Chapter 22
Sadie looked around but didn’t see Melinda at breakfast. There were other empty tables, and just when her concern shot upward, she plastered on a smile as she stopped one of the servers.
“I can’t help but notice that we don’t seem to have all the guests.
Am I missing something? I hope there wasn’t an activity that I forgot to join. ”
Her syrupy voice must have prompted the server to answer.
“Oh, you didn’t miss anything. There was an outdoor excursion today.
A guided meditation hike through the sacred canyon lands, followed by lunch at ancient petroglyph sites.
Some of our guests chose to participate, finding it’s truly transformative. ”
Sadie suppressed an eye roll at the marketing speech while her operational mind processed the implications.
An off-site excursion meant reduced surveillance, fewer witnesses, and potential opportunities for private conversations or covert activities.
It also meant Melinda might be out of reach for hours.
“That sounds amazing,” Sadie replied with manufactured disappointment. “I wish I’d known about it earlier. I would have loved to participate.”
The server’s smile flickered almost imperceptibly. “The excursion was offered to guests based on their individual wellness profiles and treatment schedules. Your personalized program includes intensive rejuvenation sessions today that shouldn’t be interrupted.”
The explanation felt rehearsed, another example of the spa’s careful control over guest activities disguised as personalized care. Sadie nodded with gracious acceptance while filing away another piece of evidence about Serenity Dunes’s manipulative practices.
Hoping Melinda felt well enough to go on an excursion, she tried to eat.
Blond Bob sat rigidly at her corner table, methodically consuming her steel-cut oats with the same precision she applied to everything else.
Desert Barbie held court near the windows, her over-bronzed skin practically glowing as she was photographed by the staff, probably for promotional materials. Again.
As Sadie’s breakfast arrived, she caught sight of the morning supplements placed beside her plate.
Six innocuous-looking pills that could contain compounds designed to alter her brain chemistry without her knowledge or consent.
She palmed her supplements while pretending to swallow them as she had each morning and evening since arriving.
The motion was fluid, naturally executed while reaching for her napkin with the other hand.
But as she completed the deception, movement in her peripheral vision made her pulse spike.
Yelena Mirov stood near the kitchen entrance, her platinum hair pulled back in its characteristic severe chignon, ice-blue eyes fixed on Sadie with predatory intensity. The woman’s gaze never wavered, cataloging every gesture with the focused attention of someone looking for signs of deception.
She’s watching me. The realization sent cold fingers of dread down Sadie’s spine. Yelena’s scrutiny felt different from casual observation—more targeted, more suspicious. Has someone noticed my reluctance to take the supplements? Was Melinda’s visit to my room observed and reported?
Maintaining her relaxed posture despite the adrenaline flooding her system, Sadie continued her breakfast routine while covertly observing Yelena’s position.
The woman remained motionless for several more minutes before finally gliding away with that unsettling silence that seemed to characterize all the senior staff.
Stay calm. Act normal. Don’t give them any reason to suspect anything.
After breakfast, she headed to the first activity on her schedule for the day.
The sound bath session took place in a circular pavilion that resembled a crystal cave, with geometric windows casting rainbow patterns across walls lined with singing bowls of various sizes.
Sadie lay on her designated mat among two dozen other guests, trying to find genuine relaxation in the reverberating tones while her mind raced through operational concerns.
The ethereal sounds washed over her. The deep, resonant vibrations that seemed to penetrate her bones should have been meditative. Instead, they provided cover for her thoughts as she mentally reviewed the morning’s intelligence and planned her next moves.
At lunch, Sadie ate while conducting a more systematic surveillance of the room. Basketball sat alone at her too-small table, looking somewhat lost without the hiking group’s camaraderie. Girl Bun dozed over her salad, apparently still relaxed from the morning’s sonic therapy.
The massage appointment arrived with its usual promise of relaxation and rejuvenation, but Sadie approached the treatment room with heightened awareness after yesterday’s conversation with Melinda.
The familiar amber lighting and cascade of water sounds felt more sinister now, knowing that the therapeutic environment was being used to administer unauthorized medications.
