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  “This is nice, huh?” she said and appeared to cringe at her own words. It sounded too much like the sort of small talk someone made while uncomfortable, and she seemed to realize how false it sounded.

  He was equally tense and fidgeted. “Yes,” he replied without sincerity. Ravin seemed almost as uncomfortable around her as she was in his company. “Gemma, I know it’s off-season and you’re not working, but I was wondering if you’d do me a favor,” Ravin said timidly.

  She finally made eye contact and turned professional with renewed confidence. “Yes, of course, Mr. Waverly. What can I do for you?”

  “Would you help me do inventory of the wine cellar?” Ravin asked and masked his frown. His eyes strayed to Cody behind the bar. “Cody’s been sniffing around the bar. Obviously, nothing’s been stocked, but it won’t be long before he finds his way to the wine cellar. I don’t need him drunk.”

  “I understand, trust me,” Gemma announced firmly with a defeated sigh. “He’s all hands when he drinks.”

  Ravin appeared a little surprised by the comment then immediately became uncomfortable. “Please finish your dinner,” he said timidly and indicated her empty plate. “You can join me in the wine cellar when you’re finished.”

  She returned the empty paper plate a little too quickly to the stack and smiled more naturally at her boss. “I wasn’t really hungry anyway.”

  He seemed a little surprised by her reaction then attempted a smile and nodded. “Okay then--”

  †

  The massive, modern wine cellar was filled with elegant racks containing hundreds of bottles of wine from floor to ceiling. Gemma knelt on the floor and marked items down on a clipboard while Ravin stood a few feet away from her and counted bottles. Their work was awkwardly silent. Ravin didn’t appear to notice, but Gemma was obviously bothered by the silence. She glanced at him sheepishly several times from her position on the floor. It was difficult to tell what was going through her mind as her eyes swept over him. Ravin was very distinguished and refined, more so than anyone else in their little town. He was always well-dressed and his clothing were obviously expensive and of fine taste. Gemma attempted to mind her own business, but as she glanced at him several times, it seemed her curiosity was getting the best of her.

  “I was, uh, wondering,” Gemma announced softly and broke the silence between them. “Why didn’t you ask Sonya to help with inventory?”

  Despite his preoccupation with his work and preference to silence, Ravin hesitated and looked at her. Her question had peaked his curiosity. “Sonya? She works housekeeping. You’re my office help. Why would I ask her?”

  Gemma casually shrugged, although it came off stiff, and now avoided looking at him. “She’s always flirting with you, so I just assumed--”

  He suddenly interrupted her, startling her. “She only flirts with me because she thinks I control promotions, which I don’t,” Ravin replied a little too quickly. “I know when I’m being played, and I don’t appreciate it.”

  Gemma immediately fidgeted and seemed embarrassed for having initiated such a personal conversation with the excessively private recluse. Ravin wasn’t someone anyone really spoke with on a personal level. He mostly kept to himself and seemed to prefer it that way.

  “I’m sorry,” she quickly replied, minded her clipboard, and attempted to smooth things over. “I thought you two had something going on--” She immediately cringed, having realized she said the last part aloud. Gemma avoided looking at him in an attempt to hide her embarrassment.

  He stared at her even though she didn’t look up from her clipboard. Her reddened cheeks were a dead giveaway as to why she didn’t look up. Ravin was reserved, which was putting it mildly, and she’d embarrassed herself with her comment.

  “You actually thought she was interested in me?” Ravin asked with surprise.

  Gemma still appeared unable or unwilling to look up and quickly shrugged it off. “Well, sure,” she replied a little too quickly and in a pitch that was higher than normal. “We don’t get many sophisticated, intelligent men around here, so why wouldn’t she be interested in you? This town has far too many cowboys like Dino in it.”

  Despite that she didn’t look up, Ravin continued to stare at her. It seemed a thousand thoughts crossed his mind to what was obviously meant to be a compliment. The faint sounds of screaming from somewhere upstairs broke the awkward silence. Both looked to the ceiling with surprise.

