Room for Murder (Book 4 in the Lighthouse Inn Mysteries) (19 page)

“
You wouldn’t dare leave me
here alone,” she screeched.

“
Just watch me.”

Alex tried to fight the laughter bubbling in
his throat, but a few sounds still escaped before he could get
himself back under control.

Sheila snapped. “Did you hear that? They’re
coming back.”

“
I’m going. Now.” Paul
shouted loudly enough for them to hear without the aid of the
walkie-talkies.

“
Wait for me. I’m coming,
too.” Sheila screamed.

Alex and Elise waited a few minutes at the
window, then watched the two of them hurrying out to their car in
the parking lot, trailing errant articles of clothing along the
way.

Elise said, “Oh, Alex, we shouldn’t
have.”

He shrugged. “Now if they write about
hauntings at the Murder Inn, they can draw from their own
experiences.”

As he started down the scuttle, she said,
“What do we do now?”

“
You go back to bed. I’ve
got to get a piece of cardboard and patch that window until I can
fix it in the morning.”

He’d half hoped Elise would offer to help,
but she stifled a yawn and said, “See you in few hours then.”

He was at the door when Mrs. Nesbitt came
out of her room. “Alex Winston, what in the world is going on
around here?”

“
Sorry,” he said
sheepishly. “We had a little trouble, but it’s all been taken care
of now. I thought you were a heavy sleeper.”

“
I am, but that ruckus
could have wakened the dead.” She looked at the room where the
reporters had been staying. “Were they the cause of it?”

“
Indirectly. Don’t worry,
they just checked out.”

She nodded her approval. “Good riddance. You
want to know something? They weren’t lighthouse fans at all.”

“
It takes all kinds,” Alex
said.

After Mrs. Nesbitt retired, Alex swept up
the broken glass inside the Joneses’ room, relishing how much fun
it had been doing something active to deal with that particular
problem.

Patching the hole, he regretted not being
able to do anything more constructive to help Emma, Mor, and Tracy
with their problems.

There were some things a good haunting just
couldn’t fix.

“
I wonder if this rain is
going to keep people from voting,” Alex asked as he looked out the
front windows of the inn the next morning. It was pouring outside,
a steady rain that had started at dawn and seemed to intensify with
each passing hour.

Elise said, “What I’m wondering about is
which candidate it will hurt the most.”

Alex leaned against the desk. “I’ve got a
feeling every vote’s going to count in this election. I’m going to
go myself right after lunch.”

“
I’d like to go with you,
if you don’t mind.”

Alex smiled. “I didn’t realize you’d
registered here. I’d love to have you go with me. That’s why we
have signs for the desk. We should have the rooms finished by then,
now that things are slowing down.”

Elise said, “Don’t worry, Alex, business
will pick back up.”

“
Maybe we shouldn’t have
run the Jones twosome off. Any publicity would be better than what
we’re getting now.”

“
Think about it. Do you
really want the inn full of the kind of people who read The Tattle
Tale?”

He smiled. “I’ve got a feeling the nightly
hauntings would get a little old after a while.”

“
So let’s be happy with the
guests we have. I need some time off later after we vote. Emma and
I have a few last- minute arrangements to make for the
wedding.”

“
What do you need besides a
minister and a marriage license?”

She shook her head. “You’re kidding, right?
Irma

Bean’s doing the reception: she’s even
taking care of the wedding cake. We’ve got the Mountain Express
performing at the reception, you should approve of them since they
play a lot of bluegrass, and Shantara’s helping us line up our wait
staff. This is going to be some celebration.”

Alex said. “It would be even better if we
knew for sure what really happened to Toby Sturbridge. I’m pretty
sure Sheriff Armstrong isn’t too optimistic about finding the
killer now, though he won’t admit it. I think he’s losing interest
since he’s been trying to figure out who killed Oxford Hitchcock. A
local victim’s bound to get priority over a stranger nobody around
Elkton Falls is going to miss.”

“
As long as he gives up on
the idea that Mor or Emma had anything to do with her ex-husband’s
death, I don’t care. The thought of that man even being on the
grounds still gives me the shivers.”

