She didn’t realize she was barely inching forward, her steps silent. She stared at the boat. The drapes were drawn, but she was certain the lights were on inside. An uneasy feeling crept over her, and she moved more slowly still.
When she reached the boat, her heart was hammering. She stepped carefully from the dock to the deck, then stood still for several long seconds before she walked to the door, hesitated, then raised her hand to knock. The door swung inward.
She’d been wrong. There were no lights on inside. Just as she was ready to call out his name, she heard a whoosh of noise, a warning that came too late. She tried to turn, tried to scream but she was caught from behind, unable to see a face, the breath knocked out of her and her scream turned to a soundless gasp.
She found herself flying through the air, and she landed hard, a massive weight like living rock on top of her. She opened her mouth to scream again, desperately gulping in air, trying to shake off the brilliant burst of stars that had shot through her head when she landed.
A hand clamped over her mouth.
Her scream died in her throat.
Lucy Fresia awoke suddenly, not knowing what had roused her. She looked around the darkened room and saw nothing.
She gave herself a rueful shake, half smiling. Their constant vigil was beginning to wear on her nerves.
She leaned back in her chair. Stuart lay on his bed, in the same position he had maintained since he had been brought in. The room was quiet, the muted night-light dim, and all was silent.
She bolted up suddenly.
Silent.
It shouldn’t be silent! She should be hearing the sound of the respirator, that slow, even, constant whooshing that had been a part of her world for what seemed like forever now.
She flew to her son’s side. His face was turning blue.
She stared at the monitors. Dead.
Stuart wasn’t breathing. His heart wasn’t beating.
Dead…
No!
She raced to the door, threw it open and screamed for help. Stuart’s nurse came flying down the corridor. She saw the situation and shouted for someone at the nurses’ station to call a code. Lucy was shoved out of the way as hospital personnel came running down the hall and into the room.
Lucy started to scream, the life seeming to drain from her own limbs. She began to sink to the floor, still screaming in disbelief.
Sobs shook her. She couldn’t even pray.
She just kept screaming, “No!” until someone came by with a hypodermic needle and stuck it into her arm.
“Ashley?”
The hand moved from her mouth.
“Jake?” she said incredulously.
The living rock moved aside. A hand came down and found hers in the darkness, pulling her to her feet. For a moment, even the darkness seemed to spin.
A light came on, flooding the Gwendolyn. She was staring at Jake. He was wearing swim trunks and nothing else. His hands were on his hips, and his eyes were hard. “What the hell were you doing snooping around?” he demanded.
“I wasn’t snooping!” she returned indignantly. “You said you wanted to talk. What the hell were you doing? Do you beat up everyone who comes to visit you?”
“You were tiptoeing on board. And ever since someone broke in…”
“It was dark. I wasn’t sure if you were here, if you were sleeping, if…what do you mean, someone broke in?”
“Someone broke in the other night. And they’ve been here again. I can tell.”
“Were you robbed?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Don’t tell me not to be ridiculous. That’s a perfectly logical supposition. Why would anyone come just to invade the precious domain of the great Detective Dilessio? Just so they can say they were on his houseboat?”
He stared at her with irritation and turned, walking up the few steps to the deck. She followed him. He was pacing the narrow deck surrounding the cabin of the houseboat. He paused, staring down the length of the dock toward Nick’s. Ashley stared, too.
Nothing moved.
He turned suddenly. “Are you all right?”
“Sure. I like being body slammed against the floor. And it’s just great when your whole head is ringing.”
She nearly ducked in fear when he stretched out a hand to touch her. She managed not to. His fingers found her skull and massaged.
“Seriously, are you all right?”
“Shaken, but fine,” she said. His tone could change so quickly.
His hand dropped. He stared into the night again.
“Jake, what the hell is going on?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then…?”
“This is the second time someone has been on the boat.”
“And nothing’s gone?”
“No. Not that I can see.”
“Then why would someone come aboard?”
“I don’t know. They must be looking for something.”
“What?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“Did you lock your door?”
“Yes.”
“Was the lock picked?”
“No.”
“Then….”
“This time, it’s really my own fault. I should have had the locks changed.”
She hesitated. “Who else has a key?”