The guys decided to take a rest after the zip line adventure, so I grabbed Paige and Stormi and we settled into three of the Adirondack chairs.
I leaned back in my chair dejected. “I hate this. Something is fishy and I’m afraid Hammond is going to go to jail for a crime he didn’t commit.”
“I agree,” Stormi said as she looked out over the ocean and the crashing waves. “This doesn’t feel right to me either.”
“Are we planning another breaking and entering?” Paige asked sarcastically.
Neither Stormi or I answered.
Paige blanched. “You’ve got to be kidding me. Didn’t you girls learn your lesson the last time?”
Stormi scrunched her nose. “Weeeelll, we didn’t get caught.”
Paige couldn’t believe it. “Not yet!”
I leaned forward in my chair. “All I want to do is knock on the guy’s door. I’ve seen a photo of Yvette’s husband and that director. This way we can see if one of them is on the resort grounds.”
Stormi got a twinkle in her eye. “I’ll do you one better. This place is huge. We can go to housekeeping, say we’re new hires, and get a couple of uniforms. Then we can go to the room and tell him we’ve been sent to inspect for water leakage because the unit below him is complaining about a leaky ceiling.”
Paige rolled her eyes. “And what pray tell are you looking for once you get in his room? A diary that confesses to two murders?”
Stormi was deep in thought. “I’m not sure what to look for. I’m just winging it.”
“Apparently,” Paige grumped. “Listen girls, I know you want to help Hammond, but don’t get yourselves in trouble or hurt in the process. Besides, you don’t know for sure that Hammond isn’t guilty. You’ve known him for 2 seconds. That isn’t enough time to identify if he’s capable of killing two people.”
I know Paige was being logical…I could always count on her for that. But my gut was telling me something wasn‘t right.
“I don’t think it’s going to hurt anything if we ask to inspect his room.” Stormi was determined and Paige knew there was no stopping her when she got that look in her eye.
“You do realize you’re married to a police officer, right?” Paige asked.
Stormi nodded distractedly.
Paige sighed. “There’s no way I’m letting you girls go about this on your own.”
We looked at Paige excitedly.
“Don’t get your dander up,” Paige said holding her hand up. “I’m not playing dress up, but I will be the lookout. If I notice anything hinky going on, I’m pulling you two out. Wait a minute…what if you do find something? We can’t use it against them. How are we going to tell the police we got the incriminating information?”
“We’ll figure that out later,” Stormi replied. “First let’s find something.”
Chapter Ten
Stormi and I grabbed a couple of maintenance uniforms from the downstairs laundry. Of course, they didn’t really fit, but they’d have to make due. I could tell Paige was nervous by her wringing hands. I felt that surge of excitement in my tummy. I was becoming use to this espionage stuff. That may not be a good thing.
“Okay, let’s get this plan laid out,” Paige instructed. “You’re telling whoever is in there that you need to inspect the bathroom for any leaks. Problem is, I doubt you’re going to find any incriminating evidence in the bathroom.”
“Should we tell him to leave?” Stormi asked.
“I guess you could, although that may seem odd to him,” Paige said. “But then again maybe not.” Paige threw up her hands. “Let’s get this over with before I bail.”
We hurried up to the room that corresponded to the one with the Mo Brady name. Paige remained down the hall as a lookout.
Stormi and I let out a long breath, and I knocked on the door. A burly voice yelled, “Go away!”
We looked at one another, and then I said, “Sir, this is hotel maintenance and we’ve been instructed to inspect your bathroom. The room below your’s is complaining of leaks.”
All of a sudden, the door flew open. And there he stood. Mr. Brady Morris! I knew it! That name on the registration, Mo Brady, was a clever (or not so clever) ploy.
“Alright…come in. But hurry it up.” Brady Morris was older than Andre. Deep creases around his eyes and on his forehead belied an advanced age. His auburn hair was askew and his eyes appeared crazed, as if he was on some kind of drug. I looked into the room where clothes, papers and shoes were strewn all over.
We entered the room and I turned to Mr. Brady. “We may be a while searching for the leak if you’d like to go down to the lobby and partake of the complimentary coffee or tea.”
Brady harrumphed. “I suppose.” He grabbed the hotel key card and marched out the door.
Stormi and I both let out a sigh of relief.
