Page 14 of Forged in Secrets

“I’m not surprised the spring break crowd is still sleeping off last night’s bender,” he said, joining her as she headed toward the main lobby doors. “But I thought there’d be a cop car or two.”

When they reached the front desk, it was clear that thelocal law enforcement was taking this even less seriously than Ben had assumed. The clerk had not even realized anyone was gone, but finally, after a bit of arguing with a security guard, she’d agreed to give them the number of the room Katie and her best friend, Jade, were staying in.

“Why isn’t Katie’s father here?” Ben asked as they exited the elevator on the fourth floor, their footsteps silent against the thick burgundy carpet.

“He’s stuck in China. Apparently there’s some big business deal going on that he can’t get out of.”

Ben raised an eyebrow. If he had a daughter, and she was missing, he’d find his way home from Antarctica.

Before he could say as much, however, the room marked 217 came into view.

“No police tape,” he said flatly.

“Well, it’s pretty clear the cops don’t care,” Grace said, raising a hand to knock on the door. “I’m not surprised that they–”

Before she could rap against the wood, the door swung inward, revealing a petite blonde woman with giant sunglasses and a tiny chihuahua on a sparkling purple leash.

“I specifically told them no room service,” the woman said, speaking slowly as if suspecting that Grace and Ben might not speak English. “I don’t need some maid stealing my Love bracelets. I prefer to hire my own help.”

Ben cast a confused glance at Grace. He had no idea what a Love bracelet was, or why this woman thought that they were some kind of co-ed hospitality duo, but none of that mattered. The Mistflower Resort had clearly reassigned the room. Any usable evidence about Katie’s disappearance would be long gone.

Without another word, the woman closed the doorwith a pointed slam before dragging the dog down the hallway.

As soon as she disappeared into the elevator, Grace knelt down in front of the door, examining the slightly worn bit of carpet as though some Sherlock Holmesian inspiration might suddenly strike her. Ben half expected her to pull out a magnifying glass.

“I asked for another room once the cops looked it over,” came a voice from behind him. “At least I got an upgrade out of this. Silver lining, or whatever.”

He spun to face the woman who had spoken, immediately realizing that she must have come through the side stairwell door. She was tall, with silken ochre skin and black hair that reached nearly to the middle of her back.

Grace got clumsily to her feet, using the doorframe to support her weight.

“You must be–”

“Jade. Jade Gorsky,” the woman said with exaggerated sweetness, extending a slender hand for Grace to shake. Ben noticed at once that her smile didn’t quite reach her piercing brown eyes. “I’m Katie’s best friend. And the last person who saw her before she was trafficked.”

GRACE

“Wait. You think Katie was trafficked?” Grace asked Jade, stepping back from the hotel room door and moving to stand next to Ben.

She felt sick.

Katie going missing was bad enough, but the thought of her being sold was too terrible to contemplate.

“There are rumors that a big ring is operating on the island,” Jade said with a shrug of her slender soldiers. “Itwould make sense that they took her. She’s a nice piece of…well, you know.”

Ben’s body tensed beside her as the young woman began to chuckle. Grace couldn’t stop her mouth falling open in surprise at Jade’s nonchalance.

“Let’s say I don’t know,” Ben said, his deep voice filled with warning. “Why do you think human traffickers would be interested in taking Katie Fairman?”

“What are you, gay or something?” Jade said, laughing again. “You’ve seen her, right? She’s banging hot, and she’s obviously rich. They probably figured they could sell her to rich guys for top dollar.”

Jade rolled her eyes as she spoke, and Grace gritted her teeth, hoping that Ben would contain his temper long enough to finish the conversation. It was incredible how quickly such a pretty girl had become ugly in her eyes.

“I don’t know what kind of men you spend your time with,” he growled, “but I don’t make a habit of ogling women.”

“Whatever,” Jade said.

“Anyway,” Grace cut in quickly. “Can I get your number so we can check in with you later? We’ll have more questions once we get a chance to speak with the police.”

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