Chapter One
Laine Chambers beat on the steering wheel, frustration pulsing through her body. She stared outside at the tar-colored sky and the solid sheet of rain; drops that kept time with her own tears.
Now what? She twisted the key again out of desperation, even though she knew it was useless. Out of the corner of her eye, the clock on the dashboard glowed 2:00 a.m.
“Start, damn it!” When it didn’t, she crossed her arms on the wheel and laid her head down.
“You stupid piece of junk!” The force behind the words was all but muffled by the sobs. She only gave into the weakness for a moment. The danger of her situation wouldn’t allow her the luxury.
Lifting her head, she once again stared out at the night. Just as it had been for the last five miles, there were no streetlights, no welcoming glow behind a window, nothing but blackness and rain. Even her headlights had begun to dim, refusing to dissolve much more than a small sliver of darkness.
She checked the gold and diamond watch on her arm, the last gift she would ever get from Frederick, hoping the clock on the dash was wrong. 2:02 a.m. She had been on the road for almost thirty-five hours, stopping only for gas, food and bathroom breaks. Exhaustion was weighing heavily on every fiber of her being, not to mention painful stiffness in her back and shoulders from sitting in one place for so long. She wiped away the tears and tried to rub as much of the grainy feeling in her eyes as she could. For a moment, she sat with her hand tightly across her mouth and her eyes closed.
Think, damn it! Think!
But even her brain was too tired to do much more than keep her breathing. Slowly she raised her head, and at first, all she saw was the windshield, and even that, only indirectly. All her life she had been teased unmercifully about being a goody-two-shoes. Now, she found herself running for her life from murder. Blatant, flat out, unadulterated, first-degree murder. And just where she had run to was anybody’s guess.
Maybe choosing the back roads wasn’t such a great idea after all. Maybe she should have stayed on the main roads. Maybe she wasn’t really being followed. Maybe she had misunderstood. Maybe… she shook her head. All the maybes were beginning to tangle into a big mental knot. At least she knew she hadn’t misunderstood. Frederick was dead. There was no maybe about that.
Out of the corner of her eye a small prick of yellow appeared through the blackness. Slowly it grew into some type of glowing light. A lantern?
The golden glow kept approaching, and within minutes it was next to the car. A black fist tapped lightly on the window and made Laine jump. She hadn’t realized just how focused she had become on the light, but it had been enough to not realize that it must be carried by somebody.
Laine rolled down the window an inch, as much to protect herself from the stranger as to keep as dry as possible.
“You in trouble?” The feminine voice was old and raspy but sounded friendly enough.
In more ways than one, Laine thought. But she didn’t want to scare off the only living being in sight. She gambled against the feeling of genuine concern in the voice. “Can you please help me? My car won’t start.”
The hand lifted the lantern and illuminated the kindly black face of a woman.
“I can see that, child. Why else would you be sittin’ in a rainstorm in this here carriage?”
Laine wondered about the comment only briefly. She was too exhausted to think. All she wanted was to be somewhere safe. Preferably with a bed and food.
“Is there someplace close by where I can use a phone? I need to call a taxi and find someplace to stay for the night.”
“Don’t know ‘bout no phone, or no taxi, and the nearest hotel is prob’ly five miles or more up the road. You can’t walk there in all this rain. But you can stay up at the main house for the night. They’s got a Stranger’s Room. At least it’s warm and dry.”
“Will the owner mind?”
“Course not. ‘Sides, they ain’t even home. Now, you just might have to help out in the mornin’ some, to pay for your room and board. Come on, child. I’ll show you the way.”
Laine had no idea what a Strangers Room was, but if it had a bed, she wasn’t going to be choosy. She grabbed her purse and her overnight bag out of the backseat, pushed open the door and immediately became drenched. She didn’t care. At least she could sleep in a bed and not have to curl all five feet six inches of her into less than five feet of back seat. As she closed the door, she hit the electric lock button on her key ring, and the beep sounded as weak as she felt. The black woman jumped at the sound.
“Lausy, mercy! What was that?”
“My automatic lock,” Laine called loudly, in order to be heard over the rain.
The black woman just shook her head, turned, and began to walk up the road. “What will they think of next?” she muttered under her breath.
Laine was surprised at how clearly she could hear the woman over the storm. A housekeeper, maybe? Who cares. Right now, she’s an angel. And the owners are away, so I won’t have to answer a lot of questions.
She followed the woman along the edge of the road before turning to walk up a gravel driveway, lined on both sides with giant trees. The canopies had grown together over the years to form an even darker tunnel and helped to keep the worst of the rain at bay. The only light was the eerie glow of the lantern.
Finally, the black woman pushed through a picket gate topped with an arch plump with Jasmine. Oddly, they looked as if it was barely affected by the pounding rain. From there they mounted steps leading to a deep porch and took several steps to the right before stopping in front of a door at the end of the house. Laine took a moment to wring out her long auburn hair as best she could.
“Here you go.” The woman propped open the screen door with her hip, turned the handle and stepped across the threshold, holding the lantern high so Laine could find her way.
Into a stunning bedroom. Laine stood in awe. The last time Laine had seen antiques this beautiful she had been in her future mother-in-law’s home. In front of her was a mahogany four poster bed with cherubs carved around the posts and the top frame. The canopy, upholstered in pale green silk, pleated and anchored in the center with a carved medallion, crowned the piece. A matching spread covered the mattress. The ceiling looked like it was at least fourteen feet high, and the bed lacked only inches from touching it.
“I hope you’ll be able to sleep with Lucifer in the room.”
Laine jumped at the voice. She had completely forgotten the woman was still in the room. As the words registered, a cold chill, unconnected to her drenched condition, coursed through her body.
“Lucifer? You mean the devil?”
“One and the same.” The woman chuckled, a dry raspy sound. “At least, sorta.” She moved her lantern a bit, and the light illuminated a double wardrobe. Laine gasped.
“A double Lucifer? Oh, my word. I’ve only heard about these. The owner’s must be very proud to have such a rare piece.”
“Hmm,” the woman snorted. “Too much pride around here, I’d say.”
Laine stepped closer to the wardrobe, lightly running her fingers across the smooth wood. Awe filled her voice. “You can’t even see the seams where the panels are joined. And it’s true. The way the wood is cut and glued, the grain does resemble a picture of Satan.”
“More than that around here resembles that evil creature,” the woman said under her breath. She opened a small cabinet, pulled out a fluffy towel and handed it to Laine. “Here, honey. Dry off with this. I’ll fetch you some water so’s you can wash up. Don’t got no candles in here, but I imagine you’ll be asleep in no time and won’t need one. Soon as you in bed, I’ve got to get back. You sleep right comfortable, and someone’ll come get you in the mornin’. Night, now. Pleasant dreams.”
“Wait,” Laine called to her. “You haven’t told me your name.”
“Folks ‘round here call me Miss Evie. Reckon you can, too.”
Laine quickly stripped out of her wet clothes and dried off. As soon as she slipped under the covers, Miss Evie edged toward the door.
Before the woman could leave, Laine whispered, “Thank you, Miss Evie. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t found me. You must be an angel, sent straight from God.”
“Close enough, I reckon. Close enough,” was her response. And with that, she disappeared into the rain swept night.
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