Where were they positioned when they were on duty? Were their posts both in and outside of the house? What were the rules that she and other staff, the nurses, were required to follow?I never really knew who was on or off duty, because there were no set posts that I could see. They mostly stayed in their rooms, or in a shared living space that used to be the family’s rec room. They ate a lot of take-out, watched a lot of TV.
And as for the rules...There were really only four main rules, all of which, if broken, were grounds for immediate dismissal, and possibly a lawsuit.Rules, Rene had told them with a heavy sigh, that made hiring the nursing staff even more of a challenge.
1) The restrictions of the NDA were paramount. No discussion of Mr. D on social media, or with family and friends. No photographs of Mr. D or the estate, ever.
That was pretty typical of Hollywood. It was even more understandable since, after a massive stroke, the old man surely did not look or act his best.
2) Milton Devonshire Junior was not to be allowed intothe house, under any circumstances. Should anyone claiming to be Mr. Devonshire’s family contact them either on or off the property, in person or via phone or email, they were to notify both Mr. Spencer and Mr. Harper immediately.
It was after informing them of this rule, that Rene confessed that she had, in fact, reached out to Milt the Junior, via email. She’d done hospice work before, and she recognized when a person’s life was on the verge of being over. So she reached out to let Mr. D’s son know. She figured she’d get fired, but since the job was ending anyway...
Which was, in part, why she’d also broken rule number three.
3) In the event of a medical emergency, immediately notify Mr. Spencer who will contact private first responders.Apparently there was a private and pricy ambulance service to which Mr. Devonshire subscribed, that would bring help to the grounds more swiftly. It seemed strange that Rene and the nursing staff weren’t simply given that alternative number for 9-1-1, but her suggestion to do so had been rejected.
Rene reminded them that she’d broken this rule—full on snapped it in two—on the night Devonshire died, retelling the story that had made Sam scratch his head in bleary confusion when they’d first gone into the library.
She’d been on site—the night nurse had been a no-show so she’d stayed and set an alarm so as to check on Mr. D regularly throughout the night. At three AM, she’d discovered that he’d passed, but was unable to locate the security head. So she’d called 9-1-1, figuring that the speed of the boutique ambulance service was no longer needed, but unwilling to simply leave the body alone in the library and go back to sleep. By the time the security head returned to the estate, emergency services were already on site.
Mr. Harper was upset, but that wasn’t anything new. He was upset pretty much 24/7.
The last and final rule?
4)Everyone who entered the property had to show their face at the video camera at the gate, and likewise confirm their departure upon leaving the property.The nurses were required to show badges that Rene had made, and she’d had to clear any other impending visitors—delivery or repair people—with the team in advance.
But once on the property, they all moved about at will. Including going into and out of the house. Using the garden for their lunch or coffee breaks, with that door right off the library kept unlocked.
“What security team?” Sam now answered Jules’s question. “If Rene’s observations are accurate, the only security they provided was minimal—keeping tabs on whoever came and went through the front gate?” He told Jules what they both already knew, but sometimes it was good to say it aloud. “If there was a real threat, andIhad a team of five or more, I’d position my two best people outside to wander the perimeter—one in front and one in back. I’d put another outside in the garden by the library doors. One in the interior hall outside ofthatlibrary door, and my fifth guard would be in the room with the target. Anyone extra would’ve been assigned to the other entrances into the house, or shit, maybe on the roof. I have no idea whatthisteam was doing—some kind of firefighter method? Everyone chill until there’s an incident? Good luck with that. Target’s dead by the time they get into the room.”
Jules was nodding. “Which means the threat probably wasn’t much of a threat.”
“Or they weren’t really security,” Sam said as he approached the grocery store and searched for an openparking spot on the street nearby. “They sound more like AirBnB guests, watching TV and eating take-out.”
Jules hmmed at that.
And there it was—a car pulling out to leave an open spot on the street, just before the intersection where the store sat on the far corner. Sam swooped into the right lane and snagged it. “Jackpot.”
The Ralph’s was at the intersection of two major roads—two lanes on each side and one in the middle for left turns—with another lane for on-street parking in both directions. It was a busy part of the Valley, more so at this time of day. But the crosswalk wasn’t that far up ahead. And Sam hated SoCal parking lots with a passion. The time it took everyone to get in and out of the miniscule spaces, terrified that they’d ding their sports cars if they moved too fast... It was excruciating to suffer through that interminable bullshit.
Jules’s cell phone rang as Sam put the rental car in park. “Ooh, Harper’s office is calling me back,” he said.
“Why don’t I run in,” Sam suggested, “while you take that call. Cereal, OJ, bread and...?”
“Coffee,” Jules said.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Present Day
Palm Springs, California
Mission Day Two
Emily wanted to take another pool day to finish reading her book, which was fine with Mick.
When was the last time he’d been on vacation and sat in the sun by a glistening, pristine blue pool next to the gorgeous woman he adored?
The answer to that was a hard, flatnever.
