Page 17 of Jane's Story
We met with Mr. Hedwer, the hotel manager, in his office. He was a slim man with thick brown curls and gray eyes. To say he didn’t fit the grandiose room was an understatement. Large pieces of polished wood furniture adorned the office, and a massive desk, adorned with framed family photos, separated us from the delicate man. With his round glasses and large front teeth, he reminded me somewhat of a rabbit.
“Well, of course we’re happy to accommodate you, Mr. Bingley, and Ms.…”
“Jane Bennet.” My instincts stopped me from grasping too firmly as I shook his hand.
“Ah, Ms. Bennet. Charles, we truly appreciate your choosing Grand Lakes for your tech conference. I cannot believe such a horrible tragedy has happened in our building. Our security is top of the line, and we’re cooperating with the police, of course.” Mr. Hedwer blinked several times and pushed his wayward glasses higher on his nose. “This is highly unusual.In fact, I don’t know if we’ve ever had a murder.”
He seemed genuine, but I doubted the truth of that statement in such a busy hotel.
“Well, no one can control everything.” Charles rested his elbow on the desk. “But as a matter of security, I’m hoping to be immediately notified if anyone from Haven Corporation checks out of the hotel early.”
I thought for a moment. “It might be good to know if anyone specifically is receiving an unusual number of packages, or if unexpected guests arrive at the conference.”
“Yes, yes, of course.” Mr. Hedwer turned to his desktop computer and tapped on the keyboard. “Now let me see. No one from your company has checked out recently. There have been quite a few packages for Haven Corp, though. I’m not sure how to sort out exactly who they went to.”
“We may need to look into that a bit, Charles,” I said. “Eventually, something will turn up to give us a clue about who the killer is.”
Charles nodded. “The little things aren’t always solittle, are they?”
As we left Mr. Hedwer’s office, my phone buzzed in my pocket, and when I checked it, I found a message from Aunt Penny.
“My aunt should be here any minute. She’ll have her own supplies. But we need something that belonged to Armond, like she mentioned earlier.” I considered all the officers scouring the scene and the caution tape blocking off the suite, but figured Charles would havesomethingof Armond’s.
“Right. I threw everything I found into my bag when we switched rooms, so I’m sure something belonged to him. We shared the office in our suite, after all.” Charles nodded.
“I’m surprised they didn’t tell you everything was evidence. Removing items from a crime scene is usually not allowed."
“Well, they taped off that bedroom, but not the entire suite.” Charles gave a telling shrug, which made me wonder what other powers he might have besides his ability to heal. “And no one stopped me.”
“People trust you, don’t they?” I asked. Liking Charles was like falling for a celebrity. But I couldn’t tell if he was aware of the power he had over people.
“Good thing fae are pretty honest.” He shrugged.
“I think you have the ability to charm as well.” It must simply be the way with high fae. Everyone instinctively adored and trusted them. Including me.
Chapter 7
AuntPennystrodeacrossthe formal lobby in her long camel-colored overcoat. She’d pulled her wild strawberry blonde curls into an unruly bun atop her head, and wore an oversized pink, purple, and lime scarf draped over her shoulders. The soft, huggable woman stood out among the rigid professionals attending the conference in their black and gray suits.
“Oh, Jane. There you are!” She waved across the room. Her cheery voice rose above the crowd as I rushed toward her. “What a fancy place this is.”
Heat rose in my cheeks. Though I loved her like my mother, Aunt Penny drew attention to herself without even trying. I sped over to her, closing the space between us before she shouted anything about solving a murder.
“Oh, you poor girl!” She pulled me into a tight embrace, and I breathed in the scents of cinnamon and nutmeg. “What you must have been through.”
I hugged her back and kissed her cheek. “Thank you for coming, truly. Hardly anyone knows what happened. So we’re keeping it quiet.”
“Naturally.” Aunt Penny nodded and touched her finger to her lips. “We’re certainly not going to announce to the murderer we’re trying to find them.”
Charles’s eyes widened as he approached. He must’ve heard her from a few yards away. “Thank you so much for coming. I’m Charles Bingley. Pleasure to meet you.”
Aunt Penny whirled around to look Charles over. She grinned and nodded, then reached out her hand. “Penny Phillips.”
Charles shook her hand, offering his broad smile, perfect dimples and all. “Jane told me how you might help. It sounds incredible. I’ve been working on something that will try to replicate what you can do with the potion—but with science rather than magic.”
“Hmm.” Aunt Penny’s eyes twinkled. “Protecting the innocent. Very noble.”
“Well, it’s still new.” Charles shrugged, gesturing toward the elevators at the end of the lobby. “Should we head upstairs?”
