“Logan Fields,” I rasped. Stumbling across the icy asphalt, I scooped my phone from the ground. “I need to see something. I need—”
“Steady.”
Evelyn cupped my elbow, keeping me upright as I unlocked my phone, clicked on the Instagram logo, and pulled up Megan’s profile.
“It’s him,” I said, showing Evelyn the last picture Megan had posted.
She peered at the blurry selfie. “Who? I only see Megan.”
I pointed at the fuzzy outline of a man’s shoulder. “You see? He’s wearing the scarf I found on the homeless man outside. Wolf has the matching coat, and he said the scarf went missing. Jonathan was killed with Wolf’s sedatives, and now Fletcher’s dragging Logan’s body out of the hotel—”
“Slow down.” Evelyn supported my weight against her front as my knees buckled. “You’re hysterical, Jack, and not making any sense.”
“Call Kate,” I gasped as my vision began to go black at the edges. I yanked the cipher ring out of my pocket and placed it in Evelyn’s palm. “Tell her it’s him. Them. Fletcher and Wolf. They murdered Jonathan. They kidnapped the girls. They killed Megan Hollows. I know it… I know it…”
The last thing I saw before losing consciousness was Evelyn’s worried face.
17
“Wakey, wakey, eggs and bakey!”
Marie trotted into the loft, leapt onto the bed, and pinned me to the mattress. She framed my face with her palms and planted a kiss on my forehead. “Mwah! You’re such a little genius, Jack. You know that, right?”
My head throbbed, and my tongue felt rougher than sandpaper. “Where’s Evelyn? What happened?”
“She’s downstairs, manning the stove.” Marie pinched my cheek and squealed. “You saved the day! Aren’t you pleased?”
I groggily batted Marie away. “I’d be pleased for some answers. By the way, if Evelyn’s cooking, she’s likely to burn the whole hotel down.”
Right on cue, the in-suite smoke alarm went off. Marie rolled her eyes, hopped off the bed, and scampered down the steps. The acrid scent of charred bacon reached my nose as I threw off the covers.
It was a new day, and I wasn’t sure how much time had passed since we’d cornered Fletcher behind the hotel. From the looks of things, Evelyn had managed to pull off yet another incredible rescue.
Downstairs, Evelyn stood on the sofa and wafted smoke away from the alarm with a dish towel. Marie had opened the balcony doors to let the rest of the clouds float outside. The alarm turned off right as the suite’s phone rang. Marie danced over to it.
“Hello? Yes, we’re so sorry. We had an incident with some bacon grease, but everything is under control now. Great! Aw, thank you.” Marie hung up, beaming. “That was Janine at the front desk. Guess she got an alert that our alarm went off. She’s so sweet. She wished me good luck at the wedding.” She flopped backward on the sofa and grabbed Evelyn’s heels like a mischievous puppy. “Can you believe it’s only one day away?”
Evelyn shook her ankle free of her sister’s grip and lightly stepped off the sofa. When she spotted me on the loft steps, she came over.
“How are you feeling?” she asked. “You’ve been sleeping for fourteen hours. I had a doctor check you out. He said you were fine but exhausted.”
“I’m thirsty.”
She took a bottle of cold water from the mini fridge and opened it for me. I chugged the icy liquid, savoring the soothing chill within my throat.
“What happened after I fainted?” I asked. “Did the police come?”
“You’d already called Kate,” Evelyn explained. “She heard most of what was happening, and she came as soon as possible. I told them what you told me. They arrested Fletcher on the spot, then went up to the penthouse to get Wolf.”
“Breakfast is almost ready!” Marie sang. “When we sit down to eat, neither one of you is allowed to talk about dead people.” She draped the dish towel around her head like a veil and waltzed around the kitchen with a spatula, humming the theme from Sleeping Beauty off-key.
“What about the missing women?” I asked. “Did the police find them?”
“Good news and bad news on that front,” Evelyn replied. “Angelica called us. Turns out she really did leave the Saint Angel on her own. She’s fine.”
“You spoke to her? You heard her voice?”
“Yes.” Evelyn squeezed my forearm as if she’d sensed my racing pulse. “She’s okay, Jack. Seeing Megan’s body messed her up, but she’s fine.”
“Why did we find all her stuff then?” I demanded. “If she left, why didn’t she take her things with her? She would have needed her ID to get anywhere, right?”
Two lines appeared between Evelyn’s brow. “She said she was mugged outside the hotel. I assumed it was Fletcher.”
“You’re sure you spoke to her and not someone else?”
Marie bounced over and shoved a hot biscuit between my teeth. “Can you relax? I FaceTimed Angelica this morning. She’s okay, just shaken up a bit.”
I bit down on the buttery biscuit. As the warmth spread across my tongue, I realized how good it felt to eat something. Marie took advantage of my distraction and steered me to a stool at the kitchen counter. She’d loaded three plates with bacon, eggs, biscuits, and fresh fruit.
“Eat up,” she advised. “You need your strength back before the wedding. It’s going to be an all-day affair, and I expect the both of you to be at your best.”
I tore a strip of bacon in half. “Is Angelica coming back for the wedding?”
“No,” Marie said, pouting. “She doesn’t want to be around the hotel. I can’t blame her, considering what happened.”
“So she went home?”
“I’m not sure.” Marie popped a bottle of champagne to make mimosas. “Maybe? I couldn’t see where she was calling from. It was a bit dark.”
“Did you recognize the number?”
“No, but she lost her phone when she got mugged.”
Evelyn patted my back. “Jack, take it easy.
