But for the first time in her entire life, Carlotta had no place else she could go. There was nobody else to turn to either.
; CHAPTER NINE
Carlotta closed the back door to the house and leaned against it while she listened intently to the silence within the property. She was so scared her knees positively trembled, but it was too late to go back outside now. When she had arrived, she had done what Phillip had earlier with the safe house. She had walked from one side of the garden, around the perimeter hedge to the far side and back again, searching every shadow while making sure to stay away from the area where she had found Smidgley’s body. Only when she had been sure that there wasn’t anybody in either the garden or the house had she ventured closer to the property. Now that she was inside she still wasn’t at all sure it was the right place to be even temporarily, but she had to fetch something to help her survive.
‘First a blanket, then I need to fetch the rest of my food.’ Eyeing the dresser where she had left the remains of her food, Carlotta hurried into the main body of the house.
It was close to midnight and everything was still. The only sound she could hear was the heavy thudding of her own heart. She forced herself not to look at the shadows as she made her way up the long winding stairs. This house had, until now, been her sanctuary. A part of her was angry that she should feel unsafe in it; that someone might have broken into it. It felt so much like her home, more than her home with her parents ever had, that Carlotta hated to think of the moment she had to leave it for good. Despite the dangers that surrounded her, she knew it was the only place she could call her refuge.
‘But I have to go,’ she whispered. ‘Again.’
When her words threatened to choke her, Carlotta focused on the top of the stairs. She was half-way up when she heard the faint creak of a floorboard behind her. She paused. Moonlight filtered through from the sitting room and chased away enough of the darkness to assure her that she was still alone in the hallway. But something, or someone, had made that noise. Warily, she completed the climb and hurried into the bed chamber she had used since she had arrived. Quickly gathering up a few things she would need, she placed them into a makeshift pouch and secured it with a knot. With it clasped tightly in her hand, she crept back to the bed chamber door. She eased it open in time to listen to that faint creak once again. She knew from her previous stay at the property that there wasn’t usually any noise overnight. The house didn’t usually creak and groan as it settled like most properties did. Tonight, the house felt almost alive, as it if was a huge beast waking up after a long hibernation.
‘Someone else is in the house.’ Saying the words aloud didn’t make her feel any better, especially when she heard a click of what sounded like a door closing. Nevertheless, Carlotta left the bed chamber and made her way to the top of the stairs.
She felt, rather than saw, the shadows move behind her. Without even glancing over her shoulder to see who it was she pelted down the stairs. When she turned toward the kitchen, she saw out of the corner of her eye someone running down the stairs after her. She knew the second she saw him that it was the man she had seen in the woods. The same man who had shot at her and Phillip, and murdered Claude Smidgley.
Slamming the kitchen door closed behind her, Carlotta raced across the kitchen and across the garden. Thankfully, she was swallowed by the trees. Rather than keep running, she founded the thickest tree she could and waited. Her heart pounded as she watched the house intently. Within seconds, a man charged out of the house and raced toward the path that led back to the village.
Carlotta didn’t move, even when it became apparent that the intruder had left. Almost an hour passed before she found the strength to stand up, brush herself off, and leave her temporary hiding place. ‘Now what?’ she breathed.
To one side of the woods lay the village; the place where the intruder had just disappeared. To the other side of the woods were the Star Elite and the village where the thugs who had tried to kill them were hiding. The house was no longer a refuge because the man had managed to get inside. Slowly, she turned to study the sea. Of course, she had no hope of ever being able to swim to safety like Phillip had. But she could go down to the beach and hopefully hide amongst the rocks at the base of the cliff until it was light enough to be able to see properly.
‘I should be able to walk along the beach to another village even if the tide is in,’ she whispered. ‘As soon as it goes out, I might be able to walk to freedom.’
When a loud snap of a nearby twig interrupted her thoughts, Carlotta realised it was time to leave. Keeping to the trees as much as possible, she hurried toward the cliff path and began to descend to the beach.
Phillip studied the house before him. Before any of the Star Elite could move, the rustle of the undergrowth nearby drew their attention. The men signalled to each other that they were going to fan out and promptly disappeared.
‘Go to the house. See if she is there. Stay inside and keep watch in case she runs into the house for safety,’ Oliver breathed into his ear.
Phillip nodded and headed toward the house that was strangely starting to feel like home. He hoped and prayed that Carlotta would be there, hidden in one of the bed chambers or the attic. He had no idea what he was going to do if she wasn’t.
She wasn’t. And he had no idea what to do.
‘Damn it,’ Oliver growled when he stomped into the kitchen half an hour later only for Phillip to shake his head.
‘I have been over this damned place twice. Someone has been here recently, though, and it isn’t her. Those boot prints are too big to have been made by her feet.’ Phillip pointed to a boot print next to the scullery door. ‘He came in through the same scullery window I used.’
Oliver puffed his cheeks out and shook his head. ‘We need to fetch the horses now that we know it is clear of gunmen. I don’t know what the others have found but the back of the garden and the garden overlooking the village are free of trespassers.’
Callum stomped in, a dark scowl on his face.
‘Well?’ Oliver demanded.
Callum stepped aside to allow Niall, Jasper, Justin and Aaron into the house. ‘It’s like chasing a damned ghost. There was a man in the woods, but he vanished on us. We have flushed through everywhere, but he has escaped.’
‘He has probably gone to the village. It is only along a narrow path,’ Phillip reasoned.
‘We have found Smidgley’s body,’ Justin informed them.
Phillip nodded. ‘Have you cut him down?’
‘Nope. The last thing we need is to be tripping over a corpse,’ Aaron snorted. ‘We can send someone to fetch him in the morning. Right now, I don’t think it is at all wise that anybody goes stumbling around those woods. Someone is out there but it isn’t the thugs that Smidgley hired or Carlotta.’
‘But she has to be here,’ Phillip growled. ‘This is the first place she would head to. There is no place else for her to go.’