“This could be someone’s personal diary,” he said, intrigued. He read aloud, “‘The renovations are complete, and the secrets of the Inn will remain hidden, just as the walls now hide the passage of its true history.’”
Dawn shuddered. “Secrets of the Inn? What does that mean?”
Liam scanned the room, his mind racing with possibilities. “Maybe the Inn was more than just a hotel. This room, these journals… it could have been a meeting place, or maybe a hideout for someone who didn’t want to be found.”
“Or something they wanted to hide,” Dawn added, gesturing to the rows of journals. “What if there are more clues in these?”
“We’ll need to go through them,” Liam decided. “Let’s bring a few back with us and see if we can learn anything useful.”
As they prepared to leave the secret room, Liam noticed another door, almost entirely hidden by shadows in the corner of the room. It was smaller, almost like a cupboard, but when he tried the handle, it was locked.
“Another mystery,” he said, half in frustration, half in excitement. He pocketed a small key he found on the desk, hoping it might open the door on their next visit.
Back in the hotel suite, the room felt oppressively normal after the secret they had uncovered. Liam and Dawn laid the journals and photos on the coffee table, their minds still reeling from the discovery.
“We should start looking through these tonight,” Liam said, his voice determined. “Whatever secrets the Inn is hiding, they could be in here.”
Dawn nodded, her expression serious. “I don’t know if this is exciting or terrifying,” she confessed. “I’ve written so many mystery scripts, and I’m always longing to live one.” She frowned. “Well, I’ve kind of lived a few mysteries over the past year while here on Plum Island. But they weren’tmymysteries. They were my friend’s mysteries. If they were movies, I’d be the sidekick in them.”
“Let’s hope this is not one of those careful what you wish for wishes coming true.” Liam smiled. “Rather an adventure that helps us unravel the mystery of who’s been stealing from the hotel guests and how.”
“Let’s not forget the why.” Dawn’s frown deepened. “I can’t help but think finding all the loot that was stolen was a little too easy.” She looked at Liam contemplatively, chewing her bottom lip. “It was almost as if they wanted us to find it.”
“I got that impression as well,” Liam agreed with her deduction. “And whoever’s doing this has done their homework on this place. They knew about the secret passageway.”
“Which would explain why the thefts only happened on this wing of the hotel and not the new one,” Dawn pointed out.
“Yes, exactly,” Liam said with a nod. “Having knowledge about the hotel would also have alerted the thieves to the fact that we no longer use the old storerooms out the back. I’m waiting to get it renovated and expand the kitchen into that area so I can eventually expand the restaurant.”
“And you keep those old stores locked?” Dawn enquired.
“Yes, at all times,” Liam replied. “I remember when I first bought the hotel. The storerooms were no longer used, but the Peters didn’t lock them. Lila and Caroline’s daughter, Jules, were ten and were playing around the hotel.” Flashes of that terrifying day crossed his mind. “They went missing, and we couldn’t find them. Aunt Betty brought her dog, who died three years ago. He was a beagle named Beagle, and he found them in the storeroom. The door had closed, and the handle on the inside had fallen off.”
“Oh no, how frightening for the girls and you.” Dawn’s eyes filled with compassion.
“Ever since then, I make sure all store doors and any place I think an inquisitive child would crawl into are kept locked and secured,” Liam told her.
“So your Aunt Betty had a beagle named Beagle?” Dawn pursed her lips and nodded. “I like that. Do you think she’d mind if I created Beagle as a character?”
“No, not at all,” Liam assured her. “I think Aunt Betty would get a laugh out of it.”
“Let me get my journal,” Dawn said, standing and going into her room.
It wasn’t five minutes before she rushed back into the living room, her eyes wide and panicking. “It’s gone.”
“What’s gone?” Liam frowned and his eyes widened, realizing what she meant. “Your journal?”
Dawn nodded. “All my notes about the script changes. All my new ideas, they’re all in there.”
Liam glanced toward her room. Standing, he and Hicks walked to Dawn’s room.
“Maybe it just slid beneath the bed?” Liam suggested.
“No!” Dawn shook her head. “I keep it in the drawer of the nightstand or my purse when I’m out and about. But I haven’t looked at it or used it since the wedding.” She pointed to the dresser beside the bed. “It’s been in that drawer since the day of the wedding.”
“Wasn’t that where your watch was?” Liam stared at the dresser as if he could magically make the journal appear. Dawn nodded. “And you didn’t check if it was there after the watch went missing.” She shook her head. “So it could’ve been missing from the same time your watch was.”
“This is a disaster,” Dawn said. “All my notes…” She swallowed and blew out a breath, trying to calm her frazzled nerves.
