“Haley . . .” Drayton’s voice carried a warning tone.
“Okay, okay,” Haley said, closing her hand around the pin. “I hear you. I’ll run down to Timothy’s office and lock it up nice and tight so it’ll be safe from prying eyes and nefarious jewel thieves.”
“Thank you,” Theodosia said as Haley skipped away.
28
With the ruby-and-diamond pin safely on its way to Timothy’s office, Theodosia suddenly felt a million times lighter. Nothing was going to happen tonight, she assured herself. The Fabergé egg was safe and, come Monday morning, she would redouble her efforts to help Brooke. But tonight she was going to relax and enjoy the party. She might even flirt with Agent Zimmer if she felt like it. And, by the way, she wanted to take a careful look at all the splendid objects that the Heritage Society had on view throughout the room.
“Those Etruscan coins,” Theodosia said, pointing to a scatter of brass coins that lay on a drift of black velvet. “What do they date back to?”
“I’m glad you asked,” Drayton said. “These particular coins hail from the third century BC. You see the gold one with the lion’s . . .”
A tiny, shrill scream, almost a blip of a scream, echoed from out in the hallway.
The sound didn’t register with Drayton, but Theodosia picked up on it instantly. Her heart did a rapid flip-flop and then leapt into her throat. “Did you hear that?”
“Excuse me . . . what?” Drayton said. He’d been in the middle of speechifying.
“That little noise?”
Drayton cocked an eye at her. “Is Delaine making another scene? Startling everyone with one of her mouse shrieks?”
Another blip of a scream sounded, and this time it was slightly more distinct.
“Dear Lord,” Theodosia said. “That sounded just like Haley!”
“Our Haley . . . Where?”
“I think . . . out in the hallway,” Theodosia said. Deep in her heart she knew something was wrong. Felt it in her bones. So without another word to Drayton, she lunged for the door.
Drayton spun and followed on her heels. “We probably shouldn’t . . .” he began.
But Theodosia was already out the door and five steps ahead of him. “There!” she screamed. She flung out an arm and pointed toward the far end of the corridor, where a trio of shadowy figures danced and ducked and tangled in a mighty struggle. “Haley?” she cried out.
“Theo!” Haley’s piteous scream came back. “Help me!” Haley was twisting and turning, trying to escape the grip of two men.
“I’ll alert security,” Drayton said. “Grab those FBI . . .”
Theodosia snagged his sleeve and tried to pull him along. “No time. We have to help Haley now.”
“But the . . .”
Theodosia took off as though someone had fired a starter’s gun, leaving Drayton in her wake. She pounded down the hallway toward Haley. “Hang on, Haley!” Just as her slippery shoes started to gain traction on the thick carpet, a door flew open and she was swatted aside like a bug. Screeching, her right shoulder exploding with a flash of pain, she flailed out and stumbled, then crashed down hard on one knee.
The door whapped shut as Billy Grainger careened out of the small catering kitchen. He cut in front of Theodosia, struggling valiantly to steady his tray of champagne flutes, wobbling and swaying for a few seconds, fighting to keep his tray level and regain his balance. No such luck. He stumbled badly, causing the glasses to topple sideways and crash into one another. Foamy gluts of champagne spewed everywhere.
“You!” Theodosia cried as the spatter of liquid hit her. She batted at Grainger from where she was still half sprawled on the floor. “Help me!”
“Watch where you’re going!” Grainger yelled angrily as he tried to pull himself up.
“No!” Theodosia screamed back at him, gesturing and trying to make him understand. “A couple of guys just grabbed Haley. You have to help us!”
Grainger’s face drained white. “What?” he hissed.
“Down there,” Theodosia flung out an arm. “Two guys grabbed Haley and are trying to drag her . . .”
As Theodosia and Grainger struggled to regain their footing, the lights flicked off and the entire hallway was plunged into darkness.
“Where’d they go?” Grainger cried as he whirled about frantically. They could hear Haley screaming and struggling, but couldn’t see her.
Flailing a hand out, Theodosia located a wall and fought to guide herself along. While down at the far end of the hallway, a single figure stepped out of the shadows and said, in the cold, flat tone of an undertaker, “Pick the girl up and bring her along.”
? ? ?
“C’mon!” Theodosia called to Drayton and Grainger, trying to rally them in the darkness. “We’ve got to help Haley.”
But as the double doors clanged shut at the far end of the hallway, they were the only ones left fighting their way down the darkened corridor.
“Where’d they disappear to?” Grainger asked.
“Dragged her outside,” Theodosia huffed.