by Lisa Boone
Ashton dropped the newspaper and glared at the fighter as she stepped across the threshold. “Oh, stop complaining. You’re getting paid, aren’t you?” She pressed Rory into Sarah’s arms before kissing her sister on the cheek. “Here’s your dog. Did you know he’s afraid of storms? Poor thing’s been crying since it started raining.”
Sarah ran her hand over Rory’s head as he smothered her face in relieved kisses. “He’s never been afraid before.”
Unbelting her blue raincoat, Ashton poked her head into the living room. “It’s about time you opened the door,” she said going from one room to the next. “Casey and I have been trying to get someone to come downstairs for the last ten minutes.”
“Was that you tapping on the windows?” Sarah gave her sister an annoyed look as Jamie came down the steps. Rory squirmed in her arms until she set him on the floor. Once released, he bounded over to Jamie in excitement.
“How did you find us?” he asked picking the dog up and holding him in his lap.
Ashton slammed the closet door she had been inspecting before glancing around the foyer as though she was considering buying the place. She gave Jamie a passing glance as she continued to snoop. “You wrote the directions to the Addams Family Mansion on my file, remember?”
“Ashton,” Sarah hissed, flashing Jamie an embarrassed look.
“Lovely place you have here,” Ashton said.
“Thank you,” Jamie said dryly.
“This place is creepier than the Addams Mansion.” Casey jerked his thumb towards the sheet covered coat rack. “You’ve been in here how long? That hasn’t creeped you out at all?”
“It’s just a coat rack,” Sarah said, not wanting to admit it had bothered her before they had arrived.
“It is creepy. Take it off,” Ashton ordered, nodding in approval when he did as he was told.
“Where are your manners?” Sarah hissed.
“Manners?” Ashton raised an eyebrow as she pointedly looked from Sarah’s tee shirt and pajama bottoms to Jamie’s bare chest and back again. “From the looks of things, he’s practically family now. Might as well let him get used to us.”
Sarah turned away with a groan.
Ashton smiled. “The police are looking for you two.”
“What do they want?” Jamie asked.
“Nathan Blake reported the sound of gun shots coming from his stables, but when they went to investigate, you two were missing. When the police stopped by looking for you two a few hours ago, I figured you both were headed this way.”
“Did you tell them where we were?” Jamie asked.
“No,” Ashton said. “I didn’t want to waste their time in case I guessed wrong.”
Jamie set Rory on the floor. “Did you two come alone?”
“Alone?” Casey repeated from the doorway. “Why yes, we’re alone. I’m alone.” He turned to glare at Ashton. “I’m single now.”
Ashton rolled her eyes as she passed him and walked to the library. “Trust me. I did you a favor. If any man talked to me the way that girl was talking to you, I would have shown him the door.”
Casey pressed a hand to his forehead. “Do you have any aspirin?”
Jamie sighed. “Did anyone follow you? Did you tell anyone where you were going? Does anyone know you’re here?”
Casey started to open his mouth to answer but snapped it shut when Ashton raised her hand and ordered, “Don’t answer that.”
“Why in heaven’s name not?” Sarah asked.
“Creepy house,” she said gesturing to the walls. Her chin jutted out toward Jamie, “Former convict. Too many scary movies start out this way.”
Jamie chuckled. “That’s funny.” He looked at Sarah. “Why is your sister here?”
“Ashton?” Sarah started to reach for her sister’s arm.
Ashton grabbed the paper bag out of Casey’s hand. Smiling brightly, she held the bag out to her sister. “I came bearing gifts. It’s your favorite,” she said in a singsong voice as she shook the bag.
“Food?” Sarah asked before snatching the bag out of Ashton’s hands. “Oh, I could kiss you two,” she said as she placed the bag on the console table.
“Food’s a bit cold.” Ashton’s gaze flickered to Casey. “We got lost on the way here.”
Casey jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “Did you see the monsoon I was dealing with out there? We’re lucky we got here alive.”
