The Deadliest Institution Collection

by Holly Copella

  “You really don’t give me enough credit, do you?” he asked with a soft groan. “You can take my car to work, and I’ll take your smelly horse home. I’ll make sure your brood doesn’t starve, and then I’ll take your jeep to the club and swap it for my car. What could be easier?”

  She considered. “Everything,” Jacey replied while folding her arms across her chest.

  “I’ve already mixed a large bowl of batter,” he announced. “Who’s going to eat all these pancakes?”

  Jacey couldn’t deny she was starving. The last time she ate was lunch yesterday with Professor and Timon. Her stomach growled in protest.

  Asher cast a glance at her abdomen and slyly raised his brow. “I rest my case.”

  She didn’t want to argue with him, but she still wasn’t convinced it was the best idea. “You’re going to ride my horse back to my house, unsaddle him, and feed the other horses?”

  “Why do you find that so hard to believe?” he almost demanded.

  “Do you even know how to ride a horse?”

  “Darling, I even know how to ride a camel,” he announced while smiling deviously.

  Jacey studied his grin and hid her smile. “This should be interesting,” she remarked then pointed toward his bedroom. “I’ll be in the shower.”

  “You’ll find a robe in Katie’s closet,” he casually informed her.

  †

  Jacey walked out of the bathroom in Asher’s bedroom wearing one of Katie’s borrowed satin robes. It was a gorgeous dark purple with a Chinese dragon on the back. Jacey was convinced Asher had bought it for his wife on one of his many covert trips abroad. As she dried her hair with a towel, she happen to glance at the bed. On the neatly made bed laid a gorgeous, casual black dress with matching undergarments. Jacey eyed the expensive dress with some apprehension then glanced at the lacy bra and matching panties. She picked up the lacy thong underwear between her fingertips and stared with disbelief.

  “Seriously?” she muttered then groaned softly. “He’s just messing with your mind, Jacey.”

  She tossed the thong underwear back onto the bed and approached Katie’s dresser. She routed through several drawers, found the intimates’ drawer, and rummaged through it. To her surprise, all she found were sexy undergarments. She shut the drawer and groaned with disgust.

  Chapter Twelve

  Jacey sat behind her desk while typing a letter on the computer. Once she finished the letter, she pressed the print button and leaned back in her chair. She couldn’t help but glance at Jeanette’s empty desk and frowned. Every horrible image from yesterday flooded back into her memory. Jacey sat forward and allowed her head to fall into her hands while fighting her tears. A shadow fell over her. Jacey quickly looked up being unaware someone had even entered the office. Davis stood over her with a tiny, sympathetic smile.

  “You know, you could have taken the day off, Jacey,” Davis gently informed her.

  “I’m fine, really,” she replied although her heavy sigh told a different story. “Besides, Nathan wanted these letters and memos typed.”

  “After you finish them, I’m sending you home,” Davis announced firmly. “I’ll deal with Nathan if he has a problem with it.”

  “Really, I want to finish the day.”

  Davis hesitated, drew a deep breath, and sighed. “Okay.” He studied her a moment with a look of pity after what happened to her. “Roxy offered to assist you in the office. Since she was happy to help out, I agreed to it. I don’t want you to be overwhelmed with typing and answering phones.”

  “That was nice of her to offer,” Jacey replied then managed a tiny smile. “When will she be here?”

  “Any minute now, actually. Just let her help you with some easy tasks to get her started,” Davis informed her. “I know you have a lot of filing she could do for you. Just take it slow today.” He casually leaned against her desk and attempted to change the subject to something more cheerful. “Are you going to the museum tonight to see Maxwell? Poker night, you know.”

  “Yeah, I’m seeing Maxwell tonight,” she replied and attempted to hide her lack of enthusiasm for the subject. She knew Davis was trying. He didn’t know things were awkward between her and Maxwell.

  “Do you need a ride?” he offered. “I’m playing poker with the guys tonight, so I’m going there anyway.”

  “No, thanks,” she replied with little enthusiasm. “Asher will give me a ride.”

