wardrobe twice her size, and lots of space in between.
Stacey shrugged. “It’s a big house. We make use of it when we can.”
“Downstairs,” Bobby offered, “you’ll find the kitchen toward the back.” He smiled, watching her closely. “I’m here most of the time when I’m not working.” He took Stacey’s hand. “We’re engaged.”
“Congratulations,” Lauren said.
“I live in the caretaker’s cottage out back. I don’t really take care of anything, though, I just live there,” Big Jim said.
“And Bobby is a cop, you know,” Stacey said.
“Yes, I do.”
Were the cops here sane? Lauren wondered.
The ones she had met so far had all seemed to study her as if she weren’t quite right in the head. Then again, at least, they took her reasonably seriously, seriously enough to station an officer outside Deanna’s door at the hospital.
“I really think you’ll love the room,” Stacey said, gesturing for Lauren to step inside. Her pride in the house was evident.
Lauren did love it. It was exquisite, from the polished wood of the nineteenth-century dresser and bed posts, to the cherrywood desk and antique floral pattern on the bedspread. She hesitated, wondering if, no matter how highly Lieutenant Canady thought of the safety of the place, she could afford it. But before she could mention her reserves, Stacey mentioned a price per room per night that was absurdly low.
“How on earth can you afford to do business that way?” Lauren couldn’t help asking.
“Oh, Jessica doesn’t actually make her living running Montresse House,” Stacey explained. “She’s a psychologist, plus she has family money. She closes this place whenever she chooses.”
“Are we the only guests right now?”
“We have another gentleman arriving later,” Stacey said. “If you’re ready, I’ll sign you in downstairs.”
“I have to go to work, but I’m usually here at night,” Bobby said. “Nice to meet you for real.”
“And I should get to the club,” Big Jim said.
“Nice to see you both again,” Lauren told them, as they waved and started down the stairs.
She felt a moment of unease as she watched them go. Did they know too much about her, and were they a little
Was it weird?
Oh, hell. What could be weirder than everything that was already going on? A gorgeous man had all but abducted her so he could tell her there were vampires in New Orleans. Deanna was in a hospital, receiving transfusions after sleepwalking and maybe being attacked. Tall-dark-and-handsome had disappeared, chasing after a shadow in the darkness, and a police lieutenant had ordered that Deanna’s room be protected.
“I can sign in right now, if you like,” she said to Stacey, shrugging off her worriesome thoughts. “In fact, I need to get moving.”
“Of course,” Stacey said.
It had all started with the fortune-teller, Lauren thought. And as soon as she finished signing in, she was going to find the woman and get a few answers.
Heidi had already been through three magazines. She had studied
Deanna hadn’t moved. She lay in her bed like Sleeping Beauty, stunning and sound asleep, awaiting her true love’s kiss.
Heidi took a moment to feel sorry for herself. She was with her best friends in a place they all loved, where they should have been having the time of their lives. Barry was at home with his crazy brothers and his friends. Nothing like a group of attorneys when they decided to cut loose. She thought about calling him, then decided that he’d be working now, and she never wanted to be one of those women who had to call a man just for reassurance.
No, they were fine. Deanna was getting the best care possible for…
Whatever this was.
Lauren would be back soon. One day, they would all look back on this experience as something that had brought them closer. And she had certainly never wanted her wedding or her bachelorette getaway to be boring.
She set down her magazine, stood, stretched, then smoothed Deanna’s hair off her forehead. The nurse had been in just a few minutes ago, readjusting the IV, taking Deanna’s vital signs. Everything was as good as it was going to get until her friend actually woke up.
Heidi walked to the door and peeked into the hallway.
A uniformed officer was sitting in a chair, reading the newspaper.
She went back to the chair and sat down. The chair could be converted into a bed. Either she or Lauren would probably stay in it through the night. For now, though, it was just a comfy chair.
“Mind if I turn on the television?” she said aloud. The sound of her own voice spooked her, and it wasn’t as if Deanna cared whether she turned on the television or not.
