The Tempting Taste of Danger: An Angel Lake Mystery (Walking Calamity Cozy Mystery Book 5)

by CeeCee James

  “Hey! Anyone here?” A male voice caused Elise to look up.

  She pasted on her best customer service smile. “Back here!” she called.

  The bell dinged again and this time male laughter filled the air. The sound was jarring in the quiet bookstore. Elise set the book under the counter and walked forward to meet the group.

  “Shhh,” one of the men said, waving his hands to quiet his friends. He was heavy-set, and his face was flushed, with skin the texture of an orange peel. His eyes lit up at the sight of Elise, and he quickly looked down.

  “There he goes,” his dark-haired buddy said with a smirk, “Catches a sight of a pretty woman and blows up like a puffer fish.” To imitate his friend, the dark-haired man puffed his cheeks out and hid his face like he was shy.

  “Shut up, Tim!” The first man shoved his friend in the shoulder.

  “Leave him alone,” a third man said. This one looked a bit more put together than the other two. He straightened his business jacket and pushed up his glasses. “Y’all are hammered. That’s what you get for having lunch at Tobacco Johns.”

  Elise’s ears perked at the name of the well-known sports bar. Lovely. Three drunk men. Wonder what books they’ll have me search up?

  “Can I help you?” she asked.

  The heavy man gave her a slow appraisal from top to bottom. Elise crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a stern look. He stood unsteadily on his feet.

  “Up this way, I guess?” The jacketed man gestured to the stairs.

  “This is your idea, Steve. Lead the way.” Tim clapped the large man on the back.

  “Murder, mayhem and mystery await.” The last man said, starting up the stairs.

  “What if we can’t get out in time?” Steve looked nervous despite the intoxication.

  The third man ran his finger across his throat in a dramatic fashion.

  Steve pushed him. “Yeah, whatever. Anything happens to me and I’m suing YOU.”

  Ignoring her, the three of them pounded up the stairs, the heels of their leather dress shoes echoing throughout the bookstore. At the top, Steve tried the knob. It didn’t open. He scratched his head as his forehead creased in confusion.

  “I guess they don’t want us in there, then.” He laughed.

  “Get out of the way. You don’t know the secret knock.” Tim pushed the two others out of the way and thumped on the door.

  Still no answer.

  Elise heard one darkly mutter, “Are you serious? I left the game for this?”

  “Just chill out. They’re coming.” Tim looked at his watch. “We’re like two minutes early.”

  “I can’t believe I let you talk me into this,” the big guy grumbled.

  “Knock it off. It’s supposed to be really cool.”

  Just then, the bell dinged again as the store’s door opened, and Jake materialized in the doorway. “Greetings,” he said in a formal tone, his flannel shirt buttoned to the neck. “Welcome to the Rabbit Hole.” He jogged up the stairs.

  One of the guys chuckled.

  Jake started in with the game’s rules. “If you can get out within sixty minutes you win two hundred dollars. Don’t take anything off the walls. Every clue you need will be easily accessible.”

  “What if we can’t get out?” the big guy asked. “After all, we’re bankers, not handymen.”

  “Your funeral.” The guy with the glasses smirked again. “And don’t lump me in with that. I’m pretty good with my hands.”

  “At the end of sixty minutes, if you’ve failed to solve the puzzle, a loud buzzer will sound and the door will automatically open,” Jake answered above their bantering.

  “Automatically, huh? You’re not opening it?” A worried look from Steve.

  Jake shook his head. “It’s set on a timer.”

  The men raised their eyebrows as they glanced at each other. Elise could see that the thought of being locked in there, dependent on an automated door, wafted away the last bit of alcohol fumes.

  “What about the door knobs?” asked Tim.

  Jake shook his head. “Once you’re in there, you’re stuck. If you have an emergency, there’s an intercom on the wall that you can push to contact someone to help you. But only use it if you have an emergency, not just if you have a question.”

  “What happens if we solve it before the sixty minutes?”

