Blood Parish Read online

  “Maybe your DNA told you Lemon Twig wasn’t your home. That’s why you spend your life looking for something you’ll never find.” He rubbed the gun under his chin.

  “How do you know Rob isn’t my real father?”

  He wasn’t listening, tightening his belt. His glassy eyes were vacant. “I might as well move you before Miss Mable gets angry with me.”

  “I know why you’re having a problem,” Lucy May said from ten feet away, startling both of them.

  Joe-Joe swung the gun at her. “Get the hell out of here.”

  She stepped closer, calmer than Angel would have expected. “You had no problems raping me. What does that say?”

  “Shut up, Lucy May.” The gun faltered. “This has nothing to do with you.”

  “You’re under strict orders to keep me safe,” Lucy May commanded. “You don’t understand, do you? You’re having a problem because you love her.”

  The gun fell a little but straightened again. “Stay there.” But she didn’t. He allowed her to step inside the cage.

  “I’m going to touch you, that okay?” Lucy May softened.

  He let out a breath, half of a sob. “Don’t. Just go.”

  “It’s all happening so fast. It’s so overwhelming. It’s okay.” She ran her hands up and down his chest. She touched his cheek. “We can’t do this while holding the gun. She isn’t going nowhere. Put it down.”

  Joe-Joe nodded, letting it drop to the floor. Lucy May was gentle but emphatic. She unbuckled his belt and eventually pulled his pants down. “Good. Close your eyes if you want. I think it would help.”

  Angel couldn’t believe the scene before her. Lucy May practically hypnotized Joe-Joe. His eyes closed while she caressed his abdomen and his exposed thighs until bending at the knees to pick up the gun. Angel dare not say anything to spook Joe-Joe, but was she just going to let this happen?

  Lucy May pushed the barrel of the gun into his gut. Before Angel could react, her cousin fired. There was no speech. She didn’t make him grovel or apologize. No one stared at each other to let the resignation of death settle in. Lucy May merely pulled the trigger, and Joe-Joe staggered, then dropped.

  “You don’t deserve to know my child.” Lucy May finished with a bullet to his heart. It was only then a look of anxiety crossed her face. “Oh, shit. I guess I am a Blondeaux.”

  Chapter 82

  “Lucy May – you didn’t have to kill him.” Angel watched the blood pool spreading near her feet.

  “But now you’re free of him.” Lucy May dug in his pocket for the keys.

  “But it wasn’t your responsibility.”

  “Just say thank you.” She pulled them out with a rattle.

  “We could have locked him in here.”

  “That kind of thinking is what’s wrong with our justice system.” Lucy May freed her cuffs. “There’s a difference between the law and doing what’s right.”

  “No argument there.” Angel rubbed at her wrists. “Someone has to be coming after that.”

  “No one is coming.”

  “How do you know?” Angel pulled up her jeans, situating her clothes.

  “I was in the surveillance room by myself watching you.” Lucy May left the cage. “The guards are destroying files and computers. Your mom is making calls in the back of the house, and Aunt Izzy isn’t here.”

  “Where were they going to move me?” She grabbed Joe-Joe’s gun.

  “To the water tower until they could situate you in Brockton, but he obviously wanted to do something else first.”

  “I’m so sorry he did that to you and forced you to move in with Trevor.” She left the cage with one last glance at Joe-Joe.

  “Yeah, but I forgave him. You would never be so weak.”

  “Has nothing to do with weakness. You know your way around? What’s the best way out?”

  “Guards patrol, but they’re pretty lazy about it. We’ll just have to avoid them.” She moved to the stairs.

  “Thank you, Lucy May.” Angel held the weapon at the ready at the top of the stairs. “In case we get separated or something happens to me, Joe-Joe locked Mark in Bobby’s cage. I have to get to him.”

  Lucy May pushed the door open. “Let’s see this through, then.”

  Chapter 83

  While Lucy May poked her head into the hall, Angel inspected Joe-Joe’s impressive gun, an aluminum-framed Grand Power Stribog. It was an excellent weapon in very high demand. The problem was that every guard they would come across has one, too.

