Hannah's Horror: A Romantic Mystery Read online

  A few hours later, she woke slightly and felt the sensation of someone's weight on the mattress, as if someone had sat on the edge of the bed. Had the guys decided to come early? No, that couldn't be the case. Chad had one more shift to work before he was free for a few days. Cassie had said that Alan had to work, too. That was the reason the girls had come ahead, to settle in. Afraid to open her eyes completely to look, she waited in fear. Shivers ran up and down her spine as she felt the distinct presence of another person in the bed with her. Someone was lying next to her, and it wasn't long before strong arms were wrapped around her, as if in a loving embrace.

  What in the hell? She was just about to sneak a peek at the intruder when the sensation was gone. When she finally worked up the courage to look, the other side of her bed was empty. She had made sure to lock the door and window, so how could anyone have gotten in? Chalking it up to a dream, she rolled over and went back to sleep.

  The next morning, she got up and walked into the bathroom, groggy from the deep sleep she had drifted into after the dream, to find an extra hand towel lying next to the one she'd used to dry her face the night before. "I know I only used one towel," she said aloud. "This is getting very spooky. Maybe there really is a ghost at Blackhawk Manor!"

  She hurriedly finished her morning routine and threw on a pair of shorts and a tee shirt. Walking to the table by the window to retrieve the jewelry she'd left there the night before, she absent-mindedly picked up her watch and put the gold pierced earrings back into the holes in her ears. Without thinking, she grabbed the heart shaped locket that Chad had given her for Christmas the year before from the back of the chair and clasped it around her neck.

  She picked up the locket from the back of the chair…wait…just…a…minute. She distinctly remembered laying the locket on the desk, taking great care in making sure the chain didn't become tangled. How did it end up on the back of the chair? That was enough for Hannah. She may have wanted to stay in the haunted inn, just to say she had, but she had not planned on it actually being haunted! She ran out the door and flew to Cassie's room next to hers, knocking loudly on the door.

  "For crying out loud, where's the fire? Let me finish getting dressed." Cassie opened the door. "Oh my God, you look like you've literally seen a ghost. What's wrong? Get in here and tell me what happened." Cassie took Hannah by the hand and pulled her into the room, closing the door behind her. "Sit down," she ordered. "Spill it. Something happened, didn't it?"

  Slowly and carefully, Hannah began to tell her the events of the early morning hours and the things she'd witnessed after she had gotten out of bed.

  "You don't really think…wow…so was it the old guy or the legendary ghost?"

  "Do you really think this place is haunted?" Hannah asked.

  "Wasn't that the whole idea for this trip?" Cassie asked. "You just had to check it out for yourself."

  "Yeah, but I really didn't think…it was true," Hannah replied.

  "Let's go eat breakfast. I think your imagination was running wild, and you had one whopper of a nightmare."

  Hannah was still shaky after they finished their breakfast. Cassie suggested a walk downtown to calm her nerves. "Let's go check out those shops you wanted to see."

  They stepped out into the warm sunlight and turned toward the downtown area. After looking around in some of the quaint antique shops, they wandered into an old bookstore. Cassie was looking at the classics, while Hannah searched for a book on the local area. Finding a book on the town of LeClaire, she thumbed through it. Eureka! Right there, in black and white, was an entire chapter devoted to the famed Blackhawk Manor. She skimmed through the chapter to see if there was any mention of the honeymoon couple, and sure enough, the entire story was included. In the accounts given by previous guests, the events of the previous night were similar to what others had experienced. Several young women the author had interviewed told of a feeling that someone was joining them in the bed, and they swore a man put his arms around them. One woman even went so far as to say the mysterious stranger kissed her. The occurrences lasted only minutes before the "man" disappeared.

  She read on. As the legend goes, many believe the mysterious nighttime visitor is none other than the spirit of Robert Thorndale. The only room involved was number 5, which was the same room Robert and Pamela Sue had occupied during their brief stay at the inn. The general explanation for this phenomenon is that he is searching for his wife, and when he realizes the woman in the bed is not his beloved Pamela, he leaves the room in a hurry.

