The B and B sat directly on the beach and allowed dogs, so they didn’t have to leave Blue behind.
He knew that Raven had been working hard since returning to Cannon Falls, and this would be her first full weekend off since she’d come home.
He hadn’t had a weekend off in so long that he couldn’t remember when it had been. And he’d never taken a weekend with the woman he loved.
“Hey, boss.” Andre walked into his small office. He had less than an hour to go before he could clock out.
“Hey.” He motioned to the chair across from him. Maybe Andre could help fill the time. “What’s up?”
“I heard you were planning on asking Raven the big question this weekend?” Andre said with a smile as he wiggled his eyebrows.
“What?” Cade shook his head.
“Marriage.” Andre laughed. “I heard you got her a ring and all.”
Cade frowned as his heart leapt at the thought. “Who told you that?”
Andre shrugged. “I heard it around.”
Cade leaned forward and lowered his voice. “Who told you that?”
He didn’t know why it mattered. After all, it wasn’t the type of rumor that the murderer would spread around. Was it?
Not that he hadn’t thought about it. But after only dating four months now, he knew it was far too early. Besides, she was so preoccupied with the resort, he didn’t want to detour her from her goals. Not yet at any rate.
What if they’d been right all along? Whoever had murdered Joseph, Rachelle, and Kim had done so to get to Raven. What if the person was obsessed with her? Wouldn’t they know everything about her? Were they spreading the rumors to get inside her head?
Why this new one? Sure, she seemed excited to move in with him, but marriage? If the rumor caught her off guard, what would she do? Freak? Pull away from him? Dump him? Maybe the reaction would play right into the murderer’s hand.
“I overheard someone at the bar last night.” Andre answered with a shrug. “Does it matter?”
“It might.” He felt his entire body tense.
“Um, I’m not sure. I guess it was one of the bartenders. I’d had a few drinks and well.” He shrugged. “Sorry, most of the night is a blur.”
Without waiting for more information, Cade stood up and stormed towards the door.
“I’m clocking out early,” he said, turning to Andre. “Lock up, will you?”
He didn’t even stop by the house to pick Blue up as he’d planned. Instead, he headed out to the resort as he called Raven’s cell phone.
When she didn’t answer, he knew without a doubt that something was wrong. He could almost feel it in his bones. Like he had when Reggie…
He stopped that thought from metastasizing and pushed the gas pedal down farther.
When he rushed through the front doors of the resort, he noticed his uncle in the lobby area, talking to two of his men, and frowned.
“Where’s Raven?” he barked out.
Sean turned and frowned at him. “How did you…”
“I’ve been trying to call her. She’s not answering.” He held up his phone, not wanting to explain about the feeling and Andre’s conversation.
“Your mother said she stepped outside for a walk during lunch and hasn’t returned. No one noticed until about half an hour ago. We were just going to head out and start looking for her ourselves.”
Cade’s heart sank. “She likes to walk towards the lifts for lunch,” he said, remembering a conversation they’d had a few weeks back.
“Right. Want to take that route?” Sean asked, and Cade took off at a sprint. “Call if you find out anything,” his uncle called after him.
He was totally breathless when he reached the park bench that she’d mentioned. He called out her name and tried her cell phone again.
“Damn it,” he said loudly enough that the sound echoed.
His eyes scanned every blade of grass, looking for any sign that she’d come this way hours earlier.
When his phone rang, he jumped at the loud sound and fumbled to answer the call from his uncle.
“She never picked up her lunch,” Sean said quickly.
“What?” he asked.
“We checked in the kitchen. She called down an order for lunch, but never picked it up. Which means…”
Cade turned to look at the massive buildings in the distance. “She’s still inside.” He started running back. His ankle throbbed and burned as he rushed up the back stairs.
He didn’t even know where to begin looking. Where could she be? Who had her?
The bar.
Andre’s words echoed in his head. He’d heard the gossip at the bar.
Taking the stairs from the back of the building two at a time, he rushed to the front area and stopped when he noticed a handful of people sitting around the bar top enjoying lunch or drinks.
It was Friday afternoon, and he knew that soon the place would be packed.
Had Raven come this way? He asked a few people he knew, who all shook their heads in response.
Then his eyes caught his own in the new mirror that hung behind the bar, and he remembered the extra space that had been changed back there. Only employees would know about the space.
He pushed past the crowd to check the space, only to come up short when he bumped solidly into Heather. She was straightening her bartender’s apron and hair and looked pleased to see him.
“Cade Stone. To what do I owe this pleasure?” she purred.
“Have you seen Raven?” he asked, his eyes scanning the small dark space.
“Why do you want her when I’m right here?” Heather wrapped her arms around his shoulders.
He moved to push her aside, but then stilled when a memory of how Heather looked back in high school flashed in his mind. It was as if he was seeing her for the first time. His hands froze on her wrists as he looked at her. Really looked at her.
She was vaguely the same build as Raven. A little shorter and a few pounds lighter. But back when they’d been seventeen… They’d been almost the same. At one point, she’d started dying her hair different colors. He couldn’t remember it ever being red, but then again, he’d been away at college. Anything was possible. Right?
He remembered the rumor Raven had told him about Reggie and Heather hooking up just before the fire. Another rumor that had made the rounds and broken Raven’s heart.
“Did you used to have red hair in school?” he asked as he felt his heart start to race.
The moment he spoke, the version of Heather that had been standing in front of him—the crisp bartender’s outfit, the pleasant smile, the feminine sexuality—all of it changed. Even the way she held herself… shifted. She someone became more masculine. Stronger.
“Very good.” Even her voice had changed, to a lower pitch, almost a baritone. “I believe you’re the first that has followed my trail of clues.” She laughed a sickening sound so low he shivered.
“Why?” He started to put his hands in his jacket pocket for his phone but stopped when Heather pulled a gun from the black bartender’s apron that she wore and pointed it at his chest.
“Look who wants to play?” She motioned towards the narrow set of stairs that sat directly behind a stack of boxes. “Come join the fun below.”