Page 33 of Is Anyone Listening?
Tyler's jaw tightened. He glanced toward the door, then back at me. "It doesn't."
"Did you know Natalie? Are you trying to get information on her?"
"No." He seemed to weigh how much to tell me. "I came here to find out what happened to another woman—Jessica Trent. She disappeared seven months after Natalie."
"I saw the articles about her at the library. I thought she took out a boat and never came back."
"That's the story."
"What does that have to do with the inn?"
"She was staying here at the time, and since another woman disappeared seven months before her, I think there may be a pattern. Your turn. What are you doing in here?"
"Looking for answers," I said, repeating his words.
"About Natalie or Jessica?"
"Actually, someone else. There was a woman staying in the room next to mine. She looked like she was terrified. I heard glass breaking in her room one night, then crying. I also saw bruises on her body. And that's not all. She left the inn this morning with Ellen before dawn. And Ray, the handyman, was cleaning out her room, and I saw him carry this carpet in here a few minutes ago. When he drove away, I felt the need to come in here and check out what was wrong with the rug."
Tyler moved past me, his gaze falling on the rug. He crouched beside it, examining the dark stains. "This looks like blood."
"It could be from when she broke the glass in her room."
"Or something else happened to her." He looked up at me. "This woman—Anna, you said? What's her story?"
"All I know is what I told you."
Before he could say anything, we both heard the sound of the garage door opening.
"Someone's coming," I said in panic.
He grabbed my arm and pulled me toward an old and very large armoire. There was just enough room for us to squeeze behind it. I held my breath as I heard a door open and close. My heart was hammering so hard I thought I might faint, but Tyler was pressed close beside me, his presence keeping me upright, preventing a full-blown anxiety attack.
The footsteps came closer. The door to the storage room opened. I couldn't see who it was, but I heard the sound of something being lifted, something heavy dragging across the floor.
The carpet. Someone was taking the carpet.
More footsteps. The sound of the main garage door opening again. An engine starting. Then the garage door closing.
We stayed frozen in our hiding spot for what felt like an eternity, but was probably only a minute.
"I think they're gone," Tyler whispered. "Let's get out of here."
We emerged from behind the furniture, and I immediately looked for the carpet. It wasn't there anymore. I met Tyler's gaze.
He grabbed my hand and guided me toward the side door, through the garage, and away from the building. I followed without thinking, my mind still reeling from what had just happened.
The bloody carpet—evidence of whatever had happened in Anna's room—was gone.
I was surprised when Tyler took me down a path behind the inn I'd never been on before. It was clearly a different way to get down to the beach and also a little longer, winding through tall trees and thick brush, the ground rocky and uneven beneath my feet.
When we finally emerged onto the beach, we were further down the beach than we'd been the first time we met, and the ocean stretched out before us, gray and restless under the cloudy sky. The wind whipped my hair around my face as he let go of my hand, and I had a chance to catch my breath.
"Why are we here?" I asked. "I could have just gone back into the inn."
"We need to talk. As I mentioned, I'm looking for Jessica Trent. And you seem to be looking for—what was her name?"
"Anna. And it's not just her I'm looking for; it's Natalie Warren. I think there might be something going on at the inn."
