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DANA PULLED UP AT THE address on 23 Willow Way Drive. It was a lonely house near the woods. She wondered why on earth would Dr. Cromwell have his office there. But then again, he was supposed to be semi-retired now. He was only seeing Aunt Mary as a special favor, according to Aunt Mary.
She shut off the ignition and the car stopped with a chugging sound.
“Okay, I really need to get this baby serviced. But please don’t conk out on me now, Bessie,” she warned her car.
She drew in a deep sigh and took out her purse, feeling around for her cell phone to make sure she could call for help if needed. The battery level was only 13 per cent. It would have to do for now. She hoped and prayed it would last her until she had to recharge again. She’d left her charger at home on the counter.
Memo to self: Always keep a back up charger in my purse at all times.
As she walked up the wooden walkway, the board creaked. She stopped, feeling a chill slide over her then she continued, looking around and proceeding cautiously.
When she got to the door, she looked around. She then peered through the window which looked badly in need of a good scrub. A dirt film lingered on its surface.
Dana’s heart stopped.
The place looked abandoned.
This had to be mistake.
She looked at the address again and compared it with the address on the business card that Uncle Max had given her of Dr. Cromwell’s address.
“Hmm. Odd.”
Dana was about to leave when she noticed the door was slightly ajar. “Hello, anyone in here?”
She had to be crazy to go inside but her curiosity got the best of her.
You remember what they say about curiosity and the cat, right? A little voice in her head warned her.
She switched on her locator on her cell phone so that she could easily be tracked down.
Just in case.
But at the end of the day, a murderer was on the loose in the sweet little town of Berry Cove and she had to help the police find the real killer. And clear her family’s name. Her uncle’s name.
She walked inside and saw a desk in the far corner, a few chairs and a coffee table. Everything looked so dusty. Had anyone even been there in a while? She took her cell phone and took pictures. It looked as if Doc Cromwell might have had a front. Or maybe this was his old office. Maybe he had another office somewhere and didn’t get a chance to update his business cards.
She saw a few files on the desk and a file on Mary Sweet. She also saw a few pictures of some beautiful model-like women lying around. One of them was of Karla.
She gasped.
She then saw tons of papers on the table. A few IDs. They were of profile picture of Cromwell with different names and addresses. Cromwell was much younger in the pictures and had different looks. Some with a beard. Some without. Blond hair. Dark hair. Grey hair. But basically, it looked as if Cromwell was somebody else. He was either a spy or an impersonator.
But before she could do anything else, a hand covered her mouth from behind. She couldn’t breathe.
Then he let her go and spun her around.
“What are you doing here?” Dr. Cromwell asked furiously. Or Cromwell. Or whoever he really was.
“I...I’m sorry. I was just looking...the door was open.”
He sighed. “I guess you know the truth now, don’t you?”
“Cromwell, why did you...why did you kill Karla?”
“You think I killed Karla?” He rubbed his forehead. “You’d better leave, my dear. But first...I’m going to share something with you and it’s not to leave this room.”