by Sarah Fox
Zahra handed me the key to the same room we’d used earlier. “Chloe, do you want a room of your own? Or you could bunk with me. I’ve got twin beds in my room.”
Chloe hesitated, and I knew she was worrying about the possibility of Kevin’s killer being somewhere in the lodge.
“Can I stay with you guys?” she asked me and Brett.
I gave her arm a reassuring squeeze. “Of course.”
“I can bring a cot up if you’d like,” Zahra offered. “Just let me know. In the meantime, be sure to come get some food in the dining room. There’s still plenty and you must be hungry.”
We thanked her and braved the elements again so we could retrieve our bags from the truck. Once back inside, we shook the snow off our coats and removed our boots before heading upstairs.
In the guest room, we dropped our bags on the floor and stared around us for a moment.
“It’s a nice room,” Chloe commented eventually. “If I weren’t worried about a murderer lurking among us, I’d be able to appreciate it more.”
I was tempted to switch on the gas fireplace, but decided to wait until we’d had some food downstairs.
I clutched my phone as my thoughts swerved in another direction. “What’ll we do about Flapjack and Bentley?”
Brett gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze and brought out his own phone. “I’ll text my mom. She’ll look after them until we’re home.”
He sent the message and received a reply almost right away. We’d left a house key with my in-laws so they could take Bentley for a walk while we were gone for the day, and Brett’s mom told us she was happy to pet-sit for longer than originally planned. That was one weight off my shoulders.
Chloe plopped down on the loveseat. “You two really don’t mind if I sleep here tonight?”
“Actually, I’d feel better with all of us together,” I admitted.
“Me too,” Brett said. “Not that I think we really have anything to worry about.”
Chloe lay down on her side. “I don’t need a cot. I can sleep right here on the loveseat.”
“Are you sure?” I checked. “It’s not very long.”
“That’s okay. I always sleep curled up anyhow.”
With that decided, we made our way downstairs to the dining room. Despite the shock of our near accident and my trepidation about staying at the lodge, my stomach rumbled with hunger.
Zahra had already explained to the others why we’d returned, so they weren’t surprised to see us. They did, however, pepper us with questions about the tree and the driving conditions. We didn’t have to say much for everyone to agree that no one would be getting down the mountain that night.
“We’re more than happy to have you all here with us tonight,” Rita assured us. She sat at a table with Evie, nursing a cup of coffee. “And please, help yourselves to the food.”
We didn’t need another offer.
I took a plate and started adding food to it, Brett and Chloe doing the same.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Brett whispered to me once everyone else had gone back to chatting with each other.
I set two cucumber sandwiches on my plate. “I’m still feeling shaky,” I admitted quietly, “but I’m okay.”
He kissed me on the cheek before going back to filling his plate.
I knew he was worried that our near-accident had brought back bad memories and added to my anxieties. And it had, but I was managing better than I might have expected. Maybe it was because I had so much else on my mind, not knowing if we were about to spend the night a few doors away from a murderer.
As I moved away from the food table, already munching on a cucumber sandwich, Harvey came into the dining room. He approached the table where Rita and Evie sat, and rested a hand on Evie’s shoulder. She looked up at him and smiled. There was no mistaking the love and affection in her eyes.
“I’m so glad they’re together,” Zahra whispered, joining me in a quiet corner of the room.
“I thought they were trying to keep their relationship a secret,” I said as Brett came over and stood by my side.
“You knew about that?” Zahra sounded surprised.
“We talked to him in Port Angeles earlier in the week,” Brett said.
Zahra’s eyes lit up with understanding. “Right. As planned. Did he give you any clues?” Before I had a chance to respond, she added, “And he told you about Evie? He’s usually so private about those things.”
“It came out because she’s his alibi for part of the night,” I explained. “I looked out the window on the night of Kevin’s death and saw Harvey out on snowshoes. It turns out he was on his way back from Evie’s place. I don’t think he would have told us if I hadn’t brought that up. He said Evie didn’t want people to know about them, at least not yet.”
Zahra nodded. “He told me that too. About Evie wanting to keep it quiet, not the alibi. I know I didn’t sound so certain at the Wildwood Inn, and I get that you’d suspect Harvey, but I’ve thought it over and there’s just no way he ever would have killed Kevin. Or anyone. Even without an alibi, I’d be sure of that. Harvey’s the type of guy who rescues injured animals and cares for them until they can be released again. He and Kevin were close. He wouldn’t have hurt him.”
“I think you’re probably right about that,” I said.
Zahra seemed relieved that I’d come to that conclusion. “As for Evie,” she said, “I figured out they were together a while ago. It was so obvious from the way they looked at each other. I came across them kissing yesterday and told them they didn’t need to keep it a secret from us. Mom and I love them like family.”
“They look happy together,” I remarked, watching as Harvey took a seat next to Evie and covered one of her hands with his.
Zahra smiled. “They do.”
She headed for the food table and filled a glass with eggnog before wandering off to talk with Ambrose. They stood by the window, watching the blizzard, or what little of it was still visible. The daylight was already fading fast.
