Page 57

Vic must’ve been watching for her. He called out and caught up with her near the road. “Hey, Harlow. You sneaked out on me this morning.”

“Nigel and I went over the paperwork and then he invited Dad and me to lunch.” Harlow cast a wary glance over her shoulder. “I think I saw someone over by my mom’s gravesite.”

“After last night, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to search the area first thing this morning,” he said. “I noticed one of the fence pickets was broken, a few feet away from where I tried hauling you over the other day.”

Harlow’s eyes widened. “We busted Dad’s fencepost?”

“It was in the general vicinity of the gate, but not the exact spot, so I know we didn’t break it.” Vic motioned to a camera mounted in the corner of the porch. “I noticed your dad has surveillance cameras and was wondering if I could take a look at the recent recordings.”

“Great idea.” Harlow led him inside and to her father’s computer. It wasn’t high-tech or high-speed, but it did the job.

Vic accessed the recordings from the previous night, around the time Harlow had heard the noises.

Sure enough, a figure clad in dark clothing appeared. Harlow cruised by in her wheelchair with the trespasser following at a safe distance.

Switching cameras, he tracked down the porch’s camera directed toward the road.

Vic appeared. Harlow joined him and began motioning. “This is when I told you I thought I saw someone.”

Mort dashed past, running in the direction the person had gone.

Harlow briefly closed her eyes. “I knew it. Someone was following me.”

“I want to look at the other recordings, the camera covering the area where you saw someone just now.”

It took a minute for them to locate the right one. Both grew quiet. Harlow appeared next to her mother’s gravesite. Moments later, her head shot up. “Right there.”

Vic zoomed in. A person wearing a gray hoodie and denim jeans ran behind the bushes. “They have something around their neck.” He hit the arrow button, zooming in for an even closer look.

Harlow’s heart plummeted. “Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”

“Yep,” Vic grimly replied. “This confirms someone is definitely after you.”

Chapter 22

“The person is wearing a camera strap. I’m almost certain of it.” Harlow promptly dialed 911, reporting a trespasser at Wynn Harbor Inn. Her next call was to her father, letting him know what was going on and warning him and the others to hang out at Aunt Birdie’s until the police had finished searching the property.

Things moved fast. Squad cars arrived within minutes. The officers split up, each of them heading in different directions.

“I hope they catch whoever it is.”

“Me too,” Harlow said. “I plan to press charges, or at least Dad will.”

Vic stayed close by her side near the front door, keeping his hand in his jacket pocket, the one she knew held a handgun.

One…two…five…ten minutes dragged by.

Tink.Harlow snatched her phone from her lap. It was a text from her father.The police stopped at Aunt Birdie’s place and asked us to stay put until they give us the all clear.

Same here,she texted back.

More tense moments passed. Harlow was beginning to suspect that the trespasser had somehow managed to escape. “It had to be a reporter,” she finally said. “Because of the camera strap and how he was hiding.”

Had the paparazzi become desperate enough to travel to Mackinac Island to snap photos of her? Depending on the circumstances, some photographs were worth big bucks andsold for thousands of dollars. Harlow was a hot commodity and her recent accident put her at the top of the “most wanted” list.

“One, two, three, four.” Vic counted heads. “The entire Mackinac Island police force must be here.”

“The more the better. The trespasser’s first mistake was stepping foot on the property. Wynn Harbor Inn is wrapped up pretty tight. The only way they’ll be able to escape is by hopping over the fence or jumping in the lake.”