fanning, first to the left, then to the right, as they made the turn. Glancing in the rearview mirror, he watched as the sleek Audi followed on their heels.
Passing the clubhouse, he headed straight for the green turf.
Mercifully, the course was closed for the season, the links deserted. Overhead an osprey and an eagle glided through the air, casting their shadows onto the green-way, the two birds of prey vying for the same quarry.
“Oh God! He’s gaining on us!” Edie worriedly exclaimed as they sped along the fairway.
Caedmon peered into his side mirror. Repeating the move he’d made on the two-lane highway, the Audi pulled up beside them. This time, however, the driver used the much sturdier vehicle like a battering ram.
The Yaris shook on its flimsy metal frame, knocked in the direction of the towering pines that rimmed the fairway.
Caedmon slammed on the brakes. Rubber tires dug into the thick grass, leaving pulpy furrows in its wake.
Just as he hoped, the Audi sped ahead of them, the driver, finally, thrown off his stride by the unexpected maneuver. Caedmon jammed his foot on the gas pedal. The fourteen-inch tires spun on the turf before they were spasmodically propelled forward.
They crested a green rise.
Only to be met by a glassy pond on the opposite bank.
“Bugger!” Beginning to think the golf course a less-than-inspired idea, he barely managed to escape the watery snare.
“The Audi is right behind us!” Edie informed him.
“These nine holes may prove our undoing. Brace for impact,” he ordered, sighting an ominous granite outcropping on the edge of the green.
To Caedmon’s surprise, his copilot did the exact opposite, releasing the clasp on her seat belt. Twisting in her seat, Edie snatched an overnight bag from the foot well.
He heard the metallic rrrhh of a zipper.
“Come on! Come on!” she muttered, frantically rummaging through the duffel. “There’s got to be something in here that I can—Yes!” She unfurled a folded bath towel. Then she unwound the passenger’s-side window and heaved her upper body through the opening.
“What in God’s name are you doing?”
His shouted question went unanswered. A half second later, Edie released the oversized terry-cloth towel.
Like the eagle and osprey that soared overhead, the snowy white towel glided through the air. Only to crash land directly onto the Audi’s windshield. Completely obscuring the driver’s vision.
The Audi zigged. Then zagged. A moment later, the luxury sedan cruised over a grassy incline. Airborne, the vehicle landed with what had to be a bone-jarring thud. Right into a sand trap.
Caedmon brought the Yaris to a full stop, he and Edie watching as the driver of the Audi, his upper body hampered by a white air bag, tried to extricate his vehicle from the pit. The powerful engine roared, but the Audi wouldn’t budge, rubber tires impotently spinning in the sand.
“Yeah, boy!” Edie whooped.
More relieved than exuberant, Caedmon wasted no time driving back toward the clubhouse. “That should buy us some time.”
Although not a large supply.
CHAPTER 22
Caedmon opened the passenger car door. “We mustn’t tarry.”
“I know. Just a quick sneak and peek to find Lovett’s research notes. Assuming we can figure out what aqua sanctus means.” As she exited the Yaris, Edie pulled the two sides of her jean jacket closer together. Though it was early spring, there was a chill in the air. “We left the golf course about an hour ago and I’m guessing it’ll take at least that long for Rico Suave to get towed out of the sand pit.”
“Meaning we have a very narrow window.”
Edie assessed the one-story 1950s cottage set some fifty yards from the main road. Situated in the midst of a towering pine grove, it looked ridiculously small. One menacing pine, heavy with sap, was bowed in a gravity-defying arch, it limbs brazenly brushing against the asphalt shingle roof. In addition to the cottage, there were a half
Passing the clubhouse, he headed straight for the green turf.
Mercifully, the course was closed for the season, the links deserted. Overhead an osprey and an eagle glided through the air, casting their shadows onto the green-way, the two birds of prey vying for the same quarry.
“Oh God! He’s gaining on us!” Edie worriedly exclaimed as they sped along the fairway.
Caedmon peered into his side mirror. Repeating the move he’d made on the two-lane highway, the Audi pulled up beside them. This time, however, the driver used the much sturdier vehicle like a battering ram.
The Yaris shook on its flimsy metal frame, knocked in the direction of the towering pines that rimmed the fairway.
Caedmon slammed on the brakes. Rubber tires dug into the thick grass, leaving pulpy furrows in its wake.
Just as he hoped, the Audi sped ahead of them, the driver, finally, thrown off his stride by the unexpected maneuver. Caedmon jammed his foot on the gas pedal. The fourteen-inch tires spun on the turf before they were spasmodically propelled forward.
They crested a green rise.
Only to be met by a glassy pond on the opposite bank.
“Bugger!” Beginning to think the golf course a less-than-inspired idea, he barely managed to escape the watery snare.
“The Audi is right behind us!” Edie informed him.
“These nine holes may prove our undoing. Brace for impact,” he ordered, sighting an ominous granite outcropping on the edge of the green.
To Caedmon’s surprise, his copilot did the exact opposite, releasing the clasp on her seat belt. Twisting in her seat, Edie snatched an overnight bag from the foot well.
He heard the metallic rrrhh of a zipper.
“Come on! Come on!” she muttered, frantically rummaging through the duffel. “There’s got to be something in here that I can—Yes!” She unfurled a folded bath towel. Then she unwound the passenger’s-side window and heaved her upper body through the opening.
“What in God’s name are you doing?”
His shouted question went unanswered. A half second later, Edie released the oversized terry-cloth towel.
Like the eagle and osprey that soared overhead, the snowy white towel glided through the air. Only to crash land directly onto the Audi’s windshield. Completely obscuring the driver’s vision.
The Audi zigged. Then zagged. A moment later, the luxury sedan cruised over a grassy incline. Airborne, the vehicle landed with what had to be a bone-jarring thud. Right into a sand trap.
Caedmon brought the Yaris to a full stop, he and Edie watching as the driver of the Audi, his upper body hampered by a white air bag, tried to extricate his vehicle from the pit. The powerful engine roared, but the Audi wouldn’t budge, rubber tires impotently spinning in the sand.
“Yeah, boy!” Edie whooped.
More relieved than exuberant, Caedmon wasted no time driving back toward the clubhouse. “That should buy us some time.”
Although not a large supply.
CHAPTER 22
Caedmon opened the passenger car door. “We mustn’t tarry.”
“I know. Just a quick sneak and peek to find Lovett’s research notes. Assuming we can figure out what aqua sanctus means.” As she exited the Yaris, Edie pulled the two sides of her jean jacket closer together. Though it was early spring, there was a chill in the air. “We left the golf course about an hour ago and I’m guessing it’ll take at least that long for Rico Suave to get towed out of the sand pit.”
“Meaning we have a very narrow window.”
Edie assessed the one-story 1950s cottage set some fifty yards from the main road. Situated in the midst of a towering pine grove, it looked ridiculously small. One menacing pine, heavy with sap, was bowed in a gravity-defying arch, it limbs brazenly brushing against the asphalt shingle roof. In addition to the cottage, there were a half
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