Page 59 of When She Dreams

“I see.” The guard glanced at Maggie, angled his head in a polite nod, touched a finger to the brim of his fedora, and stepped back. “You two drive carefully. Cliff Road is tricky at night. Lot of sharp curves.”

“Thanks for the advice,” Sam said.

He put the Packard in gear and motored down the long drive.

“Do cops and tough guys always recognize each other?” Maggie asked.

“Usually. Probably a psychic thing. You know, like lucid dreaming all the way to the astral plane.”

“I will not lower myself to respond to that poor attempt at a joke.”

“Sorry,” Sam said. “Couldn’t resist.”

“Let’s get back to my case. We seem to have acquired a lot of interesting facts but no answers. It’s as if the more we learn, the murkier everything becomes.”

“I’d say you got your money’s worth from Valerie tonight.” Sam slowed for the turn onto Cliff Road. “We need more information, though. I’m going to have to make some phone calls tomorrow. That will be complicated.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want to make the calls from the hotel room phone,” Sam said.

“Don’t worry about putting them on the bill.”

“That’s not the problem.”

She glanced at him. “You’re worried the hotel operator might eavesdrop, aren’t you?”

“Hotel operators are in an ideal position to listen in on conversations, and the Sea Dream Hotel is owned by the Institute. That means the operator works for the Guilfoyles.”

“If she heard you asking questions about them, she might decide to give that information to her employers. At the very least she would probably tell other people what was going on. I see what you mean. But if you disappear from the conference tomorrow for an extended period of time, we’ll need a reason. Someone is bound to ask why my research assistant isn’t with me.”

“We’ll think of something.”

“Yes.” She watched the moonlight splash silver on the surface of the Pacific. “I’ve been thinking about what you said about Lillian.”

“You’re starting to wonder if Dewhurst’s sudden decision to take that voyage to the other side of the world might not have been a coincidence after all?”

“Yes. Maybe she knew someone was threatening the former members of the Astral Travelers Society and decided to get as far away as possible.”

“How much do you know about Lillian Dewhurst?”

“Not as much as I thought,” Maggie admitted. “But, then, how well do we ever know someone else? She is a very private person. She never mentions her family. I think Lillian is the last of her line. She inherited a lot of money.”

“Has she lived in Adelina Beach all of her—” Sam broke off and started to brake.

Startled, Maggie glanced at him. “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know yet.”

She realized he was focused on the scene through the windshield. She turned back and saw what had riveted his attention.

The hellish glow of a fierce fire illuminated the night. The flames swept up from the bottom of the cliffs.

Sam brought the Packard to a halt in a turnout. He had his door open before Maggie could comprehend what was happening. She climbed out of the passenger seat and hurried to join him at the edge of the road. They both looked down at the beach. There was a broken vehicle on the rocks. It was engulfed in flames.

Maggie got a queasy, light-headed feeling. “That’s the car Valerie was driving when she left the Carousel, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” Sam said. “It is.”

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