Someone came and sat next to her. Put an arm around her. ‘Emily?’ she heard the voice but couldn’t recognize it. ‘Emily, it’s Annie.’
‘Annie,’ she said reaching out her hand. ‘Peggy … Peggy’s covered in blood. Annie, you have to help her.’ She reached up her hand, trying to grab Annie’s arm.
‘I know,’ Annie said, pulling Emily close. ‘The police are here and the ambulance. Why don’t you let me hold Maggie? That way you can rest a bit.’
Emily nodded her head and released Maggie to Annie’s arms. ‘What’s happened, Annie? What’s happened to Peggy?’
Emily got up from the floor and walked to the door of the suite. The scene outside was chaos − police cars and ambulances, their lights flashing, sending streams of color into the night. Uniformed officers carrying flashlights darted in and around the buildings, into the nearby bushes, down to the bay beach. People milled around, voices hushed, eyes haunted. As Emily watched a car pulled up from beyond the beach.
‘Everyone, please move back from this area. I know you’re all concerned, but please, we have work to do.’ Thomas’ voice was calm and authoritative. He knew how upset these people were, but he had to get some order here. ‘OK,’ he yelled, pointing to an officer standing near the door to Emily’s suite. ‘Move that ambulance over there into the parking lot. Turner is down. Get the medic. Millard, you take over that scene. Once they’ve moved Turner, comb that parking lot. He must have come in from there, maybe left that way too. Get some lights set up and make sure no one’s allowed there but our people.’ A uniformed man carrying a large case with EMS on its side moved quickly toward the lot. Two uniformed officers followed him.
‘Martin,’ Thomas said to a stunned Martin Maitland, who stood with his head bowed just beyond the door to Peggy’s suite. ‘Martin, I know how this has shaken you, but please, I need your help. We have to get all of these people out of here. We need to search every suite. They all have to be moved somewhere.’
Martin looked startled for a moment, shook his head slightly and turned to Thomas. ‘Of course, Thomas, the dining room. I’ll send Nelson and some staff up there to get it ready. Best to have them all in one place,’ he said, walking off with a determined look on his face.
Thomas turned to his men. ‘I want every inch of this resort searched. Keary, take these six men and scour this place, and I mean everywhere. Start with the dining room, now. Then the Maitlands’ house. Let me know as soon as the dining room is cleared. Have two men start up there, door to door, every room. Send the guests up to the dining room. No exceptions. No one stays. Hendricks, you get these units here and these people. We need some space to work. Move them out.’
Thomas disappeared into Peggy’s suite. Emily could see the shadows of the men inside moving slowly around the bed. She could not help but picture that scene in her head. She saw the flash of a camera, over and over. Soon an older man, carrying a bag, made his way through the door. She recognized him from the news conference – the medical examiner. She turned her face away. Annie sat on the bed with the sleeping Maggie. Tears freely streamed down her face. ‘Poor baby,’ she said, over and over.
A young police officer stood at the door. He cleared his throat. ‘Mrs Maitland,’ he said quietly. ‘We’re moving everyone out of here. Inspector Moller would like you and Miss Harrington to head up to your house. We’ve cleared it and we have an officer up there.’
For a moment neither Annie nor Emily could say a word. Emily looked at Annie and nodded slightly. Annie turned to the officer. ‘Please ask Thomas … some things … for the baby.’
He nodded.
The resort was ablaze. There were lights everywhere – every room, every walkway. As soon as Emily and Annie left the suite, they were joined by a very shaken-looking Detective Erasmus. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said. ‘I don’t …’ He started to say something and then stopped. ‘Let’s head up to the house. Mrs Maitland, would you like me to take the baby?’
Annie shook her head, no. They walked in silence watching as the police went from room to room and guests headed up to the dining room. Annie was sure that Martin had everything under control. That was his strength. Whenever there had been a problem or crisis over the years, she could always count on Martin to step up. He somehow had that ability to separate himself emotionally from what was going on and find ways to work things out. Of course, there would be no working this out.
