Chapter 8
Two hours later, Cole sat in his truck with Noah, watching Sheriff Marcy Thompson and her deputy finish their investigation.
The sun had risen, casting long shadows across the site, but Cole felt no warmth from it.
As well as cutting the hydraulic lines and adding sugar to the fuel tanks, someone had broken into the storage shed and damaged the air compressor and power tools.
Sheriff Thompson approached his window with a notepad in her hand. “I’ll file a report as soon as I get back to my office, and we’ll patrol the area more frequently. But I need to be honest with you, Mr. Morrison. We don’t have the resources for round-the-clock surveillance.”
“What about fingerprints?” Cole asked. “Or security camera footage from nearby properties?”
Sheriff Thompson shook her head. “Apart from the BioTech facilities farther around the point, it’s too remote out here for other cameras.
I’ll call into BioTech before I head back to town and see if they have any video of vehicles using the road.
As for prints—” She gestured at the equipment.
“Too many people have legitimate reasons to be near these machines during work hours. We’ll do what we can, but without witnesses or evidence pointing to a specific individual. ..”
She left the sentence hanging. “I understand,” Cole said. “Thank you for coming out.”
After the sheriff left, Noah turned to him, his usual easy manner replaced by something more serious. “We need to hire private security. Having someone on-site overnight, at least until we figure out what’s going on, might deter them from coming back.”
Cole rubbed his face, suddenly exhausted despite the early hour. “Do you know what that costs? We’re already dealing with delays from the permit extensions.”
“Insurance will cover the equipment repairs,” Noah pointed out.
“But not the lost time. As soon as the inspections and permits are approved, we’ve got subcontractors lined up and suppliers on schedule.
Every week we’re delayed costs money, even if the insurance covers the damage.
” Cole stared out at the site, at the foundation markers that now seemed fragile and temporary.
“And what message does it give to the residents of Sapphire Bay? Needing armed guards to protect the resort doesn’t give anyone confidence that we’re doing the right thing. ”
“Do you think it’s someone local?” Noah asked.
Cole exhaled slowly. “I don’t know. It could be someone who thinks we’ll ruin the lake.
Or someone who wanted this land. Maybe—” He stopped, frustration bleeding into his voice.
“I don’t know. That’s the problem. I’ve been trying to do everything right, and I still don’t understand who’s upset or why. ”
“What if we could figure out what’s really driving what happened here?” Noah asked carefully.
Cole glanced at him. “How? The sheriff’s department are too busy.”
Noah shrugged. “What if we hire a private investigator? They’ll know how to ask questions and find connections that aren’t obvious to anyone else.”
Something clicked in Cole’s mind. “I met someone the other day. Julie was an investigative journalist before she moved here. She worked for a major newspaper for years and covered some controversial stories.”
“Would she do it?” Noah asked.
That was the question, wasn’t it? Cole thought about Julie and what she’d told him at the restaurant. Would she want to work for someone she barely knew?
But he also remembered the flash of interest in her eyes when he’d spoken to her at the community meeting. Her natural instincts were to ask questions and to understand the full story. They were instincts he needed.
“I don’t know if she’ll help us,” Cole admitted. “But I’ll find out. After we’ve finished here, I’ll drive into town and talk to her.”
“It’s worth a shot,” Noah said. “And for what it’s worth, I think you should reconsider the security guards, at least temporarily.”
Cole looked at the damaged equipment, at the site that represented everything he’d hoped to build in Sapphire Bay. Not just a resort, but a legacy. A place that would matter long after he was gone.
Someone wanted to stop him. And until he understood why, how could he hope to succeed?
“All right,” Cole said quietly. “Contact a few security companies. Get quotes. And I’ll talk to Julie. Because even if we can protect the site, I need to understand what we’re up against.”