Pattern of Betrayal (Vineyard Quilt Mysteries Book 2) Read Online Free Page B

breaker box. Hopefully we’ll have the lights back on in a jiff.” Though she wasn’t sure how she was going to accomplish that. The place was nearly pitch black. How was she going to find her way to the breaker box? “Hannah, could you light the candles in here?”
    “I’m on it,” Hannah said.
    “Oh my, I think something just brushed my back.” Joyce said. “What in the world—”
    A stifled sigh was heard, followed by a muffled thump.
    “What was that ?” Susan asked.
    Julie wasn’t about to say it sounded a lot like a body hitting the floor. In the dark, it could have been anything. Her imagination was getting out of hand.
    “I’m sure it was nothing.” Julie did her best to keep her voice calm.
    “Everyone stay put,” Daniel said.
    Julie felt his hand at the small of her back and wondered how he could even find her in the dark room. But she was thankful he did. After all of her exploits chasing treasures through the dark streets of foreign countries … well, it was one thing to be in the dark by choice and quite another to have that rug of comfort pulled from beneath your feet.
    “I think there’s a flashlight in the foyer desk,” she said as he steered them toward the exit.
    “Here we go.” Daniel led the way through the dining room doors and toward the front of the inn. A dim light shone in through the front windows, offering them a fighting chance of finding the flashlight.
    Julie rummaged through the desk, which was a little more cluttered than she remembered. The bulk of the desk cast thick shadows onto the contents of the drawers, making it that much harder to find what she was looking for. Her fingers finally felt the cold, round, metal object they were searching for.
    “Got it,” she said triumphantly. She held it above her head in victory; then she lowered it, switched it on, and silently thanked whatever kind soul had last put in the batteries. The beam of light was strong and true.
    “To the breaker box,” she said.
    “Any idea where it is?”
    “Yes. Follow me.” Relocating the breaker box was one of the first things she’d done when she had taken over. “It’s in the second-floor linen closet.”
    “The linen closet?” Even with only the glow of a flashlight beam reflecting on his face, Julie could tell Daniel was frowning.
    She shrugged. “I had it moved from the basement in case we ever have an issue with floodwaters.” She started toward the stairs.
    “Floodwaters?”
    “Hey, you can never be too careful.”
    Daniel followed her up to the second floor. “I suppose not.”
    “Unless you’re Hannah,” Julie added.
    Daniel laughed as they made their way down the hall to the linen closet.
    Julie opened the door and peered inside. “Here, hold this.” She handed the flashlight to Daniel, moved a stack of towels to the side, and opened the door to the breaker box.
    “They all look OK,” Daniel said, shining the light inside.
    “Looks can be deceiving.” Julie methodically began flipping each switch one way and then the other.
    Daniel shook his head. “That wouldn’t be the problem. The entire inn is without power. Each one of those would only control a room or two. You need the main switch.”
    Julie squinted at the tabs. “Which one of these is the main one?”
    He studied the switches and then shook his head. “None of them.”
    Julie wiggled out from between the closet and him. “How’s that?”
    “The main switch doesn’t have to be in the same box with the others. In fact, it can be on a completely different floor.”
    “How do you know so much about this?”
    Daniel shrugged nonchalantly, but she could tell he was pleased with her backhanded compliment. “I had an uncle who was an electrician.”
    “Your uncle wouldn’t happen to know where the main switch would be, would he?”
    “No. But if I had to guess, I would say it’s somewhere near the kitchen.”
    “Oh, yeah?”
    Again he shrugged. “It seems like a good place to put it in case of