We retraced our steps. I figured we would return the cart and our uniforms to the supply closet, but once we were back in the employee only section Lance headed straight for the freight elevators.
“Where are we going?”
“Third floor. Didn’t you hear? Room three hundred twelve is starving. They placed their room-service order forty-five minutes ago. We must get them their food while it’s hot. That’s our job, after all.”
“How are we going to get in?” I asked.
Lance reached into his uniform and removed a key card.
“Where did you get that?”
He pressed the button for the third floor.
“I happened to check my pockets. Good fortune, wouldn’t you say?”
I didn’t say anything as the elevator chugged up to the third floor. Lance wheeled the cart to Piper’s room and knocked on the door. “Room service.”
There was no response.
He tried again. “Room service.”
Nothing.
He took that as a sign and waved the key card in front of the door handle. The lock turned green. Lance’s face lit up as he turned the handle and went inside.
A wave of fear assaulted my body. This was a bad idea.
I hesitated.
A hand wrapped around my wrist and yanked me inside.
“Lance, don’t. This is a bad idea.”
The next thing I knew, a hand covered my mouth with a painful slap and the door locked behind me.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
I dropped the domed plate cover and plate. The room was dark, excepting the tiny shaft of light that escaped between the shades that had been pulled shut. I blinked away bright spots scattering in my field of vision and tried to get out of Lance’s grasp. His fingers were digging into my top lip.
“Ouch,” I murmured. “You’re hurting me.”
He didn’t loosen his grasp.
That’s when I realized the person covering my mouth wasn’t Lance. Lance was on the floor, facedown.
Terror welled in my throat, making it hard to breath.
Piper, I mouthed.
The hand tightened.
I coughed, trying to get more air.
My head bent backward as the person dragged me toward the bed. I struggled to break free, but I was at a disadvantage.
Lance stirred on the floor. He moaned in pain.
Had he been hurt?
My attacker threw me backward onto the bed. It took a minute to get my bearings in the dark and musty room. I blinked rapidly.
Time moved in a strange, slow swirl.
Sweat poured from my forehead. I wasn’t sure if it was from stress or the fact that the heat must have been set at over ninety degrees. It felt like we could grill our pizza in the sultry room.
I pushed myself up to standing at the same moment my attacker lunged for a bedside lamp.
“Piper?” I squinted to try and get a better look.
She stood over Lance with her foot resting on his head and the lamp in her hand. One move and she could crush his skull.
“Don’t even think about it,” she hissed to me. “You move a muscle and he’s dead.”
Lance moaned again.
“Look, this is a mistake. Please don’t hurt him. I’ll do whatever you want.” I tried to appease her.
“I know you will, because by now you must have figured out that I’ve already killed one person. It’s a slippery slope and I’m not afraid to do it again.” She kicked Lance’s head to the side as if to prove her point.
He groaned in agony.
“Piper, please. You don’t want to do this.” I mopped my brow with the back of my hand.
“How do you know what I want?” she sneered. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“I know that you and Benson were married and it ended badly. Do you want to talk about it?” Maybe if I could get her talking, I could buy myself time to figure out how to get out of here.
“You don’t know anything,” she repeated.
“Piper, really I want to help.” I squinted more. My eyes had begun to adjust to the darkness. There was a discarded breakfast tray on the bedside table. I wondered if there was a knife or anything I could use as a weapon.
“Yeah right. I’m not one of your young baristas. I’m a grown woman with plenty of years under my belt. You should have stayed out of it. It didn’t need to come to this, but like I said I’m not afraid to see this through.”
“The police know about you and Benson,” I said, hoping to find any leverage.
“I figured. It’s public record.”
“I don’t understand—how do you think you’re going to get away with his murder?” I slowly inched toward the used breakfast dishes.
“I have a plan.” She stared at the window.
We were on the third floor. Did she intend to jump?
Different scenarios raced through my brain. Could I stop her? If she made a move toward the window, I could tackle her from behind. The second she moved away from Lance, I could try and take her down.
“I don’t understand the threatening note you left for James. Isn’t that going to cast even more suspicion on you?”
“They’ll never trace that back to me.” Her voice had a strange shrill quality.
“What about James?” The slant of light seeping in between the curtains was the only illumination in the room. I had managed to scoot closer to the edge of the bed, but to my disappointment the only items on the breakfast tray were a coffee cup and plate.
“What about him?”
“Did you kill him too?”
“Ha!” She threw her head back. “Like I’m going to tell you.”
A loud horn blared outside.
Piper cleared her throat. “Okay, time to do something with you two.” She paused as if trying to consider her options. The lamp was still clutched in one hand and her foot remained on the top of Lance’s head. She must be thinking the same thing I was. The minute she moved away from Lance, I could spring into action.
Unless she threw the lamp at my head.
I wished I had a weapon. Should I try to throw a coffee cup at her head? I also wished I had listened to my intuition and that inner voice that had screamed for me to walk away.
The horn blared again.
Piper started to lift the lamp.
This is your chance, Jules, you have to make your move—now!
As Piper’s arm raised higher, I leaped from the bed. I stretched my arms as far as they could reach and ducked to avoid being hit by the lamp. My hands landed on her shoulders. I knocked her off her feet and landed on top of her. The lamp shattered on the floor.
