Deadly Sins
Chapter Seven
Nick felt his whole body stiffen. He wanted to yell that Heath Thomson was in the area. However, his little sister was trusting him. He glanced at her torn dress and scuffed appearance before he whispered into her ear.
"Faint."
A slight smirk crossed Audra's face before she released her arms from Nick's neck. The sheriff began to question her. Audra placed her hand over her forehead and promptly fainted backwards in the perfect direction for her brother to catch her.
"Get your sister to the doctor." Tom ordered of Nick. Then he turned towards the sheriff. "My girl has been through enough. You'll have to question her later."
No one dared argue with Tom Barkley. Therefore, they allowed Tom and Nick to carry Audra from the docks. As the small group made it out of the area, one of the men in their group came running up to them.
"Found two bodies, Sheriff." He nodded towards an alley over by some overturned crates. "One fella is barely alive. Doubt he'll make it to the doctor's office. Has a knife sticking out of him. The other fella was probably dead before he hit the ground. Been shot."
"I'm going to check this out, Tom." Fred patted Tom's shoulder. "Get your girl to safety."
Nick squeezed Audra closer as he felt her hand grip tighter to his shirt. He knew his little sister had probably witnessed the killings. Perhaps, once they cleared the area, she'd explain. Nick couldn't help how proud he was of her for feigning the fainting spell. He was doubly proud that she was continuing the ruse as they got farther away from the area. As far as Nick was concerned, his little sister was very brave.
By the time they arrived at Dr. Merar's office, Audra had pretended to groggily awake. The tears that now stained her face were not faked. She looked at her brother and father as she was sat on the examining table.
Tom and Nick were told to wait in the other room as Dr. Merar and his wife took care of Audra. It didn't take long before Dr. Merar reentered the front room.
"Audra is fine." Dr. Merar held up his hand before the questions started. "The men were a little rough with her but she is fine physically. Except for the bruising on her chin, she has no other bruises. She may need to be kept an eye on for a few days due to the traumatic event. But like all the Barkleys, the girl is resilient."
Sheriff Madden walked in at that moment. "Margaret Channing confirmed that the two dead men were the ones that grabbed Audra. The one, who was alive, died before I even got to him. Miss Channing said there were three. Which explains the third man we found cowering in a corner. Of course, the man had no choice considering he was tied to large crate."
"Tied up?" Tom glanced over at Nick, who was acting a little strange. He knew his son and daughter were up to something when he saw Audra pretending to faint. He went along with the act to make sure his little girl was okay.
"Yeah. Miss Channing had already informed us there were three men. We had hoped that the third man had changed his mind and helped your daughter escape. Suppose that isn't the way it was. The Channing girl is distraught but Mitchell made her identify the men as well as the one we got in the jail. She confirmed that all three were involved right before she went into a panic attack." Sheriff Madden pointed to the door of the examining room. "Is Audra well enough to tell us what happened? Who saved her?"
"I think so." Dr. Merar glanced at Tom. "However, I'll leave that up to her and her family."
"We'll bring her over to your office shortly." Tom shook Fred's hand.
"That'll be fine." Sheriff Madden left after watching Tom and Nick go into the room with Audra.
Audra agreed to go answer questions for the sheriff. Margaret and Mitchell Channing were there already. They both refused to leave until they saw Audra was okay. Audra sat next to Margaret. The girls embraced in a sobbing hug. The men waited for the young ladies to calm before the sheriff began to question them. In the meantime, Mitchell Channing began to apologize and beg Tom's forgiveness.
"It wasn't your fault, Mitchell." Margaret let loose of Audra to defend her brother.
"It wasn't Mitchell's fault, father." Audra agreed. She bravely took the blame. "He told us to stay put. We decided to get some food from the cafe. I was foolish as I saw a dog. Without thinking, I followed the poor animal down an alley."
"According to Miss Channing that is when you were taken by three men." Sheriff already knew the facts but needed to be sure for his report to the district attorney.
"Yes." Audra gripped Margaret's hand. "The man in the jail cell is the one that knocked Margaret down. She hit her head as she fell. I was so worried about you, Margaret."
