Sunset Beach

by Mary Kay Andrews

  “Sorry to spoil your fantasy, but I don’t see selling it. Even after Mom and I moved to Lauderdale, I’d come back every summer and spend a couple weeks here with my grandparents. It’s a special place to me.”

  14

  Drue had done enough talking about herself. “What about you? Tell me the Corey Wagner story. I bet you do something at a gym. Like, maybe a trainer or something?”

  “I’m pretty boring. I’m only a trainer in the sense that I’m my own best client,” he said. “My day job is as a physical therapist. I’m in training to do an Iron Man triathlon, which is why you see me running so often.”

  “Do you work at a hospital or a clinic or something?”

  “I’m in a practice with a couple other therapists. We specialize in sports injuries.”

  “Single?” She was mentally crossing her fingers. This man was seriously hunky. He had a great body and brilliant blue eyes and a genuine smile. What was not to like?”

  “I am single,” he said. “How about you?”

  “Same,” she said.

  He pointed at her knee. “Torn meniscus? ACL?”

  “Both. Plus the usual,” she said.

  “That sucks. Can I ask how you injured yourself?”

  “Kiteboarding,” she said. “Midair collision with a guy I didn’t even see coming.”

  He bent over, then looked up. “May I?”

  His finger traced the thick white scar. It extended six inches above and six inches below her knee, zigzagging around the kneecap. “Wow. Who was your surgeon?”

  “Just some guy they referred me to at the emergency room. Ezra Cline? He’s in Delray Beach.”

  Corey placed a hand on either side of her knee. “Was he in his eighties or something?”

  “Yeah, as a matter of fact he was. Why?”

  “’Cause this is some old-school technique here. It’s pretty swollen right now. Does that happen a lot?”

  “After I walk, yeah. It’s so stupid. I only went down to the breakwater and back, but it’s killing me right now.”

  “We should ice it. Do you have an ice pack or a dish towel or something I can use?”

  “Hanging on the hook by the sink,” she said. “The fridge doesn’t have an ice maker, but there’s a plastic bin of cubes in the freezer.”

  He disappeared into the kitchen, emerging with a makeshift ice pack, which he pressed to her knee.

  “Extend your leg for me, please,” he said, kneeling on the deck and placing his hands on either side of the joint.

  “Bend it.

  “Now flex your foot.

  “Do you ever feel the joint popping, or hear clicking when you walk?”

  “Sometimes.”

  He sighed and took his seat again. “What kind of post-op instructions did the surgeon give you? Did you do physical therapy?”

  “He just said I should take it easy and gave me the name of a physical therapist I should call. Which I didn’t do.”

  “Why not?”

  “No insurance,” she said, shrugging. “I’m still paying for the surgery, which my father assures me the doctor screwed up, based on the look of the incision.”

  “How’s your mobility?” he asked. “I did notice, when you were walking up, that you seemed to be favoring your good leg. Didn’t they give you a brace or anything?”

  “My mobility isn’t great. It really hurts going down stairs. And yeah, he gave me a brace, but it’s too hot and itchy to wear this time of year. Anyway, I couldn’t tell that it was doing me much good. So I mostly don’t wear it.”

  He shook his head. “How old are you?”

  “Thirty-six. How about you?”

  “I’m thirty-eight. But let’s talk about you. I’m guessing you must have been a pretty good athlete before your accident. Have you started back with any kind of physical activity?”

  “I walk on the beach some,” she said, feeling instantly defensive. “But it’s hard, you know. I work in an office all day, come home, walk on the beach a little, and by then I’m kind of wiped out.”

  “I get that,” he said, smiling. “That ACL of yours is still pretty loose. You need to start working on it, or it’s only gonna get worse. You mind if I give you some advice?”

  “As long as it’s free,” Drue said.

  “First of all, walking on sand, which isn’t the most stable surface, isn’t doing you any favors. Now, if you had a bike, that’s way better exercise for your knee.”

  “I don’t have a bike, but I guess I could buy a used one, once I catch up a little on my bills,” she said.

