Rx Missing (Decorah Security Series, Book #10): A Paranormal Romantic Suspense Novel Read Online Free Page B

Schoolteacher.” Her voice was barely above a whisper, and she looked like she wanted to disappear through the floor. Mack understood the feeling, but he pressed her a little.
    “What city?”
    “Catonsville, Maryland.”
    “School was in session?”
    “No. We were about to start.”
    A sudden noise at the door caught everyone’s attention.
    Another man strode in. He was lean and tanned and handsome, with sun-streaked hair. Wearing jeans, boots and a black tee shirt, he looked surer of himself than anyone else in this damn place. So was he in on the secret joke? Or was he just better at hiding his fears than the rest of the group?
    In answer to the inquisitive looks, he opened his hands in a disarming gesture and smiled. “I saw some of you heading out the door and followed.”
    Mack was instantly on the alert. He didn’t like the way this guy had materialized after the rest of them had gathered together. Had he been hiding out and waiting to make an entrance? Or had he finally decided he wasn’t going to learn anymore on his own. But why?
    “So who are you?” Chris Morgan, the ski instructor, asked from behind the bar where he’d pulled out a bottle of rum and a can of coke. He and the newcomer were the only ones standing.
    “Tom Wright. If you want a great deal on a new or used car, I’m your guy.”
    Well, he did look like the type. Slick and ready to capitalize on any weakness.
    “From where?” Mack asked.
    “Philadelphia. And you all?”
    In turn, the people in the room repeated the personal information.
    When they finished, Wright recited back all the names and occupations. Either he had some super ability to memorize, or he already knew who everyone was.
    Earlier Mack had wondered about Paula. Now he was thinking Wright could be the ringmaster. Or maybe they were acting together, working the group. Or what about Jenny Seville. She was obviously worried about something. Or was that just an act?

Chapter Five
    Mack clenched his fist under the table, ordering himself to stop making up conspiracy scenarios about everybody here. But he couldn’t shake the conviction that someone here had more information than everyone else.
    You didn’t just plop down a bunch of people in a strange environment without keeping some kind of check on them.
    Was there a way to trip up the person who knew what was going on? Make him or her reveal the purpose of this place? Or maybe they were all imposters—working a con on Mack Bradley.
    He repressed a snort. It sounded insane—and pretty paranoid. Or maybe self-important was another way to look at it. But what was normal here?
    Partly as a way to get his mind off himself, he made a list of the players—adding observations.
    The crazy guy he and Lily had met was Jay Douglas. That was all they knew about him because he’d been too hostile to do more than cuss them out.
    She was a nurse from Baltimore. Worried
    Paula Rendell. Travel agent. Train to New York. Self-assured but nervous about the buzzard she’d seen flapping over the garden before disappearing into the woods.
    George Roper. Insurance. Boston. Hot to get out of here.
    Jenny Seville. Teacher. Catonsville. Hiding something.
    Chris Morgan. Ski Instructor. Colorado. Angry and upset.
    Ben Todd. Lawyer. Alexandria. No sense of taste—which had started in this place?
    Tom Wright. Car salesman. Philadelphia. Sure of himself or pretending to be.
    Mack Bradley. Fighter pilot. Cumberland and the Middle East.
    Nine strangers in the “Hotel California”. Why were they here, and could any of them check out?
    He kept mulling over what he knew. More of them were from the East Coast, if that meant anything. More of them were men.
    “If this is India, how did we get here?” Wright, the car salesman, demanded. “And why India, for God’s sake? I never wanted to go there. Never even thought about it. Too dirty. Too many people. And cows wandering around, pooping all over the place,”
    There were murmurs of agreement.