He hurried from the laundry room.
†
Brian held the gurney still while Monique climbed on top of it and pulled herself through the small opening into the raised elevator. She lay on the floor of the elevator and accepted the flashlight from Brian. Coleen climbed on top of the gurney and climbed through as well. Monique helped pull her the rest of the way. Both looked back at Brian. He climbed on top of the gurney and looked at the opening. He shook his head.
“I won’t fit,” he announced.
“Come on,” Monique firmly insisted. “Give it a try, Brian. You can do it.”
Brian attempted to move through the opening but couldn’t get more than his head through. “I won’t fit,” he said once more. “You two go for help. I don’t know if the lock is stuck, or if there’s a more serious problem. Under no circumstances are you to come back on your own. Do you understand?”
“What if there’s someone in there with you?” Monique gasped. “We can’t just leave you.”
“I locked the morgue door. I’ll be fine,” Brian informed them. “There are two sets of stairs in the basement. If you’re where I think you are, you’ll never find the main one in the darkness. There are stairs leading to the west wing if you just keep right. There’s a long corridor once you pass the room with shelves in it. If you go straight, you’ll end up in the gardener’s workshop. Make a left before the workshop. There are stairs there.”
Coleen glared at Monique. “Hear that? There are stairs by the workshop.”
Monique looked away with disgust. “Stop being petty.”
“Fight about it later,” Brian growled. There was the sound of someone within the surgical lab just outside the sub-basement morgue. Brian stared at the morgue door then looked back into the elevator opening. “Go on. Get someone back here right away.”
Both girls nodded in response. They scrambled to their feet and climbed through the opening above them to the main morgue in the basement. Monique helped Coleen to her feet then shined the light around the small room. The light revealed droplets of blood on the floor. Coleen grabbed Monique’s arm and pointed at the blood.
“Look,” Coleen gasped with the horror evident in her eyes. “That wasn’t there before.”
Monique followed the droplets of blood with her flashlight. There was blood up the side of the freezers and stopped at the first door. Both held their breath. Monique slowly shook her head.
“I’m not about to look in there,” she whispered with a shiver in her voice.
Coleen grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the door. “Come on. Let’s get out of here!”
They ran for the basement morgue door, carefully stepping around the trial of blood droplets, and threw open the door. Asher stood in the doorway. Both girls screamed. Coleen slammed the door shut, and both threw their bodies against it.
“Open this door,” Asher cried out as he firmly pounded on it.
“We’re dead,” Monique gasped softly.
When they didn’t comply, the door was thrust open, tossing both girls partially across the room. Monique clutched the flashlight and held it above her head, prepared to strike.
“What are you doing down here?” he demanded in a harsh tone. “You can’t be down here.”
Coleen nervously looked down at the blood on the floor then back at Asher. His eyes strayed to the blood as well. He shined his flashlight across the morgue and up the wall to the first freezer. Asher took a step toward them and the freezer.
“Stay back,” Monique cried out and clutched the flashlight.
Asher paused and stared at her with a look of surprise. “What’s with you two? I’m not the enemy here. Now stop this behavior.”
Jameson fell into the doorway with his gun drawn. He had a cut on his temple, which bled freely. “That’s far enough, Asher,” Jameson growled lowly while nearly out of breath. “You just get away from those girls.”
Asher became still. His expression stiffened. He didn’t turn around nor say a word.
“Against the wall--hands where I can see them.” Jameson’s hand seemed to tremble slightly on the gun.
Asher’s expression remained stiff. He obediently did as he was told, placing his hands against the wall, with his cane still clutched in his hand.
“Drop the cane,” Jameson ordered.
Asher complied.
Jameson looked at the girls while breathing heavily. “Are you okay?”
Both girls sighed and nodded. Monique finally lowered her flashlight. Jameson removed his handcuffs and approached Asher. He attached the cuffs to Asher’s wrist and a nearby pipe. Jameson backed away and stared at the blood on the floor. He walked past the girls to the freezer, took a deep breath, and opened it. A cloud of cold air escaped then cleared. Monique nervously looked away and caught a glimpse of Asher. His head rested against the wall. His eyes were pinched shut as if he were in pain. Monique looked back at Jameson. Jill’s head was displayed proudly on the slab facing the open, freezer door. The look of horror was frozen on her face. Jameson appeared horrified and jumped back a step. Monique and Coleen screamed at the gruesome sight.
