They drove in silence back into town and stopped at the square where all the vendors were. Some of the stuff was touristy, but much of it was absolutely beautiful. Ashley didn’t go wild, but she picked out a gorgeous piece of turquoise-and-silver jewelry for her mom and her best friend Lara, and a beautiful pair of silver cuff links for her dad. Hardly anyone wore cufflinks anymore, but her father loved to wear them when he got dressed up. She wanted to get something for Sean, too, with the holidays coming up, but he was right there with her, looking at everything.
“I’m going to go over there to look at the paintings,” he said.
He wandered off to the end of the square, and Ashley seized the opportunity to pick out something for him. He wasn’t a jewelry guy, so she got him a beautiful knit sweater with a Southwest pattern.
He can wear it in the winter when it’s cold, she thought.
It was quite a striking piece of clothing, and she felt that he would like it.
When she walked over to where he was, she saw him holding a large bag.
“What did you get?” she asked.
“A little something,” he said. Then he smiled. She knew it was for her and didn’t ask to see it.
***
They left to go check into the hotel and get some rest before dinner. When they drove up to the adobe-designed dwelling, Ashley’s eyes lit up.
“This place is beautiful. On the outside, at least. Hope the room is as well,” Ashley said.
The room didn’t disappoint. It had a large wooden bed with an arrowhead-print blanket and pillows. There was a rocking chair in the corner and a large leather high table against the wall. There were Southwest decorative touches everywhere, and the view out the window of the mountain was beautiful.
“Pretty nice,” Sean said.
“Yeah, it is. Let’s call my parents.”
Ashley’s cell had only rung two times when her mother, April, picked up.
“Oh, hello, dear! How funny! I was just going to call you! How is everything going? Almost done, right? I know you’ll be sad to leave, but we will be happy to have you home. And so will the cats. Goodness, they miss you!” April said.
“You know what, Mom? Let me video-chat with you. I’ll set up the laptop and get right back to you,” Ashley replied.
As soon as Ashley got on the screen, her mom came into view.
“Yoo-hoo!” April said. She was waving at Ashley wildly.
Sean laughed, then poked his head into view of the screen. “I think you like to do this even better than we do.”
“Oh, I do. I don’t understand any of this technology, but it sure is fun!” April replied.
“How are you and Dad doing?” Ashley said.
As soon as he heard her voice, Charlie jumped up on the table and poked his head in close to the screen. He saw her face and let out a big yowl.
“Hey Charlie, hogging the limelight again, I see,” Ashley said.
“He’s been as demanding as ever,” April replied. “Your poor father is still getting up at the crack of dawn to feed and walk him, and then Charlie comes in and sits by the window in the living room, looking up and down the street for you.”
“Oh, Charlie, is that true? You really miss your mama?” Ashley asked.
Her cat let out a plaintive howl again and started batting at the screen.
April laughed. “He thinks he can flush you out.”
Just then Burt popped his head into view as well. “Of course he thinks he can! He flushes me out of my slumber every morning at an ungodly hour. This cat rules with an iron paw!”
“Hi, Dad! Hi, Burt!” Ashley and Sean said in unison.
“You kids will be home soon, right?” Burt asked.
“Yep, we will be seeing you soon,” Sean said.
“Well, dears, I’m making you both a big dinner when you get here. You’d be proud of me, Ashley. I went to the farmers market and picked up fresh vegetables for dinner and a fresh chicken to roast. It’s getting very cool here at night, so I thought I’d make us a nice autumn dinner,” April said.
“Sounds great, Mom,” Ashley said. “I can’t wait.”
“And Sean, for dessert, I picked up a fresh pumpkin to make pumpkin pie!” April said.
Burt grumbled in the background. “Your friend Mary tried using a fresh pumpkin once before, and we didn’t like it, remember? I like the recipe on the back of that canned pumpkin. Still makes the best pie.”
“Oh, Burt, stop complaining. I wanted a fresh pumpkin for the pie. I’m sure Sean doesn’t want a pie from canned pumpkin,” April said.
Sean started to say he didn’t mind at all when Burt cut in.
“Why fix it if it ain’t broken?” Burt asked. “Your pumpkin pies are always perfect from that recipe. What if it doesn’t come out right? Then we’ll all feel let down, right, Sean?”
Burt poked his face close up to the camera.
Sean didn’t want to get in between the pie wars. “Uh…I’m sure the pie will be great.”
Charlie yowled into the screen again, and Susie Q jumped up and started batting it. Ashley laughed.
“Boy, they sure are little hams,” April said.
“Wait ‘til you see the town square. They’ve decorated it for Halloween and Thanksgiving, and all the little kids are so excited. There are leaves already turned up in the mountains, and you can see some color on the trees in the park. About another week, and they will be in full glory.”
Ashley got a pang thinking of home. She couldn’t wait to see her family and friends and Charlie and Susie Q. She reached for Sean’s hand.
“Well, we’re going to go now. Take a little rest, then go to dinner. See you soon, can’t wait!” Ashley said.
