Code of Silence Page 3

  She worked against him, shoving herself forward so she was next to him instead of behind him. “Listen, please,” she said. “Whoever gave you the idea my mother was involved in the mafia was way off. I...I can prove it. Let me find the deed. She inherited this land—no relation to any Mirabella family member.”

  Luke did a double take at the word mafia, but Gabriella avoided his gaze. This Rodrigo guy thought her mom had been part of the Mirabella mafia? That was absurd. They lived in a state with more cattle than people. Gabriella had the spunk, the dramatic flair and the Italian beauty associated with the famous crime syndicate, but she’d attended a Christian college and exhibited too much grace and kindness to ever—

  She threw her hands up in the air. “And my mom worked in the sand and gravel mining business her entire life...in Idaho. That’s the opposite of this mafia lady everyone keeps saying I look like. End of story.”

  Gabriella clasped her hands together. Her eyes glistened. “I told you exactly what I told Benito. You have the wrong person. I’m a Radcliffe, my mother was a Radcliffe and this is called Radcliffe Ranch. You can take anything you want in this house. Just go. Please go.”

  Rodrigo tilted his head as if considering her offer. “Twenty-four hours is too long. Forget Benito. New plan: you have twelve hours to get me the evidence.”

  Rodrigo stepped closer. Luke tensed his entire body so he’d be ready to knock away the gun if he got close enough.

  “I wouldn’t know where to start.” Gabriella’s voice cracked on the last syllable. “I have no idea what or where it would be.” Her voice strengthened and rose in pitch. Luke wanted to pull her into his arms. This was too much. As if she didn’t have enough grief and stress in her life, this man was trying to add more with his ridiculous mafia claim. No wonder Gabriella looked like death warmed over.

  Rodrigo cackled. “Renata was a wily one, I’ll give her that. She was your uncle’s favorite until she disappeared.” Rodrigo’s cold stare moved Luke’s way. His grin twisted as he pointed the gun toward Luke’s forehead. “I don’t need you.”

  The center of Luke’s stomach turned to solid ice.

  Gabriella threw her arms across his torso. “He knows this property. I’ve walked the land, but he’s studied it. He’s an expert, and he’d know possible hiding places I might not think of...and vice versa.”

  Rodrigo’s lips pressed together in a thin line, but his gaze never wavered. Luke wasn’t about to let him win the staring contest, even though the cavernous room with vaulted ceilings was sure to be echoing his loud heartbeat.

  Rodrigo waved the gun toward the door. “I want a tour of the property. Now. But first, drop your keys and phones.”

  Luke exhaled and tossed his phone on the closest bunch of ripped padding in hopes it wouldn’t break. If they could lose the creep somewhere on the property, they could get back to the house and call the police.

  Gabriella was more graceful, bending down and setting the phone right in front of her feet. Surely she wasn’t going to try to get Rodrigo close enough to take him out? Luke tried to get her attention by bending his head down with wide eyes. She just glanced at him and shrugged.

  Heat rushed to his legs. He wasn’t about to let Gabriella make the first move. He shifted his feet, ready to pounce if Rodrigo got too close.

  “Slide it over, princess.”

  Gabriella pressed her lips together as she kicked the phone in Rodrigo’s direction. So much for that plan.

  Rodrigo put the keys in his pocket and picked up the phones as well. “Lead the way.”

  The moment they stepped onto the driveway, their phones soared above their heads and landed with a plop in the lake.

  There went three hundred bucks. He knew he should’ve waited before upgrading.

  “Take me to your mom’s favorite spots,” Rodrigo growled.

  Gabriella made a sharp turn to the right, her flats slapping on the concrete and her hands in fists. Luke matched his step with hers.

  “I should’ve gone with my gut and called the police while I had a chance,” Luke whispered. “Any landline or other cell phone inside?”

  “No. And calling the police isn’t an option.”

  Luke put a hand on her arm. “Care to fill me in?”

