The day was sunny and bright. Cherie wanted to surprise him with a picnic behind the house in the fields. She had the hired help make her a basket and saddle up their two favorite horses.
All that was left was to find him.
It was proving harder than she thought.
Cherie had looked everywhere for him, but it was like he had vanished. The last place he could possibly be was in his office.
She hated it in there.
For almost a year, he sat, staring at the wall in some sort of melancholy. You would swear that he saw something there that she never did. Going into his office was something that she dreaded, but for today, Cherie would do it.
“Joey?” she called, peeking her head in the door.
Apparently, he wasn’t there. Maybe she should leave a note on his desk to meet her in the stable for their ride.
Entering, she could feel the cold chill in her flesh. Cherie was immediately creeped out. This was the other reason that she hated this room.
That damn ghost loved it here.
Then again, of course it would. The specter loved to be near her husband and child. It was just one more way in which it tormented her.
Eventually, Cherie found that if she stayed away, it would leave her and their son alone but now, she knew it was near. The cold fingers down her neck were the giveaway.
Walking to his desk, she found Joseph’s pocket watch and pen still sitting there which meant that he had been working. As she glanced up, something was wrong.
The wall looked… crooked.
How was that possible?
Moving cautiously toward it, she touched the wall, and it moved ever so slightly.
Curiosity was always one of her downfalls, and this was likely to be no different. There was that little niggling voice in the back of her mind, telling her to run, but she wouldn’t listen.
Pulling the hidden door open, she peered inside. It was dusty, musty, and smelly atrocious.
In fact, it reeked of spoiled meat.
Cherie wanted to vomit, but she had to see what was tainting their home. Maybe some animal crawled into the wall and died there. If that were the case, something needed to be done.
As she stepped in the door remained open, allowing enough light in that she could see. Immediately, her eyes were drawn to the big box lying in one corner.
Somehow, it seemed oddly out of place.
Heading to it, she touched it with her foot. When it didn't slide, she knew that the weight inside had to be fairly heavy.
Cautiously, she took hold of the lid and began lifting it. When enough light had filtered in, she was horrified at what she saw.
In the box was a decaying form of a woman. The hair was evident and ‘O’ of the mouth horrified her.
This hidden room was a makeshift crypt.
Here was why the ghost loved being here. It was close to the body!
At the creak of the floor, the lid slipped from her fingers, and she spun toward the sound. All that she saw were the two large hands moving toward her.
Her instinct kicked in and she screamed.
* * *
Wednesday Early Morning
There was peace, and then it was gone.
Their dreams were shattered by the most horrific screams that they had ever heard in all their lives.
It was never ending.
Tori was the first out of bed as she grabbed Julian’s t-shirt and her shorts. Pulling them on, he wasn’t far behind her, as he pulled on his jeans.
Out in the hall, they were met with other doors opening and scared faces peering out.
Kane charged from the room, Christina right behind him. As the four raced to the top of the stairs to look over the rail, it didn't take long to figure out what was going on.
In the foyer, Sharla Wheaton was the source.
From the rail, there was a rope.
A noose.
And a very dead Fredrick Hesser-Jameson.
The entire house came awake, and people began racing from all corners toward the sound. Julian raced down the stairs, to where the man’s feet just met his chest.
“Cut him down,” he called up to Kane, who used someone’s offered pocketknife to saw through the rope.
There were sobs and screams as each woman, who looked over the rail, was forced to see what had horrified the housekeeper.
Lastly, there was Lorelei.
As she raced into the room, she stopped dead in her tracks as Julian lowered the blue faced man to the ground. Immediately, Christina was on her knees beside him, checking his pulse.
He was cold to the touch.
When she shook her head, Julian stood. “Someone call the sheriff. We don’t need an ambulance.”
Tori came to his side as she dialed the man’s cell number. As Beckett came on the line, his voice was filled with sleep. “Yeah?”
“Beckett, it’s Tori. We have a problem.”
He came awake immediately. For them to call at this time of the night, it had to be bad.
“We just found Fredrick hanging in the foyer.”
“Don’t let anyone leave and don’t touch anything,” he said, jumping out of bed. “I’ll be right here!”
Tori hung up the phone.
“The sheriff wants everyone to head into the lounge. He’s on his way.”
Bruce led the housekeeper there, his arm securely around her shoulders. The chef helped Lorelei in right behind them.
“Well,” Julian said, staring at his team. “It looks like the killer has struck again.”
“We may have solved a hundred year old murder, but we didn't keep Fredrick safe,” Tori added.
“Come on,” Julian said. “Let’s go wait in the lounge. Someone in that room is a killer, and we need to figure it out.”
And fast...
* * *
When Beckett Rand arrived, everyone was in the lounge. Walking in, he stared at every guest in there. “We have a crime scene here. We’re going to begin searching the entire house for the murder weapon.”
Stephen Snyder stood up. “He hung himself. The murder weapon is around his neck,” he stated arrogantly.
Lorelei sobbed harder.