  “Here’s another idea—get yourself to a pool. You can do exercises, walking, pedaling, like that, without putting any weight on the knee. The passive resistance of the water is great for injuries like yours.”

  “Again, I don’t have a pool,” she said. “And a gym membership definitely isn’t in the cards for me anytime soon.”

  “No friends with a pool at their complex?”

  “I’ve only just moved here recently,” Drue said. “My father and his, uh, child bride have a pool, but I don’t see me inviting myself over there for water aerobics.”

  “Tell you what,” he said. “We’ve got a pool in my condo complex. This time of year especially, it’s mostly deserted, because all the snowbirds are back up north. If you want, I can get you a key card, and you can use our pool. We can set a time, and I’ll meet you out there and show you some simple exercises you can do.”

  “Really?” Drue was taken aback. “That’s so nice of you. I mean, we just met.”

  “It’s no big deal,” Corey said. “I’m sorry Leonard moved. I mean, he was one interesting old guy, but I’m glad to meet his replacement. You’re not into, uh, nude sunbathing, are you?”

  She felt herself blushing. “No. Why?”

  “That’s actually how I first met him. I was running down the beach, and I looked up here, and there was this old man, stretched out, stark naked on a towel. I ran up because I thought maybe he’d passed out or had a heart attack or something. Turns out he was just really into nudity. He’d move his chair down onto the beach in the afternoons, after the deck was in the shade. People were all the time calling the cops on him. He eventually got tired of the hassle, so he made himself a loincloth out of some washcloths. I asked him once why he didn’t just get a Speedo or something, and he told me…” Corey started to laugh. His chest rose and fell, and he tried to speak but couldn’t, he was laughing so hard.

  “He told me…” Corey was wheezing, tears running down his face. “He didn’t even wear underwear, because he liked to air out his undercarriage. Swear to God, that’s what he called it. His undercarriage.”

  15

  After her guest departed, Drue wandered into the kitchen to consider her dinner prospects. In the end, she settled on her default comfort food menu: a bowl of ramen noodles topped with a poached egg and a dollop of her favorite, Cholula Hot Sauce.

  She unloaded her backpack onto the card table—a yellow legal pad and some pens she’d swiped from the office, and the documents from the Jazmin Mayes file—and eagerly leafed through the docs, choosing to do a closer read of the questionnaire, transcribed by a CCK intake clerk whose name she didn’t recognize.

  Not much information there that she didn’t already have, she thought, setting it aside and picking up what turned out to be a preliminary report by J. Zilowicz, or, as everyone at the law firm called him, Jimmy Zee.

  She slurped noodles and jotted notes as she read about the short life and hard times of Jazmin Mayes, as seen through the lens of the investigator.

  Victim (Jazmin Mayes) (age 24) is only child of Yvonne Howington, aged 46, of 1372 Hibiscus Way South, St. Petersburg. Father not in picture. No adult criminal record, although mother states daughter got in trouble for fighting in school. Juvenile records not available. However, Ms. Howington volunteered her daughter had two misdemeanor shoplifting arrests, and during second arrest was found to be in possession of less than an ounce of marij
uana. Victim was transferred to diversionary high school (Bayside High) but dropped out at age 17 after becoming pregnant. Following birth of daughter, victim re-enrolled in school and earned GED.

  Mother states father of victim’s child was killed in motorcycle accident shortly after birth of the child. She also says daughter quit using any drugs during pregnancy and was taking business classes at University of South Florida. USF registrar’s office confirms.

  Subject hired as housekeeper at Gulf Vista Hotel and Resort on 1-12-16. Hotel personnel records produced in discovery indicate Ms. Mayes worked 2–11 p.m. shift, generally Tuesday–Saturday, but occasionally picked up additional shifts. Hotel requires mandatory drug testing and personnel records indicate there were no positive drug tests during her employment.

  Mother states victim and victim’s child (Aliyah, 6) lived with her. Mother has no knowledge of whether daughter had boyfriends, but states daughter sometimes “stayed out partying” all night with friends on nights off. Does not know friends’ names, other than Neesa.

