Caught Dead Handed Page 16

  “Who is this?” Hannah asked.

  “Gwen. I’m scared.”

  Hannah’s feet crashed to the floor and she lurched up straight. “Where are you, Gwen? What’s wrong?”

  “I can’t talk for long. Colin went outside and he told me not to tell anyone where I am.” Gwen’s voice was barely audible to Hannah.

  “Are you in danger?”

  “I…I don’t know. He told me I wasn’t safe at the Inn and he could hide me but I had to do exactly what he said.”

  “Tell me where you are, Gwen,” Hannah said with as much authority as she could add to her voice without sounding panicked.

  “A cottage, not too far from the Inn…maybe a ten or fifteen minute drive. Past a marina. I remember seeing that sign and thinking how much fun it would be to go on a boat.”

  “Can you remember any more details?”

  “Colin drove us here in his black mustang.” There was a long pause. “He’s coming back inside.”

  The phone went dead against Hannah’s ear.

  Hannah’s heart hammered. Did Colin push Monique into the pool for some twisted reason to get close to Gwen? Or did Colin know something and he thought he was actually protecting her from the real killer? But what could he know? Hannah stood. Maybe he had a run-in with Harold and decided he was a threat to Gwen.

  Without stopping to think of a good strategy, Hannah picked up Great Aunt Caroline’s guest sign-in book from six years earlier and left her office in the direction of Harold’s cottage. He admitted that he gave Gwen a ride to the Paradise Inn and Colin could have seen them. It was very possible that Colin had some sort of confrontation with Harold.

  As she walked, she called Pam and gave her the little bit of information that Gwen had shared. “Try to find her, Pam. She sounded desperate.”

  “I’m on my way,” Pam answered before she hung up.

  Hannah looked up as Vanessa headed in her direction. “You look like the world just fell out from under your feet,” Vanessa said.

  Hannah forced herself to relax and pasted on a friendly smile. “I’ve got a lot on my mind at the moment. Where are you off to?”

  “Another walk on the beach. I have a few things to sort out and the beach does wonders for my thought process.”

  “Nothing better,” Hannah said over her shoulder as she kept walking past Vanessa to Harold’s cottage.

  She knocked and tapped her foot impatiently. What if he’d already left?

  The door opened.

  “What do you want? More of your questions?”

  Hannah slid her foot into the door opening so Harold wouldn’t be able to slam it in her face. He could slam it on her foot which would hurt like heck, though, she realized since she only had flip-flops to protect the bottom of her feet. She mustered up some courage. “I do have a question, Harold.” She held the book up.

  His eyes opened wider than normal and his lips squished into a tight line. “Come in.”

  “No. Let’s sit out here.” Hannah pointed to the chairs on the small porch attached to the cottage. The last thing she wanted was to be stuck inside with a possible murderer.

  Harold grabbed her arm and pulled her inside the cottage, slamming the door and keeping his body between the only escape from the cottage and Hannah. It all happened in the blink of an eye and she didn’t have time to react. She wiped the sweaty palm of her free hand on her shorts and clutched the guest book to her chest.

  Harold wrenched the book from her hand.

  “What is in that book that has you on edge?” Hannah found her voice, shaky but functional. She was stuck in this mess so she had better use all her ammunition to end it.

  Harold opened the book to the page where the marker stuck out. He ripped it from the binding and crumpled it into a tiny ball. “There, now it’s not a problem anymore.”

  “You can throw the page away, but how will you hide Candace V. Jones? That is the name of the other model, isn’t it?” Hannah stepped closer to Harold. “You paid her off, didn’t you?”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about. You have no idea what happened here six years ago.” Harold held Hannah’s gaze like a predator trying to paralyze its prey with fear.

  She forced herself to take another step closer. “Why don’t you tell me what happened?”

  “No. It was between Candace and me and she’ll never talk, I made sure of that.”

  If Hannah didn’t know that Candace was alive and well, masquerading as Vanessa now, she would have to wonder if Harold’s comment meant he killed her. “How much money did you give her?”

  “Enough so she could disappear. That’s what she wanted.”

