mean?
The initial shock had passed and Pix was never one to sit meekly by.
“Valerie, put that gun down before someone gets hurt. I have no idea what you're talking about and you're upsetting Samantha—and me " Pix grasped for an out. "Did you think she was an intruder?" It was pretty feeble and she quickly fol owed it with some soothing words in as warm a voice as she could manage, "And what's this nonsense about our not being friends? You know that's not true.”
If Samantha was surprised at her mother's sudden gift for bold-faced lying, she didn't show it.
“Now, Pix"—Valerie shook the gun like a chiding finger
—"friends help friends, and you haven't helped me one little bit. I was al ready to settle down in my beautiful house for the rest of my life, but that's al spoiled. And you're to blame.
Now, I have to think what to do.”
Pix offered a suggestion. "Why don't we just forget that any of this happened and we'l go home."
“I said I was thinking! Shush!”
Samantha squeezed her mother's hand and Pix obeyed. She felt a sudden bleak stab of despair.
The spiral staircase did not muffle footsteps. Pix listened with a lifting of her heart as the sounds continued, mounting quickly to the second floor. Jim threw open the door.
“I don't have much time. I have to be back for my nature group after dinner.”
So much for any hope of rescue. The Athertons were definitely a team.
“Her mother just barged in. Came to pick her up. As I said on the phone, I saw her go into the closet on the monitor in your den. Somehow she had a key to the armoire." Valerie looked away from Jim, to Samantha.
"And where did you get that key, young lady? How many other times have you been snooping around our things!”
Samantha opened her mouth, but words did not come out. She thought she might be sick.
“Answer me!"
“In the woods. I found it in the woods out by the Fairchilds' new house," she whispered.
“Mitch must have had it in his pocket and it dropped out when we were carrying him," Jim said meditatively. He might have been mul ing over the answer to a crossword-puzzle clue.
Meanwhile, Pix was trying to piece it al together.
Samantha must have stumbled across something incriminating in the closet, something no one was meant to see. Pix had heard that along with their gold faucets and bidets, the Athertons had a state-of-the-art surveil ance system. Yet it was the innocent caught by the guilty in this case.
“Jim, Samantha merely came over to get her check.
I'm sure she didn't mean to pry into anything, but you know how teenagers are." She was sure her daughter would forgive her. "There doesn't seem to be any harm done, so why don't we simply stop this. I'd like to go home."
“And I wish I could let you go, but we can't." Jim sounded genuinely sorry. "You may not understand al that is happening now—I know you wouldn't lie to us; you're too good a friend—however you'l figure it out later and have to tel Earl. Then where wil Valerie and I be? No, I'm afraid it's too late.”
There it was again. The friendship thing. Wel , friends didn't aim guns at friends in Pix's book. She couldn't think of anything to say and decided to keep quiet and concentrate on how she and her daughter were going to get away from these two lunatics. She was trying to replace al her fear with anger and it was working.
“It doesn't matter if we make a mess in here, because we're going to have to leave the house in any case."
Valerie was speaking matter-of-factly. "So, why don't we kil them both now and get rid of the bodies after dark?”
“What!" Pix couldn't help herself.
Jim seemed a bit taken aback also.
“Honey, I'm not so sure. I mean, I've known Pix for simply ages, my whole life, in fact."
“So what? You knew Mitch—and Buddy, for that matter.”
Buddy? Bernard Cowley! They had kil ed him, too!
“But not closely. I only met Buddy once or twice, remember, and of course he real y did drown, albeit with a bit of help from you. Pix is another matter. Our parents used to play bridge together."
“Oh, wel then, that changes everything." Valerie spoke with heavy sarcasm. "Why don't we let them go, then?”
Jim put his arm around his wife's shoulder in a gesture of affection. "Now, don't go getting al huffy, sweetcakes. I know we can't let them go, but I don't like the idea of having their deaths on my hands. We'l figure something out, don't you worry”
Pix had the feeling she was watching a strange combination of Ozzie and Harriet and Bonnie and Clyde.
“Look," he continued, "we'l tie them up and you can keep on eye on them. We can't go anywhere until after dark, anyway. And now I real y do have to get back. The kids wil be waiting. We're going to look at slides of seabirds.”
The camp, Jim's beloved camp.
“Jim," Pix asked, "how can you give up Maine Sail? It's been a part of your family al these years. You love it. It's in your blood. Do you want to say good-bye to it forever?" Pix thought if she talked like Jim, she'd have a better chance of getting through to him.
He did indeed look downcast. "I know. There's always been the sad possibility we'd have to cut and run. That's why I got the new boat, biggest diesel engine Caterpil ar makes. I was going to enter the lobster-boat races next month." He nodded his head toward the cove, where it bobbed in the water not far from the sloop. "Maine Sail was the most important thing in my life until I met Valerie, and you're right, I wil miss it. But, Pix dear, there are other places and I'l have another camp. Of that, I'm sure. Don't you worry. Now, why don't you come with me? I think we'l have to separate you " This last was in a sterner, "caught talking after lights out" voice.
Separation—it was what Pix was afraid of, Samantha, too.
“Mom!"
“No." Pix stood up and pul ed Samantha into her arms.
"I'm not leaving my daughter's side." She hoped Jim's parents had been lucky at cards.
He sighed. "Oh al right, you can stay together. Give me the gun, honey, and get some rope from the basement.
Here's a thought. Maybe we should lock them in the wine cel ar? It would be quicker."
“Yes, and why don't we give them some of the Baccarat so they can enjoy a glass or two." Valerie was stil bitter.
“I doubt they would wish to imbibe now, Val. Besides, Samantha is underage. No, we best leave them here. They might break one of the bottles”
Nuts, completely nuts. The words echoed in Pix's head as she waited for Valerie's return. When Jim had mentioned the wine cel ar, she'd had a thought. There was always the possibility that someone delivering something—
the handyman at work, or maybe Gert Prescott coming to clean—would see the odd procession through the huge plate-glass windows, but they couldn't court even this slim chance.
“Al right. That should do it.”
Valerie dumped enough hemp to tie up the Queen Mary at her husband's feet and took the gun firmly in her own hand.
“Good, good," Jim said as he started to wind the coils around Pix, finishing with what she knew must be very efficient knots. After al , the man taught the art.
“Oh, by the way, my love, I almost forgot." He gave a sharp yank to tighten the rope around Pix's wrists. It dug painful y into her skin and she winced. "Sorry, Pix," he said, then continued to address his wife. "As I was saying, Samantha was very clever and got two campers to confess to some of the pranks that have been occurring. Apparently, they were angry at being here and wanted to get sent home or that's how it started anyway. It actual y is rather funny.
They were responsible for the parade! Here we thought it was Duncan al this time.”