Bikinis in Paradise (Tj Jensen Pardise Lake Mysteries) (13 page)

“Any blood on board?” Tj wondered.
She frowned as she remembered the large wound on Tonya’s head.

“None that was evident to the eye. Again
, we have a team going over the entire interior of the boat.”

“And the anchor?”

“Is the one used to weigh Tonya down,” Dylan verified.

Tj grimaced. The memory of Tonya floating above the anchor was not one she cared to revisit. “
Connor said that Kiara was heading toward the cove. Do you think she was there to meet Tonya?”

“Perhaps,” Dylan acknowledged. “I think we need to find Kiara. If she
’s involved in Tonya’s death, we need to find out what she knows, and if she isn’t, she may have seen something.”

“And if she’s dead as well?”

“That would be important to know. I spoke to the CEO of the Tropical Tan Corporation yesterday. He said Tonya was on probation with the company. It seemed she disappeared when the tour stopped in Vegas.”

Odd that Fenton
hadn’t mentioned that when she talked to him. She considered filling Dylan in on her conversations with both Roy and Fenton but decided that he had enough on his mind with his sister’s pending arrival.

“
One of the girls told me that Tonya had gotten in over her head and owed a lot of money to the wrong people. Maybe whoever she owed money to caught up with her.”

“I suppos
e it’s possible. I have Roy checking her financials and Tim checking her phone records. I really need to get going. I don’t want to be late picking up Allie and Justin. I’ll try to call you later.”

“Okay. I hope we get this wrapped up so you can enjoy their visit.”

“You and me both.”

After her conversation with Dylan, Tj showered and dressed. By the time she got over to the lodge, the models were beginning to emerge from their rooms. Tj knew that the day would be a busy one for the girls in the competition. The Tropical Tan Corporation had set up a series of photo shoots featuring the models in different attire at various locations around the lake.

“Morning
, Tj,” the model Tj remembered was named Chloe called out to her.

“Good morning
, Chloe. Care to join me?”

“I can’t stay long. The group is about to leave
, but I saw you sitting here and realized it was my chance to ask about Kiara. Any news?”

“I’m afraid not.”

Chloe’s face fell.

“Don’t worry
; we’ll keep looking for her. Have you thought of anything else that might help us?”

“No,” Chloe
said. “It doesn’t make sense that she would just take off. She really wanted to win this thing. We talked about how the scholarship could really change someone’s life, and we both hoped that it wouldn’t be wasted on some girl who wouldn’t even use it.”

“I suppose that happens pretty often,” Tj realized.

“More often than not,” Chloe confirmed. “I’m really afraid something has happened to her. And after what happened to Tonya . . .”

“Did you know Tonya well?” Tj asked.

Chloe shrugged. “I suppose. I mean, we didn’t hang in the same social group, but she’s been around for the whole competition, so we talked a few times.”

“Did she ever mention a boyfriend?”

Chloe paused, Tj imagined, to think about the question.

“I don’t think so,” Chloe answered. “I never saw her with a man
, but I had the feeling that there was someone she was getting over. She had a bit of a gambling problem, and it’s my guess that her guy dumped her after the Vegas fiasco.”

“Vegas fiasco?”
Tj decided that the best approach was to act as if she didn’t know anything about Vegas and see what Chloe had to say.

“Tonya took off and went on a gambling spree. Mr. Ridley was really mad
, and we all thought she’d get fired, but she didn’t.”

Tj realized that if Tonya
had had an affair with Fenton Ridley, she could have used that fact as leverage to keep her job when she got in trouble while on assignment.

“Did Tonya ever mention any family?” Tj asked.

“She didn’t talk about her life outside of her job at Tropical Tan to anyone. Ever. I got the feeling she was covering up a pretty rocky past. Sometimes the only way to really start over is to walk away from where you’ve been.”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

“You know,” Chloe added, “this may be nothing, but with both Kiara missing and Tonya dead, it could mean something.”

“Go on,” Tj encouraged.

“After the Vegas situation, it seemed like Tonya’s relationship with Kiara changed. For the worse. In the beginning it seemed like they were friends, but then, after Vegas, I never saw them hang out together again. Kiara seemed really upset about Tonya’s behavior, more so than might seem normal if all they had was a passing relationship. Kiara was a lot more serious than the other girls, so it could just be that she doesn’t approve of gambling, but if you ask me, there might have been more to it.”

“You said that Tonya and Kiara
were friends. Would you say that prior to Vegas Tonya seemed closer to Kiara than to any of the others?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. The initial rounds of the spokesmodel competition were held regionally
, and Kiara and I weren’t in the same region, so I didn’t really get to know her until just before Vegas. I suppose I might be reading more into the situation than is warranted. I guess I should go,” Chloe announced as the other models filed out of their rooms. “It looks like they’re loading up the vans.”

“Maybe we can talk later?” Tj suggested.

“I’d like that.”

Tj really liked Chloe. Unlike many of the other models
, who seemed so superficial, Chloe was genuinely nice. She seemed to care about Kiara, even though she’d only met her recently, and she was the only one who had shown any real emotion over Tonya Overton’s death. Tj usually didn’t have a favorite in the contest, but this year she really hoped Chloe would win.

When Tj returned to the house, Annabeth was sitting on the front stoop, waiting for her. She was dressed in a blue dress just slightly less tattered than the yellow one she’d worn on Wednesday. She had on flip-flops that looked to be at least a size too small and, even though there was a slight chill in the air, she wasn’t wearing any sort of sweater or cover-up.