  She kept her face forward as she spoke. “Those men you saw me with earlier—in the driveway—are from the mafia, as well. They’ve got my aunt Freddie and will kill her if I don’t get them this mysterious evidence.”

  “The same evidence Rodrigo wants?”

  She nodded. “He acts like he’s in the same group as them, but he clearly doesn’t know or care about my aunt. We have to get away from him.”

  Luke replayed the events of the past few minutes. Ah, it had to be the reason for her careful wording: I received some bad news about my great-aunt. Rodrigo was still far enough away he wouldn’t be able to hear his whispers. “The police are more capable of saving her than you are.”

  Her dark eyes flashed. “The police can’t get involved. You can’t trust them.”

  “Says who?” Luke frowned. His own mother had been a police detective before she retired, and he’d trust her with his life. Okay, so maybe he was a little biased.

  “Too much corruption. I was taught never—” Her eyebrows shot up. “That’s not normal, is it? At school they want us to tell the kids to find an officer when they’re in danger. It would be just like a mafia family to teach you not to trust law enforcement.” She shook her head as if flinging the thoughts away. “Still, not worth the risk. Benito said he had connections. He said he’d know. Besides, it’s a moot point.”

  “You better be talking about possible places for my evidence,” Rodrigo barked. “Otherwise, shut your yaps.”

  Rodrigo was ten paces behind them, looking around but keeping the gun trained on Luke’s back.

  Luke reached for Gabriella’s hand and squeezed it. “Thanks for selling my worth back there.”

  Her eyes widened. “I meant every word. You said you did your homework on this property, and I need all the help I can get to stay alive...and somehow save my aunt.”

  Luke tried to picture the topographical map he’d studied that morning. “That’s a tall order.”

  “We have to get away from Rodrigo. Benito will kill my aunt in twenty-four hours if I don’t cooperate. I can’t waste a single minute.” She kicked at a pebble and watched it soar across the lush grass. “Who knew a math-tutoring program would bring mobsters to my door?” She laughed, but it came out garbled like a choked cry.

  A heavy weight settled in the pit of Luke’s stomach. “Wh-what do you mean, your program brought them to your door?”

  “The national attention from the media...my picture. That’s how these men said they found me.”

  Luke’s insides turned to lava. This was his fault? He tried to do something nice for her, and instead he’d brought danger to her doorstep? “Uh, Gabriella—”

  “I want some answers,” Rodrigo shouted.

  “My mom liked to walk around the lake,” she said loudly. “Maybe we’ll see something on the beach portion.”

  Rodrigo grunted and jutted his chin out as a sign to continue.

  “You have almost two hundred acres,” Luke said.

  “Yes, but water accounts for more than half of it. We’ve got the lake and three tributaries.”

  “Basically an urban island, I’m aware. Do you know how long it would take to check out all the land on foot? He’s asking us to go on a wild-goose chase—” he stepped over a spattering of goose droppings “—of which the property clearly has no shortage. But you get my point.”

  Her head dropped. “I...I can’t think of a single spot that would be obvious as a place she’d hide something, let alone a place for evidence. They think she would’ve kept it close to her.”

 
Rodrigo seemed to have no trouble letting them talk as long as they were discussing the property.

  “He said he already searched the house.” Gabriella lowered her voice. “But she kept a gun and a journal in her nightstand. Those have to help us.”

  Luke didn’t think finding a journal was a high priority, but he didn’t want to argue with Gabriella in this state. The gun was worth going after, and their only hope. “So we’re agreed the first thing we do is get away from this guy and get back to the house.”

  She didn’t reply, but Luke took that as agreement. He’d noticed when he pulled up in the driveway that there was a second driveway leading to the back of the house where a shed was built. A shed usually meant tools.

  Luke waved toward the lake that wrapped around the south and west sides of the house—providing an almost three-hundred-degree view. The steady breeze sloshed miniature waves up on the shore. “You said it was a man-made lake. Did your mother have it built?” Luke stopped for a moment, allowing Rodrigo to catch up enough to hear his words.

