Page 29 of Alibi for Murder (Colby Agency: The Next Generation #2)

Madison Residence

Hamilton Road

Allie had a bad feeling something was going on with Rivero.

First, she had been stunned that he’d left his house to come to hers. Her impression was that he never left the house. Granted, maybe he was like her in that he preferred to stay home but wasn’t a true recluse or agoraphobic.

The fact that he’d driven fast but competently and continued to speak fairly reasonably had assuaged her concerns.

Still, she’d wanted to text or call Steve, but she’d lost her phone, and Rivero insisted he’d forgotten his in his haste to get to her house.

The driving around in all sorts of directions for half an hour or so had seemed reasonable to ensure they weren’t followed.

All that aside, it was when their frantic journey ended on the road to Thomas Madison’s house that alarm bells were triggered.

“Why are we here?”

He pulled deep into the driveway, past the house and right up to the detached garage as if he’d been here before. She imagined he had. He’d been following this story for thirty years. Why wouldn’t he have tracked down the Madisons and tried speaking with one or both.

“This is where it all came apart.” He shut off the engine and turned to her.

The interior lights of his vehicle dimmed until they went completely dark. An exterior light on the detached garage provided some illumination—enough for her to see his face. He appeared calm now.

“I don’t know what you mean.” She worked on achieving her own state of calm. He didn’t appear to have any sort of weapon. He hadn’t threatened her. No reason to be concerned. She hoped.

He reached for his door handle. “Come on. We’ll go inside, and I’ll explain.”

She climbed out and followed him toward the back of the house. “Do you think they had anyone watching my house who might have seen you pick me up? Should we be worried about our safety?”

At the back door, he hesitated. Swatted at the bugs swarming around the light next to it. “We’re safe. I’m guessing whoever they hired to set your house on fire split as soon as the flames were going well enough to be confident the job was done.”

“The job,” she repeated, then swallowed with effort. “You mean eliminating me?”

He made a sound that wasn’t quite a laugh, more a grunt. “What else? These guys are ruthless. I thought you got that part already.”

“I suppose it’s my eternal assumption that people are good that makes me seem na?ve.”

He shot her a look before opening the door. “Time to leave the gullibility behind. There’s no room for ignorant bliss in this situation.”

She supposed he was right about that. There was no more deniability. Ledwell did bad things, and people, including her parents, had been murdered to protect their secrets.

Allie had lost everything.

Ledwell had taken it all from her.

They entered the house through a mudroom. Rivero flipped on lights as if he came here all the time. In the kitchen, he did the same, turning on the overhead light, which was one switch in a panel of six.

How had he known exactly which one to flip?

Tension worked its way through her, but she asked no questions.

No need to give him a heads-up that she was suspicious again.

If she was lucky, since the power was still on, maybe there was a landline in the house.

She’d gotten rid of the landline at her house long ago, but some people preferred to keep them even with cell phones.

He turned to her. She jumped, just a little. She prayed he didn’t notice.

The smile that appeared when she jumped was the oddest expression.

Oh yes, he had noticed.

“Let me show you around. There’s something I think you should see.”

She nodded. Summoned a smile. “Sure.” Damn. That was not what he would expect her to say. She was in the home of Thomas Madison—her father’s former friend and colleague. “I hope you found something that will help me prove Ledwell murdered my parents.”

He glanced back at her as he strode toward the staircase. “Oh, I think you’ll find this most interesting, and it will confirm everything you already think you know.”

She followed him to the stairs. Rather than go up the staircase, which went both ways, he headed down.

The way the house was designed, there was a lower level that opened to the outside on the far end of the house.

People often built houses with exterior access to a basement level when on a hillside.

She and Steve had seen this when they were here before, but the window and door coverings had prevented them from seeing inside.

The lower level was pretty much what Allie had expected.

A large den with a kitchenette and dining area.

Wood floor, area rug, white walls. Well-used sectional and a television.

An open door led to a bedroom. Allie could see one corner of the bed beyond the doorway.

Another door on the opposite wall was different. More like a vault door with a keypad.

