Deja Vu

by Samantha Gentry

  She returned to her room to gather her thoughts about the mansion and what she wanted to investigate. She took a few minutes to study Fred’s detailed drawing, typical of an architect. The mansion was much larger than she realized with many more rooms than she had thought even after seeing it from the road. The first floor contained an entrance foyer, formal living room, two smaller parlors, a billiards room, formal dining room, kitchen with informal dining area, three bathrooms, and a very large ballroom that opened onto a terrace through four sets of French doors. There seemed to be some type of an enclosure connected to the ballroom that had an outside entrance, but Fred had not identified it. With the exception of the informal dining area off the kitchen, the entire first floor seemed to be for the purpose of entertaining guests whether personal or business related.

  The second floor contained guest accommodations consisting of twelve bedrooms and six bathrooms split evenly on each side of a central hallway with every two bedrooms sharing one bathroom between them.

  The third floor consisted of a combination business office and owner’s private retreat. One end of the hallway held a small conference room and office along with a half bath. The rest of the floor had four bedrooms, each with a private bath, an informal common room including a television viewing area, a kitchenette, and eating space for the family’s private use. The drawing indicated a dumb waiter going from the main kitchen on the first floor to the kitchenette on the third floor. Many of the rooms in the mansion had fireplaces, undoubtedly from the days prior to central heating.

  Lexi grabbed a light weight jacket and shoved a mini audio recorder and her digital camera into her pockets. She wanted to be able to record her thoughts and any questions that occurred to her as she looked around. And being alone, she could take pictures of what she wanted without someone else wondering why she found that particular thing important.

  After getting directions from Dolly of where to find Hank, she left the house and set out on the paved road that led to the dock, the same one Gable had used to drive her to his house when she arrived. She hadn’t gone very far before the fog totally obscured Gable’s house. She stopped walking, closed her eyes, and took in a deep breath. The air smelled of a brisk combination of rain, damp leaves, pine, and the ocean. She listened. Rather than the fog shrouding any sounds, it seemed to enhance them. She could hear fog horns, a couple of boats, the waves hitting the rocks, and even seagulls. She also heard some type of pounding, most likely whatever Hank was doing.

  Then the image exploded in her mind again. The mud sliding toward her, the out of focus face, the skull, and finally the skeletons—this time more vivid than any of the previous assaults on her senses. A cold shudder moved up her spine, followed by a lump in her throat and a churning in the pit of her stomach. She hugged her shoulders in an attempt to fend off the shivers, but not from the cold. Her insides trembled to the point where she felt as if she had no control over her own body. Even though she still didn’t understand the message trying to get through to her, this time the vision truly frightened her on both a physical and emotional level.

  This time it felt very real...and very personal.

  She tried to shake off the uncomfortable feelings, but without much success. Then a new sensation hit her, an eerie awareness of someone watching her. Someone obscured by the fog. Someone laying in wait. Someone wanting to harm her? The possibility sent a hard jolt of fear racing through her veins. It played on her already tautly stretched nerves. A genuine sense of alarm welled inside her. She fought the desire to run blindly down the road. But toward what? And away from whom? One thing loomed abundantly clear…she needed to move on, to get away from this spot that radiated a feeling bordering on evil.

  Lexi hurried down the road toward the mansion as she fought against the almost uncontrollable urge to continually glance over her shoulder. The panic built, layer upon layer. The danger close on her heels, almost as if it could reach out and grab her. Only the paved road under her feet offered any comfort or relief from the overwhelming sensation. The large Victorian mansion became visible through the fog, but would it provide a sanctuary? A safe haven?

  She paused in front of the carriage house behind the mansion, taking a minute to catch her breath. The noise coming from inside told her Hank was at work. She furrowed her brow into a bit of a frown. If Hank was there, then it couldn’t have been him watching her in the fog. Logic…she needed to put some logic to all of this, to somehow ground her fears. She tried to gather her determination. Surely the vision of the mud and skeletons triggered the eerie sensation of being followed. Her imagination had obviously run amuck. In truth, there wasn’t anyone watching her. Sucking in a calming breath, she opened the door to the carriage house.

  “Hello, Hank. I’m sorry to interrupt your work. Dolly told me I’d find you here. Gable has given his permission for me to look around inside the mansion. Would you unlock the door for me, then I’ll get out of your way?”

  “Dolly told me you’d be ‘round this afternoon wantin’ to snoop inside.”

  “Well,” she allowed a nervous chuckle she hoped sounded casual rather than filled with the irritation his comment created. “I don’t think snoop is appropriate. It’s part of my job and Gable did say it would be okay.”

  “Ain’t nothin’ much to see.” Hank reached in his pocket and withdrew a key ring, then left the carriage house at a swift pace headed toward the mansion. His abrupt departure left her scrambling to catch up with him.

  “I’d love to sit down with you and Dolly when you have a few minutes and talk to you about what it has been like working here. The changes over the years with the different owners. The differences between working for Winthrop and working for his father.” She cocked her head and raised a questioning eyebrow. “Maybe even test your memory of what happened the night of the costume party when Winthrop and Evelyn disappeared?”

