He was pushing so hard that he was risking alienating not just otherstation captains and division commanders, but the higher-ups at headquarterstoo. If he hyped this case too much and it didn’t pan out, he wasn’t justputting the unit at risk. He was endangering his own career.
As Ryan went to his office to call Jamil, the station’s brilliant youngresearcher, he wondered if bringing this case to Decker so early was a mistake.Even if it was, it was too late now. He was committed.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
No amount of coffee helped.
Jessie had gotten used to the more leisurely academic lifestyle overthe last six months, and staying up for over twenty-four straight hours wastaking its toll. She sat listlessly in the lobby, listening to Barksdale callall the guests from last night and asking them to assemble in the bar. As shewaited with Peters and Deputy Heck for them all to arrive, she sipped at herthird cup in the last hour.
Despite the caffeine hit, her eyes simultaneously stung and drooped.The inside of her mouth was coated in some kind of filmy substance that noamount of mouthwash from the hotel pantry could remove. And her ability to marvelat the beauty of her surroundings had clearly been compromised.
Now that the sun had risen, she could see the hotel and itssurroundings. In her head, she knew that the elaborate rose garden out back wasgorgeous, despite Theo Aldridge’s unwanted addition to it. The light streamingin through the shutter slits from the east made the lobby floor appear to glow.The perfectly manicured golf course, only steps away from the back of the hotel,stretched off into the distance toward a series of rolling hills. The ocean wasnow visible, with gentle waves dying softly as they collapsed where the bay metthe seawall.
Intellectually she admired all of it. But she was too tired to reallyappreciate any of it. Peters and Heck didn’t look much better. Barksdale approachedthem, looking annoyingly fresh. Apparently the years of being a night managerwere paying off now.
“I think everyone is here,” he said. “I’ve been checking them off asthey entered the bar.”
“Thanks, Vin,” she replied, easing from her chair and shuffling to the centerof the bar so she wouldn’t have to yell.
She was about to speak when her phone buzzed. She looked at the textand sighed involuntarily.
“What is it?” Peters asked.
She showed it to him. It was message from the desk sergeant at LAPD’s CentralStation that read: West L.A had squad car pass by Aldridge home three timesin last two hours. No indication of any unusual activity.
“I guess Ariana Aldridge isn’t planning to make a quick getaway toBrazil after all,” she muttered.
“You weren’t really pinning your hopes on that, were you?”
She shrugged. Of course she wasn’t. But if that lead had panned out,she could have avoided the unpleasant announcement facing her now. Shaking offthe disappointment, she looked out at the irritated crowd before her. It wasessentially the same twenty people from the ballroom last night. Some wereactively scowling at her. Others were clearly trying to hide their frustration.A few had hopeful expressions. They all looked exhausted.
“Thanks for coming down here so early, folks,” she said, trying to getoff on the right foot. “I know it wasn’t easy after such a late night. Wewanted to give you an update on the status of our inquiry and what that meansfor you.”
“It means I’m going home,” said a rat-faced-looking guy in the back.
Jessie chose not to respond to him. Reacting to one comment would leadto a torrent more and she wasn’t up for that.
“We’re still investigating the death of a guest here last night. Thatmeans this hotel is still an active crime scene and we have more interviews toconduct,” she said, then moved on before anyone could balk. “However, some ofyou have been approved to leave the island on the first ferry, with theunderstanding that you may face additional questioning at a later time.”
“Who gets to leave?” an older woman near the front wanted to know.
“But others will need to stay a bit longer,” she continued, pretendingnot to have heard her. “Deputy Heck will be announcing the names of those whomay go when I’m done. If you don’t hear your name, you’ll need to remain here untilwe’re comfortable discharging you.”
“How long are we talking about?” Richard Ferro asked, apparently makinghis peace with the reality that he was in the second group.
“Hard to say for sure,” Peters interjected, upending her “ignore thepeanut gallery” philosophy, “but we hope that just about everyone will able togo by the end of the day.”
As Jessie feared, a few hands went up and she saw several fuming faces.Doing her best not to look annoyed by the detective, she kept her focus on theguests, deciding to short-circuit the protest now.
This was probably her last, best chance to lay down the law. It was onething to hold people overnight on an island when they had no way to leave andno one to complain to. But in the daytime, with access to transportation andlegal advice, her strict tone wasn’t likely to restrain people up for long.
“Lastly, some of you seem to have already forgotten what I said lastnight. Attempting to leave before you’ve been cleared to go may result in youspending some quiet time in the Avalon Sheriff’s Station lockup. If you thinkspending a few extra hours in a nice hotel on a Sunday morning is a hassle,imagine what an overnight stay behind bars will do for you. Don’t find out.”
She looked out at the group. Most faces seemed to have softened, thoughnot all. Deciding she couldn’t push any harder than that, she nodded at DeputyHeck and left without another word.
As he began listing names behind her, she quickly exited the bar,hoping to avoid any personal entreaties. Peters kept pace, apparently thinkingthe same thing. She didn’t comment on his unhelpful interjection. It wasn’tworth the effort. When they got back to the lobby reception couches she beganto take a seat, only to hear a
