Grave Misgivings (19 page)

“What’s going on?” Christy asked, her shaky voice belying her nerves.

“The power went out,” Marla replied, nonplussed.

“Oh, really, I thought your mouth sucked up all the energy in the world and plunged us into a black hole,” Christy shot back.

“Marla is the black hole,” Lauren said.

“You’re both … dumb,” Marla said.

“Nice one,” Brian said. “You have a gift for comebacks.”

“Why isn’t the generator kicking on?” Max asked.

“That’s a good question,” Aaron said. “The better one is why did the power go out in the first place?”

No one got a chance to answer because the room lit up briefly, a terrific bolt of lightning cutting across the sky and illuminating the room through the glass patio doors. A loud rumble of thunder followed it.

“Well, I guess that answers that question,” Aaron said.

“It still doesn’t explain why the generator hasn’t kicked on,” Max said.

“Where is the generator?” Nick asked.

“It’s on the east side of the house,” Aaron said.

“Do you think you can find it?”

“Yeah. I’ll go look, although I have no idea how to fix it when I get there,” Aaron said.

“I’ll go with you,” Nick said. “I’m not a handyman, but I’m pretty handy.”

“That’s the word on the street,” Christy quipped, her voice shrill. “Is anyone else worried that the power went out right after Aaron told us his mother thought the house was haunted?”

“Don’t freak yourself out,” Nick said, scraping his chair against the floor as he pushed it out so he could stand up. “Aaron, we should go out this door here and walk around the house. We’ll probably be able to see better than we could inside.”

“Okay,” Aaron said.

“Maddie?”

“I’m here.”

“I’ll be right back,” Nick said. “Stay here. Don’t go wandering around. Promise me.”

“I promise.”

“What about the rest of us?” Marla asked. “Can we walk around?”

“I recommend you walk around outside and stand by a tree,” Nick said.

“That would be stupid,” Marla scoffed. “Trees are more likely to be hit by lightning.”

“Exactly,” Nick said.

“What do you want us to do?” Brian asked.

“Wait here,” Nick said. “No one should go wandering around the house. It’s too dark, and the house is too big. I don’t want anyone else … getting lost. Everyone needs to stick together.”

“I agree,” Christy said. “We should all stick together.”

“Max, there are some candles in the buffet by that wall next to Gramps’ portrait,” Aaron said. “Just in case we can’t get the generator up and running, it might be helpful to have candles so we can see … something … when we get back.”

“I’m on it.”

“I FOUND
the candles,” Max announced.

“Do you want an award?” Marla asked.

“Do you want to shut it?” Max shot back.

“Calm down,” Lauren said. “There’s no reason for everyone to get all worked up. It’s just a storm.”

“And a ghost,” Christy said.

“We don’t know it’s a ghost,” Lauren said. “That would be kind of cool, though.”

“I always thought I wanted to meet a ghost,” Christy lamented. “Apparently I was wrong.”

Maddie couldn’t hide her smile, even as she searched the darkness for a hint of Rose. Maddie had no idea if the skittish ghost hung around once the power vacated the premises, but she was dying to know what the woman was talking about when she commented on eyes she would never forget. Was she talking about Max? It was possible. She was talking about him moments before she made the ominous statement. There were several other options at the table, though, and she couldn’t be sure it was Max who threw Rose.

“Does anyone have a lighter … or matches?” Max asked.

“I do,” Brian said. After bumping into no less than three chairs during his trek across the room, he finally joined Max by the buffet. Within seconds, the room was brighter – although only marginally – and the panic that had settled over the room lifted somewhat.

“Oh, well, now I feel better,” Christy said.

Maddie scanned the room, hoping Rose was merely hiding in the shadows. She was disappointed when she didn’t find her. Where could she have gone?

“Maddie, do you want to sit down and take a load off?” Max asked, smiling. “There’s no sense of standing down there all night.”

“Sure,” Maddie said, shooting him a smile and heading in his direction. “I’m sure it won’t take Aaron and Nick long to get the power back up.”

“I’m sure, too,” Max said.

“IT’S
really coming down,” Nick said, pushing his hair back from his forehead so he could peer into the rain easier. “How far away are we?”

“We’re close, but I can’t remember exactly what window the generator is by,” Aaron said. “I … oh, here it is.”

Nick and Aaron approached the boxy contraption so they could study it.

“I have no idea how this thing even works,” Aaron admitted. “This is when having servants your entire life really comes back to haunt you.”

“Maybe it’s just out of gas,” Nick suggested, kneeling next to the generator and unscrewing the tank lid. He slipped his finger inside and felt around. “It feels full to me, although I can’t see to be sure.”

“What else could it be?”

“Give me a second,” Nick grumbled, feeling around the generator. “I don’t suppose you have access to a flashlight out here, do you?”

“We probably should’ve thought about that inside,” Aaron said.

“Thanks for the news tip.”

“Sorry,” Aaron said. “I … oh, wait. My cell phone has one of those flashlight apps. Hold on.” He rummaged in his pocket, and after fiddling with the phone for a moment, the screen flared to life. Aaron pointed it at the generator. “Where do you want me to point it?”

“Right here,” Nick said. “Okay. Hold it steady. Let me look for a second.”

“YOU
probably don’t realize this, but I always had a crush on you in high school,” Max admitted, reclining in the chair next to Maddie and sipping his beer.

“You’re just saying that,” Maddie said. “I’m pretty sure I would’ve noticed something like that.”

“Really? I think the only thing you noticed in high school was Nick.”

“That’s not true.”

Max arched a challenging eyebrow.

“Fine,” Maddie said, blowing out a sigh. “It’s probably true. Don’t take it personally. I was really shy in high school. Nick was the only one I felt comfortable around.”

