He cycled through the video feed over and over again to be certain. Once he made sure the date and times lined up, Rico sat back from the computer screen. His supposed victim had entered his room twice, exited it once, and ended up on the second floor. Rico had tried to find a feed on the second floor which would show where Oliver went from there but lost track of him after he took a turn down one of the hallways. It struck Rico as odd that the other floors all had extensive video coverage, but the second floor didn’t.

Frowning, he pulled his phone out, searching for Stephanie’s number. When it came to security and software, he would go to Dutch. But when it came to the other details of the hotel, he would hunt down the woman who probably had everything filed in precise detail.

“Stephanie Morgan,” the owner answered in a clipped tone.

“Miss Morgan, I’d like to take a moment of your time,” Rico began, looking at the screen.

Her tone immediately shifted to polite warmth. “Ah, Detective Hernandez, I was wondering if I might be hearing from you again. Last I heard, you were taking Mr. Richards on as a consultant.”

“For the stage of the investigation I was at, yes,” Rico said, wincing as he tried to not think about Jett too much.

“Well, I hope he was of some help. He can be a difficult one at times, but I know the man has a great deal of intelligence and could be a great asset,” Stephanie continued, unaware of how sore the subject might be.

Rico grunted. “He was of assistance in his own way, but I was wondering if you might be willing to help me with something yourself.”

“Certainly. How can I help?”

“I’ve been combing over the records of the other video feeds from the night of the murder, and I’ve noticed you don’t have very many cameras on the second floor.”

Stephanie laughed. “Ah, well that would be because the second floor isn’t for guests. A few years ago, I realized it would be advantageous to open up a floor for those who intended on staying at the hotel on a more permanent basis. The second floor just happened to be the floor I chose.”

Rico sat up straighter in his chair. “The people on the second floor are tenants?”

“More or less. They’re reserved for people who plan to stay for more than a few days or a couple of weeks. Many of our long-term guests and entertainers tend to stay on the floor, and no, Mr. Richards doesn’t live on the second floor, he’s chosen to house himself elsewhere. Apparently, he doesn’t always want to be the center of attention.”

“I see you leapt to his defense quickly,” Rico noted a little guiltily.

“Defense? No, I just happen to know if anyone were to be on your suspect list, it would be Mr. Richards.”

Rico shifted uncomfortably. “Well, thank you for that. Do you happen to have a list of people who would be staying on the second floor?”

“Certainly, though it’s a considerable list. We have more than a few long-term guests on the second floor. Is there any way for you to narrow the list down?” Stephanie asked, the sound of a keyboard typing away in the background.

Rico leaned forward, shifting the view on the screen around to follow Oliver once more. Though there wasn’t very much coverage of the cameras on the second floor, there was enough for him to be able to read the sign on the wall of one of the hallways Oliver passed into.

“Rooms 201 to 222.”

“Give me just one moment. Okay, I’ve copied the list of people staying in the wing you mentioned. I’ll forward it to your email address and you can look it over.”

Rico felt the phone buzz to signify a new message and grinned. “Thank you, Miss Morgan.”

“Now, can I have your word you won’t be using it for anything other than your investigation? The last thing I need is an angry guest banging my door down because I gave away their address,” Stephanie said with a sigh.

Rico grinned. “No, just cross referencing a few facts in the case. If I plan on making any moves, I promise I’ll let you know.”

“Well if you should need anything else, you have my number,” Stephanie said before disconnecting.

Rico eyed the phone, shaking his head. “Woman doesn’t waste any time whatsoever, does she?”

Snorting to himself, he opened his email and waited until Stephanie’s message popped through. He clicked it open, downloading the attachment and waited for it to load. He wasn’t sure precisely what he was looking for, but his gut told him he would know as soon as he saw it. He scanned the list and the moment came after another flick of his fingers, when he stopped on the name of the person who was inhabiting room 214.

Riley Singh.

Rico’s stomach flipped uncomfortably, his grip around his phone tightening. He looked to the corner of the screen and read the time. Jett would be on stage, performing his various tricks, and working his way up to the one he’d shown Rico. The very same one which ended with a huge saw and a mess of fire.

His flipping stomach suddenly dropped and his throat tightened. He had been so determined to keep Jett at arm’s length, to keep his opinion objective, he had inadvertently pushed Jett into danger. Now the man who Rico had always known deep down was innocent, was on stage, probably preparing to throw himself into a deathtrap, and his assistant was the woman Rico’s supposed murder victim had gone to see.

Rico leaped up from the seat, not bothering to close the door as he rushed out, hoping he wasn’t too late.