  “I know how you can get out.” Lucy May grabbed Angel’s hand as they entered the hall. “There’s a tree outside of maw maw’s office window. Super close. You can climb down and escape through the back of the property.”

  “Are there guards outside?”

  “Outer perimeter. The office isn’t too far from here.” Lucy May led the way, stepping lightly on a geometric patterned rug as if land mines were all around. The air was too calm. A roving band of gun-toting rednecks had to be just around the corner.

  They hugged the wall adorned with portraits, vases, and plants, coming to a set of heavy wooden doors. Sconces hung on each side with paisley wallpaper and an ornate ceiling. She expected the room to be locked, but the double-doors opened easily. It had been ransacked, probably the first place they started to destroy files.

  Before crossing the threshold, Lucy May pointed to the end of the hall. “You hear that? Music.”

  “I hear it. It’s coming closer.” She held the weapon up in sight, with one hand in front of the magazine and the other on the trigger. A middle-aged guard turned the corner, just feet away. Angel fired just as he got spooked. His cell tumbled forward onto the floor as he fell. He was alone, but surely someone had heard the shot.

  “Get in the study,” Angel commanded, snatching the guard’s cell phone.

  Once inside, Angel locked the doors, tossing the phone aside. She tilted a fancy chair with a high back under each doorknob and pushed a sofa against it for good measure.

  “Is there a landline here in this mess?” Angel checked the desk.

  “Paulette jams the signal in this room for her meetings. No cell phones and no landlines.”

  “Just great.” A glance outside showed her a beautiful weeping willow stretching its limbs near the house. “Can you make this jump?”

  “I’m not leaving.”

  A banging on the door startled them.

  “C’mon, Lucy May. We have to get out of here. We can do this.”

  Lucy May took the weapon from Angel. “Bobby’s coming to get me. I’ll wait for him. They’re not going to hurt me, not with the baby. You go and find Mark and your dad. I’ll stall them. There’s some ATVs just down the slope toward the back wall by the large shed.”

  “I was thinking about that Lamborghini.”

  “You’ll get caught. Go to the ATVs. If you can’t get them started, look to the brick wall. One of the oak’s branches on the opposite side extends over. Bobby and I used to climb over when we were kids.”

  “I remember it.”

  Before Angel could say more, Lucy May’s face lit up as she sprayed bullets into the drywall, almost smiling. The banging and shouting stopped. Angel positioned her leg outside the window in order to sit on the ledge with both feet dangling.

  A thin tree branch reached out just a yard away. With a deep breath, she hurled her body forward onto the limb swallowing her with leaves. With a death grip, her weight caused it to bend toward the ground without snapping until her feet touched down, sending her onto her backside. The branch whipped back to its normal state.

  She ran toward the rear of the mansion without looking back, seeing the downslope Lucy May had mentioned. It caused so much momentum while running, she feared tripping onto her face. A distant ruckus could be heard with more shots, but she wasn’t sure of its source. The shed, which was basically a barn, had five ATVs sitting out front, parked side-by-side along with three golf carts.

  Just beyond the barn, she
saw the rear gate to the pines. The guards must have been summoned inside, abandoning their posts. She didn’t need to climb over on the oak tree’s limb.

  Please have a key. Please have a key. Please have a key.

  The first one she reached had a Confederate flag dangling off the grip.

  Chapter 84

  When the guards had finally broken through the barricade, Lucy May dropped the gun, holding her hands in the air. Her fingers wiggled a wave to the guard, who lowered his weapon. One of the men subdued her, while the other two checked outside the window.

  The ugly pock-faced man jabbed his gun in the direction Angel ran. “Go after her. One of you get the patronne up here.”

  Lucy May jerked her arms from his grip. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  “Take a seat.” He nudged her to an antique Victorian chair.

