Her father took her arm. “Let’s go to my suite.”
She let him guide her through the door and into his living room. She sank into the armchair and tried to control the way her insides trembled. She had to squash a deep longing to call Joe. His quiet strength would bolster her courage. But they were probably in the middle of baths and bedtime routine by now.
The door to her suite stood open as various people thronged the space. Craig entered as the paramedics finished. He was out of uniform, and he went straight to the body where he began to take pictures.
Torie rose and stood in the connecting doorway. “I’m in here when you need to talk to me.”
“Forensics will be here in about an hour.” He turned away from the body and came toward her. “You discovered Ms. Hansen?”
Torie hugged herself. “I did.” She described her movements when she first came in and how she’d noticed the odor before seeing Bella’s foot. “I touched her neck to check for a pulse.”
“Weren’t you afraid the intruder was still in your room?”
“I-I was only concerned about Bella. I hoped she might still be alive.”
“What time did you get here?”
“Joe dropped me off a little after eight. By the time I got the key to the room and arrived here, it was probably close to eight thirty.”
“And you found her within five minutes or so?”
She nodded. “About that.”
“What did you do next?”
“I called for help from Mr. Bergstrom. He’s in the suite next door.”
Craig’s gaze went to the connecting door before he turned to talk to her dad. “What did you do when she summoned you?”
“I checked for a pulse too. Then I called security while Torie phoned 911 and you. I wanted to make sure the killer wasn’t still around.”
Craig nodded. “They found nothing?”
“Both rooms were clear. I suspect the killer hit her with the lamp. I noticed blood on it.”
Torie hadn’t been able to look anywhere except at the body. She shuddered at the mental picture of someone taking Bella’s life in such a violent way.
Joe. She longed to see him and hear his deep, steady voice. “Am I free to go now?”
Craig put away his pen and pad. “Yeah. Clearly you won’t be sleeping here tonight.”
And she couldn’t cause more gossip by staying with her dad. She slung her purse over her shoulder and bolted for the door. If nothing else, she could stay at her cottage. It would be as safe as here.
Chapter 16
What was Torie doing right now?
Lucy’s aggrieved meow brought Joe out of his thoughts. He needed to get over this obsession with Torie. It was ridiculous for a grown man to be mooning over a woman he barely knew.
He filled Lucy’s dish with food and refreshed her water bowl, then turned on the ten o’clock news. It was the usual political news until a special broadcast cut in.
An animated female reporter stood in front of the Club Resort. “We’ve received a tip about a death here a few hours ago. The police are not yet releasing the name of the victim, pending notification of next of kin, but sources inside tell us the young woman who was on staff at the hotel was brutally bludgeoned to death. Stay tuned for more on this breaking story.”
Nausea roiled in his belly. It couldn’t be Torie, could it? Surely not. Craig would have called him. He snatched his phone and started to call Craig, but the doorbell sounded. Still carrying his phone, he raced to the door and threw it open.
Torie.
The relief of seeing her face nearly buckled his knees. He didn’t stop to think about his actions or how she would view them, but he took a step forward and folded her in his arms. “Torie, you’re all right.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest. “Bella’s dead, Joe. I found her in my suite.”
He held her close. “Your suite?” His gaze swept the darkness behind her, and he steered her off the porch and into the house. Even once he locked the door, he didn’t feel they were safe so he moved her away from the window.
She settled on the sofa with him and shifted a foot away. Strands of dark-brown hair had escaped her braided updo, and her brown eyes held a sheen.
Her body trembled as she recounted the events.
He kept his arm around her. “Did Craig think you might be the target?”
“He didn’t mention it. And we don’t really look alike. She has—had blonde hair.”
“But it makes sense after what’s happened so far. The killer would have expected you to be in that room, not Bella. The lights were probably off. What was she doing there?”
“I thought she might have sneaked in so she could talk to me about Lisbeth. Maybe she rushed off when I asked her about the antidepressants because she didn’t want to be overheard.” She pressed her fingers to her temple. “It’s so hard to think. D–Anton came right over.”
“He didn’t hear a struggle or a crash when she fell?”
She stilled. “He didn’t mention it.”
Odd. “Did he say how long he’d been in his suite?”
“He was watching TV in his pajamas so he’d been there awhile.”
“The television could have drowned out any noise.”
She nodded. “It was kind of loud and there were gunshots. He likes thrillers.”
She sure knew a lot about the older man. Joe wasn’t the suspicious sort, but he had to wonder about their relationship. “Have you checked the cameras on the floor?”
She shook her head. “I should have, but I was so shook up. All I wanted was to get to you. I know that sounds weird, but I knew everything would be all right once I got here.”
A jolt of warmth spread to his chest. “I’m glad you came.” He gestured to the TV. “The news had a clip about her death, and my first thought was that you were the victim. I’d grabbed my phone to call when I heard the doorbell.”
“I can’t stay in my suite, and you should have seen the way people looked at Anton and me. Like they thought we were having an affair or something because the connecting door was open between the rooms by the time they arrived. I knew he was in the next room because he mentioned it was empty and he’d assigned it to me. So I went to him when I found Bella.”
He exhaled at the welcome revelation. “The rumors will die down.”
She pulled away and hugged herself. “It’s really late. I’d better go. I’m going to stay at my cottage. Clearly the hotel isn’t any safer than my place.”
He took her hand. “No, you’re not. You can have my room, and I’ll sleep on the sofa. For all you know, the killer suspects you’ll go back to the cottage and is waiting there. It’s not safe.”
She chewed on her lip, then nodded. “You’re right. I so hate to be a burden.”
“You’re never a burden. Hailey will be thrilled when she wakes up. And I’ll even fix bacon and eggs again.” Her smile was lopsided and didn’t reach her eyes, but it was a start, so he gave her hand a quick squeeze. “You look exhausted. Let me show you the room. Did you bring your things?”