by Jessica Beck
“Here. Drink this.” Georgia and I had made a fresh pot of coffee just before she’d gone to bed, so I was ready for Grace.
She took the mug in both hands after she sat up and drank deeply. “Okay, that’s better. How do you do it, Suzanne?”
“Do what?”
“Get up so early every day.”
“It’s a real achievement,” I answered. “Come on. I’ve got an idea.”
“That sounds intriguing,” she said as she stood, nearly spilling her coffee as she did so. Once we were away from the others, she asked, “What are we going to do?”
“Do you have any lipstick with you?” I asked her.
“Seriously? You want a makeover?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Do you have some, or don’t you?”
“Sure,” she said. “Let me get it out of my bag.”
“Be quiet doing it,” I reminded her. “We don’t want to wake anyone up.”
“You know me. I’m as quiet as a cat.” She then proceeded to bang her big toe on an end table and nearly sent a lamp crashing to the floor before she managed to catch it at the last second, grimacing the entire time.
“Are you okay, kitty?” I asked her.
“I’ll live. We both know that I’m not exactly at my best this time of day.”
“You’ll be fine.”
She got her lipstick and handed it to me when she returned. “What are you going to use it for?”
“We’re going to leave the killer a message,” I said. “Follow me.”
“What do you think?” I asked Grace as I stepped back and admired my work. I’d taken her lipstick and written a message on the hall mirror where someone was bound to see it sooner or later. It was far enough out of sight of the main reception hall not to be immediately noticeable, but once anyone approached it, they wouldn’t be able to miss it.
In lipstick, I’d written,
“YOU’RE GOING TO PAY FOR WHAT YOU’VE DONE.”
“Should you write something a little less vague?” she asked me.
“I would if I could, but in the first place, there’s not a whole lot of room for a manifesto, and in the second, I can’t be more specific than that, because I’m not exactly sure who it is that I’m threatening. I think it looks particularly ominous written in that shade of red, don’t you?”
“It’s ghastly,” Grace agreed.
“There’s just one last touch we need to add, and then we’re both going to forget that it’s even here.”
“What are you going to do, stick a knife into the wall beside it?” Grace asked me.
“I hadn’t thought of that. Do you think it would work?”
“It would certainly terrify me,” she said. “Hang on. I’ll be right back.”
“I’m coming with you,” I said as I started to follow her.
“You can’t. What if somebody wakes up and sees this before we’re ready? You need to stand guard and distract them. I’ll just be two seconds.”
“If I count to three and you’re not here, I’m coming after you,” I said.
“That’s fine with me,” Grace answered.
I knew that she was gone less then fourteen seconds, because I counted every last one of them, but it felt as though she’d left me an hour ago. I was about to start looking for her when she suddenly returned. “I had trouble finding one big enough,” she said with a grin as she showed me a knife from the kitchen.
It was massive.
“Should I stick it into the wall?” she asked with glee.
“Hold on. I thought of one more touch while you were gone.” I pulled out the bandana we’d recovered from Hank’s body and then held it up against the wall. “Do you think you can pierce it without stabbing my hand in the process?”
“There’s only one way to find out,” she said as she jammed the tip of the knife through the bandana and into the hard southern yellow pine. If she hadn’t hit a seam between the boards, the knife probably would have bounced off, but somehow it managed to strike home. When Grace released the blade, it stayed perfectly in place, and we both took two steps back and examined our work.
It gave me the chills, and I was the one who’d come up with the idea in the first place.
“Wow, that should certainly get someone’s attention,” Grace said.
“Now all we have to do is ignore it until someone else discovers it,” I said.
“I’m not so sure I can do that,” she said. “So, did I miss anything while I was sleeping?”
“As a matter of fact, you did,” I said. I really wanted to share what Georgia had told me, but I’d made her a promise, and I was bound by my word to keep it.
“Well, don’t hold out on me. Spill.”
“All I can really say is that if one of my witnesses is telling the truth, there’s a chance that Nicole isn’t as free of blame as she’s been leading us to believe. Whoever tried to push her over the edge may have had plenty of reason to do it.”
“What do you mean?” Grace asked. “Suzanne, did you promise someone not to tell me what you learned?”
“I’m sorry. It was the only way I could get her to talk to me.” I was safe using the female pronoun, since Grace and I knew that only the women had survived this trip so far.
“I get it, but that kind of puts us in an awkward position, don’t you think?”
“What could I do?”
Grace thought about it for a moment, and then she said, “Tell me everything that you can, without breaking any confidences.”
“That’s the problem. I already did. Suffice it to say that if my source is telling the truth, which to be honest with you, I’m not sure about at all, then there was more happening behind the scenes than we were aware of.”
“Well, that’s cryptic enough,” Grace answered. “So all we really know now that we didn’t know before is that Nicole may have actually done the same thing that Georgia and Janelle tried to do. Georgia’s your source, isn’t she?”
