he believed her guilty of having something to do with the Connellys’ disappearance or not.
* * *
A WEARY EXHAUSTION battled with the pound of a headache as Marlena cut up fruit to make a salad for the evening meal. After she and Gabriel had walked the grounds earlier that day, Gabriel had spent the rest of the morning on his laptop, while Jackson had worked at the bed-and-breakfast computer in the tiny office just off the common room. Andrew had gone into town to ask questions and make arrangements for Marion Wells, Valerie King and Pamela Winters to come to the house to be interviewed.
Around noon Marlena had placed a platter of ham and cheese sandwiches, along with a big bowl of potato salad, on the table. She had stacked the plates and silverware, allowing the men to eat whenever they were ready rather than calling them to a sit-down meal.
All the rules had changed. From the moment she’d awakened and found the family gone, the neat and orderly world inside the bed-and-breakfast had been shattered.
Marlena was on the verge of shattering every time she thought of the missing people she loved. Daniella had been like a sister, and in the past two years, Sam had become like a favorite brother-in-law. Seven-year-old Macy was the icing on the cake in the family Marlena had temporarily claimed as her own.
Marlena had spent most of the afternoon either in her room or in the kitchen preparing dinner. She’d decided to serve the men a hearty meal of smothered pork chops, mashed potatoes and corn. The fruit salad would be perfect to finish off as dessert. She knew that Gabriel had spent the afternoon interviewing Marion Wells, Valerie King and Pamela Winters, but she suspected those women knew no more than she did about what had happened.
The back door creaked open and she jumped, nearly slicing her finger. She relaxed as she saw her brother step into the kitchen. Lately, most of the time she wanted to take him by the shoulders and shake some adult sense into him, but at the moment, the sight of him was a welcome one, and her heart filled with love.
“Hey, sis. How’s it going?”
“It’s going,” she replied.
He slumped into one of the chairs at the table. “This is all so weird.”
“Scary weird,” she agreed, and then couldn’t help herself. “I thought you were going to get a haircut last week.”
He raked a hand through his shaggy blond hair. “I didn’t get around to it yet, and don’t start nagging.”
She grinned ruefully. “I don’t have the heart or the energy at the moment to nag you. How about a glass of chocolate milk? You know chocolate milk solves everything.”
A hint of a smile curved his lips, and she knew he was thinking of all the bad times they’d gone through in the past. Chocolate milk had always been her panacea. “That sounds good,” he agreed.
She made the milk with chocolate syrup, stirred it until it was foamy and then set a glass for Cory and a glass for herself on the table.
“Thanks.” He took a drink and then looked at her. “I saw you walking with that detective this morning. Is he giving you a hard time?”
“Gabriel Blankenship. And, no, he isn’t giving me a hard time, but he’s doing his job. By the end of our walk this morning, my head was spinning from all the questions he’d asked.”
“Questions like what? Surely he doesn’t think you had anything to do with this.”
She took a sip from her glass. As always, the sight of Cory caused love to well up inside her. He had the face of a choirboy, open and earnest, with blue-green eyes that radiated a soulful innocence.
“I don’t know what exactly he thinks about me, but he asked me the questions I would expect under the circumstances. Did Sam and Daniella have any enemies? Had either of them been threatened recently? Had their moods changed in the past few days? Of course, my answer was no to all of them.”
“How did this happen? Do you think whoever took them will come back to take us?” His eyes simmered more blue than green.
“Oh, Cory, I don’t think so. I don’t think any of us are in danger.” But she wasn’t sure if she believed the reassuring words or not.
Without knowing who had taken the Connelly family and why, without knowing exactly what had happened in the kitchen the night they disappeared, there was no way to know if there was still danger lurking about or not.
“Are you eating with the others in the dining room tonight?” she asked. Cory often sat with the guests for dinner.
“Nah. John and I are heading into town for pizza.”
“It’s nice that you and John get along so well.” She finished her milk, placed the glass in the sink and then returned to slicing up the last of the fruit.
“He’s cool. He’s kind of like a father, always telling me how to do things and teaching me stuff. We caught two rattlesnakes today, cut off their heads and threw them into the woods.”
Marlena’s heart filled with sorrow for her brother, who had lost his mother and father far too soon. Although Marlena had done everything in her power to fill Cory’s needs and see to his care, she knew she hadn’t been a substitute for a masculine presence in his life.
“As far as I’m concerned, the only good snake is a dead snake,” she replied. “I’m glad you have John. Every boy needs a male role model in his life, but don’t forget our future game plan.”
“Yeah, yeah, I remember.” He finished his milk and stood. “I’d better get out of here. We have some work to do outside before we head into town for dinner.” He walked over to her and kissed her on the temple. “You sure you’re okay?” he asked in a surprising role reversal.
“I’m hanging in there,” she replied, a surge of pride fluttering in her heart as she realized the child she’d raised was showing all the signs of becoming a man.
By the time she placed dinner on the table, the house was empty except for herself and the three agents. She served them and then returned to the kitchen, where she ate her dinner at the table where Sam, Daniella and Macy had been interrupted in a nighttime snack.
Their absence was a physical pain in her heart, and she knew it would be there until she got some answers. Hopefully Gabriel and his men had come up with something during the day’s investigation.... A clue, a potential motive, something that would find the family alive and well.
After the men had eaten and she’d cleared their dishes and cleaned the kitchen, she retired to her private rooms, figuring the best thing she could do was stay out of the way of anything the FBI agents were doing to investigate.
It was after eight when a knock fell on her door. She got up from the rocking chair and opened the door to see Gabriel.
“May I come in?” he asked.
Surprised, she opened the door farther and motioned him to the sofa, then sank back in the old wooden rocking chair that squeaked faintly with every rock. “Did you find out anything today?” she asked, trying to ignore the pleasant woodsy scent that had followed him into the room.
“Several things, but nothing concrete to provide a trail to follow.”