Tasha greeted her with the same ethereal serenity that characterized all the spa’s therapists, but Sadie noticed immediately that today’s oil selection differed from previous sessions.
Instead of the standard lavender and eucalyptus blend, an array of small glass vials lined the treatment table, each filled with a different-colored liquid that caught the golden light like precious stones.
As Tasha began working the oils into her skin, she said, “Today we’re using our specialized neuro-enhancement blend.” Her voice carried that hypnotic quality common to all Serenity Dunes staff. “Dr. Patel has formulated this specifically for guests requiring deeper cognitive restoration.”
Neuro-enhancement. The clinical terminology sent ice through Sadie’s veins. This wasn’t just massage therapy but was drug delivery disguised as a luxury treatment.
She forced herself to remain relaxed despite the horror of knowing she might be induced with some kind of drug. The therapist’s skilled hands moved with practiced efficiency, but now every touch felt violating.
At the end of the session, Tasha stepped outside the cubicle to retrieve additional supplies, leaving Sadie alone with the evidence of their deception.
Without hesitation, she rolled slightly toward the treatment table, her fingers closing around two small vials from the array.
The glass was warm from the ambient lighting, and she could see swirls of different colored oils.
The vials disappeared into the folds of her robe, and she shifted the other bottles around to make the missing ones not obvious.
Tasha returned, and her serene expression never wavered.
Did she notice the missing vials? Sadie’s pulse hammered against her throat, but she maintained her facade of blissful relaxation while Tasha escorted her out.
The late afternoon stretched before her with agonizing slowness as Sadie searched for any sign of Melinda’s presence. She checked the yoga pavilion, the meditation gardens, the library, and even the pool.
At dinner, the guests who had taken the outing were back with words of praise for the restorative adventure.
But Melinda wasn’t present, causing Sadie’s stomach to clench with anxiety.
As evening approached, desperation drove her to attempt direct contact.
She navigated the corridors of the guest room section, her memory guiding her to the location where she’d seen Melinda emerge two nights ago.
The door stood partially open, warm light spilling into the hallway like an invitation. But instead of Melinda’s worried face, Sadie found herself staring at a housekeeper methodically stripping linens from the bed.
“Excuse me,” Sadie said, stepping into the doorway with carefully modulated surprise. “I was looking for my friend Melinda. I thought this was her room.”
The housekeeper, a middle-aged Latina woman whose name tag read “Nina,” looked up from her work with sharp eyes. “No guest is here now,” she replied in accented English. “Room is being prepared for a new arrival.”
Sadie’s gaze swept the space that should have contained Melinda’s belongings, looking for clothes, toiletries, and the personal items that made a temporary space feel inhabited. Instead, she found only the sterile perfection of a room awaiting its next occupant.
“But she was here yesterday,” Sadie pressed, genuine confusion coloring her voice. “Melinda Tork? Auburn hair, about my height? She mentioned feeling unwell after her massage.”
Nina’s expression shuttered, the wariness of moments before replaced by the careful blankness of someone who’d been instructed to avoid certain topics. “I clean many rooms. Guests come and go. Sometimes people leave early if… just leave early.”
The explanation felt hollow, delivered with the same rehearsed quality Sadie had noticed in other staff responses throughout the day. But Nina’s hands trembled slightly as she folded the sheets, and her eyes refused to meet Sadie’s directly.
“Did she leave this morning?” Sadie asked gently, recognizing a frightened woman when she saw one. “With the excursion group, perhaps?”
“I think... yes, maybe she decided to leave early. Sometimes guests are not happy with the program.” Nina’s voice carried a note of pleading, as if begging Sadie not to ask questions she couldn’t safely answer.
The fear in the housekeeper’s demeanor sent alarm bells clanging through Sadie’s mind. Nina probably didn’t know why Melinda left early but had been instructed not to speak to the guests.
What did they do to Melinda? And am I next?
The massage oil vials felt heavy in her pocket, evidence of the experimental treatments being waged against Serenity Dunes’s unsuspecting guests. But they might also be the key to exposing Dr. Selinski’s operation, if she could survive long enough to get them analyzed.