by Liz Schulte
“No.”
“Do you have it with you?”
I nodded and dropped it into his waiting hand.
When he unfolded it, I leaned in to read over his shoulder.
Liar, liar. Better hope no one sets you on fire.
I drew in a sharp breath. Aiden pulled a driver’s license out of the envelope.
“Who’s Samantha Cobb?” I asked him.
He frowned but didn’t answer.
“Why does it feel like you know more about my life than I do?”
He looked at me with serious eyes. “Because I do. Talk to your family again. It isn’t my place to tell you this stuff.”
I cracked my knuckles, wanting to scream. “Tell me the truth. Am I in danger?”
“Yes. We should have a security camera installed at the base of your apartment stairs.”
“Okay.” Another thought came to me. “Why didn’t they ever try that at my parents’ house?”
“They did. Every time my company installed a camera, the letter was delivered to a new location. Whoever’s behind this is very smart and aware, which makes him dangerous.”
“And the woman who died this morning?”
“I don’t know yet, but I’ll go find out if you promise not to leave without telling me exactly where you’re going.”
I agreed. Aiden left and I called Ashley. After a fair amount of insistence, Ashley’s secretary transferred me to him. “What can I do for you, Ryan?” he asked.
“To start with, why don’t you come by and visit Bee?”
“I can’t. My day’s full with meetings. I promise I’ll get by to see her soon.”
“Ash—”
“Ryan, I really am busy. Despite what you believe, I do, in fact, work.”
I sighed. “Fine. I can’t force you to be concerned about her. Someday you might regret not making time though.”
“Is that all?”
I almost said yes and hung up, but I needed to know. “Who is Samantha Cobb?”
“Where did you hear that name?”
“That’s not important. Who is she? What does she have to do with me?”
“She’s no one. She has nothing to do with you. Don’t dig up the past, Ryan.”
“Oh, Ashley, whatever skeletons we have buried in the backyard are digging themselves up. You might as well tell me.”
“You need to talk to Dad. I don’t want to be in the middle of you and them anymore.”
His words made me feel guilty. “I’m sorry, Ashley. If you can find the time, I’d like to hang out with you. Just for fun. I won’t make you reveal state secrets, I swear.”
“Really?”
“Sure. Why not?”
“Do you really want me to answer that?”
I laughed. “No. Just have your people contact my people.”
He paused. “Who are your people?”
I laughed again. “I’ll let you go. Hopefully we’ll see each other soon.”
Now all I had to do was get my parents to come clean about whatever they were hiding and figure out who Samantha Cobb was.
Chapter 17
After I hung up on Ash, I looked out Bee’s window, a little frightened about what I would see. But aside from spare police officers and the crime scene tape, I really couldn’t see anything. There was a knock on the door, and the deputy I’d met before entered. I walked to meet him, wanting to let Bee rest.
“Ms. Sterling.” He nodded.
“You have me at a disadvantage. I don’t know your name.”
“Aaron Perry.” He held out his hand to me.
“Nice to meet you.” I shook his hand. “Now what can I do for you?”
“I need to speak with the resident of this room.” He looked around me.
“Why?”
“Are you aware what happened here this morning?”
I looked back at Bee as she shifted in her bed. “My aunt’s sleeping. Let’s discuss this in the hallway?” He gave me an impatient look but led the way. Once the door was securely shut, I continued. “She doesn’t know about what happened this morning. Per her doctor’s orders, we’re limiting the amount of stress she’s exposed to. This would upset her.”
“Ms. Sterling—”
“Call me Ryan.”
“Ryan, the woman who died this morning was a nurse. Now, there’s no note that we can find, and according to her friends and family, there were no warning signs from her that she was suicidal. That alone isn’t much, but given the other accident involving a nurse who worked on this floor, it’s my duty to check with all the patients. Perhaps one of them saw or heard something that would assist the investigation. I’ll do everything in my ability not to upset your aunt.”
