Page 109 of Pepper, the Biker & the Vanishing Body

I tapped one of his arms. “Then you better keep those muscles in good shape since I intend to grow very old with you.”

“Wait. Is this you being romantic?” he teased.

“Pretty good, don’t you think,” I said, praising myself.

He kissed me. “Perfect,mo ghràdh,perfect.”

Several people gatheredon the second floor of the Willow Mansion. I had Amy and Beau meet Ian and me, knowing they wouldn’t want to miss this. Mom was already there, deep in conversation with Agent Stone—who, to my surprise, actually was named Stone. However, my mom, making friends as effortlessly as she did, had already started calling him by his given name. Jedidiah.

“Call me Jed, Mrs. Madison,” I heard him correct her several times.

Her response put a smile on my face—and my dad’s as well.

“Nonsense. Jedidiah is too lovely a name to shorten, and it’s Sally for you, Jedidiah.”

So, Jedidiah joined us on the second floor, along with my mom, dad, and Josh.

When Ian and I arrived at the mansion, my dad informed me that Guy had finally regained consciousness. Unfortunately, interrogating him wasn’t going to be easy. Edna had already retained legal counsel for both herself and her son. Naturally, the attorney had ordered Guy to keep his mouth shut.

“They’re high-powered attorneys,” Stone added as he joined the conversation. “We’re going to need you and Kelly to testify if we want to make this case stick.”

I couldn’t get over the transformation in Stone. Gone was the biker disguise—along with the tattoos. He now wore a dark suit, crisp white shirt, and a neatly knotted tie, and his hair had been cut in a style more befitting an FBI agent. However, the change didn’t at all affect his appeal. He was still one good-looking guy.

“All right, Pepper, we’re all here, so get to it,” Josh ordered.

I could tell he was waiting for me to make a fool of myself, and I hoped that wouldn’t be the case.

Ian gave me a quick wink of encouragement and his unwavering support made me smile.

“Willow Mansion was built with perfect symmetry. There is balance to everything in this house. It fascinated me how precise Ignatius was in everything he did. But something about the second floor was off, and I couldn’t put my finger on it until Kelly and I rushed up here, fleeing Edna. That’s when I knew what it was.

“‘That’s what it is,’” I had said.

“Which I replied, ‘What is?’”

Everyone turned, seeing Kelly, looking radiant, step off the top step and Danny right behind her, their newborn son cradled in his arms.

“I couldn’t miss this,” Kelly said, giving me a gentle hug.

“We got a name, people,” Danny boasted proudly.

Kelly glanced at me smiling as she announced, “Michael.”

A cheer went up and the baby slept through it like a champ.

“Okay, Pepper, continue,” Josh said impatiently.

I gestured around. “Look carefully, Josh. All of you look. Keep symmetry in mind and tell me what you see.”

Everyone looked around, scanning the hallway. Some shook their heads, unsure what I meant. It was Ian who spotted it first.

“The end of the hallway isn’t balanced. One section sits out further than the other end.”

“Right,” I said, so proud of him. “Which means?—”

“A secret room,” Amy blurted out, her eyes wide with excitement.

Amy quickly cleared off the half-table sitting against the wall at the one end of the hall. Josh stepping forward, joined Ian and Beau, as they ran their hands along the panel, searching for a release switch.

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