  “Stay here,” Ravin ordered then ran from the wine cellar to check on the situation.

  Gemma was stunned by his sudden departure. She sprang to her feet and ran after him. Whatever had happened, she obviously didn’t want to be alone in the wine cellar.

  †

  Gemma and Ravin ran along the main corridor toward the dining room and slowed as they approached the open doors. Gemma nervously followed Ravin inside. Both suddenly stopped and were horrified by what they saw. Out of the one hundred or so people within the dining room, nearly seventy men and women lie slumped over tables or lie on the floor alongside overturned chair. The foul stench of vomit seemed to fill the room. The nearly thirty remaining townsmen and women stood nearby or attempted to assist the fallen. Most just stared at the sight with looks of horror on their faces. Dino checked on several of the fallen people then looked at Ravin with horror.

  “They’re dead,” Dino gasped.

  Gemma gasped with horror, turned to Ravin, and clung to him to keep from looking at the mass death surrounding them. Ravin stared and appeared almost frozen.

  “They--they just started gasping and throwing up then fell over,” Sonya said while sobbing as her hands trembled. She clung to her shoulders to keep her hands still. “One after another.”

  Ravin released Gemma and approached one of the dead men. He glanced at the man’s face and hands. There was purple tingeing along his lips and nail beds. The expression on Ravin’s face was hard to read. Horror swept over him.

  “They’ve been poisoned,” Ravin gasped softly. “There’s tingeing around the fingernails and lips.”

  “Poisoned?” Dino said and seemed almost unable to comprehend the words. “Are you saying the food was tainted?”

  “No, this wasn’t an accident. These people were murdered,” Ravin replied firmly then stared at Dino while shaking his head with realization. “We have to seal off this room until the police get here.”

  Sonya nervously stared at her fingernails while trembling then looked at her father, Cody. “Daddy, what if the rest of us were poisoned as well?”

  Cody didn’t have an answer.

  “It’s fast acting,” Ravin informed her. “You’d be showing symptoms by now.” He turned to Dino. “We need to get the police out here right away.”

  Dino only considered his comment for a second then nodded in agreement. “It’ll be a long hike, but we’ll send two men out,” Dino announced then looked around the room at the other survivors. “No one touches anything!”

  Judging by the looks on the remaining faces, they weren’t even considering it.

  Chapter Three

  Reed and Scott walked across the massive resort grounds and headed into the woods with their backpacks slung firmly over their shoulders. The trek through the woods to Fox Ridge Village was faster than taking the long, winding road. Dino and Ravin stood just outside the hotel’s main entrance and watched the two men until they disappeared into the distance woods. They shared looks of concern with the hope that this would bring about an end to the horror they’d already witnessed. Once the two men were safely away from the resort, Dino and Ravin entered the hotel lobby and shut the doors behind them. Ravin groaned softly and sank against the door. Dino had a frown chiseled on his hard face.

  “I suppose we wait,” Dino answered the silent question in Ravin’s groan. “You locked the dining room so no one can disturb anything until the police arrive, right?”

  “Yes,” Ravin muttered softly. “No one should eat anything that isn’t sealed in a can. We can�
��t take any chances until we know what was poisoned.”

  “The water,” Dino gasped softly then cocked his head in question while staring at Ravin. “With all the storms we’ve been having lately, it’s possible that something contaminated the water and that’s what killed the others. That would explain a lot, don’t you agree?” He suddenly grinned, shook his head, and almost appeared relieved. “We’re probably overreacting over nothing. Certainly a better theory than believing a mass murderer is running around the hotel. Maybe we should tell the others.”

  “You can wish that all you want, Mayor,” Ravin informed him with little enthusiasm as he straightened. “Contaminated water didn’t kill those people.”

  Dino was seemingly crushed by Ravin’s refusal to pretend what happened was purely accidental. “You realize what you’re saying, right?”

  “Yes, I do,” Ravin replied while frowning. He fidgeted while attempting to maintain his refined dignity. He failed. “Someone here poisoned nearly seventy people.” The look on his face was grim. “To think they’re going to stop there would be a mistake.”

