by Laina Turner
“Ok. I’ll have a car sit out here for the rest of the day and evening just to be safe. I’ll stay here until someone gets here if you want to go ahead and go in.”
“Thanks.” I walked back in and looked around at the mess. There was no way I felt like dealing with it right now or calling Sheryl. I didn’t even feel like talking to Sheldon. I just wanted a glass of wine and my bed. Which was bad since it was only early afternoon, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Spending the rest of the day relaxing with Netflix was just what the doctor ordered. After all, I was on vacation. I turned off my phone and got lost in episodes of Grey’s Anatomy.
Chapter 8
I woke up the next day at sun up, recharged and in a much better frame of mind. I called Sheryl first thing and she didn’t seem at all concerned about what had happened and said she’d call her cleaning people to come over and get the house back in order and take inventory. I’d offered to do it but wasn’t sad when she turned it down. She said insurance would cover anything damaged or stolen. She was very calm about the whole thing and chalked it up to vandals, saying that summer made it easier for people to get in, which made me feel much less guilty. Though she didn’t know about all the other things that had happened here recently that could have made her feel differently, I guess. But I didn’t see any reason to worry her.
I refilled my coffee cup and sat down on the barstool to return calls. I had several voicemails and texts from Sheldon last night that had popped up when I turned my phone back on, but hadn’t had the chance to call back yet. My first priority was contacting Sheryl. I saw my friend Katy had also called. I called her first, worried something had happened to her mom, but she’d just called to check in. I told her I was having a great time, leaving out the murders and home invasion. Not only did I not want her to worry, but I knew if she knew what I was up to she’d tell Cooper and that’s the last thing I needed. My boyfriend hated when I got involved in other people’s business. Sometimes I got myself mixed up in the weirdest things.
I got off the phone with her and was going to call Sheldon when the phone vibrated in my hand and startled me. Speak of the devil. It was Sheldon.
“Hey, Sheldon.”
“I heard what happened. Why didn’t you call me?” he demanded. Not even bothering to say hi.
I guess I didn’t think about the fact that not much happened that slipped by him and he might already know. Especially since the police had been called and I already knew he listened to the scanner.
“Calm down. I was just getting ready too.”
“So, what happened?”
“Someone broke in and trashed the place.”
“Were they looking for something?”
“How should I know?” I exclaimed. “I can’t tell if anything in the house was taken and they didn’t take anything of mine. It was probably someone hoping to score something of value.”
“Do you want me to come over?”
He actually sounded concerned, which was sweet, I guess.
“No. I’m fine. I was going to try to talk to Allison and Paul today. Want to meet up later?”
“Sure. Just call me when you’re done.”
“Ok.” I finished my coffee and went to take a shower and get dressed. Since my destination was such a nice house, I didn’t just want to wear shorts and a t-shirt. I put on one of the sundresses I’d brought and a simple silver choker. Quickly braiding my hair, I put on a little blush and mascara and finished off my look with my nude Aveda lip tint. I couldn’t help but thinking it somewhat funny that I put on makeup just to look natural. The things us women did.
I grabbed my purse and keys, triple checking to make sure all the doors were locked, before heading down the street. As I walked down the sidewalk and looked at all the beautiful homes I wondered if people actually lived in any of them or if they were all rentals. It seemed such a shame to own such a gorgeous place and not live in it to enjoy it. I understood the purpose of having rental properties for investment reasons but still.
I reached the wrought iron gate of the mansion, which was open and walked up to the front door. I lifted the heavy iron knocker and clanged it a few times, wincing at the sound it made. It was loud and I could hear it echo throughout the house. They certainly didn’t need a doorbell with as much noise as this made. I heard footsteps approach the door and saw Paul peer out at me through the side window. He smiled and opened the door.
“Good morning, Presley. Please come in. Allison, Presley’s here,” he called out. I didn’t know him all that well but got the sense his happiness was forced. His mouth might be smiling but his eyes weren’t. I heard heels tapping on the floor and Allison quickly appeared. I’d been right to wear my sundress. She was outfitted in an ice blue sheath dress and pearls. Seemed a little over the top for day wear, but who was I to judge. If I was staying in this house I’d probably feel compelled to dress to the nines too. This wasn’t exactly a yoga pants and t-shirt kind of place.
“Presley,” she said warmly, giving me a hug. Apparently, the other night wasn’t a one-time thing, we were officially on hugging terms. “Can I get you some coffee?”
“Sure. That would be great. You can never have too much coffee.”
“Follow me into the kitchen then.”
As I followed her I was again impressed by the size of this house. I thought the kitchen in the house I was staying at was big. Now that the caterers weren’t here with all the food set up, the enormous size of this kitchen was more readily apparent. Allison reached up to the cupboard and got a cup, poured the coffee, and set it in front of me.
“The service is over there if you need anything,” she said pointing to the middle of the island where there was a silver tray with a creamer pot and a sugar bowl. Fancy. Though why I would expect anything less I don’t know.
“So, what do we owe the pleasure?” she asked, sitting down on a stool delicately and taking a sip of her own coffee.
