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Oliver watched Leona disappear amid the deep canyons and soaring peaks of documents, papers, books, and artifacts. He held his breath until he heard the outer door slam open. Only then did he allow himself to relax. She had made it into the front hall without setting off an avalanche.

Turning back to Thacker, he took the envelope and the signed paperwork and dumped both into the messenger bag. “You’re certain you want me to give the payment to your housekeeper?”

“Yes, yes, yes.” Thacker waved his hands. “Harp takes care of everything around here. I don’t know what I’d do without her.”

Oliver started to follow the path to the door but he paused. “Any chance you might sell the Vance letter?”

“Sorry, no. This collection is devoted to Era of Discord documents and artifacts. That letter belongs here. Don’t worry, I’ll keep it safe in the vault.”

“Right. In that case, Leona and I will be on our way. Long drive back to Illusion Town.”

“No rush,” Thacker said. “I heard the bridge was washed out last night. The creek will be running very high by now. I’m afraid you and Ms. Griffin will be enjoying the amenities of our fine town for a few days.”

“That may be a problem,” Oliver said.

“I understand. You’re welcome to come back here anytime to explore my collection.”

“Thank you,” Oliver said.

He retraced the route through the overstuffed library with great caution. The noise out in the hall grew louder as he got closer to the door.

Harp’s shrill, infuriated voice echoed. “I warned you that beast was not allowed inside this house.”

“If you’ll get out of my way, I’ll remove her,” Leona said.

She was furious, too, Oliver thought. But her control was better than Harp’s. She was on a mission to save Roxy. She was not going to get distracted by a screaming match with the housekeeper.

There was another sound now—the muffled rumble of an old-fashioned amber-powered motor. It sounded like it was coming from inside the walls.

There was no sign of the women, so he set out to find the scene of the crime. At the end of the hall, he rounded a mountain of papers and artifacts and turned into an intersecting corridor. At the far end a door stood open.

Harp’s unpleasant voice came from inside the room.

“If you don’t get that oversized rat out of here immediately, I will use my flamer,” she shouted.

“I’m working on it,” Leona said. “You’re overreacting, Ms. Harp.”

“I know everyone is saying you’re the bride but I don’t give a shit.”

“I am not anyone’s bride.” Leona’s voice was rising now.

Oliver arrived at the open door and found himself looking into a large kitchen filled with vintage appliances. Leona and Harp were confronting each other in front of the open door of what at first glance appeared to be an empty floor-to-ceiling closet. Harp gripped a large carving knife in one hand.

There were no shelves in the closet. No kitchen equipment. Nothing at all. The rumble of the motor and a faint, muffled chortle reverberated from somewhere inside.

“Is there a problem?” Oliver asked. Okay, stupid question—clearly there was a problem, but he had no idea what it was.

Leona swung around. “It’s not a big deal. I was just explaining to Ms. Harp that I will take care of the situation. It’s a matter of timing, you see.”

“ There is the problem,” Harp announced. She aimed the carving knife at the closet.

The top of Roxy’s ears came into view first, followed by the rest of her fluffy frame. She rose majestically upward on the platform of a dumbwaiter. She was chortling madly, evidently overcome with excitement.

When the device reached waist level it kept rising, heading for the floor above.

Leona made her move. She reached into the shaft with both hands and swept Roxy off the platform. The dumbwaiter continued upward.

Roxy chortled deliriously.

“It was just a game as far as she was concerned,” Leona said, tucking Roxy into the crook of her arm. “She didn’t cause any harm.”

“If that dust bunny shows up here again, I’ll use the flamer,” Harp warned.

Leona was looking seriously dangerous now. Oliver stepped in quickly.

“Mr. Thacker and I came to an agreement,” he said. “He confirmed that I am to give the money to you, Ms. Harp.”

“What?” Distracted, Harp turned swiftly toward him. “Oh, it’s you. Cash only.”

“Right.” He opened the messenger bag and took out the envelope that contained the money. “Feel free to count it. You’ll find it’s all there.”

Harp snatched the envelope out of his hand, extracted the bundle of bills, and counted the money with impressive efficiency. It was not, he thought, the first time she had handled large amounts of cash.

When she was finished, she snorted. “The document is yours.”

“I’d like a receipt,” he said.

“I don’t give receipts.”

“Somehow that does not come as a surprise. How much are you skimming off the top of these sales?”

“Take the dust bunny and get out of here,” Harp snarled.

“Don’t worry,” Leona said, “we’re on our way.”

With Roxy clutched close, she marched out of the kitchen. Oliver followed.

Neither of them said a word until they were in the Slider. Roxy wriggled out of Leona’s arms and took up her favorite position on the back of the seat.

“I really do not like this town,” Leona announced.

He put the car in gear and drove back toward the main road. “Can’t say it’s on my list of top ten vacation destinations.”

She looked at him. “The Vance letter is a forgery.”

“I know,” he said. “So is the Bluestone document.”

“There’s something else,” Leona said. “When I got to the kitchen, the first couple buttons of Harp’s shirt were unbuttoned. When she saw me, she fastened the shirt right away.”

“So?”

“She was wearing one of those Vance return cult pendants.”

“I think that from now on we should assume everyone in town is involved in the cult until proven otherwise.”

Leona fell silent for a moment.

“Thacker said he has a journal written by someone named Willard,” she said.

“I heard. It might be another forgery.”

“Maybe, but I need to see it.”