Page 13 of Dragon Detective

We took the main staircase, and she showed me the suites, an equal number on each side of the landing. In the last, the one above her bedroom, I looked at all the fixtures, but while I couldn’t find any leaks, I was no plumber.

“I shut off the valves to this floor,” she said. “A bummer since this room was ready for guests.”

I’d admired the pale rose walls, the way she’d refinished the dark, ornate trim, plus the understated, antique décor. The large, clawed tub in the bathroom, clearly as old as the building though in pristine condition, was complemented by a newly tiled shower with a glass door and the pedestal sink. Bright towels added a splash of color and tied it all together.

“I call this the rose suite for obvious reasons,” she said with a soft smile. “I’ll name each something simple based on the colors I use.”

We left the bathroom and crossed the large bedroom with a cozy sitting area, the fireplace flanked by high back chairs and a floral loveseat.

“Guests are going to love this place,” I said, admiring the colors she’d chosen as well as the way she’d arranged the room. “You’ll be booked out a year in advance.”

When another cool breeze swept through the room right after Hannah opened the door to the hall, I attributed the chill to air moving through the house from the level above.

Her hand on the open door, she shot me a sad smile. “I hope so.”

I joined her in the opening. “I’m going to get to the bottom of this. We’ll find out who’s trying to sabotage you, and you’ll be able to open the B&B on time. I promise.”

With a nod, she stepped out into the hall, waving to the tall table with a lamp placed beside the door. “Don’t forget your pocket watch.”

The exact same watch now lay on this table.

Chapter 7

Hannah

After we’d finished touring the house and without Reylor coming to any conclusions, he typed his number into my phone, telling me to call him at any time day or night.

As he left through the back kitchen door, I let Max in, fed him, and went around, shutting windows and making sure they and all the doors were locked.

Reylor had taken the pocket watch, telling me he was going to look up details related to it online tonight. I’d bet him that he’d discover it was made about ninety years ago and that Justin had owned it. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if it was engraved with Justin’s name inside the front cover.

Did I actually believe ghosts existed? Even I wasn’t convinced, and I could tell Reylor was “spooked” by the pocket watch.

It was easier to explain away the odd bumps and bangs I heard during the night, the chilly breezes that would rush through the room despite all the windows and doors being closed, plus the random moved objects, as a ghost, than think that there was someone inside the building with me. If I suspected the latter, I’d never be able to sleep.

I made dinner and sat on the patio to enjoy it with Max lounging by my feet again, batting at the sprig of catnip I’d picked in my garden.

When it started to get dark, I went inside, locked the back door, and filled my bathroom tub.

I peeked out the back window and . . . Was someone slinking through my backyard?

Garden saboteur!

I bolted from the room and around to the kitchen, bursting out onto my small back deck, where I clutched the railing and peered around.

There was no one there.

“Don’t you dare,” I bellowed.

A dog a few houses down started barking.

After grabbing a flashlight from inside my kitchen, I strode around my backyard, even walking all the way to the sand dunes, but I didn’t find any evidence someone had been there. My plants swayed happily in their flower beds, and my shed door remained locked.

I must’ve imagined I saw someone here. Was it any wonder I was spooked about all this?

Back inside, I rechecked the locks and windows, making sure everything was secure, then returned to my suite, plugging my phone into the cord I left on my bedside table.

After lighting candles and placing them around the bathroom and dropping a few beads of scented oil into the steaming water, I stripped and climbed in, leaning back against the sloped surface. My tension slid out of me all at once.

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