She had to smile. “You’ve been threatening to do that for five years now.” Turning to leave, she said over her shoulder, “One of these days I might take you up on it.” The last of her words was cut short as she shut the door, but Sammy knew what she’d said. He knew, as she did, that she would never take him up on his offer, any more than he would want her to. They liked, trusted, and respected each other. They were both attractive, roughly the same age, and unattached. But there never had been the slightest spark of physical attraction between them.
Returning to the kitchen, Savannah found Will in the same spot. His hair was disheveled and the knot of his necktie had been loosened. “No call,” he told her, then murmured, “Stupid of me. You would have heard the phone if it had rung.” He paused impatiently. “When are they going to call?”
She wished she knew. “It’s early. They’re probably giving you a chance to get your act together.”
“Or sweat a little.”
“Maybe. Have you had anything to eat?”
“I’m not hungry.”
“Tired? When Susan gets here, you could try to get some rest.”
“I got plenty last night,” he said, making no attempt to hide his self-disdain.
She couldn’t help but follow his lead. “What time did you go to bed?”
“Early. A little after ten.”
“Was Megan with you then?”
“Yes.”
“But she got up at some point. Do you have any idea when that was?”
“I didn’t wake up, if that’s what you mean. But from what Megan’s told me before, she probably slept for a few hours, then got up at twelve-thirty or one.”
“How long was she usually up?”
He shrugged. “A couple of hours. Then she’d go back to sleep.”
“Did she last night?”
“How would I know that if I was sleeping?” he snapped.
She indulged his bad humor. “You might have woken, or been half asleep but aware of her beside you. I hate to have to ask these questions, Will, but I’m trying to narrow down the times during which she was taken. As things stand now, we guess it was somewhere between midnight and six. The kidnappers wouldn’t have risked anything after dawn.” She paused and studied his downcast expression. “You didn’t hear a thing during the night?”
“No.”
“No noise you might have thought was part of a dream?”
“Nothing.”
She nodded, glanced around the room, then inhaled a deep breath. “I’d like to take a look around upstairs. Is that okay?”
He was suddenly cautious. “The kidnappers didn’t go up there.”
“How do you know?” she asked, but her brows were raised and a gentle smile touched her lips.
With his mouth compressed into a thin line of surrender, he sent her upstairs with a flick of his hand. Savannah wasn’t sure what she was looking for, but there wasn’t much more she could ask Will. He was wound tight, feeling frightened and bruised. It seemed best to leave him alone for a bit. Perhaps something would come to him.
Savannah had only been to the second floor of the house once before, when Megan had wanted to show her the diamond earrings and necklace that Will had bought her for their second wedding anniversary. Four years had passed since then. Megan hadn’t bubbled about anything as exquisite as those jewels, and Savannah had never again climbed the stairs.
The change was subtle, but sad. The house had aged.
Trying to ignore that, Savannah wandered the length of the balcony railing. She peered into one guest bedroom, then another. Each appeared neat and stale. A third room was sadder, in its way. It was to have been the nursery. Megan had had it decorated soon after her marriage, at a time when she’d seemed sure children would be forthcoming, and indeed, soon after, she had become pregnant. In her fourth month, though, she had miscarried. To Savannah’s knowledge, she hadn’t conceived again.
Savannah came to a halt at the door of the master bedroom. It was truly a stunning room, with a four-poster bed, surrounded by brocade drawbacks that matched the drapes. The dressers were antique and the accessories—small oil paintings, delicate china figurines, brass lamps—were well chosen. She knew that Will had done extensive renovation and redecorating in the days immediately before his marriage. She suspected nothing had been done since then.
