Authors: Rachel L. Vaughan
Pierre isn’t here, and I need someone to help me with the incarnation of Hamlet. Braedon is cursed, but there is still clarity and reason in him. It’s worth a shot.
“I need a drink.”
Lexie suppressed a laugh at Nickolas’s unexpected comment.
“You know where the liquor cabinet is,” Braedon sighed. “Go help yourself. I don’t need anything. Do you want a drink, Lexie?”
“No thank you.”
Nickolas left the living room, muttering to himself about how to catch his uncle in a lie. “I’ll catch his conscience soon…”
“Braedon, can I tell you something.”
The flecks of gold in Braedon’s eyes were more pronounced as he settled his benevolent gaze on her. “Of course.”
Lexie took a deep breath and began her story. “I know why all these terrible things are happening in Vernon Hills. Pierre explained everything to me after I was in a car wreck. He is the descendant of William Shakespeare and inherited a key from him. Shakespeare put a curse on the key that causes people to transform into the characters from his plays.”
She spoke, uninterrupted, for nearly five minutes. Braedon listened as she explained about the theatre, the bloodbath at town hall, the Garland family’s probable involvement, and the connection between the Lindegaards and
Hamlet
. Bringing up
Hamlet
forced Lexie to admit that it really was likely that Dr. Lindegaard had killed Nickolas’s father. Braedon kept his features neutral and his eyes gentle as he listened to Lexie.
“Pierre and I are looking for the key, but I don’t want to leave Nickolas because his actions could cause Flora’s death,” Lexie finished. “I can’t stand the thought of losing my good friend. What would you do if you were faced with the possibility of Nickolas dying?”
“I would be inconsolable. We rely so much on each other. Nickolas is my closest confidant. I’d die for him,” Braedon whispered as he moved to sit next to her on the couch. “He’s like my brother.”
“Then will you help me?” Lexie felt tears prick her eyes. She grabbed Braedon’s arm, fingers digging into his taut muscles.
Please say yes!
“Pierre came up with a very interesting theory,” Braedon answered, “but the Lindegaard family has had issues for years. A missing key doesn’t have anything to do with their problems. Why is Cesare Garland cursed? He doesn’t live in Vernon Hills.”
Lexie felt her heart sink a bit. “I know. Flora told me about the family problems, but what if things have gotten worse because of the curse. Why does Nickolas suddenly believe his uncle killed his dad? Why is Flora in the hospital? It can’t
all
be coincidence! I don’t understand about Cesare either.”
Braedon opened his mouth to say something, then closed it, and studied Lexie’s face. He pressed his palms together in his lap.
Lexie took advantage of his silence. “I think Dr. Lindegaard arranged the car wreck. The other vehicle hit the passenger side of the car, and he told me that he never thought Nickolas would let anyone drive that car unless he was in the passenger seat. Dr. Lindegaard is my boss, and we have always gotten along just fine. Why would he try to kill
me
? I need your help in order to keep Nickolas and Flora alive.”
“I just don’t understand how a key can affect so many people. Like I said, the Lindegaards have had problems for years. The Roses and Terraces have been fighting each other since they moved to Vernon Hills. The battle of wits between Ben and Bryony is the result of a bad breakup.”
“Now they are married!”
Braedon laughed. “They were probably drunk or on something. I wish I could have seen their reactions when they realized they tied the knot.”
Then Lexie remembered when Nickolas was telling his mom about seeing his dad’s ghost on Crossroads Avenue. Braedon had been nodding the whole time and had supported Nickolas’s story.
“If you believe the ghost of Nickolas’s dad told him that Dr. Lindegaard murdered him, can’t you consider the fact that Shakespeare’s curse might be real?”
“I don’t know…maybe…” Braedon trailed off and thought for a moment. “Do you think the curse is why Guillaume Garland visited Flora in the hospital?”
Lexie blinked and her eyes widened.
Cesare told me he was in England!
“What? Did you see him?”
“No,” Braedon shook his head, “but I heard some of the nurses talking about him. He brought some flowers to Flora. The nurses were pointing to his picture and name on a magazine. Apparently, he and his son are battling over business decisions. But you think the fight has something to do with this cursed key?”
“It makes sense,” Lexie muttered, speaking more to herself than to Braedon. “The card was signed ‘Mr. Garland.’ Cesare would have just put his first name. When did Mr. Garland have time to send flowers? He must have flown back as soon as he heard about the theatre.”
“Nickolas was jealous when he saw the flowers,” Braedon admitted. “He really loves Flora.”
“Mom and Uncle Phillip left the hospital,” announced Nickolas as he walked back into the living room, his phone in one hand and a bottle of Jack Daniel’s in the other. He took a long drink and placed the bottle on an end table. “I’m talking to Pierre.”
Lexie jumped up and rushed over to Nickolas. “Let me talk to him.”
Nickolas dropped his phone into her hand and snatched up the liquor bottle.
“Hey, Pierre, I have something to tell you.”
“I hope it’s good. I’ve been dealing with two very angry Lindegaards,” grumbled Pierre. “I kept them here as long as I could.”
“Guillaume Garland is behind everything. The man is a theatre fanatic, and I bet he did research when he heard about the riot. If I were him, I would want to know why a theatre would cause such an uprising in a small town. He probably knew about the Shakespeare curse, and then he found out about you. Cesare is useless to us.”
Pierre’s tension was palpable through the phone. “Are you sure?”