  "What is wrong with you?" Cassie asked, bringing her back to the present.

  "Read this," Hannah answered as she handed the book to her friend.

  Cassie scanned the page. When she had finished reading, her face was as white as Hannah's had been earlier that morning. "It's true, oh my, you'll have to stay in my room tonight."

  "No, I want to see if he comes back. If he does, I intend to talk with him," Hannah said.

  "Are you nuts?" Cassie asked. "What if he tries to hurt you?"

  "He's a spirit, for Heaven's sake. What can he do?"

  "I don't know. For that matter, neither do you. I want to get out of here. Let's go find somewhere to have lunch. This is really getting a little too freaky for me."

  "Okay, okay, let me pay for the book first."

  "You're going to buy that book?" Cassie asked.

  "Yes, I am." Hannah walked to the counter, paid for the book, thanked the clerk and joined her friend at the door.

  They walked down the street until they found a small café. Once they sat down and ordered their food, Hannah began to look through the pages of her recent purchase.

  "Do you think there's more?" Cassie asked.

  "I'm just looking to see if there is. I don't see anything more on the subject, other than what we've already read."

  "I wonder what happened to Pamela. Isn't that something no one knows?" Cassie asked.

  "That's what the legend says, but I can't believe there is no other living soul who knows her whereabouts. Someone surely knows where she has been all these years."

  "She could have changed her name, remarried, it would be impossible to find her," Cassie said thoughtfully.

  "I'd like to forget about this for the rest of the afternoon. I have to admit, even though I'm the one who is interested in legends, and I'm the one who wanted to come out here, I am a bit spooked," Hannah admitted as she sipped her cola.

  "There are plenty of shops we haven't checked out yet. We'll spend the afternoon shopping, but no more bookstores or antique shops. I want to look at clothes! That ought to get your mind off things at the inn."

  They returned to the Manor later that afternoon, after browsing through some of the other shops. Both girls had made some purchases, and Hannah had actually been able to resume some of her old exuberance. She loved to shop, and Cassie's suggestion had helped to calm her nerves, at least until they were back at the inn.

  "I was hoping, by doing some more shopping, it would take your mind off the ghost in your room. Did it help?" Cassie asked.

  "Not really. I was able to forget for a while, but now that we are back here, it's all coming back to me. I just can't believe that what happened to me actually happened to others who stayed in that room. I thought it had to have been a dream, but now I'm not so sure it was."

  "Are you sure you don't want to bunk with me tonight? We are going to be here for several more nights, unless you want to check out early."

  "No, I intend to wait up for my middle of the night visitor tonight, and the guys will be here tomorrow afternoon. I won't be alone after that."

  "I don't think I could be that brave," her friend replied.

  "I don't know how brave I'll be when the time comes, but I guess I'll find out."

  They returned to their rooms and put away their purchases before meeting downstairs in the dining room. When dinner was over, they decided to drive into the next town to take in a movie. Try as she might to concentrate, Hannah'
s mind was back at the Manor in room number 5. Would Robert's spirit pay her another visit? And what would take place when she confronted him?

  It was after eleven when the two girls said goodnight in the hallway.

  "Remember, I'm right next door if you need me," Cassie said. "I'm worried for you."

  "Don't be. I'll be fine," Hannah said as she opened the door to her room. She wasn't as confident as she sounded. In fact, she was shaking when she closed the door behind her and locked it.

  Hurriedly, she went through her nightly routine to prepare for bed. She repeated the actions of the night before, right down to the part where she carefully laid her necklace on the table. She spoke briefly with Chad, who called while he was on a break at work, and turned out the light. She pulled the covers up to her chin and waited.

  Nothing happened. Giving up after two hours of lying in wait for her ghostly visitor, she finally rolled over and attempted to sleep. She woke up a few hours later and glanced at the clock on the bedside table. It was three o'clock. Everything was quiet in her room. She rolled back over and closed her eyes.