“You see,” he said, sounding proud of himself, “this is what’s going to blow you away.”

Anticipation and a twinge of fear pricked her. She glanced around. No sign of a phone. Damn it. If she just ran, she might be able to outmaneuver him but maybe not. At least, right now, he had no idea she was suspicious. “What exactly are you about to show me?”

“You think that flash drive you found is interesting. Wait until you see this.”

Did Thomas Madison have files locked away down here?

Wait. “You know what’s on the flash drive?” She felt like biting her tongue after having asked the question, but this was growing more bizarre by the moment. Under the circumstances, it was a fair question.

He turned his hands up and gave a look that said duh . “I knew what they were doing. I just couldn’t prove it.”

She nodded slowly, her head trying to wrap around what he was actually saying. “You’re here, in this house, and it seems like you’ve been here before. Had you and Thomas Madison become friends?”

He made a face. “I wouldn’t say we were friends.

” He shrugged, glanced at the door. “I have a friend who works at the hospital who let me know he was not doing so well. He’d been in the hospital two other times over the past several months.

His deteriorating condition was what brought me back to Woodstock. ”

Allie’s heart rate started to climb. She wished she had found some way to get in touch with Steve. This was bad. She no longer had any doubts. This was really bad. Rivero was not trying to help them, and it didn’t matter if he believed she was suspicious. This was not going to end well.

“The last time he was in the hospital, before his demise—” he shrugged “—about six weeks ago, I paid him a visit after he got home. The home health nurse was out smoking a cigarette, and I sneaked in. She never even knew I was here. I just hid and waited until she left. I’d parked my Rover at a house down the road. It’s for sale, you know.”

“I saw the sign,” Allie said, going along. Her best chance of surviving this was to keep him believing she wasn’t on to him until she could figure out a way to escape.

“I made my way through the woods and just waited for the right opportunity.” He shrugged again. “What else do I have but time?”

He walked to the French doors and opened the blinds there. That was when she spotted his cell phone in the hip pocket of his jeans. Either that or he was carrying some other thin rectangular object the right size.

If she’d had any doubts, she now knew the bastard had lied to her. She wasn’t surprised, just disappointed in herself for trusting him in the first place.

“We had quite the time catching up.” He laughed, the sound just shy of evil.

“His physical condition didn’t allow him to force me out of his house or stop me from doing whatever I wanted.

Tying him to the bed was easy enough. Of course, I had to do so carefully otherwise the nurse would have noticed any bruising. ”

“Smart,” she said when he didn’t immediately continue.

“He told me that it wasn’t Ledwell who put out the hit on your father.”

Allie drew back as if he’d slugged her. “But it’s the only thing that makes sense. You said Ledwell was responsible for their deaths and numerous others.”

“They are responsible. Just not directly. The CIA has always been at the top of everything they do.”

“So it’s the CIA.” She held up her hands to put an end to this. She’d had enough. Whatever was about to happen, she just couldn’t do this anymore. “Okay, Mr. Rivero. I really need to call my friend Steve. He’ll be worried, and I’m really tired.”

He pursed his lips and did some head shaking of his own. “Unfortunately, it’s too late to turn back now.”

“What does that mean, Mr. Rivero?” Fear started to ramp up inside her, but she refused to back down now. She had known it would go this way if she gave him any trouble. It was now or later. It wasn’t like she could walk this back. “Are you threatening me? I thought we were on the same side.”

He moved toward the door that looked like one on a vault or large safe. “I’ve always been on my own side. There were times, I suppose, it seemed we were on the same one, but your definition and mine are clearly different.”

“I’m done here.” She could go across the street to that neighbor’s house, the one who showed up when she and Steve were here before.

Rather than wait for his reaction, she walked away. She had reached the stairs when he stopped her with, “But then you won’t see the proof you need to reveal who killed your parents. I can give you that.”

Did she walk away and risk never knowing? She had the flash drive…but was it enough?

“Fine.” She turned around. “But don’t expect me to go into wherever that leads.” She nodded to the door in front of him.

He laughed. “Don’t worry. You don’t have to go in.”