  “The door unlocks and the two hundred bucks are yours.” Jake unlocked the door and gestured with his hand. “You ready to give it a shot?”

  “I don’t know, Steve isn’t looking so hot about getting locked into a room now,” said Tim.

  “Shut up,” Steve growled. He pulled at his shirt collar and jerked his chin. Then, clenching his arms in a show of bravado, he pushed the door open. “All right. Let’s go.”

  The three men shuffled through the doorway and the door closed with a loud, ominous click behind them. Having been in there yesterday, Elise knew what they were seeing. The spiraling neon lights, the fluorescent flowers and mushrooms. She’d found it very disconcerting.

  After a few moments, she figured they’d probably located the arrow on the floor and was following it. She could hardly wait to see them in an hour. There would be no way they’d be winning the money.

  Jake came down the stairs two at a time. “I’m just going to get a quick bite to eat across the street. I’ll be watching from the restaurant,” he called to her at the door. “Thomas is waiting there with the laptop set up already.”

  Elise gave him an okay sign and meandered back to the coffee station. With a sigh, she pulled out the book again.

  I can finish this. It’s just one book. I won’t let it beat me.

  But, just like last time, her mind began to spin. The words ran together across the page.

  Bang! An avalanche of thumping came from the last aisle in the store. Startled, Elise jumped from her stool and ran back there. The stack of books she’d just built for a display had fallen from the table and onto the floor.

  Darn it. Books lay in piles, some with open faces, some with their spines creased. She stooped to begin gathering them up.

  As she piled them back on the table, she heard the bell chime over the entrance again. She scooped up the last few and set them on the table, then walked to the front of the store.

  There was no one there.

  Brow wrinkled, she meandered through the store, trying to be as unobtrusive as possible as she glanced down each aisle.

  Where the heck did they go?

  Each aisle was empty—a testament to the slowness on a Tuesday afternoon. I know I heard that bell. Chewing her lip, she walked back to the front. Maybe it was someone who’d wanted a cup of coffee and saw the counter was empty, so they’d left? Frowning, she returned to the back table and began stacking the books into the display.

  Another bang happened. Elise jumped. This one was overhead and she looked up as the muffled thumping continued. The men must be in the second room now. Something heavy fell, so hard that dust sifted down from the ceiling. Elise leaped back, her mouth open. What in the world?

  A wail sounded next, high and unidentifiable. It came again—a scream for help.

  She ran for the stairs.

  Chapter 5

  Elise ran up the stairs and grabbed for the doorknob. She twisted it hard but it wouldn’t open. Panic struck her and she slammed her shoulder against the door to jar it loose. On the other side, the men pounded and jerked at the door.

  “Help! Help!” they screamed.

  “What’s going on? I’m trying to get it open!” She yelled, slapping the door.

  “Get us out of here!” The wood reverberated under their fists.

  Elise took a step back, eyeing the door. She’d never seen it locked from this side before. Suddenly, she remembered the hidden passage and skirted back down the stairs. The men’s cries took a desperate note as they heard her retreating steps.

  She raced across the bookstore to the door marked “broom closet.” With sweat-s
oaked hands, she wrenched the door open and then pounded up the steps. Her heart felt like it was choking her as she reached the door.

  It was quiet up here at the back of the building. Her footfalls sounded loud in the hush, and the men’s voices were faint. She twisted the doorknob and felt a flutter of relieved shock as it opened under her hand.

  The door still didn’t open. She remembered Jake mentioning hanging a picture there and shoved hard. There was a clatter as whatever it was fell to the floor. Thank God it wasn’t tacked well.

  Inside, the room was dark with the exception of the flashing neon lights. The strobe blinking made her sick to her stomach.

  She walked inside and waited for her eyes to adjust to the light. Across the room was the other door where the group of men was trapped. She started towards it.

  After a few steps, she froze.

  A dark shadow blocked the door.

  She squinted hard at it, trying to discern what it was. Light flickered over it, showing it to be large and low to the ground.