“I can’t say.”
“You don’t have to,” Grace said with a smile. “After all, you two just worked a shift together before you woke me. It had to be her. Suzanne, I wouldn’t believe anything that woman told me if I were you. She’s most likely just trying to muddy the waters so we can’t see what she’s really up to.”
“Do you really think that’s what’s happening?” I asked her.
“Trust me. She never expected you to keep your promise to her not to tell me. In fact, I’m guessing that she was counting on you running straight to me with all of the juicy details. She’s the kind of woman who would rather lie, even when the truth would suit her better.”
“Okay. Now I’m more confused than ever.”
“So then, it’s mission accomplished for her.”
It was still dark out, and we’d done everything I’d felt safe doing while everyone else was sleeping so close by. “What should we do now?” Grace whispered. “There’s really not much need to stand such a vigilant guard, since we know for a fact exactly where Hank is right now.”
“Maybe so, but we can’t give the killer another shot at Nicole.”
“True. How about if we sit over by the fire and at least get warm? I swear, it’s getting colder in here by the minute.”
I looked over and saw that the fire was indeed beginning to die down. Walking over to it, I placed a few more logs on it, and then I took the poker and stirred up the ashes a little. Hefting the iron piece in my hand, I realized that it might make a decent weapon, certainly better than the ancient golf club I’d grabbed before.
Grace and I sat on the couch where I’d slept, spending the time in a little whispered conversation but mostly comfortable silence. I didn’t know if it was the warmth of the fire or because of the time I’d spent awake, but I suddenly awoke with a start as daylight crept in and touched my cheek.<
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I glanced over at Grace and saw that she’d nodded off as well.
So much for serving guard duty.
We’d both managed to fall asleep.
I just hoped that nobody had suffered because of our negligence.
Chapter 22
“Grace, wake up,” I said for the second time that morning.
“I must have fallen asleep. Sorry. At least you were awake.” She must have read something in my expression. “Suzanne, tell me you that didn’t fall asleep, too.”
“I wish I could, but I dozed off myself.”
Grace stood suddenly, alarmed by my admission. We moved from person to person, not being satisfied until we saw signs that everyone under our care was still breathing.
It looked as though our lapse hadn’t cost anyone their lives, which was a massive relief.
Celia was the last person we checked, and even as were confirming that she was still alive, her eyes opened and she saw us both looming over her. “What’s wrong? Did something happen to Nicole?”
“No, she’s fast asleep,” I said, pointing in her direction farthest from the fire. “Did you still want to make breakfast, or would you like me to do it?”
“I’m happy to cook,” Celia said, standing and stretching a little. “We have a problem, though.”
“What’s that?” I asked her.
“I’m not supposed to go into the kitchen alone, but there needs to be two people out here guarding the others. How do we manage that?”
“I’ll go with you,” Janelle said. “I’m awake, and I’d be happy to lend a hand. I make breakfast for my kids just about every morning before school. It’s kind of a ritual for us.”
“Fine. We’d better get started, then,” Celia answered.
After the two women went off to the kitchen to get to work, I had a nagging feeling that something had happened while Grace and I had nodded off.
“Stay right here,” I said as I decided to check on the hall mirror message we’d left.
“Suzanne, there is no way that you’re going anywhere on your own, even to the bathroom.”
“What about them?” I asked.
“They’re on their own, as far as I’m concerned. It’s about time everybody else got up anyway.”
“Okay. Come on then.”
“Where are we going?”
“To check on our handiwork,” I said.
Only when we got to the mirror, everything we’d done earlier had vanished: the message, the bandana, and even the knife.
Someone had taken advantage of our negligence and had carefully removed all evidence of what we’d tried to do.
The question in my mind: was that a good thing or a bad one?
“What happened?” Grace asked me as she stared at the mirror.
“Someone must have done it while we nodded off,” I said. I studied the mirror and saw a few smudges from the lipstick writing, but to the casual observer, there was no sign of anything that we’d done. I rubbed my finger where the knife blade had stuck into the wall, but it was hard to even see where it had bitten into the wood. Whoever had removed the traces of our work had done a pretty thorough job of it.
“Who would do this, Suzanne?”
“It had to be the actual killer, don’t you think? Why else would she want to keep the rest of us in the dark? As far as she knows, Hank is still alive and stalking her. Alarming the rest of us wouldn’t do her any good.”
“So we’re looking for the person who took away our warning,” Grace said. “That’s not going to be easy, is it?”
“Has anything been that way so far?”
“No, you’ve got a point. I’m not sure how we proceed from here on out.”
“It’s pretty simple, actually,” I said. “We just keep our eyes and ears open and hope the killer slips up somehow. At least Nicole didn’t see our warning. I’ve been worried ever since we did it that she might be upset by the fact that someone left us all a reminder that they weren’t finished with trying to get rid of her yet.”
