Vanessa leaned back.
“Good.”
Then she looked at her friends.
“Some people have absolutely no class.”
I began gathering our things with one hand.
Lily was still feeding.
My fingers shook.
Noah climbed out of the pool.
“Mom?”
“Get your towel, sweetheart.”
“Why?”
“We’re going home.”
His face fell.
“But we just—”
“I know.”
Then another voice spoke.
“Mrs. Bennett?”
I turned.
A man in a navy hotel jacket approached.
His name tag read:
THOMAS REED.
GENERAL MANAGER.
My stomach dropped.
Of course.
The manager.
Vanessa had made such a scene that someone had complained.
I assumed he was coming to ask me to leave.
I stood carefully.
“I’m sorry.”
Thomas frowned.
“For what?”
I looked at Lily.
Then toward Vanessa.
“I didn’t mean to cause a problem.”
“You didn’t.”
I stared at him.
He smiled.
“Please stay seated.”
Then he turned toward Vanessa.
Her expression became triumphant.
“Finally.”
Thomas walked to her table.
He carried a black rectangular box.
Vanessa smiled at her friends.
“I told you.”
Thomas placed the box in front of her.
“Ms. Cole?”
“Yes?”
“This is your first visit to Harbor Palms, correct?”
She smiled.
“It is.”
“We prepared something for you.”
Her friends leaned closer.
Vanessa’s expression changed completely.
“Oh.”
She touched the box.
“Well, that’s more like it.”
I stood frozen.
Noah came beside me.
“What is it?”
“I don’t know.”
Vanessa opened the lid.
Then screamed.
Not a frightened scream.
An outraged one.
“What the hell is this?”
She pulled several papers from the box.
Thomas remained calm.
“The first page is our pool conduct policy.”
Vanessa stared at him.
“The second is written notice that your day-pass privileges have been
revoked.”
Her mouth fell open.
“You’re throwing ME out?”
“Yes.”
“Because of HER?”
Thomas shook his head.
“No.”
“Because of your conduct.”
Vanessa looked around.
“This is ridiculous.”
Then she saw the photographs.
Her face changed.
Security still images.
Several.
Time-stamped.
One showed Vanessa and her friends moving towels from reserved chairs.
Another showed Vanessa taking a hotel wristband from an unattended bag.
Another showed one of her friends pouring alcohol from a personal bottle
into a hotel cup.
The final image showed Vanessa leaning over the service counter while an
employee was turned away.
Her hand was inside the tip jar.
My breath caught.
Vanessa’s face turned bright red.
“What is this?”
Thomas answered.
“Security footage.”
“You were already under review before you approached Mrs. Bennett.”