  “Disappear? From you?”

  His brows scrunched together. “That was the deal. She would disappear and never bother me again. Never stalk me. Never threaten anyone close to me. Why do you insist on opening up those old wounds? Did Juliette put you up to this? It would be just like her to spite me like that.”

  “No. Juliette only said that you and Candace argued and then Candace left. What was the argument about?”

  Harold sighed. His body deflated. “Juliette. Candace hated her. For some reason, Candace thought she should be the only model in my life. She was my worst nightmare.”

  “Juliette was the reason she left?”

  “I suppose, in a way, everything came to a head because of Juliette, and I was trying to protect her from Candace’s wrath. Talk to Juliette. She knows the truth about Candace.”

  Something was wrong with this picture. Was Candace protecting Juliette from Harold six years ago like she told Hannah, or was it the other way around? “And you and Juliette got married soon after Candace disappeared?”

  “Yes. Everything was wonderful, until—”

  “Monique came into the picture.”

  Harold nodded.

  “You have a habit of getting women out of your life, don’t you?” She ticked names off on her fingers. “Candace, Juliette, and now Monique. How easy for you to give Monique a nudge with your elbow and watch her sink to the bottom of the pool so you could move on to Gwen. Did Colin figure out your plan?”

  Harold’s jaw dropped. “Who is Colin?”

  “He works at the Paradise Inn. He was supposed to take Gwen to dinner last night but she went with you instead. Did he confront you?” Hannah sidestepped to get a clear path to the door.

  “He drives a mustang?”

  Hannah nodded.

  “I saw him leave with Gwen after I dropped her off. And listen,” his eyes blazed with anger, “I didn’t push Monique into the pool. I don’t know where you got that idea from. I was getting my lights and equipment ready to start the photoshoot. The police have checked and rechecked and triple checked my alibi and they said I’m off the suspect list. I’m only sticking around until the police figure this out.”

  It was Hannah’s turn to be shocked.

  “Here’s another tidbit for you,” Harold said. “Colin works at the Inn?”

  Hannah nodded.

  “The police told me the security cameras had been tampered with. Maybe you should be sticking your nose into Colin’s business. He could have followed Monique into the pool area and pushed her in,” Harold said. “If Gwen is with him now, she could be in danger.” He grabbed Hannah’s arm. “Help me find her.”

  Hannah’s arm tingled. Could she trust this man? Everything about him screamed for her to run as fast as possible away from him.

  Hannah forced herself to act calm even though every nerve burned as adrenaline surged through her body. Her focus was to get out of the cottage where, at least, she could make a run for safety if necessary.

  Chapter 26

  Hannah had never been so happy to see Samantha rushing toward her as she walked next to Harold. She didn’t know why, but just being within inches of him made her muscles twitch.

  Samantha grinned broadly and primped her hair when she caught sight of Harold. “Petunia escaped again. Can you help me catch her, Hannah? We c
ould do some more photos if you want, Harold.”

  Hannah shook her head, trying to discourage Samantha from getting too cozy with him. All she needed added to her plate was to rescue Samantha from Harold’s clutches. “He’s busy. But I’ll help you, Samantha. Let’s go.”

  She felt fingers grip her arm and she almost let out a scream.

  “You didn’t tell me where Gwen is,” Harold said.

  “Look for Colin’s black Mustang somewhere past the marina. That’s all I know.”

  Hannah sighed a huge sigh of relief when Harold released her arm and walked to his car.

  “What was that all about?” Samantha asked.

  “I’m not sure yet but I’m glad to be away from him. Where is Petunia?”

  “She was begging at The Fishy Dish back door but as soon as I tried to get her, she squealed and took off for your cottage. Maybe she wants to hang out with the dogs.”

  “I’ve got popcorn inside I can use for a treat. That’s her favorite.” Hannah and Samantha quickly walked toward Hannah’s cottage. When Petunia spotted them, she trotted around to the back but Nellie and Patches rushed toward Hannah. “Stay here with Samantha and I’ll get you some treats, too,” she promised the dogs.

