Page 49 of Kiss Her Goodbye

“I hear you, girl.I slept last night with a towel tucked beneath my door, and I stand by it.”

I turn to Daryl.“Ready when you are.”

He looks up mid-bite.“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”

Genni starts fussing: “Sit, sit, I’ll bring you a plate.”

“I don’t—”

But Genni is already pulling out a chair and dishing out flapjacks swimming in butter and maple syrup.The first bite nearly makes me swoon.

“Did you grow up eating like this?”I want to know.“Because I come from the land of Pop-Tarts and Sugar Smacks.”

“Crime against humanity,” Genni declares.“But then, I come from the land of dumpster diving.Street kid.Foster child.Street kid again.”

“I’m sorry.”

A wave of her hand.“Life has a way of working out.Though you could argue I’m now overcompensating.”

Daryl makes a sound that might be a guffaw.When both Genni and I stare at him, he quickly mumbles, “And thank God for that.”

I study Genni.Daryl has been an excellent source of criminal thinking.I wonder what Genni can contribute from her life on the streets.

“Ever try to sneak into a hotel or crash for the night on the down-low?”I quiz.“Like maybe bribe the person at the front desk, or someone in housekeeping?”

“Honey, places I hung out didn’t offer cleaning services.”

“But the front desk?”

“Not if they wanted to keep their jobs.Management has opinions on these subjects, and many of the sketchiest motels still have cameras for exactly this reason.”

“I’m guessing the Ventana Canyon Luxury Resort and Spa most definitely has eyes in the sky,” I consider.“Not to mention, their staff’s probably paid well enough to be tough to bribe.”

“You want to identify a vacant room,” Daryl provides, polishing off his last bite.“On the outer perimeter.Easier to get in and out without being seen.”

“Is this in regards to the missing woman?”Daryl must’ve filled Genni in, because she immediately warms to the subject, taking up her customary lean against the kitchen island.“Does the resort offer washers and dryers for guests?I’d start there.No one questions someone walking around with a pile of laundry.Forget an invisibility cloak.Give a woman a toilet plunger and bucket of cleaning supplies and she immediately fades into the background.”

“Excellent point.”I build on that thought.“And given that Sabera worked the property, she probably knows where all the vacant rooms are.Though,” I catch myself, “it also means she’d be recognizable to her former coworkers.”

“Not if she comes and goes at night.”Daryl again.“The resort offers entire townhouses with separate access.That would eliminate the risk of elevators, long hallways.She could pick her timing, then make her play.”

“In that case, it’s real simple,” Genni adds.“Just look for the front door fixture missing a light bulb.”

“Missing a light bulb?”

“First rule of law breaking, darling, it’s best done in the dark.Sometimes, we’d throw rocks to break the bulbs, but shatteredglass is its own kind of tell.Better just to unscrew the globe.Can take weeks, even months before someone notices.”

“Huh.”I switch my gaze from Genni to Daryl to Genni again.“You two are really good at this.”

Daryl shrugs.“Lived a life.”

Genni grins.“Misspent youth.The absolutely best kind.”

“I had a misspent youth, as well,” I insist, not wanting to be left out.Then I am forced to confess, “Unfortunately, I was too drunk to remember most of it.”

I polish off the last of the pancakes, toss back the final swallow of coffee, and check in with Daryl, who nods.

Time to get to it.Search a luxury resort, locate Sabera Ahmadi camped out in a vacant unit, get her whatever kind of help she needs to return to her daughter and worried friend.