Madison Johns - Agnes Barton Paranormal 02 - Ghostly Hijinks (16 page)

“She’s right. They were threatening Lois, demanding a map from her.”

Sheriff Bradley had apparently sucked in a huge amount of air the way he pushed it out of his chest with a huge huff. “Map? That’s the last thing I need to worry about, more treasure hunters.”

“Perhaps you should gather a group of men to search the hotel for these men. They might still be here, man,” Andrew said.

“They stole my purse,” I said sadly. “It was just awful. They just jerked it right out of my hands.”

The sheriff went back outside and came back with a group of ten men who disappeared in various directions, with Andrew now accompanying them. I felt a chill come over me and Caroline appeared and motioned me toward the library door. “Listen.”

I pressed my ear to the door and heard high-pitched screams, stifling a laugh.

“What is it?” Lois asked, from behind me.

“I think the robbers are in the library with The Cutter.”

“Oh, my,” she said.

I opened the door and strode into the library, retrieving my purse that was lying on the floor, my money next to it. When I searched the library, Douglas, or The Cutter as he was known, had a knife pressed to the throat of one robber, with the other one on the floor under Douglas’s booted foot, holding him in place.

“Don’t just stand there, help us,” one of the men said.

“Please,” whimpered the other man that was on the floor.

“Serves you right,” Lois said.

“She’s right. You robbed us at gunpoint, and for what, a map?”

Lois looked at Caroline and swallowed hard, hoping that she hadn’t seen her, but then Lois said, “This is a new one.”

“She’s with me,” I said.

“That explains it. I better get the sheriff,” she said, racing out the door.

Caroline shrugged and disappeared, as did Douglas. Within minutes, the sheriff ran into the room, with Andrew and Badass Bart right behind him, Lois making her way into the library last. The robbers raced toward the sheriff, and were quickly restrained by two other men who joined us in the library. “Oh, thank God. I thought we were goners for sure,” one man said.

“Please, I’d rather be in jail than in here with that man!” one of them said.

The sheriff took a quick look around the room. “What man?”

“The one with the jagged knife. He held it to my throat, see?” the man said, raising his head a notch.

“Sorry, but I don’t see anything wrong with your throat or any man in here besides Andrew and Badass Bart. They were with me searching the hotel for you.”

“Those ladies saw him,” he went on to say.

“What are they talking about, Agnes?” Lois asked.

“I have no idea. I think these men might just be mental.”

The men were put into handcuffs, still insisting that a man with a jagged blade had threatened them. Once they were hauled from the room with the help of Badass Bart, laughter filled the room in a booming voice.

“Don’t be concerned, Andrew. That’s just Douglas, or as he’s known, The Cutter.”

Andrew’s face whitened and he promptly escorted Lois and me from the room. I did a happy dance since I had my purse back. It was good to know that one of the ghosts that resided in the hotel had looked out for us tonight.

Eleanor ran toward me, giving me quite the hug. “Oh, Agnes. What an awful thing to go through, being robbed at gunpoint.”

I smiled now, gasping since Eleanor was cutting off my air. “Eleanor, I can’t breathe.”

She let me go and shook her head, dabbing at a tear in her eye. “Agnes, don’t scare me like that again. My ticker can’t take it,” she said, pounding her chest with a fist. “If anything ever happened to you I …I … I just don’t know what I’d do.”

“Not to worry, but I’d really like to head off to bed now.”

“Just as soon as you tell me what really happened in that library,” the sheriff said as he joined us.

“I don’t know, really. I mean, the men were quite distraught when Lois and I walked into the library and they had some wild story about a man holding a knife to their throats. I feel a whole lot better knowing that they’ll be put behind bars.”

“Not so sure about bars since you managed to remove a few, but I’ll lock them in cold storage until the U.S. Marshal can pick them up—hopefully, tomorrow sometime.”

“How worried are you that these men were looking for a treasure map?”

He hooked his fingers in the loops of his pants. “Did they mention treasure or just a map?”

“Map, but I suspect that they were talking about a map to Leister’s gold.”

“We don’t know that quite yet, but the problem is that the legend of those gold bars seems to be growing. I really need to speak to Francine about telling folks about the legend. The last thing I need to worry about is would-be treasure hunters.”