  He was not going to show up that night, it seemed. She was just about to drift back off to sleep when she heard sounds coming from the bathroom. Slipping quietly out of bed, she walked toward the dark marbled and tiled room. It sounded as if the shower was running. Did ghosts take showers? She waited outside the door, and after a few minutes, she no longer heard the spray of the water. Gathering every ounce of courage she possessed, she placed her hand on the doorknob and began to turn it slowly. When she finally entered the room, it was full of steam, but no one was in there, at least not anyone who was visible to the human eye. Her eyes scanned the room, and when they reached the large mirror above the double sinks, she gasped. Written in the steam on the mirror were the words, Find the knife.

  What did that mean? Find the knife? Was it the ghost of Robert trying to tell her something? She ran back to the bedroom and jumped onto the bed and under the covers. She was shaking and contemplated going next door, but hated to wake Cassie. She gathered her wits and tried to remember everything she knew about the story. Of course! The young bridegroom took a knife to the heart while attempting to save his bride from a would-be kidnapper. The killer had run away, and the police never caught him. Did Robert think he buried the murder weapon nearby? On the grounds of the inn, perhaps?

  Wow! She really couldn't leave now. It seemed that Robert was giving clues to her. Had he done that in the past to other guests? Had they ignored him or had they fled the inn in fear? She wondered how much the friendly desk clerk knew about the legend. She would seek out the handsome Steven and pick his brain the next time he was on duty.

  Chapter Three

  When the sun came up a few hours later, Hannah was still wide-awake. She had not been able to fall back to sleep after the mysterious message had appeared in the steam on the mirror in the middle of the night. She hurriedly got dressed and went downstairs to see if Steven had come on duty. She was in luck! He was sitting at a smaller desk behind the check in counter, sipping a cup of coffee.

  "Steven, mind if I grab a cup of joe and join you? I couldn't sleep, and it's too early to wake Cassie up," she said as she walked up to the counter.

  "I don't mind at all. I came on duty an hour ago, and it's been really quiet," he said as he stood up. "I'll join you in the lobby."

  Hannah poured herself a cup of coffee, added creamer and joined him. They settled into two of the wing chairs in front of the fireplace, and she took a sip of her hot drink before approaching the subject of the local legend. "Steven, I am extremely interested in the legend of the honeymoon couple here at the inn. It's just something that has always fascinated me, legends of this sort. How much do you know about it?" she asked.

  The young dark-haired man chuckled. "A lot of folks come here in hopes of running into our ghost. Somehow, I never figured you for one of them."

  Hannah blushed slightly. "I read a lot of ghost stories. I've studied the paranormal and different legends. This place was not a long drive from where Cassie and I go to school, and when we set out to make this our summer to remember, I had to include Blackhawk Manor in our travel plans. Cassie wasn't as excited about it as I was," she admitted.

  "I see. Well, in answer to your question, I don't know a whole lot. Probably about as much as you do, even though I grew up in the area. The owners of the inn are friends of my parents, and they offered me the front desk job as a means of income while I attend a local college."

  "If your family and the owners are friends, surely you've heard things over the years."

  "Not really, it's never been discussed much. The current owners weren't here at the time of the murder. It would have been the original owners, their grandparents."

  "I see, but is there anyone who was around at that time? Are the grandparents still living?"

  "They are, but they travel a good bit in their retirement. They're getting on in years now, and the last I heard, they were living in a retirement community in Florida."

  "Oh," Hannah answered in dismay.

  "The only person still at the inn who would have been here at the time is the gardener, old Mr. Patterson. I don't think you'll get anything out of him, though. He doesn't talk to anyone. He's a bit hard of hearing, and he does his job, collects his paycheck and goes home. I don't even know where he lives."

  "Were there any other kidnappings in the area at the time, I wonder?" she asked as she got up to refill her coffee cup.