When they got to the house they found every light on and a uniformed police officer at the door. Inside, Annie was happy to find her brother, Christopher, and Martin’s sister, Alice. Usually she was quite content with the quiet of her own house, but not tonight. Alice motioned to take the baby but Annie shook her head. Maggie had started stirring and Annie wanted to get her to bed. Emily said nothing, still unable to process what had happened.
Annie led Emily into the guest bedroom and nodded towards the bed. Emily slipped off her sandals and, without saying a word, lay down. Annie put Maggie down beside her and placed a rolled-up pillow under the mattress on the other side of the bed. She covered both of them with a light coverlet and turned out the light.
TWENTY-EIGHT
He had to get out of there quickly. The damn baby. He should have gotten her too, but he hesitated when he saw her sitting there in her crib and then it was too late. He couldn’t take the chance that someone had heard and was on the way. He ran to the parking lot, turning to see if anyone had spied him. The path was empty but he saw motion at the window of the suite next door. The redhead. He wanted to wait around, but knew it wouldn’t be long before she discovered the body.
He passed the cop lying on the ground. That had thrown him. The babe in the neon-green bikini from the beach – a cop? Just shows you can’t trust anyone these days. Hope she isn’t dead, he thought. Always a mistake to kill a cop. He jumped in the car and turned the key easily. He left the lights off and, trying not to make a sound, drove slowly out of the lot. About two miles down the road he pulled over in a deserted spot right near the water. He quickly stripped out of his black shirt and pants, splattered now with her blood. He rolled them up into a canvas bag and put on his khakis and a blue T-shirt. Checking to see that there were no other cars on the road, he walked over to the edge of the water, put a heavy rock into the bag, tied the top and tossed the thing into the waves below. After that he tossed the knife, throwing it high in the air and watching it arc in the sky then drop quickly in to the water. Little chance of anyone finding that.
He headed back to the Java. He drove fast on the empty road, pushing the car, wanting to get back before Rico went off duty at eleven. He knew he was cutting it close, but even if he was a few minutes late he knew Rico liked to hang out at the bar after work. Free drinks.
When he got to the parking lot, it was almost empty. He pulled the car into a spot, put the keys in the glove compartment and took off. Rico wouldn’t even know what time he got back. He walked over to the Bongo Club. It was pretty crowded so no one would recall when he came in, but he made sure the bartender noticed him and a couple of the girls. They’d remember him being there if he needed an alibi. After a couple of minutes he picked up a bleached blonde chica sitting near the bar. He ordered the required drinks, a balashi for him, a white wine for her, and after the second round he handed over the ten bucks to the bartender for the room key and a condom and headed upstairs.
It didn’t take long; it usually didn’t. These were experienced working girls and time was money. That suited him fine. He’d head back downstairs to the bar and hang out for a while. He’d have a couple of beers and now that he’d already had his chica, they’d leave him alone. Give him some time to think.
The night had gone pretty smoothly. With her out of the way, he thought, he was home free. The car couldn’t be traced to him even if someone saw it. And he didn’t think anyone did. Anyway, there were thousands of those old beat-up cars on the island. He was careful not to leave any prints behind and he was in and out of that room in two minutes. Th
at sketch wasn’t good enough to nail him. And now that was all they had. Except … that redhead. He was pretty sure there was movement behind those shutters – had she seen him? He couldn’t be certain. He’d have to pay careful attention to the news reports. Any hint of a witness and he’d have to take care of her too.
He was afraid he was going to have to take another trip back to the Bluffs. But at least he didn’t have to worry about getting on the grounds. This time, they’d call him.
TWENTY-NINE
Emily awoke with a start. The room was dark with just the soft glow of a night light in the corner. For a moment, she couldn’t remember where she was, but then it all came crashing back to her. She looked over at the sleeping Maggie and felt tears spilling from her eyes. Quietly, she slipped out of the bed, put her pillow under the mattress and left Maggie nestled among the covers.
She walked slowly to the living room, unsure whether she was ready to see people. But she only found Christopher sitting on a corner of the couch.
