Chapter 11 #2
After Brody took the bat, also using the T-shirt to hold it, and headed for the resort with Dante, Mitch asked, “Do you think this has anything to do with the spy cameras you found?”
“I have no idea,” Cordell responded truthfully. “We still haven’t been able to figure out who planted those.”
Ian crossed his arms. “I get the feeling they’re not related.
The cameras were targeting guests, and the person who planted them couldn’t know which guests would be staying in which rooms, unless they had access to the reservations.
I had Brody reinvestigate the two women you hired for that, as well as make sure the system hadn’t been hacked.
There were no red flags anywhere, so I’m leaning toward it being one of the contracted workers, since nothing else happened after you battened down the hatches.
Now this,” he said while jutting his chin toward the front door of the cottage, “appears totally different. You said Tiffany’s and your clothing and the bedding were all slashed.
This wasn’t a random burglary—it was personal. ”
He nodded. “That was my thinking too, but I didn’t want to rule out a connection until we had proof.”
“Understood.”
No one said anything for a few moments, as they mulled over what they did and didn’t know about the two incidents, before Devon gestured toward the cottage. “Need any help in there?”
“Not really,” Cordell responded. “But you’re more than welcome to take a look around while I pack some shit up.
See if you can find any clues who this asshole is that the deputies might’ve missed.
Tiffany and I are staying in one of the hotel rooms tonight.
I told her to recruit some of the housekeepers tomorrow to help clean up in here.
That way it won’t take us all day.” He glanced at his watch.
“Shit. Can someone look up the phone number for the Sundown Bar and Grill and tell them we’ll be about a half hour late, so we don’t have to rush? The reservation is under Roberts.”
Nick whipped out his phone and started typing away. “On it.”
While he did that, the five other Trident men and Mitch followed Cordell into the cottage.
Even though Cordell had declined their help, they began putting things back in place, dragging the destroyed furniture outside, and filling up garbage bags someone had retrieved from under the kitchen sink.
As they shifted through the chaos, they also searched for any clues to try and figure out who the intruder had been and why he’d targeted Cordell and Tiffany’s place.
After packing up some clothes and toiletries that somehow hadn’t been destroyed, Cordell contacted Milo Brooks and asked the contractor to send over a small industrial dumpster in the morning.
That way, they could throw all the garbage in it and have it hauled away before guests arrived on Saturday.
The couch, end tables, dinette set, and mattress had all been ruined and needed to be replaced.
There were extra mattresses for the resort that were in storage, and the loveseat, table, and chairs from the temporary HR office were still in the other cottage.
In the morning, he’d have some of the maintenance guys retrieve everything and set it up for him and Tiffany.
Hopefully, by the time she saw the place again, it wouldn’t be so traumatic for her.
He’d also have the security team replace the door lock that’d been picked, add a deadbolt that could be engaged from both inside and out, and set up a few more cameras around the cottage.
He also wanted an alarm system added. The former owners had never installed one—they’d probably never been burglarized or had any other reason to consider putting one in.
Unfortunately, by the time Cordell and the others headed back to the hotel, no one had found any clues that would help solve the mystery of who the intruder had been.
Brody reported that the only fingerprints he found on the bat were Cordell’s.
The suspect had probably worn gloves, which meant the crime scene techs likely hadn’t found any prints that weren’t supposed to be there either.
While the majority of the damage in the cottage had been cleaned up, Cordell had told the men to leave everything else until the morning.
It was time to get ready for dinner, and he was certain everyone was looking forward to relaxing and having a few drinks.
He knew he could surely use a few shots of whiskey.
Tiffany was waiting for him in the lobby and led him up to the fourth floor where she’d commandeered a guest room with a king-size bed in it. “I made sure to leave Emma a note to have this room cleaned tomorrow.”
“Good. We’ll be able to stay in the cottage again tomorrow night.”
When she paled, he pulled her into his arms. “Don’t worry, pet. We’ll be adding all sorts of security measures in the morning, so you and Eastwood will be as safe there as you are in my arms. Okay?”
Holding him tightly around his waist, she nodded against his chest. “I trust you to keep us safe, Sir.”
His heart swelled at the conviction he heard in her voice, and he fell a bit more in love with her.