Now I had the advantage. I pinned her down.
She was much stronger than I imagined.
I couldn’t hold her off for long.
Lance yelped in pain. He had gotten to his knees. “Help. I’ll get help.”
He clutched his head and crawled to the door.
I could tell that it took all of his strength to reach for the handle and open the door. When he did, light flooded into the room and Lance collapsed in the doorframe.
Piper wiggled beneath me.
I wished there was a way I could tie her up. I didn’t want to fight her.
Suddenly the sound of heavy footsteps echoed in the hallway.
“Here,” Lance waved from the carpet.
Thomas and Kerry along with four other police officers ran into the room. In a flash they freed me from Piper, and had her in handcuffs.
She spewed out obscenities.
Kerry went to check on Lance as two of the officers escorted Piper out of the room. “We need EMS,” she said to Thomas. “He has a large contusion on the base of his skull and is showing signs of a concussion.”
Thomas called the paramedics, while Kerry helped Lance sit up, careful to support his back.
“Jules, come sit down.” Thomas ushered me to the table near the window. He opened the shades and the sliding door, allowing light t
o pour in. “Do you need some water? It’s so hot in here. Can you tell me what happened?”
“No. I’m fine.” That wasn’t entirely true. I was shaken, but adrenaline pulsed through my body. “It all happened so fast. Lance opened the door. Piper must have hit him with something. He was basically knocked out. Is he going to be okay?”
“He’ll be fine. We’ve got the paramedics on the way.” Thomas stood and went to turn down the thermostat. The air-conditioning kicked on right away.
“I know what you’re going to say. We shouldn’t have interfered.” I fanned my face.
“Interfered? I thought you and Lance took jobs. A little extra cash for summer,” he teased, referencing my housekeeping uniform.
“It’s not my proudest moment,” I admitted.
“Jules, you and Lance give us so many laughs. Let’s drop it for the moment and fill me on what went down.”
That put me at ease. I told him all the embarrassing details from sneaking into the loading dock to breaking into Piper’s room.
“How did you find us?” I asked when I finished.
“We were already in route. The Professor found James. He’s okay. Piper tried the same trick on him as she had with Benson—spiking his drink. Fortunately, James tasted something off and ingested only a small amount of the sedative. He finished giving the Professor his statement and that gave us the green light to proceed with an arrest. We had no idea you were here.”
The paramedics arrived and attended to Lance. They bandaged his head and applied an ice pack. Then they loaded him onto a gurney to take him to the hospital for observation. “He’s stable,” the paramedic told us. “With head injuries we like to keep patients overnight.”
I went to check on him before they took him to the ambulance.
“How are you?” I squeezed his hand.
“Terrible. Absolutely terrible. I’ve decided that white is no longer my color.” He touched the bandage. “I tried to tell them but they wouldn’t listen.”
A sense of relief came over me. Lance was fine.
“I’ll come see you at the hospital. What can I bring you?”
“A martini?” he asked hopefully.
“I think the doctors and nurses might frown on that, but I can probably manage a latte and something sweet.”
“It’s a deal.”
The paramedics started wheeling him down the hall. Lance blew me kisses. “Ta-ta, darling. Another case solved. We’re such a team!”
Kerry rolled her eyes.
Thomas chuckled. “You two are something, that’s for sure.” He let out a long exhale and caught Kerry’s eye before addressing me. “However, we should arrest both of you for trespassing, and that’s just for starters. Am I right, Kerry?”
“Yep. I would tack on interfering with a police investigation and breaking and entering. Should we go on?” Her brows creased. “Do you understand that one tiny mistake can cause a mistrial? Or force the court to completely dismiss the case? We have specific operating procedures for a reason.”
“I know. I’m sorry. I guess we got carried away.” I felt terrible. She was right. My gut had told me not to get involved. I should have listened to my inner voice rather than getting swept up into the excitement with Lance.
Her face softened. “Look, Ashland might be a small, tight-knit community. I’m learning more about that.” She glanced at Thomas. “It’s not only our job to apprehend the criminal, but we also have to prove our case.”
“You have to admit, they do keep us on our toes,” Thomas said with a wink.
Kerry shrugged, but a smile tugged on her cheeks. “That is very true.”
I smiled and let out a deep breath. Lance was okay and Piper was in custody. Things hadn’t played out exactly as I would have planned, hence the housekeeping uniform that I needed to get out of and put away. But now that Piper had been arrested, I could sleep easy knowing that Andy’s name had been cleared and the simple life I knew in Ashland could return to normal once again.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Later that evening Carlos and I arrived at the hospital with a basket of pastries and an iced latte. I had told Carlos everything. He didn’t exactly approve of our antics, but he did thank me for my honesty.
“Julieta, I will not take away your friendship with Lance. I know that you love each other. Friendship like that it is so important, but we cannot have secrets. I do not like that you and Lance have helped the police. It worries me to have you in danger, but I see how your eyes light up and I see the wheels spinning in your head. Promise me, you will be safe, okay? This is all I need.”
