“Sure,” he replied, and I heard shuffling. “Let me put you on speakerphone. Ghost is here so we can get his thoughts too.”
Chase’s sister, Rayne, was married to another Army man named Ghost who had helped us out on many occasions both in a military capacity and when we worked at the private security business.
“What are you thinking?” Chase asked once the phone was on speaker.
I had already given them the basic rundown of what had happened before I’d left. Now I gave them the rundown of everything I’d learned since.
“The little bit I’ve seen from the hidden camera shows the burglar knew the layout of the restaurant, so they’ve been there before,” I explained. “What I don’t know is whether it’s because they work there, used to work there, or they’ve just been a customer casing the place.”
“If they were an employee, wouldn’t they have known about the hidden camera, though?” Chase asked.
“Tammy had just put it up the day before, and she hadn’t told anyone about it yet. So, it’s likely no one had noticed it. More importantly, they didn’t use a key to get in they picked the lock. Not every employee has a key, but anyone who opens or closes does.”
I heard the two of them talk in softer voices together, followed by silence for a few moments.
“You think you could add another one or two of those cameras and no one would notice?” Ghost asked. “I’m not sayingthis Tammy woman had anything to do with it, but you can’t rule out that someone who works at the bar did this just because they didn’t use a key.”
I knew that, but picking a lock took time, and if you were trying to be quick during a break-in, you didn’t want to waste that precious time if you had a key.
“Jack is already planning to add more cameras,” I told them.
“Yes, but then everyone will know about them,” Ghost pointed out. “You said the one that Tammy had is smaller, more discreet.”
“Why don’t you spend tonight surveilling the place and look for one or two more places to hide an extra hidden camera,” Chase said. “Then, tomorrow, you can tell Tammy, andTammy only, where you put them. If it really is an inside job, the fewer people who know about the cameras, the better.”
It was a great idea and one I had started to consider myself. “Alright, I’ll scope the place out tonight and then buy an extra camera or two in the morning and see about setting it up before they open for business tomorrow.”
“Call us if you think of anything else,” Chase said before we all said our goodbyes and hung up.
It wasbusy for a Wednesday night, or at least I thought it was. I’d only been here the one night, so maybe it was just always this busy.
After I entered, I made my way to the bar and noticed there was a stack of menus with what appeared to be a bin of silverware on top of it right in front of the seat I had planned to sit in.
I had told Tammy that was the best seat because I had a wall to my back and could see almost the entire place. I wasn’t sure if the items were there to blockeveryonefrom sitting there or to save the seat for me. My question was answered as I walked by the bar and made eye contact with Tammy.
She instantly moved to the seat in question and removed the items.
“I was wonderin’ if you were gonna show up,” she said in a friendly manner, as though I were a long-time customer.
“And miss the opportunity to spend some time with my beautiful woman?” I said, grinning at her.
Her body jerked ever so slightly. If I wasn’t paying acute attention to her, I likely would have missed it. It was clear that she was a bit shocked at my comment at first but then remembered the plan.
She gave me a big smile back, though it didn’t quite meet her eyes. “Look at you trying to sweet talk me and become my favorite customer.”
“Oh, I’m confident I alreadyamyour favorite customer.” I leaned my elbows on the counter and gave her a wicked smirk.
“Like hell you are!” some man four seats down and around the curve hollered at me.
I turned to look at him. He was in his late sixties or early seventies, had a full head of white hair and an unkempt version of a Santa beard, and was a good thirty pounds overweight around his midsection.
“Jimmy, you know you’ll always be my favorite customer, but this here is Ray,” Tammy said, smiling genuinely at the man. “We just started datin’, so you’re gonna have to put up with him being here.”
“For how long?” Jimmy grumbled, glaring daggers at me.
“Either until I kick him out or he asks me to marry him and whisks me away to Greece for our honeymoon,” Tammy said asshe filled up a beer and set it down in front of the man to the left of Jimmy, who hadn’t said a word but appeared as though he was enjoying the hell out of this conversation.
“Well, he looks like a chump, so I’m hoping you kick him out…and soon.” Jimmy jerked his head at me and then went back to eating the burger in front of him.
