Room with a View

Chapter 14 - The Investigation - continued

Charles took Hector's arm and steered him around the corner out into the alley behind the resort offices. Hector stood hunched as his superior tore a long large chunk off of him finishing with a demand for accountability of his time while he was away.

"I was here, Charles. I was doing what I always do!"

"What about last night when that drunk had to be escorted home?"

"I- uh, I was doing rounds . . . up at the suites."

"I was up there as well, Hector. I didn't see you anywhere."

"Well I did the villas first . . ." His body twanged like a taught wire with each pretense.

"I have a reliable report that you were mingling with certain of the guests while I was away."

"Who-? That's not true, Charles, believe me. Of course I talk to the guests, I can't be rude and ignore questions and greetings."

Charles placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "If I catch you practicing any of your old tricks here, Hector, I will personally feed you into the eager clutches of Captain Warez and trust me, you will never prove you weren't guilty of something. Do you understand me?"

"Yes! Yes, but I have done nothing, Charles." His shoulder was aching terribly and he began ducking away.

"See that you don't." Charles gave a final crushing squeeze and left Hector sweating bullets and wondering if Glenda Weiss could possibly be convinced to support him in his story.

********

Miller pointedly ignored Billy and made his way down to the lower lobby where he ordered a fruit drink and took it to a chair in the corner. He had listened to some of the other interviews and was miffed over the fact that he seemed to be getting the most attention. Fortunately Billy had supported his story and when asked why she went after him on the dock she had simply stated that it was the resort policy to be concerned over all the guests. Carlos beamed. Warez frowned.

"You shouldn't antagonize the police, Miller. Down here they can be very officious and dangerous." Billy flopped down opposite him and crossed her legs comfortably.

"Really." He replied without interest.

"Yes, really. Captain Warez is a little martinet who won't hesitate to take any opportunity to bully gringos."

"So now I've gone from guest to second class visitor to suspect and now gringo?" He stirred his drink with the straw.

"Winston Graves didn't just die, Miller . . . he was murdered."

Miller's ears filled with a dulling silence and he stopped breathing for a moment, absorbing her words. A kaleidoscope of his actions and comments whizzed past his mind's eye and he wet his lips, sitting forward. "Murdered? He never said that!"

"I left him in here last night after he'd had a clash with one of the waiters. Security took him to his bungalow and this morning he was found by another employee,on the beach partially dressed. His head had been bashed in."

"Jesus! Who- why?"

"I believe that's pronounced, hooray." She sighed and looked away, seemingly bored with the entire concept.

"Are you kidding me? You just told me your date was murdered and you're making jokes?"

"Do you care? Are you really upset about his death?"

"The fact that it was murder . . . yes." He put his glass down and fidgeted on the chair. "Did Warez say what he thought happened, or are we all guilty?"