jabe’s will, the one he wrote just before he died. The call was interrupted and we think she might have met with an accident, Calloway style.”

  Vanessa put down her glass a little too hard. “That’s ridiculous,” she said, splashing more bourbon into the glass before moving back to the fire. “Lilly’s fine. And all this talk of another will is just holding up probate. I’m sick of it I need money to run this place, and Lilly—” Vanessa stopped, her face contorted in anger. “Jabe didn’t write another will.”

  “Yes he did,” came a voice.

  Vanessa dropped the glass in her hand as Lilly’s muffled voice echoed through the room. The glass hit the hardwood floor, shattering as the door to the secret passageway opened at the corner of the bookshelf by the fireplace and Lilly stumbled into the room.

  At first Marni thought she was drunk, then she saw the blood. It had run down her face from a gash in her left temple, staining the pale pink dress she wore.

  Marni and Chase both stepped toward her but Lilly motioned for them to stay back with a hand that held a gun. In her other hand was the scarf Lilly had worn to the funeral, Vanessa’s scarf.

  “You know there’s a will because Jabe told you all about it,” Lilly said to Vanessa. “I heard everything from in there.” She pointed at the open doorway to the passageway.

  “Lilly, you’re hurt,” Marni cried, staring into Lilly’s dirt-smudged face. My God, where had the woman been?

  Lilly waved the pistol to hold everyone back. “Vanessa tried to kill me. Then she hid my body in the wall when she heard Dayton and Felicia come home.”

  “She’s drunk,” Vanessa said, her voice unsteady. “She probably fell down.”

  “Yes,” Lilly said, glaring at her mother-in-law. “Just like I fell down the stairs when I was pregnant You knew it wasn’t Hayes’s baby, didn’t you? You even tried to kill Elise McCumber.”

  “She’s babbling,” Vanessa said. “And bleeding all over the floor. Dayton, why don’t you get Lilly something to calm her down.”

  Lilly swung the pistol around and aimed it at Dayton. “You aren’t going to keep me drugged up anymore, you aren’t going to make me think I’m crazy anymore, either. I know what you’ve been doing. You put my nursery furniture in that room. You put that doll in my baby’s crib. And the tape recorder. You did that and then you made it look like I did. You tried to make me think I was losing my mind.”

  Marni felt sick at the hate she heard in Lilly’s voice. And the fear. My God, Marni thought, Lilly still wasn’t sure she hadn’t done all those things.

  “I don’t know anything about a room or a tape recorder,” Vanessa said, shaking her head at Lilly.

  “Liar!” Lilly screamed, pointing the pistol at her. “I know what you’re capable of. I heard Jabe tell you he was cutting your sons out of the will and leaving everything to Chase, the only son he could trust.”

  Marni saw that Vanessa had gone as stone-cold white as the snow outside; her look said she could kill Lilly.

  “You got him a drink and tried to reason with him, but he wouldn’t listen,” Lilly continued, hatred in her eyes. “I saw you put the pills in the drink. I waited, just like you did. Then I saw you put the gun to his head and pull the trigger. And I have proof.” She held out the scarf. “You used your scarf to hold the gun. You got Jabe’s blood on it.”

  Marni stared at the scarf in Lilly’s hand. Even from where she stood, she could see the dark red stain on it.

  “Probably her own blood,” Dayton said, coming to his mother’s defense, but not sounding very convincing. He got to his feet, looking as if he might bolt from the room at any moment

  “Everyone saw your reaction at the funeral when I showed up wearing this scarf,” Lilly said to Vanessa. “You hid the scarf after you killed Jabe, but I saw whe
re.”

  Vanessa hadn’t moved. She stood, visibly trembling, her face ashen, a look of horror in her eyes. “A scarf with blood on it. What does that prove? No one will believe anything you say, Lilly. Not the word of a lush.”

  “I have the will, Vanessa,” Lilly said, smiling at the older woman. “You were afraid I had it and I was going to tell someone, weren’t you? That’s why you tried to kill me when you overhead me call Marni.”

  Marni? Marni shot Lilly a look. How did Lilly know her real name? Had she figured it out when she’d seen the photograph of the two sisters? The photo Monte Decker had taken when he broke into Marni’s house.

  Marni felt sick. Maybe Chase had been right all along. Maybe Lilly had killed Jabe, had made those attempts on Marni’s life, had staged this whole thing to get even with Vanessa for the accident on the stairs that she believed had caused her baby to die.

  “You thought Jabe hadn’t written the new will yet, but then you started to suspect that he had,” Lilly said as she edged her way over to the bookshelf. “If I had the scarf, maybe I had the will, huh?”

  “What does this new will say?” Felicia asked.

  Lilly swayed slightly as if weak from her loss of blood. Marni felt Chase tense beside her. She placed a hand on his arm in warning. Lilly seemed a little unsteady on her feet, but she was still armed and still seemed capable of shooting anyone who moved toward her.

  Lilly dropped the scarf on the couch and pulled out a book, one of the Jane Austen books that Marni suspected had belonged to Lottie Burton. Of course that would be where Jabe would hide the will. Lilly opened the book and removed a folded sheet of paper with writing on it.

  Vanessa moved more quickly than Marni had thought possible. She leaped forward and snatched the paper from Lilly’s hand and tossed it into the fireplace before anyone could react. The flames devoured the sheet instantly.

  Lilly let the hand holding the pistol drop to her side. She looked tired, but sober, even sane. “You just implicated yourself, Vanessa. In front of witnesses. You didn’t really think that was the actual will?”