Page 30 of What Doesn't Kill You…

"Please eat," Max told her. "I think you're hangry. You used a lot of energy kayaking."

She stared at him for a moment before slowly, and deliberately, taking a bite of her sandwich. He felt like he was being silently hexed with each bite she took, but at least she was eating.

"Violet's got a point," Rodrigo said. "What other services would he have to import into his house?"

"Alcohol deliveries," Abasi said. "I bet that comes from the hotel."

"They probably share the more specialized maintenance crews too," Katrina added. "Why keep a mechanic or electrician on hand at the estate, when he can use the resort's?"

"I'll ask around," Abasi said. "Find out where the crossover is, hopefully it will point us to a weak link."

"Bug the flowers," Violet said around a mouthful of food. "Get ears in there."

Rodrigo was shaking his head. "They'll scan for bugs. I would."

"Plant moisture monitors." Violet's sentences weren't improving.

Max went to the mini bar, fetched a bottle of orange juice, opened it, and handed it to her. "Hydrate," he ordered. By the looks of it, she could use the sugar too.

She took it with a glare. But she drank. He sat back down.

Abasi watched them with amusement. "Does anyone know what she's talking about?"

Violet huffed in exasperation. "People who care for plants in offices or hotels often use simple digital tracking devices to monitor soil moisture, sunlight, and stuff like that. It means less people checking on the plants and the plants living longer. They use them in this resort. I spotted a couple in the lobby. If you intercept some plants going into the estate, you can wire bugs into the monitors. You can use the monitor battery to run the bug. You just need to put it on a timer, or delay switch, so that it isn't live when they scan the plants on arrival."

Wow, that was a lot of talking and she seemed exhausted by it. She took a swallow of orange juice, dismissing everyone again.

"Think it will work?" Abasi asked Rodrigo, earning another growl from Violet. This one was small and rumbling. Like the warning a kitten might give before sinking needle-thin teeth into flesh.

"Yeah." Rodrigo looked impressed. "If we can get access to the florist. And if there are plants going into the estate."

"Hack the florist. Add plants for the estate," Violet said before taking another bite of her sandwich.

Max made a mental note to add cookies to the order next time. Sugar definitely seemed like a good idea when it came to keeping Violet human.

Abasi grinned at her. "You're on a roll today. A really grumpy roll, but still, go you." He looked back at the team. "Should be easy enough for me to get into the florist's system. Can't imagine it would have any serious security I'd need to hack."

"Violet will fill you in on what to add to the order," Rodrigo said with authority.

Violet rumbled a little, but it wasn't a growl so Max relaxed.

"I can contact the guy who charters boats for Damien's guests and see if anything's changed there," he offered. "Maybe check in with my other sources and see if they've heard anything too."

Rodrigo focused in on him. "These sources of yours, are they on the staff here? Because that would make things a helluva lot easier. Abasi could tap into them for you."

"I'm sorry but no."

Max paused, wondering how much to tell them. With a sigh, he realized he needed to tell them everything. As Violet had put it, they were literally putting their lives on the line for him. He should have shared it all from the beginning.

"I, uh, had ears on one of Poole's ex-girlfriends," he said. "She was complaining to another of his ex-girlfriends that she had to leave the island because Poole had a big meeting. Turns out it happened to the previous girlfriend too.

"From listening to their conversations, it was clear the same thing happened every few months. Poole would drop everything to take the meeting, clearing the estate of anyone unconnected to his business. The women were happy to talk about it, as they weren't pleased he'd made them leave. From there, I checked out other girlfriends and found a pattern going back several years. That made me look at charter boats in the area, to see who did regular drop-offs for Poole. I, uh, found a small executive charter business that ferried people to Poole's estate every few months. They had something on the books for this weekend. For tomorrow."

There was silence for a moment before Rodrigo said, "Crap, that's all supposition. You don't know for sure if this meeting is happening, do you?"

"I know." Max clenched his jaw. "There's a pattern, and this fits the schedule. Poole always uses the same charter service. I'm certain the meeting is happening tomorrow."

Violet shifted in her seat. He was pleased to see she'd finished the sandwich. "You illegally tapped phones and hacked business accounts? You know that's unethical right?" There was heavy emphasis on the last sentence.