Author's Note: Of course I don't own anything having to do with Red Eye or the characters… This is all just for funsies :P
Oh… and I just had to plug my University… sorry! If Lisa could ever take the snow, I bet she would love it there :P
So… without Further ado…
Chapter One
Why Now?
Lisa stared at the clock on the wall. The time showed a meager 3:27. She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. Ore Time was inching past. She was wondering how long it would be before the police allowed her to head home. She'd already identified her father's body. What more did they need or expect to come from her?
She wanted to head back to North Carolina. After the Red Eye incident, Lisa moved far from anywhere important. She moved to a small college town, named Boone, where people were humble and sweet. Her neighbor, Mr. Brown, was a perfect example of this. Two years had passed without any incidents.
Two. Years.
But last night she got a call from a polite police officer, Officer Michaelson, informing her that she needed to come in. Joe Reisert had been discovered by neighbors to be murdered. She hopped on the first plane to Miami and went directly to the station.
"Miss Reisert?"
Lisa opened her eyes and rose from the plastic chair she had been sitting in for the past half hour. All she just wanted to go home and sleep. The thought of even going "home" made her heart sink. It wouldn't be the same without her father there.
"Yes?" she asked Officer Michaelson.
"I'm sorry for the wait. It seems that we've discovered a bit of interesting information regarding your father's death. I'm going to need to ask you a few questions before I send you on your way."
Lisa sighed and sat back down in the uncomfortable chair.
"Okay. Fine."
"Well, for starters, did you know of any possible enemies that your father might have had?"
Lisa's mind immediately flickered to the icy blue eyes from the Red Eye to Miami two years ago. He was dead… except, she could see him somehow escaping his fate. Man in his business probably had connections for just about anything.
"No."
The word passed her lips before she could stop it. It was true, to Lisa's knowledge. With Jackson "dead," there would be no enemies for her father. He was a sweet man.
"Alright. And did your father possess any kind of weapon in the household?"
"Not that I knew of. Then again, I haven't been back in this state since December."
Lisa felt her stomach drop. Her poor father. She had only visited him at Christmas time, and then she was back to North Carolina for her new job managing the Broyhill Inn near Boone's college, Appalachian State University.
"Look," she said with a sigh, rubbing her eyes, "As far as I know, my father was a peaceful guy. You can ask all of his neighbors."
"We fully intend to."
"Good. So, until you find out more information regarding his death, may I leave?"
"Of course. I just wanted to save you the hassle of having to come back in."
Lisa nodded and rose from the chair. Officer Michaelson handed her his business card as he rose to walk her to the door of his office.
"If you think of anything, or just need someone to talk to, I'll gladly lend an ear."
Lisa still couldn't bring herself to smile. In another place at another time, Officer Cameron S. Michaelson might have been charming and sweet. But all she could see him as at the moment was the bearer of bad news.
"Thank you," she managed to get out.
"As soon as I find anything else out about your father, I will call you. I'll keep you posted."
She nodded and just as she was about to leave, she stopped and turned to him.
"What…. What about the house?"
Officer Michaelson looked pained.
"You… you won't be able to stay there for a few days, Miss Reisert. We have to give our crew time to inspect the scene thoroughly so that nothing is missed. Then we have to clean the place up for you. I'll give you a call when you can return as soon as I have a date estimated, alright?"
Lisa sighed. She supposed it was finally time to return to the Lux Atlantic. She hailed a cab outside of the station.
"Lux Atlantic, please," Lisa sighed to the driver.
He nodded silently and drove off casually. She sucked back the tears and pulled her cell phone out of her carry-on bag. She dialed the number she had repeated thousands of times to customers and associates over her years of service.
"Lux Atlantic Hotels, Cynthia speaking. How may I help you?"
Lisa smiled slightly at the chipper voice on the other end of the phone.
"Cynthia? It's Lisa."
"Lisa? Hi! What's happening?"