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and glanced at the screen. Sienna had sent me a text message, but I decided to read it later. I didn’t want to seem rude by focusing on my phone, even if the official part of the memorial was over.
Chloe had been chatting with Lily over by the punch bowl, but now she came over to join me and Brett, a plate of food and a glass of punch in hand.
“I don’t know if it’s the weather or the stress, or both,” she said, sitting down at a nearby table, “but I’m suddenly starving.”
“So are we,” I said, noting that Brett had nearly polished off everything he’d put on his plate.
“The food is delicious.” Brett ate his last cracker, loaded with salmon spread. “I’m going back for seconds.”
I still had a sandwich and crackers on my plate, so I pulled out a chair, intending to join Chloe at the table.
Before I had a chance to sit down, the lights flickered and then went out, plunging the room into darkness.
Chapter Twenty-Six
“Don’t worry,” Rita called out. “Stay put and I’ll have a flashlight out in a moment.”
I stood frozen by the table, my heart pounding. The sudden darkness had frazzled my already raw nerves. The first thought that had popped into my head was that Kevin’s killer had arranged the blackout, intending to strike again. Now that my eyes had adjusted to the dim light, I could see that everyone but Rita was still where they’d been when the lights went out.
Thanks to the little bit of daylight left, the room wasn’t in complete darkness. It had only seemed like that in the first moments because of the sudden change.
I sat down across from Chloe, and Brett took the chair next to me. He’d managed to snag a couple of sandwiches before the lights went out.
Across the room, Harvey got to his feet.
“I’ll go out and start the generator.”
Rita returned from the kitchen, the bright beam of a flashlight bouncing around ahead of her. She had another flashlight in hand, which she gave to Harvey.
He switched it on, aiming the beam toward the floor. “I’ll be as quick as I can.”
As he headed out of the dining room, Rita addressed the rest of us.
“I have lots of battery-powered lanterns. The generator will allow us to keep the most essential things running, but we don’t know how long this storm will last, so we don’t want to run through the fuel too quickly. I’ll make sure every room has a lantern so we don’t need to use the overhead lights unless absolutely necessary.”
“I’ll get the lanterns, Mom,” Zahra offered. “I know where they are.”
“Thank you, honey,” Rita said.
She handed the remaining flashlight over, and Zahra used it to light her way out of the dining room.
“I’m so sorry about all of this,” Rita said to everyone.
“Please don’t apologize,” Lily said. “None of this is your fault.”
“We’re so grateful that you’ve given us a place to stay while we wait out the storm,” Chloe added.
Rita gave us a brief smile. “I appreciate that you’re so understanding.”
Everyone went back to eating and chatting quietly.
“I nearly passed out from fright,” Chloe whispered to me and Brett. “When the lights went out, I thought the murderer was about to kill again.”
“Me too,” I admitted.
“It’s just the storm,” Brett assured us. “We’re going to be fine.”
I hoped he was right, but I couldn’t entirely banish the sense of unease that plagued me.
* * * *
Once Harvey had the generator up and running and we’d all had our fill of food, we helped Rita pack up the leftovers and put them away in the commercial refrigerator in the kitchen. Thanks to the generator, the fridge would keep running as long as the fuel lasted. Zahra had handed out the battery-powered lanterns, and Chloe, Brett, and I had two to share between us.
Rita stoked up the fire in the lounge, and all of us gathered in that room to chat and stay warm. We talked about Lily’s books, Ambrose’s poetry, the pancake house, and what it was like to live year-round up in the mountains. Although the conversation was friendly, I couldn’t relax completely, but I tried not to let it show.
Brett had his arm around me, and Chloe sat on my other side, all of us on the couch. With the three of us all together, and with everyone else in sight, I knew we were safe for the moment. I just hoped that would stay true through the night.
Chloe picked up one of the Holly Lodge brochures that was lying on the coffee table and read it by firelight.
“Did you guys know that this place is haunted?” she whispered to me and Brett when she set down the brochure a minute later. She sounded more worried than before.
“It’s Holly Lake that’s haunted—supposedly—not the lodge,” I said.
“And it’s just a story,” Brett added in a low voice.
I knew he was trying to allay some of Chloe’s fears, so I didn’t mention the woman Brett and I had seen while out snowshoeing. Chloe said nothing more about the ghost, but she remained tense, and I knew the story about Henrietta Franklin hadn’t helped her already worried state.
Eventually, yawns punctuated the conversations going on around the room. Rita and Zahra disappeared for a few minutes and returned with a platter of leftover sandwiches for a makeshift dinner. We all dug in, and it didn’t take long for us to empty the platter.
There didn’t seem to be much reason to stick around after eating. Everyone was too sleepy to keep chatting and I was struggling to keep my eyes open. I was reluctant to leave the warmth of the fire, but Rita assured us that we could use the gas fireplaces in the guest rooms. Even without the generator, the fireplaces would still work, thanks to their battery backups.