“I’m glad you came by,” Tj
said to the girl. She sat down on the step next to her. “I was worried about you after you took off the other day.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want Aaron to see me. He would have told Papa.”

“And you would have been in trouble for being here?”

“We aren’t
supposed to leave the settlement. I leave all the time and he never misses me, but if Aaron had seen me, he would have told on me for sure,” Annabeth replied.

“The resort is a good
fifteen miles from Vengeance. How did you get here?” Tj wondered.

“I rode my bike.”

Tj noticed an old bicycle propped up next to the house for the first time.

“
Papa doesn’t know I have it. Kiara gave it to me before she left so that I could get into town if I needed to. I keep it in our secret spot so no one will find out that I have it.”

“You rode that old bike fifteen miles?”

Annabeth shrugged. “It’s not so bad.”

“
Fifteen miles is quite a trip on a bike without gears or a padded seat. You must be thirsty after such a long ride. Would you like to come inside for something to drink?”

“Yes
, thank you.”

“So what can I do
for you, Annabeth?” Tj asked as she led the girl in through the house toward the kitchen.

“I wanted to ask you
if you found out anything new about Kiara. I overheard Nona talking to Aaron. She said that she was still missing. I’m afraid something bad happened to her.”

Tj indicated that Annabeth should have a seat at the kitchen table while she poured lemonade into tall glasses
filled with ice. “Did Kiara tell you that she was going to be coming to this area?”

“No
. I haven’t spoken to her since she left, over a year ago.” Annabeth gulped the juice down in one breath, so Tj refilled the glass and left the pitcher on the table.

“Then how did you know
that Kiara was going to be here on Wednesday?” Tj asked.

“Aaron told me
,” Annabeth answered.

“Did he mention how he knew that Kiara was going to be here?”
Tj sat down in a chair across from the girl.

“No
, he didn’t say.”

“Did you know
that Aaron planned to meet Kiara on Wednesday?” Tj asked.

Annabeth t
hought about it. “No. Things didn’t really end well between them. When Kiara left, he seemed mad, so I figured he wouldn’t want to see her even if he knew she was coming.”

Tj made a mental note to follow up on this seemingly minor detail. If they could find out how Aaron knew to meet the bus
, they might be able to uncover who else might be involved in Kiara’s disappearance. When she and her grandpa had talked to Nona the day before, she’d indicated that she hadn’t known that Kiara was planning to be in the area. Could she have been lying?

“Are you and Nona close?” Tj asked.

“Yeah, pretty close,” Annabeth answered. “She isn’t my real grandma, but she watches out for me when my dad isn’t around.”

“When Nona was talking to Aaron
, how did he seem?” Tj asked.

“Seem?”
Annabeth finished her second glass of juice so Tj refilled the glass.

“Was he surprised Kiara was missing? Did he
act mad or scared?”

Annabeth thought about it.
“He didn’t seem mad or surprised. Do you think Aaron knows where Kiara is?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. What about your dad? Did he seem angry, scared, or surprised when he heard that Kiara was missing?”

“No. My dad doesn’t care about anyone, especially Kiara. He says she’s dead to him. I don’t think he cares about her disappearance one way or the other.”

Tj couldn’t imagine writing off or disowning your own child even if you were mad at them.

“Did Kiara have any friends?” Tj wondered. “Maybe someone in the settlement or in town?”

Annabeth wound her long hair around her finger as she considered the question. She really was a pretty girl
, if somewhat unkempt. It was obvious that she didn’t have anyone in her life to teach her about proper hair or skin care. “Sometimes she’d mention someone named Lori. I think they met in the library.”

“Do you remember a last name?”

“No. I don’t think
Kiara ever said.”

Annabeth
was eying the pitcher of lemonade, so Tj refilled her glass again. “Would you like something to eat?” she asked. “I have a fresh fruit salad and stuff to make sandwiches.”

“Thank you. I
am
hungry.”

Tj turned toward the refrigerator to retrieve the ingredients she’d need.
“Tuna or egg salad?”

“Either is fine.”

“I have both prepared, so feel free to choose one,” Tj encouraged.

“
Tuna, then.”

Tj retrieved the appropriate bowl
, as well as a fruit salad her grandpa must have made, containing watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, blackberries, and grapes. It really did look good, so Tj made a bowl for herself as well.

“Is this Kiara?” Tj heard Annabeth ask. Tj turned to see Annabeth looking at the head shot of Kiara that Leiani had given her the other day. She’d left it sitting on the counter.

“Yes. That’s a photo she had taken for the competition.”

“She looks so beautiful,” Annabeth gasped. She touched her own stringy hair. “So different.
When I first looked at it, I didn’t even recognize her.”

“The girls in the contest have their hair and makeup done by profes
sionals before each photo shoot,” Tj explained.

“I wish I could get my hair cut
like that,” Annabeth breathed.

“They don’t have hairdressers
in Vengeance?” Tj asked as she set a plate with a sandwich and fruit salad down in front of the young girl.

Annabeth giggled. “No. Most just wear their hair braided.”

Tj remembered that Nona wore a long braid.

“Do any of the residents work in town?” Tj figured that anyone with a job would need to adhere to proper grooming guidelines.

“No. Some of the people leave to get jobs, but then they don’t continue to live in Vengeance.”

“How do they pay for goods and services?”

“Most sell things or do odd jobs. My dad cuts and sells wood, and we have women who make quilts and other hand-sewn items. There are quite a few families that sell eggs, honey, and produce at the farmers markets during the summer. I know of one man who plows snow in the winter, and there are some, like Nona, who just seem to have money. It’s not expensive to live where we do. There’s no rent or utilities, and we grow most of our own food.”