  Gabriella squinted. “Yes. She mined the whole property for sand and gravel, then had it built back up to create the water features.”

  Rodrigo’s forehead wrinkled, but he said nothing.

  Luke addressed him. “What are you going to do if it turns out her mom buried something underneath this lake? Or one of the creeks?”

  “Just keep walking,” Rodrigo spat back, but his eyes were on the lake.

  Luke tried to keep his smug grin to himself. He’d accomplished his mission to get the guy thinking and worrying over something so he’d be less focused. Luke put a hand on his chest and made a small gesture with his thumb for only Gabriella to see. “Let’s make a sharp turn there,” he whispered, “and make a run for it.”

  Her eyes widened. “But he has a gun.”

  Luke glanced over his shoulder and gauged the man’s fitness level. His sizeable mass meant he probably didn’t have endurance but could very likely have speed. “Then we pick up the pace. We’ll have two...maybe three seconds at most. I’ll get behind the shed and try to knock the gun out of his hands when he passes. Go in front of me. There’s a back door, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Don’t wait for me. Don’t turn back. Go past the shed and get inside the house.” Luke figured this was their best and only shot at getting the gun away from the man. If they walked any further they’d start dealing with uneven terrain and little to no shelter from Rodrigo.

  If he succeeded, he’d get his keys back and haul him straight to the police.

  Her face paled, but she did pick up the speed ever so slightly. Luke inhaled, and one of his mother’s favorite phrases came to mind. Remember: bravery is just doing what’s right even when it’s scary or hard. Luke hoped the line between bravery and foolishness wasn’t too thin.

  Gabriella reached the corner and launched off her back foot into a sprint. She’d taken off too soon. Luke winced and glanced back. She was supposed to have waited until she rounded the corner.

  Rodrigo raised his gun. “Hey!”

  Luke dashed to the shed—Gabriella had already passed—and grabbed a shovel leaning up against the open door. Rodrigo rounded the corner. Luke flipped the shovel in a high arc, aiming for the gun. Except Rodrigo pointed the weapon, moving his arm. The metal blade hit Rodrigo’s elbow. He howled, and the gun flew backward.

  Rodrigo spun and took off after the gun.

  “Luke!”

  He turned to the sound of Gabriella’s voice. She beckoned him. He ran toward her. There was no way he could beat or overcome Rodrigo’s bulk. “Go!” He didn’t want Gabriella waiting for him. Instead of running toward the back door of the house, she ran in the opposite direction onto a small wooden pier.

  “Trust me,” she hollered. Her arms stretched above her head as she pushed off from the dock and disappeared into the water below.

  Crack!

  Luke covered his head with his hands, but his legs pressed harder and faster forward. He leapt off the pier where he thought he’d seen Gabriella dive. He hoped it was deep enough. As he sliced through the water, a searing hot pain ripped through his thigh.

  FOUR

  Gabriella’s lungs burned as she did her best to stay at the bottom of the lake. As an only child she’d developed some unusual skills with all the time alone. She had, for instance, challenged herself to hold her breath for as long as possible every summer.

  Her personal best was three minutes, though she’d never imagined it to be useful.

  A strong current shoved the hair in front of her face. It had to be Luke. She kicked, swimming forward, until her fingertips touched fabric. While it was hard to see him through the murky water, his limbs flailed. His right arm bumped into her shoulder with a force that almost made her gasp.

  Was he drowning? If he panicked, he could take her down with him. She grabbed the back of his suit jacket. It allowed her to stay far enough away he couldn’t smack her as she tugged. She needed to breathe!

  She tugged again, and he stopped fighting her. Her chest seized. She wasn’t going to last much longer. The sunlight disappeared. With a final strong kick, she lifted her chin and took a hungry breath underneath the pier. Her heart pounded in her throat. Her temples throbbed.

  The slightest light between the slats of decking highlighted the eight inches that separated the underside of the dock and the lapping water. Her nose almost touched the wood as she sucked in another breath. Luke’s head popped up so forcefully his forehead hit the wood.