  On night of 9-15-16, victim clocked in at Gulf Vista Hotel and Resort at 2:45 p.m., nearly an hour late for her shift. Supervisor H. K. Byars stated subject claimed her car broke down on way to work, which was why she was late. Byars also claims victim requested to be allowed to work additional shift, 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., which he agreed to because another housekeeper had called in sick.

  However, Ms. Howington insists that her daughter would not have asked to work until 7 a.m., because she was due home to take over child care responsibilities so that Ms. Howington could leave for her own job as nurse’s aide at Palms of Pasadena hospital.

  Ms. Howington states that the last communication she had from her daughter came at 2:15 p.m. 9-15-16, when daughter called to say her car had overheated and she was forced to take cab to get to work. The vehicle, a 2001 Kia, was subsequently towed to Bayside Towing. According to police inventory, nothing of interest recovered from vehicle.

  At 7:30 a.m., 9-16-16, Pinellas County Sheriff’s Investigators S. C. Shumate and R. D. Hernandez arrived at Ms. Howington’s home to notify her of daughter’s death.

  She turned the page and found herself staring down at a copy of the coroner’s report and skimmed it quickly, trying to push aside the grisly details, phrases like “ligature strangulation” and “cuts and contusions to face and upper torso consistent with defensive wounds.”

  Drue picked up the bowl of ramen and drank the last bit of salty broth. She looked down at the report she’d just read. Set down in black and white like this, Jazmin Mayes’s death might not seem too traumatic. She’d been an unwed teen mother, onetime shoplifter and a high school dropout. But from the looks of things, Jazmin had turned her life around, getting a GED and a steady job, even enrolling in college.

  Probably, she’d been trying to make a better life for her own little girl, Aliyah, who loved to read and color pictures of mermaids. Her life had been irrevocably altered. Drue turned the page and found another report written by Jimmy Zee.

  Interview with H. K. Byars, former Gulf Vista housekeeping supervisor, 11-25-16, interview took place at Superior Tire Company in Largo, where he is now employed as a salesman. Mr. Byars stated Jazmin Mayes was generally reliable employee, although she had been late to work two or three times due to transportation issues. On night of incident, stated he warned her that she would be placed on probation if she was late to work again. Hotel was at full occupancy that night because of large convention of Shriners, and housekeeping was backed up because of late checkouts and because several banquet rooms were not vacated until past 10 p.m.

  Victim was assigned to cleaning banquet rooms and guest rooms in north wing of hotel, which is separated from main building of hotel by covered walkway. Wing consists of three stories of guest rooms, 20 rooms on each floor.

  Interesting, Drue thought, that Jazmin Mayes’s former supervisor no longer worked at the hotel. But maybe not too surprising. Having worked at bars and restaurants off and on for most of her adult life she knew firsthand that most hospitality-related jobs in Florida had high rates of turnover.

  She turned the page and found another of Zee’s reports.

  Interview with Brian Shelnutt, Gulf Vista Security Chief, 2-10-17. Took place at Gulf Vista Hotel and Resort, where he is still employed.

  Shelnutt states that security cameras were located in all hallways of guest wing, lobby, elevators and hotel kitchen and parking areas. Gulf Vista is a gated resort, with two full-time security guards manning entrance to resort property from Gulf Boulevard. Guests use hotel room key cards to enter and exit parking lot. Employee parking located on lower level of three-story parking deck on north side of hotel. This area has separate key-card entry and employees are restricted from using guest parking.

  Subject states that he viewed all relevant camera footage of 9-15-16 and 9-16-16, at direction of investigators from Pinellas Sheriff’s Office. States he no longer has access to video footage but he states his best recollection is of seeing video of victim using key card to enter room on first floor of north wing at approximately 11:00 p.m. Victim seen pushing large housekeeping cart and vacuum cleaner into guest room and exiting at 1:30 a.m. Next seen pushing cart on service elevator and ground floor walkway to hotel laundry room. Access to area is limited to employees with master key card.

