Previous chapters of the Vista Falls story:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

How should the story continue? Voting is open on the current chapter!

Last time, Riley refused to help Chief Colbert and Officer Littlepoole find the secret passageway where they heard “The Woman in Gray” screaming at Mr. Barrymore. Riley insisted that since Mr. Barrymore had treated him so badly at the hotel, the man didn’t deserve anyone’s help. Riley accidentally ended up helping Mr. Barrymore anyway by unknowingly triggering the secret trapdoor. They rushed into the tunnel to find Mr. Barrymore with the imposter-ghost. Suddenly Mr. Barrymore—who unbeknownst to the officers had planned on telling them the “ghost’s identity—had a change of heart and decided to help his wife escape. Without giving away the woman’s name, Mr. Barrymore declared his love for the unknown faux-ghost and blocked the officers from getting to her. “The Woman in Gray” ran off while Mr. Barrymore refused to budge. What happened next? Here’s what you decided.

Chapter 35
Slippery Slope

“Run, my love.” Mr. Barrymore shouted over his shoulder.

The woman stood up and hurried away.

“Step aside, Mr. Barrymore.” Chief Colbert said.

“Sam, she’s getting away!” Jenny Littlepoole tried to get past Mr. Barrymore who moved to the side to block the officer further.

“Mr. Barrymore!” Chief Colbert said forcefully. “You’ll have to move.”

“Never.” Mr. Barrymore said. “Consider me a stone wall. You can’t get past me.”

“That’s fine.” Chief Colbert shrugged, being careful not to move his injured arm.

“I’m glad you agree.” Mr. Barrymore said stiffly.

Knowing what her fiancé was up to, Jenny Littlepoole played along. “That’s right. Besides, she won’t get very far without her driver’s license or car keys.”

“What?” Mr. Barrymore raised his eyebrows.

Jenny Littlepoole pointed to the ground. “She dropped her keys and license when she fell. All we have to do is walk over there and pick them up. The license will have her name and address on it. We don’t need to chase her. We can find her easily enough.”

“I’m always telling her…” Mr. Barrymore said, turning around quickly to see if his wife had dropped her license and keys.

As he turned, he made room enough for Jenny Littlepoole to slip by him in pursuit of the woman.

Jenny took off running.

“Find her, Jenny!” Chief Colbert shouted.

Mr. Barrymore spun around. “You tricked me. She didn’t drop her license.”

“Mr. Barrymore, we have to find this woman.” Chief Colbert said calmly.

“But, you can’t. I love her. Surely you must understand that—you being recently engaged.” Mr. Barrymore pleaded.

“I understand it perfectly well.” Chief Colbert said gently. “But, you loving her doesn’t mean that she hasn’t broken the law. She needs to be held accountable for her crimes. She’s hurt people.”

“We’ve both hurt people.” Mr. Barrymore said softly.

“Like me.” Riley said from further down the tunnel. “And, just what were you planning on doing to Mina? You were going to do something. That’s why that fake ghost wanted Mina’s address.”

“Mina?” Mr. Barrymore laughed. “I just wanted her to keep quiet. That’s all.”

“Quiet about what?” Chief Colbert asked.

“She found out some things accidentally. She may not even have known the value of what she found out, but I couldn’t take that chance.” Mr. Barrymore answered vaguely.

“You’ll have to do better than that,” Chief Colbert shook his head. “You’re going to have to tell us the truth.”

“Am I under arrest?” Mr. Barrymore asked.

“Not exactly.” Chief Colbert shook his head. “However, we are going to take you to the station for questioning.”

“I won’t talk.” Mr. Barrymore sighed. “I won’t betray my love. No matter what she’s done to me, I can’t betray her. The only thing I regret is that I let her think for even a moment that I would turn her in.”

“Who is this ‘Woman in Gray’ to you?” Chief Colbert asked.

“I’ll never tell.” Mr. Barrymore said stubbornly.

“Yet you say you love her.” Chief Colbert continued. “Do you think a life running from the law is the best thing for her? By telling us what’s going on, we can help you—both of you.”

“We don’t need you help, Officer.” Mr. Barrymore laughed. “My wife and I…” He stopped, realizing that he’d made a mistake.

“Your wife?” Riley exclaimed. “So, that’s it. You’re married to the woman.”

“What’s her name?” Chief Colbert asked.

“Mrs. Russell Barrymore.” Mr. Barrymore smirked. “Do you honestly think I’d give you her name?”

“All we have to do is consult the marriage records for the town. We’d see the name of the woman you married.” Chief Colbert sighed. “Why don’t you save us the trouble of looking and just tell us. We’ll find out one way or another.”

“Never.” Mr. Barrymore shook his head.

“Why are the two of you trying to terrorize the whole town?” Riley asked.

“I’ll never tell.” The hotel manager answered stubbornly.

“Come with me, then.” Chief Colbert took Mr. Barrymore gently by the arm. “We’re going to wait in the courthouse basement until Officer Littlepoole returns.”

“I will wait forever,” Mr. Barrymore shook his head, “just to be near my wife. Everything I’ve done, I’ve done because it’s what she wanted. It’s what she needed to make her happy.”

“By making everyone else miserable.” Riley snapped.

“That’s no concern of mine.” Mr. Barrymore shrugged.

“It soon will be.” Chief Colbert smiled.

At that very moment, “The Woman in Gray” was running along the edge of Old Martin Creek. Her shoes slid in the mud along the creek bed as she ran.
Officer Littlepoole was catching up to her.

“You’d really help yourself out a lot if you’d just stop right now.” Officer Littlepoole shouted.

Yet, the woman kept running. Panting heavily, she climbed up the slope to the park, pulling herself up by clutching rocks and the exposed roots of plants.
Officer Littlepoole followed.

Suddenly, “The Woman in Gray” lost her footing and slipped, falling forward onto her elbows. She cried out in pain.

Then, she saw a figure walking along the pathway above the creek. It was a woman that she recognized from the hotel.

Missy Merrick was having trouble sleeping and had decided to take a walk in Cascades Park to try to relax. Little did she know she was about to encounter “The Woman in Gray.”

Mrs. Barrymore turned quickly to see that Officer Littlepoole was catching up to her.
“Help me!” “The Woman in Gray” shouted in desperation.

The sad cry caught Missy’s attention and she went quickly to the edge of the creek where she saw “The Woman in Gray” struggling to get up the slope.

Missy screamed and then shouted, “Who are you?”

“Don’t worry about what you see!” “The Woman in Gray” pleaded. “I’m no monster. I’m just a woman in a costume. I’m hurt. I need your help.”

“Who’s that down there with you?” Missy asked.

“It’s…” The woman tried to think quickly. “It’s someone who’s chasing me. I need your help. She may hurt me.” The imposter-ghost lied. “Please help me up!”

What should Missy do?

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