  She gasped when the light flashed on a pale face.

  It was Steve.

  He was slumped over, his face half-covered by an arm. One of his dress shoes was missing, showing a toe that poked through a hole in his sock. Glancing about, Elise located the shoe about three feet away.

  He wasn’t moving as she ran to his side.

  “Steve? Are you okay?” She grabbed his arm and shook him.

  Steve’s arm fell limply to his side like a hunk of meat. Elise drew back with a shudder as he stared with sightless eyes.

  “No,” she whispered as she dug in his neck to feel for a pulse. Nothing. “Steve?” she screamed and shook him harder.

  The men in the other room heard her and came pounding on this room’s door. Their kicks vibrated through the wood and shook Steve’s body resting against it.

  Using all her strength, Elise reached under his arms and tried to move him so he could be flat on his back and away from the door. She grunted under his weight. The smell of the man’s cologne mixed with the odor of vomit. Holding her breath, she tugged and finally shifted his body a few inches. She opened the door a crack.

  One of the men on the other side tried to open it more. Cursing ensued as the door resisted. Like a bulldozer, the men began shoving the door.

  “Stop!” Elise screamed. “Steve’s right here. You’re pushing into him! Call 911!”

  “You don’t think I already did that?” a panicked voice answered her. “Is he okay?”

  The door nudged against Steve’s limp form again. Elise used the momentum to help roll the heavy man. Tim was able to squeeze through the crack. Elise positioned Steve’s chin up and gave him three quick breaths. Tim knelt to feel for a pulse.

  “Nothing!” he called as the other man filed in. Tim began to do CPR on his friend, while the third man with the glasses swept past Elise and ran down the back stairs.

  “Come on, Come on,” Tim muttered as he compressed Steve’s chest. After twenty-five compressions, Elise pinched Steve’s nose and gave him two breaths.

  The room felt alive with electricity.

  Nothing.

  Finally, sirens could be heard. Paramedics filed up the back stairs and took over the CPR. They loaded Steve onto a gurney and brought him down the stairs, leaving Elise alone with Tim.

  She pushed back to sit on the floor with her face in her hands. Her mouth tasted sour. Never in her life had she felt more tired and sore, even after running the half-marathon.

  Tim sat next to her, his head resting against the back wall.

  Jake ran up the stairs with Thomas behind him. His eyes were wild. “You guys okay?”

  Elise nodded. “Did you see what happened on the camera?”

  Thomas shook his head. “No, it went black so we came to see what was wrong. Saw the ambulance here….” he trailed, off, his eyes wide with terror. Elise could only imagine that they were worried about how exactly the guy got hurt at their business.

  As the two young men went back down the stairs, Elise heard Jake say, “I can’t believe that just happened.”

  I hear you. Did that just happen? Elise glanced at Tim, who looked equally as shocked. “I’m so sorry.” She reached out to touch his elbow. “You did a great job.”

  Tim rubbed his hands through his hair and stared blankly down the stairwell. “Yeah. You did, too.”

  “Your friend is going to be okay.” Deep in her heart, Elise knew that was a lie. She’d seen Steve’s eyes and recognized that look.

  “I hope so.” He didn’t seem to believe it either. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

  They both walked down the stairs, meeting a police officer on his way up. The officer turned and headed back down, and the group of them convened at the bottom of the stairs.

  Outside, the ambulance took off. Elise noticed the lack of siren with a sinking feeling.

  Tim shoved his hands into his pockets. The third guy with the glasses stood staring at the floor, looking lost and dazed.

  Jake and Thomas waited in one corner with an officer. Another officer walked up to Elise. He held a pad of paper, and two frown lines formed on either side of his mouth. “Can you give me a few words about what happened up there?”

  “Uh, yeah.” Tim began. “We were doing the puzzles—we’d actually just finished the one at the table—and the door opened. Steve went through. Then, just like that, the door shut as if it were controlled. Brian and I were locked in on the other side.”