  A moment later, her Aunt Mable entered the study with a disapproving face, the same one she wore when Lucy May had moved in with Trevor. Her head shook while noticing the damage to the double set of carved wood doors that must’ve cost a fortune. She motioned at the guard. “Go join the search. She couldn’t have gotten far.”

  Lucy May crossed her legs. “Don’t you have evidence to destroy?”

  “The feds just left the mound to come here, so we don’t have much time.”

  “Joe-Joe’s dead. How you gonna hide that?”

  “Big loss.” Mable pulled a taser from her purse. She pressed it once, creating a crackling charge. “What I want to know is, where is my daughter going?”

  Her façade cracked. “She’s going to meet up with her FBI team.”

  Her Aunt Mable traced the taser up Lucy May’s thigh. “That’s obvious. Tell me something useful.”

  Lucy May gripped the skinny armrests. “If they’re headed here, we should get out.”

  “You’re on my side again?” The prongs tickled up her side, under her breast. “Everything will be destroyed before they enter. They will congregate outside the gate and try to contact someone inside. It’ll be hours before they realize they’re talking to a useless guard.”

  “What can I do?”

  The taser found Lucy May’s arm, scraping up to her shoulder. It stopped on her neck. It was like watching a poisonous spider walk across her skin. “We’ll escape through the tunnel. The FBI will find the mansion uninhabited, and Paulette missing. Documents shredded. We’ll be shocked, right? Does that sound like a good plan, Lucy May? Is that what you would do as patronne?”

  “Yes, of course. Please, you don’t want to hurt our little baby girl.”

  Mable pursed her lips. “I would never do anything to hurt that baby.” She spun the device in her palm. “However, the kid’s a Blondeaux. She’ll be fine. Might come out with superpowers or something, right?”

  “You could kill her.” Lucy May started to cry.

  “Her? You’re playing me, aren’t you?” Mable slid another chair across the glossy hardwood until it rested a few feet from Lucy May. She sat, placing the taser at her belly. “What did Angel tell you?”

  “Mark is in Bobby’s cage back at the house.” Lucy May cringed.

  Mable held up the taser for her to see. “And?”

  “She’s going back to the house to get him. That’s all she said.”

  Mable holstered the weapon. “Then, there’s still time.”

  Chapter 85

  Angel was no stranger to all terrain vehicles. Rob had taught her hunting, fishing, and drinking, all the backwoods skills a girl needed to survive in bubba country. A photo of her riding on the dirt trails with a semi-automatic weapon would absolutely make the cover of Redneck Monthly.

  Her skills came back quickly, and she blasted the throttle, adjusting her balance on the rough path. The roar of the engine propelled her forward. She reminded herself she was escaping, not joyriding.

  The trail from the back of the property followed the outside wall. It eventually led to the main road where it turned parallel, dipping and rising until the path wanted to cross over the asphalt to continue on the other side.

  Instead of staying close to the woods, she hooked a sharp right and sped down the shoulder of the only paved exit, believing it was the fastest route.

  It didn’t take long before two vehicles were on her tail. Shots announced their pursuit. Firing from the back of a pickup at high speeds was easy. Hitting something was extremely difficult. They had gained enough ground to suddenly be on top of her. She regretted leaving the safety of the woods.

  While she was looking for another manageable entry into the trees, a pickup edged alongside the ATV. The powerful engine filled her ears. The reckless driver weaved ever so close until she had no other choice but to attempt the downslope into the brush.

  Angel’s stomach lifted into her throat, and the world tilted. Like a bucking bronco, the ATV bounced and rumbled over the uneven surface until the right wheel hit a large rock. She and the ATV went airborne, like an X-Games wipe-out. They each landed side-by-side, although the vehicle continued to roll while she lay stationary. Dirt, grass, and debris rained down.

  Shots were exchanged from the road, but none came close to her. The FBI? Three-round bursts like a snare drum echoed in the pines. A mental checklist of her body parts indicated no broken bones, but joints and tendons had stretched and twisted. Her clothes had ripped, exposing scrapes and cuts.