In the short amount of time I’d been in Goodson Hollow, four people had died. I didn’t blame the officer for investigating, but I was certain Bee didn’t need to be part of his investigation. “Which nurse?”
“A night nurse, Peggy Carlile. Have you met her?”
I nodded. “Last night before I went home.”
“And did you speak to her?”
“Yeah. She told me about something weird that happened with my aunt the night before, then swore she’d be more vigilant that night.” I wanted to tell him more about what I’d been experiencing and the ninth floor, but I was fairly certain it would discredit me with the deputy if I did, so I kept my mouth shut.
He pulled out a note pad. “What happened?”
“Bee was sleepwalking.”
He looked up. “That’s it?”
“Deputy, my aunt has acute liver failure. She can’t get to the bathroom by herself, let alone walk up and down the stairs. Sleepwalking isn’t something that should be possible.”
“And your aunt? Has she said anything? Done anything else out of the ordinary?”
“No.” I didn’t like where his line of questioning was headed. Bee couldn’t have had anything to do with those women’s deaths. “Do you think these weren’t accidents?”
“It’s my job to investigate coincidences.”
“My aunt couldn’t have hurt anyone.” At least I didn’t think she could. She’d certainly been having her crazy moments lately, but how could she have hurt them? She was so frail. I pictured Blair’s crushed phone and fought the urge to lean against the wall.
Deputy Perry stared at me for a long moment. “I didn’t say she could.” He raised an eyebrow. “Are you leaving something out, Ryan?”
I shook my head and crossed my arms over my chest.
He nodded. “I’ll still have to talk to her.”
“Not right now, you don’t.” I stepped in front of him. “She needs to rest.” And I needed to figure out what was happening before he got in there.
“Please step aside.”
“What’s going on?” I’d been so caught up in arguing with Deputy Perry that I didn’t even see Ashley walking up with Aiden.
The deputy turned and straightened his shoulders, making his posture rigid.
“He wants to question Bee about some nurse that died this morning.” I cringed inwardly at how terrible and dismissive “some nurse” sounded. I felt a little bad for hoping Ashley would throw his weight around and make the deputy leave, but not bad enough to stop it from happening. Maybe the apple didn’t fall too far from my mother’s tree after all. “As I said, she’s had a rough morning and is sleeping. She needs her rest.”
Ashley nodded. “Deputy Perry, I’m sure the sheriff wouldn’t want you disturbing Aunt Bee. Perhaps you can stop by another time. This is our family’s private security, Aiden Parker. He would be happy to help you in any way we can.”
Deputy Perry’s jaw clenched and he didn’t even look at Aiden. “When would you suggest?”
Ashley looked over at me.
“Um, tomorrow morning? She’s always awake after the doctors make their rounds.”
“Fine.” He nodded and moved on to the next room, and I slumped against the wall.
“Thanks for that,” I said.
<
br /> “The nurse’s name was Peggy Carlile. Did you have any contact with her?” Aiden asked.
I nodded. “She told me about Bee sleepwalking the night before.”
His eyebrows pulled together. “No one saw her after her shift started last night. You might be the last person she spoke with.”
“I don’t understand. I talk to a lot of people and they don’t all die. Why these two?”
Aiden looked over at Ashley, who glared at him. “We’ll talk more later,” Aiden said casually and went back to the waiting room.
Ashley opened his mouth to say something, but Blair interrupted him.
“Holy crap, Ashley. Has hell frozen over? What are you doing here?” He clapped his hand down on Ashley’s shoulder.
“Ryan asked me to come and I had some time free up. What are you doing here?”
Blair stood between the two of us, grinning like a fool. “Hanging with Bee and Ryan while I can. Let’s go see if she’s awake—” He looked back at me. “And feeling like herself. You better go first, Ryan.”
A bloodcurdling scream came from Bee’s room. I ran to her without hesitation. Bee’s heart monitor was racing, and she had her knees pulled up to her chest. “No, no, no,” she said, her eyes squeezed shut.