Mr. Wilson pushed his walker forward. “Where did everyone go, and who are those fellas who were escorted out of here and over to the jailhouse? I sure hope that my sweet Eleanor hasn’t gotten herself into any more trouble.”

“Not me—Agnes. She was robbed at gunpoint.”

“Sounds like her usual MO. How about we head upstairs now? I’m late for my night-time meds.”

We made it into the elevator and I leaned my exhausted head on Andrew’s shoulder. I just knew that when my head hit the pillow tonight that I’d be out like a light and that’s just what happened not ten minutes later.

Chapter Twelve

When the sun rose early the next morning, I buried my head under my pillow. Our room faced the east and I could barely tolerate the harsh light that blasted through the thin curtains.

“I’ll meet you downstairs for breakfast,” Andrew said, leaving the room.

Once I was alone, I tried to formulate a plan of action. I’d sure like to see what Francine had to say about what happened last night. At least Lois seemed to be decent for the most part, but I wondered if she really wasn’t able to open the register, or was trained to not open it, even if being robbed. Not that it made much sense, since we could have lost our lives if the robbers had gotten antsy about it.

Since the bright sun just wouldn’t quit bothering me, I got up, made my way to the bathroom with my supplies and took a quick bath. As I rested back against the bathtub, all I could think about was how I missed modern things like television, cellular service, and a shower!

Today, I donned denim shorts and a white tee since I hoped we’d be able to explore the town a little more, with the cemetery as my first destination. I couldn’t wait to find out how old the tombstones were, or see if I could find any interesting names among them.

After I put my things away, Eleanor greeted me on my way out of the room. “Hello, there. The men are already downstairs.”

“I sure hope we won’t miss breakfast. I’m starving.”

We sauntered our way to the elevator, and once we were on our way down to the first floor, I couldn’t help but wonder—. “Hey, Eleanor. Have you ever wondered what would happen if we pushed the M button? I mean, would it actually take us down to the mine shafts that run under the hotel?”

“Beats me, but maybe we shouldn’t do that. I doubt it would work anyway, and I’d hate to miss another meal.”

Drat, but I really wanted to try it at least once. “But what if the missing family is down there trapped? We could really save the day here.”

“Is that what you want to do? Save the family just so you can get more recognition?”

“No, that’s not what I meant. I was just making a joke, is all. You’re right; we’ll try it another time, perhaps later. After breakfast.”

When the elevator came to a halt with jerk and screech of gears, Eleanor and I waltzed toward the dining room, joining Andrew and Mr. Wilson, but once again, they weren’t alone. Mrs. Barry and the bird sisters were also there, and it appeared that Mrs. Barry was already a bit tipsy and it was only ten o’clock.

“Heello,” Mrs. Barry slurred. “About time you girls got here.”

I smiled kindly as Bonnie came over with her pot of coffee, pouring us a cup. “Bring another cup for Mrs. Barry, please,” I said.

“I already have a cup,” Mrs. Barry grinned.

“Oh, I know, but you need a cup without any of your sauce. It’s much too early to be drinking anything other than straight, black coffee.”

“Don’t judge me,” Mrs. Barry complained as she pounded a fist on the table, rattling the dishes. “As it so happens, I haven’t been to bed yet.”

“What?” I exclaimed. “That is so unhealthy.”

Mrs. Peacock and Mrs. Canary helped Mrs. Barry up, apologizing. “She means no harm,” Mrs. Peacock said. “I’ll make sure she heads straight to bed.”

“I’m not judging her, either, just so you know. Believe me, I like Mrs. Barry. She has spunk, and that’s a great quality to have for the older generation.”

“I’ll sleep it off, I pr-promise,” Mrs. Barry slurred. “I’d love to join you and Eleanor later for a tour of the Lemon Pine Mine, like at four.”

“We’d be happy to do that, Mrs. Barry. Go on up to your room and get some sleep.”

Mrs. Barry wobbled her way out of the dining room and I really hoped that she’d go straight to her room, although ‘straight’ and Mrs. Barry certainly didn’t go hand in hand. Sure, she was a bit crotchety at times, but I’d always thought that, for the most part, it was all a deliberate act. Why, when Eleanor and I went to Redwater, Mrs. Barry always insisted that we stay with her. Yes, she had a certain charm about her.

Eleanor sipped her coffee, giving Mr. Wilson a once-over. He was once again dressed in black, and I had to admit that I liked his new look since he usually only wore gray workpants and shirts he most likely had worn since his working days.

