The Other Lady Vanishes (Burning Cove #2)(53)

The target had dared to cheat her. Why do such a thing?

The answer came in a dizzying rush. She had been set up.

She had to get away. Now. Tonight.

Hauling the grip out from under the bed, she threw her things into it and slammed the lid closed. She hoisted it and set it on the floor near the door. She would take the hatbox out to the car first. It was very heavy. She could not manage it and the suitcase at the same time.

She yanked open the front door and confronted a seemingly impenetrable wall of fog. The lantern light spilled through the doorway behind her. It would be a tough drive but she had to get away.

She carried the hatbox down the front steps, set it inside the trunk, and rushed back into the cabin to pick up the grip. Once again she started down the steps to the Ford.

She froze halfway to the car because things were moving in the mist. Horrifying, snake-headed creatures twisted and writhed endlessly, their iridescent scales glowing with bizarre colors. Fangs dripped with blood.

Somewhere in the back of her mind she realized that she was hallucinating. The whiskey, she thought vaguely. But she wasn’t drunk. She had taken only a couple of swallows.

She gave up trying to make sense of what she was seeing because the colors of the snakes were too hot and painfully bright. One of the monsters swam toward her through the mist. Its eyes blazed with a terrible radiance.

A flashlight, some remote part of her brain tried to tell her. Just a flashlight. But she could not hold on to the rational explanation.

She started to turn around, intending to flee into the safety of the cabin. But it was too late.

The killer came up behind her and plunged the needle into the curve of her shoulder, close to her neck. She staggered over the threshold and made it as far as the bed before she collapsed. Her last conscious thought was that the target had double-crossed her.



* * *



? ? ?

?The killer took out a gun. The occasion called for another suicide but it was time to change the method. The nearest house was half a mile away. The roar of the ocean would muffle the shot.

The next order of business was locating the stash of blackmail materials. The hatbox containing the secrets that Madam Zolanda and her assistant had collected during the past three years was in the trunk of Leggett’s car.





Chapter 31


Jake opened his eyes and was vaguely annoyed to see the dull gloom of a foggy morning. Something important had happened during the night, he thought. But for a moment he could not remember what it was. Fragments of dreams whispered through his mind.

He recalled standing on a moonlit beach with Adelaide and seeking answers at the end of a highway paved in silver moonlight. A monster had lurked in the shadows. It had threatened Adelaide.

He was trying to focus on the memory when Adelaide herself appeared, hovering over him. She was no longer wearing the satin gown and silver shoes. Instead she had on a pair of wide-legged trousers and a snug-fitting sweater. Her hair was pinned in a severe knot at the nape of her neck. She had a mug in one hand.

“I gave you the antidote as soon as we got back here last night,” she said. “I managed to get you up the stairs to your bed before you collapsed. Otherwise you’d have awakened on the floor downstairs. I made some strong coffee for you. Trust me, it will help.”

“If you say so.”

He sat up slowly and swung his legs over the edge, planting both feet on the floor. He was still wearing the trousers and the white shirt that he had worn to the Paradise Club. Somewhere along the line he had lost his jacket, his tie, and his shoes.

He wrapped one hand around the mug and took a cautious swallow. It tasted very good. He took another swallow.

“What did you say about an antidote?” he finally asked.

“I think that you were drugged with a dangerous hallucinogen called Daydream. My parents discovered it. As soon as they realized its dangerous properties, my mother created an herbal antidote. I did the research in the botanical literature for her so I know the ingredients.”

“This is going to be a very complicated story, isn’t it?”

“I’m afraid so,” Adelaide said. “How do you feel?”

He considered the question closely. More memories trickled back.

“I’m not sure,” he said. “All right, I think. Did I have too much to drink last night?”

“No. You didn’t have anything to drink except sparkling water. You were drugged and it’s my fault.”

He eyed her closely. “You didn’t drug me, did you?”

“No, of course not. Look, I hate to say this, believe me, but I think you should leave as soon as possible.”

He contemplated her for a long moment. She looked anxious, stricken with guilt, and quite desperate.

“Let me get this straight,” he said. “You’re kicking me out?”

“I think it’s for the best.”

“For me or for you?”

“For you. It’s clear now that I’ve put you in terrible danger.”

“Believe it or not, I figured out at the start of this thing that you were running from something or someone. It’s too late to ditch me. We’re in this together.”

“You don’t understand.”

“No, but I will just as soon as you explain it to me. What time is it?”