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“What’s going on?”
“I don’t know yet.”
Marcus asked the supervisor something, then looked at the monitor again before turning toward us. Something about his expression made the playful mood disappear. Daddy didn’t rush over. He simply waited until Marcus approached us.
“What is it?” he asked once Marcus was standing back in front of us.
Marcus glanced at me, and Daddy caught it immediately.
“If this concerns Penelope, talk right now.”
Marcus nodded.
“The overnight team noticed something on the cameras while reviewing an unrelated entry issue from last night. At first, it didn’t seem like anything worth escalating, but the same individual was seen around the property again this morning.”
My stomach tightened slightly.
“What individual?” Daddy asked.
“A man who doesn’t appear to be a resident. We haven’t been able to connect him to a registered guest either.”
Daddy’s face remained calm, but his attention sharpened.
“What does that have to do with Penelope?” he quickly asked.
“He entered the building less than a minute after she did last night.”
I frowned. Daddy looked at me before turning back to Marcus.
“Was he behind her?”
“Not directly. There’s enough distance between them that I can’t say from the lobby footage alone whether he was following her. But he took the same elevator.”
The elevator. My mind went immediately to the man from last night. I looked at Marcus.
“Can I see him?”
Daddy turned toward me.
“Why?”
“There was a man on the elevator with me.”
His expression changed.
“You knew him?”
“No. That’s why I want to see.”
Marcus led us back toward the security desk. The supervisor pulled up the footage while I stood between Daddy and Marcus. I watched myself cross the lobby on the screen, completely unaware of anything happening behind me. The camera angle covered enough of the entrance so that I could see the doors open again less than a minute later. The man walked in, and when I saw him, my stomach dropped.
“That’s him.”
Daddy looked at me.
“You’re sure?”
“Yes.”