Subj: Shadows of the Past part 7
Date: 7/30/00 12:21:40 AM Central Daylight Time
From: KimD
Vicki and Barnabas agreed that searching for Moreen’s room would be the best way to start. They started looking for it around Mrs. Johnson’s room, careful to be quiet enough not to disturb her. They had opened several doors, but none of them looked familiar to Vicki. “I don’t think we’re going to find it here,” Barnabas said ready to give up.
“Then it must be in another hall. I know it’s here somewhere.”
As they spoke, a light appeared at the end of the hall. They watched it the light take the shape of a human. It became a woman with long dark hair and dark eyes. “It looks like Moreen,” Vicki said, staring at the form. They watched as she went around a corner and up a flight of stairs. They followed her up the stairs and down another hall. Then they saw her disappear through a door. They walked down the hall, and opened the door to find a room that looked like Moreen’s room.
The only furniture that remained was the bed. Everything else was stacked in boxes along a wall. Vicki felt a shiver as moonlight shone in through the window as it had in her first dream. She saw the spot where Moreen had stood and took a step back as she saw a dark spot on the carpet, where the blood hadn’t came completely clean. She could still see the murder clearly, as if it were playing out in front of her.
“Are you alright?” Barnabas asked concerned.
“This is it,” Vicki said quietly. “This is the room where she died.”
“We don’t have to do this. Would you rather leave now?”
“No, I’ll be fine.” Vicki pushed the horrific image of the dream to the back of her mind.
She turned to the stack of boxes and opened the one on top. Clothes. Simple, understated blouses and pants were mixed with short skirts. In another box they found books, and an envelope of pictures. They took the pictures out and looked through them. A few included Moreen. Most were pictures of strangers, who could have been friends and family. Three people seemed to be photographed more. One was a woman looked to be taller than Moreen, with kind eyes, and a warm smile. There was a man, tall and broad shouldered with brown hair, a mustache, and well dressed. Another was an older man, graying, who looked uncomfortable in his suit and tie. Then there was a picture of a young Roger and Moreen, smiling at each other. “Roger really did lie to me,” Vicki said surprised. She had wanted to believe Roger so much. “I can’t believe he would have anything to do with murder.”
“If he isn’t involved, he at least knows something.”
They opened a third box, which contained a jewelry box that sat on top of a notebook, cards, and letters. The jewelry box was a simple glossy brown box. They opened it to reveal scanty contents. It contained cash, a few gold and silver necklaces, a gold ring, and a gold coin. The coin was different than anything she had seen. The marks on it were primitive. “This looks Egyptian. Laura,” Barnabas said with all the solemness of a minister.
Vicki felt an unsettled feeling as she remembered the newspapers she had red in the library from the year of Moreen’s death. “Laura’s name was in the paper the same year that Moreen disappeared. It was the announcement of her engagement to Roger.”
“She would have wanted Collinwood, and Roger. She would have been willing to do a lot to get what she wanted. But she wouldn’t have murdered herself. She would have found someone to do it for her.”