I grabbed her shoulders. “Shhh, it’s okay. It’s okay. What happened?”
“Ryan?” Bee opened one eye and looked at me. “You—” She looked at the window and back at me. Then she looked at the window again. “I don’t understand.”
She cried into my shoulder. What the hell was happening here? “It’s okay, Bee. We’re going to move you. I’m going to take you out of this place. It will be better somewhere else. Shhh, it’s okay.”
“Ryan?” Jack’s voice came from behind me. When I looked back at him, he held up a syringe. I nodded and tried to ease away from Bee, but she clung to me.
“It’s okay. I’m here.”
“You were dead.”
“No. I’m fine. I’m right here.”
Jack unhooked Bee’s arms from around me and I stepped back, my hands shaking.
“I’m going to give you a shot that will help you rest. Ryan’s fine. You just gave her a fright.”
Blair put his arm around my shoulder and Ashley stood beside us as we watched Bee’s eyes flutter closed and Jack and a couple nurses get her settled back in bed. Jack nodded toward the door, and we followed him to the waiting room.
“What exactly happened?” Jack asked, looking at me. “I explained the importance of keeping her stress level low. She’s fighting for her life.”
“Nothing happened. We were in the hallway and then she screamed. She’d been sleeping,” Blair answered before I could.
Jack looked at me for confirmation and I nodded, though I didn’t appreciate him suggesting I wasn’t doing everything within my ability to keep Bee calm and happy.
“Can I speak with you for a moment, Ryan?”
I followed him, my arms wrapped around myself as if I could be physically held together. We went to the stairwell.
“I thought we discussed why you shouldn’t move her.”
“She can’t stay here any longer, Jack. I’m sorry. This place is driving her crazy. Hell, it’s driving me a little crazy too.”
“I can’t recommend it.”
I took a deep breath. “Don’t fight me on this. I’m going to do what I think is best for her. Whether or not the haunting is real, it’s terrorizing her. You want me to keep her stress down? This is how I’m going to do it.”
“If you do something that further damages her health, you’ll never forgive yourself. I am not sure Bee can survive a transfer. If you don’t believe me, get a second opinion. Here.” Jack pulled out a notepad and scribbled something on it. “Here are other doctors who can consult if you want.”
I took the sheet of paper and headed to the door.
“Ryan?” I looked back. “Whatever you decide, you have my full support.”
“Thank you.” My voice sounded cracked and worn, almost unrecognizable.
“She’ll be out for the afternoon. You should go home and rest.”
I nodded and he started to go in the other direction. “Jack.” I waited for him to look at me. “I’m sorry.”
I left before he could reply. I didn’t know what exactly I apologized for. It could’ve been for starting and stopping our relationship, it could’ve been for letting Briggs back into my life, or it could’ve been for moving Bee, because I was certain that’s what I was going to do, regardless of the second opinion. Ashley and Blair were waiting for me.
“What was that all about?” Blair asked the same time Ashley said, “I didn’t know she was that bad.”
I nodded to Ashley then answered Blair. “Jack doesn’t think I should move Bee.”
“Then why would you?”
I shook my head. “You may not believe this place is haunted, but she does. I think the nightmares have more to do with where we are than her illness. I don’t want to leave her here. Jack told me to get a second opinion before I move her.” I waved the sheet of paper at them. “He gave me some names.”
“I think moving her is a good idea,” Ashley said and took the names from me. “You don’t need these. I have a friend who can consult. I’ll call him tonight.”
“Thank you, Ash. The sooner the better.”
He nodded. “I really didn’t know. I thought … I don’t know what I thought. I’m sorry I haven’t been here more, Ryan. This shouldn’t all fall on you.” His phone rang and he walked away to answer it.
I looked at Blair. “Jack said she’ll probably sleep the rest of the day. Come with me to the room to get my stuff.”
“You really believe this stuff, don’t you?” he said softly.
“I’m getting there,” I said.
