When Fletcher came out he was with Gail and Brandon and some other guy. Jean said she’d seen him talking to Brandon at Ethel M’s but he didn’t recognize him. Dwight reached out to start the car but Jean had him wait. It made sense. Even as quiet as the car was, it could still be heard starting on a quiet street. Once the group was moving, he wondered what they’d been up to. They could have met anywhere and looked a lot less suspicious. Sneaking back here looked bad as far as he was concerned.

They followed the four until they went into the garage. He was all for abandoning the hunt, but Jean was determined. He thought back, was she always this bull-headed? Yes, she was. She never wanted to give up on any project. That usually was a good trait but in this case, he wished she’d back off a little.

The argument about staying or leaving ended with the appearance of the black-haired guy in a black SUV. That was a little spy-movie’ish as far as Dwight was concerned. Really? A black SUV? He had to shake his head but after a quick discussion, he was relieved that Jean decided to stay and see if their friends came out. There was no way he wanted to follow someone in a black SUV.

He was surprised when their so-called friends all came out in the same car. Why all the sneaking around alone if they were going to all ride together at the end? He and Jean agreed on that. That made it all the more curious when they drove straight back to their hotel. They didn’t even try to throw off any scent or followers. He made sure to keep a distance when he drove into the garage behind them and followed them up to see them park on the third level. Dwight drove on by and parked on level four.

Dwight walked her to her room and left her to take a nap. It was still hours before heading to dinner. What to do until then? One thing was to stop following Jean blindly. He was clueless and somehow, she knew things he didn’t, otherwise, why her fixation on Gail, Brandon and Fletcher? Was she getting info from the police? He didn’t think so, police were pretty closed-mouthed. She’d always been observant, that’s what made her such a good project manager. He found himself in the bar. There were a handful of people there from the reunion. He joined them, drinking a Crown Royal first then switching to club soda.

The people he was sitting with knew Gail slightly. Her tour had overlapped his and Jean’s and theirs. They thought she was nice enough but didn’t really know her. Brandon, they didn’t know at all as they had been in medical and never really worked with the unit project managers. Fletcher, they only knew from security briefings. They asked him about people they knew and he had to shake his head. He’d never really been sick while there so aside from a check-up or shots, he didn’t know any medical people.

Later Kiko came in and Dwight moved over to sit with her. She went on and on about Stephanie but the two of them obviously were not in the loop. Then it was time to go up to his room and get ready for dinner. He decided on a white button-up shirt and casual business jacket then went to the lobby. He was talking with people when the bus loading announcement was made. He was one of the first on the bus so was in the front. Jean gave him a smile when she passed but went to the rear of the bus. No matter. He’d see her at dinner.

When he got there, he was disappointed to see that there was assigned seating. He’d hoped to grab a seat next to Jean. He shrugged and found his seat. Dinner was just all right. He’d expected better from a restaurant. Then there were the usual speeches. Finally, they let everyone loose and he headed for the bar. Time for a drink. He chatted with people and tried to spot Jean. She was dressed more casually than everyone else and he expected to spot her more quickly. It was like a game of Where’s Waldo, he thought just before he spotted her on the other side of the room standing behind a pillar. What? The he realized that she was out of sight of the group on the other side of the pillar. Norm, Brandon, Soren, Fletcher, Ian, Damon and Gail formed the group. Crap, Jean was listening to their conversation.

Dwight put his drink on the nearest table and circled the room to get to her before she got into trouble. He was almost to her when he saw her turn away from the pillar but got her foot caught in the poster easel, making it topple. She was trying to right it when her head turned to the group.

Oh, no. They caught her. He hurried. Their faces were not only suspicious but angry. Dwight interrupted. “Hey! There you are.”

Jean looked relieved. “Looking at the pictures.”

“Yeah. They’re great. I have someone I’d like you to meet.” He helped her with the poster and said his goodbyes to the group. Dwight took her by the arm and walked off. She had the sense to play along but he could feel his blood pounding in his neck.

Dwight went through a charade of introducing her to people he didn’t know, loosing track of most of the group in the process. Jean knew where two of them were when he finished the conversation with the decoys, but it was time to leave.

They took off for the exit. Dwight kept an eye out for anyone from the group Jean had ticked off. She was going to get them beat to a pulp. What did she overhear? Must have been bad for them to be all mad about it. Outside and up the street he had her call a cab. Turned out to be an Uber, but fine. Now they had to wait, and he didn’t want to wait around to get the tar beat out of him. He took Jean’s suggestion to hide out behind the gas station.

That’s when she called her detective and overheard her tell the detective that the black-haired guy, Ari, killed Justin and Gail saw it. Now his adrenaline was really flowing. Brandon and Fletcher weren’t going to give them a beat down, they were going to kill them. He kept an eye on the corner where the Uber was supposed to pick them up. Holy crap! How was she so calm?

She was telling him that the detective wanted them at the Main Street police station when he tapped her on the arm. “They’re here.”

Next Chapter: Chapter Nineteen