  All expression drained from Dino’s face. “Do you really believe that? Do you actually think someone here, one of my neighbors, is capable of something so dark and sinister?”

  “It doesn’t matter what I believe. The body count speaks for itself.” He sank into thought then looked at Dino. “You know, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to keep everyone rounded up,” Ravin informed him. “Safety in numbers.”

  “And yet seventy people were poisoned while together in the same room right under our noses,” Dino informed him with little enthusiasm.

  “Yes, but now we know what we’re up against,” Ravin replied with slightly more optimism. “If he wants the rest of us, he’ll be outnumbered.”

  “You’re right,” Dino announced then inhaled deeply and stood proudly. He was once again the man in charge. “No one should go anywhere alone. I’ll assemble everyone in the lounge. You keep them rounded up while I locate the rest.”

  “You’ll find that some of the women have already locked themselves in their rooms after what happened in the dining room,” Ravin informed him. “Some of them were pretty shaken up. I’ll pull up the list of guestrooms and who’s staying in which rooms from the front desk computer.”

  “I’ll have Tyson go room to room and bring down any stragglers,” Dino replied then stared at the distant look on Ravin’s face. His expression obviously disturbed him, compelling him to attempt to control the situation. “This will all be over soon enough. You’ll see. Carter and Anderson should have reached the neighboring town by now. I’m sure help will be along any minute. They’ll probably run into Reed and Scott somewhere along the main road on their return, that way the authorities will know what they’re dealing with.”

  “I wish I shared your optimism, Mayor,” Ravin replied with little emotion and headed across the lobby toward the front desk.

  †

  Gemma sat on her guestroom bed in the white, plush signature hotel bathrobe. She hugged her knees to her chest and stared blankly at a speck of dirt on the carpet. There was an urgent pounding on the door. Gemma flinched with a startled gasp but didn’t look away from the dirt on the carpet. The pounding continued for another few seconds then finally subsided, leaving her in silence. She lifted her head and looked at the bolted door. Gemma slowly and hesitantly crawled from the bed and tiptoed across the carpet to the door, being careful to avoid the speck of dirt. She hesitated before the door and finally summoned enough courage to look through the peek hole. When she saw no one at the door, she sighed with relief and ran her trembling fingers through her mussed hair. She seemed to relax and turned. Her attention again focused on the speck of dirt. She eyed the spot suspiciously then headed for the bathroom.

  The white marble and tile bathroom was almost too cheerful considering her current mood. She ran hot bathwater to fill the tub and headed back into the bedroom. She again looked at the door. Everything was quiet. Gemma slowly rounded the speck of dirt on the floor, approached the bolted door, hesitated, and again looked through the peek hole. She saw someone’s eye staring back at her. Gemma jumped back while screaming. She stared at the door in silence while attempting to control her rapid breathing. She slowly and nervously returned to the peek hole, again looking through it. There was no one there--just empty hall. She groaned softly and turned.

  The speck of dirt was no longer on the floor. She stared at the clean carpet a moment, appeared suspicious, and then returned to the bathroom where her tub was filling. She shut off the water then looked in the steamy mirror at her reflection. She nervously ran her fingers through her hair in a half-hearted attempt to fix it. She frowned, giving up, and turned toward the tub while untying her robe. The tub was filled with bloody water! Gemma jumped back with a horrified look in her eyes while staring at the gruesome sight.

  †

  The large lounge was furnished in early Victorian with rich colors of mauve and gold in detailed cheery wood. The massive ceiling to floor windows overlooked the pool and golf course. Despite the brilliant sunshine filling the room, none of the ten townsfolk within the lounge seemed to notice. Ravin paced the lounge with a bottle of water in his hand. Some of the others intensely watched him pace as if it was a sporting event. Sonya and Felicia flipped through old magazines and looked completely bored. It was so quiet that the ticking of the old grandfather clock sounded like a freight train. Thundering footfalls from padded feet were heard within the hallway and closed in on the lounge alerting everyone. Gemma ran into the lounge, clutching the plush bathrobe closed against her naked body beneath, and ran to Ravin. She didn’t stop in time to keep from colliding with him. He caught her arms to keep her from falling. The look in her eyes was wild and frightened. She was out of breath and trembling despite his firm grip on her arms.

