“Same goes for the other employees who will now be making more frequent appearances at the bar,” Wade added. “Delia and Diego will start working full shifts for you, and Andre and I will chip in a little, too. Do what you need to do to all of us.”
I nodded. This sounded good, but I would definitely need to bring in reinforcements on this.
“We’ll cover your extra nights at the hotel, so just send us the bill for it,” Archer added.
I appreciated that, but I had another idea in mind for where I’d like to spend my nights. I just needed to check with the fiery woman who owned the place first.
Back at my hotel,I pulled out my phone, dialed the number, and listened as Chase picked up on the second ring.
“Hey man. What time’s your flight get back tonight? You wanna grab a beer and fill me in?”
“I’m actually staying longer,” I told him, and his pause at my news meant he understood the significance of that statement.
“Somethin’ else happened.” It wasn’t a question, but a realization, and I confirmed as much. “Hold on. Ghost is here. Let me grab him, and you can fill us both in.”
Once the two of them were back on the other end of the phone, I gave them all the details of what had happened last night, as well as at lunch today.
“What’s your gut saying about suspects?” Chase asked.
I had a long list, never wanting to remove any suspect prematurely, but I also had some favorites.
“Corey and Sam are still at the top of my list,” I replied. “Corey was the closer the night of the first burglary, but there’s also just something off about him. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but it’s there.”
“Always trust your gut,” Chase said, and I knew that.
“I know, but Sam has student loans—a lot of them—and has been picking up as many shifts as possible to help cover that. However, he’s been sick lately and not working as much.”
“Was he really sick, or did he come into money and doesn’t need the shifts?” Ghost asked, clearly noting the same thing I had.
“Don’t know, and short of a doctor’s note, I don’t have a way to prove otherwise,” I told them.
They both grunted in response.
“But there are also a few other people I’ve noticed who may have some money issues that I need to look into some more,” I added, needing them to know there were also other options on the table.
“Hypothetically,” Ghost said, pausing, “could a customer at the pub accidentally or intentionally witness the new security code?”
What he asked was something I’d thought about too, especially when it came to Donald. I wasn’t ruling that asshole out just yet.
“I’m not sure,” I told him honestly. “There are security panels near the front and back doors. From everything I’ve seen, no one uses the front door panel, only the back. The back one is just off the kitchen and not accessible to customers.”
“So not likely,” Ghost replied.
“How long you staying?” Chase asked.
“Another week, most likely,” I told him.
“I’ll come out and join you,” Chase said, shocking me. “Sadie’s got a girls’ trip she’s leaving for tomorrow anyway. Send me your hotel info, and I’ll stay at the same place.”
I hesitated, not wanting to give too much away, but he’d find out when he got here anyway. “I might not be staying there anymore. I’ve gotta talk it over with Tammy still, but I may be staying with her.”
There were about ten seconds of silence on the phone before Ghost busted out laughing.
I may not have been able to see it, but I could hear Chase’s smile through his voice. “Alright, then. Maybe I’ll stay with Frank and Susan instead.”
After going over a few more ideas with the guys, Chase told me he’d text me his itinerary, but his goal was to fly out tomorrow so he could just go to the airport at the same time as his wife.
Tammy was off today, so my plan was to go over to her place and take a chance on her extending an invitation to stay at her place.
