Chapter 4 #2
Forty-five minutes later, they were back under the resort’s porte cochere. As the group stepped out of the golf cart, Gabriel said, “If you’ll follow me, we’ve set aside one of our private dining rooms for you to use as a meeting room.”
There was a large round table in the center of the spacious room, with notepads, pens, and bottles of water at each seat.
One wall had floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Salish Sea, and along the opposite wall was a banquet table with fresh and prepackaged snacks, along with water, coffee, and tea stations.
“Thank you,” Xander said as his team took seats around the table. “We’re going to touch base for about ten, and then I’ll send Sam over to Kwon, and the rest of us will check things out.”
“Sounds good,” Gabriel said. “I’ll leave all-access key cards for each of you up at the front desk.
Sam, check in with them when you’re ready, and they’ll call Kwon back for you.
I’ll be on-site all day, so if there’s anything you need from me, just let me know.
You all have my cell, but if for whatever reason you can’t reach me—cell service can be spotty up here—let the staff know, and they can radio me. ”
Once Gabriel stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him, Xander looked at his colleagues. “Thoughts?”
“The security here’s a joke,” Wilson said.
“I wouldn’t necessarily go that far,” Tash said, cracking open a bottle of water. “There were cameras and lights by the guest residences and villas. Good lighting along the main walkways.”
Wilson scoffed. “Did you notice the perimeter? Their supposed ‘secure entry’ means jack shit when you can get on the property from countless access points.”
Tash wrinkled her nose as she took a sip of water. “Yeah, that could definitely use some work, but the property is massive. Aside from fencing the entire perimeter, I’m not sure what the other options are.”
Wilson shrugged. “That’s exactly what we do at Hudson Security.”
“True,” Xander said. “We can show Ortiz how we secure our property and see if that’s something he’d be interested in.” He turned to Abbot. “What’s your initial take on their security?”
“At first glance, it looks to be pretty high-end but basic. I’m guessing the surveillance will be standard.
Hallways, main areas, walkways, guest entrances, and exits.
I mean, no offense to Gabriel or Kwon, the stuff they have is good quality, but it’s still your standard, bare-bones hotel security .
. . just upgraded to the deluxe package, you know? ”
“That’s what we’re here for, people. Not only to assess the physical security, but to check out their processes too.
” Xander placed a map of the property on the table.
“Everyone’s supposed to initially check in at the front desk in the main building.
All other buildings are secure, and everyone is issued a customized key card that works for their guest room and allows them to access all the buildings. ”
“I wonder how many keys are lost during the course of a day,” Carmichael pondered.
“Apparently, guests are given lanyards, but since you’re talking with the front-desk staff, I’ll leave that with you.”
Carmichael nodded. “Will do. Plus, on our tour, I noticed two buildings had their front doors propped open, so I’ll check to see what their actual policy is on that.”
“Great,” Xander said. “Now, the resort also offers limited day passes for the spa and salon. These folks get a key card that supposedly only gives them access to the spa building. But the guy who shot up the place yesterday bypassed the front desk and walked right over to the spa building where someone held the door open for him.”
Everyone around the table winced, and Xander agreed. It was one thing to install cameras and lights, it was another thing entirely to change people’s practices.
“We need to provide them some options that they can realistically implement, things that the staff will actually do. However, knowing people the way we do”—he turned to Abbot—“I’d like you to focus on really tight surveillance that also still maintains the guests’ privacy.
I’m sure privacy is important, but overall security holds a higher priority.
I know you’ll find a way to balance the two. ”
Abbot nodded. “Go overboard on the cybersecurity, because the worker bees won’t want to confront anyone, and make sure guests’ privacy is maintained. It’ll be costly, but the dude’s a billionaire. He can afford the upgrades.”
After another few minutes of everyone sharing their thoughts, Xander doled out the assignments, and the team disbursed.
Making his way to the spa, he was surprised by the high-energy atmosphere buzzing around him.
Numerous guests milled about in their athleisure wear, happily chatting as they sipped on freshly made smoothies.
Others hustled down the resort’s paths in small groups of twos and threes, making their way to their various scheduled activities.
A group of ten women laughed loudly as they followed three identically dressed staff members to the outer edge of the property for what he assumed was a guided hike.
Following the path, Xander arrived at the spa. Designed to blend into its surroundings, the building was a sprawling two-story wood, stone, and glass marvel with a cascading water feature to the left of the entrance. It was obvious Gabriel hadn’t spared any expense.
Xander was glad to see a security camera discreetly monitoring the spa’s entrance, but he hadn’t noticed any along the pathways from the main building.
Glancing around, he frowned. The spa was roughly a hundred and fifty yards from the main building.
Yesterday’s shooter shouldn’t have been able to get so deep into the resort property without anyone noticing him or stopping him.
Fresh soothing spa scents wafted over him as he entered the building. He made his way to the check-in counter where a young woman was in conversation with two guests.
