Reservations for Murder (8 page)

Much to the older man’s disappointment, Alex
said, “Why don’t we talk in my office? I’m still going through a
pile of mail I haven’t gotten around to yet.”

“Anywhere is fine with me,” she agreed as
they walked inside. Jenny made a point of closing the door behind
her, and Alex was surprised when she slid the barrel lock in place
as well.

“What can I do for you?” he asked.

“You can start by forgiving me,” Jenny said
as she stepped closer. “I know what you must think of me after the
foolish way I acted earlier.”

Alex took a step back. “There’s nothing to
forgive. This murder has everybody out of sorts.”

She said gently, “I still don’t know what got
into me.” Jenny smiled slightly. “Alex, should I be offended you
weren’t even tempted by my offer of reconciliation?”

“No ma’am, that’s not it at all. Honestly,
it’s got nothing to do with you,” Alex said.

“You’re telling me that there’s not even the
slightest chance of us going out again?”

He hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings, but he
obviously had. Alex said softly, “On a date? No, but I’d be happy
to do something with you as a friend. I’m sorry.”

Jenny said lightly, “Oh well. I suppose Elise
must have something to do with it. She really is quite lovely,
isn’t she?”

“Jenny, there’s nothing going on between us.
Our relationship is strictly business. Elise is on leave handling a
family medical emergency. As soon as it resolves itself, she’ll be
back at Hatteras West. Why is everyone—” His words were cut off by
the telephone.

“Excuse me,” Alex said as he answered, “The
Hatteras West Inn.”

“Hi Alex, it’s Elise. I just got in.”

“It’s good to hear your voice. Can you hold
on one second?” He covered the mouthpiece and told Jenny, “I’m
sorry, but I need to take this.”

Jenny nodded as she quietly left the room,
closing the door behind her. As soon as she was gone, Alex bolted
it. He wasn’t in the mood for any interruptions. “Sorry about that.
So how’s your dad doing?”

“He’s scared, Alex. It just about breaks my
heart to see a man as strong as he is so afraid.”

“How’s your mom holding up?”

Elise laughed softly. “She’s already tried to
feed me twice since I walked in the door. I swear, if I hang around
here too long, I’m not going to be able to fit into any of my
clothes. Any new developments on the murder?”

“Nothing I’ve been able to pick up on.
Armstrong’s playing this one pretty close to the vest. Listen, you
shouldn’t be worrying about that, Elise. You’ve got enough on your
mind.”

“Believe me, I could use the distraction.
This place is like a big empty cave without any guests.”

Alex knew Elise’s parents ran an inn much
like his own, with one important exception: there was no lighthouse
on their property. “What happened to everybody?”

“Mom canceled all our reservations until we
get through this. There were only a few people scheduled, and
they’ve all been staying here for years, so they understood. Alex,
I know I need to be here, but I still feel guilty about leaving you
like I did.”

Alex started to say something when he heard a
strong male voice in the background calling to her, “Elise, we need
to go now!”

“Emergency?” Alex asked, concerned.

“Nothing like that, but I’d better say
good-bye. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Keep me posted,” Alex said to dead air.

The conversation with Elise had done nothing
to ease his mind. It seemed like she’d barely thought of him since
she’d left. That male voice in the background had to be her fiancé,
Peter Asheford.

Alex knew he had to stop feeling sorry for
himself as he hung up the phone. Her father was going into major
surgery. Of course she needed to be there with him. As for Peter
Asheford, he had every right to be there as well. No matter how
much he wished otherwise, Elise was engaged to another man. But he
knew in his heart that she was coming back; Hatteras West had a
hold on her.

What Alex had to do was to stop listening to
all the tongue wagging in Elkton Falls and get on with his
life.

After a sandwich and a glass of ice-cold
milk, Alex decided to walk the grounds to see how badly they’d been
trampled by all of the visitors to the fair. The heavy turnout was
a real boon for Shantara, but it had been nothing short of a
nightmare for him. Alex was beginning to envy Lucius Crane’s wisdom
in refusing to hold the fair on his farm.