“My God, it’s Jill,” he gasped softly.
Monique looked back at Asher. His head lifted, and he looked to the freezer with surprise and yet relief. Monique’s eyes narrowed in confusion.
“Where’s Jacey?” Asher demanded. “I heard her down here.”
“Don’t you worry about Jacey,” Jameson snapped. “She’s not your concern.”
“Find her,” Asher growled lowly with narrow, evil eyes.
“Brian’s trapped downstairs,” Coleen told Jameson while avoiding looking at Jill’s severed head. “We have to get him out.”
Jameson shut the freezer door and looked at Coleen. “Downstairs? We are downstairs.”
Monique shook her head. “No, there’s a basement below this basement. A sub-basement. We’ll show you.”
He slowly nodded. “Okay. We’d better hurry.”
Coleen motioned for him to follow her. Monique paused and looked back at Asher. Asher stared back at her.
“If you care about your cousin, you’ll find her,” Asher said softly with raised brows. “Find her and bring her to me.”
Monique hurried from the room.
Chapter Twenty-eight
Doc ushered the last of the guests out the front doors of the dimly lit institution. “Sorry about the inconvenience,” he announced politely. “We’ll try again some other time.”
Timon closed the door and glared at Doc, Angela, and Maxwell. “No one’s seen either of them,” Timon remarked firmly.
Angela folded her arms across her chest and shook her head. “Brian’s just doing his usual thing,” she remarked simply. “As for Jacey, well, she probably left to avoid hurting Maxwell’s feelings.”
Maxwell glared at Angela. “She wouldn’t have run out,” he snapped coldly. “The papers I’d gathered for her were scattered all over the floor. Something happened to her.”
Mayor Norad came out of one of the offices and approached the small group of four. “I spoke with Jameson on the hand radio just moments ago. He’s in the basement. He’ll keep a look out for Jacey and Brian.”
“What’s he doing in the basement?” Doc asked curiously.
Mayor Norad inhaled deeply. “He’s searching for Konrad Asher. He found evidence to link him to the murder of Roseanne. Sheriff Monroe is checking the upper floors of the main building, and Dr. Talbert went to look around the west wing.”
“Evidence?” Maxwell asked with a curious tilt of his head. “What sort of evidence?”
“They found the murder weapon in his home earlier today,” Howard replied. “More than that, I’m not at liberty to say.”
“I wouldn’t rely on any evidence found in Asher’s home, Mayor,” Maxwell remarked. “Asher said someone had broken into his house. The murder weapon could’ve easily been planted there to frame him.”
Everyone stared at Maxwell.
“
I hope you’re not suggesting corruption of our police department,” Howard said loudly with his eyes wide.
“No, of course not,” Maxwell replied. He then looked at Doc. “I need to find Jacey. Excuse me.”
He began to walk away when Howard called after him. “The police can handle this, Dr. Alvord. It would be best if you just remained here and allowed them to do their job.”
Maxwell turned and stared at the mayor. “I’ve waited long enough already. I’m going to find Jacey.” Maxwell turned and continued down the corridor.
Timon ran after him. “Maxwell, wait! I’m coming with you.”
†
Jacey moaned with frustration as she looked around the filthy caretaker’s workshop. She looked through the open outside door and saw the two horses tied not far from the workshop. She shook her head with disappointment.
“I can’t believe them,” she muttered lowly.
Jacey looked around the dimly lit room filled with tools and gardening equipment. She approached the back wall and removed an old, rusted sling blade from above the tool bench. She drew a deep breath, looked around nervously, and carried it with her into the corridor. She wasn’t going to admit that she was paranoid, but she knew it didn’t hurt to be prepared. As she looked at the rusted sling blade in her hand, she wondered if she’d been hanging out with Asher too long. Had he made her cynical and distrusting? Or just scary prepared?