She sat down next to him. ‘Peggy’s dead?’ she said, her eyes lowered to the floor.
‘She is.’ Christopher nodded.
Emily closed her eyes for a moment. ‘Do they know who … what—’
‘No,’ Christopher said. ‘They’re still down there … I don’t think they know much. One of the policemen was injured − the one who was guarding the path from the parking lot to the bay beach. She was found unconscious. They took her to the hospital.’
Her? Emily thought. Oh, God, was it Grace Turner? She put her head in her hands and for a moment she could feel the hysteria rising up in her again. She had to get up; she had to move. She quickly walked over to the veranda door and started to open it, but when she saw a figure outside she gasped and slammed it shut.
‘It’s all right, Emily,’ Christopher said, coming over to her. ‘It’s just a police officer.’
‘Are we the only ones here?’ She hoped so. Christopher’s quiet presence was somehow soothing and it gave her a chance to compose herself. ‘How long was I asleep?’
‘Just about an hour.’
‘What time is it?’ Emily had lost all sense of time.
‘It’s almost three … Annie and Alice are in the kitchen and Martin is at the main house.’
‘What’s happening down there?’ Emily had seen the lights beyond the veranda.
‘I think they’ve almost finished the search. All the guests are in the dining room. That’s where Martin is. He’s arranged coffee and drinks and some food. Trying to keep everyone occupied. I don’t know how he does it. I’m sure he can’t wait till they can all go back to their rooms.’
‘I’m glad it’s quiet here. I don’t think I could bear noise right now.’
‘I’m afraid it won’t be quiet for long, Emily. Can I get you something? Coffee, tea, maybe a drink?’
‘No, nothing right now, thanks.’ She turned and started over to the big easy chair in the corner. She sat and curled her feet under her. ‘It’s cold in here. Is it cold outside?’
Christopher picked up a throw from the couch and brought it over to her. ‘It’s a little cool in here – that’s the air conditioning. It’s still pretty warm outside.’ Christopher was sure the cold she was feeling was from shock. ‘I think a drink might warm you,’ he said. ‘A brandy, maybe.’
‘We should have moved up here. We never should have stayed down there.’
‘Those thoughts won’t do any good now.’
‘Maybe if I had said I was going to move, Peggy would have too.’
‘Emily, don’t,’ Christopher said, handing her the brandy.
‘She said it wasn’t worth moving, it would just be for one night. She was going …’ Emily dissolved into tears. ‘She was going … home. Said she couldn’t stay … couldn’t take that kind of chance with … with Maggie. We never really thought …’
Annie came into the living room. She looked weary and drawn like the rest of them. ‘Emily,’ she said, coming over to the chair and reaching her hand out to stroke Emily’s hair. ‘You’re shivering. Let me get you something warmer.’
Annie came back in with a warm robe. ‘Here, put this on,’ she said, helping Emily into it. She was taken aback by how Emily looked – her skin pale, almost grey, and deep, dark circles under her eyes.
‘Oh, Annie, this is my fault,’ Emily said, her voice choppy, her thoughts disjointed. ‘I should have said … I could have … It would have made a difference. Why didn’t … I should have tried to convince Peggy, instead—’
‘Emily don’t, this is not—’
‘We should have listened to you.’ She looked up at Annie, her eyes haunted. ‘I knew you were worried but we didn’t really think … couldn’t imagine that … Oh, God, why did we stay down there?’ Her voice dissolved into sobs.
‘Emily, drink some of that,’ Christopher said as he got up to pour another brandy, this time for Annie. ‘Here, Annie.’
The phone rang and they could hear Alice pick it up in the kitchen. She spoke for a minute or two and then hung up. ‘That was Martin,’ she said, joining them. ‘He said most of the guests were going back to their rooms; the search is finished. The police are going to do some interviews; Nelson set them up in the office. Martin’s heading up here and so is Inspector Moller.’
‘I suppose Thomas will want to talk to me.’ Emily looked wearily at Annie.
‘I imagine he will, Emily.’
