Page 76 of Evidence of Secrets

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Jaimie had workedthe weekend and was exhausted. The bistro had been bustling, and the tips were good, but she was glad it was Monday and the bistro was closed.

She’d seen Ryan last Tuesday morning and hadn’t heard anything from him since. He had been distracted and left in a hurry. Her visit to the building department hadn’t been fruitful either. She couldn’t determine from the plans what the intruder was looking for.

A cup of coffee was calling her name. She drank that and contemplated her day. As Jaimie looked around her apartment, she noticed it looked dusty and messy. She hated mess. After a bowl of cereal, Jaimie got out her vacuum and dust rag and went about picking up and straightening the apartment.

She finished the living room but wanted to do the bedroom before she vacuumed. Her clothes from the other day were still strewn on the floor. Jaimie grimaced. If her mom were here, she’d be hearing about it. Her mother had been a neat freak.

Jaimie picked up her shirt and pants to throw in the laundry basket when a piece of paper fell out. She picked it up and stared at the diagram. It looked familiar. Jaimie walked back to her kitchen and sat at the table, trying to decipher why.

After a minute, she realized it was a diagram of the storage room at the bistro. Jaimie looked closely at it, and there on one side were measurements. Damn. She leaned back in her chair. It was a secret room. That is what the intruder was looking for.

Her heart stopped. Ryan! Ryan was the intruder who struck Levi. Now it all made sense. Ryan asking her out. Ryan asking about a restaurant to invest in. Did he watch her punch in the code also? Most likely. Jaimie hung her head. She was the one to bring trouble to the bistro.

Jaimie stared at the diagram for another minute and reached for her phone. She couldn't make the past right, but she could right the present.

CHAPTERFIFTY-FOUR

Jaimie tried Laura’s cell phone. No answer. She’d wait a little while and call again.

She walked to the oversize window in her living room and pulled back the curtain. It was sunny, and Jaimie watched people going into the small shops across the street. They were laughing and talking. Unaware of the turmoil she was in. How had this assignment turned so shitty?

She only wanted to gather information for her article and get to know her half-sister. Instead, she would be known as the woman who brought danger to Black Pointe, and for what? She could have called Laura and talked to her. Jaimie hung her head. Laura was going to hate her.

An hour passed. She called Laura again. No answer. Damn. Okay, maybe she should drive by Laura’s apartment and see if she was there. If she wasn’t, Jaimie wasn’t sure what to do. Laura might be in danger or having fun with friends or her boyfriend. She supposed she could call Hank, except she didn’t have his number.

The drive to Laura’s apartment took about twenty minutes. Jaimie parked and walked up to the front door. No security. She walked into the foyer and looked at the mailboxes—third floor—of course. Plus the elevator was out. This was truly her lucky day.

After huffing and puffing up three flights of stairs and promising to go to the gym more often, she arrived at Laura’s apartment. Knocked. No answer. Called out and knocked again. No answer. Crap.

Okay, then she’d drive to the bistro and hope Laura was there. It was a long shot since the bistro was closed on Mondays, but Jaimie knew Laura sometimes went in to try a new recipe or catch up on paperwork.

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When Ryan realizedhe had dropped the diagram at Jaimie’s place, he couldn’t believe how careless he’d become. His father would have slapped his head if he were still alive. Errors like that could get you killed.

He didn’t have a plan when he drove over to Jaimie’s. He could try to look for the diagram. One thing was for sure: He didn’t want to hurt her unless it was necessary. The drive over seemed long.

When Ryan arrived, he looked for Jaimie’s car. Not there. Good news.

He hoped she hadn’t found it. He pulled out his lock-picking kit and went to work on the old door lock, all the while mentally thanking his old man for showing him skills he might never use but were helpful to have, just in case.

Bingo. Door unlocked.

“Jaimie?” he called out as he opened it. Ryan didn’t want any surprises. “Sweetheart, are you here?” The silence in her apartment was deafening. She wasn’t home, and Ryan was glad. He didn’t want to come up with an excuse for how he got into her apartment.

Since he wasn’t sure how long Jaimie would be out, he hurried, not caring if he put things back or not. He searched in the small bedroom where they’d flung their clothes the other day. Nothing.

He checked in the bathroom and closet. Not there either.

He hadn’t been in the kitchen, so Ryan skipped that room. The living room was next. Looking at the sofa, memories of him bending Jaimie over it flashed back. Good times. But he was on a mission. He tossed the cushions on the floor, moved the sofa away from the wall, and checked the chair. Nothing.

Her computer was open. She’d been here earlier.

Ryan punched the wall and exhaled. Damn.

He had to find her. Maybe if she found the diagram, she would be curious and ask him about it. Riiight. The woman was way too savvy. She would put Levi’s accident and the diagram together. Where could she be?

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