“Okay, that was bizarre,” Stormi said. “Let’s get to searching before Grizzly gets back.”
Since many of the papers were on the floor, we picked them up to look at first. Neither one of us could find anything of importance. Most of the papers were copies of newspaper articles about Yvette and Andre and their drowning. What in the world was he doing with these plastered all over his room?
“Go ahead and look in the bathroom,” I said to Stormi. “There might be something in there.”
“Okay.” Stormi headed inside the large bathroom and I looked through the papers on the hotel desk. I didn’t see anything of importance so I pulled open the desk drawer. The papers inside appeared professional complete with notary stamps. I pulled them out and sat them on top of the desk. It was Yvette’s will! Good grief…what was he doing with her will at the hotel? I sifted through the papers and then came upon a life insurance policy worth two million dollars! I was about to say something to Stormi when the hotel door flew open.
“Aha,” Brady yelled as he pushed the door closed. “I thought there was something funny going on! Where’s that other girl?”
He looked crazier than before, if that’s possible. “She’s gone,” I squeaked, backing away from the man as he started towards me menacingly.
“Who are you?” He yelled. “Are you a reporter?”
“No,” I said, walking around the bed trying not to trip over the clothes scattered everywhere. “I’m just a maintenance person for the resort.”
“I’m not stupid.” Brady spit out his words as he looked at the papers on the desk. “So you found the will and life insurance policy. What do you think that means?”
I shook my head. I didn’t know what to say.
“You know who I am don’t you?”
I nodded. No sense in denying it now.
“That’s no surprise. My face has been splattered all over the news with the deaths of my wife and her lover.”
His face became red with anger and his eyes held a faraway look. “That bitch. I hated her so much for the humiliation she put me through. I was the laughing stock of Australia. It felt so good to let her watch her lover drown.”
“But how did she do that?” I was stalling for time, hoping Paige was getting someone, anyone. “I thought it was an accident and they died together, like some romantic tragedy.”
Brady’s eyes blazed. “You’ve got to be kidding right? There was nothing romantic about their sordid little tryst…nothing but lust between those two, and sorrow for the husband and wife left behind.”
Brady sat down on the edge of the bed. It seemed he wanted to get this off his chest, but he was also reveling in his remembrance of that fateful night.
“I followed them that night. I was in disguise so they or anyone else wouldn’t recognize me. They’d dressed up for some formal night at one of the resort restaurants. I waited for them to leave the restaurant, and they were one of the last couples to leave. I was going to kill them in their hotel room, but it was late and the resort grounds were virtually empty. They stopped by the pool and kissed in the moonlight. My anger exploded watching them. I couldn’t wait any longer.
I reached for the piece of steel pipe I had secured in my back pocket underneath my jacket. I raced over to Andre and hit him on the back of the head. He fell face first into the pool. Yvette tried to race in after him, but I held her just out of his reach. I let her watch him die, and then I pushed her head under the water.”
I was aghast. Here he was talking as if he was discussing some movie playing in his head. Unfortunately, I knew all too well it was true. The drops of blood found near the pool must have been from when Brady hit Andre with the steel pipe. Brady sat looking into space as he had done during his entire confession. Now he turned his head slowly towards me.
“That felt good. It’s hard to hold something in like that. Thank you for letting me get it out of my system.”
“You’re welcome?” Egads! Paige was right. We were way over our heads here. And speaking of Paige…where was the Calvary?
“Unfortunately I can’t let you leave this hotel room alive. No, can’t have that.” He looked around the room. “Can’t use my steel pipe again as that would be too messy.” He stood up, walked over to the phone on the desk, and yanked off the cord. He looked at me and said, “Strangulation will have to do.”
He started towards me and I opened my mouth to scream when I heard an ear-splitting screech. Suddenly, Brady fell to the floor with the cord still in his hands. I looked up from peering down at Brady and there stood Stormi with the steel pipe in her hand. She put a foot on Brady’s back and held the pipe above her head ready to swing again if need be.
Just when I was about to catch my breath, the hotel door burst open. Greg was in the lead with his gun drawn along with two other police officers! I could see the faces of Paige, Bruce and Brandon in the hallway. Oh crap!
Chapter Eleven
Stormi put her other hand up and yelled, “I’m innocent! Don’t shoot me husband!”
