Chapter 6 Secret in the Cistern #5
“Subtly since I hadn’t expressly gotten permission to do so.
” April cleared off the hotel desk. “To keep us out of trouble, I’ll forward a copy of them to Gil.
When I get back from the business center, we’ll create an evidence board of our own right here in the hotel.
” Sorry, Gil. She couldn’t sit here and twiddle her thumbs for the rest of the day.
Not only was she a certifiable workaholic, she didn’t have a set of adorable twins to blow bubbles with.
Kaya gave her two thumbs up. “An excellent plan, Sherlock. While you’re gone, I’ll keep snooping through the Haywoods’ social media accounts. I wouldn’t mind taking a peek at their housekeeper. She’s involved somehow. I just know it!”
“Then follow your gut.” April pointed at the pizza box. “Save me a slice of pizza, will you?”
Kaya clapped a hand against her heart, pretending to be hurt. “Me? Scarf down the rest of the pizza behind your back? What kind of assistant do you take me for?”
“A hungry college student kind of assistant,” April chuckled. “You guys are a special breed.”
“Very special,” Kaya agreed. “So special, in fact, that I’ll save you two slices instead of one.”
“Now you’re talking!” April doubted she had room for two more slices, but it was sweet of Kaya to earmark them for her. “Bolt the door behind me.” She opened it and stepped into the hallway.
“Okay, Mom,” Kaya called after her.
The business center was empty when she arrived at the glassed-in workspace overlooking the lobby.
Then again, it was Sunday, as Gil had been quick to remind her more than once today.
Many people took Sundays off. She was glad she hadn’t.
Otherwise, they’d be none the wiser about the storm shelter beneath the barn on Haywood Ranch.
Plus, her first trip to church in ages had turned out to be one of the best decisions of her life. She’d made peace with her Maker and gotten to visit with the man of her dreams all in the same morning. It had been an all-around successful day.
While she connected her phone via Bluetooth to the printer, she experienced a prickly sensation on the back of her neck — as if someone was watching her.
She turned her head sideways to peek through the wall of glass separating the business center from the scattering of sofas and leather chairs on the other side.
A young woman was slumped in a chair, wearing an oversized sweatshirt with a ball cap mashed over her hair. Her head was bent over the magazine in her lap, making it impossible to see her face. She was the only other person besides April in sight.
April watched her as the printer started spitting out color copies.
Though nothing about the young woman seemed familiar, April sensed that she was keeping a close eye on her in return.
When it came time to gather up the stack of photographs and head back to the elevator, however, the young woman never looked up. Not once.
Too bad.
April stepped into the elevator, wondering if she was being paranoid. It had been a long day. Returning to the top floor, she knocked on the suite she was sharing with Kaya.
Kaya swung open the door, ushering her energetically inside. “Found her!” She held up her cell phone to give April a better look.
“The Haywoods’ housekeeper, I presume?” April stared at the photo of the middle-aged woman Kaya was waving at her.
“Yes. The one and only Martha Masterson, eyewitness extraordinaire to something my uncle never did.” Her excitement was palpable. So was her anger. “I’ll give you one guess who’s the spitting image of her.”
Kaya’s anger was the giveaway. “Traitor Tiffany?”
“Ding. Ding. Ding,” Kaya confirmed through tight lips. “Home care specialist, my hide! I bet the only reason Tiff called her jailbird mom a home care specialist instead of a housekeeper was to make it harder for us to connect the dots between them.”
“Martha Masterson also bears a close resemblance to a young woman I saw in the lobby downstairs.” April was no longer sure she could blame the incident on paranoia.
Kaya’s smile disappeared. “Just a few minutes ago?”
April nodded as she moved to the desk to lay out the photos and create a makeshift evidence board. “Any chance you have a picture of Traitor Tiffany—?”
“Way ahead of you, boss!” Kaya was already tapping on her cell phone. She held it out again, announcing mournfully. “My ex-roommate.”
April’s heart raced. It was the same young woman she’d encountered in the lobby. “I hate to say it, but she’s in the building! Right now!”
Kaya looked utterly floored.
As much as April hated bothering Gil, she had no choice but to ring him again. He deserved to know what was going on.
To his credit, he picked up right away. Though he’d made it clear that Sunday was his family time, he wasn’t trying to avoid her. “Another emergency, my friend?” He sounded more concerned than anything else.
“I’m afraid so.” She informed him that the woman who’d faked her own abduction was currently sitting in the hotel lobby downstairs.
He gave a huff of disgust. “Just when you think you’ve heard it all!”
He rang the sheriff, who sent a patrol car over. Tiffany Masterson was gone by the time they got there, but they were able to identify her on the security camera footage from the lobby.
It was irrefutable evidence, proving that she’d never been missing in the first place. Her presence at the hotel begged another very concerning question. What was she doing there?
The police combed the building for bombs, booby traps, or anything else that might look suspicions. They found nothing concerning. Afterward, Gil gave April the choice to stay or go.
“We can put you and Kaya up someplace else,” he offered. “It might not be as nice as the plaza hotel, but your safety comes first.” He described the bunker-type accommodations the owners of Lonestar Security had installed on the lower level of their office. “You’ve got options,” he concluded.
“I’m staying for now.” Her gut told her that their enemies already had her and Kaya in their crosshairs. They would be tracking them wherever they went.
“Let me know if you change your mind,” he offered.
“I will.” She was frowning thoughtfully when she disconnected their call. Things were getting real, which had to mean they were getting closer to the truth.