  Davis seemed surprised and straightened. “I thought he was away until the weekend.”

  “He came home early.”

  “Isn’t he full of surprises--”

  “Apparently Sheriff Monroe called him and told him what happened yesterday,” she informed Davis then sighed. “You know Asher. He was on the next flight out.”

  Davis snorted a soft laugh while scratching his head. “Everyone is well aware of Asher’s reputation where you’re concerned, Jacey. After what happened yesterday, I’m surprised he isn’t camping out alongside your desk.”

  “Surprisingly, he hasn’t even called yet, and I’ve been here over an hour,” she remarked and smiled at her own joke. She couldn’t believe how awkward it felt to smile.

  Davis laughed softly and, for a moment, both forgot about yesterday’s tragedy. An attractive woman in her early twenties entered the office. Roxy Lowe had wavy, black shoulder length hair, which she took time to style that morning, unlike Jacey’s unkempt bun. Roxy wore high-end clothing and uncomfortable high heels that screamed ‘my father is rich’. Her expensive wardrobe aside, she was a likeable young woman who never flaunted her father’s wealth. She also seemed to appreciate people for who they were and not what they had. Around the country club, that sort of attitude was refreshing although unheard of. Davis approached his daughter and hugged her.

  “You two have a nice, quiet day.”

  “Bye, Dad.”

  Davis left the office with a quick, final wave. Roxy stood before Jacey’s desk, looked at her, and smiled weakly.

  “I know this probably seems awkward to you, Jacey,” Roxy announced gently, “but I had to get out of that museum my father calls a house.”

  “No, I’m actually glad to have the company,” Jacey replied. “Sometimes the phones get on my nerves. I can’t believe how quiet they are today.”

  “Nathan has a meeting this morning,” Roxy informed her. “My father is going there now. I guess the word gets around.” She suddenly seemed tense and stared at Jacey. “Is it true? Did you really, uh, you know, find Jeannette?” she asked softly then made a face. “Did you actually see her killer?”

  Jacey leaned back in her chair and groaned softly. “Yeah, unfortunately, I bumped into him.”

  Roxy slowly sat on the edge of her desk and stared at her with wide, horror-filled eyes. “But you didn’t see who it was? Not even a clue to his identity?”

  “No, he wore a mask,” she replied. “The typical standard height, standard build didn’t offer much either.”

  “That must have been terrifying,” she gasped softly then hesitated and shifted slightly. “Does it bother you that I’m talking about it?”

  “No, of course not,” Jacey replied. “Everyone has all morning. Some even to my face.”

  “Were you and Jeannette close?” Roxy asked then fidgeted. “I mean, that you went there after work?”

  “No, not really,” Jacey replied. “That’s what’s weird. She called me right before I left yesterday and asked me to stop by. She didn’t actually say why she wanted to talk to me, although she sounded drunk. I got there five minutes later, and she was already dead.”

  “You’re right, that is weird,” Roxy remarked while studying her. “Do you think she knew she was in danger and that’s why she called you?”

  “Sheriff Monroe thinks it was a random break-in, and she surprised him,” Jacey replied mechanically.

  Roxy seemed quick to assess her look and questioned it. “You don’t think so?”

  Jacey sank into thought and slowly sho
ok her head. “Too many things just doesn’t add up. Nothing was missing although the study was ransacked. I get this nagging feeling killing her was the main reason behind the break-in.”

  “That’s the journalist in you surfacing,” Roxy gently informed her.

  “No,” she replied with a sigh and sank back in her chair. “That’s years of Konrad Asher imprinting himself on my psyche.” She quickly straightened and offered a smile. “Come on. I’ll introduce you to the file room. You’ll want to spend a lot of time down there once the phones start ringing.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jacey and Roxy sat on the thick bench toward the back of the basement file room. Jacey shredded files in the large shredder, watching the many, tiny blades slice through the paper in an all-out assault. The violence of the shredder attacking the paper somehow soothed her. Her sudden fondness for violence frightened her. She had fantasized an alternate ending when she faced Jeannette’s killer in the hallway. She envisioned beating the killer within an inch of his life. Sadly, the reality would probably have gone a different direction. Her skirt and pumps would have seen to it. She learned that lesson at the museum tragedy. Roxy filed papers into the portable file boxes on the small table. She looked around several times and marveled at the room. It was so quiet; it almost seemed as if they were cut off from the rest of the world; or at least the rest of the country club.

