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her up. At five feet five, Adrienne was the exact height of her daughter, but at the moment, she felt small and shattered beside Skye’s youth and strength.
    “Mom, I’m so sorry.” Skye’s voice trembled. “She’s been your friend forever.”
    “Since we were six. She was so beautiful. And fun. Even then.”
    “I know.” Skye patted her back, going on mechanically. “I thought she was terrific. Everybody did.”
    Adrienne clung to her daughter, eyes tightly shut. Then she opened them and looked around in confusion. “What was Julianna doing here? The hotel’s empty. Why would she be sleeping in this place?”
    Skye shook her head. “I don’t know. Maybe she thought it was fun, or she wanted to spend the night here because the place is going to be torn down. You know how crazy she could act sometimes. Daredevil crazy. Fun crazy.”
    “No, that’s not what happened. She wasn’t alone,” Adrienne stated with abrupt certainty. “She didn’t come here to spend the night alone. She could be reckless but she wasn’t a fool. She would have known a deserted hotel could be a magnet for vandals.”
    Adrienne’s gaze shot frantically around the room. She noted again the wine bottle and the pale yellow wax poured into the pretty faceted glass jars Julianna’s mother used for her candle-making business.
    “Julianna wouldn’t have lain here alone surrounded by candles her mother made and drunk champagne until she passed out for the rest of the night,” Adrienne went on, more to herself than Skye. “She would have known someone could break in and hurt her.”
    “Maybe she felt safe because of the caretaker.”
    “Claude Duncan?” Adrienne emitted a dry little laugh. “Claude’s father was the manager of the Belle and ran this place with military precision for thirty years. Claude is next to useless. Ellen Kirkwood only kept on Claude as caretaker after Mr. Duncan died because, by then, she’d closed the hotel and Claude couldn’t do much harm. But Julianna knew Claude and wouldn’t count on him for protection. He’s usually dead drunk by ten o’clock.”
    “Well, then …” Skye looked at her blankly and lifted her shoulders in bafflement.
    “Maybe she was here with a man,” Adrienne said with certainty. “A lover.”
    Skye’s eyes widened. “A
lover?”
    “The candles. The wine. And she’s naked but wearing some mascara. And expensive perfume. L’ Heure Bleue by Guerlain.”
    “But that’s weird, Mom. If she had a lover, why would they need to come here? She lives alone.”
    “She lives in an apartment building where other people could see a man coming and going.”
    “So?” Skye paused. “Oh, she was with someone she didn’t want anyone to know about.” She frowned. “But if Julianna was here with a man, then
he
could have—”
    “Killed her.”
    Skye drew a sharp breath before lowering her gaze to the floor. Adrienne suddenly realized the girl had never looked directly at the body after that first staggering glance. And her own face was almost as pale as Julianna’s was. Much of the time, Skye acted and sounded like a young woman. But she’s only a girl of fourteen, Adrienne thought, furious with herself for even momentarily forgetting. And I’m not taking care of my child in this crisis, she ranted on inwardly. Instead,
I’m
leaning on
her.
    She put her arm around Skye’s shoulders and said in what she hoped was a confidence-inspiring voice, “Come on. We’re getting out of here, going to the car, and calling the police. They’ll know what to do.”
    “Should we just leave her?” Tears welled in Skye’s eyes. “I mean, it just seems like she shouldn’t be all alone and… I don’t know… defenseless.”
    “Honey, there’s nothing we can do for her.” And no one can hurt her any more, Adrienne thought, but didn’t say so. The pain of those words would be too great. With her thumb, she gently wiped a tear from Skye’s cheek. “Put on Brandon’s leash.”
    Skye