Chapter 31
31
“Hidden Hearts,” Theodosia murmured. “Orange blossoms and top notes of vanilla.”
“Hearts?” Drayton said. “Vanilla?”
“It’s Babs,” Theodosia whispered. “She’s out here somewhere.”
“Coffee shop Babs?” Drayton cried. He sounded positively gobsmacked. “What are you talking about?”
Theodosia grabbed Drayton by the arm and shook it. “Drayton, Babs Campbell is the one who rigged the greenhouse. She’s the one who tasered Bettina and kidnapped Jamie.”
Drayton’s mouth was practically hanging open. “But she’s…”
His words were interrupted by the loud putt-putt-putt of a motor starting up. It grumbled for a few moments and then caught with a throaty gasoline-powered roar. Which was immediately followed by the high-pitched scream of a saw cutting through a slab of wood.
“The sawmill!” Theodosia cried.
“Huh?” Drayton said, whirling about.
A split second later, a bright white light popped on, hitting them directly in their eyes and spotlighting them like two startled deer.
Blinking at the harsh intensity, inwardly cursing herself for walking into Babs’s trap, Theodosia stared into the brilliant light, trying to see if it really was Babs. There, a low, evil chuckle floated toward them as Babs angled the flashlight away and stepped out of the gloom. She was dressed all in black and aiming a flat, gray pistol at them, her hair disheveled and her face pink with pure anticipation. She looked like a needy wraith who’d just crawled out of the pits of hell.
“You kept me waiting long enough,” Babs called out in a loud, insolent voice. “I was beginning to think you two would never figure this out. And you, Theodosia,” she chided, “you’re supposed to be the smart one. Shame on you for bumbling around like a dolt. Jamie’s been wondering if you’d ever come and rescue him.”
“Where is Jamie?” Theodosia demanded. She glanced at Babs’s feet and saw she was wearing Sorel boots.
I’m dealing with a calculating, dangerous woman. Better take care.
It was also the moment Theodosia decided she had to face Babs like you would a dangerous animal. Show no fear. Push back hard. Fight if you have to.
“Jamie’s tied up at the moment,” Babs said with a nasty giggle. “Come on.” She waved her pistol at them. “March on over here and see for yourself.”
Theodosia and Drayton walked, at gunpoint, into a sawmill that was barely standing. It had one rickety back wall and a partial roof made up of bare, denuded wooden ribs that sagged badly. But when Babs flipped on a light switch, the inner mechanisms looked to be in decent working order.
And, of course, there was Jamie. Lying on a kind of leather conveyor belt, tied securely, his feet a mere twenty inches from a giant circular blade with jagged edges.
“Help me,” Jamie cried feebly.
“We will,” Theodosia said. “I promise you.”
“Oh, probably not,” Babs said. “Because you two have become quite a problem for me. That said, there’s always room for one more.” She waggled her pistol at Drayton. “How about you? Want to lie down and take a ride on the Saw-Go-Round?”
Theodosia gritted her teeth. “Don’t you dare threaten him.”
“Watch that mouth of yours or I’ll shoot you right between the eyes,” Babs growled.
“The police are one step behind us,” Theodosia said, hoping, praying, that Babs wouldn’t call her bluff.
“The police are nowhere!” Babs shouted. She tilted her pistol skyward and fired.
BOOM!
Both Theodosia and Drayton ducked their heads as a bullet zinged off something metallic.
“Why are you doing this?” Drayton asked. He was shaking like a leaf but trying to be reasonable because…well, because it was his nature.
Babs waved her pistol in Jamie’s direction. “That snake completely threw me over for a mealymouthed little blond trick. But I played it smart. I took my time and knew that one day I’d get even.”
“That ‘one day’ being the day of Jamie’s wedding?” Theodosia said. “Only that didn’t work out as planned, did it?”
“Celeste, the brainless fool, ran into the greenhouse first,” Babs spat out. “So I had to devise a backup plan. A game, a treasure hunt, so to speak. And I’ve so enjoyed pulling the strings and playing games master.”
“You’re insane,” Theodosia said.