Ashton waved her hand dismissively.
Sarah opened the bag and dug in while Jamie approached the door and looked outside. She glanced at Jamie out of the corner of her eyes as she stuffed her mouth with fries. “Are you hungry?” she asked over a mouthful of food.
He shook his head, clearly more interested in whatever was outside. He glanced at Casey, lowering his voice to a whisper, “Did anyone follow you?”
“Didn’t see a soul for the last ten minutes,” Casey said.
“Don’t relax too much,” Ashton said with a meaningful look at Jamie. “Fletcher came by looking for you two. He showed up a few minutes after the cops left.”
Sarah’s eyes widened with worry. “Are you okay? What did he say?”
“I didn’t talk to him,” Ashton said. “I was outside walking Rory when I noticed him standing at our window. I know I locked the door when I stepped out, but somehow he got in.”
“What did you do?” Jamie asked.
“I called the police, but by the time they arrived, he had slipped out the back.” She bit her lip. “Your file with the directions to this place was lying on the dining room table. He flipped it over before he left. I thought I better come and warn you, so I went to Casey’s and we came straight here.”
“I’m so sorry, Casey,” Sarah said.
He smiled as he ruffled her hair. “Ah, it’s okay, kiddo. She’s paying me a fortune to be here.”
“I’m hoping the police are keeping Fletcher busy,” Ashton said, “but just in case they’re not, we need to get out of here. For all we know, he could be here any moment. Our plane leaves tomorrow night. I already have a room reserved in a friend’s name outside of town. We can stay there until we’re ready to fly to the Bahamas. Madison won’t tell me where’s she’s staying, but I’ve got a pretty good idea where she is.”
“The Bahamas?” Sarah asked. “You must be joking.”
“That’s a great idea,” Jamie said coming up behind her.
“I’m not going to the Bahamas,” Sarah said turning toward him.
“Sarah.”
She pressed a hand to his chest. “I don’t want to leave you.”
“We talked about this.”
“I never said I would go. You need me here. If we could figure out what happened the night Robin died, we might be able to end this. I know you think Fletcher will tell you, but what if he doesn’t?”
He cupped his hands around her face. “You have to go. It’s not safe for you here.”
“It’s not safe for you either. Jamie, what if he kills you?”
“He won’t.” Drawing her into a hug, he kissed her on the forehead. “I promise.”
Ashton cleared her throat. “I hate to interrupt this touching moment, but the man could be here any moment. We can discuss our options on the way back to town.”
Sarah held out her arms. “I don’t have anything to wear.”
“I brought your suitcase with me,” Ashton said, placing one hand on the doorknob and motioning for her sister to follow her. “It’s in the car.”
“Jamie still has to get dressed,” Sarah said.
Jamie slowly shook his head. “I’m staying here.”
Sarah touched his arm. “But you heard Ashton, Fletcher may be on his way.”
“I know, Sarah. That’s what I want.” He brushed her hair off her forehead. “But I don’t want you here. You have to go, Sarah.”
Sarah closed her eyes. “How will I know whether you’re okay?”
“Casey has a cell phone, doesn’t he? We’ll use his to communicate. I doubt Fle
tcher would bother tracking him.” Jamie pulled out a drawer in the table and brought out a piece of paper. He scribbled a phone number down. Handing it to Sarah, he said, “If you get scared or if anything strange happens call me. I’ll come and get you.”
“How? You left your car at Kristen’s.”
“I’ve got an old motorcycle out back. It’s not pretty but it still runs.”
She sighed in defeat, prompting Ashton to open the door and Casey to scoop Rory up in his arms. “Just promise me that you’ll be careful.”
“I will,” he said.
Hesitating, not wanting to leave Jamie alone to face Fletcher, Sarah glanced up the staircase. “I left my boots upstairs.”
“I brought you a pair of tennis shoes,” Ashton quickly said. “They’re in the car.” She glanced up as she stepped outside. “At least the rain has stopped.”
