Hounded by E.J. Cochrane

Author:E.J. Cochrane [Cochrane, E.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bella Books
Published: 2023-03-16T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Maddie was, perhaps, more excited than she should have been at the prospect of searching for Leslie, not because she had a long unfulfilled desire to wander through a darkened mansion on the hunt for a frightened but hopefully still alive maid, but because that search was the perfect opportunity to look for clues in her suspects’ rooms. She felt a little guilty about her deceitful multitasking, but she could hardly ignore such a golden opportunity simply because it might be a little insensitive.

That she was also intentionally misleading her pool of suspects just to get a surreptitious peek at their private spaces was probably undoing any good karma points she’d accumulated, but since it was a duplicitous means to a potentially punitive end, she figured she most likely wasn’t reserving a seat on the express train to hell. True, she could be more forthcoming about her suspicions that Leslie had taken Carlisle’s key and hidden, likely locking the other doors as a way to slow the killer’s murderous pursuit of the last service professional on the island. If she presumed correctly, they wouldn’t find their missing maid hiding out in any of the guests’ rooms—that would be like a fly choosing a spider’s web as the perfect place for a nap. It was more likely Leslie would be hiding in the last place the killer would think to look, namely in one of the victims’ rooms. But Maddie, eager to find some link to the killer and hopeful that discovery would take place en route to Leslie’s hideaway, kept that theory to herself.

Also true, there was no guarantee that the killer had left a vital clue sitting out for her to find, but what kind of amateur detective would she be if she didn’t at least look? It would probably be her one shot to pry, and she wanted to make the most of it. If only Jason would hurry with the generator, she might be able to see the clues she hoped the killer had been foolish (or cocky) enough to leave out in the open. Something like a signed confession would be nice.

While she was grateful for the serendipitous free pass into the suspects’ rooms, even if it included two overbearing chaperones, she wasn’t loving the investigation by candlelight. Ideally, she would have been alone on this adventure (or, if she had to have backup, with Dottie, who would be so preoccupied with concern over her failed weekend adventure that she wouldn’t even pay attention to what Maddie was doing). But of course she had to have an entire cabal of investigators along for the ride and ready to intervene should she stumble upon any useful information. If ever there was an endorsement for keeping to oneself, it was the enforced socializing of this weekend.

Their plodding journey to the second floor was hindered somewhat by the inherent danger of ascending a sweeping staircase in the near total darkness. As she followed the flickering light from Carlisle’s candelabra, Maddie wondered how much she resembled the cover of a Nancy Drew mystery.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.