The first thing that struck Alex as he walked
the grounds was the unbelievable amount of litter. His
once-pristine land was covered with the debris from the day:
discarded wrappers, packages, soda cans, and the other flotsam and
jetsam from the wave of people who had passed through.

As he started to pick up the first piece of
trash, he heard a car horn behind him. Shantara was leading a
cavalcade of the worst collection of cars, trucks and vans he’d
ever seen in his life.

As she popped out of her station wagon,
Shantara said, “Alex, that’s not your job. I’ve got my crew here.
Sorry we’re late.”

“I just couldn’t stand seeing my land like
this.”

As the young people filed out of their
vehicles, Shantara said, “Don’t worry, Alex, we’ll have this mess
cleaned up in no time. You’re in for a treat. These kids are good.”
She turned to the gathered young men and women. “Okay, let’s jump
on this. Get your trash bags from Emily, and drop them off at
Byron’s truck when they’re full.” As the crew started toward the
mess buzzing and laughing, Shantara called out to them, “Remember,
recycle everything you can.”

They fell on the fairground in a crashing
wave, laughing and working as they moved through the grass like a
horde of human vacuum cleaners.

“What are you paying your crew?” he
asked.

“Minimum wage and pizza at Mama Ravolini’s as
a bonus. They were happy to get the work.”

Alex said, “From the look of this crowd, I’d
say they’re going to break you with the pizza offer.”

Shantara smiled. “Irma Bean’s giving me the
pizzas at cost, and the kids only get the bonus if they work both
days. I’ll do all right.” It was amazing how quickly the teens
cleaned up after the fairgoers, though the trampled grass wouldn’t
be as easy to restore.

“Alex, don’t worry about the grass. I’ve got
enough left in the budget to reseed this area,” Shantara said,
reading his mind.

“I’ve got it covered. I’d been planning to do
it myself anyway. So, are you happy with the results of all your
hard work?”

“I guess so. Alex, one of the best reasons I
came up with this idea was to expose people to the old ways of
doing things. It wasn’t just a way to make money. There are skills
that are being lost every day, and we’re not doing nearly enough to
preserve them.”

Alex said, “Easy, girl, it was just a
question. You don’t have to convert me.”

Shantara frowned. “It’s just so frustrating.
I imagined people coming out here to see the demonstrations, to
even try their hands at a few of the crafts themselves, and instead
they’ve flocked here to see the murder scene! You want to hear
something ghoulish? Jefferson Lee’s stuff sold like crazy as soon
as everyone found out about the murder. He had a college girl
working his booth, and she kept right on selling everything, even
after he was dead!”

“Did Jefferson have any family left? I didn’t
know him all that well.”

“There’s a sister in Hickory; she’ll be
coming tomorrow. Callie told me she wasn’t all that surprised when
she found out her brother had been killed.”

Alex said, “From what I’ve been hearing
lately, I can’t say I’m all that surprised, either.” Alex shook
himself. “Don’t mind me, I’m out of sorts tonight for some
reason.”

“It’s got to be hard on you, with Elise
gone.”

Alex exploded. “Why does everyone think she’s
gone for good? She’s visiting her parents on a medical emergency!
Shantara, I swear to you, she’s coming back to Hatteras West!”

She looked startled by his outburst. “Easy,
Alex, I just meant it had to be tough on you running the inn by
yourself until she gets back.”

He laughed softly. “Sorry, it’s just that
everyone I’ve talked to today has made it sound like she’s gone
forever. You wouldn’t believe Jenny Harris. She wants us to start
dating again.”

Shantara said disdainfully, “It doesn’t
surprise me in the least. I know you two used to go out, Alex, but
you’re better off without her.”

“It sounds like you’re a little jealous
yourself,” he said, smiling.

She laughed just a little too loud and too
long for Alex’s ego to take.

He said gruffly, “Okay, you made your
point.”

“Nothing personal, Alex, but you’re not my
type.”

“And just what is your type?”

She pretended to think about it a minute,
then said, “Let’s see, he’s got to be strong, handsome, rich, don’t
forget a good sense of humor—”

Alex cut her off. “You’re not asking for
much, are you? And you think you’re going to meet this Prince
Charming in Elkton Falls?”