“I just wanted to check on you two. Make sure you were ok after the other night. What a horrible thing to happen.”
“It certainly put a damper on things, but the show must go on. We have a wedding in two days.”
Allison seemed pretty chipper, considering. I’m not sure I’d feel so positive in her situation. “So do the police know what happened?” I asked.
“No. Not that they’ve told us anyway.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Why?” she said with a puzzled look on her face.
“With your upcoming wedding I’m sure this isn’t something you had on the agenda of festivities.”
“Things happen. Just like at your house.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
She paused. “I heard you had some trouble yesterday.”
“How did you hear that” It didn’t make sense that she would know. I hadn’t told anyone until this morning.
“The Sheriff mentioned it when he stopped by yesterday.”
I guess that made sense, but for some reason it just didn’t sit well with me.
Paul walked over and put him arm around Allison. I could have sworn she flinched a little. Based on the conversation between the two of them I’d overheard I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. They clearly weren’t some lovey-dovey couple. But then every couple had their own quirks.
“It’s such a beautiful kitchen,” I said changing the subject. “Is that the pantry?” I asked, pointing to the door I knew went down to the basement.
“It’s just storage, I think. It’s locked so I’m not really sure,” Allison said vaguely.
Hmmm. I couldn’t tell if she was lying or she honestly didn’t know. Maybe the door was normally kept locked and Glen had the key but then we had locked it behind me?
“Paul, what time is it?” Allison asked.
“Almost ten.”
“Oh my.” She jumped up. “Sorry to rush you, Presley, but we have an appointment at the florist in fifteen minutes.”
“Sure, I didn’t mea
n to tie you up.”
Allison grabbed my coffee cup and put it in the sink and shooed me out of the kitchen. She opened the front door for me and all but pushed me out. Her attitude had completely changed. She clearly wanted me to leave. Was it because I asked about the door?
“Thanks for the coffee,” I said over my shoulder.
“No problem. Talk to you later.” She said and shut the door in my face. I could hear her and Paul whispering but I couldn’t tell what they were saying. Something had happened to change her disposition in the last ten minutes and I didn’t know what, but it certainly was a complete turnaround from her attitude when she offered me coffee.
I headed back down the sidewalk when I heard the door open and I looked back to see Paul hurrying down the steps to catch up with me. I stopped.
“I’m glad I caught you.”
“Is everything ok? Allison seemed upset. Did I say something wrong?”
Paul shook his head. “It’s not you. Allison is just under a lot of stress right now, you know, the wedding and all and I’m sorry she was rude to you.”
“It’s OK. I can completely understand.” Even though I didn’t but what else was there to say.
“Thanks.”
“Sure. No problem.”
“Hey Paul,” I said, and he turned back to face me. “Why did you guys pick here for your wedding? Do you know people here?”
“No. Allison found it online and fell in love with the place. She insisted we have our wedding here and stay all month, even though it’s made things more difficult logistically. We even had to pay extra. It was already booked by another couple when she found it and she wouldn’t budge. We had to persuade the other couple to change their date. Though money is a small price to pay for her happiness. Whatever makes her happy, it’s worth it. I’d better get back in. Have a nice day, Presley.”
“You too, Paul,” I said, and out of the corner of my eye I could see Allison peeking out from behind a curtain in one of the third-floor bedroom windows. If they were getting ready to leave why was she all the way up there?
I was restless when I got home and still confused by Allison’s actions so I decided to see what I could find out about the rich couple next door who I already knew weren’t exactly as they appeared.
I heated up another cup of coffee, telling myself this had to be my last or I’d be jittery the rest of the day, and took it and my laptop out to the deck. The birds were chirping and the view was spectacular. Even with everything that had been happening I was still glad I was here.
They’d said they were from Chicago, so I typed in their names along with the word Chicago and pressed search. Let’s see what popped up. Engagement announcement, their Linked In profiles. Paul was data analyst and Allison a florist. Ok, that wasn’t what I would have expected her to have for a career. She didn’t exactly seem the florist type. Nothing else popped up except for a few random articles that seemed to all be professionally or philanthropically related. It appeared that Paul came from money. There was an extensive list of articles praising him for his charitable contributions. Must be why he didn’t care that he spent double on renting the house for the month. They seemed to be quite the fixtures on the social scene, which didn’t help me any more with finding a connection between them and Glen, so I changed my search to Glen, not expecting to find anything from this angle either but at least I could get more familiar with his background and know what I was dealing with and not just assuming.
I found he had quite a lengthy arrest record, no big surprise, and had done some time, but it was mostly related to theft, vandalism, protesting and destruction of personal property. Nothing close to murder, not even assault, which surprised me and further showed why assuming was never a good idea. Nothing I could find connected him in any way to Paul and Allison. Maybe his being at their house was completely random and there wasn’t any kind of connection. It’s not like he was participating in the party as a guest. Maybe he just didn’t think they’d notice his comings and goings, which wasn’t all that farfetched since there were a ton of people there and both Allison and Paul were preoccupied with the party and their guests.