†
Coleen led Jameson to the hidden, secret passageway door within the basement. It was right where Brian said it would be, almost hidden in plain sight.
“It’s just through there,” Coleen said. “There are stairs that lead to a sub-basement of sorts. There’s a surgical room of some sort and a small morgue. We left Brian in the morgue.”
Jameson moved her aside and clutched his gun nervously. “Okay, you two stay back.” He opened the unlocked door and looked down the dimly lit stairs into the darkness.
Both girls were alarmed.
“That door was locked,” Coleen quickly informed him.
Monique clutched Coleen’s arm and pointed to a dark stain on Jameson’s tan pants near his nightstick. Coleen tilted her head and raised her brows in silent question. Monique gently touched the bottom of the nightstick without Jameson’s knowledge. There was blood on her finger. Coleen stared at the blood. Monique pulled Coleen away from the small stairway as Jameson descended down the steps.
“What’s wrong with you?” Coleen asked softly. “It’s just blood from Jill. He touched her body. He’s going to have blood on him. He also has a cut on his head.” Coleen followed Monique and looked around the more familiar rooms. “Where are we going?”
“To talk to Asher,” Monique replied.
“What?” Coleen gasped. “Are you out of your mind? I’m more worried about Brian. What if Asher killed him?”
“I’m afraid Brian’s dead already,” Monique said stiffly. “The door to the secret passageway had been locked, but now it’s not.”
Both girls entered the basement morgue and saw the handcuff dangling from the pipe. Asher was gone! Both looked around nervously.
“I don’t like this,” Coleen whispered.
“Me either,” Monique said softly.
“Let’s go back upstairs and find the others,” Coleen said. “We need to find Maxwell and Timon.”
“Brian said the stairs were this way,” Monique said and pointed to the right.
They hurried from the morgue in the direction of the gardener’s workshop. After several minutes, they found the corridor. The stairs were right where Brian said they would be. They hurried up them.
†
Maxwell paced the small area in the laundry room while Timon poked around the fuse boxes located along the back wall. Maxwell exhaled deeply and appeared impatient.
“Have you figured it out yet?”
“I think so,” Timon announced. The lights went out completely. “Oops,” he said softly. “It’s okay. I can fix it.”
He suddenly cried out in pain. The red lights came back on. Timon clutched his bleeding forearm. Maxwell hurried to his side and examined the bleeding cut.
“Looks pretty deep,” Maxwell said. “You’d better go upstairs and let Doc have a look at it.”
Timon slowly nodded then looked back at Maxwell. “Are you staying down here by yourself?”
“Just long enough to find Jacey,” he replied. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
Timon looked around the room and grabbed a pillowcase from the nearby linen rack. He wrapped it around his arm and tied it. “You look for her. I’ll get the lights on.”
Maxwell nodded then hurried from the room.
†
Jacey walked cautiously along the corridor. The brief moment the lights went out was enough to frighten her. She clutched her sling blade and listened to several strange sounds. She swore she heard movement all around her. She paused before an entranceway to one of the many storage rooms in the maze like basement. She stared into the dark doorway. There was movement, she was almost positive. Jacey pinned herself to the wall near the doorway and listened more carefully. She could hear someone walking through the large room. She raised the sling blade and held her breath. Someone stepped into the doorway. The lights went out. When they came on, Jacey screamed, jumped back a step, and swung the blade. Maxwell ducked. The blade struck the inside of the doorway.
“Maxwell,” Jacey gasped with surprise and dropped the rusted weapon. “Oh, my God! I’m so sorry.”
Maxwell’s eyes were wide. His body sagged as he exhaled and looked away while holding his chest. “You could’ve killed me,” he gasped.
Jacey sprang into his arms. “I’m really sorry,” she cried out softly and hugged him happily. “I’m so glad to see you.” She pulled away just as his arms tightened. Her eyes were once more wide. “I have to find Monique and Coleen. They’re here somewhere. Their horses are outside.”
“They weren’t upstairs that I’d noticed,” Maxwell said and looked around the corridor. “I’ll look for them just as soon as I get you upstairs, so I know you’re safe.”