“That Mrs. Peacock seemed a little sweet on you, Wilson,” Eleanor said. “Don’t think I didn’t notice the way she batted her eyelashes at you when we walked up.

“It’s not my fault that Mrs. Peacock knows a good thing when she sees one.” He whistled as he spoke.

“Oh, is that right now? You’re not the only one who can say that. Plenty of men find me attractive, you know.”

“I wasn’t saying they don’t, but Frank Alton isn’t here right now. It’s quite a shame the way you flirt with him, since he’s a married man.”

“Why are you throwing Frank’s name up right now? I haven’t flirted with the man since you and I became serious. We’re engaged, remember?”

“Seems like you’ve been dragging your feet over that, Eleanor,” Mr. Wilson said with a shake of his head. “And if the truth be known, I’m tired of it.”

“Calm down, Wilson,” Andrew said. “You’re not alone there. I’m in the same boat with Agnes. Perhaps if these two weren’t so consumed with solving mysteries, we might just have a double wedding.”

I gulped. “What?”

“How about it, Agnes? Let’s set a date and get on with it.”

I was saved from answering for the moment because my food was set in front of me. I immediately started shoveling in my bacon and eggs, casting a wary glance Andrew’s way.

“Just as I figured,” he said. “Come on, Wilson. Let’s see if Patty is dealing today.”

“Th-Thought you told me not to play cards in the saloon anymore.”

“I know, but I feel a lucky streak coming on,” Andrew said, as he left the table with Wilson trailing after him with his walker.

I sighed. “Great, all I need now is for Andrew to start pressuring me to set a date.”

“We’ve been engaged for a while now. Maybe it’s time to set a date. They didn’t say it had to be soon, now, did they?” Eleanor laughed.

“True that.”

* * *

Eleanor and I finished our breakfast in relative silence and I really hoped that Andrew wouldn’t be too mad at me. I did love him, but at my age, I had no intention of being rushed to the altar—and none of that was worth worrying about since I already had enough on my plate with the investigation that seemed to be going nowhere at the moment.

I stood and stretched for a moment, waiting for Eleanor to stand, too. “Let’s check out that elevator. I want to at least try to go down to the mine,” I whispered so nobody would overhear me.

“Oh, I’m not so sure that’s a good idea. The Lemon Pine Mine might be an even better place to start our search.”

“I don’t see any reason that we can’t check both places, Eleanor.”

“Fine, but I don’t like it, I’ll tell you that. I can’t help feel that something bad will come of it.”

“What are you talking about? What could possibly go wrong?”

We strolled back to the elevator and waved at Lois, who actually smiled back at me. I guess after our ordeal yesterday that Lois had made an about-face, which was great in my book since I hated feeling out of sorts with anyone.

Once we were in the elevator and the doors closed, I poised to push the M button. “Think, Agnes. Are you sure we should do this?”

“Why are you such a worrywart?”

“Well, we have no idea just how deep the mine is or how sturdy the elevator is. We could plummet all the way down and be killed.”

“I suppose, but I feel like today is our lucky day, too. Why should Andrew be the only one with the luck?”

I pushed the button and waited with bated breath for something, anything, to happen, but when it didn’t, I shrugged. “I guess it doesn’t work.”

The lights in the elevator flashed and I felt chilled to my bone. “Oh, Caroline,” I called her. “Wherever are you?”

Caroline appeared and shook her finger at me. “Shame on you, Agnes. You shouldn’t have pushed that button.”

The lights quit flashing and I smiled. “See, nothing bad happened, Eleanor.”

Before Eleanor answered, the elevator soared to the third floor at a fast rate, dinged, and then raced downward. By now, our screams echoed in the small elevator and Eleanor and I had our arms wrapped around one another, holding onto each other for dear life. When the elevator came to a sudden halt, it was between the first and second floors.

“Lucky day, eh?” Eleanor asked. “Some luck this is.”

I wiggled out of Eleanor’s arms and pushed the emergency button, clamping my palms over my sensitive ears as a loud alarm went off. A voice then came on and said, “How can I help you?” in a foreign accent.

“We’re stuck in the elevator,” I said.

“What city are you from?”

“Silver, Nevada. You mean you’re not from the Goldberg Hotel?”