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By Root 203 0

intent on finding any sign of Marilynn. The breeze had picked up and was pressing against him like a ghostly hand. Alex usually loved heavy winds at Hatteras West, but as the sky began to darken, all he cared about was finding the potter. The inn looked like a dollhouse from so high above, and the new construction looked like a precocious child had started a building with sticks but had grown bored with the process and had given up. Alex could see parts of Bear Rocks from the railing, but much of the rock formation was hidden by a thick band of trees that separated it from the main buildings.

There was no sign of Marilynn anywhere.

They made the circuit twice around the observation platform when they met again near the door.

“Anything?” Shantara asked.

“Not a thing,” Alex admitted. “I couldn’t see most of Bear Rocks, though. There’s a chance she could be there.”

“Let’s go look, then.”

As they hurried down the stairs to the top landing, Alex paused at the window and said, “I want to see if there’s anything we missed.”

They both peered out each of the narrow windows, but they couldn’t see anything that would help.

On the way down, Shantara asked, “Alex, do you honestly think Marilynn Baxter’s been kidnapped? What possible reason could anyone have for grabbing her?”

“I don’t have the slightest clue. To be honest with you, I believe Craig’s overreacting, but I could be wrong. I couldn’t even guess why anyone would kidnap his wife. They don’t have a lot of money, do they?”

“No, they both work real jobs to support their pottery studio. I can’t imagine them having anything anybody else would want.”

As Alex started down the steps again, he said, “Well, Craig must think so, or he wouldn’t have immediately assumed she’d been kidnapped. Unless ...”

“Unless what?” Shantara asked, breathing hard from the climb down.

“Unless he’s afraid the reality of what might have happened to her is worse,” Alex said, voicing his earlier fear.

Shantara paused a few steps until she asked her next question. “You don’t honestly think something’s happened to her, do you, Alex?”

“I wish I knew, but I can’t deny it’s a possibility. I’ve got a feeling in the pit of my stomach that something’s wrong.”

As they finally reached the bottom, Shantara said, “No offense, but I hope you’re mistaken.”

“Believe me, so do I.”

Craig met them as they approached the inn. “Did you find her?” he asked breathlessly.

“Not yet. I take it she wasn’t at any of the places you called,” Alex said.

“We don’t have that many friends,” Craig said brusquely. “Nobody’s seen her.”

Alex looked over at the new construction. “There’s a chance she could be there.”

Craig yelled, “Marilynn! Marilynn!”

There was no response.

Craig waited a few moments, then said, “Obviously she’s not there, or she would have answered me.”

Alex said, “Craig, why don’t you go work the phones some more. Shantara and I have a few more places to check.”

“Forget that. I’m coming with you.”

Alex stopped him dead in his tracks. “Listen, we might find something you’re not going to want to see.”

The man flushed for a second, then said, “I need to know, Alex. She’s my wife.”

As they walked through the growing twilight toward the new construction, Alex kept a constant vigil for anything out of the ordinary.

With real sighs of relief, they found that the construction site was empty. Alex had silently dreaded finding another exhibitor pinned against a post. Could it be that Jefferson Lee’s murder was connected to the disappearance of Marilynn Baxter? Or was Marilynn gone for another, entirely different reason? There were too many unanswered questions buzzing around Alex’s head.

“What’s next?” Craig asked.

“Bear Rocks is the only other place on the property she could be.”

“She wouldn’t just stay out there, Alex, not in the dark.”

“Wait right here,” Alex said as he went into the inn. Evans Graile was still sitting in his chair, a bright glow lighting his face. “Isn’t this awful? A kidnapping! Imagine that!”

“Evans, we’re not sure what’s happened yet. Would you like to join the search party?