“How come?”

Maddie shrugged. “I don’t know,” she said. “We just bonded at an early age. He always knew what I was thinking. He always knew how to make me laugh. We always fit together.”

“It’s such a waste, though,” Max teased, the candle on the table flickering as he shot Maddie a roguish grin. “I’m much better looking than Nick.”

“You’re definitely handsome,” Maddie conceded. “I don’t think anyone is more handsome than Nick, though.”

“Ugh, you two are just so … gross,” Max said, laughing. “Seriously, though, haven’t you ever considered that you’re just with Nick now because everyone always thought you belonged together?”

Maddie stilled. “No.”

“Well, think about it, Maddie,” Max said. “Life is often a self-fulfilling prophecy. Look at Aaron. He’s successful because everyone in his family was successful. He’s never actually done anything on his own. He’s a Denton, though, so his life turned out like this because there was no other way it could turn out. He was born into absurd wealth and that led to success.

“With you and Nick, everyone kept telling you for years that you belonged with him,” he continued. “People were beating you over the head with it. What’s the first thing you did when you got home? You reunited with Nick. I don’t think that means you belong together. I think it means you’re scared to give anyone else a chance.”

Maddie was starting to feel uncomfortable. “I … um … I love Nick.”

“Of course you do,” Max said. “You’re best friends. I love Aaron, too. He’s my best friend. That doesn’t mean I’m in love with him. I’m not saying you and Nick aren’t going to live happily ever after. I’m just questioning whether you’re really in love with him.”

“I am,” Maddie snapped, her tone dark.

Max held his hands up in mock surrender. “I’m just kidding.” He smirked. “You’re so easy. You thought I was hitting on you, didn’t you?”

“No,” Maddie said hurriedly, although she wasn’t sure that was the truth. “I knew you were screwing around.”

“I just want to mess with Nick,” Max said. “In case you haven’t noticed, I have a particular knack for getting under people’s skin.”

“Maybe that’s your self-fulfilling prophecy,” Maddie suggested.

“Maybe,” Max said. “I happen to think I’m destined for another form of greatness, though.”

“I’M
no expert, but it looks like someone cut a wire,” Nick said, running his fingers over the ragged edges of the exposed copper wiring.

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah,” Nick said. “I don’t think this happened by accident.”

“Can you fix it?”

“Not in the rain,” Nick said. “I might be able to rig it if we had electrical tape, but it’s too wet and I would be worried it would catch on fire.”

“Yeah, let’s not burn the house down,” Aaron said. “What do you think we should do?”

“I think we should go back inside,” Nick said. “We can build a fire in the library and everyone can hunker down there for the night.”

“Sleep there?”

“I’m not going to lie, Aaron. This bugs me,” Nick said. “Why would someone purposely sabotage the generator?”

“I don’t know,” Aaron said. “You seem to think something nefarious is going on, though. Why do you think someone would do that?”

“Maybe they knew the storm was coming,” Nick suggested. “I haven’t been paying attention to the news, but someone else could’ve been. Maybe they were hoping the power would go out and that would serve as a way for them to … do something. We’ve all been distracted today because of Cassidy’s disappearance.”

“Did you hear back from Kreskin?”

“He checked her house. She hasn’t been there.”

“Do you think she’s dead?” Aaron asked.

“I don’t know,” Nick answered. “I can’t figure out what the motive would be.”

“Maybe she killed herself.”

Nick would be lying if he said the possibility hadn’t occurred to him. “Maybe. If she did, though, where is her body?”

“Maybe she did it in the woods,” Aaron suggested. “Heck, for all we know, she went for a walk in the woods and got lost.”

“This is Michigan, not Alaska,” Nick said. “Even if she got lost, if she walked in a straight line for three hours she would’ve come across something. A highway … a gas station … something. Cassidy would’ve called out here to let us know she was okay.”

“You’re starting to freak me out,” Aaron said. “What do you think happened to her?”

“I think someone took her.”

“Why?”

“If you can answer that question for me, we’ll be able to solve the riddle,” Nick said.

“What riddle?”

“Who has the most to gain from Cassidy’s disappearance?”

“Well … .” Aaron broke off, pondering the question. “The easy answer is you and Maddie.”

Nick made a face. “Excuse me?”

“She was making things uncomfortable for you,” Aaron said. “I’m not saying you did it. I don’t believe that. In the grand scheme of things, though, you and Maddie had the most to gain.”

“Cassidy wasn’t a threat to Maddie and me,” Nick said.

“I didn’t say she was,” Aaron said. “She was being pathetic and annoying, though.”

Nick sighed, running his hand through his sopping hair. “I feel bad for how I treated her. I do. I’m sick of the looks, though. I didn’t mean to hurt her emotionally and I certainly didn’t physically hurt her.”

“I know. I saw the look on your face when you found out Marla and Cassidy were watching you and Maddie. You were surprised. I never suspected you.”

“I just can’t figure out how taking Cassidy benefits anyone. She doesn’t have money. She doesn’t have power. She’s just a normal woman.”

“What about Marla?”

“You think Marla did something with her?” Nick asked.

“I think that Cassidy disappearing has given Marla a lot of attention,” Aaron said. “Maybe Cassidy threatened to tell someone that Marla was spying on you guys and things got out of hand. It might’ve been an accident.”

That was an interesting thought. “I guess,” Nick said. “That doesn’t feel right to me, though.”

“What does feel right?”

“I don’t know,” Nick said, pushing himself to a standing position. “All I know is that we can’t do anything out here right now. Let’s go back inside. Maybe if we all put our heads together we can figure this out.”