Page 79 of From the Darkness

“It sounds like you’ve had a pretty rough time.”

“Yes. And I’m not sure what to tell the police.”

Frank paused for a moment, then cut to the chase by asking, “you mean, what are you going to tell the police about Troy?”

Bree glanced in the other room, where she could see Dinah was still watching television. “I don’t know what to say about him. I . . . I . .” She stopped and started again. “I held him in my arms, and he seemed so real and solid. But he told me Martindale and Graves had killed him. And they thought so, too.”

Frank was silent again, then said, “Doyouthink you were dealing with a ghost.”

The directness of the question stole the breath from her lungs. “I don’t want him to be dead,” she choked out. “But . . . he said he had to go away. And, oh, Lord . . .” She gulped back a sob.

“I’m sorry,” Frank said gently. “You care about him—a lot, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

Frank’s voice firmed. “But you have to be practical. You don’t want this turned into a supernatural circus. And from what you said, it sounds like there’s correspondence between Martindale and Helen about Troy’s murder. Can you keep your cool and tell the police you haven’t seen him since you arrived?”

Bree thought that over, yet she still couldn’t abandon all hope. “But what if . . . “

“What if it turns out he has amnesia and is wandering around the estate somewhere?”

“Yes,” she breathed.

“Then he won’t have much to say, will he?”

Bree closed her eyes for a moment. Decorah Security dealt with a lot of situations that most people would find beyond the pale. Frank was giving her a way out of a very sticky situation. “I can do it,” she murmured.

“Good,” he approved. “Have faith that it’s going to work out.”

“How?” she asked in a broken voice.

“I’m not sure.”

She wanted more from him, but he closed of the subject by saying, “Just a minute. Let me check on something.” He was gone for several minutes. When he returned, he said, “Zane was on assignment in Portland. I caught him as he was leaving. He can be there very quickly.”

Bree breathed out a small sigh. Zane Marshall was a good man to have on your side.

“Right now, call the local police, and tell them a sudden storm blew up; and you think there might have been an accident on the estate. You can’t find the housekeeper or the handyman.”

“Yes. Thanks,” she answered.

“Or the Sterlings, for that matter. Don’t volunteer anything else. Let them investigate and see what they find. Don’t let them intimidate you. You haven’t done anything wrong.”

“Yes. Thanks,” she said again.

As soon as the conversation ended, Bree called 911 and made the report.

***

Two days later, a lot of the mess had been sorted out, thanks in large measure to Zane because he knew how to talk to the cops.

The authorities had found two bodies in the sea cave and two more bodies on the beach. Bree had told her edited story several times.

When the police wanted to speak to Troy, she kept repeating that she’d heard Martindale and Graves talking about having killed him and she hadn’t seen him the whole time she’d been at Ravencrest. Dinah backed her up on the last part. She hadn’t seen her father in weeks—except in her dreams. So Troy was presumed dead, although they didn’t find his body.

One mystery Zane solved was the disappearance of her gun. He found the pieces scattered in the pit that first night.

Also, with the information Troy had given her, she was able to find documentation of Helen’s diabolical scheme. The correspondence he’d mentioned was in Martindale’s dresser drawer where he had said it would be. She also produced the strongbox with the stock certificates and the letters between Troy and Helen.

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