“We are going to go in nice and easy. I don’t want to shoot you.”

Well don’t, then.

“We don’t want you to shoot us either.” Dee Dee said what I only had the courage to think.

John showed me where to stop the car, and we all got out, stumbling in the darkness.

“Shut up and keep moving,” he shoved me forward when I tripped on a root. A small shack loomed up, and I groped up the steps inside. And then I heard her before I saw her. Grunts and groans emanated from somewhere in the semi-darkness.

“Nana!” As my eyes adjusted to the dim light I saw her tied to a chair, duct tape covered her mouth. “Are you all right?” I broke free from John’s grasp and headed over to her.

“She’s all right. And don’t try anything funny.” John waved his gun in the air like it was connected to a ceiling fan. Ellie stood with feet apart and she held her gun sideways like a member of a street gang. One mystery was solved – they did indeed know each other before coming to Savannah.

Dee Dee’s eyes, wide with fear or maybe disbelief, reminded me of a deer caught in headlights.

“I guess y’all killed Grace.” Dee Dee stated the obvious.

John bellowed a maniacal laugh. “Yeah, I killed her.”

Ellie spoke up. “Hey, babe, don’t tell them anything.” She pointed her gun toward a bed beside Nana. “Get over there and sit down.”

“Don’t worry about what they know. They won’t be around long enough to say anything.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Ummm. Ummm.” Nana tried her best to speak.

“Can’t you remove the tape?” Shock rattled me when he walked over to Nana and ripped off the tape as fast as he could. Nana squealed in pain.

John laughed. “Well, you asked me to take it off. And don’t get any ideas about screaming, because I’ll shoot you faster than you can blink.”

We knew who killed Grace, but why? If I could keep them talking, maybe George would send for help. Then again, where did George fit into this scenario? He appeared to be a good guy, but why did he know so much about the bracelet Captain Jack found. Was he a jewel thief? Was he involved with Ellie and John?

I sat beside Nana and held her hand. “Why did you bring us out here?”

Dee Dee sat beside me.

“Oh, please. You know why.” John looked at us like we were aliens.

I really didn’t know for sure. I thought maybe they felt the heat of mine and Dee Dee’s questioning and wanted to get us out of the way, but the way he was posturing, I didn’t want to upset him anymore.

“I’ll go along with your little ruse. We know you work for International Insurance. Nobody would act as goofy as you two women if you weren’t putting on an act. And y’all were going around asking everybody questions. We saw right through it.”

“Hey, watch it. That’s my niece you’re calling goofy,” Nana said.

“Shut up old lady. You want me to slap some tape back on your mouth?” Nana didn’t answer, but she shot pure fire from her eyes. If those lasers were real he’d have been obliterated right on the spot.

Ellie joined in the fracas. “We knew when Captain Jack discovered the bracelet you’d figure out we’d lifted the jewels. We knew you’d come if we had your Nana. It worked, too, didn’t it honey?” She looked like a fox with a mouth full of feathers.

I tried to piece together this bizarre puzzle. They were jewel thieves being chased by an insurance detective. John thought we were the investigators. They had recognized the bracelet, so it must have been from their stash. How did Grace tie in with international burglars? My mantra became, keep them talking, keep them talking.

“I’m sure you realize any self-respecting insurance company will be keeping track of our every move.” I decided to play along and buy us some time. “You’d be a fool to hurt us.”

Dee Dee plunged ahead while Ellie and John exchanged glances, considering my dare. “And what did Grace ever do to deserve a death sentence?”

John snorted. “She snooped where she shouldn’t have. She stumbled on the stash of jewels we hid in our room and then tried to blackmail me. She might have been used to terrifying others with her bossiness, but she met her match in me. Nobody is going to threaten me and get away with it. So I lured her out to the beach, took the gnome, and used it as a weapon. It was a perfect plan. Until that bracelet turned up. I thought I’d recovered all the pieces she’d taken.”

“They’ll be here soon looking for us.” Dee Dee scooted around on the couch.

“Nobody is going to find us here,” John said. “Now, stop moving around and keep your hands in front of you or I’ll tie you all up.”

I don’t know how long we sat there while John and Ellie discussed our fates in hushed tones. I hoped we’d planted some doubts in their minds. I squeezed Nana’s hand.

“All right, I’m going to go out for a while and I’m leaving Ellie to guard you. You’d better enjoy your last few minutes on this earth, because when I get back you’re going to meet your maker.”

My stomach constricted and my heart palpitated. Maybe he was going out for a silencer. I could feel the sweat trickle down my forehead. A stray drop of sweat burned my eye. I reached up to wipe it off. Dear God, help us out of this terrible situation. Not that I don’t want to meet you, but I’ve got things I need to take care of first. And please hurry!

They say God works in mysterious ways, and what happened in the next few minutes was a testimony to the truth of that statement. John had tied Nana to a straight back chair with her hands and feet clasped together with zip ties. I can’t imagine the fear she must have felt when they trussed her up like a Thanksgiving turkey.

When John’s footsteps clomped down the steps, Nana donned a pitiful face. “These ties are cutting into my skin. Can’t you loosen them up some?”

“All right, but you better not try anything funny. I’m going to cut them off and if anybody makes a move their as good as shot.” Ellie scrounged around until she found a wicked looking pair of scissors. She reached to cut the plastic band and the next thing I knew Dee Dee had moved with the grace of a cat, or maybe an elephant. She took the purse I’d never make fun of again, reared back like a discus thrower, and with one fell swoop brought it down on Ellie’s back.

Startled, Ellie let out a blood-curdling scream and fell to the floor and the gun landed close to Nana’s now untied hands. She grabbed it up, and boggled it like a hot potato. It flew up in the air and landed next to me on the bed. With the calmness of a sane person I picked it up and mimicked the stance Ellie took earlier with my legs apart and the gun pointed straight at her.

Dee Dee smoothed out her pirate’s costume as if she were ready to make her debut on the runway. She looked at Ellie and smirked. “Now whose court is the ball in?” That’s my Dee Dee. My heart strummed in my chest and I struggled to keep my arms up. The gun was heavy and cold in my hands.

Before a stunned Ellie had a chance to act, the door burst open and a bevy of blue-uniformed SWAT officers swarmed in. One of them took the gun as I lowered it, and then someone yelled the all clear. The sea of blue opened up and I was never so glad to see anyone than I was to see Detective Baker striding toward me. It was all I could do to resist giving the burly guy a great big hug.

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

With the arrival of help, my adrenaline waned and my brave persona dissipated. As my knees buckled, Detective Baker caught me, and the next thing I knew George and Dee Dee were helping me to the couch.

Nana squealed, “George, I knew you’d find me.”

“You better believe it. I wasn’t going to let anything happen to my new friend.” He gave her a wink.