‘I’m just going to check on Maggie.’ Emily couldn’t face a conversation with Thomas. This was her fault; he had tried to warn her. But she … they both thought the extra security … Oh, poor Grace.
She headed towards the guest room and quietly opened the door. She could see Maggie curled up sound asleep, her thumb placed securely in her mouth. Emily stepped into the room and closed the door. She walked over and sat on the floor beside the bed. For a few minutes she just sat there, listening to Maggie’s steady breathing. She didn’t want to talk to Thomas. She didn’t want to talk to anyone. She only wanted to stay here in the dark and listen.
It wasn’t long before she realized she couldn’t hide here. If they came to look for her they would wake Maggie and she couldn’t have that. Somehow she would have to face this. She got up quietly and headed back to the living room just as Martin and Thomas arrived. Martin’s face was grey; his eyes bloodshot. Thomas came over to Emily immediately. He put his arms around her and held her close.
‘Oh, Thomas, why didn’t we listen to you?’ Emily said as she started to sob.
Thomas drew her out onto the veranda. ‘Give us a minute,’ he said to the others.
Emily burrowed into his arms. ‘What was wrong with me?’ she said. ‘I should have—’
‘Hush, Emily, don’t. I’m the one who should—’
‘No, no. I knew you were worried. I should have paid more attention. I just didn’t believe anything like this could possibly happen. I thought … I don’t know what I thought. But I should have tried to convince her. And … and then, when she said she and Maggie were going home, and it would be just for one night, I thought it would be OK … just one night … I thought …’ She couldn’t continue; her body was wracked with sobs.
‘Emily, stop. You’ve got to stop. You aren’t to blame for what’s happened. Peggy made up her own mind. You didn’t make the decision for her. Look, none of us could have known. Yes, I was worried, but even I didn’t think … Hush … hush,’ he said as he held her. ‘I’ve heard from the hospital. We need to go back inside. We need to talk.’
Emily tried to get herself under control. It was clear that Thomas had questions that she had to try to answer. He led her back into the living room. The others sat quietly, no one quite sure what to say. Martin held Annie’s hand and put his arm around her shoulder. It was clear she’d been crying again.
‘Look, all of you. This has been a terrible tragedy and personally devastating for you, but I need you to answer my questions. As far as we know, you were the last people to see Peggy a
live.’
‘Can you tell us what happened, Thomas?’ Christopher asked.
‘At this point, it looks like Peggy was stabbed twice.’ Annie and Emily both gasped. It was hard to hear the stark reality. ‘She died almost instantly. We’ll know more after the autopsy. Now we’re trying to piece together a timeline for what happened earlier in the evening.’
‘Emily and Peggy left the house right after dinner,’ Annie began, her voice strained.
‘OK, I left here about eight, so what time was that?’ Thomas asked.
‘It was about eight-thirty,’ Christopher said. ‘Henri and I walked with them as far as the beach bar. We stopped to have a drink but Emily and Peggy walked on.’
‘We were tempted, but Peggy felt uncomfortable. You know how people are, Thomas − looking and whispering. And she wanted to get Maggie to bed. She wanted them both to get a … a … good …’ Emily had to stop.
‘Did you see anyone on your way, anyone who looked strange, out of place, nervous?’
‘Just the usual – guests, wait staff at the bar,’ Emily answered.
‘Christopher?’
‘No one. We had a drink with Marietta and Nora and then headed back to our room.’
‘What time was that?’
‘That must have been about nine-thirty.’
‘Were there people still at the bar?’
‘Just a few – a young couple who were sitting at the bar talking to the bartender and an older couple who were settling their bill. That was it.’
‘Did you go straight to your rooms, Emily? Did you see anyone down that way?’
‘We went straight to our rooms and we didn’t see anyone. It’s usually quiet down there and tonight it seemed more so. It seemed lonely. As I said, Peggy wanted to get Maggie to bed so they went straight in. I went in, took a quick shower, had a glass of wine and that was it. I didn’t hear another sound until …’ Her voice cracked.
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