The reunion’s evening entertainment was a dinner theater thing. On stage was a variety show, comics, magicians, and a couple of singers. The meal was uninspired though tasty enough. Jean sat at a table that included Stephanie French, Brandon Rivers, Damon Berg, Kiko Johnson and Ian Waring. Soren Stewart came late and filled the eighth seat. “I was out all day, filming and researching for a couple of blog posts on Vegas. I had no idea Justin had died. The police were waiting for me in the lobby. What the hell!”

“Normal police harassment, is all.” Brandon waved to a waiter. “Could I get another bourbon?”

“Yes, sir.” The waiter left.

“They’re just doing their jobs,” Stephanie replied. “Jean found him.”

Soren turned to Jean. “No shit? How?”

“I was in the gym first thing this morning. I went to use the sauna and found him in there.”

“That had to suck.” Soren shook his head.

“Yeah. I spent hours there while they went over the crime scene and took the body away. I was questioned over and over. Then again this afternoon with everyone else.”

“Sorry I missed it,” Soren said.

“Poor Justin,” Kiko said. “How’d he die?”

Jean shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t see any wounds or blood.”

“They asked me how I knew him,” Ian said. “I didn’t really, just unit functions. There wasn’t much interaction between supply and network support.”

“I knew him from the training meetings.” Kiko sipped some water. “Good guy. Quick to pick up the new material.”

They went around the table, remembering Justin. It made the evening kind of sad. Jean stood up. “There’s a band in the lounge. I’m going to sit in there and listen to some upbeat music.”

“That’s a great idea.” Brandon got up. “I’ll come with. Anyone else?”

Kiko and Stephanie said they’d come.

Jean was happy enough with Kiko and Stephanie, but Brandon was not on her list of people to hang out with. “Great. See you guys later. You going on the chocolate factory tour tomorrow?”

“I went today,” Soren said.

“Yes,” Ian and Damon said at the same time.

“See you then.” Jean waved and headed for the lounge. The band was on a break, so it was relatively quiet in the lounge. They ordered drinks and Jean asked them if they were going on tomorrow’s tour.

“I am. I heard this place makes great chocolate and has a really nice little garden.” Stephanie grinned. “I love that.”

“Me too,” Kiko said. “I’m going to get gifts for my kids there. Hubby is going to get a tee shirt. I heard there’s a great tourist gift shop toward the north end of the strip. I may get one for myself too.”

“Yeah. Wife told me to pick up some candy.” Brandon sounded as though he weren’t really interested. “I’m not a gardener and one chocolate bar is pretty much like another as far as I’m concerned.”

Jean made a mental note to stay as far from him as possible. “I’m looking forward to it. It’s always interesting to see how things are made. And I promised my friend, Karen, back in Greyson, to bring her some of this candy.”

When the waiter brought their drinks, the band came back on stage. The music was so loud it was hard to talk. Jean was just as happy. She didn’t really want them asking her about finding Justin. She glanced at her phone, nine-thirty. She’d been up since six and been under a lot of stress all day. With luck, she’d not have nightmares about finding the body. They sat through the set and Jean called it a night. “See you in the morning.”

When she got to the room, she called Karen. “Hey, I figured you’d still be up.”

“Yeah, I’m just cleaning up the kitchen before I hit the bed. How’s the reunion.”

“I found a body this morning.”

“Oh my God, Jean!”

“I know, right?” Jean sat down at the small table the room had. She put her feet up on the second chair. Her dress shoes had squeezed her toes a little. “I drank too much last night so got up early and went to the gym to work it off. I go into this little sauna to sweat the rest of it out and there’s a dead body. One of us, Justin Romero.”

“Oh, Jean. I’m so sorry. Did you know him well?”

“I worked with him. He was a supply guy. Not friends but I knew him.”

“What did the police say?”

“Nothing much. I was interviewed several times. The detective on the case, Andrea Voberg, is pretty and smart. Her partner looks like he sleeps in his clothes but he’s no slouch either. I have a theory.”

“Of course you do.” Karen chuckled.

“I think he was killed in his room. In the sauna he was barefoot and in his boxers. No one comes to the gym barefoot and half naked. I think he was dumped in the sauna. I should have been more alert. That sauna was already up to temperature at seven in the morning. That should have made me suspicious.”

“I don’t know why, Jean. Someone could have left it on all night. Someone could have turned it on first thing in the morning. Who knows? But I think you’re right about the way he was dressed. That sounds like a body dump to me, too. You know where his room is? Are the police looking at it?”

“You may be right about the sauna.” Jean yawned. “I don’t know if the police are looking at his room. Let me see if I can find out. Thanks for talking to me about it. I’m hoping I can sleep without any nightmares.”

“Good luck with that. I still get the occasional nightmare about that editor last summer. I can hardly even look at catsup anymore.”

Jean chuckled. “You sleep well, too. I’ll keep you posted.”

“Do that. Good night.” Karen hung up.

