Since Cade had to head into work, Raven rode with Fiona back to the resort. After a quick dash upstairs to change into some of her own clothes—avoiding the elevator and using the stairs—she met with Fiona in her office to go over all of Rachelle’s duties.
Raven was happily surprised to see how quickly Fiona picked everything up.
“It’s as if I never left,” Fiona said a few hours later. “Except for the new computer systems.” She rolled her eyes.
“You’ll pick up on it soon enough,” Raven promised her.
“I’ve asked Cemal to request all employees gather for a meeting at noon in the bar area. I plan on explaining Rachelle’s death and letting them know you’ll be filling in for her,” Raven said, glancing down at her watch. It was less than an hour until noon. “If you want, I’ll show you to your office and you can get settled until then?”
“Thank you.” Fiona stood up and then surprised Raven by pulling her into a hug. “I meant to do this earlier. I’m really sorry for your loss. After this morning, after understanding how you felt about Rachelle, I’m terribly sorry about your loss.”
“Thank you.” Raven’s eyes stung as she held onto Cade’s mother.
After showing Fiona to Rachelle’s small office just down the hallway from her own, Raven headed downstairs to the kitchens. She wanted, no needed, another cup of coffee.
She hadn’t planned on overhearing the latest gossip as she stood in the hallway.
The double doors to the kitchen area were always closed but today, they stood wide open. She was about to close them when she heard her name. Normally, she would have turned around and left, since she hated listening to gossip about herself. She knew what others had been saying over the years. But something made her stop and listen this time.
“It was Raven,” a woman was saying. “I heard that she was close to firing Rachelle because she was jealous that employees listened to Rachelle instead of her. After all, we all know that she’s the one who started the fire all those years ago.”
“Those are just rumors,” a man said in reply.
“Rumors with some truth. The cause of the fire was never really found out. Besides, she’s probably the one who killed that accountant in the elevator. I’d heard that he was blackmailing her.”
“Blackmailing?” the male voice asked. “What for?”
“She’d been sleeping around. From what I hear, she was keeping the company of some important person in town and the accountant had proof,” the woman said. “I mean, she’s been back here for less than three months and is already in Cade Stone’s bed.”
Hearing Cade’s name shook her out of the stupor.
Without really thinking it over, she stepped into the kitchen. Seeing the male dishwasher leaning against the counter with the maid practically in his lap, Raven felt her temper surface.
“Out.” She pointed to the door. The couple immediately jumped apart upon being discovered. “Out,” she said again.
When the female started to leave, Raven stopped her.
“No, I don’t think I’ve made myself clear. You’re fired.” She turned her eyes to the young boy who had worked in the kitchen for less than a few weeks. “You too.” She motioned. “Both of you. Collect your things and your last check on your way out.”
The pair looked dumbstruck for a moment, then the girl grabbed the boy’s hand and pulled him out of the kitchen.
If Raven had been in her right mind, she would have thought to ask her where she’d heard the rumors. Instead, she leaned against the counter and took several deep breaths until she felt her heart return to its normal beat.
By then, she was too upset to even think about coffee and turned around and headed back upstairs. Besides, it was less than ten minutes before her scheduled meeting with all the employees.
For the next few minutes, she ran over what she wanted to say to everyone. Two minutes before noon, Fiona knocked on her door.
“Ready?” Fiona asked. She waved her inside the office.
“Help.” She motioned to her notes. “What in the hell am I going to say?”
Fiona ran her eyes over Raven’s notes and then sat down. “This is a good start.”
“It sucks.” She rolled her eyes. “I come off sounding weak and shallow. Honestly, before Rachelle’s even buried, I hired her replacement.”
“Because business has to go on. You’re just looking out for your investment and also thinking about your employees. It wouldn’t do to let them worry. It’s key to let them know you have their backs and that they have security in leadership. Don’t let your doubts weigh you down. You’ve got this.”
“I do,” she said after a moment, feeling a little steadier.
“Ready to do this?” Fiona stood up and handed her the notepad.
“Yes.” She took the notepad and set it down.
“Don’t you need that?” Fiona asked.
“No. I’ve got this.” She felt her entire body start to shake.
It was just like debate class in high school. Every single time she stood in front of two or more people and had to talk, she freaked. Her knees shook, her voice shook, her heart raced, and her palms grew sweaty. Like they were currently doing.
Wiping her hands on her slacks, she took a deep breath and followed Fiona out of her office and down the hallway into the bar area, where every single one of her employees was waiting on her.
She was thankful to see Sean and officer Karin Taper waiting in the lobby area.
“I thought you’d need backup,” Sean said as he glanced towards Fiona, who nodded and mouthed, “Thanks.”
When the four of them stepped into the bar area, the low chatter stopped, and the entire place grew quiet.
“Thank you,” she said, hating the mellow tone of her voice. Her entire body was vibrating with nerves and yet her voice sounded soothing and was laced with security, betraying her emotions. “As many of you may have already heard, Rachelle Braun passed away late last night.” Several employees gasped while a few others started crying softly. “Rachelle is going to be missed, and I know this is hard on all of us. I’ve scheduled a grief counselor to be available for anyone who needs it.” She glanced around the room and noticed more dry eyes than wet ones.
She knew that Rachelle was liked by most, but Raven understood that most employees hated their bosses, no matter what. Especially in the hospitality world.
Just then Sean shifted and got her attention.
“Sheriff Stone has requested to meet with each of you at some point this week,” she said, causing several people to groan. Holding up her hands she continued, “I know that all of us want to get to the bottom of what happened with one of our own.” The groans stopped. “I’ll expect everyone to carve out some time to meet with the sheriff.”
“Thank you in advance for your cooperation,” Sean said, stepping forward.
“Was Rachelle murdered?” someone shouted.
Sean glanced at her, and she motioned for him to take over.
“At this point, we’re looking into every possibility. Until we find out, I’m just doing my job,” Sean said smoothly.
He stepped back and everyone turned to her again. “Many of you know Fiona Stone.” She glanced over at Cade’s mother. “Fiona used to work with my parents before Rachelle was hired and has agreed to come back to lend us a hand during this challenging time.” She stepped back. “Fiona, would you like to say something?”