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THE NEXT MORNING, CARTER skimmed the papers spread out on the table at the resort’s cafe for the fourth time. With every detail of Thompson’s real estate investments memorized, he could answer any question with confidence. He also had ideas on how their client could make more money with minimal effort. He collected the papers into a pile, and while sliding them into his leather briefcase, he noticed Gina slipping into a booth.
He swallowed the rest of his coffee, signed the bill, threw down a generous tip, and crossed the room to join Gina. On the way over, he waved at Mary, his waitress, who sported a Christmas apron tied around her waist. “Two coffees, please. At this table.”
Gina tilted her head and peered up at him. “What makes you think I want coffee?”
He couldn’t tell if she was serious or not. “Something you said last night.”
“Ah, yes. I did say anytime was a good time for coffee.” She closed the menu and then watched him place his briefcase on the far end of the cushioned bench before he slid in across from her. “I gather you have an early meeting,” she surmised.
“Doing my homework.”
“I don’t want to keep you.” Her voice softened with concern.
“You’re not. I’m finished.” He shot her a smile. “You can relax. I gave up on trying to date you.”
She blinked as if confused. “You did?”
“Yes. It’s too much work,” he stated matter-of-factly.
She laughed. “Well, that’s a relief. So, why are you sitting with me if you don’t want to date me?”
“I didn’t say I didn’t want to date you. I said I’m not going to pursue it. I’m sitting here for two reasons. One is professional, and one is personal. First, I wanted to know what your turnaround time is on your photo shoots.”
“Two to five days. If I’m going to be in Scottsdale, I can deliver the pictures myself. If not, we’ll need to add delivery time.”
“Or I can drive up here and pick them up.” He held her gaze, unlike a man who had given up on dating her. “I’ve come to like Garland Creek.”
“It does grow on you.” Her attention suddenly turned toward a man walking through the lobby. He wore a dark suit with a name tag pinned to the lapel. “And the personal reason?” she asked Carter, not facing him.
“Did you talk to your aunt about the conversation we overheard?”
“I called her last night. She’s worried, and so am I.” Her focus returned to the man in the suit. “Will you excuse me? That’s Isaac, the head of security. I need to ask him a quick question.”
When she stood to leave, he suddenly felt like he had lost something important. “I’ll go with you.”
“That’s not necessary.”
“You never know when you might need a witness or a lawyer.” He wanted to spend more time with her, but more importantly, his gut told him she would need his help before the resort cleared her aunt.
“A witness, huh?” She took several quick steps and then glanced over her shoulder. “If you’re coming, you need to hurry.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He ran into Mary, carrying their coffees. “We’ll be right back.”
Isaac, the head of security, worked out of an office two doors down from the manager’s. His dark hair and no-nonsense attitude reminded Carter of the police detectives he had met in the past. The room was sparsely furnished: an oak desk, chairs, a dark wool coat hanging on a silver standing coat rack, and a three-foot-tall plant in the corner. A pile of boxes along one wall caught his eye. According to the labels, they contained security cameras. At least ten. Carter nudged Gina.
“I see you have the new cameras.” She jerked her thumb in the direction of the boxes. “When are you going to install them?”
“Soon.” He slanted his head and gave her his full attention. “You heard about the missing jewelry.”
She crossed her hands over her chest. “I did, and Sophia did not steal anything.”
“I know that, and you know that.” Isaac drew in a slow breath.
“But,” Carter interjected.
“And you are?”
“My friend,” Gina answered. “But the manager thinks she’s guilty. That is why I want to help you. What can I do?”
“Tell me if you see anything suspicious. Other than that, stay out of my way. You might cause more problems for your aunt, and you don’t want that to happen.” He ran a hand over his balding head. “Between the cameras and the intern, everyone will know she’s innocent soon enough.”
“Intern?” Carter and Gina said in unison.
Isaac scratched his mustache as if he wanted to put off answering. “Management thought it would be a good idea for Sophia to train an intern.”
“To follow her every move?” Gina’s eyes widened.
“And to replace her if she becomes a liability.” Carter hoped it wouldn’t come to that.
Isaac shook his head in resignation. “I’m sorry, Gina. It wasn’t my idea, and I promise I will do everything I can to prove she’s innocent.”
“Are you hiring more security?” Carter did not trust this man.
Gina placed both hands on his desk. “Are your men going to work overtime?”
“Unfortunately, we don’t have room in the budget, but there are a lot of cameras here. We’ll catch this guy.” He paused while he crossed his arms over his chest. “You know, my job is on the line, too.”
“I’m sorry,” Gina muttered. “I know you’re trying to help. Thank you.”
On the way out of the office, Carter brushed by the coat rack. A pair of gloves and a set of keys fell out of a pocket. Scooping them up, he noticed a small screwdriver, and a metal wire, hanging from a ring. He handed them across the desk. “You might need your fancy screwdriver to install the new cameras.”
The color drained from Isaac’s face as he shoved the keys away in his desk. Carter held the door open for Gina.
She waited until they were out of hearing distance of Isaac’s office before speaking. “What was that all about?”
“Let’s go back to the cafe for those coffees. There is something I want to show you.” Carter checked his watch. “I have to meet my father in ten minutes, so we need to make this fast.”
A few minutes later, Gina slipped onto a chair and watched him pull out his smartphone. “Well?”
“I want you to look at this.” He entered his password, and the main screen appeared. “A friend of mine refuses to leave anything valuable in a hotel safe. He said it is too easy to break into the ones in the rooms and, to prove his point, he showed me this video.” He pressed a button on the phone, and a booming voice broke the momentary silence. He jumped back and then quickly lowered the volume.
