Amanda Doucette Mystery 3-Book Bundle. Barbara Fradkin

the houses lay a small, sheltered inlet in the cradle of jagged grey cliffs. As they drew closer, Amanda scoured the village for signs of life— laundry on the line, boats at the wharf, or smoke from the chimney.

      Nothing.

      Doubt began to creep in, and by the time they reached the first of the shacks, Amanda knew the place was deserted. Long ago.

      Flecks of red still clung to the wood, but the clapboard was gap-toothed and weather-worn, the windows boarded and the doors broken in. The wharves sagged into the water, half ripped from their moorings.

      Nonetheless she ran from house to house in the gathering gloom, looking for any remnants of habitation. A can of beans, a jar of pickled beets, a moth-eaten blanket. The houses smelled of fish and rot. Her boots echoed in the empty rooms, and the ocean wind whistled through the broken slats. The houses looked like decaying museums to a dead era, abandoned in the midst of daily life. Kitchens, tables, daybeds, rocking chairs, and dishes — all simply relinquished to nature.

      She had left Tyler resting on the stoop of the first house, and she returned to find that he’d crawled inside to get out of the wind. His skin was blue and his teeth chattered. “There’s no one here, is there?” he said.

      She sat beside him and put her arm around him. “Must be one of those outport fishing villages that was relocated in the 1950s. But at least we have shelter, and I saw quite a few useful things. If we pick the best house, we can move a couple of chairs and beds into it.”

      He hung his head. “There’s no food, either, is there.”

      “No, but there’s still an hour or so of light. Once I get you settled, I’ll see if I can catch some fish.”

      “I’m so cold.” He was soaking wet, as was she, and she knew that unless he got into dry, warm clothes, he might not be able to go on in the morning. She had spotted an intact stove and a stack of firewood in the next house.

      “Come on, tiger,” she said cheerily. “Let’s go next door and light a fire.”

      “But they’ll smell the smoke! They’ll know we’re here.”

      “No they won’t. Even if they can smell smoke, it will be too dark to see us. They’ll just think people live here.”

      He gazed around in exasperated disbelief. “Here?”

      “Why not? At first glance, it looks like a village. If they’re on the run, they’ll beat a hasty retreat.” She spoke with more bravado than she felt, but she knew it was a risk she had to take. If Tyler didn’t get warm, it wouldn’t matter how many hordes of terrorists were on their tail.