Page 66 of Sea Breezes at The Beach House Hotel

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

The next day, after the kids were off to school and Liana was ready to have them for the rest of the day, I headed to the hotel. Rhonda had arranged for us to meet with the investigator and Mike Torson at eleven o’clock. It would allow us time to review exactly what had happened with Claudine.

I went into the hotel kitchen to get a cup of coffee and saw Consuela. I waved and went over to her. “How are you?” I asked, giving her a quick hug.

“Fine. I’ve been extra busy since the kitchen fire. You know Jean-Luc doesn’t like anything to go wrong with his domain.”

“I do,” I said. “Thank heavens there was more alarm than damage.”

“Is everything all right? Rhonda is in a mood this morning,” said Consuela.

“Oh, you’d better give me two sweet rolls then. We have a matter to take care of this morning, and we’re both annoyed by it.”

“Whatever it is, it’ll be fine. You two always manage to handle any situation that arises,” Consuela said in a soothing tone. She handed me a plate with two sweet rolls. “If you need to talk, I’m always here for you.”

“Just knowing that makes me feel better,” I said. “Thanks.”

I took my coffee and treats to the office.

Rhonda was on the phone when I arrived.

She looked up at me and held up a hand. “I’m on the phone with the state trooper who stopped us with Claudine.” She took a sip of coffee. “Yes, I’m here.”

I sat at my desk and opened my computer to find a message from Claudine. I opened it.

“Sorry. The situation is now out of my hands.”

I stared at the words and felt a ripple of unease go down my back. What did this mean?

Rhonda ended the call to me and said, “I’ve asked the state trooper if he’d be willing to testify, if necessary. He said yes, and he has the body cam footage to back up his statement. I’m not sure what is going on, but Clint’s firm is out to get us.”

“I just got an email from Claudine. Listen to this.” I read it to her.

“It’s fuckin’ nonsense. We could’ve accused her of drugging Clint, but all he wanted was the paperwork back. You can’t force someone to sign a legal paper under duress or the influence of drugs, for God’s sake.”

“It’s a good thing Mike has agreed to be present for our meeting,” I said. “After we finish our coffee, let’s head out to the beach and talk it through.”

“Okay by me,” said Rhonda. “Thanks for the sweet roll.”

“Consuela thought you might need it,” I answered.

Chuckling, Rhonda said, “Guess I was in a snit earlier. I’ll apologize to her.”

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Out on the beach, we said nothing as we faced the water, allowing sea breezes to caress our cheeks and soothe our souls. Running the hotel was more work than we’d ever imagined. But we had an excellent product and outstanding management, and we would overcome this latest obstacle.

Rhonda turned to me. “Mike Torson is aware of the Everett, Shuster, and Donnelly company. They’ve been questioned about a couple of shady real estate deals. Did Clint question them about it before he signed on with them?”

“I don’t know, but it’s something we need to ask him.” I turned my back to the breeze and punched in his cell number.

He answered right away. “Hi, Ann. What’s up?”

“Rhonda and I are meeting with an investigator from your company. They’re questioning our behavior with Claudine. I received an email from her today, saying she’s sorry, but the situation is beyond her control. Rhonda and I want to know what investigation you conducted of the company before working with them.

“I’d read about a couple of questionable deals and grilled them on it. Especially before putting in my share of equity. Nothing was proven in court, and the matter was dropped. But that’s why I made my work contract with them specific. I expressed my concerns about the potential for hurting employees and others when they took over a company, and they assured me they weren’t about to do that with the deals I was working on. That’s why I’m pissed off.”

“Can your friend testify in your favor, if necessary?” I asked.