“Sit down and shut up, Stephen,” stated Julian. If anything, they were all a little guilty of this man’s death. They knew the killer was tracking the Hessers, but they got complacent.
There was a gasp.
The man did what he said. Obviously, he was worried that Julian was going to burn his cover.
“The deputies are tossing each of your rooms right now. Is there anything that you don’t want us to find?”
No one spoke.
“Okay. Then, I’ll start with the people who touched the body. Our crime team wants to get your DNA to exclude you.”
Tori, Julian, Christina and Kane all stood and followed him outside. In the hall, he stationed Tadd Marston to keep an eye on everyone. Lowering his voice, he took them into a side room to ask what happened.
“We heard screams, and we ran out,” stated Julian. “Kane and I cut him down.”
Christina spoke up, “If you want all of our DNA, it’s on registry with the FBI. I can make a call and get it sent over to your team.”
The man stared at her. “If you would, I’d appreciate it.”
She didn't have her cell on her. “Can I borrow your phone?” Christina asked, holding out her hand. When he handed it over, she dialed the office, hoping someone was in the lab. When her old boss answered, she was glad.
“Chris, it’s Christina. We have a situation here that I can’t explain, but can you get our DNA on file shipped over to a local police department?”
“Sure can, Christina. Are you all okay?” Doctor Chris Leonard asked.
“Yeah, well, we touched a victim, and they need to exclude us from the DNA pool.”
“Give me the email address,” he said.
Christina relayed it to her friend. “I’ll call you when we get home and tell you all about it, Doc.”
“Wow, it’s pretty handy to know the direct line into the FBI labs too,” he said to the little woman.
“I was head of their forensics department. I can tell you right now, just by what I saw, what you need to do.”
He crossed his arms. “Okay, shoot.”
“He was hit with something on the back of his head. I think you’ll find that it’s going to likely match the wounds that Jonathan Hesser sustained.”
“Continue.”
“His lips were blue, and that tells me that he was alive when someone dropped him over the rail. I could see by his neck that there’s bruising, again that’s another sign that the man still had blood circulation.”
Julian took over, “He had one hell of a fight with Lorelei tonight, where words were exchanged and she told him to drop dead.”
“Nice,” he said, scribbling down some notes. “If she’s not the one who did this, she’s going to have a hell of a therapy bill, trying to overcome this.”
Christina continued, “The knock on the head was likely to incapacitate the victim. Someone had to drag him to the top of those stairs. If he was downstairs, he would have been dead weight. So, look for a strong person. If he was in his quarters, then he knew his attacker. He wouldn’t just open his room up to anyone. Although with how he chases women around to get into their pants, I could be wrong.”
Tori reminded them, “He may have a secret passage in his room, too. We had them. Who’s to say someone didn't find one in the house and go there?”
That gave Beckett an avenue to pursue. “With the guests wandering all over this estate, someone could have found that.”
They all agreed. After all, they had found them, so could Stephen and Katy Snyder, or the Currys.
“In Stephen Snyder’s room, you’re going to find a weapon, that’s why he was so worked up about you searching.”
“Well, since the man wasn’t shot, and I know he’s a PI, I won’t blow his cover unless I find something more.”
“I say blow it,” stated Tori. “He was working a case for his client. His job was to watch Fredrick. If you blow his cover, you may get him to spill more details.”
“Is that advice coming from a Fed or a PI?”
Tori shook her head. “That’s coming from someone who’s watched hundreds of interviews and conducted even more. It’s leverage.”
“Noted and taken into consideration,” he said.
“Just before they had the altercation, Fredrick was going on about how the whole family and house had secrets. You may find something there.”
He nodded. “Okay, head back into the lounge. If you hear anything or anyone starts spilling pertinent details, let me know. I’ll get the interviews done so that you can get back to your room.”
Julian shook his hand. “Good luck, Sheriff.”
The man watched them walk away.
Yeah, he was going to need it.
* * *
Two Hours Later
Wednesday Dawn
Sheriff Beckett Rand strolled into the lounge. His team had finished searching all of the bedrooms in the house. What they found was interesting, to say the least.
When the guests spotted him in the doorway, most jumped up and began yelling at him.
“Sit!” he snapped, and they all did.
Julian grinned at how effectively he had them under control. It was fun to watch. While he wasn’t as big as Kane, he still had an heir of authority about him.
“No one is going anywhere. In fact, I need to talk to a Mrs. and Mr. Curry.”
They stood.
“Why?” she asked. “You already interviewed us.”
The man glanced over his shoulder to wave at one of his deputies outside. When the man came in, he was carrying a clear plastic bag with a bloody pipe inside.
“What’s that?” she said in horror.
Beckett put on his good ol’ boy grin, and crossed his arms. “You know, I was just going to ask you that,” he said. “Since it came from your suitcase, Mrs. Curry, I figured you might know.”
She stared openmouthed. “I don’t know why it was in there!”
Her husband stared at the pipe, then his wife, and then back to the pipe. He simply looked confused. “Do you want me to call our attorney, Bev?” he asked softly.