“Cesare is cursed, but I don’t understand why. He isn’t a resident of Vernon Hills. Mr. Garland visited Flora in the hospital, and the card he left with the flowers said something about her rising out of the water. Cesare isn’t that poetic, and—”
“The mention of water is clearly a reference to Ophelia,” interrupted Pierre. “I might be able to speak with Guillaume because of the theatre. He might be sympathetic to my cause. You stay with Nickolas.”
“What?”
“We can’t let the Lindegaards interact without one of us being there in case things start to go badly,” Pierre explained. “Just mention Flora if Nickolas starts to get wound up. Now, I need to see if I can get in touch with the elder Garland. Do your best to keep Nickolas safe. Remember Braedon is Horatio, so he will do anything to protect his friend.”
“But Pierre—”
“I have to go!” Pierre interjected swiftly. “Best of luck!”
“Good luck to you too!”
Then there was silence. Lexie lowered the phone from her ear and dropped it on the couch. She looked over at Nickolas and Braedon. Once again, the young Lindegaard was pacing and muttering to himself. Braedon was calmly leaning against the arm of the couch.
“It is time for me to face him, Braedon. I have to fulfill my father’s wishes. Phillip Lindegaard
needs
to be exposed as a murderer. He cannot hide any longer! His deception has damaged my family too much!”
Here we go again!
Lexie blew out a long breath. “
You
are hiding from
him
, Nickolas. You ran away from the hospital to hide.”
Nickolas rounded on her, knocking his elbow against the TV. The local news channel flared to life on Braedon’s flat screen. “I am not hiding from my uncle! I am only hiding to stay out of the hospital! I have nothing to cover up! I am not afraid of Uncle Phillip! He is the one who should be afraid because I know his secret! He needs to pay for his sins!”
“Calm yourself, Nickolas,” Braedon cut in softly.
“What do you plan to do?” demanded Lexie.
Nickolas crossed his arms over his chest and continued to pace. “I want to get rid of Phillip Lindegaard.”
“You mean kill him? How does that make you any better than your uncle?” Lexie argued. “What would Flora think if
you
turned into a murderer?”
Nickolas’s fingers pressed so hard into his triceps that bruises were already forming. “I would be protecting her by killing Uncle Phillip. I love Flora so much, and I cannot bear the thought of her being near him. What if he kills her? He wants to take away everything I hold dear! Her death would be too much for me, and my uncle knows that! Death is too high a price for Flora to pay for loving me!”
“But what would she think?” pressed Lexie. “Flora would never put a price on how much she loves you, but how would she react to you turning into a killer?”
“Look at the news!” Braedon exclaimed.
Lexie turned her attention to the TV. A news anchor with slicked back hair and a mustache that appeared to be tamed only by hairspray was standing in front of town hall. Lexie felt her stomach flip and heart tighten.
“Four people were found dead in the town hall of Vernon Hills today around 5:00 PM. The only witness is a man found unconscious with the bodies. He claims to remember very little of what happened. Three of the deceased were prominent members of the Vernon Hills’ community, and the fourth was an employee of Garland Corporation. Cesare Garland, co-owner of the multibillion dollar company, stated that his employee was there on business. The video and audio surveillance of town hall were disabled, so no footage was taken. If anyone has information about the murders, please contact the Vernon Hills Police Station.”
The employee must be Cesare’s secretary.
Lexie covered her face with her hands. She could feel tremors going through her body and tears crisscrossing down her face. Lexie knew that if she had anything in her stomach, she would have vomited all over Braedon’s living room floor.
“This is what you told me about,” Braedon whispered, gently grasping Lexie’s shoulders. “It looks like you are hiding too—hiding from what you saw and how you feel.”
Lexie nodded into her hands, and she felt Braedon pull her forward until her forehead was resting against his chest. She could feel his heartbeat, and its steady throbs gave her some comfort. Lexie slowly uncovered her face and let her arms loop around Braedon, tightening their hug.
Their quiet moment was broken by the shrill ring of Braedon’s phone. Lexie reluctantly let go of him and dropped onto the couch. Braedon frowned as he checked the identity of the caller.
“Nickolas, your mom is calling me.”
“Don’t answer. Let her leave a voicemail,” Nickolas ordered.
Braedon did as his friend asked, and the three friends listened as the phone continued to ring. After the final tone, there was about a minute of silence before the phone vibrated, alerting Braedon that he had a voicemail.
“Do you want to listen first?” Braedon held his phone out to Nickolas.
“Put it on speaker.”
When the voicemail started, it was so loud that Lexie was sure all of them would have been able to hear it without it being on speakerphone. The identity of the speaker also did not match the name on Braedon’s caller ID. Phillip Lindegaard’s authoritative voice boomed through the phone, nearly causing Braedon to drop it.
“Braedon, I truly regret that you chose not to answer your phone. I am certain that you and Nickolas are somewhere together listening to this voicemail. I must say that you have made a poor decision by protecting Nickolas. My son is very ill and needs immediate medical attention. He is a danger to himself as well as others. I know you care about him, so please bring him back to the hospital where he can be treated properly. I only want the best for my son. Audrey is beside herself with worry. She plans to involve the police if she does not see Nickolas by tomorrow morning. If taking Nickolas to the hospital makes you uncomfortable, Audrey and I are at our house. You are free to bring him here. Braedon, please cooperate with us.”
“So, they are back in Vernon Hills,” Lexie stated the obvious. “The police will come here if they get involved. We have to leave before tomorrow.”
“No,” Nickolas shook his head. “It’s time for me to face my uncle. Let the police find me. I will tell them everything I know.”