Audra knowing who the man was in the cell told them all she had witnessed the other two being killed. She hadn't seen the man in the cell yet nor had she had to identify the two dead men. The girls embraced again. Then Audra sniffed back tears before releasing Margaret and continuing.
"I tried to be brave. I started threatening them with father and my brothers. I said I was Audra Barkley." Audra glanced down at her feet. "That was a mistake."
"What do you mean, sweetheart?" Tom was now beside his daughter. He protectively put his around her shoulders.
The next part was difficult for the young girl to say in front of the men even her father and brother. She shook her head as tears came unabated.
"That's all she needs to say right now." Nick jumped up.
"I agree. She's been through too much already." Tom pulled Audra tighter to him.
"No, father. I need to tell it." Audra gulped as she clung to Tom. Margaret had moved over so Nick could take her seat beside of Audra. That way Audra would feel protected by her family.
"You don't have to right now, Audra." The sheriff gently stated as he watched the Barkley men practically wrap Audra in a cocoon with themselves.
"The one with the knife got very angry and called me a princess. Then he ….." Audra felt her cheeks burning. "...he said that maybe he'd keep me for himself. I knew what he meant when he started to….to….take his hand up my dress."
Nick jumped up and began to pace. He cursed as he pounded his fist in the palm of his other hand. It was obvious the man would kill if the men weren't already dead.
Audra knew she had to tell it all. She had to let them know what Heath Thomson had done for her. No matter how difficult it was to say the words, they had to know what a hero he was. "The other man, the one in the cell, said to take turns. That's when, the one holding me had a knife thrown into him. At first I didn't see who it was. I just heard someone then the knife was in the man holding me. I don't know how the rest happened. It was so fast. A shot went off and the boy, who stepped from the shadows, grabbed me and pulled me away to safety."
"What happened next? How did you find the empty warehouse?" The sheriff was wanting to know Audra's unknown hero.
Tom and Nick were grateful for this person as well. Tom was the one that spoke before Audra could. "Did you say boy?"
"Yes. He protected me until I heard you calling me. We didn't know if the men were dead or alive or where the one went." Audra bit her lip. "He said he was only sixteen when I asked his age."
"Did he tell you his name, Audra?" The sheriff questioned. "He needs a hero's welcome."
Audra felt more tears slowly making their way down her cheeks. Had she given Heath enough time to escape? They needed to know he wasn't the monster all claimed. She wanted all to know he was her hero.
"Why is that important?" Nick spoke up for her. "He saved her. This boy must not want to be recognized. Maybe he's shy or something."
"Nick, I'd like to reward the boy." Tom patted Audra's knee. "Did he give you a name, Sweetheart?"
"Please, daddy." Audra rarely used her childhood reference for Tom unless she wanted something badly. "He saved me. I owe him."
"Audra, that's what we're trying to do. Let the boy know were grateful." Tom assured his daughter.
"At least tell us what he looked like." The sheriff smiled at the Barkley girl. He thought perhaps Audra was so upset that she didn't realize the boy was not in trouble for helping her. The girl had to be unrational at the moment.
"He was about four inches shorter than father and Nick. He is thin with blond hair and very blue eyes. The same color as father's." Audra bit her lip. "Just let him be. I'm sure he's long gone."
"Why would he be long gone?" Mitchell, who was standing in the corner listening, asked.
"He said his name was Heath." Audra felt her throat tighten. She didn't know if she made the right choice. Yet, she felt all needed to know that Heath Thomson had saved her life.
"Are you saying that Heath Thomson saved you!" The sheriff jumped up and began to put on his gun belt.
"No. I'm saying that the boy said his name was Heath. He never used a last name. He wasn't dressed as a cowboy but had on dock working clothes." Audra felt tears clinging to her eyelashes. "Sheriff, he could've let those men take me and remained unseen. But he chose to save me. He was gentle and caring. Heath never tried anything with me. He comforted me like Nick or Jarrod would. He stayed with me until help came. That's what kind of man this boy was. I doubt that he could be the killer that everyone is talking about. Besides, this boy said he had never killed in cold blood." Audra straightened her shoulders as she looked defiantly at Sheriff Madden. "I believe him. I highly doubt this Heath is the same Heath Thomson I've heard rumors about and have read about in the papers."
