Camera Never Lies (13 page)

I sat at the laptop again, Spencer in the chair next to me.

“But you wonder why she’s distraught,” I said. “Is it because she killed him or because she found the body?”

“Now you’re reading
my
mind.”

“Well, there’s nothing incriminating here. We have nothing on the housekeeper from these photos until we find out what she was doing in that room today.” I positioned the arrow to end the program.

“Wait.” Spencer placed his hand on top of mine. “Do you see that?”

The housekeeper gripped something in her hand.

CHAPTER
ELEVEN

E
ven though after enlarging the image and the housekeeper’s fist filling the screen, I still couldn’t make things out. “What’s she holding?”

Spencer squinted. “Looks like a dark red cloth.”

“Alec’s handkerchief!” We said the words in unison.

“You know about his handkerchief?” I asked.

“Well, I couldn’t miss it, not with him blubbering into it. That was his response to my ‘or else’ warning. It’s not likely I’d forget that.” Hands in his lap, he looked down, regret twisting his features.

I held my breath. This was the chance I’d hoped for—an opportunity to discover what he’d done after his words with Alec. But how could I ask him?

Before I could think of what to say, he rubbed his eyes and said, “His comments about you made me really angry, Polly. I won’t repeat them, but there was a time in my life when I might have done more than give him words. I’d just come out of those troubled college days when you met me.”

I touched his hand to reassure him.

A feeble grin crossed his lips, enough to dimple his cheek. “It scares me to think of what might have happened, had I followed him. Not that I would have planned an act of murder.”

Relief came in the form of moisture-filled eyes, which I hated. Bring on those prescription drugs to keep the tears at bay. I swiped a hand down my face to disguise wiping them away. “Even if you’d done nothing more than follow him, it would have looked bad for you, given your past temperament.”

“Yes. I’m thankful I had an alibi. I ended up talking at length with a guide at the information center by the lake rim to kill time …sorry. Poor word choice. I was waiting to see you. As things worked out, I ran into Conrad and Rene when they arrived.”

I nodded. “That’s why it looked like you’d come with them. Why didn’t you find me or call my room if you were so anxious to see me?”

He gave a short laugh. “After all this time, I wasn’t sure how you would receive me. I was looking for an approach, the right moment, that sort of thing.”

A pensive silence lingered between us. I sensed he wanted to know my reaction, given what he’d revealed. The thought that he’d followed and watched me from a distance didn’t sit well with me, but on the other hand, I think I understood why. There was so much I wanted to say—

The screen flickered and drew my attention. “I have to plug this in. The battery is about to go.”

Spencer found the wall socket behind the desk as I studied the image on the screen. I needed to bridle the flood of emotions he’d stirred, save the discussion for a more appropriate time.

When he finished connecting the computer, he sat next to me again. “I’m sorry for laying that on you. Bad timing. We’ve got a lot of muck to muddle through at the moment.” With that, he took my face in his hands and kissed my forehead. “But later…”

Spencer had put me in the wrong mood for a murder investigation. It was a struggle to focus on anything but his nearness, despite the pressing circumstances.

I attempted to bring the conversation back to our sleuthing efforts and looked at the monitor. “So, if that’s his handkerchief, then why is the housekeeper holding it? I think we might have our first real clue. All I have to do now is show these photos to the ranger, right?”

Spencer placed his hand over his mouth in a thoughtful pose before finally responding. “Hold up, Polly. We haven’t got much of anything. She could have found it on the floor while cleaning then opened the closet door.”

I felt like a balloon blown up with hope then deflated with reality. “You’re right, of course. We need to find out more about her.”

“How? With more pictures?” His reproachful tone made me tense.

“Maybe. I don’t know.” Though afraid of his response, I slowly pulled my gaze from the computer monitor to peer at him.

A couple strolling the hallway entered our little corner. Spencer stood and blocked my laptop screen from their view.

“Oh, sorry. Didn’t mean to interrupt,” the man’s voice stated.

“No apology needed,” Spencer replied cheerfully.

The pair meandered farther down the hall, apparently wanting their privacy, too.

Spencer continued to watch them as they disappeared. “Polly, I’m getting a bad feeling about all of this. Promise you’ll wait for me before you question anyone else.”

His protectiveness warmed me. I shook my head then pushed from the chair and stood to stretch. “That won’t work. I’m getting pretty good at this questioning thing.”

“You’ve got a method, have you?” He put his hands on his hips, emphasizing that he didn’t believe me—a challenge to be sure. But then he winked.

My knees felt like jelly. Or was it Jell-O? I could never remember. “Yes, and I don’t want you to mess with it.” I shut down my laptop, gluing my eyes to the screen.

“At least allow me to be close enough to hear if you scream.”

The concern in his voice drew my gaze. “You’re serious?”

He quirked a brow. “I always am.”

Was there a double meaning in his reply? The dry throat sensation returned as I pondered his earlier words and his kiss to my forehead…a promise of more between us.

“First we have to find the housekeeper.” The room began to swim, tilting unsteadily to the right.

“That’s easy enough. Find the housekeeping cart—Polly, are you all right?”

I swayed, my vision fuzzy. The next thing I knew, I was sitting on the small sofa, Spencer’s strong hands gripping my shoulders. His face was near as he formed words. What was he saying?

“Are you all right?”

I shook my head to clear my mind. “Yes. I’m fine. I’m not sure what happened.” Nothing tilted at the moment. Spencer’s lips were dangerously close to mine.

“You fainted.”

“What? No I didn’t. I just got a little dizzy. It must be the altitude.” I looked away from him. He released his grip, allowing me to slump against the cushion as he took a seat next to me.

“When did you last eat? You didn’t eat lunch, I noticed.”

