Innkeeping with Murder - Tim Myers [24]
“She’s in room 6, isn’t she?”
Alex nodded glumly. “Since the day before yesterday. I only had to shift her three times before she was happy this time. Why do you ask?”
“I was cleaning her room this afternoon, and I stubbed my toe on something under her bed. She must have two dozen rocks hidden under there. I can’t imagine why she bothers bringing those things to her room.”
Alex laughed. “That’s nothing. Last year, I had a pair of retired hairdressers from Florida who collected pine cones. The only problem was, they didn’t take them with them when they left. At least I can use the rocks if she leaves them. But collecting stones doesn’t surprise me as a hobby around here. Haven’t you heard? We’re on the border of Rockhound Heaven. The first gold rush in the United States started eighty-five miles from here down near Charlotte. Rubies, sapphires and emeralds have all been found as close as thirty miles from where the inn is standing.”
Elise sat up straighter in her seat. “Do you think there’s a chance any of those stones in her room are worth anything?”
Alex shook his head. “Not if she picked them up on her hikes around here. I don’t think there’s ever been anything of value found near here, but the lure of close riches keep the guests coming.” Alex smiled. “My dad used to salt the place just before every tourist season when I was growing up.”
“Salt it? What does that mean?”
Alex explained, “He’d go up to a small town a couple of hours from here called Little Switzerland and buy worthless pretty stones to throw out on the grounds of Hatteras West before the brunt of his guests arrived. Whenever a guest found one of his planted stones, Dad would ooh and ahhh. Mom made him stop it, though, because she thought it was dishonest. I still stumble across one now and then myself. I don’t think Dad ever gave it up entirely. It got to be kind of a joke between us.”
Elise nodded. “That explains the rocks and the other odd things I’ve found, but it doesn’t help us with the murders. It sounds like anybody staying at the inn could have killed Reg.”
“It’s worse than that. A lot of the locals like to climb the lighthouse steps for exercise. It wouldn’t be out of the question if one of them happened upon Reg and killed him in the lighthouse. I just wish I could come up with some kind of motive. Maybe he saw something he shouldn’t have when he was up there looking around. I keep wondering if Reg spotted a pair of lovers from the observation deck, and somebody wanted to protect the secret enough to kill.”
As they pulled into the parking lot, the lights in the two separate buildings glowed like wayward pockets of brightness through the thick fog, though the lighthouse itself was shrouded in darkness. For a single moment, Alex was tempted to fire up the Fresnel lens and show Elise how well the beacon worked, but the last thing he needed was problems with the Elkton Falls Town Council.
Alex was holding Elise’s door open for her when a scream split the heavy veiled night air.
All Alex could think of was that this time he wouldn’t be too late. The fact that he might be another victim himself never entered his mind. For some reason unknown to him, a killer was making Hatteras West his personal playground, and Alex was going to stop him, or die trying.
Elise held on to his arm as he tried to pull away. “What was that?”
“I don’t know, but I’m going to find out.” Alex freed himself from her grip and headed for the keeper’s house at a dead run. It sounded like the scream had come from that direction, but in the heavy fog, it was difficult to tell for sure. He glanced back to see Elise close behind, and he paused to take her hand as they hurried through the misty night. He couldn’t afford to lose her in the fog.
When they got to the main part of the inn, they found one of the guests, Elizabeth Halloway, shivering in the cold night air. She was a woman who looked otherworldly in the daytime because of her