Chapter 17
Seventeen
BANG. BANG. BANG. “Joel? Enough. Come out, and let us know what’s going on,” Heath called.
Joel looked back. “Jayce, stay in here with the door locked. Don’t let anyone in or out.”
“Me?”
“You’re the other cop here. Or soon to be. Do you have someone else in mind?”
“No. I just . . .”
“Wanted to be in the action. I get it. But someone has to protect Brady’s body.”
Good. Cassie sighed. He couldn’t limit their friend to the word evidence yet either. Maybe they never should.
Joel opened the door and pushed his way out, pulling Cassie by the hand behind him, and Izzy behind her.
Heath tried to shove his way in, but Iz blocked the door until Jayce got it shut and locked behind them.
Letting out an expletive, Heath shoved into Joel.
“Hey!” Joel roared, shoving off Heath’s chest. “Back off.”
Cassie held still beside Izzy. One of them was going to give the other dominance. It had to be asserted from the start, and Joel couldn’t afford to back down. Would Heath?
“What is going on?” Heath remained in Joel’s face.
“I said,” Joel bit out, his voice dead calm, “back off.”
“Fine, man.” Heath took a step back and readjusted his askew coat.
Cassie would have bit back a smile if a roller coaster of emotions hadn’t hijacked her. Fear, love, grief, terror. Was there a ride she hadn’t been on in the last fifteen hours?
“Just tell us what’s going on, please,” Scott said.
“Brady had an accident.”
“That’s what Iz and Jayce said, but . . .” Scott cut himself off as he caught Joel’s stare and understanding dawned in his brown eyes.
“Is he going to be okay?” Mia asked.
“Mia, you should be resting,” Cassie said.
“I couldn’t sleep, and the parlor is empty. I didn’t want to be in there alone.”
“Is everyone still split up into rooms?” Joel asked as he led the group back to the parlor.
“Yes,” Mia confirmed.
“Okay, we got where everyone supposedly is,” Heath said. “Now can we talk about Brady? Jayce said he had an accident but wouldn’t say if he was going to be okay. What’s going on?”
Beaded perspiration lined Heath’s brow. That was a trick in this frigid weather . . . though the fire blazed high. He paced and cracked his knuckles.
Cassie wouldn’t have pegged him as the one to freak.
Or was it an act? He’d claimed to be in the kitchen for a while, but was that where he was the whole time?
Had he slipped out unwatched and returned before anyone noticed?
She took a deep breath and let it slip out.
The crowd needed to be calmed, then questions needed to be asked.
Joel cleared his throat, and everyone grew silent, except for Heath’s weighted breathing. “I’m sorry to say,” Joel continued, “Brady has had an awful accident.”
Heath tumbled one hand over another, clearly trying to rush Joel. “We know that. Is he okay?”
“No,” Joel said, his voice even. “Sadly, no.”
“What are you saying?” Heath’s chest rose and fell in rapid fashion. “Is . . . is Brady dead? Is that what you’re telling us?”
Joel cleared his throat again. “I’m afraid so.”
Rumbles of voices spiraled through the room—gasps, sobs, questions.
“I’ll give you the details I have,” Joel said, and the room hushed. “Brady didn’t come back with Lyle. Who . . . isn’t here now, apparently?”
“I’m here,” a weak voice said behind him.
“Where were you?”
“Helping Devon on the porch, or I was un—”
“Not now!” Heath said. “Earlier with Brady?”
Lyle stiffened. “We got separated outside. I already told you that.”
“Right, they got separated.” Heath used air quotes.
“We did!” Lyle’s squeaky voice rose.
“It took a while for me and Jayce to find him,” Joel continued. “He must have gotten turned around in the storm.”
“Where’d you find him?” Kendra asked, reentering the room.
“Where were you?” Cass asked.
Kendra cocked her head. “In the bathroom. Why?”
“Shhh,” Heath said, “we’re finally getting to it.”
“Getting to what?” Kendra asked, taking a seat on the couch between Lyle and Scott.
“What happened to Brady,” Heath said.
“Okay . . .”
Cass narrowed her eyes. Did the woman seriously just look at her nails?
“Unfortunately, as I said, Brady must have got turned around, and we found him off the side of the overhang.”
“Oh no!” Amy sucked in air.
“How’d . . . ?” Mia began, the words getting stuck in her throat.
“Like I said, he must have gotten turned around in the blizzard.”
“And took one wrong step,” Heath said. “Man, that sucks.”
“Where is he now?” Mia cried. “I mean, did you just leave him there?”
“No, of course not,” Joel said.
“Then where?” Kendra asked.
“We have him in the last room down the hall.”
“Ewwww,” Savannah said.
“Savannah,” Izzy chided. “The poor guy is dead.”
“Exactly,” the teen insisted, “a dead body is down the hall from me. I restate my reaction: Ewwww.”
“You’re gonna have to get past that,” Devon said from behind Cass, making her jump.
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you.”
Her heart racing, she managed a smile. “It’s okay. You just startled me. That’s all. I didn’t hear you come in.”
“I didn’t want to interrupt Joel.” He moved past her and took a seat next to Mia, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. “We need to keep Brady’s body until we’re rescued, and the Silver Pine medics can handle it . . . him . . . you know what I mean. Right, Joel?”
“Right.”
“It’s ridiculous to have a dead body in the house,” Savannah said.
“He’s a cop.” Amy pointed at Joel. “And he’s a CSI.” She pointed to Devon. “I think they’d know best.”
“Maybe, though I’m with Savannah,” Heath chimed in on the body placement. “But I get it. This life’s fickle. One wrong move and . . .” He dipped his finger down with a completely insensitive whistle.
“Heath!” Iz said. “Our friend is dead.” Tears rolled down her cheeks. “Have a little compassion.”
Heath strode to the leather chair by the hearth and plunked himself in it.
“Life may be fickle,” Amy said, her cheeks streaked with tears. “But God’s not. Brady was a Christian, so he’s with the Lord now.”
“Amen,” Mia said, sniffing on a sob.
“Whatever,” Heath scoffed and stood.
“Where are you going?” Devon asked.
“Back to my room.”
Joel shifted. “If we could all just—”
“AAAAHHH!” echoed down the hall.