  “I didn’t even know this room existed,” Roxy remarked then returned to her filing.

  “That’s its charm. No one bothers us down here,” Jacey informed her. “It used to be the wine cellar. The original owners blocked off the kitchen stairs years ago before the country club even bought the place.”

  Their solitude was interrupted when they heard the sound of men laughing while walking down the rickety, old stairs. The stairs couldn’t be seen from the fourth row of files, where they were located. Both women silenced and listened to the approaching trespassers.

  “I’m telling you, Carl,” Nathan announced. “You’ll love having her help out around here. She’s hot.”

  Jacey and Roxy eyed each other and appeared curious. Jacey was pretty sure they were talking about Roxy.

  “Yeah, but I’ll have to get past her old man first,” Carl replied, indicating they were in fact talking about Roxy. “You know how protective he is over her.”

  “She won’t tell him anything, I promise,” Nathan remarked with humor in his tone. “Girls like that love defying their fathers. Give it a week. You’ll see. You’ll have her crawling all over you before you know it.”

  Roxy looked at Jacey and rolled her eyes. She motioned that it wasn’t happening. Jacey held back her laugh.

  “I think you’re wrong,” Carl remarked. “And what’s in it for you? Why would you want to trade her to be my secretary and not keep her for yourself? You always have some selfish reason for everything you do.”

  Roxy giggled softly then covered her mouth. Both women looked at each other and attempted to remain silent. Nathan and Carl appeared around the aisle and eyed them. Both women looked up and acted innocent. Carl was immediately embarrassed by what they’d almost certainly overheard. Nathan frowned while looking annoyed.

  “What are you girls doing down here?” Nathan almost demanded.

  “Filing,” Jacey casually replied and secretly detested him for referring to her as a girl.

  “Doesn’t sound like you’re filing,” Nathan remarked. “Much too quiet down here.”

  Jacey suspected, because they were girls, Nathan expected them to be gossiping endlessly. The fact that they were gossiping was not the point.

  “Sorry,” Roxy replied while grinning. “We’ll make more noise next time.”

  Nathan and Carl turned to leave now in more of a hurry. Carl smacked Nathan on the arm as they left and cursed softly at him. Jacey and Roxy laughed at the men’s expense.

  “So, Carl wants to put the moves on his partner’s daughter, does he?” Jacey announced while seductively raising her brows. “That didn’t take long.”

  “Daddy won’t be too happy to hear that,” Roxy announced then frowned. “Of course, then he’ll want me to quit. I don’t think I should say anything.”

  “Where would he like you to work?” Jacey demanded, allowing her annoyance with the club to surface. “His country club is filled with sexist pigs. It can’t be avoided.”

  Roxy frowned and sank back on the bench. “I sometimes think he just wants me to marry some rich guy and pop out babies. I’m not ready to join the other trophy wives.”

  “I guess he was disappointed when you dumped Brian, huh?” Jacey remarked.

  “Of course,” she chirped. “He had high hopes for Brian once he found out the net worth of his family.” She turned on the bench to face Jacey with an offended look plastered on her face. “Can you believe he thought I should forgive Brian’s affair with Angel?”

  Jacey held back her surprised gasp. She couldn’t believe Brian was making time with Angel, the smoking lounge bartender. She seemed a little wild even for him.

  “I guess that’s what wives of the super-rich do,” Roxy remarked. She shook her head with disgust. “Everyone warned me about Brian, but I wouldn’t listen.”

  “Yeah, he’s pretty suave for a pig.”

  Both women laughed.