Gina leaned close to the phone to watch the video as the speaker held up a small screwdriver and a wire made from a paperclip. The man in the video used the screwdriver to remove a metal company nameplate from the front of the safe and then inserted the wire to open the safe. When finished, he screwed the plate back on and proclaimed that no one would be the wiser until they unlocked the safe and found the contents missing.
“Your head of security has the same type of screwdriver and wire hanging from his keychain. He wrapped one end of the wire to the ring to keep it secure.”
“Why would he . . .” She shook her head in denial. “He worked at one of the local hotels, and they never had this kind of trouble before.”
“Maybe he’s having financial problems.”
She rubbed the back of her neck and closed her eyes briefly. “If he’s guilty, he’s not going to use those cameras to prove my aunt’s innocence.”
Carter nodded. “He might even use them to set her up.”
****
GINA FOCUSED HER CAMERA lens on three teenagers entering the lobby with snowboards tucked under their arms. Snow had dusted their hair and jackets, while the cold temperatures outside had reddened their cheeks. She snapped several pictures before she heard a loud voice bellowing from the registration desk.
“I want to see the manager now!” A tall man, built like a football player, pounded on the desk.
The petite, young woman picked up the phone’s receiver. “I’ll get him right away, sir.” Her voice shook with each word. She mumbled into the phone and then told the angry guest, “He’s on his way.”
In record time, Joe, appearing calm and professional in his neatly pressed gray suit and red silk tie, marched into the lobby. His posture stiffened as he approached the guest standing at the desk. “Hello, my name is Joe. I’m the hotel manager. What can I do for you?”
“You can find the thief who stole my wife’s diamond heart necklace from the room safe and return it to me now!” A red wave of rage flowed over his face and neck. “What kind of place are you running here? Someone waltzed into our room and walked away with our Christmas!”
“Let’s go to my office,” Joe suggested. “I’ll need you to give all of the details to my head of security.”
“Let’s do,” the man snapped. “And then you can make a copy of your notes for the police. They’re on the way.”
Although Joe had sounded sympathetic, his gaze kept flittering over the lobby to catch a glimpse of the other guests. Most likely hoping no one else overheard why the man was so angry. Joe had made it clear from day one that his top priority was the success of the resort’s grand opening month.
Gina scanned the room as well. A couple waiting to check in with their two small children watched the scene with concerned expressions. A group of women exiting the cafe had stopped to watch and whispered to one another. The teenagers shrugged. After the manager and the man left the room, they turned their conversation back to tricks they had performed in the snow.
Another burglary would mean more pressure to blame someone and that someone would most likely be her aunt. Gina packed her camera in its case and then found Sophia in her office.
“We need to talk.” Gina closed the door behind her.
“If you’re here to tell me there’s been another burglary, I’ve already heard. One of the maids reported the incident.” Sophia shook her head. “I hope Isaac caught this one with the extra cameras he’s putting up.”
“I doubt it.” Gina sighed, not wanting to tell her aunt her suspicions. Their suspicions.
The lines in Sophia’s forehead drew together in apparent confusion.
“I spoke to Isaac. Carter and I spoke to Isaac,” she corrected.
“Who is Carter?”
“A lawyer who wants me to do a press release for his firm.”
“Why would he speak to Isaac?”
“He’s hanging around because he’s interested in dating me.” She watched her aunt’s eyes sparkle with interest and quickly moved on. “I’m not dating him, and that’s not the point. The point is Carter noticed Isaac has a screwdriver and wire on his keychain. Apparently, those are the tools of the trade.”
“What trade?”
“Breaking into hotel safes,” Gina said as if everyone knew that.
“You think Isaac, our Isaac, the head of security, is breaking into safes and stealing jewelry? That’s preposterous. He’s the nicest guy I know.”
“Just because he flirts with you doesn’t mean he isn’t a criminal.” She regretted the words the moment they slipped out. “I’m only saying this because you need to be cautious.”
Sophia leaned back in her chair and looked thoughtfully at her. “What do you think I should do?”
Gina sank into the chair on her side of the desk. What should we do? “If Isaac is guilty, he’s going to make sure the cameras don’t record him, so I think we need to find a way to catch the thief ourselves.”
“Are you talking hidden cameras or surveillance?”
“Let’s start with walking the property. We’ll need to research cameras.” Gina shook her head with a sigh. “I’m not sure what will work or where we should put them.”
“I’ll look online,” Sophia wrote a reminder on a notepad. “In the meantime, I’ll talk to my maids and have them keep an eye out for any suspicious activity. I have a maid in every wing of the resort, plus two in the cottages.”
“I can take more pictures outside where I can see the cottages. The thefts have all happened in the more expensive rooms to rent.”
“Sounds like a plan. Now tell me about this lawyer who wants to date you.”
What? Gina thought she had avoided that topic. “I—”
“Excuse me.” A young woman popped her head in the door. “I’m looking for Sophia Ferari.”
“You found her,” Gina answered, gesturing to her aunt. She wanted to thank the pixie-looking blonde for saving her from discussing Carter but refrained from doing so.
“I’m Amy Madison, your new intern,” she said all cheery like a pageant contestant.
She might end up a winner. If suspicion for the burglaries keeps falling on Sophia, this twelve-year-old looking college kid could take her job. Gina narrowed her eyes, and Sophia coughed at her.
“Welcome to the Garland Creek Resort.” Gina plastered on her fake smile as she headed out the door. “I’m sure this will be a great learning experience for you before you head off to bigger resorts with higher pay.”
Sophia tried to cover a smile with a hand to her mouth.
Gina closed the door behind her just in time to watch the police walk down the hall. No doubt they were here about the burglary. Joe, the manager, stood like a pillar at his door. He shot her a glance that did not say, “Nice to see you today, Gina.”
She suddenly remembered what Carter had said, and he was right. If they get rid of Sophia, I’m the next to go.