“I don’t remember. Look, we don’t have time for this nonsensical fainting or dizziness, whatever it is. Let’s go find the housekeeper.” I had to escape his proximity.

Spencer rose from the sofa as though he sensed my discomfort. I hope he didn’t misunderstand me, but what could I say?
I want you to kiss me, just not here
.

I gathered my laptop and camera. I had a hunch my time with the rangers would come soon. Romance should be the last thing on my mind.

We deposited my laptop in my room, keeping a sharp eye out for the housekeeper and a vending machine. Then we headed down the hall and around the corner. The crime-scene tape still blocked the room where Alec was murdered.

The housekeeper shouldn’t have been in the room. Part of me thought all I needed to do was show the ranger my photos and that would be enough for him to question her. But another part wanted to talk to her myself. Though I couldn’t imagine what other circumstances would cause me to investigate a crime, I might have enjoyed playing detective if Mom weren’t a potential suspect. I felt a love-hate relationship developing around the whole idea of amateur sleuthing.

We ended up in the lobby, and I had no clear direction except the comfy-looking chair that called to me from a far, secluded corner. Spencer in my wake, I strode over and plopped down. “Look, maybe we should just go our separate ways for now. Except if you find the housekeeper first, come and get me. I want to be the one to question her. Is that a deal?”

“It’s not a deal unless I get something out of it.”

“Okay, so I used the wrong word. How about this: I want to question her alone. Come and get me if you find her.” A dry, sardonic tone I didn’t mean escaped with the words.

“Say, you’re getting cheeky. I’m not sure I like this new side of you.” He jammed his hands in his pockets and quirked a half-sided grin.

When his left dimple showed up, my stomach flip-flopped, making me wonder where I would be when this weekend ended. Would I be bereft and heartbroken because Spencer had gotten under my skin again and then gone home, leaving me behind?

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have snapped. I’m just…tired.” And lightheaded to boot.

“Let me rephrase then, too. How about dinner tonight? Just you and me. There are certain things I want to discuss with you.”

Even though expectancy rushed through me, there was still Mom to consider. She had to eat, too, and I couldn’t keep leaving her. I looked at my watch. “It’s almost two thirty.” A lot could happen between now and dinnertime. Certain I’d forgotten something, panic chased my thoughts as I tried to remember. “Hey, aren’t we supposed to have some sort of rehearsal for the wedding? Isn’t that customary?”

Spencer groaned. “You’re absolutely right. With everything that’s happened, I’d forgotten.”

“Help me out a little?”

Spencer eyed me, clearly not liking my sarcastic tone.

“Sorry, Polly.” He tugged a slip of paper from his pocket.

“Conrad slipped this to me at breakfast this morning. Wedding rehearsal, four o’clock, in the Chamber Room.”

Rene had been upset this morning about Spencer being taken for questioning. Still, I couldn’t believe she’d forgotten to tell me. I was just about to grouse about it when the redheaded housekeeper came through a door behind the reception desk.

“There she is. I’m going after her.”

Spencer touched my arm and whispered, “Be careful. And remember, I’ll be nearby.”

The housekeeper marched across the polished wood floor with purpose, heading in the opposite direction from where we sat. I hurried to catch her. She entered a hallway and stopped in front of the first door on the left. Gripping the doorknob, she looked around and saw me striding toward her, though still at a distance. I smiled and raised my hand to indicate I wanted to speak to her.

She ducked into the room. I quickened my pace and crossed the lobby near the registration desk, careful not to run into tourists coming and going with bags and children. When I arrived at the door she’d gone through, I read the large black letters that spelled A
CCOUNTING
O
FFICE
.

Here goes nothing
. I opened the door and saw two women sitting behind computers.

One of them, a middle-aged woman, with glasses and brown hair cut short like a man’s, looked up at me. “May I help you?”

“Yes, I’m looking for, um…” Mortified that I didn’t know the housekeeper’s name, I coughed and cleared my throat. “The housekeeper.”
Idiot, idiot
.

Her smile became sympathetic. “I’m sorry, ma’am. This isn’t housekeeping. Try the basement.”

“The woman I want to speak with came in here.” I tried to infuse my voice with more confidence this time.

The other woman, who resembled a Barbie doll, looked completely out of place in the rustic lodge, let alone the accounting office. I reminded myself that judging a book by its cover was never a good thing, and all that.

They shared a glance, then Barbie spoke. “There’s no one in here but us.”

“She was just here. I saw her come through the door.”

The first woman flattened her lips then reached for the phone. I could guess what she was about to do. They thought I was crazy, and with a killer on the loose, this didn’t look good.

“I’m sorry, I must be mistaken.” I couldn’t believe they were actually hiding her. Before I backed through the door, I heard a toilet flush, coming from a door in the back of the office. I smirked at the women then left the office.

I could wait. She had to come out eventually.

I leaned against the wall outside the office. After fifteen minutes, I wondered how long I should wait. The stairwell to the basement was located to my left at the end of the hall. A look to my right reassured me Spencer remained on the other side of the lobby with his nose in a newspaper. I wasn’t sure from this distance, but I thought he glanced at me. I heard a door open near the stairwell. With a quick look in that direction, I saw a flash of red hair exiting through the door.

Somehow she’d gotten out of the office without coming through the door where I patiently waited. I rushed to follow her, thinking how ridiculous this had become. She had to be running from me. But why? We’d both shared a common experience. She’d probably heard the rumor about
that photographer
. If only I could leave my camera behind. But it was too late—she’d already seen me with it.

I tried the door. Locked. I wanted to kick it in. Though sleuthing was a new pastime for me, I wasn’t about to attempt breaking and entering. Besides, I had no way to disengage the lock, no credit card or sharp instrument like they used in the movies. The stairwell held new appeal, reminding me of the office woman’s suggestion to visit the basement, where housekeeping was located.