  Nellie sat at the word treat and waited patiently. Patches wasn’t sure but, in the end, he decided to stay with Nellie and Samantha. “I’ll be right back,” Hannah told them.

  With a bowl of popcorn and a handful of dog bones, Hannah returned outside. “Let’s ignore Petunia for now. I think she’ll get curious once she smells food and she’ll head in our direction.”

  Sure enough, as Nellie and Patches munched their dog bones, and Hannah scattered some popcorn on the ground, Petunia casually made her appearance with her nose in the air, trotted over to the popcorn trail, and cleaned up the pieces. She looked expectantly at Hannah as if to say, that’s all?

  “You want more, do you?” Hannah held the bowl between herself and Samantha. “When she sticks her head in the bowl, wrap the leash around her. I think the popcorn will distract her enough so we can get her harness on.”

  The plan went without a hitch. “I guess it’s best if I bring her back to her pen before she gets into any real trouble.”

  “I’ll come too,” Samantha offered.

  Of course, Nellie and Patches led the way.

  Ruby’s car was gone, but Juliette’s was in the driveway. Hannah handed Petunia’s leash to Samantha. “Can you put her in her pen? I want to talk to Juliette for a minute.”

  “Sure. I’ll go back to the office in case you get held up here.”

  “Thanks. And, Samantha?”

  “Uh-huh?”

  “Make sure to close up the gate properly. I still haven’t figured out how Petunia keeps escaping.”

  “Will do,” Samantha replied before Petunia almost pulled her off her feet as she lurched toward her pen. “She must be ready for a beauty nap!”

  Hannah let herself into Ruby’s house. “Juliette? Are you here?”

  No answer.

  “I wonder where she’s gotten herself to,” Hannah said to the empty house.

  Maisy ran to the door and jumped on Hannah’s legs. She yipped and yapped as if she was telling an important story. “Is that so?” Hannah answered as she scooped Maisy into her arms and let the Moodle give her a kiss. “Where’d your momma get to without you?”

  Hannah heard footsteps in the living room. “Hello? Juliette?”

  Vanessa rounded the corner. “Oh. You startled me,” she said to Hannah. “I was looking for Juliette, too, but I only found her dog. Or, I guess I should say that she found me.”

  “Juliette can’t have gone far without Maisy,” Hannah said. “I’ll wait for her to get back.” Hannah settled onto the couch and Maisy snuggled next to her. Hannah looked at Vanessa. “How did you get in the house?”

  Vanessa sat across from Hannah. She flicked her wrist as if it was nothing. “Juliette asked me to meet her here. When she didn’t answer, I tried the door and when it opened, I walked in thinking maybe she didn’t hear me knock. No harm done.” She checked her watch and twisted it around her wrist. “I guess I’ll walk back to my cottage. Tell Juliette that I’m sorry I missed her.”

  A thump, thump, thump sounded from upstairs. Hannah jumped. Maisy leaped off the couch and ran barking toward the noise. Hannah followed. Maisy dashed up the stairs and stopped at the closed door to the room where Juliette was staying. She jumped on the door and scratched with both paws as the volume of her barking increased.

  “What is it, Maisy?” Hannah reached for the doorknob.

  As the door began to open, Hannah felt a hand on her back.

  She turned her head expecting to see Vanessa peeking over her shoulder.

  Vanessa was behind her but she didn’t have a curious expression on her face; instead, it was twisted into a grimace. She shoved Hannah into the partly opened door which flew all the way open, sending Hannah sprawled on the floor.

  Fortunately, Hannah’s body responded even though her brain didn’t have time to process what the heck was going on. She quickly rolled to her left a split second before a chair crashed on the spot where she had landed, only inches away from where she now lay, paralyzed with fear.

  A thump brought her to life. From the floor she saw two feet tied together sticking out from under the bed. She scrambled to her feet as the bedroom door crashed closed.

  “You have terrible timing, Hannah.” Vanessa’s muffled voice came through the locked door. “Don’t disappear,” Vanessa cackled. It sounded like she was fiddling with the doorknob. “I’ll be back to deal with the two of you.”

