Page 67 of Race to Save Her

“Let’s do a background on the hotel and its layout before visiting.”

“I haven’t been there. Too rich for my blood,” he said grimly.

Katie laughed. “Not my kind of place either. I like simple. Can you handle pretending you’re some type of financial tycoon and I’m your newest conquest?” She kept smiling.

“It’s going to be a serious stretch.”

She elbowed him.

One of the photographs fell off the wall. Katie picked up the image, which was of the Bates’s manufactured home. She stuck it back up on the board. She kept trying to work what had happened—and been found there—into her investigation. Too many things had happened around that home for it to be a coincidence. She decided to make a list next to the photos. It would help her to think about it all, and to literally see any anomalies or connections.

167 Acorn Road, Rockview (place of interest).

Brandon Bates committed an armed robbery/attempted murder then came home to barricade himself. SWAT intervened and was able to take Bates into custody.

Found a secret compartment in the floor where human body parts were found.

Bates claimed he didn’t know they were there or the person who put it there???

Detectives visited and were shot at, taken under fire. Was a person trying to kill them or scare them? (Photos of the exterior showed that bullets were high on the building.)

Katie stared at the photographs and the list. “What are we not seeing?”

McGaven looked up to the board.

“I have this gut feeling that everything is connected,” she said. “But why or how?”

“This is interesting,” he said.

Katie moved her attention away from the home to McGaven.

“It seems the hotel has been in trouble before.”

“For what?”

“It looks like the top two floors were rented out to high-power individuals who, shall we say, are breaking the law. People have hidden out or conducted their organized crime biz there, along with drug trafficking.”

“Really?”

“This was a number of years ago, but it shows the hotel has had some interesting occupants,” he said.

“It might be a good place for someone to stay unnoticed. It’s interesting that Tyler told us he and Shelby would go there to sit by the pool or gardens. He didn’t say if the employees were allowed to be there. It had sounded comfortable, a private place to spend time together.”

“Let’s find out what’s going on… maybe subtly ask questions about a man watching couples without giving up our cover?” he said.

“I want to find out more about Tyler. Even though his record is clean… there’s something else there.” Katie glanced at the board again, looking at Shelby’s photo. “I think Chris can blend in during his surveillance. He’s young enough.”

McGaven nodded. “I’m going to prep him a bit. By the way, I think you have a new fan there.”

“Really, Gav?” she said with sarcasm.

“Just saying it how I see it.”

“He’s a good guy and great cop. And I’m indebted to him.”

McGaven squeezed his partner’s arm. The jokes stopped.

“Does Tyler have social media?” she asked.