Babs shook her head. “More of a garden-variety narcissistic sociopath.” She raised her left hand, pinching her forefinger and thumb together. “With a bit of psychopath thrown in for fun.”
As Theodosia continued to go back and forth with Babs, arguing, she happened to glance over into the woods. And much to her shock, saw a pair of headlights bouncing toward them way off in the distance.
Help on the way? she wondered. But who is it?
Just as hope bloomed in her heart, she noticed that one of the headlights was crooked and canted to the left.
I know that car, it belongs to Bill Glass. Glass to the rescue? Theodosia shook her head. No way, he’ll bumble this for sure. What to do? What to do now?
Because Theodosia had no other cards to play, because she could only pray that Glass might pull a rabbit out of a hat, she decided to try to de-escalate the conversation.
“I apologize if I’ve offended you in any way,” Theodosia said. “So let’s try and work this out. Why not let Jamie go and we’ll all drive back to Charleston? We can get warm, get dry, and talk to Bettina. She’s reasonable, you’re reasonable, I’m sure we can figure something out. I know you really don’t want to hurt anyone, and I’m sure you have no desire to go to prison.”
“You’re more insane than I am if you think I’ll fall for that cheap ploy,” Babs said with a snort. Then she turned to Drayton and said, “Ready, Freddy?”
“You harm a hair on that man’s head and you’ll answer to me!” Theodosia shouted. She took a step toward Babs, wondering how fast she could move, how skilled Babs was with that gun.
“Shut up!” Babs ordered. “Back the hell off. Be the genteel Southern tea lady we know, love, and are bored with.” She pointed her pistol at Drayton and said, “Do it. Lie down on the conveyor belt.”
Theodosia stepped in front of Drayton to shield him. “No way. You’ll have to deal with me first.”
“Him first, your turn comes later,” Babs said. Her grin morphed into an ugly grimace as she raised her pistol and focused her aim on Drayton. “Stop fooling around and lie down. Do it now.”
“Never,” Drayton said.
Babs switched her aim from Drayton to Theodosia. “What if I killed the tea lady first? Would that change your mind?”
“Don’t do it, Drayton!” Theodosia yelled. But Drayton, looking ashen-faced and terrified, climbed awkwardly onto the conveyor belt and lay down.
“You,” Babs said to Theodosia. “Pick up that rope over there and tie him up.”
“You’ll never get away with this,” Theodosia said.
“I already have,” Babs said. “Pick. Up. The. Rope.”
“Do it, Theo,” Drayton pleaded. “Or she’ll kill us both.”
WHAP, WHAP, WHAP! Sudden thunder boomed in the sky overhead. Trees shook and sheets of leaves rained down.
“What?” Babs screeched as she squinted up at the misty night sky through missing boards.
Theodosia looked up, too, wondering what could be happening. Then she saw it. A helicopter, hovering directly above them, its blades causing the treetops around them to thrash and sway. The roar grew louder, the downdraft more severe, as giant blades whirled in the dark sky.
“Helicopter!” Theodosia shouted. It was a shout of joy, a shout that said, Now we’ve got a chance!
Babs watched in pure terror as the large helicopter hovered overhead, then began its descent. “No!” she screamed as she raised her pistol and began firing at it.
At the same time, Theodosia lunged for Drayton, pulling him off the conveyor belt. Together they hung on for dear life as the helicopter swooped in lower.
Sawdust, dirt, wood chips, and bits of damp leaves swirled around them like an angry tornado. Jamie screamed in terror as the helicopter dipped low, and Babs was literally knocked off her feet by the downdraft. In that single instant she was thrown to the ground, and her pistol flew out of her hand.
Quick as a fox, Theodosia dropped to her knees and began scrabbling in the dirt, searching for the pistol.
And then, just like in the movies, an officer in SWAT tactical gear slid down a rope and landed directly on top of Babs. With his smoked black bubble helmet, he looked like an alien from outer space. Without hesitation, he pulled Babs to her feet, spun her around like a child’s top, and snapped a plastic tie around her wrists.
And right on cue Babs started bawling.