In Too Deep

10

Isabella opened her senses when Fallon pulled into the cracked, weedstudded parking lot of the Sea Breeze Motor Lodge. There was the usual amount of paranormal fog in front of the main lodge, but she saw nothing out of the ordinary.

"At least the energy here doesn't look like the stuff at the Zander house," she said.

"Good to know," Fallon said. He looked at Walker who was sitting in the rear seat, rocking gently. "You're sure the vault is here, Walker?" he said.

"Y-yes." Walker rocked harder. He rarely rode in motor vehicles. They made him even more anxious than normal.

The dogs appeared, coalescing out of the mist like a pack of wolves. They charged the SUV, barking furiously. Isabella sat quietly with Fallon and Walker, waiting. Not one attempted to open a door. Everyone in Scargill Cove knew the drill. If you visited Henry and Vera, you stayed in the car, the windows rolled up, until someone called off the beasts. On the rare occasions when some hapless tourist, laboring under the mistaken impression that the lodge was still a functioning motel, pulled into the lodge, Henry and Vera remained inside until the people gave up and moved on.

Fallon glanced at the illuminated windows of the office.

"Looks like Henry and Vera are home," he said.

"They usually are," Isabella said. "Sometimes I do wonder what they do in that place all day long, day after day."

Fallon smiled. "You mean, you don't know?"

"No." She gave him a sharp look. "Do you?"

"Sure. I'm a detective, remember?"

In the rear seat Walker spoke up. "They g-guard the v-vault. That's their job. I do patrol at night. They s-secure the vault. Marge and the others keep watch during the day."

Isabella turned in the seat to look at him. "Marge and other people in town are involved in this thing?"

Walker gave her a jerky nod. "That was the plan back at the start. We've followed the plan. But s-something went wrong. We have to put things right. Alien technology is very d-dangerous."

The front door of the office swung open. A bulky, bearded figure in denim overalls and a red-and-black plaid flannel shirt lumbered out into the fog. He glowered at the dogs through a pair of old-fashioned gold-framed spectacles.

"Poppy, Orchid, Clyde, Samson, the rest of you, that's enough," Henry called. "They're friends."

The barking subsided immediately. The six dogs stood waiting, ears pricked, eyes cold and watchful.

Isabella was the first one to open the door.

"Hello, Poppy," she said to the big shepherd mix. "You look lovely today."

Overcome with delight, Poppy rushed forward, tongue lolling, to greet her. Isabella rubbed her ears. Poppy swooned. Orchid, Clyde, Samson and the rest crowded in eagerly. Isabella patted them all.

Fallon opened his door and got out. "Don't know what it is with you and those dogs."

"I like dogs," Isabella said. She gave Poppy one last pat. "I'm thinking of getting one of my own." A dog would make it official, she thought. A dog would mean that she had settled here in Scargill Cove, that she had found a home.

Henry peered at her. "How's the toaster working?"

"Great," Isabella said. "It's the best toaster I've ever owned."

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Fallon's brows climb but he made no comment.

Henry grunted, satisfied. "Don't make 'em like they used to." He looked at Walker and Fallon. "I take it this is about the things in the vault?"

"How did you know?" Fallon asked.

Henry angled his head at Walker. "Only one reason Walker would get into a vehicle. What's up?"

Walker got out of the SUV, jittering a little. "They found s-something, Henry. Something that belongs in the vault. I could feel it, you know?"

Henry gave Fallon a long, considering look. "Is this connected to the Zander house business?"

"You figured that out in a hurry," Fallon said. He went around to the back of the SUV, opened the rear door and removed the blanket-wrapped clock.

"Heard about the bodies buried under the basement," Henry said, watching him. "It was all over the evening news last night. They said they found the killer's body, too. Heart attack."

"Yes," Fallon said.

"Real neat and tidy ending," Henry said. "Vera and I like that kind of ending." He squinted at the object in Fallon's hands. "What did you find?"

"A clock," Isabella said. "Not an ordinary clock, though."

Walker twitched. "It's one of the alien weapons stored down in the vault, Henry."

Henry frowned. "It sure as hell didn't come out of there since Vera and I have been watching the place. Must have been removed before we locked it down all those years ago."

"The Zander house killer told me that he found the clock in a glass box hidden in a cavern beneath the basement of the mansion," Fallon said. "Got a feeling the clock had been hidden for quite a while."

Henry looked interested. "You and the killer had a chat before he croaked?"

"Guys like that have to brag," Fallon explained. "Guess he wanted to impress me."

"Uh-huh." Henry grew thoughtful. "And after he finished with his bragging, he had his heart attack. Hell of a coincidence."

"It happens," Fallon said.

"Nope," Henry said. "No coincidences. Not when it comes to anything that came out of that vault."

Isabella moved to stand beside Fallon. "We understand that Walker sees things through his own private prism, but please don't tell us that you really believe that aliens from another galaxy visited Scargill Cove and left some baggage behind."

"Not aliens," Henry said. "They told us they worked for a small research company, but everyone around here knew that was probably a cover. The black-ops folks use a lot of private contractors when they want to keep a low profile."

"Right," Isabella said. "Everyone knows that."

Fallon winced, but he did not comment.

Henry contemplated her, and then he studied Fallon for a few seconds. Isabella could see him making a decision.

"You two are locals now," Henry said. "You've got a right to know what happened here twenty-two years ago. Come on inside. Vera is making coffee. Tea for you, Isabella. We'll tell you what we know, but I gotta warn you up front, it isn't a whole lot."