I had kissed him and lingered in his arms. He was right. Lance and I had formed a strong bond while Carlos and I had been separated, but I wanted him to be part of our friendship. I appreciated that he wasn’t asking me to change. He was simply asking to be involved. That was fair.
Lance was sitting up in his hospital bed and in chipper spirits. “Welcome friends. Sit, make yourselves comfortable.”
“How are you feeling?” Carlos’s voice was heavy with concern. “The bandage looks very big.”
“My thoughts exactly, and for nothing more than a little bump.” Lance lifted his finger and lightly touched the bandage. “Doctors, always overly cautious.” He raised the coffee we had brought for him and winked at me. “Not to worry, they assure me I can break free from this cell soon and be back on the stage where I belong.”
“Not so fast, Lance. You have a concussion. I can’t imagine the doctor thinks it’s a good idea for you to be back at work tomorrow.”
Lance looked to Carlos for support. “Your wife is such a mother sometimes. Tell her not to worry. My little gray cells, as everyone’s favorite Belgian detective likes to say, are in rare form.”
“I agree with Julieta. I think you must rest for a few days. Work, it can wait.”
Lance sunk his teeth into a cherry tart. “What can’t wait are details about our upcoming fete. I need a happy distraction. Do tell, what’s on the final menu and what are we thinking in terms of design?”
Carlos relayed delectable details about every course, and I showed him some of the ideas Steph and Bethany had come up with, including hanging paper lanterns in the trees, using Mason-jar vases for candles to line each row of the vineyard, white linens, and fragrant bouquets of white roses, lilies, and daisies for centerpieces. They wanted to create a photo booth with a white floral backdrop and fun wine props, and Sterling had suggested hiring a local guitar duo to add to the ambiance.
“I love it. I love everything about it,” Lance gushed. “There’s just one problem.”
“What’s that?”
“This bandage. I know it’s on trend with our color scheme, but I cannot look like a glorified mummy at our first vineyard soirée.”
Carlos and I laughed.
“It’s five days away. I’m sure you’ll be able to tone down the wrap by then.”
“You can count on that,” Lance insisted. “Fashion comes first.”
I could tell Carlos was about to disagree, but a nurse came in to check Lance’s vitals, so we made our exit.
“He is kidding, yes?” Carlos asked on our way out.
“Probably.” I took it as a good sign that Lance was more concerned about what he was going to wear than his concussion.
After our hospital visit we headed home, where I spent the remainder of the day on the hammock, per Carlos’s orders, sipping lemonade and reading a book. “Julieta, you have been through enough. Take the afternoon off. I will go make sure everything is ship shape at Torte.”
I must have dozed off. Sometime later Carlos returned to find me still lazing in the hammock. He brought me a fragrant gin and tonic with muddled lime and fresh mint. Then he proceeded to make us a gorgeous dinner of grilled salmon, risotto, and a shaved Brussels sprout salad. We reminisced about our travels and he showed me pictures that Ramiro had sent from Spain. It was a happy distraction from the strange string of events. Never before I had been so gratef
ul to have the comfort of Carlos’s embrace.
I reminded myself not to forget that as I drifted off to sleep.
The next morning I woke feeling refreshed and ready to face the day. I wasn’t sure if that was thanks to yesterday’s siesta or knowing that Benson’s killer would be brought to justice. Carlos still refused to let me walk to Torte alone.
It was business as usual at the bakeshop. Andy was the first to arrive. “Morning, boss. How goes it?”
“Pretty good. How goes it with you?”
“Great. I heard about Piper. That’s nuts. I didn’t peg her as a killer.”
“How did you hear?” News spread quickly in Ashland, that was for sure, but I wondered if the Professor or Thomas had intentionally looped Andy in so that he knew he was off the hook.
“Carlos told us.”
“Oh right. I forgot he stopped by.”
“Yeah, he filled us in on the whole story. You and Lance brought her down—literally. You’re a beast, Jules!” Andy gave me a fist pump.
“I don’t know about that, but yes, Lance and I were there.”
Andy went to fire up the espresso machine. I replayed yesterday’s events for Sterling, Marty, and the rest of the team when they arrived. It felt good to talk about it and get it off my chest. It was almost like every time I told the story, it took away some of the remaining angst in my body.
The person I wanted to talk to the most was the Professor. My wish was granted shortly after opening. He and Mom came in through the front door.
“Honey, how are you? How’s Lance?” Mom hugged me tight. She took off a thin pale blue cardigan and hung it on the rack.
“I’m fine and Lance is consumed with how he’s going to coordinate his bandage with his outfit for the dinner in the vines.”
Mom chuckled. “In other words, he’s fine.”
“Exactly.”
Mom spotted a group of her friends from Pilates. “I know you two have lots to catch up on, so I’ll go say hello to the girls.”
The Professor gave me a half bow. “Shall we step outside and compare notes?”
“That would be lovely. I have so many questions.”
He opened the door for me. Our outdoor tables were empty. “Is here good?” He moved to the table farthest from the door. Large galvanized tubs that moonlighted as planters divided the tables. The Professor wisely had picked the most private one, shaded by a five-foot Japanese maple tree.
Mocha, She Wrote Page 21