  Please don’t let Rodrigo have heard that.

  He hacked, coughed and greedily gasped before hacking some more. Gabriella cringed. She straightened. Her toes dragged against the sand. “Try to stand up,” she whispered. “It’s not as deep here. I’m not tall enough, but I imagine you are. Lift your hands up to help you breathe.”

  He coughed up more water. He reached up and grasped the space between the planks with the fingertips of his right hand.

  Water poured in several streams from the sleeve of his suit. She needed to get that off him. Gabriella tugged on his left arm. His eyes met hers, and he twisted around, apparently understanding her motive. His breathing grew regular once she’d freed him.

  She balled up the fabric in her hand. Slapping feet vibrated the planks. Her heart rate sped as Luke stilled. Gabriella glided next to him. She pressed her cheek against his cold, wet skin and whispered directly into his ear, “Stay here.”

  He nodded and muffled his coughing into his elbow. Gabriella hated to go underwater again. Her lungs still hurt, and the strong fish smell wafting off the water didn’t help matters.

  She expanded her rib cage as wide as it could go, then sank down low. Her toes pushed off from the sand as she used the dolphin kick to move as far away as her breath would allow. She dove down as close to the bottom as possible, dropped the suit jacket, spun around and kicked hard, back to the deck.

  Two seconds later, muffled gunshots pierced the water. Even though she knew she was likely far enough to be safe, each one still gave her a jolt. She kept her hands out in front of her until she saw the lighted pattern from the slats.

  Before her head was fully out of the water she inhaled deeply. The pounding overhead retreated. Her trick had worked. Rodrigo thought Luke had shed his jacket and was swimming away. Or dead after the shots. But since he wouldn’t see a body floating, he’d likely think they were still alive and trying to escape the property.

  She could hear him running away. Thank You, Lord.

  Ten feet away, Luke had his arms wrapped around a pole that led to the lake floor. She used the breaststroke to join him.

  “That was good thinking.” He kept his voice low and moved his lips close to her hair. “I don’t think he believed you that I was that valuable. Notice he didn’t shoot at you.”


  “I wasn’t the one who hit him with a shovel.” She pressed the wet hair away from her face. “Doesn’t mean he wouldn’t shoot me now. Surely he gets the point. We don’t know where the evidence is. Let’s just pray he moves on.”

  Luke shivered, his teeth chattering. “Were you hoping to wait him out under here?”

  “Not for long. The reeds are all along the water’s edge. We can use it as camouflage to get back to the house. Are you okay? Are you able to swim and follow me?”

  “I think so. I can’t get a good look at where he shot me, but I’ll do my best to keep up.”

  Her jaw dropped. “He shot you? Are you okay? Where?”

  “In the leg. I can still move it, though, so maybe it’s just a graze.”

  “Or adrenaline.” She closed her eyes. All she wanted was to get him away from danger, not make things worse. “I’m so sorry, Luke. I just reacted without thinking. I knew the farther we got away from him the less accurate his shot would be but—”

  “You were trying to get away from the shooter. I get it. Why the change of plan, though? Why not go into the house?”

  “No keys, remember? The back door was locked. Ironic, right?” The waves grew bigger and slapped against the pole. Her ears perked. She held up one finger to her mouth. Had Rodrigo hopped in?

  She needed to stick to the plan and get Luke’s wound treated as soon as possible. “Can you keep your hand on your wound? I don’t know how much good it would do but we don’t know how much blood you’re losing.”

  Thankfully she’d spent every single summer swimming this lake and could visualize the layout with her eyes closed. She’d even dreamed about it during the long winters.

  Gabriella pressed off from the pole and glided to the next one six feet away. She beckoned Luke to follow. He tried to swim toward her while keeping his hand on his leg. His uncoordinated movements made a few waves that splashed against the other poles. Gabriella tensed and listened for signs Rodrigo had heard him. The wind produced ripples across the surface. Please let him think it’s just the wind.