them, but they didn’t budge.”
Hallie licked coconut off her fingers. “Let me see if I get this straight. You woke up angry at your brother—for a reason that you won’t tell me—and tried to batter down a couple of
my
doors to get to him? Possibly with the intention of murdering him?”
Jamie nearly choked on a square made of carrots and honey but managed to recover himself and said, “Pretty much.” His eyes were laughing. “I wonder if Edith has a key and what’s—”
“In there?” Hallie finished for him.
“My thoughts exactly. What would you say about searching for the key? Whoever finds it gets to kiss the other one.”
“And what does the loser get?” Hallie asked.
“Two kisses?”
She laughed. “Go on and start searching. I’m going to clean this up and have it ready in case Edith returns for the dishes.”
“I’ll help,” he said.
After they cleaned up the kitchen, they went out to the side of the house and inspected the doors, but as Jamie had said, they were locked tight. He wanted to try again to use his considerable strength to open them, but Hallie persuaded him not to. Inside the house, all the doors that led into the hidden room were also locked. They began to search for the key, but even though they looked through every drawer, under every piece of furniture, they didn’t find any stray keys. They did, however, find brochures and tickets dated from the 1970s to two years ago.
As they made a pile of what they found, they speculated about Henry Bell. He seemed to have been very interested in the history of Nantucket. Twice he’d won the annual
Jeopardy
-like Nantucket trivia contest. There were a couple of newspaper articles with photos of him with Nat Philbrick, who wrote so well about Nantucket.
What they saw made Hallie and Jamie say they were going to learn more about the island. But when Hallie repeated herinvitation to go exploring, Jamie’s face closed. He said that he’d be the researcher and she could do the footwork.
By ten Hallie was yawning, but Jamie looked wide awake, as though he never planned to go to sleep. She wanted to ask him about the medication he was taking, but she didn’t. Instead, she bid him goodnight and went upstairs to bed.
Maybe some part of her mind was on alert because just as she’d done the night before, she awoke at two A.M. She lay there for a while, staring up at the silk rosette on the underside of the bed canopy, and listening. But the house seemed quiet.
She was just about to go back to sleep when she heard a faraway sound, something like a groan. If it hadn’t been for what happened the night before, she wouldn’t have paid any attention to it.
Without a second thought, she leaped out of the bed and ran down the dark stairs. She stubbed her toe on a table leg, but she kept going toward Jamie.
The nightlight was on, but this time there was no pill bottle on the desk. Jamie was in the bed, rolling back and forth, making soft sounds of panic.
“I’m here,” she whispered as she put her hands on the sides of his head. He calmed somewhat, but his legs were moving, his brace hitting the side of the bed.
Keeping her hands on his face, she stretched out beside him. As before, he drew her close. He settled for a while, but when he again started thrashing, she lifted her head up to his and kissed him.
This kiss, their second one, had a bit more passion than the first one. When Hallie felt herself moving her leg between his, she pushed away from him. “Sleeping kisses are one thing,” she said softly, “but no sleeping screws.”
But the kiss did settle him and before Hallie knew what happened, she fell asleep in his arms.
Chapter Four
W
hen Hallie awoke the next morning, daylight was beginning to come through the window. She and Jamie were spooned together on the narrow bed like they were one person.
Peeling his arms from around her body was no easy feat. When she stood up, she had a crick in her neck and one in her
Hallie licked coconut off her fingers. “Let me see if I get this straight. You woke up angry at your brother—for a reason that you won’t tell me—and tried to batter down a couple of
my
doors to get to him? Possibly with the intention of murdering him?”
Jamie nearly choked on a square made of carrots and honey but managed to recover himself and said, “Pretty much.” His eyes were laughing. “I wonder if Edith has a key and what’s—”
“In there?” Hallie finished for him.
“My thoughts exactly. What would you say about searching for the key? Whoever finds it gets to kiss the other one.”
“And what does the loser get?” Hallie asked.
“Two kisses?”
She laughed. “Go on and start searching. I’m going to clean this up and have it ready in case Edith returns for the dishes.”
“I’ll help,” he said.
After they cleaned up the kitchen, they went out to the side of the house and inspected the doors, but as Jamie had said, they were locked tight. He wanted to try again to use his considerable strength to open them, but Hallie persuaded him not to. Inside the house, all the doors that led into the hidden room were also locked. They began to search for the key, but even though they looked through every drawer, under every piece of furniture, they didn’t find any stray keys. They did, however, find brochures and tickets dated from the 1970s to two years ago.
As they made a pile of what they found, they speculated about Henry Bell. He seemed to have been very interested in the history of Nantucket. Twice he’d won the annual
Jeopardy
-like Nantucket trivia contest. There were a couple of newspaper articles with photos of him with Nat Philbrick, who wrote so well about Nantucket.
What they saw made Hallie and Jamie say they were going to learn more about the island. But when Hallie repeated herinvitation to go exploring, Jamie’s face closed. He said that he’d be the researcher and she could do the footwork.
By ten Hallie was yawning, but Jamie looked wide awake, as though he never planned to go to sleep. She wanted to ask him about the medication he was taking, but she didn’t. Instead, she bid him goodnight and went upstairs to bed.
Maybe some part of her mind was on alert because just as she’d done the night before, she awoke at two A.M. She lay there for a while, staring up at the silk rosette on the underside of the bed canopy, and listening. But the house seemed quiet.
She was just about to go back to sleep when she heard a faraway sound, something like a groan. If it hadn’t been for what happened the night before, she wouldn’t have paid any attention to it.
Without a second thought, she leaped out of the bed and ran down the dark stairs. She stubbed her toe on a table leg, but she kept going toward Jamie.
The nightlight was on, but this time there was no pill bottle on the desk. Jamie was in the bed, rolling back and forth, making soft sounds of panic.
“I’m here,” she whispered as she put her hands on the sides of his head. He calmed somewhat, but his legs were moving, his brace hitting the side of the bed.
Keeping her hands on his face, she stretched out beside him. As before, he drew her close. He settled for a while, but when he again started thrashing, she lifted her head up to his and kissed him.
This kiss, their second one, had a bit more passion than the first one. When Hallie felt herself moving her leg between his, she pushed away from him. “Sleeping kisses are one thing,” she said softly, “but no sleeping screws.”
But the kiss did settle him and before Hallie knew what happened, she fell asleep in his arms.
Chapter Four
W
hen Hallie awoke the next morning, daylight was beginning to come through the window. She and Jamie were spooned together on the narrow bed like they were one person.
Peeling his arms from around her body was no easy feat. When she stood up, she had a crick in her neck and one in her
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