Patiently waiting his turn, he glanced around.
Not that he was hoping to catch a glimpse of a certain raven-haired beauty or anything.
Freya had mentioned she’d been given the week off, so the chances of running into her were slim.
If he wanted to see her again, he’d have to actually reach out, which . . . wasn’t something he was sure about.
It was one thing to flirt, but it was another thing entirely to follow through.
Again, he wasn’t sure that was something he wanted to do.
She didn’t seem like the casual sort. Though he was kind of over that, he also wasn’t in the market for any sort of relationship.
So reaching out probably wasn’t the smartest idea.
Yeah, Freya was beautiful, seemingly sweet, and funny, but there wasn’t much he could offer her aside from a night of fun, or maybe two—
What. The. Fuck? Focus, Bonetti.
Chastising himself, he inhaled deeply, taking in the spa’s eucalyptus and lemon scents and willing them to help him focus. He needed to get his head back in the game.
Looking to the left, he took in the larger spa area.
Its waiting lounge had numerous plush couches and overstuffed chairs where five women were congregated.
Two women stood along the back wall perusing the bar of beverages and snacks.
Past the waiting area were the locker areas, steam rooms, relaxation spaces, thermal rooms, water features, and various treatment rooms.
He glanced to the right. Instead of seeing the smaller, yet no less plush, waiting area and salon workstations, large multi-paneled room dividers blocked the entire entrance.
“Good morning,” a chipper voice called out. “How can I help you?”
He turned his attention to the young woman behind the front desk and glanced at her name tag. “Good morning, Audrey. I have a meeting with Miriam Littlefield.”
“You must be Mr. Bonetti. Miriam’s running just a few minutes behind but is on her way.
” She smiled and gestured to the waiting area.
“Feel free to take a seat or help yourself to some refreshments while you wait. Today, our three infused waters are cucumber, honeydew, and mint; strawberry, lemon, and basil; and blackberries, orange, and ginger.”
Holy shit, he was so not fancy enough for this place. He eyed the various glass beverage dispensers across the room. “Um, is there just regular water?”
Audrey giggled. “Of course. It’s the one on the far right.”
“Thank you.”
As he turned, the entrance door swung open. Two women walked in, and he came to a halt. His gut clenched, and he couldn’t have stopped the smile on his face from spreading if he’d tried.
Freya.
She’d texted him when she’d made it home last night, reassuring him that his concern for her safety hadn’t encroached into creeper territory.
It had taken him an embarrassingly long time to come up with a witty reply where he’d wished her a good night but left it open-ended.
To which she’d responded with a pink heart emoji.
Did he know what the hell a pink heart emoji meant? No. But still, the woman had been at the forefront of his mind ever since.
“Xander, hi,” Freya exclaimed, surprise coloring her face. “What are you doing here?”
No fucking clue.
She wasn’t dressed in all black this morning.
She wore dark jeans and a flowy, long-sleeved, blue top with flowers.
Her long black hair was wavy and cascaded around her.
She looked fresh and pretty. Hell, she was downright stunning.
Not that she hadn’t been stunning last night.
But the dark shadows that had lingered beneath her eyes were gone now.
A throat cleared, and his gaze swung to the woman standing beside Freya. Clarification: to the woman standing beside Freya who was looking at him with an amused and curious grin. “I’m Miriam Littlefield,” she said, holding out her hand. “My apologies for being late, Mr. Bonetti.”
Get your shit together. “Just Xander is fine. And no apologies are necessary,” he said, shaking her hand. “I appreciate you making time to meet with me this morning.”
“Of course.” Miriam’s eyes ping-ponged between him and Freya. “I take it you two know each other?”
“We met yesterday,” Freya replied, a soft blush staining her cheeks. “He’s the one I was telling you about. The one who helped me out with the drunk guy.”
Miriam gave him an appraising once-over and then turned to Freya. “I have to grab a few things, but why don’t you show him what the crew has done with the space so far.”
Freya’s ice-blue eyes widened. “Um, sure. Of course.”
“I’ll be right back, Mr. Bonetti,” Miriam said.
“Take your time,” Xander replied, his gaze not leaving Freya’s. “Morning.”
She cleared her throat. “Good morning. If you’ll follow me,” she said, gesturing to one end of the room divider as the pink in her cheeks deepened.
That little flush fascinated him. What would—
No. Holy shit. Hell, no.
Shaking his head, he followed her behind the screen. Didn’t he just tell himself that getting together with her would be a bad idea?
Yeah, but that was before she was standing right in front of you. Like you fucking conjured her from thin air.
He internally cringed. Great. Now he was having a debate with himself. Motherfucking shit.
Keeping his eyes off the woman in front of him, he scanned the room, and surprise had his eyebrows lifting. Gone was the mess and destruction from the day before.
Focus, dammit. You’re here to assess the place. Nothing more. Eye. On. The. Job.