Murder Checks Inn (Book 3 in the Lighthouse Inn Mysteries) (23 page)

“
Son, it’s true. There’s no
reason to hurt your sister. I’m sorry to say that there is no great
estate waiting for you on the other end. Truth be told, I’m nearly
broke. All I have left are my stamps and my family.”

Steven shoved Ashley toward them, but before
Alex could tackle him, he pulled out a gun. Ashley stumbled into
Alex, the urn suddenly in Alex’s hands.

Alex asked, “Who am I holding, Mathias?”

“
Ashes from my grill, Alex.
Son, give it up. There’s no escape for you, can’t you see
that?”

Steven said, “That’s where you’re wrong.
Nobody had better get in my way. I’m getting out of here.”

Vernum said, “You’re not going anywhere,
Son.”

“
You think I won’t shoot
you?” Steven screamed as he turned the gun toward his own
father.

Alex seized the chance and threw the urn’s
contents into Steven’s face. The ashes blinded him for a moment,
and Alex dove for the hand holding the gun. One shot fired as they
wrestled for it, and Alex suddenly felt himself heading over the
rail!

With a final lunge, Alex grasped the rail as
he was going over! As he held on with all his might, Steven pounded
at his hands, fighting to break his grip. As Alex looked on
helplessly, Vernum pulled Steven away. He could hear them
scuffling, but he couldn’t spare a second’s concentration.
Suddenly, Alex heard a shot. If Steven had retrieved the pistol,
Alex knew that the next bullet was for him. Fighting to pull
himself back up over the edge, he could feel the railing slip in
his grasp.

Then Ashley’s hands reached over and helped
steady him as he somehow managed to climb back to safety.

As Alex slumped against the rail, he looked
over to see Steven lying near his feet, a small pool of blood
forming around him. Vernum held his son’s head in his arms, crying
softly. Ashley joined him, and the two of them held their own
private wake over the body.

Elise rushed through the door, with
Armstrong a few steps behind. She threw herself on Alex, smothering
him with her embrace. “Oh, Alex, when I saw you go over the rail, I
nearly died. I can’t believe you’re all right.”

‘
Take it easy. I’m still a
little shaky.”

As she helped him up, Armstrong said, “What
happened here?”

“
Steven killed Jase trying
to get a will that was never written. He tried to kill Ashley, then
he went after me a few minutes ago. That’s all I know,” Alex
said.

Vernum looked at the sheriff, then said, “My
real name is Mathias Trask. My son killed himself when he realized
he couldn’t get away with it any longer. I tried to stop him, but I
wasn’t fast enough. Isn’t that right, Ashley?”

She looked at her father a full beat before
she said, “That’s exactly the way it happened, Father.”

Suicide? Alex had heard them struggling. It
was most likely self-defense, but Alex was almost positive that if
Vernum’s hands were tested for gunpowder, the truth would come out.
And who would it serve? Steven had killed Jase; Alex had heard the
confession himself. Was it possible Vernum was telling the truth?
Or was he lying to himself already, trying to create a memory he
could live with that didn’t put his own finger anywhere near the
trigger? Either way, Alex would never know what had really happened
while he’d been fighting for his life.

Cynthia joined them, nearly out of breath.
She saw Steven lying there, then began to wail. “Get away from my
son!” she shouted at Vernum.

“
Cyn, it’s me. He’s my son,
too.”

Cynthia threw herself at Vernum. “You killed
him! You killed him, Mathias.” All it took was the sound of his
voice for her to know her husband. So that was why Vernum always
ran whenever someone else was near. He’d only talk to people who
hadn’t known him before, for fear of giving himself away.

Mathias let his wife pound on him, taking it
all without flinching. Cynthia cried, “You did this with your
stupid little game. You might as well have pulled the trigger
yourself.”

Mathias said, “I just wanted to see my
family again, and I wanted you all to get to know Julie. Nothing
else mattered. I’m so sorry. I never dreamed it would end like
this.”

Cynthia collapsed, and Armstrong was right
behind her. “Ma’am, let me help you down the steps. You don’t need
to be here.”

Cynthia turned to look at the body of her
son one last time, then stumbled away with the sheriff. Mathias
turned to Ashley. “You believe my intent, don’t you?”

“
I’ve missed you so much,”
Ashley said as the two of them followed the rest down, never
answering his question.

