The Lady Has a Past (Burning Cove #5) - Amanda Quick Page 0,63

excitement spiraling through her. “She did have time to write a name. What’s more, she wrote it out so that anyone can read it. Guppy.”

Chapter 29

I’ve got a name for you, Luther.” The familiar static of a long-distance call crackled on the line. Simon clamped the pay phone more tightly to his ear. “Mrs. Angela Merryweather. My informant says she lives in Pasadena. She’s in her late twenties. Rich. Blond. Movie-star pretty.”

He glanced out the open door of the phone booth. Lyra was leaning against the fender of the Cord, her arms crossed. There was no one else around. The gas station was closed for the night. Luther had answered his phone halfway through the first ring. He had listened, tense and silent, while Simon gave him a quick summary of events.

“Why do I care about Angela Merryweather from Pasadena?” Luther growled.

“She was kidnapped from the resort shortly before Raina disappeared. There’s a gang operating out of the hotel and spa. According to my source, Merryweather wasn’t as terrified as the others. She was angry.”

“So she might be more inclined to talk—is that what you’re saying?”

“Maybe. We need information. Details. A description of the place where the victims are held would be extremely useful. Given the logistical problems and the timing involved, I’m sure the location has to be fairly close to Labyrinth Springs.”

“Pasadena is about a hundred miles from Burning Cove,” Luther said. “If I leave now I can be there before dawn. Any idea what we’re dealing with here?”

“Draper, the guy who drove the women to and from the pickup location, explained some of it when he showed us the cabin where the women are held at one point. The ring targets wealthy women who are connected to influential men—industrialists, politicians, bankers. Draper didn’t know anything about how the ransom arrangements work, but after the money is paid the women are released. Draper says they’re usually so frightened they don’t talk. The families have obviously kept things hushed up, which means the gang is holding some form of leverage over their heads.”

“There have been no attempts at extortion. I haven’t heard anything from the kidnappers,” Luther said.

“This is not a standard kidnapping. Whoever grabbed Raina must be aware of the risk of trying to extort money from you. Draper confirmed that the gang is handling things differently this time.”

“How?”

Simon exhaled slowly. “I was hoping you wouldn’t ask that question. All I can tell you is that Draper made it clear this kidnapping doesn’t fit the pattern. He was told he would not be contacted to pick up Raina and transport her to the train station.”

“That was the way the other kidnappings worked?”

“Yes.”

“The bastards are going to murder Raina,” Luther said in a voice that came from the coldest circle of hell.

“They won’t do that until they get whatever it is they want,” Simon said. “Listen to me, Luther—Angela Merryweather is our best option at the moment. She may have been blindfolded, but she might remember something we can use. Traffic. Music. Voices. Smells. Anything will help. It’s a big desert. We’ve got to get a starting point.”

“I’ll get on the road as soon as we hang up,” Luther vowed.

“Thanks. There’s something else we should probably consider.”

“What’s that?” Luther asked.

“It’s also possible the kidnappers made a mistake. Maybe they took the wrong woman.”

“They grabbed the wrong woman, all right,” Luther said.

The promise of a brutal vengeance was carved into every word. Simon glanced at Lyra again. He understood exactly how Luther felt. He forced himself to focus on the conversation.

“One more thing,” Luther said. “Did this Kevin Draper know when the kidnapping ring set up shop in the hotel and spa?”

“He said he got the first phone call about a year ago,” Simon said. “He seems sure that’s when the kidnappers went into business.”

“That’s when the hotel reopened under new management, according to Oliver.”

“And when the spa was opened. Guppy is the only name on the last page of the notebook. It wasn’t written in shorthand. I’m sure Miss Kirk was trying to tell us that Edith Guppy is very much involved in this.”

“I don’t see how the kidnapping ring could operate without the cooperation of someone high up in the hotel,” Luther said.

“I agree. We also think that at least one of the treatment ladies, Miss Frampton, is working with the kidnappers. Someone locked Lyra in the steam room this afternoon and turned up the heat. Lyra would have died if she hadn’t managed to break the glass