Sarah felt Jamie lay his palm against the small of her back.
“Fine,” she said throwing up her hands, “let’s go.” She was halfway out the door when Jamie took her hand in his and stopped her. She looked back at him expectantly.
“Sarah, I …” He swallowed hard.
“What?”
“I-I just wanted to say…well, just in case, I thought…”
“What is it, Jamie?”
Ashton leaned on the horn, causing her sister to glare at her through the mist.
“I’m going to kill her,” Sarah said quietly.
“I’ll follow you all to the highway just to make sure everything’s okay,” Jamie said, his hands sliding down her arms.
“What were you going to say?” Sarah asked turning back to him.
He tucked her hair behind her ears before kissing her gently. “I’ll tell you the next time I see you. Don’t worry. Everything’s going to be fine.”
Sarah nodded as she reluctantly moved out of his arms and across the cold, wet pavement to the waiting truck. Rory immediately bounded over the front seat and landed on her lap. They waited for a few minutes until Jamie came around the side of the house with his bike before turning down the long driveway toward the road.
Cuddling Rory to her chest, she curled her bare toes on the truck’s carpet. Her anxiety grew as the house slowly disappeared from view.
“Relax, Sarah,” Ashton said. “Even if Fletcher saw the directions there’s no reason to assume he’s on his way here. I wasn’t even sure you’d be here.”
“Yet you still came.” Sarah pushed her sister’s briefcase out of the way, as she lifted her knee and turned around in her seat, keeping her eyes on Jamie’s headlight. She narrowed her eyes, watching for any sign of another vehicle as the long, bumpy road narrowed into a lane barely wide enough for one car much less two. She shivered as the branches slid along the window. “Fletcher will too.”
“I don’t know,” Casey said, his fingers drumming along the steering wheel. “The police know what he looks like. He’s probably hiding somewhere, laying low, until things blow over.”
Ashton yawned. “And by that time, we’ll be on a beach somewhere with Madison and her new beau.” She smiled. “I can’t wait to see her expression when we show up.”
“Have you told her what’s going on?” Sarah asked.
“No, I didn’t want to worry her. I figure we’ll just tell her when we get there.”
“I told Ethan,” Casey said, turning onto a four lane highway. “He’ll be waiting for you at the airport when you get there. He probably told her.”
“Well, there goes that surprise,” Ashton said.
Sarah kept watch on the road behind them until they reached the highway and Jamie turned off onto a side road. Her gaze fell to her sister’s briefcase lying on the seat next to her. She played with the three-digit combination, smiling as the briefcase popped open.
Ashton’s head jerked toward the sound. “What are you doing?”
“Nothing.”
“How did you get in there?” she asked with a scowl.
“You’ve had the same combination for as long as I’ve known you. Madison and I used to read your diary all the time.”
Ashton’s mouth fell open. “What?”
“We know things,” Sarah said with a small smile as she pulled Jamie’s folder open.
“Why have you kept quiet till now?”
“Madison’s been waiting for the right time to tell you.”
“What? You’re thinking of blackmail? Your own sister?” Ashton turned in her seat with a huff. “I hate to disappoint you but I have nothing to be embarrassed about. I have led a spotless life—”
“Martin Glick,” Sarah said simply as she shifted Rory to her side and laid the file on her lap.
Ashton snapped her mouth shut.
“Who’s Martin Glick?” Casey asked.
“Oh, just someone I went to high school with,” Ashton said breezily.
Sarah cleared her throat, but otherwise didn’t say anything as she picked up a battery operated book light and flipped it on. She turned her attention to the file in front of her as her sister continued to explain who exactly Martin Glick was while leaving out all the juicy details.
Her eyes widened as she read the police report covering Robin’s death.
After a moment of silence, Sarah spoke up. “What time does our plane leave?”
“A little after eleven tomorrow night—” Ashton paused for a second before shaking her head. “Or rather tonight.”