Alex took Elise’s hand and said, “Let’s
go.”

Elise said, “I’m so sorry this all happened
up here, Alex.”

He shook his head. “The lighthouse takes it
all in, the good and bad. We spread Jase’s ashes up here, and his
killer died less than a foot away from that exact spot. There’s a
kind of justice to it all.”

Cynthia left to make arrangements in town
for Steven, while Mathias and Ashley caught up on their lives with
the sheriff hovering nearby. Alex was surprised to find Tony
waiting for him at the bottom of the lighthouse steps, his luggage
at his feet. Alex and Elise had descended slowly, his legs still
shaky from nearly going over the edge.

“
So you’re out of jail,”
Alex said gladly.

“
Armstrong was just letting
me go when Elise called. I came out to make sure you were
okay.”

“
Tony, why don’t you hang
around?” Alex asked. “We could get to know one another
again.”

Tony shook his head. “Thanks, but I’m done
with family reunions. All this place has left for me is bad
memories.”

“
I’m sorry you feel that
way,” Alex said.

“
Don’t be; it’s not your
fault. Vernum told me he was the source of the anonymous phone
call. He heard you and Elise talking at Bear Rocks and jumped to
his own conclusion. Turns out he and Jase were friends from way
back, and he truly thought I’d killed him.”

“
Don’t leave it like this,”
Alex pleaded.

Tony said, “It’s the only way it can be.” He
offered a hand to Alex, and despite everything, despite the pain
and hard feelings they’d shared over the years, Alex stepped inside
the extended hand and hugged his brother. He knew in his heart it
was probably the last time he’d ever see Tony, and he didn’t want
to end it with just a handshake.

His brother was obviously surprised by the
hug, but he didn’t fight Alex’s embrace. After a few moments, he
pulled away. “Good-bye, Alex.”

“
Good-bye, Tony. You know
you’re always welcome here.”

Tony looked around one last time. “It’s not
home for me anymore, Alex.”

And then he drove away, without a single
look back.

Chapter 21

The inn was nearly empty again, at least for
the moment. Ashley left to find her mother with Mathias by her
side. There was an uneasy truce between Mathias and Cynthia, and
Alex wondered how it would all work out. He’d heard the older man
trying to talk Ashley into visiting Julie at the hospital, but he
wasn’t having much success. Tony’s room was empty, and they didn’t
have any more guests scheduled until the weekend.

Alex had just finished paying the last of a
stack of bills when Mor walked in.

“
Got a second?” his friend
asked.

“
I’ve been meaning to
return your call, but things were a little tense around
here.”

“
So I heard,” Mor
said.

“
You said you’ve made up
your mind. I’m going to miss you, Mor. You’ve been like a brother
to me.”

Mor continued his frown, but he couldn’t
hold back any longer, and a smile exploded. “You’re not getting rid
of me that easily. I’ve decided to hang around Elkton Falls. Who
else is going to keep you out of trouble?”

Alex couldn’t believe the good news. “What
made you change your mind?”

“
Les and his lady friend
had a parting of the ways. He never wanted to retire; she was
pushing him into it so she could help him spend his money. You know
how tight he is! Can you imagine him forking over his money for
cruises and minks? He had a fit. No, it’s back to business as usual
for Mor or Les.”

Alex hugged his friend. “I’m really glad
you’re staying.”

Mor hugged him back, then pulled away. “Hey,
don’t get mushy on me here. Well, I’d better get back to work. I’ve
been slacking off lately, and I’ve got a backlog of calls you
wouldn’t believe. I want to get caught up before Emma gets into
town. See you around, Alex.”

“
Bye, Mor. And welcome
back.”

“
Hey buddy, I was never
gone,” he said as he walked out, smiling.

Alex missed Jase, but the rest of his world
was back the way he liked it. Tony had been right; Hatteras West
was his home, and his complete world.

Elise knocked on the door soon after Mor
left and said, “Alex, we need to talk.”

Oh, well. Things had been great for a few
minutes, anyway.

“
Peter’s not buying the
cottage after all. He’s moving back to West Virginia.”

Alex steeled himself for the rest of the
news. “And you’re going back with him, aren’t you?”

Elise looked startled by the comment. “Is
that what you want, Alex?”

“
I want you to stay,” he
blurted out. “I thought you knew that.”

