Page 56 of Peach Cobbler Confessions
A chill runs down my spine, tingling all the way to my toes. And there you have it. That box of twisted treasures doesn’t belong to Kent. It belongs to this monster before me.
Collette gives a ghostly moan. “It’s true, Lottie! That’s his office. That must mean those are his macabre trophies.”
My phone buzzes in my purse, and I choose to ignore it.
“Lottie?” a male voice calls out, but I can’t tell if it’s Everett or Noah—or whether they’re out in front of the B&B or inside it.
Collette leans in. “Don’t worry, Lottie. I’ll go get them.” She zips off as I release the strap of my backpack and unzip it with my right hand until my finger relaxes over Ethel.
There have been a few times where my not so friendly Glock has comforted me, and this is definitely one of them.
Now that either Everett or Noah is on their way, I feel emboldened, and there’s a pressing urgency in me not to let Ridge Porter out of my sight.
Ridge takes a step in and latches onto my gaze.
“I’ll make sure to have those pictures sent over first thing,” he says as his expression grows somber once again. “Lottie? Are you okay? You look a bit dazed and thrown off your game. Maybe it’s the heat?”
“So why did you do it?” I shake my head over at this comely man, who for all practical purposes seems well-educated and well-poised. “Why did you kill Dane Gannon?”
His eyes sharpen over mine, any trace of a friendly demeanor instantly evaporating.
“Why would you ask me something like that? Lottie, I think you’re confused.”
“No.” I shake my head. “I think I’m just fine. The security cameras weren’t working the night of Dane Gannon’s murder. Last night when we visited you at the studio, Kent said that you were a whiz at all things electrical. He said you could defuse a bomb if you had to.”
He chuckles at the thought. “Kent? Geez. You had me going, Lottie. Of course, Kent is going to make it sound as if I could do amazing things. I’m his boss. Sure, he puts up the capital, but I produce the goods. And just because I’m good at one thing, doesn’t mean I pulled the trigger. That’s a rather dark analogy, don’t you think?”
“I don’t know what to think. Dane said that he enlisted Kent to help him out of a pickle and you gave us a plausible scenario. But what if Dane knew the truth about your show? Dane was about to go to the police, wasn’t he, Ridge? And he was going to tell them that indeed you knew all seven victims that you’ve featured on this show—and that you’re the reason they’re missing.”
Everything about Ridge grows dark in an instant. He glances behind me to the right and left, and I can tell he’s about to bolt.
“I have to go.” He begins to stride right past me, and I quickly pull Ethel out of my purse and point the barrel his way.
“You’re not going anywhere,” I say as my purse dangles unnaturally over my elbow and my belongings spill out one by one. Embarrassing really. I’m sure Ivy Fairbanks would laugh if she could see me now. Noah’s partner has never really cared for me or my amateur sleuthing antics.
“Lottie?” Ridge looks as if I’ve struck him. His hands rise slowly as he keeps his eyes on my gun. “You’re not really going to shoot me.” In one swift move he grabs ahold of my wrist as we struggle for the gun. “I’m going to shootyou,” he grunts. “And I promise it’s going to look like an accident.”
Collette rematerializes, swimming around me frantically with her display of crimson stars.
“I can’t find anyone, Lottie. Not even Carlotta. Now you’ve done it! Oh my God, he’s going to kill you! And then you’ll be dead, just like me.”
“Collette,” I cry out as I try to elbow Ridge in the stomach. If his man parts were a foot closer, I’d have a knee to shove into them.
Ridge pauses a moment. “Who the hell is Collette?”
Collette Jenner gets right in his face and screams like a banshee, as loud as a jet engine, and Ridge howls back as if it physically caused him pain.
“He’s touching me,” I pant. “That means he can hear you,” I shout her way.
Ridge grabs ahold of the gun, and I can feel it slipping from my grasp. But just before he yanks it from me, I pull the trigger and a deafening clap of thunder emits from it as every bird in the evergreens up above flees for their lives.
“You killed all of those people!” I riot in his face as I struggle to get the gun back. “You’re the reason they’re dead. I saw that horrific treasure box in your office. You’resick! That blue handkerchief that Dane had on him the night of his murder? You kept it. That was your disgusting trophy for killing Dane Gannon.”
His body stiffens. “You saw that? How the hell did you—”
He snatches Ethel away before he can finish his sentence and turns the barrel at me just as I hook my foot behind his and send him stumbling backwards.
A laugh puffs from his cheeks as he pants my way.