  Roxy’s look then turned serious as she stared at Jacey. “You dated him once, didn’t you?”

  “Not exactly,” Jacey muttered. “He met an easy girl before our first date. I was spared.”

  “Lucky you,” she scoffed. “I thought he was sincere. I never thought my first time would be with someone so sleazy. The bastard.”

  Jacey was surprised by the comment but refrained from showing it. “Brian was your first?”

  Roxy frowned and nodded. “Sadly,” she replied. “I convinced myself to take a chance on him. I mean, who was I saving myself for?”

  She felt bad for Roxy and was more than a little angry with Brian. He had to have known her situation, yet he played games with her emotions regardless.

  “Yours is not the only broken heart hanging from his bedpost,” Jacey said with a sigh. “You’re certainly not the only person in town who hates him either.”

  “The investment?” Roxy asked while looking up at her. “Yeah, I’d heard about that too. Fortunately, my father didn’t listen to him as the others had. I hear a lot of people lost a lot of money on that deal.”

  “Professor and my uncle lost a nice chunk of change on that investment,” Jacey informed her then shook her head. “Asher tried to warn them.”

  Roxy studied her a moment in disbelief then offered a tiny smile. “I can’t believe you’re friends with Konrad Asher,” she remarked. “I’d seen him a couple of times at the museum on poker nights when Brian and I were dating. He’s a member here now, isn’t he?”

  “Yeah,” Jacey replied with a dreary sigh and leaned her head against the wall behind the bench. She smirked as she glanced at Roxy. “He suddenly felt the need to socialize himself after Maxwell got me the job here. Although it’s nice Asher is getting out and scaring new people, I think he hates the thought of me working here.”

  Roxy stared at her a moment and appeared curious but hesitant. “What’s the deal between you and Konrad Asher? I mean, is he like the protective father or the jealous boyfriend?”

  “Neither. There’s no deal between us,” Jacey replied simply and found the question almost humorous. “He’s been there for me since my father died. We’re just very close friends.”

  “Oh,” Roxy remarked gently then fidgeted. “It’s just, well, you hear stories sometimes.” Her look turned serious. “Nathan said Asher was a bad man at one time.”

  “Nathan’s a lying pervert,” Jacey scoffed, allowing her annoyance to surface. She knew she was almost as protective of Asher as he was over her. In some ways, maybe even more so. “Some people in this town still want to crucify Asher for the institute fire that killed those patients and his wife. Funny thing is the real kil
ler was discovered just three months ago. Despite witness accounts and piles of proof, some people just refuse to let it go.”

  “That’s right,” Roxy announced seeming to recall the incident. “You wrote those articles after the museum gala. I remember reading them. I guess some people don’t care about facts or logic.”

  “In this town, no,” Jacey replied. “Asher loves to refer to this town as “Peyton Place” or the “Snake Pit”. Honestly, I don’t know why he didn’t leave years ago.”

  “I’m guessing because of you,” Roxy replied.

  Jacey offered a tiny smile. “I actually meant before we’d met,” she remarked. “He could have walked away, but he didn’t. He chose to remain. Perhaps he stayed because this was Katie’s hometown and in some small way, it kept her alive.”

  “Maybe he just wanted to spite the town,” Roxy remarked and cast a look at Jacey.

  Jacey considered the comment then nodded. “Actually, that does sound like Asher.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Jacey entered the reception office from the back hallway while leafing through a folder full of papers. She looked up and saw Nathan siting behind her desk, routing through her upper left hand drawer. He appeared startled when he saw her and attempted a smile. There was little doubt he was doing something to which she wouldn’t approve.

  “Jacey, I thought Davis said you were leaving early,” Nathan remarked.

  She eyed him suspiciously. Obviously, he had thought that. She guessed that explained why he was sitting at her desk. Jacey hated when the bosses routed through her drawers. They always made a mess and never put things back where they found them. Not that she was super organized, but it was organized chaos.

  “No, I was in the copy room making copies,” she informed him then tilted her head in question. “Something I can help you find?”