Chapter 4 #8
“Ye just said it yeself. Who or what would take someone out of a second story window? Do ye really tink dat sounds like someting dat de police are going to be able to ’elp us wit?”
“No, but that isn’t putting my mind at ease at all. How the fuck are we going to find her? We know nothing!”
“That’s why we are going to do dis my way. We will get de information we need. I’m not leaving, and we will get Charlotte back.”
He made another turn down a narrow road going north.
Ten minutes had passed, when he pulled into a long, well-hidden driveway in the middle of what appeared to be absolutely nowhere.
We pulled up in front of a very old, very small house that looked as though, if someone did live here, they were of questionable character or very limited means.
The shack of sorts looked as though one strong gust would level the structure, its warped boards darkened by years of rain and neglect.
How would Ronan know someone who would reside here, let alone someone that would be able to help us?
What was I getting myself into, or what was Ronan getting me into?
This all had to do with Charlotte; it was always chaotic when I spent too much time with my cousin.
I was beginning to remember why I kept her at arm’s length more often than not.
He put the truck in park, and we exited the vehicle. Ronan came up beside me. “Let me do de talking.”
That was all he said as we approached the door of the dwelling. He knocked on the door, that looked as though it had been through a nuclear blast and somehow still managed to stay on the hinges. It was almost a full minute before a small peephole door swung inward, and a set of eyes appeared.
“Ronan!” The pair of eyes got bigger. “Hold on, let me unlock the door.”
The door swung open and inside was nothing more than a shack.
The guy standing on the other side of the door was older with dark skin that appeared to have extreme sun exposure.
His eyes were a very light shade of blue, and his hair was white and cut short.
He had a full beard, quite frail-looking and sort of like he needed a shower.
“I’m looking for Maddox, I ’ave some questions I need answered.” He stared the old man in the eyes with fierce intensity.
“I will let him know you need to speak with him.”
“Tell ’im I’m not asking to speak wit ’im. I am demanding ’e sees me immediately.”
The man nodded in agreement and then disappeared behind what I assumed to be a bedroom door.
This whole situation was extremely strange, and we were wasting time.
A moment later the old man reappeared in the doorway and gestured for us to enter the room.
Once inside, I realized that the floor had a door and under it was a flight of stairs descending into darkness. Ronan grabbed my hand.
“Ye ’ave nothing to fear, I’m right ’ere.” He squeezed my hand. “After ye, Chris.”
Ronan made the other man take the lead. I descended second, and then Ronan followed me, shutting the door behind us.
When we reached the bottom of the stairs, there was a dark damp tunnel for at least a hundred yards.
The air was cold and smelled faintly of stone and earth that hadn’t seen sunlight in centuries.
It opened up into a cavernous room. More hallways led off this room in every direction, and at the center of the room was a couch and a coffee table.
Directly behind the couch was a set of double doors perfectly situated between two of the numerous hallways.
We walked further into the room, and the double doors swung open, and a large man, seeming to be in his early thirties, came walking out.
He was wearing a very dark suit and looked as though he worked out every possible second he could.
He had a long beard and a head full of hair that had me picturing Jason Momoa, with tattoos peeking out from under his collar.
“Ronan; what can I do for you, my man?” he asked as he approached and offered his hand to Ronan.
He took his hand and shook it. This is him. The man from my grandfather’s funeral. He told me he worked with him often and spent a lot of time with him. Who is this guy? He was intimidating for sure, but I wasn’t scared of him.
“Ray’s granddaughter was taken from ’er room on de second floor of ’is estate. We are looking for answers and de girl.”
“Well, I haven’t heard anyone talking about abducting a girl. Especially one that would be off limits.”
“Then can ye make some inquiries? If anyone can put deir ear to de ground and locate ’er, dat would be ye.”
“I would have to be inclined to agree with that statement. Give me an hour and I will meet you at Ray’s estate.
I will share what I find, and we can see if we can gain any clues from the estate itself.
Meantime, I will send out ears in all directions to gather any information that they can.
Someone has to know something—and I will find it. ”
“Tank ye, Maddox. See ye in an ’our.”
“Joslyn, nice to see you again.” Maddox turned his attention to me. He offered his hand, and I took it. “She is very rare—that I can tell you.” He was talking to Ronan but didn’t take his eyes off of me.
“We will wait for you at the house. Please hurry,” was all I said. I shifted my attention to Ronan. “Can we get out of his way so he can do what he needs to do?”
“Of course.” Ronan took my hand and led me back toward the tunnel through which we entered.