Had she gone back to the house ahead of everyone else?
A last glance toward the Cliff Walk revealed the solitary figure sitting on the iron bench at the top of the Forty Steps. The low roar of the ocean blocked out any sound of the murderer’s approach.
CHAPTER
26
Sam Watkins knelt beneath the giant elm tree, retching violently. He had definitely had too much to drink. Too many beers and all that seafood were a killer combination.
Sam looked around furtively, hoping that no one had witnessed his pathetic display. That definitely wouldn’t be a plus in his quest to win the full-time spot at KEY News. They’d think that he was just another boozing frat boy—that he wasn’t serious about his career. He uttered a low groan as a second wave of nausea hit.
Finally, he was able to get to his feet. Sam staggered at first, then became a bit more sure-footed, coming out from behind the tree and taking a few steps toward the road. In the distance,he could see the backs of the last party guests returning to the house. Good. No one had seen him.
Sam turned his head in the direction of the ocean, just to make sure that there was no one behind him. He didn’t want any surprises.
It was then he saw what he prayed was a drunken man’s mirage. On shaky legs, Sam tried to move forward, on instinct, wanting to help. But the vision at the cliff’s edge and the alcohol overwhelmed him. He staggered backward, falling down again beneath the elm, as a woman’s scream was muffled by the roar of the crashing surf.
SUNDAY
—— JULY 18 ——
CHAPTER
27
Grace slept fitfully, periodically peeking at the digital clock as it marked the passing of the night. She got up again and again, to get a glass of water, to fiddle with the thermostat on the air conditioner, to play back the message.
“Hi, Mom. It’s Lucy. Guess what? Daddy and Jan and I are coming to Newport! Daddy knew about your hotel and he got a room for us there. Isn’t that cool? We can hang out. Well, call me back at Daddy’s. Love you.”
It had been too late to return the call when she had gotten back to the Viking, and that was probably just as well. Grace didn’t want to get Frank on the phone and get into an argument about how utterly inappropriate his intentions were. He would just feign ignorance and innocence.
Grace’s intuition told her that her former husband had a plan, though she wasn’t sure yet what it was. Maybe he was trying to psyche her out, make her more nervous than she already was on her first out-of-town assignment. He probably wanted her to fail. Or maybe Frank would be looking for things to useagainst her in his court case. He’d be watching her, taking mental, if not written, notes on the long hours she worked here in order to have evidence when the time came.
Was she being paranoid? Grace wondered as she punched at the pillow. No. That was how Frank Callahan worked. When he wanted something, Frank used all his considerable energies and resources to get it.
But Lucy wasn’t something. She was everything.
CHAPTER
28
The loose-fitting cotton slacks and long-sleeved blouse she took from the hook on the back of her closet door were the same clothes she had worn the previous morning and the one before that, but Elsa couldn’t have cared less. She was not out to impress anyone this early. In fact, experience told her that there wouldn’t be many people out there to impress. She would be home again, showered, and dressed in more socially acceptable attire before most of the residents and vacationers in this town were even out of bed.
Elsa grunted a bit as she bent over to tie her rubber-soledwalking shoes. She was feeling more than her age this morning. At forty-two, one shouldn’t be stiff when getting out of bed. She wrote it off to the balled-up position she had found herself in when she awakened. Her sleep had not been a relaxed one, and her muscles were tense.
She walked down the wide, elaborately carved
A last glance toward the Cliff Walk revealed the solitary figure sitting on the iron bench at the top of the Forty Steps. The low roar of the ocean blocked out any sound of the murderer’s approach.
CHAPTER
26
Sam Watkins knelt beneath the giant elm tree, retching violently. He had definitely had too much to drink. Too many beers and all that seafood were a killer combination.
Sam looked around furtively, hoping that no one had witnessed his pathetic display. That definitely wouldn’t be a plus in his quest to win the full-time spot at KEY News. They’d think that he was just another boozing frat boy—that he wasn’t serious about his career. He uttered a low groan as a second wave of nausea hit.
Finally, he was able to get to his feet. Sam staggered at first, then became a bit more sure-footed, coming out from behind the tree and taking a few steps toward the road. In the distance,he could see the backs of the last party guests returning to the house. Good. No one had seen him.
Sam turned his head in the direction of the ocean, just to make sure that there was no one behind him. He didn’t want any surprises.
It was then he saw what he prayed was a drunken man’s mirage. On shaky legs, Sam tried to move forward, on instinct, wanting to help. But the vision at the cliff’s edge and the alcohol overwhelmed him. He staggered backward, falling down again beneath the elm, as a woman’s scream was muffled by the roar of the crashing surf.
SUNDAY
—— JULY 18 ——
CHAPTER
27
Grace slept fitfully, periodically peeking at the digital clock as it marked the passing of the night. She got up again and again, to get a glass of water, to fiddle with the thermostat on the air conditioner, to play back the message.
“Hi, Mom. It’s Lucy. Guess what? Daddy and Jan and I are coming to Newport! Daddy knew about your hotel and he got a room for us there. Isn’t that cool? We can hang out. Well, call me back at Daddy’s. Love you.”
It had been too late to return the call when she had gotten back to the Viking, and that was probably just as well. Grace didn’t want to get Frank on the phone and get into an argument about how utterly inappropriate his intentions were. He would just feign ignorance and innocence.
Grace’s intuition told her that her former husband had a plan, though she wasn’t sure yet what it was. Maybe he was trying to psyche her out, make her more nervous than she already was on her first out-of-town assignment. He probably wanted her to fail. Or maybe Frank would be looking for things to useagainst her in his court case. He’d be watching her, taking mental, if not written, notes on the long hours she worked here in order to have evidence when the time came.
Was she being paranoid? Grace wondered as she punched at the pillow. No. That was how Frank Callahan worked. When he wanted something, Frank used all his considerable energies and resources to get it.
But Lucy wasn’t something. She was everything.
CHAPTER
28
The loose-fitting cotton slacks and long-sleeved blouse she took from the hook on the back of her closet door were the same clothes she had worn the previous morning and the one before that, but Elsa couldn’t have cared less. She was not out to impress anyone this early. In fact, experience told her that there wouldn’t be many people out there to impress. She would be home again, showered, and dressed in more socially acceptable attire before most of the residents and vacationers in this town were even out of bed.
Elsa grunted a bit as she bent over to tie her rubber-soledwalking shoes. She was feeling more than her age this morning. At forty-two, one shouldn’t be stiff when getting out of bed. She wrote it off to the balled-up position she had found herself in when she awakened. Her sleep had not been a relaxed one, and her muscles were tense.
She walked down the wide, elaborately carved
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