  The two feet thrashed back and forth with increased intensity. Hannah pulled Juliette from under the bed. When their eyes met, Juliette relaxed.

  Hannah tried to open the door but it wouldn’t budge. “Vanessa likes rope, maybe she tied the door closed somehow. We’ll figure that out after I get you freed.”

  Hannah quickly ripped the tape off Juliette’s mouth and searched for something to cut through the rope tying her hands and feet.

  “In my knitting bag. Scissors.” Juliette’s words came out in a jumble but Hannah got the message. She dumped the bag on the bed, on top of the finished hot pink blanket for Olivia, and found a small, but sharp, pair of scissors.

  Sawing back and forth on the rope, Hannah desperately prayed for a miracle before Vanessa returned.

  “She was so nice when she showed up at the front door,” Juliette said. “She said she was walking on the beach and realized she needed to tell me something.”

  Hannah was only half-way through the rope, and the scissors were getting closer and closer to Juliette’s wrist. She had to concentrate and be careful or else she might cut her. But that might be the least of their problems if Vanessa came back too soon. “She told you her real identity?”

  “Only after she got me up here to show her the blanket I made for Olivia. It was all friendly chatter, a little bit about Monique and how much she missed her, how much she likes the beach, and how nice everyone has been to her. I actually felt sorry for her.”

  “She must have been plotting and planning this for the last six years. I was taken in by her phony stories, too.”

  “But you knew? About her being Candace?”

  “Yes. She told me that Harold assaulted her and she needed to have plastic surgery. That she had tried to protect you and Monique. I didn’t want to reveal her identity for fear that Harold would hurt her again. Wow, did I get that wrong.” The ropes around Juliette’s wrists fell away. “Finally.”

  Juliette massaged her wrists and flexed her fingers. “Thank you! I can feel my fingers again. Tingly but functional.”

  Footsteps outside the door made them both freeze. Hannah and Juliette stared at the doorknob. Someone jiggled it but it didn’t open. Hannah heard muttering but no discernable words. More footsteps, but the sound clacked on the stairs and faded away.

  Hannah wiped the sweat beading on her brow and sawe
d faster with the scissors on the rope around Juliette’s ankles.

  “Where’s Maisy?” Juliette’s voice carried a hint of panic. “Do you think that evil woman would hurt her?”

  “She’ll have a fight on her hands if she tries. Remember how Maisy bit Monique?”

  Juliette giggled.

  Hannah giggled too. Her nerves were about to burst but giggling relieved some of the tension. It also slowed down her work on the ropes. She pulled herself together, yanked hard on each side, but it didn’t break. She had to cut more.

  “Vanessa still thinks she can win Harold back. She thinks once I’m out of the way he’ll need a shoulder to cry on and she actually thinks that shoulder will be hers,” Juliette said.

  “What about Gwen? She could still be competition for Vanessa.” Hannah tried the rope again.

  Juliette wiggled her feet and tried to stretch the rope. It was a bit looser. “Vanessa said Gwen is taken care of, too. I was the last piece she had to deal with; to get rid of.” Juliette shuddered. “I regret wanting to find her to discuss Harold. That was a stupid plan on my part.”

  “That was your unfinished business?”

  Juliette nodded.

  Hannah looked at Juliette. “Gwen called me, terrified. She said Colin told her she was in danger and he’s hiding her someplace.”

  Juliette’s face paled. “While Vanessa tied me up, she bragged that Colin was working with her. All she had to do was bribe him with some money. ”

  Chapter 27

  Hannah made two more sawing motions with the scissors, and with Juliette keeping tension on the rope, it finally broke apart. She scrambled to her feet.

  Yipping and yapping filtered through the bedroom window. Juliette rushed to see what was happening. She made a circular motion with her hand behind her back. “Hannah, get over here. Quick!”

  Hannah and Juliette stared out the bedroom window right into Petunia’s pen. Maisy, the ten pound Moodle, had her front paws on the gate and used her nose to push the latch up and out of its proper position. She dropped to the ground and the gate swung open.