Page 58 of Summers at the Saint
Garrett and KJ averted their eyes, staring intently at the floor, apparently fascinated by their own choices in footwear.
“Obviously, somebody went out there at some point today and cleaned up. And in the process, they managed to ruin and contaminate a crime scene. Anybody here got any information on how that happened?”
KJ spoke up first. “Okay, so we did pick up all the beer bottles and cans and trash. Not because we were trying to hide anything. We just didn’t want to get in trouble, because, you know, of the mess from the party.”
“We really did look all over out there for Parrish,” Garrett added. “Like, all around the Shack. But we didn’t see any sign of her.”
Coyle pinched the bridge of his nose and tried not to show his mounting frustration.
“Y’all couldn’t have looked too hard, or you would have seen that shoe that the hotel’s security chief found, less than a hundred yards from the back of that shed building.”
“There was a rat!” KJ protested. “A huge rat. No way I was going digging around in the weeds after we saw that thing.”
“Okay,” Coyle said wearily. “What did you do with all the evidence you two geniuses picked up?”
“We didn’t find anything that was, like… suspicious. It was just a lot of beer bottles and paper plates and leftover food from the Beach Bash. We loaded it all into garbage bags, then we tossed the bags in the dumpster behind the restaurant,” Garrett said.
Coyle swore softly to himself as he pulled out his phone and walked out of the dorm.
Five minutes later, the sheriff was back. “I had one of my deputies check that dumpster. Apparently, the trash was picked up about an hour ago. On a Sunday, no less.”
“We have a contract with a private sanitation company. Because of the smell from all the seafood and stuff in hot weather, the trash gets picked up every couple days,” Felice volunteered.
“Great,” Coyle said, slapping the palm of his hand on his leg. “That’s just great. Any evidence we might have collected at the scene is now headed for a landfill.”
“Sorry,” KJ said, looking sheepish. “We were just trying to stay out of trouble, you know?”
“Never mind that,” the sheriff said. He pointed to KJ. “You. I want to talk to you in private. Everyone else can scatter to your rooms, until I call for you.”
An hour later, Coyle left the dorm and the members of the group drifted back into the lounge area.
Olivia went to the fridge and came back with a bottle of flavored seltzer. She popped the top and sipped while the others flopped down onto the sofas. Her eyes were noticeably red from crying.
“What did the sheriff ask you?” she said, pointing at KJ.
“He had some crazy idea that just because my old man is friends with Parrish’s dad, and because he kinda got me this job, that maybe Parrish and me were like, a thing. I told him, ‘Dude, the first time I met that chick was when I walked into this dorm three weeks ago.’ Why would I want to hurt her?”
“Parrish’s dad got you your job?” Garrett asked. “Figures.”
KJ shot him a look. “Who cares? I work hard, and up until now, I’ve managed to stay out of trouble. Jesus. I wonder if we’ll all get fired when Parrish’s dad hears what we did.”
“Me and Olivia had nothin’ to do with that stupid stunt you two pulled today,” Felice said. “Anyway, Ric Eddings didn’t hire me. Mrs. E hired me, and as far as I’m concerned, she’s the only one who can fire me.”
“Me too,” Garrett said.
“And me,” Olivia agreed.
“So, Liv, what did the sheriff ask you?” Garrett asked.
She sniffled a little. “He asked if Parrish and I talked about guy stuff. Like, who we were dating and whatever. But we didn’t. She was kinda private about that stuff, and since I haven’t dated anyone lately, I didn’t have anything to discuss. And then he asked if you guys were into Parrish, and I told him not that I know. I mean, wewere all just friends, right? Like the TV show, but without the great apartment in New York or a cool coffee shop.”
Olivia considered Garrett for a minute. “Wait. The two of you didn’t hook up, right?”
“Hell, no,” Garrett said.
“But not because you didn’t try,” Felice interjected.
“Yeah, I made a play. But she wasn’t into me, so I dropped it. Plenty of pretty ladies around who would be interested, so that wasn’t a problem.”