“Bye, everyone! Looking forward to your dinner, Mrs. C,” Sean added.
Burt yelled in the background. “As long as we have a good pie at the end of it!”
“Oh, dear, stop fussing. Your only job is to eat!” April retorted.
Ashley laughed. “Bye! Love you.”
Charlie yowled again.
Ashley put her hand to the screen to touch his paw. “Bye, Charlie. See you tomorrow. Don’t drive them any more nuts than you already have.”
Charlie meowed softly this time, and Susie twirled in front of the screen, purring away.
Ashley kept waving until she shut off the screen. She sighed. “They are so cute.”
“Your parents or the cats?” Sean asked.
“All of them. I can’t wait to see them.”
“Me neither,” he said.
Ashley quoted out loud from The Comedy of Errors. “Let’s go hand in hand, not one before another.”
***
Ashley went over to the bed to stretch out and looked out the window. “I think I just want to lay here for a while and decompress and look at that view before dinner.”
“Okay, I’m going to take a walk around and check out the pool, and I’ll be back in about twenty minutes,” Sean said.
“Have fun. And if I fall asleep, don’t let me snooze past five. I want to have a nice long dinner.”
He smiled as he closed the door behind him. “I won’t. Rest up.”
She sunk into the pillows and thought about their latest adventure. About the turn of events and how crazy it all seemed. Here they went on vacation and found themselves smack dab in the middle of a murder mystery.
Too much, she thought. Now we need a vacation from this vacation.
She daydreamed about her home back in the northwest and how much she missed her parents.
I’m such a big baby, she thought.
Her eyes got heavy, and she drifted off in the peaceful room.
Outside, the shadows wove into the changing light, and the mountains took on a shimmering pink patina above them.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Sean was gone longer than he thought he would be. He was fascinated by the gardens at their adobe hotel. Everywhere there were succulents and cacti and tall palms. The landscaping was beautif
ul, and he was amazed at how many flowers there were. They were desert flowers unlike those he saw at home and had a distinct beauty all their own.
He kept stopping and examining them and taking photos of everything. Then he wandered to the pool and saw it was a bright turquoise blue with colorful umbrellas and potted succulents by the tables. It faced the mountain range and was so tranquil. He wanted to bring Ashley here to see everything before dinner because he knew she’d love it.
He glanced at his phone and saw it was already a few minutes past five. He hurriedly walked out to the lobby and up to their room. As he came around the corner of the staircase, he almost ran into a tall man at the bottom of the stairs. The man was very European looking. He had slicked-back blond hair and was wearing a suit. He looked out of place in this environment.
“Oh, excuse me,” Sean said to the man.
“No problem,” the man said. He gave Sean a big smile. “This place is so lovely, your neck is craned around looking at everything.”
His accent was very thick, but Sean couldn’t place it. Sean laughed. “You can say that again.”
The man extended his hand to Sean. “I’m Edward Harris.”
“I’m Sean. Nice to meet you.”
“How long are you staying?” Edward asked.
“Just the night.” He noticed the man had crept up very close to him and was staring very intently at his face.
“Uh…I have to go wake my fiancé for dinner. Have a good evening!”
***
Sean bounded up the stairs to their room and glanced down quickly before he walked down the hallway. The tall man was walking outside to the garden where Sean had just come in from. He turned around and looked up at the stairway in Sean’s direction. Beyond him and under a palm tree was Sara from John’s office. What was she doing here?
Sean craned his neck to see where Edward was going. He saw that the tall man met up with Sara and they walked off around the corner.
Sean stood there with his mouth agape.
Meanwhile, back at the room, Ashley had jolted up in bed and noticed the time. She darted into the hallway to look for Sean so they could get ready for dinner. She saw him standing at the top of the landing with a strange look on his face.
“Sean, what’s up?” Ashley asked. “What are you looking at? Come back in the room and let’s get ready for dinner.”
Sean walked toward their room with his face looking as pale as could be. “Ash, that crazy lady from John’s office is here. She’s with a strange guy who I nearly ran into a minute ago. They just took off in the garden downstairs. I think we’re being followed again.”
Ashley laughed. “You said we were constantly followed by Sani. Who knows? Perhaps that guy is the friend that Sani sent to check up on us.”
“No, I don’t think so this time. And what would that crazy lady Sara be doing here?”
“I have to admit, that is weird. But we can’t know, can we? And you said they took off. So let’s get ready and go eat!”
***
Sean changed for dinner but still had that worried look on his face.
He’ll feel better after he eats, Ashley thought.
She put on a pale orange dress with long sleeves and a flared bottom, then leather sandals. She added a few silver pieces of jewelry and put her hair up in a messy bun and attached a few silver hairpins.
“You look great,” Sean said.
“Thanks. And you. Ready?”
“Let’s go eat,” he said.
Sean locked the door and they headed down the stairs. Both of them agreed to keep their eyes peeled for the man and Sara, but Ashley also said, “The worst is behind us. No one wants us anymore for anything.”