So, if they didn’t know each other, maybe it was something about the house? Glen had snuck down to the basement for a reason and there had to be access to the basement from the outside. There’s no way they all snuck in. One uninvited guest maybe. Several would be too risky. What were they doing down there? I had to figure out a way to get down there and see for myself.
Now was as good a time as any to head down to the beach and see where the entrance was. My guess is it was where I saw the men disappear the first night I was here. They hadn’t just vanished into thin air.
I put my laptop and coffee cup on the kitchen counter and grabbed a bottle of water out of the refrigerator. Slipping on my sandals, I made sure the door was locked, and tucked the key in my pocket, headed down the stone path to the beach entrance.
I smiled as I passed a family playing on the beach and having a picnic. They looked like they were having so much fun. It brought back memories of going to the beach with my parents and brother when I was a kid. It was busier out here than yesterday, but everyone was enjoying themselves, or so it appeared, and weren’t paying attention to anyone else. Exactly the privacy I needed.
I looked up to where my house was to see my position in relation to the thatch of trees to make sure I was somewhat in the right place. I didn’t want to blindly walk around the patch of woods. I at least wanted to be somewhat close to where I’d watched the men disappear.
When I’d finally found where I thought the place was, or close enough anyway, I took a few steps in and saw a path. Ah-ha. This must be it. I followed the path for a few hundred feet when I noticed it was taking me in the wrong direction. It wasn’t heading left toward Allison and Paul’s house. It was heading up to mine. A few steps further and I came to a wooden door. It was covered with brush. It looked like someone was trying to hide it from anyone who happened to wander by. If I hadn’t been on this path with a purpose, I doubt I’d have given it a second glance. I moved some of the brush until I could see the door handle. I tried it. Locked.
The door was too solid to break in. I needed to get in from the other side, which as I looked up seemed to be my house. The door was centered underneath where my deck was. Was there a tunnel in the basement? I hadn’t been down there. There was no reason for me to go in the basement. Until now.
I turned and headed back the way I came, just more quickly. Out of breath by the time I made it back to my house, I locked the front door behind me and headed to the basement.
I flipped on the lights and while it was clean, it was full of stuff. Looked to be mostly junk, broken furniture, some kids’ toys, and a bunch of boxes. I got to the bottom of the stairs, narrowly missing running face first into a cobweb. I cringed at the thought. I wasn’t afraid of spiders, but sticky cobwebs freaked me out. I stood there scanning the wall that faced the beach. Looking for the door that had to be there. And maybe it was. Behind the stacked up boxes that lined almost the entire wall. I sighed. Of course, this couldn’t be easy.
I walked over to the boxes, sighing at the prospect of having to move them all out of the way to see what was behind there when I reached for the first box and it almost flew out of my hand. It was empty, as were all the other boxes stacked against that wall. I quickly moved them and as I suspected, there was a door in the wall the boxes had been hiding.
I reached for the handle, expecting it to be locked, but it easily swung open. Apparently, whoever was using this secret door figured no one would come down and find it so no reason to lock it.
I tentatively made my way into the dark tunnel, propping the door open with one of the boxes. The last thing I needed was to get myself locked in here. I pulled my phone out of my back pocket and turned on the flashlight app so I could see. As I figured there wasn’t a signal but at least the flashlight came in handy.
I wrinkled my nose at the smell
. It was musty down here. Walking in about a hundred feet or so, I came to a second tunnel that split off to my right. That had to be the one that went to Allison’s. This set up would have been awesome as a kid.
I paused to gather my thoughts and think this through. So, the guys I saw on the beach that night could have brought whatever it is they had through the tunnel from the beach into the house. Either mine or Allison’s. Though since I hadn’t heard any noises in the house that night, I doubt they could have snuck up through the basement, up the stairs and out the door. Surely, I would have heard something. After debating for a second, I decided to head right and confirm it did lead to the other house. It’s a good thing I wasn’t claustrophobic. It wasn’t very spacious down here.
After what seemed like miles, I reached another locked door. While I couldn’t see to the outside to figure out exactly where I was, it had to be connected to the basement of Allison and Paul’s. Unless there was an entire network of underground tunnels to all the houses around here, which would be pretty darn cool.
Since there was nowhere else to go, I headed back. When I made it back to my house, I closed the door and moved the boxes back the way I found them. I didn’t want whoever was using these tunnels to realize I knew about them.
Was this entrance why someone was in my house? But then why not just sneak down here while I was gone instead of trashing the upstairs and bringing more attention to the place? Unless it was a scare tactic to try and get me to leave.
I needed to go back to Allison and Paul’s and see where their basement door ended up. Confirm this was the right tunnel. Maybe then I could figure out what it was being used for.
Chapter 9
“Presley! Presley!” I heard someone yell as I was walking out of the grocery store from picking up a few things later that afternoon. I turned around and saw it was Janet. Uh-oh. This might not be good. I hadn’t seen her since the Sheriff chastised me for talking to her grandson and she didn’t look that happy right now. Something told me this might be a continuation of that talking to and it wasn’t really something I wanted to deal with.