Louis took care of the brandy…He poured a glass to keep in reserve, poured himself another one to hold and then added the crushed half pill to the rest. A small dose diluted in all the brandy "It would be a shame to waste the rest of it. He thought"

And Charlie did not lose time finding the diet soda that Beverly drank. He was always serving himself so it was not suspicious that he went so often to the refrigerator. He threw the pills in the soda and waited until it dissolved, the put it back….

-0-

"I should have put only one pill, or explained him about dosages" Dinah sighed. "But we were so excited about what we were going to do that we did not think things through. I mean, Louis looked up the dosage of the pill he put in the brandy, taking into account that it was mixed with alcohol. But I did not do the same with the pills I let Charlie have, or just put one. Charlie put the two he found."

"So, you poisoned me! " Beverly accused her.

"It was accidental, and you survived."

"By miracle."

-0-

Louis poured a glass of brandy to her sister. "A nightcap" he said and he joined her holding the glass he had kept in reserve. He chitchatted with her until she began to yawn and decide she would go to sleep

"There will be some changes here, Louis" she said as she went up to her room.

Beverly also slept, and Louis and Dinah got the shovels and went to the cellar "We should have done this a long time ago"

They dug when they heard some wood creaking. "It is probably nothing" Dinah said "But I am going to check all the same"

She went up. Leonore slept soundly. "Good" then Dinah went to check on Beverly

And there was something about the way that Beverly slept…Something about her breathing.

Dinah checked her pulse… Too weak… too slow...

Charlie had given her two pills not one…

Cold sweat ran down Dinah's back. Another murder… she said to herself. Another murder to your list…

She ran to the cellar. "Hurry up. I will have to call an ambulance… Beverly is dying and it is my fault."

"But.

"I will call it and help you get t out. But I do not want Beverly to die"

She called 911 and came down to the cellar again as Louis uncovered the top half of a trunk.

"Force the lock open and see what is inside."

The ambulance came with its siren… It might yet wake up Leonore… well by then the trunk would be opened.

The paramedics took Beverly out, with a tentative diagnosis of sleeping pill overdose… Dinah helpfully showing them the pills she had.

And as they pulled away, with the sirens blaring, Leonore woke up. She came down to find what was going on.

"Tell me sister why have you buried and empty trunk in the cellar?"

-0-

Lawson and Amos planned a strategy to approach Heather Mattox.

"You must seem eager but wary…tell her that you worry about covering her bills, and how you will support yourself afterwards… tell her that you are trying to get training on something that will pay the bills and if she has any suggestions… that allows for delays that we can use."

"Yes… It seems sensible….Doctor, forgive me but you are suddenly uneasy around me. I can sense it. "

"It is… it is because..."

"Because of what you saw me do to the men that would have killed Frank and Wendy"

Lawson nodded…"I cannot keep it out of my head."

"I cannot tell you that it won't happen again… but… tell me if I had not been there if t was you with a gun would you have shot to kill?

Lawson nodded "I know that I am not supposed to… that I should have kept them alive, but…"

'But Frank is your son."

"He is not your son."

"Not but I am linked to Wendy because I fed off her. I can sense her emotions…and I sensed them then… All I could feel was her fear, and how she despaired….I did not think, I reacted."

"Still..."

"This is what I am. I try to hide it and control it… but this is what I am. Most of the time I am no threat, but you endanger those I am linked with and… and the worst happens…. I am sorry."

Lawson sighed… "the fact that these men died saved me from having to call the sheriff and let him arrest Frank for his role… I did think about it… I did… and I hate myself for it…"

"And hating me is easier."

"I am sorry. We are complicated creatures, you and I."

-0-

"And empty trunk! I have been watching all those years over an empty trunk? This means, this means that Emile is alive."

"You thought you had killed him?"

"Rupert told me I had, and that he would take care of the body… Said that it was best that people think that he abandoned me."

"Which he did… with the cash… and I bet that Clark got his share. Yes. I can see. Tell you that he is dead so that you will not look for him… Accept that you will not recover the money he took."

"They were in it, together, both of them!"

"Yes."

