Page 47 of Just Now

Cami raised a skeptical eyebrow. “I got into it and saw it. Why would you need to keep customers’ home addresses and phone numbers on file, Mr. Gaynor? And how did you get hold of them?”

He sighed. “It’s a competition we have been running.”

That was an unexpected answer. “What competition is this?”

He stepped away from the till, talking in a low, confidential tone. “Look, it’s been hugely successful. We ask customers to fill in their info, and rate what they ordered, and at the end of every week, we do a lucky draw for a prize.” He gestured to the windows. “We have a lot of sponsors and we’ve had some great prizes. Travel bags, phones, cosmetic kits, kids’ toys. It’s created a lot of fun and excitement and massive goodwill for the diner and the sponsors, and it gives us feedback on our food, so we’ve been able to keep it going for months. The prizes get delivered and everyone’s been very happy to give their info.”

“How exactly do they give the info?” Cami asked.

“We have a competition form that we send to the table with the menus. Most people fill it in and give it back to us with their payment. If they ask, we do reassure them that it’s kept confidential. I mean, I don’t leave the forms lying around. I put the data in every single day, and once a week, I do a randomized draw from the names using an app. One form per entry, so regular customers get a better chance.”

“And you keep all the details on file?” she asked.

“Yes,” he replied. “I just thought it made sense to keep all the details in one place. I didn’t think it would be a problem. And they did give permission for the diner to contact them. Which of course, also helps with our marketing, I mean, they do check a box to say we can add them to our email mailing list,” he explained anxiously.

“Who has access to your computer?” she asked.

“Only me,” he said firmly. “My office is locked when I’m not in it, and I password protected that folder so that nobody could take our client information, which of course is very valuable.”

Cami nodded. He’d taken precautions. But someone had gotten hold of the information all the same.

A hacker, someone who’d been able to log in and crack the password just like she’d done?

That was a possibility she needed to look into, but as the thought crossed her mind, Connor’s voice rang in her ears.

“Maybe it’s not high tech, Cami. Maybe it’s low tech.”

She took a deep breath. Finally, she saw the other option, the one she’d been on the point of missing.

“These forms,” she said. “What do you do with them when you’ve input all the information?”

“I throw them away, of course,” Gaynor said. “I don’t accumulate them. I do one lot in the afternoon, and then another lot later in the evening, just before we close.”

“Where do you throw them?” she asked.

“I take them outside, and they go into the dumpster.” He gestured toward the back of the restaurant.

A dumpster?

The word struck a chilling chord in Cami.

Now, at last, she thought she knew how the killer was working, and how he’d managed to find the addresses of the single women who’d eaten in the evenings here. He’d raided the dumpster, a gold mine of information, with forms from a competition that had been running for months.

A low-tech solution.

And as she realized this, Cami knew that there was a high-tech way she could find him. It was one that she could put into action right now.

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

“Camera footage!” Cami muttered the words, turning back to the screen as her fingers flew.

Not from tonight. Tonight, this killer wouldn’t yet have arrived, because the owner only threw the forms away at closing time. But she could access the footage from last night, and the night before. Then she might see him.

This killer had been rooting through the trash. That, she was now sure of. And he’d found what he needed.

Could she see his face? Would there be a way to identify him?

There was the footage from camera two, which overlooked the restaurant’s back alley. She clicked on it and accessed the folder.

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