Brandon raced in and grabbed me, while Greg holstered his weapon and took the pipe from Stormi’s grip. She had the forethought to wrap a washcloth around one end where she held it so her prints wouldn’t mar any of Brady’s prints or left over blood residue. After Greg placed the pipe into a forensic bag, he hugged Stormi. However, I knew we were in for a royal chewing out. Luckily, the men weren’t too hard on us, seeing as we caught a killer. But Brandon made me promise never to go looking for trouble, at least not without him.
It turns out, when Paige saw Brady storm back into the room, she took off to get Bruce, Brandon and Greg.
“I was afraid if I pounded on the door he’d simply pull me in there with you guys or start doing something awful. He just had that wild look in his eyes.”
“You did the right thing dear,” Bruce stated. “Although none of you should have put yourself in that predicament.”
Fortunately, a couple of the police officers that Greg was acquainted with were still on the grounds so he yelled at them as Paige and the boys ran to Brady’s building. They weren’t sure if anything was wrong, but with how Paige described Brady, Greg was taking no chances where his wife was concerned. Cue breaking down door to save damsel in distress. Of course, Stormi didn’t need saving as she towered over her nemesis. Greg would learn, if he didn’t know already, that Stormi could handle herself.
We gave our statements to the police and they reprimanded us for taking things into our own hands, but let us off with a warning. Seems that Brady confessed to the murders so the prosecutor would take the death penalty off the table. Although I wondered how life in a Mexican prison might be worse than death for him.
We sat in the lobby waiting for the shuttle to take us to the airport. Our last day in paradise was quite thrilling, but I was ready to get back to the mundane. Winchester and The Frozen Scoop awaited and I would be happy to see them. Before we left however, Hammond walked in. The police had released him and he thanked us profusely for helping free him.
“I’m glad you ladies weren’t hurt,” Hammond said taking my hands in his. “I can never repay you for all the kindness you bestowed on me.”
“I just want you to go home and try and find some happiness Hammond,” I said. “I know it will take a while, as you were such a devoted fan of Andre and Yvette.”
Hammond nodded, a sadness filling his face.
“But I believe you can help Andre and Yvette’s legacy. I’m sure you are aware that one of their charities was the Australian Wildlife Trust to help protect unique wildlife in Australia.” Hammond nodded. I had read that when researching Andre and Yvette.
“Perhaps volunteering to help at their organization might bring you some peace along with doing something constructive in their name.”
“Tara, that’s a great idea,” Hammond said as his face lighted up. “I will look into that as soon as I get back home. Thank you all again for your help.”
Our shuttle arrived and we bid Hammond goodbye.
“Do you think Hammond’s obsession will spill over into the Australian Wildlife Trust?” Brandon asked.
“Well if it does maybe it will be a good thing. He can put his obsession to good use.”
We sat in silence the rest of the way to the airport, taking in the tropical scenery before we headed north. Once at the airport and through security, Paige looked around the concourse.
“What are you looking for hon?” Bruce asked.
“The airport lounge,” Paige said. “I need my liquid encouragement before boarding that bird.”
Oh boy, here we go!
Thanks for reading!
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You can read my books for free with Kindle Unlimited. These books are all from my Caesars Creek Series
A Frozen Scoop of Murder (Caesars Creek Mystery Series Book One)
Death by Chocolate Sundae (Caesars Creek Mystery Series Book Two)
Soft Serve Secrets (Caesars Creek Mystery Series Book Three)
Ice Cream You Scream (Caesars Creek Mystery Series Book Four)
Double Dip Dilemma (Caesars Creek Mystery Series Book Five)
Melted Memories (Caesars Creek Mystery Series Book Six)
Triple Dip Debacle(Caesars Creek Mystery Series Book Seven)
Whipped Wedding Woes(Caesars Creek Mystery Series Book Eight)
And my new mystery series: Sweet Home Mystery Series
Creamed at the Coffee Cabana (Sweet Home Mystery Series Book One)
A Caffeinated Crunch (Sweet Home Mystery Series Book Two)
A Frothy Fiasco (Sweet Home Mystery Series Book Three)
A Sprinkle of Tropical Trouble: A Cozy Mystery (Caesars Creek Mystery Series Book 9) Page 5