CHAPTER 8
“Let’s go get something to eat,” Tony suggested. “I saw a little restaurant down the road a ways and I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.”
“Sounds good to me,” Libby agreed, still contemplating the night and the sleeping arrangements to come.
* * *
They looked at each other dubiously as a sullen waitress led them to a table in the back of the Muddy Creek Restaurant. The room was dark and dank and smelled of old age and mildew.
“If the food is as good as the atmosphere, we may not have to worry about those goons finding us,” Tony said as the waitress departed with their orders.
“Why is that?” Libby asked, swatting at a lazy fly that buzzed irritatingly around her head.
“Because we’ll die of ptomaine poisoning long before the night is over.” He smiled at her ruefully.
Libby laughed, but then her grin slowly left her face and she looked at him reflectively. “You know this afternoon, while you were sleeping in the car…?”
Tony nodded. “What about it?”
“I found this beautiful spring creek with a big rock jutting out in the water. I sat on the rock for a long time, contemplating throwing the necklace into the water or burying it in a hole.” She reached up and touched the necklace, fingering the locket in the center. “I figured, why not? Nobody would know where it was. It would probably never be found again.”
“So why didn’t you?” Tony asked softly.
“That was the problem…that nobody would know where it was. Just because I threw the necklace into the water, that wouldn’t stop those men from chasing us. And what would happen if they caught me and I didn’t have it anymore—if I told them I threw it away?” She shivered at the very thought. She had a feeling the albino’s rage would be a horrendous sight to behold. “Anyway, I decided if I get rid of the necklace, it has to be in a way those men will know with a certainty that I no longer have it.” She shrugged and smiled at him, raising her chin a fraction of an inch. “Besides, they’ve made me mad, and I’m intrigued. I want to know what it is about this necklace that’s worth so much excitement.”
Tony smiled at her in open admiration. “You’re one hell of a woman, Libby Weatherby. Most women who found themselves in your shoes would find a hole to crawl into and never come out.”
“I have a feeling these particular men would find whatever hole I was in and drag me out by my hair,” she said, ignoring the warmth of pleasure that coursed through her at his compliment.
This is ridiculous,she scoffed to herself. Why should she care if Tony Pandolinni thought she was a special kind of woman? All she wanted from him was his expertise in eluding the men who chased them and getting the necklace into the right hands.
“What are we going to do if we get to this lab and we can’t find anyone who has any answers?” she asked, refusing to dwell on the strange warmth his words had evoked inside her.
“I’m hoping that won’t happen,” he replied thoughtfully. “I’m hoping Jasper Higgens had friends, associates, somebody who was close enough to him to have some answers. But if he didn’t, I’m hoping we can get a lead through the sports car and the men chasing us. I got the license number, and I’m hoping that Cliff can tell me exactly who they are. That information might bring some additional answers.”
Libby nodded and they both fell silent as the waitress appeared with their orders.
Surprisingly enough, the food was excellent. Tony’s steak was thick and juicy, cooked perfectly to his requested medium rare. Libby’s hamburger was nearly platter-size, loaded with the works. The French fries were the thick, home-style kind, fried to a deep, golden brown.
Conversation ceased as they devoured the food in front of them. Even though Tony gave the aura of being relaxed, Libby noticed his gaze shot to the door of the restaurant each time it opened. Libby knew it bothered him that the men in the sports car were close by. It bothered her, too. She wondered if she would ever be able to forget the feel of the albino’s cold hands around her throat, the look of death that had radiated from his eyes.
She shook her head, refocusing her attention on the food. Who knew when they would get a good meal again in the next day or two?
It was some time later when Tony shoved his plate away and looked across the table at Libby. “When you’re finished, we’ll go back to the motel room and I’ll make a couple of phone calls.”
“I’m finished,” Libby replied, also pushing her plate away with a contented sigh. “I can’t remember when I ate that much in a single sitting.”
“It’s been a long day,” Tony said with a smile.
“Ah, the master of the understatement,” Libby replied dryly, a small smile lifting one corner of her mouth. “It’s definitely a day I won’t forget for a long time to come.”
They left the restaurant and made one stop before going to their motel room. Libby spotted a tiny general store and asked Tony to stop so she could pick up a few toiletries. Within minutes she was back in the car with a large brown bag.
Tony parked the car in the wooded area at the side of the small dilapidated cabin. “I can’t believe we paid good money for this place,” Tony complained as they went inside. He wrinkled his nose at the musty scent that greeted them. “At least it looks clean,” he added grudgingly.
Libby nodded, surprised to find it so. The antiquated stove and refrigerator on the other side of the room gleamed with cleanliness and no dust lay on the cigarette-scarred dresser. The gold bedspread was partially turned down on the double bed, revealing pristine white sheets.
“Once the windows are opened a bit, maybe the smell won’t be so bad,” Tony said, opening one of the small windows in the front of the cabin.