“We have all day then,” Sarah mused, running her hand down Rory’s fur.
“For what?” Ashton asked suspiciously.
Sarah flipped through the file. “I want to talk to someone before we go.”
“Who?”
“Maggie Shane.”
“We don’t have time,” Ashton said with a definitive shake of her head.
“Sure we do,” Sarah said. “The flight doesn’t leave until eleven.”
“Who’s Maggie Shane?” Casey asked glancing at her through the rearview mirror.
“According to my sister’s file—excellent detective work by the way—she was Robin’s best friend.”
“Maggie wasn’t her best friend,” Ashton answered before turning back to Sarah. “Maybe when they were in grade school but Maggie was no longer in the in-circle by the time Robin died. It appears her mother and father had fallen on hard times and they were no longer part of the horsey set when Maggie reached high school.”
“Then why did Robin call her the night she died?” Sarah asked tapping her finger against the police record that Ashton had copied in her quest to learn more about the man Sarah loved.
“She didn’t call Maggie,” Ashton said. “She called the Howard Hotel.”
“Where, coincidentally, Maggie worked. We need to find out what they talked about.”
“Did you read the police report? All of it?” Ashton asked. “She told the police what they had talked about. Robin called the Howard Hotel looking for a room to rent.”
“Where surprise surprise, her friend worked at the front desk.”
“Ex-friend,” Ashton pointed out. “They hadn’t been friends since grade school.”
“According to who?”
“According to Maggie. Maggie said she didn’t even know it was Robin who had called that night until the police told her. The investigating officer didn’t just take her word for it. They spoke to Robin’s friends and family the next day and they all said the same thing, which was that Maggie and Robin didn’t run around the same circles anymore.”
“They weren’t strangers. They had one time been close friends and went to the same high school. I find it a little coincidental that she just happened to call the hotel where Maggie worked while Maggie was on duty.”
“The Howard Hotel is no more than a ten-minute walk from the pub,” Ashton said. “Robin only called to see if there were any rooms available. She was just looking for a place to stay that night.”
“Yeah, the Howard’s a ten-minute walk, even less when you drive. Robin died exactly twelve minute
s after that phone call at 3:12.”
Casey glanced at her through the rearview mirror. “How do you know she died at exactly 3:12?”
“According to this,” Sarah answered, holding up the police report. “Someone from the apartment building next door reported hearing shots at around that time.”
“Why would Maggie Shane kill her?” Ashton asked. “Where’s your motive?”
“I don’t know, which is why we need to speak to her. I wonder if she’s still working at the Howard? Casey, can I see your phone?”
Ashton glanced over her shoulder. “It’s after three in the morning. Who are you calling?”
“No one,” Sarah said taking Casey’s phone from him. She settled back in her seat, quickly accessing his browser. “I’m just going to see if I can find her.”
“It’s been six or seven years. Do you really think she’s working at the Howard Hotel?” Ashton tipped her head back and closed her eyes. “She’s probably gotten married and changed her name.”
Sarah didn’t respond as she set to scouring every social media site she knew for any trace of Maggie Shane. Twenty minutes later, she let out a small victory whoop. “Found her.”
Ashton sleepily looked around. “What? Where are we?”
“She’s not married and is now the night manager at the Sunny Side Inn about sixty or seventy miles from here.”
“Wonderful,” Ashton said closing her eyes. “You can call in the morning.”
“I don’t want to call her. I want to talk to her. I need to see her expression. How else will I know if she’s lying? She was obviously lying the night she spoke to the police and we need to figure out why. I don’t believe for one moment she didn’t recognize Robin’s voice.”
“Even if you’re right and she did lie to the police, what makes you think she’s suddenly going to tell you the truth?”
“I don’t know but we have to try.” She pulled up a map on Casey’s phone, then peered at the exit signs and then back down. “We’ll have to turn around. Turn off at the next exit.”
Casey put on his blinker.
“No, let’s keep going,” Ashton said.
Casey turned off his blinker.