  “There’s blood--”

  “Blood?” Ravin demanded. “Where?”

  Felicia and Sonya hurried toward them while the other seven stared at the hysterical woman with horror in their eyes. Gemma was nearly down to tears and gripped Ravin’s jacket lapels with clenched fists. She no longer cared about her nearly open bathrobe, despite her exposed cleavage. She possibly didn’t even notice her robe was partially open.

  “I went to take a bath, and the tub was filled with blood,” she said as the words spilled from her mouth in a wave of emotion and near hysterics.

  “Which room?” he asked.

  “110,” she gasped and gave a slight nod over her shoulder while clinging to him.

  Ravin loosened her grip on his jacket and hurried her from the room while remaining on her heels. Felicia and Sonya hurried after them, leaving the others baffled and worried. Gemma ran through the main corridor in her bare feet and entered the first floor guest wing corridor. She paused just outside the closed guestroom door and panted while trembling. Her death grip on the plush robe wasn’t enough to keep her cleavage contained, although no one seemed to notice. Ravin stepped in front of the door, removed his master keycard, and ran it through the reader. He pushed open the door, hesitated only a moment, and then stepped inside. All three women followed him at a safe distance. Ravin approached the open bathroom door and peered inside. Gemma was nearly down to tears while watching Ravin in the bathroom doorway. Sonya and Felicia each clung to Gemma’s arms, possibly for their own comfort. Ravin hesitantly looked across the nearly spotless bathroom. The tub was filled with water, but there wasn’t any blood within it. He was bewildered and looked back at Gemma.

  “There’s no blood,” he informed her in an almost scolding manner.

  “The tub was filled with blood!” Gemma suddenly cried out with unfounded rage.

  Ravin approached, took her by the shoulders, and gently guided her into the bathroom. Gemma fought against his grip, now facing him, and became hysterical while nearly spilling out of her plush robe.

  “No, no. I don’t want to go in there!” she screamed in terror while clutching at his jacket
.

  Ravin steadily guided Gemma into the bathroom despite her hysterics. She reluctantly looked into the tub while frantically clutching at Ravin as if attempting to crawl inside his clothing with him. She stared at the tub filled with clean water and appeared alarmed.

  “There was blood,” she gasped and looked back into Ravin’s eyes only inches from hers.

  As she clutched and clawed at his clothing, Ravin attempted to keep her robe closed and conceal her naked body beneath, which he finally noticed. She was completely unaware that she nearly flashed him and was determined to climb his body.

  “I’m telling you the truth!”

  “I know what you think you saw,” he informed her while pulling her robe closed over her cleavage to no avail. “But there’s nothing there.”

  She clutched and clawed at him, defeating his attempt. Each time his hand brushed against her chest, he became even more flustered.

  “I’m not crazy,” she cried out in a tone that suggested she was.

  Ravin looked across the bedroom at Sonya and Felicia, who just watched while he struggled to keep Gemma robed. “A little help?”

  Both women snapped out of their trances and approached to assist him with the squirming Gemma. He released her robe, pulled her hands free from his jacket, and bolted away from the hysterical woman. Sonya and Felicia attempted to keep her calm and grabbed her discarded clothing from the bed. Ravin slipped from the guestroom looking frazzled and possibly embarrassed from his eyeful of the nearly naked woman.

  Chapter Four

  Ravin, looking exhausted, walked along the grand hallway toward the lounge with the three women in tow. Gemma was now changed back into her clothing and seemed unusually quiet. She avoided looking at the other three with an expression that was difficult to read. It was hard to tell if she was embarrassed, frightened, or angry. Ravin suddenly stopped the three women not far from the lounge, sending alarm through them.