Emilie Richards - The Color Of Light

“Did it work?”

“We’ll see after I get some food in my stomach.”

After half a head of lettuce she felt a little better. They chatted casually about their mutual friends, a group of women Ethan’s wife, Charlotte, had known and loved and who, in true Charlotte fashion, she had manipulated so they would remain together after her death.

Informally the women called themselves the Goddesses Anonymous. The name referred to the Buddhist goddess of mercy, Kuan Yin, who was said to have remained on earth after death to anonymously help those who suffered. None of the women Charlotte had chosen lived up to the goddess title, but they did work together to reach out in different ways to women who needed them. Charlotte’s family home in the mountains above Asheville had been left to them, and now they used the land and vintage log house, which they called the Goddess House, in a variety of ways.

“I’m probably not giving away a secret,” she said as their server removed their plates and left the check, “but just in case, don’t tell anybody else. Georgia and Lucas have finally set their wedding date. The middle of February.”

“Here in Asheville?” Ethan waited for her nod. “You’ll do the wedding?”

“They want me to, and right now they’re planning for the Goddess House.”

He gave a low whistle, and she smiled. “I know. They might need divine intervention to keep the road clear up Doggett Mountain.”

She left enough cash for the meal and a tip, glad that Ethan didn’t try to wrest the bill from her grip. Then she stood. “I’ve kept you too long. If you drop me back at the church I’ll pick up my car.”

He rose. “I imagine it’s a zoo there tonight, as usual.”

“Tomorrow the whole place is booked solid, but I think this is one of those rare nights when the building’s empty and I don’t have to pop in and see what people are up to.”

“A bad day ends well after all.”

She took his hand for just a moment. “You made it end well, friend. Thank you.”

“You’ve done the same for me more than once.”

As they’d eaten the temperature had continued to drop, and once she was outside Analiese was sorry she had left her coat in her car. The trip back to the church was short, and Ethan was quiet, too. She guided him to park in the short strip closest to the parish house, which was reserved for staff.

Her car sat alone, no forklift in sight. She wondered how the rest of the executive committee meeting had gone and immediately put that out of her mind. Tonight was reserved for a hot bath, prayers and bed. She would worry about the phone calls tomorrow.

When she started to open her door, he put his hand over hers to stop her.

Surprised, she turned, but he wasn’t looking at her, he was leaning forward gazing at the back of the parish house. “Didn’t you say that nothing was going on here tonight?”

“Nothing is. Why?”

“Because somebody’s inside. I just saw a shadow pass in front of the window.”

“Maybe Felipe is cleaning. He likes to clean at night so he won’t run into people.” But this was Friday. Felipe, their sexton, was adamant that Friday was a night to enjoy his wife and children, and in solidarity, his two assistants knew better than to clean on Fridays, too.

“Felipe’s the janitor?” Ethan asked.

“Sexton. Church word.”

“Does he clean in the dark? The only light that’s on in there looks like an exit sign. But it was enough for me to see a figure pass the window.”

“You’re sure you saw somebody?”

“Unless the building’s haunted, I saw somebody.”

“I’ll go in and check.” She reached for the door handle again, but he stopped her.

“I think we probably ought to call the police and let them go inside first.”

She had to smile at that. “Are you kidding? Committee heads have keys. Probably half the council have keys. The rest of the staff has keys. I bet somebody just left something behind they needed for the weekend, or came to do a committee report or lesson plans for Sunday school where it’s quiet.”

“How often does that happen?”

The parsonage, where she lived, was several miles away from the parish house, where meetings and business were conducted, so she couldn’t give a precise answer.

“Felipe used to keep watch. He and his family lived in an apartment on the top floor of the parish house. But they bought a house and moved out about six months ago, so I don’t really know. Since the building’s in nearly constant use, no one was concerned.”

“Well, somebody’s using it right now.”

“I’ll check.”

“I’m coming with you.”

She could imagine the fallout if the police confronted the council president as he was picking up his mail or typing up meeting notes. But in the unlikely case there was a problem, Ethan’s company would be appreciated.

“Let’s do it quickly so you can go home.” This time he didn’t stop her when she opened the door.

She had keys to every door in the building, and once they neared the parish house she held up a heavy key ring. She kept her voice low. “Call me Hagrid of Hogwarts.”

“Is there a light switch by the door?”

She tried to remember. Usually the building was populated and well lit when she arrived. “To the right, I think. We’ll be entering through a small activity room, then once we’re through that, there’s a hallway. Offices to the left, stairs on the right to the next two floors, and a parlor and more meeting rooms beyond the stairs. If somebody is here who isn’t supposed to be, it’s going to be hard to track them down. There are a lot of places to hide.”

“Just listen once we’re in.”

She found the right key, having learned at the beginning of her ministry that tagging them was essential. The master key didn’t always work and never worked on this door because the lock was decrepit. Her pleas for a replacement had been ignored.

She put the key in the lock and jiggled it carefully, sliding it out a bit, sliding it in farther until she heard the lock pop.

“Is the door always that hard to open?” he asked.

“Welcome to my world.” She pushed the door wide and stepped inside, flipping on the light immediately. Ethan was right behind her, and together they blinked at the sudden glare, but the room was empty.

“We’ll check the downstairs first,” he said.

“I imagine whoever you saw will shortly arrive to announce themselves.”

They crossed the room and moved into the hallway. No lights were visible except the one behind them. Analiese had expected otherwise.

She was trying to figure out which direction to try first when she heard a noise. She immediately pinpointed the source. There was a single restroom immediately outside her office door, but on the rare occasion it was in use, she, like everyone else, had to walk down the hall to use the one in the hallway where they stood. Now as someone pushed it open she recognized the peculiar squeaking of the door. She whirled just in time to see the slight figure of a girl emerge.

When she saw Analiese and Ethan the girl let out a screech, and before the sound could die away, she took off in the other direction, sneakers thumping, long braid flying out behind her.

Without even a second’s hesitation, Ethan followed.

chapter four

ANALIESE SUPPOSED THE family had waited until dark to set up their small encampment. She and Ethan hadn’t seen the tent from the staff parking lot, and it was so perfectly tucked into the space between the parish house and the shrubs disguising the back door into the Academy that she doubted it was visible from any angle.

Now, however, standing nearly on top of it, the tent was in plain sight, as was the small family staring back at her. The girl they had confronted stood directly in front of the others, but even though they were only dimly lit by the building’s security lighting, Analiese could see a younger boy, and two adults who were probably the mother and father.