Deviled!: Lake Erie Mysteries Book 2 Read Online Free

just happened, Francie? That guy went from Don-Draper-charming to Norman-Bates-scary in the blink of an eye.”
    “I don’t know, but I’m glad we got out of there when we did. I hope Angelina is all right.”
    June frowned. “What do you think Damien meant about ‘handling their problem?’ Was he talking about that hysterical employee, or Bob, or maybe us? He seemed furious.”
    “I don’t know. It could be anything. We should probably leave it alone.”
    Before June could reply, her phone interrupted, chirping an alert signal. She flipped open her clutch to retrieve it and read the message on the screen. “It’s a severe weather alert.”
    My first thought was Hamm. “We should run over to the marina to warn the guys in case they haven’t heard the update. Hamm said the bad weather wasn’t supposed to roll in until overnight. He hasn’t responded to any of the recent texts I’ve sent him. His phone might be dead.”
    The elevator glided to a stop on the lobby level, and the doors slid open to an empty hall.
    “Oh no, not again. You’ve got to get that man a backup phone charger this Christmas so you aren’t always worrying.”
    June pulled her phone out of her tiny handbag again and checked it for missed messages. “I haven’t heard from Jack since we left the marina either. You’re right. Let’s head over to make sure they got the latest weather update. If both of their phones are off, they probably haven’t heard the new forecast yet.”
    “That settles it, then. Plus, a brisk walk will help burn off all that fancy wine and cheese so we’ll have room for dinner.”

5
    Go wisely and slowly. Those who rush stumble and fall.
    Romeo and Juliet

    I followed June through the lobby and into the revolving exit door, mindful of where I placed my feet. I was more skilled than most at walking in high heels, but I didn’t need to get my heel trapped in a door that never stopped turning. In the short time it took us to get outside, the sun had retreated for good, and its radiant glow had been replaced by dark swirling clouds in a sky the color of eggplant and green olives. We picked up our pace and strode down the sidewalk in the direction of the marina. Once inside the iron gate, it was apparent that the boating community was prepping for a storm. All the boats were battened down, lawn chairs and grills were stowed, and the weekend vacationers, children, and pets had all retreated to safety inside their vessels. Except for Hamm and Jack. I didn’t know if they were safe inside or not. The boat was not in the slip. Barb’s boat was gone as well.
    A bolt of lightning split the ominous clouds, followed by exploding thunder, and then the sky opened up and the rain poured down.
    I had to shout over the howling wind. “Come on, June, we have to get out of this weather. Let’s try the office.”
    The rain was relentless, and the thunder and lightning refused to wait their turns, flashing and booming right over each other. I reached the office door first and tried the handle.
    “It’s locked. What do we do now?”
    “Run for it!”
    A deafening thunderclap punctuated June’s sentence like an exclamation mark. We kicked off our fancy shoes and ran barefoot in the direction of the resort. The walking path was already flooding, and we kicked up spray like kids racing through shallow water at the beach. The hotel was just ahead, silhouetted in the dark sky by flashes of lightning. And then everything went black. All the power on the island went out, and we were engulfed in shadows and darkness. In the unfamiliar surroundings, the mix of shadows and blinding flashes of light was disorienting. We had to slow down to get our bearings.
    Rain pelted my face like tiny shards of glass. We huddled together, pushing our way through the wind until the revolving door was within reach. June gave it a shove but it wouldn’t budge. The power outage had immobilized the door, so we had to make our way a little further down the