27. Brooke #2
“Sounds good. We’ll find you if we spot Lord Sandridge while perusing the selection of handsome men,” Lowri teases.
I laugh, leaving the jewelry room. Walking farther down the hallway, I find myself in the mansion’s ballroom where dozens of couples are dancing to the live band.
The women’s gowns are every color of the rainbow.
Some have flowing fabric. Some are tight-fitting and show off every detail.
Others are essentially see-through, adopting the current trend toward naked dresses.
A server pauses with a tray of champagne flutes.
As I take one, I notice a tux-clad man across the room, whom I’m convinced is Stuart.
I’d recognize him anywhere. Suddenly, his head turns, and our eyes lock.
A smile of recognition crosses his face.
He quickly turns back to the man he’d been talking with.
He apparently ended the conversation because he’s quickly walking in my direction.
My heart races. I’m not ready to talk with him, so I turn and hurry out of the ballroom. Seeing a side hall with a stairway in the distance, I make a quick detour in that direction. Instead of climbing the steps, I notice a door leading under the stairs.
It’s probably a closet. I can hide there and collect my thoughts. I try the knob. Relieved it turns, I sneak inside the dark space, quickly pulling the door closed.
I lean against the door, letting out a huge sigh as I stand in darkness.
The rational side of me knows I’m completely overreacting by hiding from Stuart. But I’m so confused by my feelings for him that I need a moment of quiet to think.
After a few deep breaths, I reach into my purse, feeling for my phone. Then I remember that we weren’t allowed to bring our phones to this exclusive event. I’m not exactly sure why. Maybe it has to do with security for the jewels. Regardless, it means I don’t have a flashlight.
Feeling around, I bump into a chair against the far wall, opposite the door, and sit down. This must be used as a storage closet. It’s dark and quiet—the perfect place to collect my thoughts.
I close my eyes, which seems ironic as dark as it is. But somehow it helps me focus.
As I’m running through the pros and cons of sharing my feelings with Stuart, I’m startled by the sound of two male voices. If I didn’t know better, I’d think they were in this tiny room with me.
Reaching my hand along the wall next to me, I feel a vent. Ahh. That means the conversation is happening in the room on the other side of this wall.
Initially, I do my best to ignore them, but I tune into the conversation when the first guy says, “Why the hell did your guy kill Champion? He was only supposed to steal his watch.”
I’m shocked. My hand trembles against the vent as thoughts race through my head. I can’t believe I’m hearing this. I’m separated from a murderer by a single, thin wall. I can’t make a sound, or they’ll find me. I shudder at that realization.
“He wasn’t supposed to kill him—just knock him down and run away with the watch. Apparently, Champion was on some blood thinners that caused him to bleed to death. We had no way of knowing that would happen,” the second guy responds.
The voices sound very familiar. That means I know who hired the killer. My heart races even faster, and chills run down my spine. I just can’t quite place the voices. They’re too muffled.
“That’s no excuse. Now we’re dealing with murder, not just the theft of a few jewels.
We stick with the plan to take the necklace tonight.
The fake version will be delivered to the auction winner next week.
We’ll have disappeared on extended vacations long before the new owner has an appraisal done and realizes that they don’t have the Gertrude diamond. ”
I gasp, quickly covering my mouth, not wanting them to hear me.
“Did you hear something?”
“No. You’re paranoid.”
“Probably. I’d call the whole thing off if I wasn’t counting on my half of the sale of the necklace to solve my problems. I can’t let my wife know that I lost our fortune gambling.”
“I’m counting on it too. My partners already suspect me of embezzlement. I need to make a clean break with enough money to live a good life on a distant island.”
“Exactly. So, we stick with the plan.”
“Yes. The guards will make the trade when they load the jewels into the armored car at the end of the evening. Then they’ll drop off the real necklace for us.”
My jaw drops. Everything clicks into place. I know who they are. I can’t believe it.
Feeling sick, I lean over but lose my balance in the dark and topple forward with a loud thud as my head hits the hardwood floor.
I gasp, quickly covering my mouth. They must have heard me fall. I have to get out of here before they come check. Trying to sit up, my head spins, and nausea threatens to overwhelm me.
Self-preservation forces me into action. I slip off my shoes, reach for the wall, and slowly pull myself up. My knees wobble, and my sense of balance is messed up, so I lean against the wall to steady myself.
I need to hurry. Too much time is passing. The killers will find me any second, so I stagger toward the door, ignoring the pain from bumping into obstacles along the way.
Reaching the door, I feel for the knob but freeze as I’m about to turn it.
Heavy footsteps are approaching quickly.
They’re probably looking for me. But it could be someone who can help me.
If not, then . . . I don’t want to think about it.
I can’t take the chance, so I carefully move beside the door.
If they open the door, I’ll be hidden behind it.
I press my shaking body against the wall and wait.
The footsteps stop, and the door slowly creaks open. One of the guys says, “Find a light switch.”
The second one says, “I don’t think there is one. We can use the light on my phone.”
“It’s a good thing we were able to sneak phones in,” the first guy replies as a light slowly scans the back and sides of the closet.
“No one is here,” the second guy says.
I hold my breath, hoping they will leave.
Whoosh! The door pulls away from me, and a bright light shines in my terror-filled eyes. I’m staring at the shadowed outlines of the killers.
I start to scream, but a hand quickly covers my mouth.
The first guy says, “I knew I heard someone listening. Give me your pocket square. We can use it as a gag.”
No. I have to be able to scream, so I open my mouth, biting the hand covering it.
“Ouch!” He pulls his hand away as I try to move.
The second guy grabs my arm, gripping it with excessive force. I start to scream, but he shoves a silky fabric into my mouth, muffling the sound.
Panic and adrenaline course through my body. I kick and thrash as the men attempt to capture my arms and legs. I can only hope that I hit them where it hurts, or someone hears the commotion and comes to check on the source of the noise.
The second guy whisper-yells, “We need something to tie her up with. What can we use?”
Guy one hisses, “Our bow ties. Thankfully, they aren’t the pre-tied ones. Undo yours and hand it to me.”
Within a minute, my arms are bound with one tie and my ankles with another.
“That should keep her here until after the ball. Then we’ll find a more permanent solution,” the second guy says.
“Not another death. There must be a better option.”
“It’s too late. That’s our only choice. Let’s lock her in here for now and return to the party before we’re missed.”
“Also, alert the security guys. If anyone looks for her, they need to have a cover story. They can say she’s already left.”
I can’t believe they plan to kill me. At least I have until the end of the evening to find a way out of here.
Or so I thought until a glancing blow hits the back of my head.
As I’m losing consciousness, I have unexpected clarity about one thing. I love Stuart, but I’ll never be able to tell him.
The world goes dark.