There were twelve mini-suites on the first floor. He knew the layouts and the names of each of those staying in those rooms. He caught the muffled sounds of snores coming from several of the rooms. That was to be expected. He was looking for something that might jar. A single note, anything that would make the knots in his gut either relax or tighten more.
He was a GhostWalker, so he moved like a wraith down the long, snaking hallway. It wasn’t straight, so he couldn’t see all the way to the end. The dim light cast enough shadows that he was able to disappear into them. Someone was stirring in the dolphin room.
Marie had decorated each of the downstairs rooms with sea animals to make it easier to identify guests and where they were staying. The dolphin room was Tania Leven’s. She was already up, moving around. Malichai could hear her talking quietly to someone else—a male. He slid deeper into the shadows beside her room in an effort to identify the male voice speaking with her at four in the morning.
It wasn’t as if, on a vacation, she couldn’t hook up with someone, it was done all the time. It was just that Tania was surrounded by family, all men, and everywhere she went, she had her brother or cousin with her. Malichai had never noticed her flirting either.
The door swung open and Tommy Leven stood there, looking back inside. “See you at breakfast, honey,” he said.
“Thanks for staying with me,” Tania said. She sounded as if she’d been crying.
Tommy shrugged and closed the door quietly. He stood there for a moment looking at the door and then he went on past Malichai, back toward his room. Malichai leaned against the wall, trying to puzzle out why Tania would be so upset that her brother had to spend most of the night talking to her. She always seemed a very steady woman.
He was about to move on down the hall when the door to the orca room opened. It was the one right beside the dolphin room, the one rented to Linda, Lorrie, and Lexie Montclair. Linda looked out into the hall, toward Tommy’s room, and then crept out and knocked softly on Tania’s door. Malichai frowned. He’d never seen the women talking to each other.
Tania opened her door slightly and then, seeing who it was, cracked it wider. Fresh tears instantly began to track down her face. The two women stood there looking at each other and then Tania hiccupped.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “Linda, I was careless. That was all. Careless. It wasn’t on purpose. You have to know that.”
She sounded so contrite, Malichai felt sorry for her and he didn’t even know what she’d done. Linda stepped closer to the door and Tania backed inside to allow the other woman entry. Linda put her arms around Tania and held her while Tania began to sob quietly.
“You’re going to give yourself a headache. It’s over. Tag’s not going to hurt her now. Were you jealous? Why would you ever think I’d want to be with a man like that?”
“He kept asking for you, not Lorrie. It was always, ‘Do you know this woman, Linda Montclair?’ I thought he was your ex and he wanted you back.”
Linda reached behind her and closed the door, but as she did so, he could see she caught at Tania’s hair, turning her face so she could find her mouth with hers.
Linda and Tania? What the hell was going on? And Tania had contacted Tag and brought him to the bed-and-breakfast because he’d been asking around for Linda? He probably realized Linda ran the show. She would be the one hiding her sister from him. But Tania and Linda? Linda was from San Diego. Tania was from North Carolina, at least that was what was on her driver’s license. They couldn’t have just struck up the relationship. How had they met? How long had they been together?
Malichai waited a few more minutes, listening carefully, but there was no more conversation. None. He sighed and continued down the hallway until he was at the stairs leading to the second floor. There were two sets of staircases, one on either end of the first floor. There was also a lift a wheelchair could use from the foyer where the front desk was, so three ways to access the top floor.
He went up the stairs and stood in the wide hallway for a moment, just listening, allowing his enhanced senses to scan for him. The five men from the various countries represented at the Ideas for Peace conference were each staying in one of the five suites on the second floor. Stefani Charles, representing Finland, was also on that floor. Three more of the rooms had been reserved for representatives of other countries. The remaining vacant two rooms on that floor were reserved for attendees of the conference. Those people would be coming in that morning or afternoon. The Ideas for Peace conference had turned out to be a huge draw, and the local motels, hotels and B and B places had all benefited.
Malichai walked up and down the hallway, but as far as he could see, nothing seemed out of place. His alarm kept nagging at him, but there weren’t any whispers, no voices talking conspiracy. Just his gut telling him something wasn’t right. It was possibly left over from Tag’s sudden appearance, but that didn’t feel right to him.
He turned to start back down the hall when the door to suite Atlantis opened and Billy Leven came out. He wore gloves, very dark ones, as he gripped the doorknob to make certain he had closed it properly. He tugged twice and then sauntered down the hall as if he didn’t have a care in the world. Suite Atlantis was the room Amaryllis had prepared for a representative of Egypt who had been coming in that night but was delayed until the next afternoon.
Malichai stared at the closed door. The Levens were up to something. Billy seemed a good old boy, a man who was perpetually cheerful and yet, at the same time, stayed to himself. Tania seemed a sweet woman, but she was having an affair with a woman she acted as if she didn’t know. Tommy? What was he up to?
Malichai waited for Billy to make his way down the stairs and then he followed at a more leisurely pace, not wanting to draw the eye to him. Billy didn’t go straight to his room but followed the aroma of freshly brewed coffee and bacon to the kitchen.
Malichai heard Amaryllis’s laughter before he came up behind the man from North Carolina. He was using all his charm on her. Billy had one hip against the doorjamb as he casually draped himself there to observe Amaryllis putting the last touches on her trays of breakfast casserole.
“You’re going to have to show me how to make that before I head home,” Billy said. “One of the best breakfasts I’ve ever had.”
“It’s Marie’s recipe,” Amaryllis volunteered. She looked past Billy to Malichai. “Hi, honey,” she greeted softly. “Looking for coffee?”
“I’m always looking for coffee,” Malichai said and nodded at Billy as the man moved in order for him to get by. “I see you found my girl and you’re giving me a run for my money this morning with the compliments.”
“All sincere,” Billy said. “You’re a lucky man.”
“I am that,” Malichai agreed, inhaling the aroma of coffee as he took the cup from Amaryllis. “And she makes the best coffee as well.”
“You’re a soldier, Malichai,” Billy said. “What do you think about all this Ideas for Peace nonsense?”
Malichai shrugged noncommittally. “I think nations have tried to talk peace for centuries and it never actually happens, so while I think it’s commendable, do I believe anything will come of it? Unfortunately, no.”