"I heard about that," said Greg.

"Well, what happened to the AIDS patients?" said Cynthia.

"I don't know. I a.s.sume they died, but I never heard a thing about them after I left," said Mary. "Maybe their families finally came to get them, although I doubt it. They had basically been disowned by their parents for being gay. Then, once they came down with AIDS, n.o.bodywanted anything to do with them."

"Except you and Morford," said Cynthia. "What y'all did was amazing."

"Thank you. But that's all I know about the Mobleys," said Mary. "But I doubt these kidnappings and murders have anything to do with Elmo. I can't imagine him doing anything unethical or illegal."

But Mary could see the determination on their faces. There was no doubt where they were headed next: the Mobley estate.

Chapter30.

Macy was in a hurry to get downstairs to Elmo. And fortunately, getting Mallie Mae ready for bed had taken less time than usual. Mallie Mae always wanted her to hang around and talk for a while once she was in bed. But not on this night.

Elmo's mother had heard enough of the conversation in the car to know what was going on between her caretaker and her son. And for the first time ever, she saw a match she could be happy with. She and Macy had spent untold hours together over the past 15 years-more than enough time for Mallie Mae to understand the true character of the 37 year-old.

Macy had not dated at all during those years. She had spent much of her free time with Elmo. And Mallie Mae knew the two had a wonderful platonic relationship. But she had wondered how thathad been enough to sustain the lovelorn beauty.

Macy had been out of college just one year when Elmo had hired her away from the hospital to be his mother's nurse. The lovely young lady had taken the job with the understanding that once his mother had completely recovered from her broken leg, Macy would go back to her job at the hospital.

But by that time, Mallie Mae had taken such a liking to her that she begged her to stay on and be her personal aide. And Macy had agreed, primarily because she had fallen in love with Elmo and didn't want to give up their time together.

Elmo had always looked forward to his evenings with Macy. He had been crazy about her from day one, but quickly taught himself to hide his romantic feelings and limit their relationship to the joy of being best friends. Back then, as a 41 year-old, he couldn't imagine datingsuch a young woman.

But the age gap didn't seem to matter as much, now that she was 37. Macy was not a kid anymore-she was a grown woman. And she was old enough to know what she wanted. And what she wanted with all her heart was love-to love and beloved by Elmo Mobley for the rest of her life.

Elmo had never dated a woman as attractive as Macy-until Carsie. Carsie was every bit as s.e.xy and beautiful as Macy. And once she had come into Elmo's life, Macy feared that her own dreams of happiness would never come true.

But now Carsie was irrelevant.

Macy walked to Elmo's study and stood in the doorway. Elmo was sitting at his desk.

"Come in," he said. "And please close the door."

She closed it and met Elmo behind his desk as he stood up. They wrapped their arms around each other.

"All these years..." he said. "I've been in love with you since you first came here."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"You were just too young," he said.

Macy was trembling with antic.i.p.ation, and Elmo could hear it in her voice. "We were so stupid-both of us afraid to act on our feelings."

"But it's okay. We've had great times together as friends. Just think of it as 15 years of foreplay," he said.

"Oh, Elmo..."

He leaned in and began kissing her.

She let herself slowly sink deep into the pa.s.sion, as though her body was easing its way down into a steamy bubble bath.

He opened his mouth slightly and rubbed the tip of his tongue softly and slowly along her lips until they parted, welcoming him inside. As he gently explored her smooth teeth and quivering tongue, they breathed each others' breath until they became dizzy.

Elmo had never experienced such a combination of physical stimulation and emotional oneness. And he knew he truly belonged with this incredible woman. He wanted her now and forever.

He slid his hands down her back, past her waist and spread his long fingers across her warm, tight cheeks and gently pulled her firmly against his body. Macy could feel how much he wanted her.

Then he worked his left hand up to her back as he placed his right hand on her hip. He ma.s.saged the side of her ribcage and then moved upward, just to the right of her breast.

Macy ran her left hand up the back of his neck and into his scalp, which encouraged him to slide his hand onto the side of her breast and begin rubbing her erect nipple with his thumb. She jerked slightly, and he thought he had hurt her. But that fear ended quickly when she pulled him closer and started kissing him harder.

Elmo's fingers found a b.u.t.ton on her blouse and unfastened it. Macy could not recall ever being this hot-even in her most sizzling fantasies. She wanted him to go faster-to just rip off her blouse. With each b.u.t.ton her burning antic.i.p.ation soared even higher.

Would he have trouble with her bra strap? she wondered.

