Containment Of Secrets

Chapter 6

(Mallory's point of view)

We arrived at the pier in no time. Many of the locals were at the restaurant right off the pier, eating breakfast and reminiscing about the 'good ole days' when we walked in. Braxton and I split up, mingling with the locals. We were hoping to gather something.

I walk right up to the bar. One of the waitresses by the name of Tiffany, was wiping down the counter. She stops mid- wipe when she sees me sitting on a stool. "Job that stressful at this time of the morning, Mallory?"

I smirk, lowering my head before raising it back up to meet her gaze. "When is it not stressful?"

She smirks before picking up her rag to continue wiping. "I guess your job is not a cakewalk. So, pick your poison and I will make it for you for free."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I am actually here on business. Do you know anything about a yacht party happening the other night?"

 "Not off hand. If anyone knows, Annalise will know. She has worked the night shift for a few weeks now. She just came back to the morning shift this morning." Within seconds, a waitress wearing a high ponytail comes around the corner.

"Annalise, come here." Tiffany calls out.

Annalise strides over, as she chews on a piece of chewing gum. She clutches a rectangular food tray. She looks at me before looking at Tiffany. Her hoop earrings move with her as she turns her head to look at Tiffany.

"What's up, Tiff?" She asks, casually.

Tiffany nods her head toward me as she speaks. "Detective Decker here, wants to know if there have been any yacht parties here lately?"

Annalise blows a bubble and lets it pop before she speaks. "Yeah, when is there not a yacht party? Especially on Friday nights."

"Do you remember the last one that was held?"

"Um-." She stops to look at the calendar before replying back to me. "Last Friday actually. Yeah, I had a couple of high school girls come in. They said it was not a typical party."

"What do you mean by that?" I ask her. Annalise leans against the counter clutching the tray now against her stomach. She furrows her brows and looks up to the ceiling, as if she is trying to recall something. "I remember one of the girls saying it had an off environment to it."

"Did you hear any elaboration on that?"

"Yes, actually I did. The girl sitting across from her said that it was 'too rich' of a party for her. She said something about the people hosting the party were not your casual rich people, they were more elite."

 "How did the girls pay for their drinks and food?" I ask.

"Credit card, I can give you a copy of the receipt. It has the girl's signature on it." Annalise informs me.

"Yes, that would be great." I replied. She nods and heads off in search of the receipt.

~~~

"I have never cared for hospitals." Braxton informs me, as we walk through the main entrance.

"I know you despise them, but according to her bank statements, Grace works here."

"Okay, let's just get this over with." He replies.

"Can I help you?" A woman in pink scrubs asks.

I show my badge and say, "Yes, I am Detective Decker, and this is my partner Detective Foyay. We wanted to speak to Grace Aneil."

"She is on the cardiology floor working, but I can page her down here, or I can call up and have her meet you two in a nearby breakroom."

 "Breakroom preferably." Braxton replies.

"Okay, our nearest breakroom is down the hall and to the left. I'll call up to the cardio floor now." The lady states.

~~~

 Braxton and I wait in a nearby breakroom. Some fifteen minutes later, a girl with shoulder- length hair and brown eyes appears. Her gait slows once she notices Braxton and me.

"Are you Grace Aneil?" I ask. I stand up from the little couch situated across from the table and chairs. I walk over to the girl offering my hand out for her to shake. "I'm Detective Mallory Decker, and this is my partner Detective Braxton Foyay." I say, as I gesture toward Braxton.

Braxton gives her a small wave from him sitting on the couch. Grace shakes my hand before going over to the table to sit down. "Yes, I'm Grace Aneil."

 "What were you doing last Friday night?" Braxton asks. I could see nervousness flash across her face. "I uh... I was at home with my parents."

I nod my head, observing her body language. She folded her hands in front of her, suddenly becoming fidgety. I watched sweat gathering on her forehead as she kept glancing to the left of her.

"Try again, Grace." I warned her.

Grace looks over at me and says, "I don't know what you are talking about."

I pull out a manilla folder from my bag. Inside of it was a copy of her bank statement and a receipt from the restaurant. I place both items in front of her. "Don't play stupid. We know that you were at the nearby pier with some friends."

Her eyes welled up as she spoke. "I was at a party. My friends and I left to grab some food and drinks. Please don't tell my parents." She begs. I take the seat across from her, crossing my arms.

"We won't speak a word of this, but we need your full cooperation."

She nods her head and replies, "Anything. I'll tell you anything."

"Good. Now, tell me about the party you attended."

"What about it?"

 "Was there anything weird about it?"

She swallows hard, she seems to be in deep thought before replying. "My friends and I all agreed something was not right about the situation."

"What do you mean by that?" Braxton asks, as he sits up from the couch.

"I have been to a few yacht parties, but nothing like this one. We never even met the host or hostess."

"Did you see these two ladies?" I ask her, as I pull out pictures of Sadie and Rebekah.

"Yes, I saw both of them there. Are they okay?"

"No, they were murdered."

Grace covers a hand over her mouth. She tears up more as she looks over the pictures. A picture catches my eye from behind Grace. It was a picture of a woman with straight-long, red hair, and blue eyes. Her smile was radiant, but yet so haunting. I tried to read the small print below the picture that was attached to the bulletin board.

"Are you okay, detective?" Grace asks.

"I was just admiring that picture behind you."

Grace turns around to look at the picture and says, "Oh, Queen Saige is a huge inspiration to us here. After all, she did work here as a certified nursing assistant before becoming queen of Wilachia."

She then turns back around to face me. "Are you sure you're, okay?"

"Yes. Is there anyone else I could speak to about that night?"

She hesitates before speaking. "Yes, his name is Joey Snow. His parents are filthy rich and own a few yachts. He was there. Here. I'll give you, his address." She says, as she pulls out a pen and pad.