“Where there’s breath, there’s hope,”
Shantara said with a twinkle in her eye.

A young girl with a long ponytail poking out
the back of her baseball cap said, “We’re done here, Shantara. The
gang wanted me to ask you if there was any chance we could get an
early start on that pizza party.”

“Sorry, Emily, you know the deal; no pizza
until the end of the fair, and that’s not until tomorrow
night.”

Emily winked at her and whispered, “I told
them that’s what you’d say, but the boys insisted I ask
anyway.”

“I understand completely.”

After the kids poured back into their cars,
Alex had to admit the place did look a thousand percent better than
it had before they’d arrived.

He only wished the fair was over now, instead
of having to go through it all again tomorrow.

Alex patted Shantara’s shoulder gently and
asked, “Would you like to come in? I’ve got a bottle of wine and
two comfortable chairs just calling our names.”

“Don’t tempt me. If I did that, I’d never
make it home.”

“We had a cancellation, so I’ve got a spare
room, if you’re interested. You’re welcome to stay at the inn
tonight.”

“No offense, Alex, but I need to get away
from Hatteras West for a little while.”

“Not a problem,” he said.

Alex was walking Shantara to her car when
there was a frantic wail from the front porch as the door
slammed.

“My wife is gone! Somebody’s kidnapped her!”
Craig Monroe stood there, outlined in the moonlight, a look of
complete and utter despair on his face.

It appeared that the evil visiting Hatteras
West was still somewhere lurking on the grounds.

Chapter 10

Alex ran up onto the porch, with Shantara not
far behind. “How do you know she’s been kidnapped, Craig? Did you
find a note?”

“No,” Craig snapped, “but she told me to meet
her in our room an hour ago, and she’s not there.”

Shantara said calmly, “Craig, she probably
just got held up talking to someone on the grounds. I’m sure she’s
around here somewhere.”

“You don’t understand. Her insulin is still
in the minifridge. She’s got to have it, and it’s something
Marilynn’s not about to forget or put off. I’m telling you, the
only way she’d miss an injection is if somebody kidnapped her. Call
the sheriff, Alex! He needs to get right on this!”

Alex said, “Craig, I know you’re worried, but
Armstrong’s not going to do anything based on what you can tell him
right now. He’s going to want something a little more concrete. You
need to call home and see if your wife’s there. Then check around
and see if there’s anywhere else she could be: with friends,
family, anybody you can think of. In the meantime, I’ll take a look
around the property and see if I can find her.”

Shantara chimed in, “I’ll help you,
Alex.”

Craig nodded abruptly as he rushed back into
the inn. “Hurry. We’ve got to find her. She has to have that
insulin.”

Alex headed for the lighthouse as Shantara
said, “Do you think she’s really up there?”

Alex shook his head. “I doubt it, but it’s
still the best observation point around. If she’s anywhere nearby,
we should have a good chance of spotting her.”

Alex’s gaze went to the new construction as
he hurried past. He would have to search there more thoroughly if
Marilynn didn’t turn up soon, but it was something he’d rather put
off. One body found on the site in the last twenty-four hours was
more than enough for him. There was a reason besides kidnapping
that could keep Marilynn from her insulin.

That was if she was past needing it.

Alex and Shantara climbed the lighthouse
steps at a fierce pace, leaving little breath for conversation. As
Alex opened the door at the top, they stepped out onto the
observation platform and started walking slowly around, intent on
finding any sign of Marilynn. The breeze had picked up and was
pressing against him like a ghostly hand. Alex usually loved heavy
winds at Hatteras West, but as the sky began to darken, all he
cared about was finding the potter. The inn looked like a dollhouse
from so high above, and the new construction looked like a
precocious child had started a building with sticks but had grown
bored with the process and had given up. Alex could see parts of
Bear Rocks from the railing, but much of the rock formation was
hidden by a thick band of trees that separated it from the main
buildings.

There was no sign of Marilynn anywhere.

They made the circuit twice around the
observation platform when they met again near the door.

“Anything?” Shantara asked.

“Not a thing,” Alex admitted. “I couldn’t see
most of Bear Rocks, though. There’s a chance she could be
there.”

“Let’s go look, then.”