Page 37 of Jane's Story
He tipped his hat to me. “Ms. Bennet, no more trouble today, I hope?”
“No, but I’m wondering if you can help me with something. Would it be possible to have the housekeeper who cleaned Charles’s room yesterday be assigned to my suite today?” I smiled sweetly, hoping my request didn’t seem suspicious.
David furrowed his brow for a moment, then slowly nodded. “I don’t see why not. I’ll put your suite on her rotation and send her up in thirty or forty-five minutes.”
“Thank you so much.” I gently shook his hand.
David’s cheeks grew pink. “Happy to help, Ms. Bennet.”
I’d planned a few more stops before making my way to the suite. For these, I intended to be as discreet as possible. I couldn’t make people forget my appearance or not see me like Mary could. But I had an enchanted clear stone. It was small and smooth, and when I held it in the palm of my hand, it created an optical illusion of sorts. It bent people’s vision enough that theylooked past me, not noticing I was near. It wasn’t exceptionally effective because once I spoke to anyone or they looked directly at me, the whole effect dissolved.
I called it my blinking stone because it reminded me of how I never realize I’m blinking until I pay attention to it. Then, I can’t ignore it. I pulled the stone from my pocket and clenched in my palm.
No one spoke to me as I walked toward the conference center. I dodged out of the way of a porter and a family with several young children who didn’t notice me.
A few members of the Haven Corp were in the corridors to the executive lounge. I walked nonchalantly around the edge of the room. Ashley’s bright copper curls gave her identity away, but I didn’t know the bearded middle-aged Black man she chatted with. Like a shadow, I approached and leaned against the wall near them. I pretended to be looking out the window but listened and focused on their emotions. Ashley’s frustration was easy for me to sense, and so was the man’s. But he had something else mixed in, maybe empathy. No, more protective like a parent toward a child.
“I don’t know. If we were really trying to build up Haven, why would anyone choose an investors conferenceto take employees out? Not trying to be morbid, but honestly, it doesn’t help anyone. Maybe it was sabotage?” Ashley sounded exhausted and leaned on the column next to her. Her fingers found the long, thin chain she always wore and wound it around her pinky.
“You know, Ashley”—the man leaned back and sighed as he spoke—“nowadays, nothing surprises me. It could be some conspiracy, or just as easily be someone with a hot head and poor impulse control. My advice is to always be careful because you never know what someone might do.”
She shook her head and muttered, “True. My head’s killing me. All I’m saying, though, is it doesn’t look so good for a security tech company to have murderers among the employees.”
Chapter 15
Theyhadaverygood point. For any employee to be sabotaging Haven Corp this way would risk all their jobs, which wouldn’t benefit anyone financially.
My head spun as I made my way back to our suite. Were these random murders to make Haven Corp look bad? What did poor Margery have to do with any of this? I didn’t know enough about any of these people to make a fair judgment.
Pamphlets, prototypes, plans, and schedules cluttered the coffee table in our suite. But a beautifully packaged delivery sat in the center of the sofa. My dress. I’d nearly forgotten about the gala. I lifted the lid and ran my fingers over the light, silky fabric, hoping I’d still be able to attend that evening.
I flopped down into a large wingback chair and frowned. There had to be some clue we were missing. I’duploaded all of my camera photos to my phone. I flipped through them, hoping for some answers.
A selfie of Charles and me made me smile. I’d forgotten I’d asked him to text me any photos he took. I flipped through the images and found another selfie of Charles and me laughing at lunch. If our relationship lasted, I’d want to frame it and hang it on our wall. I had to show Lizzy. I texted her.
Well, your meddling may have worked. Fornow,anyway.
Sorry I didn’t tell you it was Charles’s company. I was afraid you’d back out. Seriously, Jane. You’re so going to marry that boy.
I mean, that’s not the worst idea.
That's what I'm saying…
You know I forgive you… but next time, give me a heads up.
Fair enough. Look in the background. You just have to crop out the guy in the corner—haha.
I paused for a moment and looked back at the photo. In the shadows near the buffet, Armond and Lance were standing together. Armond stared at us with a slack jaw. He looked drugged. Maybe someone gave him something at lunch. I shivered.
Uh, yeah. I’ll have some stories to tell when I get back.
I couldn’t let her know I was investigating a murder. Knowing Lizzy, she’d drive straight down here and put herself in danger.
I took a closer look at Armond. Lance stood next to him, watching out of the corner of his eye, though his body faced forward. He seemed aware of something unknown to the rest of the group.
Further down the table, Catalina and Owen were in a deep conversation and oblivious to everyone else. Catalina looked a bit concerned about something, but she helped the convention run smoothly. I zoomed in a little closer. Owen rested a hand on the small of her back.
So I clicked back through the series of photos. In a second photo, Owen’s hand is still on her back, and in another, she’s whispering in his ear. In yet another, whenno one appears to be looking, she kissed his cheek. They were a couple.