  “Like we told the sheriff back then, me and Dolly don’t know nothin’ about it. We was busy workin’ in the kitchen when the storm knocked out the power. We wasn’t invited guests in the ballroom enjoyin’ the party with the upper crust of society.”

  Hank glared at her, then unlocked the front door without making any further comment. Lexi watched as he returned to the carriage house, leaving her alone on the front porch of the old Victorian mansion.

  The moment she entered the foyer, her previous anxieties disappeared. It felt as if she had stepped through a portal into another place and another time. She closed her eyes for a second as the sensations washed over her. She could visualize the days of conspicuous opulence that accompanied the Roaring Twenties. Prohibition with its bootleggers and homemade bathtub gin. Jazz. Flappers. Lavish parties. A magnificent tribute to the extravagances of the wealthy in times gone by. The power and influence of the celebrities, politicians, and captains of industry who had been guests in the mansion during the days when Winthrop’s grandfather owned the island, before the stock market crash of 1929 brought the country to its knees, followed by the years of the Great Depression.

  When the island had been inherited by Winthrop’s father, Charles had kept the mansion preserved in its original style and decoration while modernizing plumbing, heating, and electrical. A year after Winthrop’s disappearance, the estate had sold the island. Subsequent owners had also chosen to keep all but the top floor of the mansion in its original style while upgrading the kitchen and bathrooms.

  And according to what Fred had told her, Gable intended to do the same even though the mansion would now be the main building of a luxury resort. The resort guest rooms in the mansion would maintain the style of the original rooms as would the lobby and other common rooms such as the restaurant, café, cocktail lounge, and gift shop.

  Assuming Gable actually intended to build the resort.

  And what about Gable himself? Just being around him made her pulse race, yet she couldn’t ignore the mixed signals he seemed to be sending her way. One minute his attitude said he didn’t want her on the i
sland. Then he not only included her at dinner with his business associates, he showed up at the door of her room to make sure she joined them for lunch rather than eating in the kitchen with Dolly and Hank as she had done the day before. And even to the point of asking if he could escort her to the dining room.

  Maybe her visions didn’t make any sense yet, but one thing had become very clear. She found Gable Talbot as fascinating as he was mysterious. Perhaps doing research on her host should be a priority. Although she didn’t have a rational explanation for it, she didn’t believe his story about living off family money. But the fact remained that he seemed too young to have acquired enough money on his own to buy Skull Island and build a resort. Assuming the money actually belonged to him. Again, the thought popped into her mind. Could he be the key figure in an investment scam?

  She pulled the recorder from her pocket and pushed the record button. “Check amount of money paid for Skull Island and the amount of the mortgage held by the lending agency.” She turned off the recorder, thought for a moment, then clicked it on again. “Also any information available on Gable Talbot.” The mysterious Gable Talbot, as captivating as he was enigmatic.

  And so very desirable.

  After putting the recorder in her pocket, she took out the small digital camera and wandered around the ground floor. Everything she saw captured her interest—the furnishings, the accessories, the rooms themselves. Beautiful hardwood floors. Crown molding. She picked up several objects in the living room, inspected them, then put them back where she found them—any one of the period accessories probably worth a great deal of money. She immediately noted the lack of dust on the furniture. Did Dolly clean the mansion on a regular basis in addition to taking care of Gable’s house? That was a lot of work for one woman and she wasn’t that young anymore. Perhaps Gable did his own cooking, laundry, and daily picking up after himself. Or maybe Dolly had made a special point of cleaning the mansion due to the presence of Gable’s business associates, especially with the architect and contractor being in and out of the mansion during the course of the meetings.

  Lexi checked out the other rooms on the ground floor, then opened the double doors with the beveled glass inserts and took one step across the threshold into the ballroom. An unsettling wave crashed through her, carrying vibrations of deception, danger…and murder. This was the room where Evelyn and Winthrop were last seen. When she cautiously ventured farther inside the magnificent ballroom, the feeling disappeared as quickly as it had arrived.

  She stood in awed silence as her gaze traveled around the large room and took in the exquisite and lavish surroundings including the crystal chandeliers. She finally managed one word. “Wow!”

  The expression on her face totally mesmerized Gable as he stood back from the double doors, watching her. As soon as he had dropped off his business associates at the dock where they boarded the boat for the mainland, he floored the accelerator of the electric cart and headed straight for the mansion. When he found the front door unlocked, he knew she would be inside.

  Alexandra Caldwell had occupied far too many of his thoughts since her arrival. He had spent a long time on the intricate details of his plan. He didn’t have time to devote to figuring out why he found her presence so alluring or what there was about her that made him want to pull her into his arms and kiss her long and hard. He watched her for a few seconds longer. And the more he observed of her, the more he wanted to know everything about her.

  But caution rang loud and clear in his head. What did J.D. Prescott really want with the research about Skull Island and the resort plans? Or was it actually J.D. Prescott who wanted it? Exactly what role did Lexi play in all of this? Had her letter about researching for J.D. Prescott been honest or did she have some hidden scheme of her own? He only had her word for the fact that she had been hired by Prescott. Damn. I hope she’s not one of those investigative reporters looking to write a book about a thirty-year-old disappearance. Now that his meetings were concluded and business associates gone, perhaps it would be prudent if he confirmed her identify.

