Page 55 of In Dangerous Water

I patted the pocket in my skirt. “I have my phone on me,” I reminded him.

Arm in arm, Gabriella and I worked our way across the crowded ballroom.

“Is everything okay?” she asked, under her breath.

“So far so good,” I replied softly. Then in a completely different tone I said, “Did you and Estella plan to both wear dresses that featured bats?”

Gabriella ran her hand over her tea-length dress. “No, but we both got a good chuckle out of it.”

“It looks great on you.”

“It’s comfortable at least,” she said while purple and black bat earrings swayed from her ears. “Hosting an event like this requires flats and a dress that I can move in.”

Gabriella’s dress featured a black mesh scattered with bats over an amethyst skirt. The bodice was solid black and made from a stretch material, with a square neckline and long sleeves that were very flattering on her.

“I think you ticked all the boxes,” I told her. “Right down to the earrings.”

“Family heirloom,” Gabriella quipped, making me laugh.

We made our way to the ladies’ room and found ourselves in a short line. While waiting we chatted casually about the costumes and outfits the other attendees were wearing. An elegant zombie exited a stall, and I took my turn.

I went to the sink to wash my hands afterward and spotted Gabriella reapplying her lipstick. Moving over to the mirror, I checked my face. The siren makeup was still holding. We’d only started to work our way back through the masquerade crowd when Gabriella’s phone began to buzz.

We paused in the lobby as she answered it. The lobby was creepy and dark tonight, which added to the atmosphere. Scattered around on tables, LED candles flickered and jack o’ lanterns glowed. The music was loud, even in the lobby, yet the mood was festive, and everyone seemed happy.

I was so busy looking carefully at all of the guests, trying to see beyond their costumes for the stalker, that it took a moment for me to clue in to the fact that something had upset Gabriella.

“What do you mean you can’t find Danielle?” Gabriella’s voice went way up.

Before I could ask what happened, I spotted Philippe. He was moving quickly across the lobby and making his way straight to us. Once he arrived, he rested his hand on Gabriella’s arm.

“Yes,” Gabriella said, looking up at her husband. “We’re coming up right now.”

“What happened?” I asked them.

“The babysitter is staying with all the kids in the family wing tonight. The kids were playing, and now they can’t find Danielle.”

“Go,” I said to the couple. “She’s probably hiding under a bed or something.”

With a nod the couple took off at a near-run toward the locked entrance to the eastern wing.

I had taken two steps toward the ballroom when my stomach tightened painfully in a warning.Something is horribly wrong,I realized.

A blast of fear and panic was coming from behind me, and I spun around, searching for the source. Far across the hotel lobby, tall potted palms were arranged in a shadowy corner, and they were shaking violently.

There were two people there. One tall, dressed all in black and wearing a full mask. The other was small. It was a child wearing jeans and a Halloween sweatshirt. The child was putting up a hell of a fight, despite the fact that a hand was clamped over their mouth, and they were being lifted off their feet.

It was Danielle Marquette.

Before I could blink, she was gone. Someone had dragged her down the dark hall that led to the hotel’s pool.

CHAPTER TEN

Yanking my phone from my pocket, I dialed Tim’s number and began to shove my way across the packed lobby. It wasn’t easy. There were so many partygoers, and folks weren’t happy to be pushed aside.

“Tim!” I said as soon as he answered. “I’m in the lobby! Headed for the pool. Meet me there. Hurry!”

I dropped the phone in my pocket and kept pushing through the crowd.

---