“Josie and I are going to go… walk the beach,” Jade said.
He nodded and watched them disappear down the sand as he filled the drink orders.
He had hoped to have a repeat of last night, but after work, instead of heading to Jade’s place, he made his way to the bungalow. Alone.
He watched the new footage, unsure what he was looking for, before crawling into bed. The next morning, he woke to a text message from Jamerson.
“I’m not taking you off the case, but be warned, we are arresting both Tom and Carol Reed today. Call me when you get this.”
He punched his supervisor’s number.
“We’re about to reach the resort,” she responded.
“What did you find?” he asked, sitting up in his bed.
“They received a large wad of cash, twenty grand, just before their wedding. The same week the two-year-old, William Harper, went missing. It’s enough for us to bring them in for questioning.”
“You think they’re behind the others?” he asked.
“If not, they may know something more. There are other large deposits. Some close to the other disappearances that we’re looking at as well. You’re staying put until we have all the answers. I’ll need you to steer clear of the lobby today.”
“Understood,” he answered.
“Good. I’ll keep you posted. You may want to give your new girlfriend a heads-up,” Jamerson added.
He thought of denying that Jade was his girlfriend, but knew that just like Josie, Jamerson knew everything.
“I’ll let her know,” he answered.
“We’re pulling up in ten,” she said before disconnecting the call.
Taking a deep breath, he called Jade. When she answered, he could tell that she was already in her office.
“Just a heads-up, a team is coming in hot for Tom and Carol. They’ll be taken into custody for questioning about the two-year-old that went missing last year,” he said quickly.
“What?” she asked, and he heard something drop and what sounded like glass shattering. “What?” she asked again.
He repeated his statement then added, “I’m staying put and invisible for now. You need to stay put. Don’t go to the lobby…”
“I can’t talk right now. Carol is in my office,” she said in a strained voice.
“Shit,” he said. “Is Tom there too?”
“No,” Jade answered quickly.
“Stay put. I’m on my way.”
“No, that won’t be necessary. She needs to head back downstairs for work. I’ll be free in a few minutes and call you back.” She hung up.
Shit. He quickly logged into his system and opened the image from the hidden camera he’d placed in Jade’s office. Josie didn’t know about this one since he’d put it in the office the last time he’d visited Jade.
Sure enough, Carol was sitting across from Jade’s desk.
“Sorry about the interruption. Please, continue,” Jade said, motioning to Carol. Jade was wiping some water from her desk that she had obviously spilled out of a glass, which had made the loud sound.
“As I was saying.” Carol shifted in her seat. “I… think my husband might have done something… without my knowledge.”
“Something?” Jade asked, dumping the broken glass and water into a waste bin.