Alex said, “I hate the fact he terrorized
Emma as much as you do, but he still didn’t deserve what he
got.”

Elise was about to say something else when
Lenora walked in.

Elise said, “I’ll talk to you later. I’ve
got to get started on those rooms.”

After she was gone, Lenora said, “I hope she
didn’t leave on my account.”

“
We’ve got a busy morning
ahead of us if we’re going to vote in the election
today.”

Lenora smiled softly. “So, are you voting
for green or red?”

“
I’m not voting by color.
The entire town’s gone crazy with red and green, gold and blue.
I’ve been supporting Tracy since I first found out she was running
for mayor. I just hope she wins. Is there something I can do for
you?”

“
Alex, I’m afraid it’s
nearing the time for me to move on. I plan to check out tomorrow,
and I was wondering if you’d have time to pose for me one last time
today.”

He scratched his head as he studied the
register. “I’d love to help, but I’ve got my hands full the next
twenty-four hours.”

She nodded. “I understand. Perhaps I could
follow you around as you work this morning and get a few quick
sketches while you clean.”

“
You’re a hard lady to say
no to, aren’t you?”

She shrugged. “I don’t mean to be so
persistent, but it’s important to me.”

Alex was about to decline, then surprised
himself by agreeing to her idea. “If you can’t think of a better
way to spend the morning, you’re welcome to tag along with me.”

She smiled brightly. “Wonderful. When do we
get started?”

“
Now’s as good a time as
any. We’ll do your room first.”

All morning long, Lenora followed Alex
around, talking little but sketching furiously. She was filling up
sheet after sheet on her pad, focusing on him as he cleaned floors,
scoured bathrooms, made beds, and dusted furniture.

He said, “Am I going to be able to see these
before you go?”

“
Perhaps I’ll share one of
them with you. We’ll see.”

Elise knocked on the door later when he was
working and said, “Alex, I need more...” Her words died as she
spotted Lenora in the room with him. “Sorry, I didn’t know you were
with someone.”

“
She’s shadowing me today,”
Alex said.

“
I won’t interrupt, then,”
Elise said.

Lenora looked up from her sketch pad and
said, “Please go about your business, you won’t disturb me.”

With Elise’s gaze still on Lenora, she said,
“I need more window cleaner and we’re out in the supply
closet.”

Alex went to his cart and handed her his
bottle. “This is my last room and I’m just about finished. I’ll get
more from Shantara later.”

Elise merely nodded as she accepted the
cleaner, carefully avoiding eye contact with either one of them as
she left.

Now what was that all about, Alex wondered.
He tucked the last corner of the blanket in on the bed and said.
“That’s it. You’ve got to be tired of sketching me by now. You must
have drawn a dozen pictures today.”

Lenora closed the pad and held it close to
her. “I could draw you for a week. Alex. There’s something about
you, something deep and clear that I can’t seem to capture. I wish
you could pose for me in my studio.”

“
Where’s that?” Alex
asked.

“
Paris.” she answered
simply.

“
Unless you’re talking
about Paris, Kentucky, there’s not much chance of that. I don’t do
much traveling in Europe.” Truth be told, Alex had never been west
of the Mississippi, let alone outside the United States. Being an
innkeeper held two major drawbacks for travel; not enough time or
money.

“
A pity, that,” she said.
“I’d like to give you something for your trouble.”

Alex smiled. “I’d never admit it to anyone
else, but I kind of enjoyed it.”

“
Still, you deserve
something,” Lenora said.

“
Draw something for me,
then,” he said, joking.

Lenora merely nodded. “Thank you again,
Alex.”

He found Elise downstairs waiting on him.
She said, “Where’s your shadow?”

“
She’s finished with me,”
Alex said.

Elise replied, “If you say so.”

Alex said, “I’ve got an idea. Why don’t we
grab lunch at Buck’s after we vote?”

There was a hesitation to Elise’s reply, and
Alex added, “We can go Dutch if you’d like.”

