“There’s a note in Pepper’s file: a key is taped to the underside of the mailbox. When you leave, reset the alarm with the same code and replace the key, then have Holly call me at home on the satphone.” He gave Stone the number.
“All right, we’ll be in touch.”
“Don’t take Dino and Genevieve with you; tell them that if you’re not back at the inn in two hours, to call me.”
“Thanks, Lance, Ginny will call you later.” Stone closed his phone and went back to the table. “Sorry about that; my secretary is working late and needed some client information for billing. She can’t always read my handwriting.”
Holly wasn’t buying that, but Stone wasn’t sending any signals, either. She tried to relax and get back to pumping Irene. “What’s new on Black Mountain?” she asked.
“Not much.”
“Do you ever see your neighbors up there?”
“Not often. The Pembertons and the Weatherbys still haven’t turned up, and we hardly ever spot Sir Winston outside of his car. I think it’s more neighborly farther down the mountain, where the houses are thicker on the ground. I got a letter from someone wanting to start a neighborhood association, but I can’t imagine what such a group would do. After all, we have the prime minister for a neighbor, and if there were a pothole, or something like that, his people would be all over it.”
“Have you ever even seen the Pembertons or the Weatherbys?” Holly asked.
“Never laid eyes on them.”
Harry spoke up. “Irene says you’re leaving on Saturday.”
“Yep,” Holly said. “I’ve got flying lessons scheduled for next week, and Stone claims he has to work, too.”
“Nobody has ever actually caught Stone working,” Dino said.
“How would you all like to come for a sail tomorrow?” Harry asked.
“That sounds like fun,” Holly said. “There was talk of tennis with some other guests; can we call you in the morning and let you know?”
“Sure, that’s fine. I just want to keep the barnacles off the hull.”
“I’ll fix us a lunch,” Irene said. “It would be fun.”
“We’d love it, if we’re able to come,” Holly said.
They continued with dinner, laughing and talking. When Irene and Harry finally said their good-byes, Stone and Holly began walking back toward the cottage.
“That was Lance on the phone,” he said. “He tried you, then tried me.”
“What’s up?”
“We have a little job to do for Lance.” He handed Dino a slip of paper. “Dino, we have to disappear for a while. If we’re not back in two hours, call Lance at that number and let him know.”
“Let him know what?”
“Just that we’re not back. You might try my cell phone before you call him.”
“Okay.” Dino put the number in his pocket.
Holly followed Stone to the car. “What’s going on?”
“I’ll tell you on the way.”
31
Stone and Holly got into the car and drove out of the inn’s grounds. He handed her his jotter. “You have any idea where that is?”
“No; what is it?”
“It’s Bill Pepper’s house. Lance hasn’t been able to reach either Pepper or his wife, and he wants us to look around the place.”
“Shit, what the hell is going on?”
“I don’t know, but take a look at the rent-a-car map in the glove compartment, and see if you can figure out the address.”
Holly opened the glove compartment and switched on the map light. “Okay, the address is 601 Victoria Road; that starts in Markstown and seems to run out into the country. Take your next right, then the first right after that.”
Stone followed her instructions. “Okay, now we’re on Victoria Road; see any house numbers?”
“We just passed 720,” Holly said. She dug a small flashlight out of her handbag. “Slow down, so I can see the mailboxes.”
Stone slowed.
“ 680,” she said. “It’ll be on the other side of the road.” She continued to read off the numbers. “Next house on the left,” she said.
Stone slowed, but didn’t stop. “I don’t want to just pull into the driveway,” he said. “Let’s see if anybody else is out here tonight.”
The road was very dark, and Stone continued to drive slowly. “Look for parked cars on both sides,” he said.
“I don’t see any cars, except ones that look like they belong to the houses,” Holly said.
Stone pulled into a driveway, turned around and started back toward 601. “Is that one of those lithium-battery flashlights?”
“Yes,” she said, “a SureFire.”
“I’m going to turn off the headlights now. Keep the flashlight pointed down the road.” It was enough to keep out of the ditches, and Stone finally turned into Bill Pepper’s driveway. There was a Toyota Avalon parked in front of the garage, and the house had lights burning.
“Looks like someone is home,” Holly said.
“Right,” Stone said. “Let’s find out.” They got out of the car, walked to the front door and rang the bell. No answer. They rang it again and knocked, and still no one came to the door.
“I can see into the living room,” Holly said, leaning over the porch rail and peering through a window. “Nobody there.”
“Give me the flashlight and wait here,” Stone said. “Lance told me where the key is.” He walked back up the driveway to the mailbox, looked underneath and extracted the key, leaving the tape in place, then walked back to the house. He opened the door and stepped inside, followed closely by Holly. The burglar alarm began to beep, once a second.
“Oh, shit,” Holly said. “I hope that thing doesn’t call the police.”
Stone tapped in the code, and it stopped beeping.
“How did you know how to do that?” she asked.
“Lance gave me the code; we have to reset it when we leave.”
“Bill!” Holly called out. They walked from room to room, as she continued to call his name. The bed in the master bedroom was undisturbed. They walked into the kitchen. “I smell food,” Holly said. She opened the oven door. “Pot roast, I think, and there are string beans and potatoes on the stove. Everything has been turned off, though.”
Stone placed his hand on the stove. “Cold,” he said. “They’ve been gone awhile, and I can’t see that anything has been disturbed.”
“They planned to come back,” Holly said. “Otherwise, Mrs. Pepper would have put the food in the fridge.”
“Nothing seems to have been disturbed,” Stone said. Suddenly, he had a thought. He leaned close to Holly’s ear. “Let’s get out of here,” he whispered. He grabbed her hand and towed her out of the house, then went back, set the alarm and returned the key to its home under the mailbox. He backed the car out of the driveway, avoiding using the brakes, then headed back toward the inn.
“Turn on the lights,” she said. “You’ll kill us.”
