Bella walked over to one of the computers and jiggled the mouse to wake it up. Then she typed in the password and the desktop display was revealed. There were dozens of folders on it.
“It could take a while for me to go through these,” she said.
“Do you mind if I take a crack at it? I’m sure you have prep work to do for your next shoot.”
“Sure. No problem.”
I sat down in front of Guy’s computer while she sat a few feet away in front of hers. I saw Bella pull up some photos of a young couple and start to sort through them.
I dove into the various desktop folders on Guy’s computer, most of which seemed to be dedicated to scheduling and budgeting. If Guy did have the photos that I thought he did, then I assumed they’d be hidden and named something innocuous.
I’d been searching for about forty-five minutes when I finally found them. As predicted, the photographs were labeled in a subfolder called “Lahaina Architecture,” which was in another folder called “Investment Project.”
I opened up the internet browser and logged into my email account. I then emailed myself several of the photographs.
“Oh my God.”
I turned at the sound of Bella’s voice and saw her looking over my shoulder at Guy’s computer screen.
“I had no idea,” she continued.
“People don’t generally change who they are.”
“Do you know that girl?”
“Yes, I met her once.”
“How old is she?”
“Not sure. It’s hard to tell, but Guy certainly had no business being anywhere near her.”
“That’s why you asked me if Guy had ever been inappropriate with me,” she said.
“And when you said he hadn’t, it occurred to me that you weren’t his type.”
“Because he likes teenaged girls.”
“Exactly.”
“I’m sorry I got upset with you. You were just doing your job.”
“Not a problem. It’s completely understandable,” I said.
“What are you going to do now?”
“There’s one more move I need to make, and then the truth will be revealed.”
26
Three Manhattans and a Shot of Tequila
I was so disturbed by the photographs that I drove straight for Harry’s after leaving Guy’s office. I said hello to Kiana and then promptly ordered a Manhattan. One sips those types of cocktails, but I must admit that I drank mine a bit too quickly. I’d just started my second when Foxx walked out of the back office.
“Oh, hey there, Poe. How long have you been here?” he asked.
“Long enough to be on my second Manhattan.”
“What happened since I saw you last?”
I reached into my pocket and pulled up one of the photos I’d emailed myself. I handed the phone to Foxx.
“Oh boy.”
“That’s one of the tame photos. She still has her clothes on,” I said.
“There are nude shots of her?”
“Yep. Another guilty client to add to the list.”
“Hence the second stiff drink. I think I’ll join you.”
Foxx started mixing himself a Manhattan, a drink he doesn’t have very often, when the door opened. I looked up at the mirror behind the bar and saw Yuto walking toward us. He didn’t look happy.
I turned to greet him as he reached the bar.
“Hey Yuto, what brings you by?” I asked.
Yuto looked at the drink Foxx had just finished making.
“Is that a Manhattan?” he asked.
“Yeah, you want it?” Foxx asked.
“Please.”
Foxx slid the cocktail across the bar and Yuto picked it up. He took a long sip.
“Excellent drink,” he said.
“Thanks,” Foxx said, and he started to make himself another Manhattan.
“Everything okay?” I asked.
Yuto took another sip of the drink.
“Not really,” he said.
“I assume you want to talk about it, otherwise you wouldn’t be here,” I said.
“Can we go in the back?” Yuto asked.
“Sure,” I said.
“You too, Douglas. If you don’t mind,” Yuto said.
“Not at all,” Foxx said.
The three of us took our Manhattans and walked into the office behind the bar. Foxx was the last one in and he shut the door behind us. Yuto took another long sip of the drink. He was apparently trying to get drunk as fast as I was.
“The wedding is off,” he finally said.
“Hani changed her mind?” Foxx asked.
“No, I did,” Yuto said.
“You did?” I asked.
“I found something out this morning. I didn’t know how to react at first, but the more I thought about it, the more upset I got,” Yuto said.
“What happened?” Foxx asked.
“I ran into Sora Hu by the pool at the hotel. He thanked me for inviting him to Maui and he told me that he’s met with Hani a few times since the surprise party. He said that they were getting along really well, and he had high hopes for their future relationship.”
“I didn’t know they’d met. Did you?” Foxx asked me.
“Hani told me about one meeting. I didn’t know there were others,” I said.
“Did you tell Alana about it?” Yuto asked.
“No, Hani swore me to secrecy,” I said.
“I went to see Hani about an hour ago to discuss the wedding. We got into another argument and she blamed me again for bringing Sora to Maui without talking to her first. She was so angry with me. I asked her if she intended to see her father, and she lied to me and said she still hadn’t made up her mind.”
“That’s not good,” Foxx said.
“She likes to play the victim. I’ve known that about her for a while, but it was something that I thought I could accept. I then asked her if she was sorry that she’d thrown the glass at me, and she said the only thing she regretted was that she’d missed me.”
Have you ever been in a situation like that when a person makes a cruel statement that’s also pretty funny? Despite the humor I found in Hani’s statement, I managed to keep a serious and concerned look on my face.
“What did you say after that?” Foxx asked.
“I told her the wedding was off. It was the strangest thing too because I don’t remember even wondering if I should make that decision. I just said it.”
“Do
