Chapter 35

  

Penelope felt a huge sense of relief when she got back to her room at the inn. She pulled off her chef coat and went into the bathroom, locking the door behind her. Francis had a key to her room and sometimes popped upstairs if he needed to use the computer or print out a menu, so she had gotten in the habit of securing herself in the bathroom to avoid any embarrassing encounters.

She plugged in her hairdryer and curling iron and stepped into the shower stall. Penelope stood under the hot water, allowing her hair to soak all the way to the ends. It hung down in long strands as she stared at her feet and the water swirling around the drain. She was glad to be free of Festa and happy to end things there on a high note. She smiled when she thought about how excited Karen had been, and she refused to worry about how Megan would react, grateful she didn’t have to be part of that conversation.

She heard a thump from the bedroom. “Hey, Joey. I’ll be out in a minute.”

Penelope heard another thump and a mumbled response, which she couldn’t make out over the noise of the shower. Lathering up her hair, she turned her face to the water, letting the tension from the day fall away and disappear down the drain. Turning around to let the water beat on her shoulder blades, she heard a crash and her eyes flew open.

“Ouch!” Soap ran into her eyes and she squeezed them tight, throwing water on her face to rinse them out. “Joey, you okay out there?”

When she got no response, Penelope turned off the water and rubbed the remaining soap from her eyes with a towel. Wrapping a larger towel around her, she stepped out of the shower and onto the floor mat. “Joey, what’s going on?”

Penelope reached out to touch the doorknob and heard heavy footsteps approaching on the other side and then heavy breathing. She pulled her hand away from the knob, fear causing her stomach to flip. Her eyes darted around the small bathroom, looking for something she could use to defend herself. She touched the end of the hot metal of the curling iron, then picked it up and yanked the cord from the socket.

“Who’s there?” Penelope asked. Drops of water splashed onto the tiles at her feet.

The labored breathing continued, then the footsteps retreated from the door. Penelope strained to hear, waiting until she was certain she’d heard the bedroom door open and close quietly before emerging.

Penelope opened the bathroom door and stopped in her tracks. Her suitcase, which had been sitting on a stand in the corner of her room, was open on the floor, the contents strewn across the bed. All the bureau drawers had been opened and her clothes rifled through. Whoever had been in her room had been looking for something in a hurry.

Penelope’s eyes darted around the room. She still grasped the curling iron in her hand. “What in the heck is going on?” she asked out loud. She padded to the door and saw that it was slightly open. She couldn’t remember if she’d locked it behind her when she’d come in, but was almost certain she had. Being a single girl in the big city, that was second nature. Penelope took a quick look down both directions of the empty hallway. She closed the door and spun the lock, listening to the click.

Penelope tightened her towel then gathered her clothes. She had no idea what someone could have been searching for, but she was positive she hadn’t packed anything worth stealing.

“Oh no,” Penelope said aloud. She pulled open the lid of her suitcase and felt for the interior zipper. She kept her jewelry stashed there in a small velvet bag when she traveled. None of the pieces were worth much; they were mostly gifts with sentimental value. Her heart sank when she found the pocket empty, the velvet bag gone.

A jiggle on the doorknob caused her to stand up straight and pick up the curling iron from where she’d left it on the bed. She held it up, ready to strike any unwelcome visitor.

“What are you doing?” Joey asked, an amused grin on his face. His expression quickly changed when he stepped into the room. “Looking for something?”

“No,” Penelope said, dropping the curling iron back on the bed. “Someone came into our room while I was showering and went through my things. They stole my jewelry.”

“What?” Joey asked sharply. He closed the door firmly behind him. “This place is nuts.”

Penelope shrugged. “They’re aren’t worth anything, except to me.”

“Except to you,” Joey repeated. He pulled her into a hug and sighed. “I don’t have a good feeling about this place at all, Penny. I’m not saying you can’t take care of yourself, because you can. But I’ll feel better when you’re back home with me.”

Penelope pulled away from him and looked him in the eyes. “Really?” Part of her wanted to leave right that minute, get on a plane with him, and never look back at Forrestville, Indiana again.

“Yeah,” Joey said. “This kid, Bailey—the sheriff says he’s harmless, but I don’t know. There’s something going on, something the sheriff isn’t seeing it, or refuses to see.” He bent down to pick up a pair of her jeans, folding them and tucking them back in a drawer.

“What happened down at the station?” Penelope asked.

“Bailey says he didn’t have anything to do with Jordan’s death or the break-in,” Joey said, shaking his head.

“How does he explain the wine bottles and the supplies from the restaurant? Not to mention Jordan’s boots.”

“Bailey says he camps out up there on a regular basis, and people come in and out of his tent all the time. Sometimes friends, sometimes kids just passing through. He remembers drinking the wine, but not who brought it,” Joey said. “Says it just showed up one day.”

“And Jordan’s boots?” Penelope asked.

“Same thing,” Joey said. “They just appeared. He didn’t know anything about them.”

“So he either doesn’t know or doesn’t want to tell on a friend,” Penelope said. She bent down to retrieve a pair of socks that had rolled under the bed. “Skylar, one of the younger crew members on the set, said he invited her and another girl up to the woods to party with him.”

Joey pinched the bridge of his nose. “Anyway, he’s locked up for the night. That’s something, at least.”

“Was he hurt? From me pushing him into a tree?” Penelope asked.

“Nah, just a lump on his head. He’ll be fine. Physically.”

Penelope did feel relieved to know she wouldn’t run into Bailey and that she hadn’t seriously hurt him. She was still proud of her mini-ambush, at how she’d taken down a fleeing suspect. She didn’t know exactly what it was about Bailey that set her on edge, but she’d felt uncomfortable around him every time they’d come in contact.

After putting away the rest of her clothes, Penelope pulled on a pair of black pants and a silky shirt. She talked with Joey while he showered and she swiped mascara onto her lashes.

“You look nice,” Joey said, stepping out and cinching a towel around his waist.

“So do you,” Penelope said. “I assume we’re going somewhere nice tonight. By the way, I called the sheriff to report the break-in. He’s going to follow up tomorrow.”

He’d actually asked Penelope to come to the station right then, but Randall had invited her and Joey to celebrate Arlena’s birthday in Quincy. They were all in the mood to escape Forrestville for the evening, even if it was only to a well-reviewed steakhouse less than an hour away. It looked like a hole in the wall in the pictures, but even if the food was just average, it would be a welcome change of scenery.

“We have to leave in twenty minutes to make it on time,” Penelope reminded Joey as he rubbed the water from his hair with a towel.

Penelope looked around the room for her iPad, her heart quickening until she found it. “This they leave behind,” she said, shaking her head. “Oh no,” she added, as she pawed through the contents of the drawer.

“What?” Joey asked.

“I stuck a check in here and it’s gone,” Penelope said.

“Call the bank,” Joey said.

“No, not one of mine. I found it at the restaurant and the guy, he’s out of town, so I was holding it until I saw him again.”

“So they left the tablet but took a check. Not a blank check, either,” Joey said. “Why?”

Penelope picked up the Bible that was tucked in the drawer and fanned through it, then shook her head, closing the drawer slowly.