  Angel’s vision cleared enough to attempt balancing on her knees. She could just make out two black SUVs on the side of the road. Bobby’s car pulled up behind them. The first vehicle had its doors open, cleared of passengers. A member of a SWAT team moved forward on the road, carrying an assault rifle. Two more big men were behind the leader, clearing the path. They didn’t look too worried about anything, or anyone.

  Donald and Ruby exited the second vehicle, armed and with flak jackets. Then Bobby appeared. They rushed toward her as she fell onto her butt.

  Chapter 86

  Angel filled in Donald and Ruby with the happenings at the mansion while Bobby helped check for injuries. Bobby appeared more like a competent man than the victim she had always pictured. He attempted to pick her up, but she declined. The natural strength in his arms and core surprised her. Instead, he steadied her on the way to the road.

  “So, with my kidnapping, you can finally access the mansion, but at the rate they’re destroying evidence, you don’t have any time to lose.” Angel spoke to Donald but leaned on Bobby.

  Bobby said, “You can’t just go in with guns blazing. Lucy May is in there.”

  Agent Ruby kept vigilant of the road. “We’re going to deploy a systematic entry. Gain access where allowed and assess the situation. We’ll get Lucy May out safely.”

  “Do you need a hospital?” Donald unnecessarily reached for her arm.

  Angel let him help, forcing her legs toward the road where they stood between the stationary vehicles. “I have to find Mark back at the house.”

  “I stopped there. The house was empty.”

  “You checked the cage?”

  “Another agent searched the basement. I can’t answer that.”

  “Go to the mansion. I’ll double-check the house.”

  “We’ll have to clear these bodies later.” Donald pointed at the SWAT team to load up in the SUV. He put one foot on the car’s step. “Oh, they didn’t find any bones buried in the mound yet.”

  “They have to be there. Deeper probably.”

  “The mound is almost twenty feet tall. We could see fifteen down, no anomalies. They’re clearing the top portion and will rerun the sonar. We aren’t hopeful.”

  “Just keep digging.” Angel bent over as if she’d run a marathon.

  “Go get yourself cleaned up at the house and join the agents at the mound. I’ll keep you updated.” Donald closed the door, and the two SUVs took off for the mansion.

  Bobby said, “I always knew you were trouble, but the good kind.”

  “Are you attempting humor?”

  “No.”

&nbs
p; Angel wobbled forward but kept her footing. “I’m okay. Nothing broken.”

  He calmly admitted, “I killed Trevor.”

  “You did?”

  “He forced my hand. And lost.”

  “Self-defense? Wait, don’t answer that. Cremator? No - don’t answer.”

  “It was quite a poetic demise.”

  “I didn’t hear any of that.” Her legs gained strength. “One nightmare for you is over.” She envisioned a swollen knee in her future. “Drive me to the house?”

  “I’m afraid I cannot. I have to get Lucy May.”

  “The FBI…”

  “Why do you think I didn’t press to join them? The FBI will waste time at the gate, assessing their entry. They’ll negotiate for hours on the phone with no one important. The guards know me there. I’ll get in and out with Lucy May before Donald Lester rings the doorbell.”

  “Maybe you should help them?”

  “I did. I told them all I know. They want me to stand down.” He shook his head. “Don’t tell me not to, Angel. I won’t listen.”

  “Just don’t get yourself killed.” She started for one of the trucks. “Trevor told you my mom is the new patronne?”

  “I figured it out when I saw maw maw Paulette in the body bag.”

  Angel opened the truck’s door. “Good luck. Try not to get caught up in a shoot-out.”

  “Five minutes is all I need. We’ll see each other later.” He had an ease about him that calmed her as well. He drove away.

  The truck with bullet holes she commandeered was still idling. Angel could see the other disabled vehicle in the ditch, and several men were lying about in dark blood.

  And to think she had told Donald, John, and Ruby nothing would come of this.

  Chapter 87

  There were no guards at the checkpoints. Bobby figured they had been summoned to help protect the patronne, or decommissioned by the FBI. He slowed to a stop just before a turn in the road. He needed to hike it from there.