Page 111 of Under the Table

“Yeah,” Annalise said, her voice so small.

“Okay.” Angelica helped her stand, keeping her hands on Annalise’s sides until she knew that Annalise would be steady on her feet. Then she pulled out her phone and turned the flashlight on. “Let me look you over.”

Moving onto her knees, Angelica flashed the light all over Annalise, but she didn’t see any injuries. That was at least a good sign. Turning the light off, she pocketed the phone and stood up. She had so many questions running through her head, but she had no idea where to even start. And she didn’t want Annalise to shut down because she suddenly thought she was in trouble either.

“Come on, let’s find your mom.” Angelica took Annalise by the hand and then walked slowly back toward the main reception building.

When she walked in, she was surprised to find no one worried or frantic.

“Anyone want to tell me how a six-year-old ended up stealing a golf cart and crashing it without any of you knowing what was going on?” Angelica’s voice cracked through the room.

They jerked with a start.

“No?” Angelica asked, pushing for an answer. “Get the night manager out here right now.”

“Annalise?” Rachel stepped into the main lobby.

Annalise instantly started crying as she raced for her mom, who picked her up and held her tightly. Angelica’s heart eased a little. That was one problem solved already. What she was confused about was the fact that there was a camera following Rachel, Sy positioned behind it and Lyric off to the side.

Angelica walked forward slowly, unsure of exactly what to do. These interpersonal conversations weren’t something she excelled at. That was Hope’s area of expertise.

“What happened?” Rachel cooed before raising up a glare in Angelica’s direction as if she was the reason Annalise was crying and the reason everything was wrong.

“I’m trying to figure that out as well,” Angelica said, trying to ease the tension. “I found Annalise driving one of the golf carts behind the reception building. She toppled it over when she lost control.” Angelica glanced from Rachel to the camera and pursed her lips. “But I haven’t talked to her yet about what happened.”

“Crashed a golf cart?” Rachel’s eyebrows rose so high they nearly disappeared into her hair line. She immediately squatted down and looked Annalise over, but just like Angelica, she didn’t find any injuries. “Why did you get in a golf cart?”

“I’d rather know how.” Angelica looked back toward the front desk where the night manager finally showed up. She sighed, nodding to him to come closer. She hadn’t dealt with him too much in the few days they’d been there, so he was about to get a cold dose of reality. “Was the key in the golf cart?”

Annalise nodded. Angelica clenched her jaw hard.

“And I’m assuming no one was around?”

Annalise shook her head.

“And why weren’t you supervised?”

“She and her sister got into a fight,” Rachel answered. “And she bolted out the patio door. I was just coming down here to try and find her.”

Angelica hummed annoyance. She pointed at the night manager. “Go see if there are any other golf carts that have had keys left in them unexpectedly. Find someone to turn the rolled one upright, and then I want a lock on all of them for the rest of tonight until I can dig deeper into the policies.”

“Wh-what policies?” The night manager asked.

Angelica turned on him fully, her entire body rigid. “The policies you have about safety and golf carts, not to mentionthe policies you have about lost children, and any other safety procedures that you have.” Her voice snapped, and the man jerked with a sudden start. Now that she knew Annalise was all right, she had much bigger fish to fry. And she damn well wasn’t going to let them get out of it.

She turned away from Rachel and Annalise and started to focus on the staff who were there. This she could do. This she could fix. Annalise’s broken and scared heart? Not so much. Angelica walked directly to the front counter and leaned against it, waiting for the night manager to get back with the standard operating procedures books.

He handed them over and she slapped them onto the counter.

“Pop quiz time.” She frowned and opened the first one. “Who is to have access to the golf carts?”

“E-employees only,” he stuttered.

Angelica shot him a glare. “All employees?” It’d been somewhat of a trick question, but it wasn’t that hard to answer. And when he nodded, she knew he hadn’t been properly trained at all. “Wrong. Only employees with a certification are to drive the golf carts. When not in use, where are the keys supposed to be?”

“In the cabinet in the office,” he said firmly.

At least he had that one right. “And where’s the log for the golf carts?”