He slipped a finger under the front edge of her bra, pulled it outward and up, and her lovely b.r.e.a.s.t.s were exposed. She longed for the glorious sensation of his fingertips. But instead, he teased her by kissing the side of her face, then down her neck. As his warm, moist lips inched their way toward the nipple, she knew an o.r.g.a.s.m was imminent.

They were lost in their own world. So, it was not surprising that neither of them heard the soft knock at the door.

Then it opened.

"Elmo?"

It was Carnie, standing in the doorway, staring at them-undeniably in the heat of pa.s.sion.

Macy pulled her blouse together and turned her back to Carnie.

Carnie glanced down at Elmo's crotch.

His face turned bright red. "Carnie, let me explain."

"What are you doing to my sister?"

"I'm sorry. We shouldn't have been doing this."

No, Elmo, thought Macy. Don't say that. It's what we've always wanted.

"But I'm calling off the wedding-for good," he said.

"You're breaking up with Carsie? Just like that?" said Carnie.

"Yes."

"Well, then you should have had the decently to tell her before you go having s.e.x with somebody else," said Carnie.

"I'm not. I mean, we weren't."

"Yeah, right. You think I'm an idiot?" Carnie slammed the door shut and walked off.

Elmo ran to the door and yanked it open. "Please don't tell Carsie. I promise I'll call her in the morning and ask her to come here. Then I'll try to break it to her gently."

"Good luck with that," said Carnie.

"So, you'll let metell her?"

"Okay, sure. Whatever."

Elmo walked back into the study and closed the door.

"Are you okay?" he said to Macy, who was standing at the window looking out into the night.

She turned around. "Yeah."

But she didn't lookokay. Tears were dripping off her face.

He walked over to her. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have started this tonight."

"It wasn't just you. Iwanted it too."

"I know. But we should have waited until I settled things with Carsie. It's just not right for us to be doing this when she still thinks I plan to marry her."

"Yeah, you're right."

"But I promise I will take care of it tomorrow. Then we can be together. I love you so much, Macy."

"I love you too."

He kissed her on the forehead. They said goodnight and she went back upstairs.

And Macy knew that dreams and fantasies would never again be enough.

Carnie sat at the bar in the Pub Room next to her bedroom and chugged down a beer.

All her planning and work had been a waste of time. The two old women and the fat used car guy had died for nothing. Not that she really cared, except that every murder could be increasing her chances of getting caught. And if there was one thing she cherished, it was her freedom. She would kill herself before going to prison.

And what about Jake and the four women down in the Hideaway Hospital? She hated to admit it, but she needed advice. And the one person she could always depend on was her grandmother, Sylvia.

She loved her grandmother, as most grandchildren love their grandparents. But there was a dark side to their relationship. After her mother died, Carnie frequently had terrible nightmares. And when she did, she ran to Sylvia's bed.

But long after the nightmares ended, her grandmother continued to insist that Carnie sleep with her. And Sylvia began to touch Carnie in a way that made her uncomfortable. The quick peck on the lips of her granddaughter became long, open-mouth kisses.

Carsie had always seemed oblivious to Carnie's plight-going along her merry way, while her sister was being abused right under her nose. Carnie used to hate Carsie for that. But she had since forgiven her. After all, if Carnie had ever told her sister what was happening, she surely would have helped her. But Carnie could never bring herself to do that. Carnie had let.i.t happen, so she couldn't put allthe blame on her grandmother.

Once Carnie was grown and able to finally move out and get away from Sylvia, she thought she'd be able to live a normal life. But in truth, there was no way she could ever escape Sylvia's powerful hold on her psyche.

And now, as much as she hated to admit it, she needed her grandmother's help.

Chapter31.

"What if somebody sees us driving in?" said Cynthia. "It's going to be a little hard to explain why we're coming to visit them at 10:30 on a Sat.u.r.day night. Especially since we don't even knowthem."

They were halfway up the long driveway to the Mobley house.

"We'll park along here somewhere and walk the rest of the way. Like right there-between those trees," said Greg.

He steered the big Bonneville off the driveway and into the woods.

"I don't think anybody will notice the car here," he said.

"Until morning," she said.

"Yeah. Well, I hope we're out of here before then."

"Me too."

Greg killed the engine and opened his door. Cynthia tried to open hers.

"My door won't open," she said. "There must be a little bush or something blocking it."

"That's okay. Just get out on my side."

They walked out of the woods and toward the house.

"When we get closer, we'll have to turn off our flashlights," said Greg.

"I heard there were bobcats living in these woods."

"Bobcats? Could be, I guess. But don't worry, they only eat smallmammals," said Greg.

She looked up into the moonlight and observed the tips of the tall trees lining the driveway. "Well, I'm feeling pretty small right now," she said under her breath.