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The uniforms worked getting organized, putting calls into the police chief and the medical examiner. An officer was stationed at the top of the stairs to ensure the guests stayed in their rooms and Mrs. Carruthers showed them how to go up and down using the back stairs.
Shah hovered but stayed out of the way. Flynn wanted him downstairs reviewing the video of the foyer before the cops got there and started asking about it. That’s what he’d been texting him about, but it was obvious that Shah hadn’t gotten the text. There were quite a few things they were going to have to discuss. Flynn didn’t tolerate dereliction of duty and his conversation with Shah would be a bit of a come-to-Jesus lecture.
Flynn stayed immobile in the shadows. He’d learned to spend hours this way back when he had been a sniper in the military. It was a skill he’d honed. Blending into the background. It was like he could just disappear into the woodwork. The trick wasn’t just remaining motionless, it was about keeping his energy as quiet as possible.
At last, Jason Merritt walked in. He was wearing jeans and a sweater this time with a windbreaker over it. His hair was damp from the rain.
“Detective Merritt,” the sergeant said. “Sorry for calling you out so late, or rather so early.”
Merritt waved away the man’s concern. “What have we got?”
“Body of a young girl. Identified by the housekeeper as Calli Gant.”
Housekeeper. Mrs. Carruthers was not going to like that. Flynn bit back a smile.
“What do we know about her?”
The sergeant shrugged. “Not much. I understand she is from New York City. We’re trying to get some contact information for her next of kin now. Gina Ling, an employee of the Rainy Day Club, has more details. We are waiting on her to find them.”
Merritt nodded as he stared at the body. “Do we know what killed her? Were there any witnesses?”
The sergeant shrugged. “None we know of so far.”
Merritt squatted down next to the body. “When is the ME getting here?”
“The medical examiner said she’d be a little while yet. Flooding has blocked some of the roads.”
“Okay then. I will start by interviewing the housekeeper. Let me know the minute Mandy arrives.” He stood and was about to head into the salon when there was a commotion at the top of the stairs.
“I am the mayor. I need to be down there,” said a woman in a shrill voice.
Flynn cocked his head.Well, well, well.Susan was showing her face. He’d noticed she was still here when Harper left but he’d not bothered to track her down. It wasn’t up to them to kick invited guests out and she was obviously someone’s guest because she was coming from the bedroom area, unless she’d been in the library. By the look of her hair, he’d go with a hard no on that one.
“Ma’am, you can’t go down this staircase,” said a voice. Flynn assumed it was Watson at the top of the stairs.
“Jason?” the woman called. “I need to see you.”
Flynn was pretty sure Merritt swore under his breath.
The detective called, “Madam Mayor, just wait a moment.” He turned to one of the uniformed officers. “Is there a back stairwell?” The officer confirmed it. “Ms. Duggan, I’m going to need you to go down the back stairwell. I’ll meet you in the room next door.”
There was a harrumphing sound but then footsteps receded.
“What the hell is she still doing here?” he asked Vincent.
“No idea. I didn’t know she was in the building. Maybe she’s a member or something.”
Merritt shook his head. “She’s not a member.”
A commotion got louder as she entered the salon. “Jason,” she said a little breathlessly, “what is going on?”
“Madam Mayor, what are you doing here?”
“I was here earlier with you. I just stayed to discuss some business.”
“I see,” Merritt said. It had just gone one a.m. and the woman looked like she’d spent the last few hours in bed, but Merritt didn’t bat an eye. Flynn had to give him credit on that score.
“Now I want to know what’s going on, Jason. This is just horrible for Cedar Bluff. This death on the heels of Astrid’s murder…well, we just have to move quickly on this. This needs to be sorted so you can go back to working on Astrid’s case. It’s clear this poor thing fell down the stairs in the dark. There’s no need for an investigation.”
