Page 38 of He Doesn't Deserve You

They had only been watching the tape for a few minutes when Detective Johnson pointed at the lobby area on the screen. “That’s her,” he said.

Detective Martin quickly touched the “Lobby” option on the sidemenu, and the monitor switched from the multi-screen setup to a full-screen view of the lobby. They watched as Emily and Sydney checked in at the registration desk, handed their luggage to the bellhop, and made their way to the hotel bar.

Detective Martin then tapped “Bar” on the side menu, and the screen seamlessly switched to the bar area. They observed Sydney receiving a call and promptly leaving, followed by Travis taking the seat beside Emily. To their surprise, Emily then crossed the bar to confront a woman—a detail she had conveniently omitted.

Without sound on the tape, they did their best to read Emily’s lips. Rewinding that portion of the footage, they watched it repeatedly, trying to decipher the conversation. From what they could gather, it seemed Emily was accusing the woman of having an affair with her husband.

After watching the confrontation for the third time, Detective Martin’s eyes widened with excitement. “Did you see that?” he exclaimed.

“See what?!”

“That look she gave the bartender. Go back!”

Detective Martin rewound the tape a few seconds to the moment just before Emily turned and stormed back to her seat. There it was, clear as day: with Emily’s back turned, the woman she had been arguing with gave the bartender a subtle glance and a quick nod.

“I see it!” Detective Martin said.

Next, they watched Emily return to her seat and say something to Travis before heading to the bathroom. Travis then raised his hand, flagged the bartender over, and ordered a couple of drinks.

“Keep an eye on the bartender when he makes those drinks,” Detective Martin instructed.

“Bingo!” Detective Johnson exclaimed as they watched the bartender turn his back to the patrons and discreetly drop a pill into Emily’s drink.

“It wasn’t Travis,” Detective Martin said. “Okay, now let’s see if anyone went to her room that night,” Detective Martin suggested. He clickedon “Floor 4,” switching the screen to a view of the fourth-floor hallway, and sped up the footage until Travis, Roman, and Emily appeared.

The two detectives watched Travis assist Roman in getting Emily to her room before parting ways at the door. Roman then escorted Emily inside. Glancing at the time stamp, Detective Martin noted, “10:17.”

They stared at the empty hallway on the screen until Emily’s door opened at 10:23 pm, and Roman stepped out.

“Six minutes,” Detective Martin said, “Do you think that was enough to have sex with her?”

“I doubt it. Let’s keep watching—maybe he came back,” Detective Johnson suggested. Instead, they watched Roman take a seat and lean his back against the door, keeping watch until he eventually fell asleep. He remained outside her room until 6:12 a.m. when he finally woke up and left.

“He’s telling the truth,” Detective Martin said matter-of-factly. “Gather all the information you can on our bartender. I’m going to pay him a visit, but first, I need to talk to Emily.” Detective Martin instructed, turning off the video player and removing the tape.

Agnes entered the kitchenas Emily was preparing Ava’s lunch and announced, “Detective Martin is here to see you.”

“Okay,” Emily replied, setting a tuna sandwich on a plate. She added a pickle beside the sandwich, then carried the plate to the table and placed it in front of Ava.

“Keep an eye on her,” Emily instructed Agnes as she exited the kitchen. She found Detective Martin waiting in the foyer. Smiling, she said, “I didn’t expect to see you so soon. Do you have some news?”

“Is there somewhere we can talk?” Detective Martin asked, his expression stern and his tone impassive.

“Sure, let’s go into the living room.” She led him to the living room, where they both took seats.

“Can I get you something to drink? Coffee or water?” she asked.

“No, thank you. I’m fine.”

“What can I do for you?”

“I reviewed the tape. You haven’t been truthful with me.”

A look of surprise crossed Emily’s face. “I have been honest. What are you talking about?”

“Do you want to tell me about the argument you had that night?” Detective Martin pressed.

Emily released the breath she had been holding. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think it was relevant.”

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