She turned to stare at him. “NO! I didn't do anything, so there’s no need to call anyone. I’m not afraid to answer his questions. My fingerprints will not be on that pipe.”
Christina chimed up. “Yeah, you probably wore gloves.”
The woman stared menacingly at her.
“Before you go giving the nice lady any dirty looks, let’s have a little unveiling ceremony. Maybe the people in this room, who you were staying with, would like to know the truth.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
Tori saw the fear. She was lying her ass off.
“You have an alias, Mrs. Curry, or should I call you Madam Morrow?”
Everyone looked around with the exception of Julian, Tori, Christina and Kane. They were too busy watching the woman in front of them. Her face went from angry to pale in seconds. It was a sure sign that she was scared.
“Who is that?” Lorelei said, sniffling into some tissues.
Tori fielded that one. “She’s a medium or claims to be one.”
The sheriff took over to preserve Tori’s cover. “It seems that she was here working on a book. We found her laptop and notes. She was investigating the phenomenon of the ‘Singing Woman’.”
Bev clammed up and didn't look at anyone.
“You’d think being a psychic, you would have seen this one coming,” stated Kane. “Epic fail there on your behalf.”
The woman’s head whipped toward him and if looks could kill, he’d be a dead man too.
“Okay, let’s go, Mrs. Curry. You, your husband, and I have a date at the station.”
When the deputy led them out, Beckett faced the rest of the people in the room. “As for everyone else, you can all head back to your rooms. Mr. Snyder, we confiscated your firearm. We checked, and your private investigator license covers you to carry, so you can pick it up at the station later in the day. No one is allowed to leave Hesser Estates until we find out who killed Fredrick Hesser-Jameson. I’m sorry but you’re all remaining here.”
Everyone stared at Stephen Snyder as he tried to save his cover. Julian glared at him, almost daring him to throw them under the bus. If he did, Julian would take the man down.
Beckett nodded to the rest of the people in the room before heading out to do his job. He only hoped that Julian and his team would be safe.
Someone was playing for keeps, and the Littlemoons were loose ends.
* * *
Julian wanted to make sure that his team was safe. He suggested that they head to their perspective rooms and watch the secret doors. He was having a hard time believing that this was over. What killer bashed in someone’s head, and then hid the weapon in their own belongings?
As Julian lay on their bed, he couldn’t help but play all the suspects over and over in his head. He must have been thinking a while, because Tori finally shook his arm.
“Are you okay?” she asked, getting his attention.
“Yeah, I’m just not buying it.”
She had to agree. “I don’t think it was Bev. She’s a kook, but a killer?”
“We have so many suspects, and nothing ties them together. I feel like we’re missing something. Why would Bev kill William Macavoy?”
“Maybe he found out she was playing a game?”
It still didn't fit in his mind.
“Want to take a break from thinking a while and go over the journal? We’re almost to the last page, and I want to see how it ends.”
“We know how it ends. He killed his mistress, and then left us a note.”
Tori kept feeling like they were missing something important. “But what about the wife? Did anyone ever fin
d out? Did they live happily ever after? In previous entries, he’s apologizing, and I thought it was for cheating on her, but maybe it was for killing his mistress too. I think he was incredibly remorseful.”
“One should be when you commit homicide, hide a body, and cause your home to be haunted.”
“You know what I meant,” she said, elbowing him.
Julian kissed her on the lips. “Okay, honey. Let’s see how this one ends,” he offered, rolling over onto his stomach, as she placed the book between them.
‘Today, I found my wife with my mistress. She discovered the truth and found the box that held her remains. My life stopped since my horrible secret was finally free. In my heart, I hoped that one day it would be a burden lifted from my shoulders, but not by Cherie. I had just found love once more, and in that horrible moment, the truth was there.
It was a horrible sight to behold. The woman who earned my heart, gave me a child, and had become so much to me discovered the truth.
I’m a killer.
Where I believed that she would run from the room, call the police, and have me taken away, she did none of that. All those torturous nights of staring at that wall and doorway, wondering when it was going to be over, and that day had come. Once the truth was free, my wife saved me. As I drowned in the fear, she helped me find my way to the surface. Without hesitating, she grabbed a hammer, some wood, and nails and barricaded that passageway. No more would it be found or accessed. For in that moment, she was telling me that it was time to move on.
I can never undo what I’ve done but in that second, I found the way to live with it. Once the wall was built, Cherie led me out, closed the door, and ordered the room redone. The wall is no longer accessible.
The crypt is sealed.
Taking my hand in hers, she stood by me to offer something that I didn't deserve but so desperately longed for.
Her love.
I’ve begun making payments to the family. It’s blood money, but it’s the best I can do. God help me, but I can’t go to jail and leave my wife and son. I just can’t. Trust me. I’ve suffered so much the last few years. I’ve done my time in hell, and now I look forward to living.
Lost & Broken (LIttlemoon Investigations Book 2) Page 41