Elise shook her head. “No, I’d be delighted
to join you for lunch as your guest.”

It wasn’t exactly the second date he’d been
hoping for, but at least it was something.

Chapter 17

“
I can’t believe the polls
are this crowded for a local election,” Elise said as she and Alex
waited in line to vote at Elkton Falls Elementary
School.

“
Don’t forget, this is one
of the highlights of the social season,” Alex said with a smile.
“It’s a perfect excuse for everyone to get together.”

Up ahead of the long snaking line, Alex saw
Conner on one side of the entry to the gymnasium, with Tracy right
across from him. They were handing out badges, buttons, pencils,
and flyers to any voter who would take them. Elkton Falls was
pretty strict about letting their candidates roam around. It was a
good rule, Alex thought, brought on by the year Lester Ferngate
accosted nearly everyone in sight when he was trying to unseat
Grady Hatch.

Grady himself was walking down the line,
stopping for a word now and then and shaking a lot of hands. When
he got to Alex, he faltered a step, then said, “Glad you folks
could make it out. I just have one question. If you two are here,
who’s watching the inn?”

Alex said, “We thought they’d be able to
manage on their own long enough for us to vote.”

Elise asked, “So how does it feel with your
final term as mayor winding down?”

Grady said, “You want to know the truth? I
thought I’d enjoy it more without the pressure of trying to get
elected, but it’s taken some of the zip out of it, I can tell you
that.”

Elise smiled. “You can always run again in
two years.”

He laughed at that. “No, Ma’am, my days of
public service are over. It’s hard to say where I’ll be two years
from now.”

Alex asked, “Is everything all right?”

Grady slapped him on the shoulder.
“Everything’s just fine, Alex. All is well.”

As the mayor moved on, Elise said, “He seems
preoccupied, doesn’t he?”

Alex could have shared with her the talk
he’d had with the mayor, but he decided not to. “He’s most likely
got a lot on his mind.”

Smiley O’Reilly came out of the polling
booth with a flag sticker on his lapel. Smiley had a habit of
dropping the first few words of every sentence he spoke, which
could get confusing when he was pitching some of the insurance he
sold.

He stopped by them and said, “Folks. Old
truck still running, Alex?” The twinkle in his eye was bright

“
Better than yours,” Alex
said with a chuckle.

Smiley rolled his eyes, tipped his cap to
Elise, and said, “Ma’am.”

After he was gone, Elise said, “I love this
town. Where else are you going to meet such interesting
people?”

“
We’re unusual, but I’m not
sure I’d go as far as saying we’re all that
interesting.”

She said, “Oh, but you are.”

As they approached the two candidates’
positions, Conner struck first. “Any chance you’ve changed your
mind, Alex?”

He replied, “No, I’m voting for Tracy.”

Conner still smiled brightly. “Have a pencil
anyway. I’ve got a ton of them.”

Alex just shook his head, and Conner moved
on to Elise. “How about you, fair lady, do you have any interest in
a badge? I’d be glad to pin it on for you.”

She smiled and said, “No, thanks. I just
wouldn’t feel right taking it, seeing that I’ll be voting for your
ex-wife.”

Conner laughed. “Man, this is a tough
crowd.”

A young woman behind them said, “I’d love a
badge,” and Conner turned his charm on her.

Alex said to Tracy, “He hasn’t changed a
bit, has he?”

“
No, that’s always been one
of his problems. He still thinks this is for junior class
president.”

Elise asked, “How is it going so far?”

“
I think the town’s pretty
evenly split, if the way folks are acting is any indication. It’s
too close to call, that’s for sure.”

Alex said, “I’m just glad those newspaper
photographs didn’t hurt you.”

She smiled gently. “Hurt me? If anything,
they gave me a higher profile than I had before. I’ve had several
folks tell me how rotten I was treated by the press, and a few even
said they changed their votes for me after seeing the way they
behaved.”

Alex shook his head. “Somebody should teach
them some manners. We are still in the South.”

Tracy said, “You’ll have to get in line. I
think it’s absolutely hilarious it all backfired on them.”