Page 7 of The Beachside Cafe 5
Jayme sucked in a deep breath. “So she murdered him? That drug must be real strong.”
“You saw how fast it worked. I don’t know if it killed him right then but the organs start to shut down when the drug is ingested in the system. The better way to do it is to inject it. You can commit murder in just a few seconds that way. It’s as lethal as a gunshot to the heart.”
Jaymee shuddered, shaking her head. “Horrible. What a horrible fate.”
“I’m going to get some more footage,” Jennifer said, standing up. “If you want to watch more of this, just hit the enter button. I’m sure you know how to control this video player. It’s standard, if you want to go forward or back.”
Jaymee nodded. “Yeah, I know how to do it.”
“I’ll be right back.”
Jaymee crossed the few steps to the chair Jennifer had vacated. She sat down with her back to the door, moving it sideways so she could see when Jennifer came back in.
Looking down at the keyboard, Jaymee tapped a few keys, manipulating the video and checking the other video footage from the other rooms. She split the video into four and watched as the day Doug had disappeared – been murdered – progressed in front of her eyes. She saw the breakfast they’d had that morning together, noting the way Doug and Cheyenne laughed at something funny he said. There was no doubt the two loved each other. Father and daughter. A bond like no other.
A bond Doug had taken much too lightly.
Now to find out that there was a good chance he was dead made Jaymee’s heart hurt for her daughter. It was a tragic end to their close relationship. And Cheyenne was the one left carrying the pain. For Doug, it was over. For Cheyenne, it was just beginning.
Jaymee stared at the screen, moving her finger over the mouse to manipulate which camera showed more than the others. When the video came to the time that Amanda arrived, Jaymee leaned forward and peered at all four screens carefully. She saw Amanda pull in the driveway and get out, her sleek business suit molding her into an hourglass shape. She had long shapely legs and high heels that accentuated them.
Jaymee self-consciously looked down at her short legs. She would probably look just as good in an outfit like that, she decided. She had no need to be jealous of Amanda.
Amanda knocked on the door. Jaymee’s eyes flicked to the inside view of the foyer as Doug went to check the door. He invited Amanda in but Jaymee could see the hesitation on his face. He was questioning why Amanda was there.
It was the first time Jaymee had ever seen a woman throw herself at a man. Amanda literally did that, smashing her face against Doug’s, kissing him sloppily. He didn’t push her away but Jaymee could see he wasn’t all that keen on it.
For the next hour, Doug plied Amanda with alcohol, or so he thought. Several times, Jaymee saw Amanda dump her drink into a potted plant.
“No wonder my plants kept dying,” Jaymee murmured, remembering one of her favorite indoor trees had shriveled up and died since the day she was watching play out.
The action progressed and finally Doug seemed sufficiently drunk. He responded more to Amanda’s flirtations and Jaymee was gifted with sights she didn’t want to see.
It culminated in the bedroom and after Doug fell down on the bed, Jaymee watched Martin and Amanda cleaning up the room. She imagined what kind of argument Amanda and Dylan must have had when he found out what she’d done, all caught right there on video. She wondered if the lawyer had threatened Amanda and started up his own little source of blackmail income.
Jaymee wished Jennifer would return. She wanted to ask her a few more questions about Amanda and Dylan’s relationship and why Jennifer was showing this to her. What did that have to do with the experiments being done and Jennifer’s plea for escape and rescue?
She could easily have given the information to Jaymee on the original flash drive. In a video form just like this one.
Jaymee stared at the screen until a hand came around her face and pressed a cloth against her nose. She’d never smelled it before but chloroform immediately popped into her mind when everything around her went black.
Jaymee rose to consciousness just enough to moan. She felt herself being rolled on a gurney down a long hallway. Voices were infiltrating the fog in her mind and she struggled to concentrate on them. They were both female and they appeared to be arguing with each other.
When she was able to focus, Jaymee tried not to let it show that she had woken up and could hear them. Jennifer was whining, her voice pleading and regretful.
“I’m sorry it didn’t work,” she said, strained. “I really thought it would. I just didn’t realize one of the vials was left behind. She said they had more than one, too!”
“This was a foolish mistake, Jen,” the unmistakable voice of Amanda Dinklage spoke up, making Jaymee’s heart race. She tried not to give herself away by gasping. “You should have known showing her this would only make things worse.”
“I thought she would understand the seriousness of it and maybe knowing would make her stop looking.”
“I told you she wasn’t going to stop. I told you that and now here we are because of your foolish whim. You never listen to me, Jen, and that’s getting really tiresome. You’ve been like this all our lives. I never could rely on you.”
“I’ve been keeping an eye on Dylan just like you told me to, though,” Jennifer’s voice went back to pleading, as if she was a child begging a parent for love and attention. “I’ve been doing everything I can to show you I want your plans to succeed.”
“I know, I know. You’ve been my shadow since we were kids. That’s why mom and dad preferred me. I’m not a weakling like you.”
“I’m trying to be better, Mandy. I’m always trying to be more like you.”