Jean clicked off then looked up the social media site. “Let’s see if the organizers put room numbers on the page,” Jean mumbled to herself. She clicked around the page and finally found the list of attendees. “Okay, then. Let’s see. Yes!” Jean saw that all of the attendee’s room numbers were listed. Justin’s room was one floor above hers. She turned off the phone and slipped her shoes back on, grabbed her room card key and headed out. Up on Justin’s floor she went to his room. Crime scene tape stretched across the door.

So, they’ve searched his room. Jean took a picture and texted it to Karen. Other than that, it didn’t tell her much. She wished she could see if there was blood on the carpet or something. She did see a sequin on the floor in the middle of the hall, in front of the door. That’s when she heard the elevator open and someone walk out. Jean turned to leave and saw Brandon walking down the hall. He was looking at the floor so was just ten feet from her when he looked up. “Jean?”

“Brandon.” She headed for the elevator. “Wrong floor. I went a floor too far.”

His eyes narrowed. “Sure.”

She hurried past him. “Night.”

“Night.”

Jean knew he was watching her. A glint came from the hall carpet. Another sequin. And another, all the way to the elevator. When she turned into the elevator foyer, she turned to look. Yep, he was watching her. She smiled and waved then went in and pushed the down button. A door opened right away. She sighed with relief and got on, pushing the button for her floor. The elevator doors couldn’t close fast enough as far as she was concerned. She should have looked to see who else was on this floor before she came up.

Back in her room, she got out of her dress and put her pajamas on. She brushed her teeth and drank a glass of water to counteract all the wine she drank this evening. Less than last night but still, never hurt to hydrate. She got into bed and turned off the light. Despite closing the drapes as tightly as she could, outside lights from the hotel leaked around the edges, making her room brighter than she was used to.

A good thing, she thought. If I wake up in the night I won’t stub my toe on the bed or a chair getting to the bathroom. She yawned. Maybe I can sleep. Jean turned onto her side and shut her eyes.

Jean woke once with a muffled scream in a sweat. She’d been dreaming about Justin’s slow-motion fall from the bench, his eyes staring at her feet. She got up and walked around the room, got a drink of water, and stared out into the night at the window. Even in the middle of the night, Las Vegas was lit up. She scrubbed her face with both hands then pulled the curtains back together and and crawled into bed. There was twisting and turning, but she eventually fell to sleep.

At seven her phone’s alarm woke her. Not too bad, she thought as she got ready for the day. Only one nightmare. She had breakfast at the casino’s buffet and was in the lobby at nine for the bus ride over to the candy factory. Brandon sat in the seat in front of her, giving her an appraising look. She didn’t know why she felt guilty. She wasn’t doing anything wrong last night. “Brandon.”

“Jean.”

Gail sat in the seat across from Jean. “I’m so looking forward to this. I’ve been stationed here two years and haven’t ever been.”

Jean grinned at her. “Isn’t that the way it always is?”

The bus filled, and they were off.

Jean hung with Gail through the tour and then around the gardens. They went back to the gift shop after they finished with the gardens.

“Weren’t those cactus flowers beautiful. I don’t know what color that was, but fuchsia doesn’t do it justice.”

“I know,” Jean said. “Some of those will grow in Greyson. I took notes and am going to see if the local garden shop carries them.”

They each bought some chocolate. Jean found what Karen had asked for and bought a box for herself too. Then they were outside sitting on a bench waiting for the bus. “This was nice,” Jean said. “Who knew you needed all that equipment to make candy.”

“Pretty efficient though.” Gail was opening a box to take out a truffle. She bit into it. “Oh. This is so good!” She smiled with bliss. “The last time I had chocolate this good was back in Afghanistan. Justin had a couple of Afghani’s into the office and they brought me a box of Swiss chocolates.”

Jean all of a sudden, felt this was important. “Why’d they bring you candy?”

“During Justin’s meetings, I’d bring in tea. I guess that was a way of thanking me.”

“He have these meetings a lot?”

“Oh,” she sighed and closed up the box and put it in her bag. “Once a month or so. His suppliers, he called them.”

The bus pulled up and people started to get on.

“Sometimes Brandon came to the meetings.” Gail stood up.

“Brandon?” Jean followed her as she walked to the bus.

“Yeah, for his projects.” Gail went up the bus stairs and sat in the same seat as before. “He was always nice to me, too.”

“He bring you presents too?” Jean sat in her same seat.

“No. Never. It wouldn’t be ethical, he said.”

Jean nodded. “No. I suppose not.”

Brandon got on the bus last. Jean noticed he’d come from the patio area outside the gift shop. He’d been talking to a dark-haired man who hurried away. “Everyone get their candy?”

A lot of yeses came back with people holding up their bags and laughing.

“Where’s yours,” Jean asked as Bandon took the seat in front of her.

“Oh, I’m going to come back later.” He turned around to face front.

Jean shook her head. Last night she definitely remembered him saying he was getting candy for his wife. Why would he come back? Why not get it while he was here? She puzzled over it the whole ride back.

Brandon was first off the bus and hurried off down the street. Very odd.

Next Chapter: Chapter Eight