Carlita leaned back in the chair and stared at the screen. Obviously, the woman had high aspirations for her real estate career. Which meant she probably spent a lot of time working the professional circles.
On a whim, Carlita accessed the LinkedIn site and logged onto her free account. She typed in Kim Turbell’s name. A description of her background as a real estate agent appeared.
Her heart plummeted when she discovered the woman’s contacts/connections were hidden. She was still staring at the screen when Mercedes arrived home.
Carlita shifted in her chair, waiting for her to hang her jacket on the hook near the door. “How was the movie?”
“It was okay. There were a lot of parts they could’ve done without.” Mercedes wrinkled her nose. “It had way too many sappy love scenes.”
“What’s wrong with romance?” Carlita gave her daughter a pointed stare. “Poor Sam.”
“Speaking of Sam and dates, how was your date with Pete?” Mercedes made googly eyes.
“It was wonderful. A perfect date, thanks in part to Sam and Sadie.”
“What did Sam have to do with your date?”
“Pete surprised me with a tour of the city. Sam and Sadie were our guides.”
“Seriously?” Mercedes kicked her shoes off. “Sam was your surprise?”
“Yes, and he did a wonderful job. I learned a lot about Savannah and its history. You should take a tour too.”
“I want to, but I want to do a haunted tour. I’m waiting on Sam to figure out what works best and then coordinate it with some of the other tour guides.”
“After the tour, Pete and I visited Tybee Island and had dinner at Sunrise Bar and Grill on the water. The owner is Ken Gibbons.”
“Ken Gibbons. The name sounds familiar. Isn’t he the owner of one of the properties that Atlantic Deep is trying to purchase?”
“Yes, which is why I chose the place. As luck would have it, Pete and Ken know each other. He was at the restaurant, and came out and introduced himself. He’s a nice man, a veteran who was injured in Iraq.” Carlita remembered the way he stared at her. “Something about him made me uneasy.”
“Uneasy how?”
“The way he stared at me.” Carlita shivered. “I dunno. Maybe I’m just being paranoid.”
Mercedes wandered across the room. “Did you learn anything new about Coastal Adventures or the island’s property owners?”
“No. It was pretty much a bust.” Carlita told her daughter how, on the way out, she spotted Elvira in the restaurant. “She was there to meet with Ken.”
“Then maybe she should come home.”
“I said the same thing. She claims she’s close to wrapping up her ex issue.”
Mercedes glanced at her mother’s computer screen. “You have a LinkedIn account?”
“Yeah. I logged on to try to research Kim Turbell. Unfortunately, I only have a free account, so I can’t access her connections. I was hoping maybe if I found out who her connections were, I could see if any of them hit my radar.”
“If you sign up for a regular account, you can access her information.”
“How much is that gonna cost?”
“I’m not sure.” Mercedes squeezed in next to her mother and reached for the mouse. “I think the cheapest plan is thirty bucks a month.”
“Thirty bucks a month? Just to research the woman’s background?”
“You don’t have to do it.”
“But I want to know. Fine. Sign me up. If I don’t think it’s useful, I’ll cancel.” Carlita blew air through thinned lips as she watched her daughter set up a paid account. She finished entering the information and stood. “You’re all set. Snoop away.”
“Thanks.” Carlita entered Kim Turbell’s name in the search bar. Her account appeared again, this time with more information. She scrolled through the woman’s connections when one, in particular, caught her eye.
Chapter 23
“I think I found something,” Carlita said. “Kim Turbell was friends or was ‘linked’ to Mayor Puckett.”
Not only was Kim connected to Savannah’s mayor, but she was also friends with the Tybee Island mayor and several city council members.
Carlita scanned the list of names and noticed there were also local business owners’ profiles, including Ken Gibbons.
“There’s EC Security Services,” Mercedes pointed at the screen.
“Sure enough.” Carlita drummed her fingers on the desk. “Elvira failed to mention that little tidbit of information. Perhaps she knew Turbell better than she let on.”
“I’m not defending Elvira, but I would think she would want as many local business owners and business contacts as possible to grow her accounts. Maybe Elvira doesn’t even realize she’s connected to Turbell.”
“You’re giving Elvira too much credit. I think she does know it and either doesn’t think it’s an issue or doesn’t think anyone will find out.”
“So, now what? Turbell has a bunch of connections, including Elvira. I’m sure the investigators are more interested in Elvira than in focusing on you,” Mercedes said.
“Except for the fact they questioned her, and she told them I visited her in St. Augustine,” Carlita said. “Because we’re business partners.”
“Business partners?” Mercedes frowned. “Why would she tell them that?”
“Because she thought it would help. The authorities know I visited Elvira, the owner of the Tybee Island where Turbell’s body was found, while I was in St. Augustine, and now Elvira has put the bug in their ear that she and I are business partners.”
Carlita ran a ragged hand through her hair. “I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before the cops are on my doorstep again. I can eventually prove Elvira is lying, that we aren’t partners, but who knows how long it will take.”
Mercedes patted her mother’s arm. “I would hang tight. Maybe the authorities will figure out who is responsible.”
“I hope so.” Carlita’s expression grew grim
