Page 58 of The Summer Inn on Plum Island
“Toward the wall?” Liam asked, confused.
“Yeah. Are there stairs anywhere there?” Scott asked Liam.
“No, the stairwell is near the elevator side of the hallway,” Liam told him. “Is there some sort of access to the floors below on that side of the hotel?”
“A large glass window!” Liam shrugged, a frown marring his brow.
“Well, he went down to a below-ground area by the look of this.” Scott paused. “There’s nothing marked on the hotel diagrams. It looks like he walked beneath the floor to the opposite wing and stopped somewhere behind the kitchens.” Another pause. “He is still there and hasn’t moved for a couple of hours.”
“That’s weird,” Liam said as he and Dawn glanced at each other.
“Hold on. I’m going to do something I shouldn’t here,” Scott said. “Here, it’s the recording for Carl for the day back to when he was in Dawn’s room.”
Liam and Dawn sat close to listen.
Carl: Hey, stop!
There was a noise like a struggle.
Muffled voice: Move and don’t try anything. You have about six hours and will die without the antidote. If you want that, then you’ll move.
“What the…” Dawn’s eyes widened as her eyes met Liam’s equally startled ones.
“Why didn’t Carl hit the panic button?” Scott’s question was rhetorical.
“Shhh,” Dawn shushed everyone as the shuffling and noise finally stopped.
Carl: What were you doing in Miss Vanderbilt’s room?
Muffled voice: Returning something.
Carl: Why break in if you were returning something?
Muffled voice: You ask too many questions.
There was more shuffling.
“I’ve heard that voice somewhere before,” Dawn said, frowning as she strained to hear the other person’s voice.
Muffled voice: Keep moving. We’re almost there.
Carl: What did you give me?
Muffled voice: Something called Luminotoxin.
Carl: What the heck is that?
Muffled voice: It’s a potent neurotoxin that is fatal when administered into the bloodstream, and without the antidote, the toxin inhibits the nerve signals transmission, causing progressive paralysis that will eventually cause respiratory failure.
“What?” Dawn’s face dropped and paled. “Scott, have you heard of this?”
“No.” Scott’s voice held a hint of urgency. “But I’m getting onto researching it.”
“Why didn’t you pick this up?” Dawn hissed.
“I only check the record twice a day if no alarm has been hit,” Scott told her.
“Carl is probably paralyzed by now and can’t hit the alarm.” Dawn’s voice rose a bit in her panic. “He obviously didn’t want to draw attention to the bio band, and that’s why he didn’t hit the alarm.”