  Shelnutt states exterior video camera footage showed several other housekeepers and engineering employees entering and exiting laundry room before and during time victim was in room, but no video showed her exiting the room, which did not have operational interior video cameras at time of incident.

  Why not have cameras inside a large commercial laundry room? Drue wondered. She noted that Zee’s report specified “operational” video cameras. She made a note to herself to see if any other documents in the file referred to video cameras. She turned the page to read more.

  At approximately 4:45 a.m. on 9-16-16 Shelnutt states he received a phone call at home from security guard Eli Greene, telling him that the body of a housekeeping employee had been discovered in rolling laundry hamper in laundry room. Shelnutt said Greene was called to laundry room by another housekeeper, Lutrisha Smallwood, who was in room, loading used guest linens into washer, when she uncovered body of an African-American woman, later identified as Jazmin Mayes. Shelnutt says he advised Greene to call 911 and seal off area, which he subsequently did, until arrival of Treasure Island Police Department officers. Shelnutt said he called hotel manager at home to alert him of the incident, then drove directly to the hotel, arriving at 5:45 a.m, where he was met by deputies. He states police did not allow him to enter the crime scene, but he was shown a photo of the victim, who he was able to identify as hotel employee Jazmin Mayes. Shelnutt called Byars at home, and Byars subsequently met with officers to share next-of-kin notification.

  Asked about victim’s claim of sexual harassment, Shelnutt stated quite strongly that to his knowledge Jazmin Mayes never complained of harassment to him or any other hotel management.

  Zee’s next interview was with Lutrisha Smallwood, who’d discovered her coworker’s body.

  Met with Lutrisha Smallwood, 25, on 5-17-17, at Publix in Treasure Island, where she is now employed in bakery as apprentice cake decorator. Subject states that on 9-16-16, she entered laundry room at resort at approximately 4:30 a.m. No one else was in room. She stated that she was annoyed to find cart full of soiled linens that should have been washed, folded and dried by someone on previous shift. Cart was located in back of room, some distance from bank of washers and dryers. She said she pushed cart, which is on casters, toward washing machines, noting that it was unusually heavy. When she unloaded first armful of sheets and towels she said she encountered a sheet with bloodstains, that seemed to be wrapped around a large object. Upon moving sheet she said she saw a woman’s foot. She fled area and called security on hotel-issued radio. At that point, she said, Eli Greene met her in hallway outside laundry room, and instructed her to wait for police in the hot
el security office, which she did. Subject said she had known victim for only a few months, and had limited contact with her since they usually worked on different shifts at hotel. Subject said victim had never complained to her about harassment from any employees at hotel, and said she had never experienced harassment at hotel. She also stated that she believed victim’s closest friend at hotel, a woman named Neesa, was fired in weeks following victim’s death. Has no knowledge of Neesa’s last name or current whereabouts. On checking personnel records, appears woman she referred to is Neesa Vincent, who was a housekeeper until she was discharged by hotel management on 9-27-16. Reason given for discharge was chronic absenteeism. Phone number for Neesa Vincent in hotel records no longer connected. Visited Bay Pines Trailer Park on 5-20-17, man living in trailer listed as subject’s address states he was Neesa Vincent’s boyfriend, but she moved out not long after losing job. He has no knowledge of her current whereabouts.

  Drue closed the folder and rubbed her eyes. There were more documents, but they could wait. She’d been sitting and reading for what seemed like hours. She walked over to the sliding-glass doors and stepped out onto the deck. She stared up at the sky. The moon was only a crescent tonight. A faint breeze stirred the sea oats at the edge of the dunes closest to the house. She would have loved to have taken a walk on the beach this time of night, but her knee was still swollen and she’d been so absorbed in reading the Jazmin Mayes file she hadn’t noticed how late it had gotten. After nine, and tomorrow was a school day.

  “Hey!” a man’s soft voice called from the beach. She walked over and saw Corey, her new friend. He’d changed into walking shorts and a white tee and was holding a package in his hand. “I brought you something. But I can come back another time if I’m disturbing you.”

  “No, no,” Drue replied. “Come on up. I was just getting ready to turn off the lights and head to bed.”