AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I walked in to prepare for dinner, opened that thing, and found it empty!”
“Did you have anything else in the safe, Miss Jennings?”
“No,” Miss Jennings snarled. “I didn’t pack heavily this trip and never keep too much cash on me. For reasons exactly like this! You really can’t trust anyone these days.”
“You really can’t,” her son chimed in. He always seemed so eager to help.
“I think we had better call the police to make a statement,” Xander said, choosing to play along with Miss Jennings’ game. Kelli understood why. After all, Miss Jennings had the kind of power to ruin them.
“Miss Jennings, would you please open the safe for me? Just so we can make sure they’re not in there somewhere,” Kelli said.
Miss Jennings rolled her eyes thrice, then set to work unlocking the safe. When it was open, it shone back, clear and empty, without a single earring in sight. “Do you see what I mean?”
“It’s not that I didn’t believe you, Miss Jennings. It’s just that I wanted to see it for myself before I called the police.” Kelli nodded to Xander, who moved into the hallway to make the call. “Miss Jennings, I’m terribly sorry about this.”
“It’s been a horrible night,” Miss Jennings went on with all the drama in the world. “I can’t tell you how hard it’s been for me. Those earrings were quite important to me. I got them in Milan with my third husband.”
Kelli tried to maintain her smile, but it was difficult. It occurred to her that Miss Jennings had decided to make this up as a way to enliven her night at the hotel. Perhaps she was just a bored rich lady who wanted to make Kelli miserable.
“Tell me, Miss Montgomery. Why are you so wretched at managing this hotel?” Miss Jennings demanded.
Kelli swallowed a lump in her throat. “Miss Jennings, we are willing to do whatever we can to ensure your stay—”
“There’s nothing you can do to save my trip now,” Miss Jennings said. “It’s all ruined!”
“Mother,” her son said with a sigh. “At least get the room comped, for goodness’ sake.”
Kelli bristled, genuinely unsure what to say. If every rich woman like Miss Jennings decided to take advantage of the fledgling hotel, they wouldn’t survive through the summer. Miss Jennings blinked at Kelli expectantly, and Kelli finally said, “Of course. We will be happy to comp tonight’s stay.”
At this, Miss Jennings leaned forward, her eyes in slits.
“I mean, we will comp all of your stay,” Kelli said, flustered. “Unless we track down those earrings tonight, of course.”
“I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t comp our entire stay,” the son said, “if only because my mother has become very upset. This wouldn’t have happened if you managed a better hotel.”
Kelli nodded, her eyes filling with tears. Before she started to sob in front of these horrible people, she stepped into the hallway and took several deep breaths, telling herself that this was just a bad night in the middle of a bad week, but that didn’t mean it would turn out to be a bad summer and a bad year. Xander was finished with the police call, and he rubbed her shoulders and her back, murmuring, “These people are terrible. Your guests won’t all be like that.”
“I know you’re right,” Kelli said, although she wasn’t sure right now. “What if she’s making this up just to get a free stay?”
“There’s nothing you can do,” Xander whispered. “Just buckle down and stay strong. The police will be here soon, and when they’re gone, we can go home and get some rest.”
“I don’t know. I feel like I can’t leave the hotel tonight,” Kelli said. “I left Sandra alone for like an hour, and this happened. I don’t want to do that to her again.”
Xander nodded. “Okay. But you have to promise me you’ll start looking at applications for hotel managers by next week.”
“I’ll definitely fill Piper’s position by next week,” Kelli assured him. “But no matter what, I have a feeling this summer will be a difficult one.”
“I’ll be here for you,” Xander said. “We can take a relaxing vacation this fall. Somewhere beautiful, warm, and foreign.”
“You’re speaking my language,” Kelli said as she dropped her head on his chest, trying, yet failing to find excitement in such a far-off reality. She had to tackle tonight, Amanda’s wedding, and the rest of the summer first. Then, she could think about relaxing.
It was nearly two that morning before the police left. It took forever for Miss Jennings to give a report, a time that was only elongated by the ramblings of her son, who seemed quite drunk. Throughout, Kelli remained seated beside them, watching as Bobby, the police officer, scribbled notes to himself on his notepad.
Once the report was finished, Miss Jennings and her son flounced off, leaving Kelli with Bobby, who shrugged as he placed his paperwork back in his bag.
“What do you think, Bobby?” Kelli whispered. “Do you think Miss Jennings is telling the truth?”
“It’s hard to say in these kinds of things,” Bobby said. “If we hadn’t taken Piper off your roster just yesterday, I’d have made the assumption that she was involved.”
