Chapter 5 - The Bag in the Elevator
Nina didn't chase Leah. She called Celeste and pointed toward the elevator. "Please ask her to stay. That bag might belong to the room."
Leah stopped when Celeste spoke. Her hands trembled as she held the strap.
"It's just office paperwork," she said.
"Then why are you taking it out of the hotel?" Celeste asked.
Leah looked past them to Nicole. "She said I should bring it to the car before the announcement."
"What announcement?" Brandon demanded.
Nicole answered without turning. "The one you're ruining."
Leah placed the bag on a counter rather than hand it to anyone. Inside were seating charts, delivery receipts, and a padded sleeve for a portable drive. The sleeve was empty.
"Where's the drive?" Sebastian asked.
"I don't know," Leah said. "I don't even know what was on it."
"You do know who changed the guest list," Nina said.
Leah's eyes filled. "I was told Judith Bell wanted privacy. I just did what was on the task sheet."
Brandon opened his phone to call counsel again. Before he could speak, the building's fire alarm sounded, shrill and relentless. Guests flooded toward the exits. Celeste switched to evacuation instructions and ordered everyone to use the stairs.
Nicole moved instantly into the crowd.
"Don't let her take that bag," Sebastian said.
Nina caught his arm. "We evacuate with everyone else."
They followed the hotel staff down the corridor. Owen Finch joined them, holding his camera beneath his jacket. In the stairwell, Nina watched Leah climb down two steps at a time, crying quietly and apologizing to nobody in particular.
Outside, fire crews checked the building. The alarm turned out to have been triggered by a manual pull station near the south service stair. There was no smoke.
Nicole stood across the street beside a waiting car. When Brandon called to her, she slid into the back seat and shut the door.
"That's my wife," Brandon whispered. "I don't even know who she is tonight."
A text appeared on Nina's phone from her brother Luis.
THEY POSTED A NOTICE AT HARBOR HOUSE. THEY'RE CLOSING US FRIDAY.
May you like
Nina read it twice. Friday was three days away.
Then a second message arrived from an unknown number: STOP DIGGING OR YOUR BROTHER LOSES HIS PLACE THERE, TOO.