“I guess that goes in the silver lining department,” Grace said.
“Are you two ready to eat?” Nicole asked us as she approached us. “Celia and Janelle say breakfast is ready.” She leaned forward and checked her lipstick in the mirror, and I was relieved to see that at least we hadn’t added to her stress level. “I can’t wait to take a shower again. Last night was the first time in forever that I didn’t do a deep cleaning scrub after taking off my makeup. I even got some on my pillow and a little on my sleeve. We’re practically living like animals. I wonder how long we’ll be stranded here.”
“Surely they’ll come get us today,” I said, trying to sound positive.
She looked hopeful at the thought. “Really? That would be marvelous.” Nicole glanced toward the stairs leading up to the second floor. “I can’t believe Hank is still hiding somewhere in the lodge. When do you think he’ll show himself?”
“As soon as someone rescues us, I’ll bet we see him,” Grace said.
“I hope so. We have some things to talk about, that’s for sure,” Nicole said. “I’m beginning to realize that I was a little too cavalier with his feelings, and I want to apologize for the way I’ve been acting. I hope he takes me back. The more I think about it, Hank might just be the love of my life.”
I didn’t have the heart to tell her that particular opportunity was gone forever. Things were bad enough without her discovering that the last conversation she’d had with her former boyfriend would be that indeed, the last one she’d ever have.
Georgia popped into the hallway. “What’s going on out here?”
“We’re just chatting,” I said.
She looked at me with alarm in her eyes. “About what?”
“Hank,” Nicole said. “We’re wondering when he’s going to show himself.”
“Maybe when he gets hungry enough, he’ll pop up,” Georgia said, clearly relieved that I hadn’t betrayed her trust after all. “Speaking of food, Celia won’t let the rest of us eat until you three join us, so let’s go.”
“We’re coming,” I said, and all four of us made our way to the kitchen.
I found it interesting that Georgia hadn’t glanced at the mirror even once. Was she overcompensating trying to hide what she’d done earlier, or was it a simple oversight? I honestly couldn’t tell.
The pancakes were delicious, better than I could have made myself. After eating my third one, I asked, “How did you make those taste so wonderful?”
“Hunger is a pretty good sauce,” Celia said, clearly pleased with my praise.
“It was more than that, Sis,” Nicole said. “I must admit that I’m impressed, too.”
“I’m glad you all like them,” she said.
I took another bite. “There’s definitely cinnamon there, and some nutmeg as well. But there’s something I’m missing. Could it be allspice?”
Celia grinned. “Wow, you really have a sophisticated palate, don’t you?”
“I make donuts for a living, remember? I know my way around the spice rack. Would you care to share your recipe with me?”
“I’d be happy to,” Celia answered. “Are there any volunteers for doing the dishes?”
“Why don’t we let them wait?” Nicole asked. “Suzanne believes that we’re going to be rescued soon, and I want to make sure Hank is okay before someone else comes along. I don’t know why, but I’ve got a feeling that he’s somewhere on the grounds, too hurt to join us. It’s the only thing that makes any sense. If he could, I just know that he’d be down here with us right now. Does anyone have any objections to conducting another search?”
“I suppose it will give us something to do while we wait to be rescued,” Dina said.
“Why not?” Janelle replied.
I wasn’t all that excited about looking for so
meone I knew couldn’t possibly be there, but I couldn’t exactly say that out loud without tipping my hand. “Let’s do it. Grace and I will take this floor.”
“Actually, I think we might be better off looking in different places than we did last time.”
“Honestly, Nicole, there are only so many areas someone can hide in,” Georgia said.
“I suppose you’re right. If there are no objections, I’ll assign the teams this time. Dina, why don’t you, Janelle, and Georgia start in the attic and work your way down to this floor? Suzanne, you and Grace can check the basement this time, while Celia and I explore the cottages outside. I’d like some time with my sister, if no one minds.”
I could hardly object to that, and apparently neither could Celia. “That sounds good,” I said.
“Then let’s get busy. Remember, call out if you find anything.”
“So, to the basement?” Grace asked me once the other groups went about their routes.
“Sure. At least it shouldn’t take us long.”
I headed for the door, with Grace on my heels.
We were two steps down the stairs when I heard the door suddenly close behind us.
I went back to check to be sure that it hadn’t been by accident.
When I tried the doorknob, it was locked, and as I called out for help, I heard something heavy being pushed in front of the door.
Someone had trapped us in the basement.
While I didn’t have a clue who might have done it, or more importantly, why, I realized that things must be coming to a head sooner than I’d expected.
One of our party was trying to take Grace and me out of the equation.
That wasn’t going to happen, though, not if we could help it.
Chapter 23
“What just happened, Suzanne?” Grace asked me as she joined me at the top of the stairs.
“Someone’s locked us down here,” I said, frantically trying to open the door.