Peril in Paperback: A Bibliophile Mystery

Ready?”
    “Yes,” she said, gasping, her eyes wide with panic.
    “Here we go.”
    He turned and looked at me. “Babe, do me a favor and hold on to my feet. Will you? I’d rather not go sailing off here, too.”
    “Okay.” I knelt by his feet and grabbed his boots for dear life. “I’ve got you.”
    “That’s my girl. Almost there,” he said, cool and composed, calming Shelly down as he pulled the railing up. Spread out as he was, he had no leverage to work with, only his own upper-body strength.
    A few more seconds of lifting and she was close enough for Gabriel to grab hold of her wrists. As he let go of the railing, Shelly squealed, but she was safer now than she’d been a minute ago. The railing tumbled down and clattered against the rocky ground below.
    “Oh, my God,” Grace moaned from the safety of the doorway. “Shelly dear, hold on.”
    “I’ve got her,” Gabriel shouted. “You’re okay, Shelly. Wrap your hands around my wrists.”
    She did so, and he planted his elbows firmly on the stone terrace and used them as leverage to lift Shelly higher. The muscles of his lower arms shook with the strain, but he managed to get her close enough for her to latch onto the ledge.
    “Let go of me, Brooklyn,” he said.
    I slowly, reluctantly released my grip on his boots, then watched him maneuver himself up onto his knees and pull Shelly all the way onto the floor of the terrace.
    Spread-eagled on her stomach, Shelly began to weep and moan. Gabriel rubbed her back. Still on his knees, hereached down and managed to lift the young woman into his arms, then stand.
    The man had some awesome calf and thigh muscles. I’m just saying.
    “Get her inside,” Grace said, stepping away from the open door so he could maneuver his way through with Shelly.
    Gabriel carried her over to Grace’s couch, where he laid her down. She curled into a ball and sobbed quietly.
    “You saved her life,” Grace said, and threw her arms around Gabriel. “That was heroic. She’d be dead if you hadn’t been here and done what you did. I can’t ever thank you.”
    “No thanks are necessary,” he said, hugging her back. “I’m glad she’s safe.”
    “I am, too,” I said, staring at Shelly on the couch. “I hope she’ll be okay.”
    Grace pulled a blanket off the back of the couch and laid it over Shelly. Grabbing some tissues, Grace then knelt on the floor and brushed Shelly’s hair away from her face. “You’re going to be fine, Shelly. I’ve called Ray and he’s on his way back from town. He’ll be here any minute.”
    “Who’s Ray?” I asked.
    Grace glanced up. “Shelly’s husband. He’s our handyman and takes care of everything around here.”
    Gabriel looked at me. “Do you know what happened?”
    “Yeah.” We stood on either side of the open doorway and stared at the dangerous spot where the railing had been only moments before. I told him exactly what I’d seen.
    Gabriel ventured outside to examine the metal plate that had connected the wood railing to the wall. I inched closer and could see the marks and scrapings from some tool that might have been used to either weaken the screws or pry the plate loose.
    “I’ll go downstairs and find what’s left of the railing,”he said grimly. “I’m willing to bet someone deliberately loosened the screws.”
    Grace came and stood in the doorway with her arms wrapped around her body for warmth. “I should’ve replaced that railing last summer.”
    I didn’t think she’d heard us talking. “Was it coming loose?”
    “No.” Grace frowned and shook her head, looking more confused and older than I’d ever seen her before. “It seemed strong enough a few days ago. But I guess it wasn’t. I feel just awful. She could’ve died. What in the world is happening around here?”
    Gabriel gazed out at the view. “Do you go out on the balcony often, Grace?”
    “Oh yes,” she said. “I love it. I usually have a chaise longue out there, but it’s been put away for the winter. But I can stay out there for hours, just staring at the lake and the mountains and the stars. Even on the coldest days of winter, it’s beautiful.”
    “Then you’ll want to get this fixed as soon as possible.” Gabriel ushered us both inside and closed and locked the doors. Then he glanced at me. “Maybe you should stick around here while I go downstairs and check things out.”
    “Good idea. Let me know what you find.”
    “Oh, you must have better things to