  All his carefully constructed plans could be in jeopardy. Yet he couldn’t stop his thoughts about her from straying to the personal.

  To the very personal.

  “It certainly tells a tale of days gone by, doesn’t it?”

  Lexi physically jumped at the sound of his voice and whirled around until she faced him. An audible sigh of relief escaped her throat. A smile spread across her face as she put her hand next to her pounding heart. “You scared the hell out of me!”

  “I’m sorry.” He walked across the room to where she stood. “I thought you heard me come in. I should have called to you from the front door.”

  “That’s quite all right. I was so absorbed in the atmosphere of this room that I probably wouldn’t have heard you.” She glanced around the ballroom again. “This room fascinates me.” Her gaze fell on an object for a second or two before moving on, her obvious appreciation growing with each new item she encountered. “The parties must have been the epitome of elegance and grace. How marvelous that all the owners through the years chose to leave the mansion in its original state, especially this room.”

  “Only this floor and the second floor with the guest bedrooms have been kept in their original style with the exceptions of the necessary upgrades to kitchen, bathrooms, and the electrical wiring. The third floor is contemporary. In fact, it’s almost like a self-contained apartment. If this house was on the mainland and the third floor had a private entrance, it could be considered a rental unit separate from the rest of the house. With four bedrooms, it would accommodate an entire family. I haven’t quite decided whether I’m going to break it up into individual rooms, suites, or keep it intact to rent to a large group such as family members vacationing together.”

  “Why didn’t you take over the third floor as your personal vacation property rather than build a different house just across the small meadow?”

  “Because I wanted the privacy and separation from the resort…” He reached out and touched her cheek, an involuntary gesture that he couldn’t have stopped even if he wanted to. “And its employees and guests. The bulk of the resort buildings will be located in the opposite direction from the mansion than my house.”

  “Then why not…uh…why not on the other side of the island rather than so close to the mansion?”

  Consciously he knew he needed to back off. Intellectually, he knew he didn’t dare start something that might side track him from his all-important primary agenda. But he didn’t seem to be able to stop himself from twining his fingers in her hair. He heard her quick intake of breath and saw a combination of confusion and what he hoped was desire dart through her eyes. The silky tendrils fluttered across his skin, accompanied by a tightening in his chest. His gaze dropped to her slightly parted lips, a mouth that beckoned to him. One that needed to be kissed thoroughly and often.

  Gable’s grasp on his will power had been tenuous at best. In an incendiary flash, the final traces of self-control totally deserted him. He brushed his lips against hers, not knowing what to expect from her in return. There was a moment’s hesitation on her part, something more akin to surprise than uncertainty. Then he felt her soft touch on the back of his hand as it rested on her cheek. She didn’t pull away from him. It was all the encouragement he needed.

  He pulled Lexi into his embrace as he lowered his mouth to hers again. It started out as a gentle kiss, one having as much of a surprisingly emotional feel to it as it did a hard rush of physical desire. Her arms wound around his neck and her mouth responded. She tasted of sweetness and passion, an enticing combination. And he wanted more.

  Much more.

  But years of planning and preparing could not be set aside. He had initiated his carefully worked out scheme. There would be no turning back until he had achieved his goal. Nothing…and no one…would deter him.

  He threaded his fingers in her hair again. As much as he needed to get on with his own bu
siness, he was not ready to stop the delicious kiss. He came within a breath of exploring the recesses of her mouth with his tongue, of tasting the tantalizing essence of the woman who had continually intruded into his thoughts from the moment the boat delivered her to his island.

  He held her tighter, caressing her shoulders and running his hand down her back. Knowing he needed to step away and put some physical distance between them pulled at him equally as strong as the knowledge that he couldn’t relinquish his hold on her.

  Lexi was the one to break off the kiss, but she did not step away. The spell she cast over him had not been broken. He quickly captured her mouth again, but held the kiss for only a couple of seconds before relinquishing his hold on her. Even though he took a step backward, he couldn’t bring himself to eliminate all physical contact. He continued to clasp her hand, slowly lacing their fingers together.

  He forced some words in a desperate attempt to bring the situation back to a neutral place, to where he had control of his desires. “How much of the mansion have you seen? Have you been upstairs yet?”

  Her answer came out as a breathless whisper. “I’ve only been on the first floor.”

  “Then allow me to take you on a tour of the upper floors. If you have any questions, I’ll be glad to answer them.” He led her toward the massive curved staircase that went to the second floor landing then continued up to the third floor.

  It was a smooth transition as if the kiss had never happened, except for the fact that he continued to hold her hand. They ascended the stairs and he took her through each of the guest rooms. Then they continued to the third floor.

  She experienced an immediate sense of loss when he released her hand and stepped aside at the top of the staircase so she could go through the door to the third floor. It had taken her a moment to recover from the surprise when his mouth came in contact with hers, then she had willingly accepted his control. Everything about the kiss definitely exceeded her fantasies about him. Excitement had coursed through her body. The sensation fulfilled everything she had hoped it would and more.