“
Of course I’m staying.
Seeing you dangling off the edge of the lighthouse made me realize
I belong here with you. The engagement is off.” She paused a
moment, then added, “Alex, would you like to take me out to
dinner?”

“
What, you mean like a
date?”

Elise smiled. “Don’t you think it’s high
time we had one?”

Alex returned her grin. “I’d say so. So,
where are you taking me?”

“
I thought we could go to
Mamma Ravolini’s. Irma’s been bragging about a new dish I want to
try.”

“
Were you asking me out for
tonight? That’s awfully short notice,” Alex said with a
grin.

“
We don’t have any guests,
so why not? Tomorrow we’ll have a nearly full house again. I can’t
wait until we open the rebuilt Dual Keepers’ Quarters
again.”

Alex said, “For one night, let’s not talk
about Hatteras West.”

“
It’s a deal,” Elise said
as she moved toward him.

And now a peek at Room for Murder, book 4 in
the Lighthouse Inn mysteries by Tim Myers.

Room for Murder

By Tim Myers

Chapter 1

“
I can’t believe you’re
actually letting these blowhards take over the Grand Unveiling like
this,” Mor Pendleton said as he and Alex Winston watched the
activities on the temporary outdoor stage from the wings of the
newly rebuilt Dual Keepers’ Quarters of the Hatteras West Inn. A
long shadow fell from the nearby lighthouse, hiding them from the
view of most of the crowd. Mor was not only the town handyman who
helped keep Hatteras West in good repair, he also happened to be
Alex’s best friend in the world.

Alex said, “What can I say, I’m shameless. I
can use every bit of free publicity I can get for the inn, and I
figured having both mayoral candidates come out for the festivities
might get us some good press.” Alex owned and operated the Hatteras
West Inn, a hostelry featuring a duplicate of the Cape Hatteras
Lighthouse and Keepers’ Quarters tucked away in the foothills of
the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Things were definitely looking up, Alex
thought, as he surveyed the new construction. With the completion
of the building, Hatteras West Anally felt whole again; the absence
of the main building had been like a missing tooth for the
lighthouse and the smaller Main Keeper’s Quarters. Better yet,
maybe now they could actually operate at a profit again.

Elise Danton, the Hatteras West Inn’s
housekeeper who was indispensable in running the place, came up
behind them and said, “Mor, Emma’s been looking all over for you.
She says it’s important.”

The big man shrugged. “She must not be
looking that hard. I’ve been right here all afternoon.” Emma
Sturbridge and Mor Pendleton had survived more than a few rough
patches in their rocky relationship, and Alex often wondered where
the two would finally end up when the smoke cleared.

Elise smiled softly. “I’ll just go tell her
where to find you then.”

Mor said abruptly, “No need for that. I’ll
track her down myself. I’ve got a pretty good idea about what’s on
her mind.” There was something about the big man’s smile that made
Alex pause. Something was definitely in the air today.

After Mor was gone, Elise moved up beside
Alex and said, “This is so wonderful. We’ve finally got the inn
back the way it should be.”

Alex said, “Just in time, too. We used up
the last of the money from the emerald sale, but it was worth it,
wasn’t it? It turned out better than I’d even hoped.” One of Alex’s
guests at the inn had discovered a vein of emeralds somewhere on
the Winston property, only to take the secret of its location to
the grave with her. However, there had been enough quality emeralds
found in her possession to pay for rebuilding the Dual Keepers’
Quarters, finally restoring the property to its original
splendor.

The audience suddenly broke loose with
applause. It took Alex a second to realize they were clapping for
Tracy Shook, one of the two candidates vying for Grady Hatch’s job
as mayor of Elkton Falls. Tracy, a petite blonde around Alex’s age,
was nearly hidden by the podium onstage. Alex had grown up with
Tracy and her ex-husband, Conner Shook. Though Tracy and Conner had
shared the same last name throughout their lives, the two came from
opposite branches of the Shook family tree, so far separated that
they were less blood-kin than many of the folks who lived in Elkton
Falls. Tracy, now running for mayor, had hyphenated her line of
Shooks onto her married name, but she’d dropped her husband’s Shook
the day their divorce was finalized. In Alex’s opinion, Tracy was
what Elkton Falls government needed: someone with fresh ideas and a
new approach to shake things up. Conner, predictably enough, was
acting as her competitor’s campaign manager.