  “We heard Steve yell for help.” Brian’s face paled as he interjected.

  “Yeah. He yelled for help, and then there was a loud bang. It sounded like he’d fallen. I tried the door. Brian tried the other. We were trapped. We started banging for help and called 911.”

  “And when did you come into this?” the officer asked Elise.

  “I heard them yelling and ran to open the door.”

  “You ran that way?” The officer indicated the back stairway with his pen.

  “Yes, when I couldn’t get the main door to open.”

  “How did you know about that back stairwell?” The officer raised his eyebrows.

  “My boss showed it to me on my first day on the job here.” Elise was curious at the suspicious tone the officer used.

  “Hmmm,” the officer gave Elise a steely look, making her feel even more uncomfortable. “So, you were down here alone the entire time while they were up there?”

  “Well, I work here.” Elise shrugged as a way of explanation.

  “Do you know if this place has any security cameras?”

  “Just one that I know of,” Elise said.

  “Do you know where to access the video?”

  Elise nodded. “It’s in the back room. It downloads to Dave’s computer.”

  “Where does this camera focus?”

  “On the bookstore’s main attraction. Over there.” Elise pointed.

  The officer took a few steps in the direction Elise indicated. “Over here? Is it pointed at that?” His mouth turned down even more with apparent skepticism.

  Elise followed to show him the book stand.

  She gasped. The glass on the display case was smashed and lay in pieces on the ground. The book was gone.

  Just then, the officer’s mic squawked with a code. He frowned as he answered back. Turning to the two men, his face wore a sympathetic look. He took a deep breath and addressed them both. “I’m sorry. It seems they were not able to resuscitate your friend. They’ve coded him DOA.”

  Dave arrived soon after and closed the bookstore as the police conducted their investigation. Jake and Thomas sat slumped with depression on the bottom steps of the staircase. An officer reviewed the surveillance video from Dave’s computer, while others were upstairs searching the Escape room that was now cordoned off with yellow tape.

  After the officer’s questions were answered, Dave walked Elise out to her car, past the many police cars. His face seemed to hang even longer with misery at the sight of
them blocking his store.

  The two of them stopped at her car.

  “How are you really doing?” she asked as she rummaged through her purse for her keys. He’d been saying he’s okay but poor guy. A murder in his store and his family heirloom stolen.

  “Honestly, I—I’m a little shocked,” he said, his mouth set into two grim lines. He rubbed his beard and hmmmed.

  Elise nodded, feeling very discombobulated herself as thoughts pinged around. “Hang in there, okay?”

  Yeah, don’t worry about me. He clapped her on the back. “All right, unless you hear from me, I’ll see you tomorrow.” After giving a wave, he walked back inside.

  Elise started her car and sighed. She rubbed her thumb against her fingers. That’s weird. There as an oily residue on her hands. What in the world did I get into? She held it to her nose but it didn’t have a scent. Frowning, she found a napkin from the glove box and wiped her hands. All right. I need a long hug and an even longer bath.

  Chapter 6

  The next morning, Elise felt like time was moving in slow motion. Everything she did, she ended up having to redo again. She grabbed for her hair brush only to drop it twice. Her sneakers kept untying. The cat food bag split down the middle when she picked it up, scattering kibble across the kitchen floor. Later, when she spilled her cereal, she decided to give up on trying on having a normal morning and just headed straight to work.

  As she locked her door, she noticed her new neighbors were both outside. They’d just rented the house a few weeks earlier. She’d been meaning to meet them, even had a package of cupcakes she’d bought as a welcome present, but time, as usual, kept getting away from her. She glanced at her watch and, with a sigh, she ran back inside for the treats.

  Feeling a bit awkward and in a rush, Elise walked across the street with the plastic container. The neighbors were busy in their garage. The scent of freshly mowed grass hung in the air.

  “Hi,” Elise said, trying not to startle them. She sounded more chipper than her morning had made her feel. “I’m Elise. I’m your new neighbor.”