Sean and Ashley walked to the restaurant and had a lovely time. It was also in a little adobe building but with large glass windows facing the mountains. The menu wasn’t standard Tex-Mex, rather a fusion of that mixed with the chef’s interpretation of cutting-edge dishes based on his travels around the world. It was very eclectic, and Ashley and Sean took a long time picking out their food. Finally, they each decided on a few things and dived into the appetizers.
“Hmm,” Sean said. “Good stuff.”
“Delicious,” Ashley said.
Chapter Twenty-Six
After dinner, they had to have one of the delicious-sounding desserts.
Ashley read aloud from the menu. “Pumpkin mousse with candied spiced nuts.”
“Stop right there. That’s the one,” Sean said.
They each ordered a cup of hot chocolate with chili in it to go with the mousse.
“It’s getting chilly at night here. I didn’t expect that,” he said.
“I remember my dad said once he was on a camping trip here in the late fall many years ago with his buddies, and the desert floor was so cold, he barely slept at night.”
“Well, we’ve got a big blanket in the room,” he said.
They asked their server if they could take their cups of hot chocolate and sit by the fire pit.
“Sure,” the server said. “But you’ll need blankets. I’ll go get some.”
The server came back with a thick wrap for each of them, and they sat outside bundled up and drank their chocolate.
Ashley looked up at the stars. “It’s so clear here that it seems you can see the entire galaxy.”
The sky was strewn with a thousand shining stars.
Sean gazed up as well. “Gorgeous.”
They sat outside for another half hour, then decided it was time for bed.
Sean stood up and yawned. “Have to get that car in early and catch that plane. Let’s go.”
Ashley mumbled in agreement, and they headed up to their room.
As soon as they got there, Sean started to put the key card in the handle when they noticed the door was slightly open. He slowly pushed the door and cautiously reached for the light on the side. He switched it on and peeked in.
The room was turned upside down, and their clothes were scattered everywhere.
Ashley cried out. “Oh no.”
Sean pointed to a large piece of paper on the floor with writing on it. He picked it up and read it.
Ashley gasped out of fear. “What does it say?”
Sean just handed it to her to read.
“Stay out of our business. You don’t belong here. This is not your affair. And stay away from Sani and John. This is your last warning. Go home now.”
“Well, at least they got the timing right,” Sean said. “We are going home tomorrow morning.”
“No. We’re leaving now,” Ashley said.
“But, Ash. Our flight is tomorrow. I don’t think we can get a flight tonight.”
“I don’t care. We’ll sleep at the airport if we have to,” she said. “Let’s pack this all back up. Then let’s go. At least we will be safe at the airport.”
Sean sighed. There was no reason to argue. She was right.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
They signed out of the room and hurried out to the car with their luggage and tossed it in the back.
Sean looked at the GPS, and they set out on the road for the airport. The moon was suspended in the black sky like an enormous silver ball. There were very few lights alongside the road, so he turned on the car’s brights, and they sped along to the airport.
“Don’t go too fast,” Ashley said nervously.
“I won’t, but we have to get there as soon as possible. Why don’t you call the airport and check for flights?” Sean said.
Ashley did call and was put on hold. As soon as someone came back on the line, she asked if they were able to change their tickets to a flight that evening.
“I’m sorry, ma’am, but there is only one more flight out this evening, and it’s sold out,” a customer service rep said over the phone.
“What’s the chance of standby?” Ashley asked.
She was hoping against hope, but the representative told her what she already suspected.
“I don’t th
ink there’s a good chance,” the customer service rep said. “But you’re welcome to come and try.”
Ashley hung up and sighed. “No need to repeat what she said. I’m sure you heard that.”
Sean kept looking ahead as he drove. “Okay. Let’s just remain optimistic. And look for a comfortable place to sleep on the airport floor when we get there.”
Ashley let out a huge laugh—so loud that Sean was startled.
He turned toward her. “Well, it’s good to hear you laugh—”
“Sean!” Ashley screamed as she pointed ahead.
Sean snapped his head back toward the road. That was when he saw a large truck parked in front of him, completely blocking the road.
He slammed on the brakes.
Luckily, the car stopped in time.
As soon as the car came to a stop, two men approached their car. One rushed to the driver’s side and the other darted to the passenger-side door. The men jerked the doors open.
One man grabbed Sean and put a hood over his head.
The other man grabbed Ashley and put a gag in her mouth.
They were then hauled into the truck, where someone shut the door behind them.
“Get that car off to the side of the road!” a male voice yelled.
Sean instantly recognized that accented voice. It was the tall man, Edward, from the hotel.
Meanwhile, Ashley was listening to the man who was sitting next to her in the truck and who was holding her down. His voice was accented too. He was speaking into a cell phone in a foreign language she couldn’t put her finger on.
The man noticed her looking at him and slipped a blindfold over her eyes.
***
The engine of the truck fired up. Before long, the truck was driving to parts unknown. After a few minutes, Ashley noticed that the truck seemed to veer to the far right and go off the main road.
Ashley Crane Cozy Mystery Boxed Set Page 56