Page 126 of Billion-Dollar Attitudes

"But first...." Daniel grinned. "Looks like all of us are winners. So, we all get a drink."

"I don't want coffee in mine," Chase told us. "I want two fingers of Jim Beam."

After a short break in the action, I was loosened up, eager to find the video of the person who delivered the flowers to Ariel. I thought about what she had told me and decided to share what she had said. "Okay, listen up! I spoke to Ariel, and she described the person who delivered the package as a bit unusual."

"So, did you tell her what we planned to do?" Daniel asked, surprised.

"Yes, kind of... actually, she guessed it..."

"She guessed we were going to hack ABC's system?" Chase knitted his brows.

"It came out in our conversation. I didn't admit to it, but Ariel writes crime/mystery novels, so it didn't take much for her to figure it out."

"So.... what was unusual? What was different than what her neighbor told you?" Daniel asked.

"Ariel indicated she wasn't sure if the person was a male or female. The driver didn't speak, and she noticed the person was small in stature and had.... small wrists. A woman's wrists."

"No, shit!" Chase leaned back. "Well, let's look for the video... and see for ourselves."

We all turned our attention back to the computers and began the search. A few minutes later, Ryder called out. "I found it!"

We gathered around his computer to take a look. The video was time-stamped on the day of Ariel's delivery. We watched as a figure dressed in a postal service uniform approached her apartment door carrying a package. It was difficult to tell the gender of the person, but they definitely had longer hair that was pushed up under a cap.

"That's our guy," Daniel said. "Or girl."

"Can we switch cameras... find the hallway shot..." I suggested.

Daniel and Chase raced to see who could find the video first. Then, a moment later, they both called out they had it. We gathered around Ryder's computer this time and watched as the figure walked down the hallway toward Ariel's apartment.

"Put it up on the screen," I said.

Ryder switched the view to the big screen in front of us. We all watched as the figure walked down the hallway. Again, it was difficult to tell the gender, but we could see they were carrying a package. As they got closer to Ariel's apartment, the individual paused and readjusted the cap to hide a longer strand of hair. Then the perp pulled the bill down just above the eyes.

"Zoom in on the hands," I said.

Chase zoomed in on the individual's hands, and we all leaned in for a better look. The person did have small wrists.

"It's a woman," Ryder said. "The person who delivered Ariel's flowers is a woman."

I held my breath as a rush of guilt ran through me when the woman rang the doorbell, then knocked at Ariel's door... and just as the neighbor had explained, she stepped into the hall. We could tell when Ariel opened the door, but her face wasn't visible from that camera angle.

"Hold it! Stop!"

"What?" Ryder asked.

"Zoom in on the woman's head... Oh, Oh, God!" I stepped back as if someone had sucker-punched me. "See that tattoo. The star? On her neck under her ear?”

"Yeah... You recognize her?'

"That's Chelsea. Meagan's friend. The one at the restaurant with me the night of Clarence's murder!" No one made a sound. But out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Chase grab his phone. "Who are you calling?" I asked.

"Our crack investigator, Carter!"

The others nodded their approval, but I buried my face in my hands. "Oh, shit… I need to contact La Jolla Rehab Center. I don't want her near my sister!"

Finally, Chase spoke up. "Since your sister knows both Ariel and this Chelsea woman, I'd say you better contact Ariel and let her know too… even with her being in London. You never know!"

Chapter Nineteen

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