Sexy Girls by Gary S. Griffin

quickly replied, “What kind of information?”
    Seeing my opportunity, I asked, “Do the front lounges have security cameras?”
    Mason answered, “No, they don't. Only the front hallway does. When the lights are turned on in those rooms, a red light appears on our security board in the outer office, but we don’t have cameras inside. Once a red light appears, that room becomes part of our floor detail, which means a guard will go by once an hour to check on the room.”
    â€œDo you save the tapes from the front hall's security cameras?”
    Mason thought a moment and then replied, “Yes, we do, but I don't have them. I think they are stored in the computer. I'll find out about that. What was the date?”
    Cyn answered, “Saturday, Feb. 14, Valentines Day. We arrived around 7:15, about forty-five minutes before the orchestra started.”
    Mason wrote that down.
    As we were talking, I noticed Mason was trying to hide his wedding ring and I caught a glimpse of a middle aged woman and two children in a picture on his desk. I suppressed a grin, guessing that reaction was almost normal when you saw Cyn.
    â€œJim, who does your maintenance work on the security equipment?”
    â€œWe use different firms.”
    I asked, “Was any work done just before and after February, 14?”
    â€œI don't know. Repairs are controlled by our maintenance department, which is in the office next door. Only thing is they're closed on weekends. I can check it out next week. Okay?”
    I answered, “Sure, that'd be great. Thanks.”
    Not having any other questions, I thanked him for all his help, and asked him if he would be kind enough to show us the security camera in the hallway, and how his monitoring equipment worked in his outer office.
    Mason did so with pleasure. We noticed that he put his arm around Cyn's back as he escorted her to the front room. He told the guard on duty to take a five-minute break and they sat down at the control board. Mason showed us the security camera in the front hallway, which displayed a fairly dark picture of a tile floor and wooden walls. Mason also pointed out the lights that would turn red when the lounge overheads lights were turned on.
    Next, he walked us slowly towards the front of the center and showed us the security cameras along the way, ending with the camera in the front hall of the second floor.
    I thanked him again and reminded him to call me if he got any images from the security cameras. We said our goodbyes.
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    ***
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    We left the Kimmel Center and walked out into a steady rain. Another storm front had moved in. The overcast skies matched our moods. It had turned colder and windy too. I told Cyn, “Let's go eat lunch. It will give us time to think about all we've learned from Mason, and plan our next steps.”
    â€œGreat idea, Stevie.”
    Holding hands, we went back to the Miata. We drove a few blocks east to one of Cyn's favorite restaurants, Moriarty's, on Walnut Street. Once we were seated, I said, “Let’s recap what we know. We know that someone put a camera in the Kimmel Center lounge. It wasn't a security camera.”
    I stopped and thought out loud, “So, how did this blackmailer know you were going to be there that night? They needed lead time to plan their moves.”
    â€œI don’t know. Maybe someone told him.”
    I responded, “But who?”
    Cyn answered, “I don’t know that either.”
    â€œThe strange part is why? What was his motivation?”
    Cyn replied, “Maybe he knew Andi was rich. I mean, Robert was rich. That's motivation enough.”
    I answered, “True, but something else is missing. I'm not sure what.”
    Cyn said, “This is all so scary and crazy to me.”
    I didn't think she knew anything else. Maybe a memory would come back if we just started planning other stuff. I just needed to be patient. I talked a little about my trip to