The Hidden

Scarlet was in the lead on Blaze, but she knew there was no point in trying to escape. He had the Colt trained on her, and he was perfectly willing to shoot.

She turned around to look at him. Once they’d started up the mountain he’d shed the mask. His expression was filled with glee and that same enthusiasm he’d always shown for everything, but now it wasn’t goofy and kind of endearing, it was unhinged.

“You’ll never get away with this, you know,” she said. “They’ll figure out it’s you and you’ll fry, or spend your life locked up in prison, which is even worse.”

“Oh, I’ve got that all figured out. I won’t be me anymore. You just shift a few records—well, find the right dead guy, take his name and move on.” His smile deepened. “There really was a Terry Ballantree. He’s just not with us anymore. He was my first. I suppose it wasn’t very fair of me to steal his life so I could have his name, but, well, I needed it. And anyway, life isn’t fair. Was it fair that Rollo had to sell this land before he found the gold he knew was here? And that Nathan found it? Rollo knew it, too, even though Nathan would never admit it.”

“So this has all been about revenge?”

“No, not really, though I admit I really do want the money, because, well, it’s mine. Mostly, though, it’s just been a fun challenge,” Terry told her cheerfully.

She wondered what his real name was as he moved up to ride beside her, the gun still aimed her way.

“All of it was fun, really,” he went on. “Especially when it came to you. Watching you. Stalking you. You were just so...uninterested in me that it was a pleasure making your life miserable. I loved getting hold of your camera and sneaking those pictures onto it. That was truly priceless. And the mannequin! That was the best, even better than hacking your camera. I only wish I could have hung around to see your reaction. You were terrified, weren’t you? Go on, admit it.”

“I was terrified,” Scarlet said.

“Only thing is, I really did throw the key in the river! How the hell it got back in my room, I’ll never know.”

“One of the ghosts?” she suggested.

He laughed at that. “Ghosts! You guys are good, though. That voice we heard, that was the old guy, right? Adam Harrison.”

“It was a ghost,” Scarlet said. “And the ghosts know the truth now.”

“Scarlet, you’re just too funny with all your ghost talk. They obviously weren’t watching or they would have found a way to stop me by now. I started with that stupid hiker months ago. I’d come out here to check out the lay of the land, and I heard him talking in one of the bars. I thought I’d follow him and just see how difficult it might be to kill him. Piece of cake. That was when I started watching Ben and Trisha. I thought about killing them, and I guess I would have gotten to them eventually. But after I ran into Candace and Larry Parker, it seemed to make a lot more sense to use Ben and Trisha and make them look like murderers themselves than to kill them—at least for the time being.”

“Why did you kill Cassandra Wells?”

“Everyone thought she was so perfect. It made me nuts. Beautiful girl, though.”

“So why did you kill her?”

“I didn’t.” He gave her a secretive grin.

“There’s another killer running around the area, killing in the same way?

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” he asked softly, and then shrugged and laughed. “Well, you will know. You’re about to find out. Now quit talking and hurry up.”

She knew they were nearly at the cemetery, and once they got there, she wouldn’t have a chance, because she really had no idea where to find the gold.