  "Not that I ever heard about. Maybe the kidnapper just took a liking to Pamela Sue," Steven answered. "Excuse me; the phone is ringing at the desk. I'll be right back." He got up to attend to his work while Hannah sat in the chair pondering the fact that the current gardener worked at the inn at the time of the famous murder. Did the man know anything? How could she get him to speak to her?

  When Steven returned, he apologized. "I'm sorry; I've got to get back to work. Thank you for the early morning chat. I hope you get some answers to your questions."

  "Thanks, Steven, I enjoyed our time together."

  Hannah got up and walked across the lobby and down the hall to Cassie's room. She knocked on the door and went inside when Cassie unlocked it.

  "You're up bright and early. Any more ghostly visits in the night?" her friend asked.

  "Actually, there was a different sort of visit last night." She went on to fill her friend in about the mysterious message in the steam.

  "This is getting way too creepy for me," Cassie said upon hearing the tale.

  "I just had coffee with Steven. I wanted to see if he knew anything about the legend that we hadn't already heard. The only thing he added was that the current gardener worked here at the time and has been here all along. He didn't offer much hope for getting the man to speak with me, however. He says he is hard of hearing and never talks to anyone."

  "Why do I get the feeling you aren't going to give up on this?" Cassie asked.

  "Because you know me too well," her friend answered. "Get dressed, and let's get some breakfast."

  While eating in the inn's dining room, they mapped out a plan. Hannah wanted to do some exploring around the grounds and at the scene of the crime. She also planned to find a way to run into old Mr. Patterson nonchalantly while he was working.

  When they were ready to start out on the newest adventure, Hannah suggested they walk along the river behind the inn, retracing the steps of the two young lovers on that fateful night. She knew the whereabouts of the crime from all the articles she had researched.

  "From what I can figure out, this is the spot," Hannah said, a little while later. "They were walking along, holding hands and talking, when a man came up from behind and grabbed Pamela. She must have screamed, and Robert fought with the man. During the struggle, a knife appeared in the hands of the kidnapper, and he stabbed Robert. He fell to the ground. Some accounts say that the two young lovers spoke briefly, just before he died in Pamela's arms."

  "So the ma
n ran away, apparently disposed of the murder weapon and was never caught. He must have been very crafty to avoid being found," Cassie added.

  "I guess he hid the knife so well that it was never found. If there were no other kidnappings or murders in the area at the time, he was able to keep his identity a secret."

  "He probably left the area and went far away. I don't think the mystery will ever be solved."

  "Let's head back and see if Mr. Patterson is working," Hannah said as she stood up.

  As she looked around, she could almost envision young Robert lying in the arms of his wife. The young bride was talking softly to the dying man. What was she saying to him? As he drew his last breath, young Pamela screamed out and cried for help. Other folks who were walking came to her aid quickly, and the authorities took Robert's body away. Poor Pamela, what she must have gone through! It was no wonder she wanted to get as far away from the area as she could.

  The two girls walked slowly along the riverbank. It was a warm, breezy day, and the scenery was gorgeous. When they reached the grounds of the inn, Hannah spotted an elderly man tending to the roses in the garden. "There he is," she whispered to Cassie.

  In an attempt to make small talk with the man, Hannah approached him with a smile. "Good morning, it's a beautiful day, isn't it?" she asked.

  The man looked up, his face weathered with age, his eyes dull and his voice weak. "It is," he said simply.

  "I wanted to compliment you on the fine work you've done here. The gardens and grounds are beautiful," she went on.

  He turned his head in an attempt to hear her better. "Can't hear out of the other ear, can you talk into this one?" the man asked.

  Hannah repeated her praise, and her words brought a grin to the old man's face. "Much obliged, ma'am. Of course, I have help with the mowing, but I love the flowers, and tending to them gives me something to do."

  "I understand you've worked here ever since the inn opened in the forties," Hannah added.

  "Yes, ma'am, since a few years after it opened, came to work here in 1950," was the simple reply from the man.