Whiteout - Ken Follett [131]
She stopped at the top of the stairs. Down in the hall, there was an old woman she had never seen before, going into the bathroom.
What was happening?
Next she recognized Toni Gallo, taking off a flying jacket and hanging it on the hat stand.
A small black-and-white puppy was sniffing the umbrellas.
Kit came into view. There was another bang from the dressing room, and Kit said to Toni, “The children must be awake.”
Miranda was bewildered. How could this be? Kit was acting as if there was nothing wrong . . .
He must be fooling Toni, Miranda realized. He was hoping to make her think that all was well. Then he would either persuade her to leave, or overpower her and tie her up with the others.
Meanwhile, the police were driving away.
Toni closed the bathroom door on her mother. No one had yet noticed Miranda.
Kit said to Toni, “You’d better come into the kitchen.”
That was where they would jump her, Miranda guessed. Nigel and Elton would be waiting, and they would take her by surprise.
There was a crash from within the bedroom: Daisy had broken out of the cupboard.
Miranda acted without thinking. “Toni!” she screamed.
Toni looked up the stairs and saw her.
Kit said, “Shit, no—”
Miranda yelled, “The thieves, they’re here, they’ve tied Daddy up, they’ve got guns—”
Daisy burst out of the bedroom and crashed into Miranda, sending her tumbling down the stairs.
7:30 A.M.
FOR an instant, Toni froze.
Kit stood beside her, an expression of rage on his face, looking up the stairs. With a twisted mouth he said, “Get her, Daisy!”
Miranda was falling down the stairs, her pink nightdress billowing up to reveal plump white thighs.
Running after her was an ugly young woman with a shaved head and Gothic eye makeup, dressed in leather.
And Mother was in the bathroom.
In a flash of comprehension, Toni understood what was happening. Thieves with guns were here, Miranda had said. There could not be two such gangs operating in this remote area on the same night. These must be the people who had robbed the Kremlin. The bald woman at the top of the stairs would be the blonde Toni had seen on the security video—her wig had been found in the getaway van. Toni’s mind raced ahead: Kit seemed to be in league with them—which would explain how they had defeated the security system—
As that thought struck her, Kit hooked his arm around her neck and pulled, trying to yank her off her feet. At the same time, he yelled: “Nigel!”
She elbowed him forcefully in the ribs, and had the satisfaction of hearing him grunt with pain. His grip on her neck eased, and she was able to turn and hit him again, this time a punch in the midriff with her left fist. He lashed out at her, but she easily dodged the blow.
She drew back her right arm for a real knockout punch but, before she could strike, Miranda reached the foot of the stairs and crashed into the back of Toni’s legs. Because Toni was leaning back, ready to hit Kit, she fell backwards. A moment later, the woman in leather tripped over Miranda and Toni and collided with Kit, and all four of them ended up in a heap on the flagstone floor.
Toni realized she could not win this fight. She was up against Kit and the woman he had called Daisy, and soon she might have others to contend with. She had to get away from these people, catch her breath, and figure out what to do.
She wriggled out of the scrum and rolled over.
Kit was flat on his back. Miranda was curled up in a ball, appearing bruised and winded but not seriously injured. As Toni looked, Daisy got to her knees and, apparently in a fury, punched Miranda, striking her on the arm with a fist encased, peculiarly, in ladylike tan suede gloves.
Toni leaped to her feet. She jumped over Kit, reached the front door, and threw it open. Kit grabbed her ankle with one hand, holding her back. She twisted, and kicked