Page 42 of Just Now

Connor took a deep breath, counted to three. He didn’t know if the door would be open or closed, but he was going to gamble that it might be unlocked.

On the count of three, he twisted the handle hard and shoved his shoulder against the door.

With a crash and a scream of hinges, he burst into the underground cellar.

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

Cami’s fingers flew over the keyboard, the clicking of the keys filling the small office as she began her search.

Staff access to the system, and regular clients who’d been at the diner at the same time as the victims. Those two priorities were what she was hoping to narrow down, as she holed herself up in Tom Gaynor’s office and searched through his computer system.

She’d done a quick check on the camera footage. As well as the camera facing the till, there had been one in the customer parking lot that recorded the license plates of the cars leaving, and there had also been one behind the restaurant, focusing on the staff parking lot and the trash cans.

As she scrolled through the files on the computer, Cami noticed something strange, squirreled away inside a sub-file. It was a folder labeled “Private,” with a password required to access it. Something about the folder made her feel uneasy, like it was a secret that was intentionally being kept hidden.

Suddenly, a knock at the office door made Cami jump. She quickly minimized the screen and turned to face the door.

It was Tom Gaynor. The diner’s owner had brought Cami a soda and a coffee. His expression was a blend of anxiety and the desire to help.

“All going okay? I thought you might like some refreshments,” he said with a nervous smile.

“Thanks,” she said gratefully. That was very thoughtful of him. Unless, of course, coming in with drinks was just a way of checking up on what she was doing. That was a possibility she couldn’t ignore.

“Is there anything you need?” he inquired. “Anything unclear, anything I can explain to you? Are you able to access the cameras?”

Cami weighed up the pros and cons of asking him about that folder. It might be better not to. She didn’t know if it was relevant, and didn’t know if she was even allowed to go into it. It had been well hidden and perhaps he hadn’t thought she’d find it. If he refused when she asked, it would put her in a difficult situation. If he got mad at her for asking and threw her out of the office, she didn’t have Connor with her to use his authority and FBI status to get what was needed.

So for now, it would be better to say nothing.

“I’m fine for the time being,” she said. “I’ll let you know if I need anything.”

“Good,” he said, giving a worried glance at his computer. Cami knew that not even an innocent person would let a third party search through their work files without some level of concern. She was sure he was regretting his offer, but figured that he wasn’t a man who broke his promises.

Now to hack the password that would allow her access to “Private” and see what was inside.

She set the software to run, and in the meantime, took a look at the payment details that were saved on the system.

The credit card numbers were automatically recorded when a client paid that way, but how much information would those actually give?

The addresses of clients were not visible on the card payment slips. No addresses appeared with the payment details.

“Okay,” she muttered to herself, taking a swallow of coffee as she thought about that. “So none of the staff could have accessed the details of customers. It’s looking more and more like it was a customer who waited in the diner and physically followed them out. Now I’ve got to find out which customer.”

Even the cash payments, she saw, were recorded with the table number and the name of the person who’d ordered. She’d seen already that this diner was a real family business, a place where people were greeted on a first-name basis. It made her sad to think that such a place could have been misused, that trust abused, with a deadly result.

Cami was a student who had her favorite places around town, and she knew the sense of trust was an important factor, and one she looked for. She wanted to feel safe when she went out on her own and after dark. That someone had abused it here was unacceptable.

So, the first step was to figure out when Kate, Priscilla, and Gracie had been here, and then look at the other customers of the restaurant, and if the same person had been waiting there when all three women had walked in.

She was now sure this was what had happened.

Cami continued to scroll through the payment details, taking note of the dates and times of when the three victims had been at the diner.

She felt a sense of responsibility, as if she was not only solving a case but also bringing justice to the victims. It was too late for them, but if she could find this killer, at least it would mean that nobody else suffered this same terrifying and violent end to their lives.

Kate had been here on a busy night. Almost every single table had been occupied. So it was going to be important to collate the information carefully. If the killer had been part of a group, then his name might not have been recorded—but being part of a group wasn’t so likely. She thought he’d have been there on his own, so that he’d been able to get up and follow them out immediately.

So, tables of one person on their own was where she should focus, Cami deduced. There had been five of those when Kate was here.

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