I hesitated when Brett first suggested heading upstairs. As much as I was ready to get some sleep, I took comfort from being able to see everyone present at the lodge. If the killer was among us, at least I knew what they were up to. That wasn’t going to last, though. Lily soon headed upstairs to bed, and Ambrose followed a few minutes later.
Harvey and Evie got bundled up, ready to make the short trek out to Harvey’s cabin. They’d left Scout there and didn’t want him to be on his own any longer.
Even with just the firelight to see by, I could tell that Rita was exhausted. Brett, Chloe, and I said good night, and headed upstairs by the light of our lanterns. Chloe curled up on the loveseat with extra pillows and blankets we’d found in the closet, and I burrowed under the covers on the bed, Brett beside me.
Chloe jumped up from the loveseat a moment later, startling me.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
The gas fireplace provided enough light for me to see her crossing the room.
“I want to be absolutely sure no one can get in,” she said, grabbing the chair from beneath the small desk.
“I locked the door,” Brett reminded her.
“I know.” She tipped the chair, lodging the top rail beneath the doorknob.
“Does that really work?” I asked. “I thought it only did in the movies.”
Chloe returned to the loveseat and snuggled under the blankets again. “I don’t know, but I’m going to pretend it does.”
I grabbed my phone from the bedside table, planning to check the weather app for some indication of when the storm might end. I really hoped we wouldn’t be stuck at Holly Lodge for another day and night.
When I woke up the device, I remembered the text message I’d received from Sienna. I leaned back against the pillows and tapped on the message.
Reading Lily’s book and guess what, the text read. The murderer buried the victim in a snowbank to hide the body. Coincidence??? Unlikely, right?
I sat up straight. “Holy buckets!”
Chloe peeked over the back of the loveseat. “What is it?” Her gaze darted to the door, and then to the window.
I waved away her obvious concern about someone coming into our room. “This text message from Sienna…I think she cracked the case!”
“What do you mean?” Brett asked.
I handed my phone over so he could read the message himself, but I explained anyway, for Chloe’s sake. “Sienna bought one of Lily’s books, one set on Mount Baker, and she started reading it this weekend. Apparently, the murderer in the story buries the victim in a snowbank to delay the discovery of the body.”
Chloe’s eyes widened. “You think Lily’s the murderer? And she copied one of her books? Oh my gosh! I was chatting with a killer earlier!”
Brett handed my phone back to me, his expression serious. “But didn’t you say Lily received a threatening note from the killer?”
I drummed my fingers against my phone. “Maybe that was a lie. Come to think of it, she was a bit cagey when I talked to her about the note, and she seemed a bit hesitant about showing it to Sheriff Walczyk.”
“So the note was a fake?” Chloe wrapped herself in a blanket and hurried over to the bed, perching on the mattress by my feet. “Did she make it all up?”
“Probably,” I said. “I bet she was hoping it would deflect suspicion away from her.”
“But why would she kill Kevin?” Brett asked.
“I know she was annoyed that he didn’t want her to set her next book at Holly Lodge,” I said. “That seems like a flimsy motive, but maybe she was angry about something else too? Or maybe she just lost her temper while arguing with him about the book’s setting again.”
“Could be,” Brett agreed, although he didn’t sound overly convinced by the theory. “I guess it’s not impossible. It’s not like Lily’s too short to have hit Kevin in the head with the ski.”
“Do you know what this means?” Chloe said in an urgent whisper. “Kevin’s murderer is sleeping across the hall from us. We really are under the same roof as his killer. And we can’t get away!”
“We’ll be fine.” Brett’s voice was calm, but his face remained serious. “She has no reason to want to hurt any of us.”
“Except…” I trailed off, not sure if I should finish my thought.
“Except what?” Chloe pressed.
I glanced at Brett, wishing I’d kept my mouth shut. I didn’t want to scare Chloe any further, but I knew she wouldn’t let me get away with not finishing my sentence. “I’ve been asking questions, and I talked to Lily about the note.”
“Do you think she knows you’ve been trying to figure out who killed Kevin?” Brett asked.
I shrugged. “It’s possible.”
A chill that rivaled the howling winds outside settled into my bones.
Brett took my hand and gave it a squeeze. “We’re still fine. Even if Lily thinks you could be onto her, there’s no way she’d try to harm all three of us. As long as we stick together, we’ll be okay.”
“You’re right.” Knowing that didn’t entirely erase my fear, but it helped to ease it. “Sheriff Walczyk needs to know about this, though.”
I tapped out a message to Sienna, expressing my surprise and thanking her for telling me. She wrote back right away, letting me know that she’d told her mom, who in turn had looked up the number for the sheriff of the mountain community and had contacted Walczyk.
I breathed a little easier. “It turns out we don’t need to worry about that. Patricia contacted the sheriff earlier today.”
Chloe pulled the blanket more closely around her. “So maybe she’s just waiting for a chance to arrest Lily.”
“Or at least question her again,” Brett said.
“So now all we have to do is wait out the storm.” I set my phone on the bedside table and shifted closer to Brett.