Page 8 of Before and After

“Your employment is terminated. Effective immediately.”

The conference room door opened, and another member of my team walked in. Hugh was a tall man, with the build of a football player, and sandy-blond hair. He set some items on the table. I saw credit cards, a diamond bracelet, two watches, a wad of cash, and a pair of ruby earrings.

“These are from his locker,” Hugh said.

“Never seen any of that before,” Brown sneered. “It’s?—”

“Shut up.” I lowered my tone and Brown’s mouth snapped shut. “If I see you in the Langston Windward again, or any Langston hotel, there’ll be consequences.”

Brown stiffened, as did my security staff. I knew my tone was enough to scare most people.

But Brown rallied. “Fuck you. These people can afford it. They’re off having fun vacations in fancy hotels?—”

I slammed my fist down on the table and he flinched. I lowered my voice to Arctic levels. “Some can’t. Some scrimp and save for a special trip. And even if the wealthiest person in the world was staying here, you have no right to violate them and take something that isn’t yours.” He couldn’t hold my gaze and looked away. “And now, I get to make your day even worse.” I waved a hand.

Gretchen opened the door, and Officer Melissa Sanchez from the Windward Police Department stepped inside. The young woman was fit and wore her dark-blue uniform well. Her glossy, black hair was in a no-nonsense braid. She nodded at me. “Good morning, Castro.”

“Officer Sanchez. He’s all yours.”

Brown’s face drained of color. “The police?No.”

“You thought you’d get to walk out of here?” I rose and tugged my suit jacket into place. “This is the evidence from the locker.”

Sanchez nodded. “Thanks. We’re also executing a search warrant at his condo.”

The man made a choked noise.

“And thank you for giving us the name of his fence,” she added.

I inclined my head. It hadn’t taken me long to dig up dirt on Brown. “Langston Hotels appreciates your help.”

I watched dispassionately as Officer Sanchez cuffed the man and led him out. Then I nodded at Hugh to escort them out of the hotel. Just in case Brown got any stupid ideas.

“Thanks, Paul, Gretchen.”

“Sure thing, boss,” Gretchen said. “I’m off to do a walk around.”

“I’ve got the monitors,” Paul added.

I headed into the corridor and strode toward the owner’s office at the end of the hall. The door was open. As I entered, I saw my boss sitting behind his desk and one of the executive team perched on the corner of it.

“He graces us with his presence,” Piper said.

Piper Ellis was a workaholic blonde who liked high heels and things running smoothly. She was the COO for Langston Hotels.

I nodded at her, then at my friend and boss, Ambrose “Ro” Langston. He had his hands steepled under his chin. He had thick, dark hair, brown eyes, and bronze skin. The Greek heritage he’d inherited from his socialite mother was evident. Photos of him were always plastered all over the pages of glossy magazines.

“I was busy firing a thief.” I sat in a chair in front of the desk.

“Busy morning,” Piper noted.

“Any other security concerns?” Ro asked.

“Nothing to report yet. I’m collating and checking out any suspicious behavior and activities around the hotel.” I shrugged. “Most of those turn out to be nothing.”

“God, you’re paranoid.” Piper crossed her legs.

“It pays to catch problems early.”