Ashley had taken up sentry next to the door when we came back out. We all walked to the elevator together.
“I have to go back to the office, but I’ll let you know when Keith can give you a second opinion.”
“Okay.”
“Are you going to be around tonight?” Ashley asked.
“Um, yeah.” My head was beginning to thud.
“Melissa and I are having some friends over for dinner. Why don’t you come?” He looked at Blair. “Both of you.”
“Sure. I’ll be Ryan’s date,” Blair said, but he didn’t sound thrilled about hanging out with Ashley’s friends.
I needed to get a handle on Bee’s situation. I didn’t have time to hang out with Ashley, but he was making an effort so I knew I should too. “Where will Mom and Dad be?”
Ashley gave me a puzzled look. “At their house.”
“Where do you live?”
Blair laughed. “I know where he lives. I’ll get us there. Later, Ash.” I texted Aiden that I was going home and walked Blair to his truck. “Look at us. We’re almost like a real family. What brought on this change of heart?” he asked.
“I figured so long as I was giving Briggs and Jack second chances, maybe we all deserve one.”
“All of us?”
I nodded. “Even me. I’m not perfect and perhaps I never gave our family much of a chance.”
“So when are you going to call Mom?”
I scrunched my nose. “I’m going to learn to climb before attempting the mountain.”
Blair smiled. “What did Jack do to need a second chance?”
I filled him in on everything that had been happening with Bee. If he was going to spend more time at the hospital, he needed to know. Otherwise, I was essentially doing to him what everyone did to me.
“So what are you going to do? Do you think she could have … you know, hurt those women?”
“Of course not.”
“You didn’t see her today, Ryan. She was so fast and strong.”
I stared out at the parking lot without seeing. Blair was implying what I feared most of all. “What you saying? Do you really think Bee could do that?”
He scratched his he
ad and leaned against his truck. “She’s sick. I know that. But, Ryan, if she’s hurting people—”
“She’s not hurting people.”
“But if she is. We can’t let her continue.”
“It’s not her. It’s the hospital, and I’ll prove it.”
“How?”
I hadn’t figured that out yet, but there had to be a way. “I’m going to get onto the ninth floor.”
“What exactly do you think you’ll find there?”
“I don’t know, but if there are answers, that’s where they will be.”
Chapter 18
I no sooner got in the door when Aiden showed up.
“Hi,” I said, not sure what the social rules were concerning one’s bodyguard. “Come in. Can I get you a drink?”
He shook his head. “I ordered the camera for the stairwell, but it won’t come until Monday. Did you ask your brother about Samantha Cobb?”
“He told me to talk to my parents.”
“That doesn’t surprise me.”
“You could always just tell me and save me the headache.” I smiled.
“Not if I want to keep protecting you. I signed a nondisclosure agreement. I was technically never supposed to talk to you.”
“Why did you?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know.” He looked far away for a second. Then he blinked a couple times and refocused on me. “How would you feel about having a driver?”
I curled up my lip.
“I could protect you better if I were with you more. Maintaining distance leaves you open for attack. It was never an optimal plan, but since there was no immediate threat, it’s worked so far. But the situation’s changed.”
I nodded. “I know you’re trying to help and I appreciate that, but I don’t love the idea. Let me think about it.”
“It’s up to you.”
He looked like he was about to leave so I asked the burning question on my mind. “Do you think my aunt could’ve had something to do with those nurses dying?”
Aiden shook his head. “If they weren’t accidents, my money’s on your stalker.”
“Why?”
“That’s an excellent question. And if we knew the answer, all of this would be a lot easier.”
*
I spent the rest of the afternoon going through the scrapbook. It wasn’t anything groundbreaking, but it did strengthen my opinion that whatever was happening at the hospital had nothing to do with Bee. The book held one news article after another about the hospital. The majority of them were about various people who died there. I didn’t make it to the end before Vivian came home, and I realized I had to get ready for Ashley’s dinner.