"And I was a fool to trust him… and to think that I wanted to marry him. And would have done it if you…you had not uncovered the truth…."

Leonore's eyes shone. "I want to make him pay."

"You want me to call the police?"

"No. No scandal. No, I just want to humiliate him laugh in his face."

"Get your money back?"

"That money is gone. He spent it, so he came back to see if he could get more out of it… Well, good riddance to bad rubbish… But I want to hurt him."

-0-

"She will recover" Lawson told Dinah. "But you have no idea of how she overdosed?"

"No. Unless it was a prank of Charlie's"

Lawson sighed… "Your family has a knack for this kind of thing, does it? There was that accident of Louis… and then the death of Ken Green. Then that business with your estranged aunt… Then that supposed fiancé of yours… I think that you have not killed each other yet out of pure dumb luck…it seems as Amos is the only one sane in the family."

Dinah sighed. "But Beverly will be all right, will she?'

"Yes. Pure dumb luck…. But I guess you are the prominent family in town and we peasants are supposed to shrug and say 'that's the Benchleys, all right"

Lawson left and Dina stood by Beverly's bedside "I did not mean to… I did not realize that Charlie would put both pills… I never wanted to hurt you..."

"As you did not want to hurt that guy in Trenton, did you?' she heard Victor's voice in her mind. "And you never told anyone of it…Not your family, not your lawyer."

"I did not mean to!"

"But you did… as you poisoned her."

-0-

Leonore welcomed Clark with a bottle of champagne… "We will have a celebration"

He came in and saw the cake, and the smiling faces of Dinah and Louis.

"This is a very important decision that I will make today. "Leonore purred as she showed him a ledger… "this is a total of my assets… which you as my husband will share. Take a look."

He read it as Leonore sliced the cake. It was quite a lot… what he had been looking for and more… he would soon be a rich man.

"And I will be free of that trunk in the basement." Leonore smiled. "That empty trunk in the basement"

Before Clark could react Louis pulled the ledger from his hands.

"Too bad, isn't it?" Louis mocked him. "That you'll never share it. She saw through your lies at last."

"You better leave now" Dinah said with a sweet smile "before we have you evicted. We can get the sheriff to run you out of town."

"I can explain"

"No explanations are needed. You got your share of what Emile embezzled. We are kissing that money goodbye, as it probably has been spent. So, get out of town as fast as you can while you can still make a dignified exit."

"And don't let the door hit you on the ass on your way out" Dinah said with a sweet, sweet smile.

-0-

How could have happened? He was so close… all that money, his for the taking… and now… now it was gone…

…But there was still the treasure, and Danny…

-0-

"I do not know where it is!" Danny pleaded with Rupert.

"I know you got it. I saw you pawn some of it!"

"It was something that Mr. Benchley gave me."

"And he is not here, is he?"

"No, he is out doing … doing business."

"And you are stealing from him."

"No..."

A blow to the solar plexus dropped him out of breath on the floor. Before he could react, Clark had used his tie to bind him to a chair.

"You are going to tell, Danny… I know you do not like pain."

He took off Danny's shoes and lighted a cigarette. "You will tell me, at the end. So, save yourself some pain and tell me now."

He pushed the lighted cigarette on the sole of Danny's foot. Danny screamed. "I don't have it… I don't have it… believe me."

"Not painful enough I see." He pushed the cigarette again.

The sun was coming down… Danny thought. He had to wait… Amos would rise soon…

The scream was the first thing that Amos head. And he felt the pain and fear from Danny.

He burst rather than came in, and before Clark knew what was happening, he was caught and felt himself being torn apart...

He died, not quietly, but quickly, and Amos feasted.

"He… he wanted the treasure… He tried to make me tell"

"And you could not…" he released Danny, trying to get his bearings. "We have to get rid of the body quickly… put it in the secret room for now, and let's clean up the room. When Lawson comes, I do not want to see anything of this."

"Doc Lawson?"

"He is still upset by what he saw me do to the thugs that abducted Wendy and tried to kill Frank…. If he sees that I have done it again… no matter because I, did it… Danny…. I am what I am… but we can spare him that.'