"I…. I'm in town for some business and I need a place to stay."
"You're not staying at your dad's place?"
Lisa gagged slightly and the driver glanced at her in the rear-view mirror. She choked back her tears.
"Leese?"
"I'm here. Sorry. Something outside caught my attention. No. I won't be staying at dad's. He's not there."
Lisa didn't tell the complete truth. She sighed at the end of her sentence. She didn't want to hear Cynthia's pity in her voice or the worry. All of this was so fresh for Lisa. She needed time to process everything and settle before she broke the news to someone else aside from her mother.
"Oh. Alright. Well, hey! If you want, you can stay with me! Just come on by and pick up a key."
"No, Cynth. I couldn't put you out."
"It wouldn't be any trouble. Really. It'd save you the cost of a room."
"Oh, no, Cynthia. Maybe next time I'm in town I'll hit you up."
Cynthia was silent. Then her slightly wounded voice projected over the phone once more.
"You haven't been in town since December. And even then you only stayed at your dad's place for Christmas Eve and Christmas day. I only got one phone call from you."
"I'm sorry Cynthia… I just… I need some time to think about a few things."
Cynthia brightened up at the apology and excuse that, again, wasn't entirely false.
"It's fine. I understand. I'll book you for a nice suite, alright?"
"Thank you, Cynthia. I'll see you in a few minutes. We're a block away."
"Oh wow! That close? Alright! Talk to you soon, Leese."
"Bye, Cynthia."
Lisa closed the phone and rested her head back on the leather seat. Moments later, the cab pulled to an easy stop on the curb outside of the hotel.
"We're here, miss," the driver said to the rear-view mirror.
"Oh, thank you."
She fished through her purse and found the money for the fare. The cabby shook his hand and waved the money away in protest.
"No charge," he said.
He had gorgeous light green eyes and deep brown skin.
"No charge? Why…?"
"Already been paid for, miss. Have a nice day."
"Just a second," Lisa said to his window. "Paid for by who?"
"A young gentleman."
"Officer Michaelson?"
The young police officer was the only young man that she could think of who would know about her going to the hotel. Still, how had he paid? Did he somehow have an account?
"No police officer that I know of," he said with a smirk.
Lisa nodded to him.
"Well thank you, very much," she said with a pathetic smile of her own.
He nodded and just as Lisa began to step away from the cab he called for her to return.
"Just a second! I forgot to give you this, miss."
Lisa approached the window and the driver extended his large ebony hand, a small, pale blue, envelope held easily between his pointer and middle fingers.
"What's this?" she asked, taking it slowly from his hand.
He let his hand linger out of the window for a moment before he turned to look straight ahead.
"You'd best open it in private, miss."
"Who gave this to you? Who paid for the ride?"
She knew he was lying. She felt the blanket of the lie covering her entire being. The man continued to stare straight ahead.
"I've said all I was instructed to say and cannot breathe another word on the subject. Everything is in that envelope. Have a nice day, miss. I hope everything works out."
Lisa cocked her head to the side as the cabby turned on his blinker, nodded to her, and then eased his way around the drop-off circle and out into the main road. She looked down at the envelope then held it up to the light. There seemed to be only a small slip of paper in the envelope. It made Lisa shiver.
She turned in a hurry and walked into the hotel. Cynthia was immediately flying from around the front desk and into Lisa's arms.
"Lisa!"
"Hey, Cynthia," she called with an expression she used on customers.
"I know you said you just needed some time to think, so I've already made the reservations for you. You'll be in room 3125. I'm holding the shift at the front desk until nine, so if you need anything, just call down, okay?"
Lisa hugged Cynthia tightly. Cynthia knew how to be the perfect friend. She was whatever Lisa needed whenever Lisa needed it. Lisa had to struggle to keep from breaking down right there in the lobby. She was glad beyond any feeling of joy that Cynthia had not asked her if she was sure that everything was alright. Lisa would die.