Jacey backed away from Maxwell while he stood near the doorway. “We don’t have that kind of time. There’s no telling what happened to them.” Jameson stepped into the doorway behind Maxwell. Jacey looked at him and sighed with relief. “Oh, Jameson. We could use your--”
Maxwell turned as if to look behind him. Jameson plunged a scalpel into Maxwell’s shoulder, narrowly missing his back. Jacey screamed with shock and horror. Maxwell cried out, clutched his shoulder, and fell against the nearby wall. Jameson lunged for Maxwell. Jacey swooped down to the floor, snatched the sling blade, and swung it at Jameson. The blade tore into his upper arm then struck the wall and fell from her hands. Jameson cried out as he hit the doorway. He clutched his bleeding arm while reaching for his gun. Jacey looked at the discarded sling blade on the floor.
“Run,” Maxwell cried out and kicked Jameson’s leg out from underneath him.
Jameson hit the wall with his shoulder but didn’t release the gun. Jacey screamed and bolted down the corridor and into another room. As she stepped into the dark room, she froze with terror. She’d just given Maxwell to Jameson! Why did she run? Just because he told her to? Her heart pounded with anticipation of hearing a gunshot. The gunshot rang out, but the bullet ricocheted off the wall near her head instead. He was shooting at her! She didn’t know what happened to Maxwell, but now she had no choice but to run. Jacey screamed and ran deeper into the dark room.
†
Monique and Coleen stopped in the familiar west wing corridor and looked around. Dr. Talbert was at the opposite end of the first floor hallway looking into rooms as he walked.
“Dr. Talbert,” both cried out and ran along the hallway.
He spun with a look of surprise and waited for them. “What are you girls doing here?” he asked. “It’s not safe here.”
“There’s a dead woman downstairs,” Monique gasped. “Bria
n might be dead too.”
Dr. Talbert appeared surprised. “We’ve got to call Monroe or Jameson,” he announced sternly.
“No,” Monique gasped and clutched his sleeve. “Jameson had blood on his nightstick. He might be involved.”
“He was there at the time of the murder,” Coleen added.
“Jameson?” Talbert gasped with wide eyes. “That’s impossible. I’ve known Jameson for years. No, Asher’s around here somewhere. There’s evidence that links him to the murder of Roseanne. Jameson’s here to arrest him.”
Monique shook her head. “I saw the look on Asher’s face when Jameson opened the freezer door. He was afraid it was Jacey in there. If he was the killer, he would’ve known it wasn’t her.”
“Jameson was the one who conveniently found the evidence at Asher’s house,” Coleen informed him. “We think he’s trying to frame Asher.”
Dr. Talbert stared at them with surprise and possible disbelief. “We should get you two safely back with the others,” he said firmly. “We’ll leave the detective work to the professionals.” He guided them along the hall toward the first floor nurse’s station. “Why would Jameson want to kill Roseanne?” Talbert finally asked as they neared the nurse’s station.
“Blackmail,” Monique replied simply and removed the photos from her back pocket.
“Blackmail?” he asked from behind them and attempted to look at the photos over her shoulder.
“Yeah, Roseanne must’ve known Jameson was involved in Mrs. Asher’s death and tried to blackmail him,” Monique continued.
“Apparently there was a secret lab--” Coleen added.
Asher suddenly jumped over the tall nursing station desk and tackled Talbert into the opposite wall. Both girls screamed as Asher knocked a gun from Talbert’s hand and watched it slide across the floor. Asher held his cane to Talbert’s throat. Talbert shoved Asher backward. Monique sprang out of his path as he fell against the tall counter with a loud crack. Talbert dove for the gun. Coleen screamed with fright and kicked it down the hall. Both girls ran after the swiftly gliding revolver. Talbert removed a scalpel from his pocket and slashed at Asher. Asher jumped and thrashed him on the shoulder with his cane. Talbert yelped and jumped back a step. Asher swung his cane like a escrima stick used for karate fighting. Talbert slashed through the air toward Asher’s face. Asher slung his cane and struck Talbert several times, as he attempted to cut him with the scalpel. Monique picked up the gun. Both girls ran back to the fighting men.
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