He hated being the bad guy, but he had to do it.‘Sadly, Lenora is not the boss of that farm.And I know her father, Malcolm Rowntree will say no.Loud and clear.Along with a whole load of colourful expletives that’d melt the metal on a crocodile trap.’
‘Well, that just sucks.’Her entire posture slumped on the stool.‘I got some amazing footage yesterday.’
‘Look, I can hook you up with some crocodile farms thatwillgive you access.They do it all the time, as they run a regular tourist gig.’And she could film those tour guides who loved being in front of a camera.
‘Oh, goodie, a tourist spot that everyone else can tape.’Her sigh was filled with disappointment.It cut deep into his chest, when it shouldn’t.
She propped her elbow on the kitchen bench and rested her chin on her hand, highlighting that small crescent scar.‘I may as well hit social media and ask those tourists for their shots.’
‘That’s cute, coming from a tourist.’
The frown was gone in a flash, as she tried to hide her smile.
‘Listen, shortcake, those farms may cater for the average tourist with staff who aren’t camera shy.But I’ll make sure they let you in behind the scenes.’
‘Oh, okay.’She sat straighter in her chair.‘But what about all the Saltscale footage from yesterday?’
‘As it’s part of the investigation, I’ll talk to the boss this morning about paying for it, so it’s not a total loss.’It wasn’t the first time Stone had flipped open the chequebook to pay for images or articles he didn’t want made public.
Dammit, he’d hoped he had gotten away from all of that.
‘First, this is what I wanted to show you…’ Romy wriggled to the edge of her seat, and with the use of her mouse, she zoomed in on an area on her laptop’s screen.‘You told me you and Craig visited that activist here.’
‘We did.’He planned to deliver the clothing they’d found to the Duchess, at this morning’s powwow session at the playpen.
‘Well, this is what I saw…’ Romy zoomed out further, then hit the pause button on a bird’s eye view over the hatchery.‘Can you see it?’
He narrowed his eyes at the screen.
She pointed.
Damn!What she’d captured on film… had the potential to change everything—especially the course of this investigation.
Fifteen
Stone picked up Romy’s drone case and headed outside.‘This way, shortcake.’
Romy followed, rushing out of the gate while strapping on her backpack, keen to see where the day would lead.If it was anything like yesterday, she was so there.
‘Get on.’Stone unplugged an electric scooter, putting the case on the floor and climbed on board.
‘I’m not getting on that.’
‘You can run behind me.Your choice.But I should warn you, it’s quite the hike to the helipad from here, when this way is so much funner.’Stone pointed to the curved undercover walkway that stretched for a few hundred metres.‘It’ll help you get in touch with your inner child.’
‘If you insist.’Hesitantly, she stepped on the back of the scooter.
‘Hands here.Don’t be shy.’He placed her hands on his hips, giving her a close-up of his jeans and how they hugged his legs and butt.Now she’d seen underneath that denim, it had her heart racing.Or was that her nerves reacting to this daring ride?
‘Hold on.’
The electric scooter took off faster than expected, forcing Romy to grip his sides harder.The wind flipped her hair around as they zoomed over the wide wooden walkway, with the roof shading them.‘How fast are we going?’
‘No idea.I’ve never tested the speed, but it’s fun, right?’
It was both thrilling and nerve-racking, speeding along on a scooter as the boardwalk stretched out like a freeway bridge as the land dramatically dropped away to show off the barren, expansive flood plain.
She’d never realised how high Stone had built the house and helipad until now.Perched on the hill, the house stood like a fortress, its elevated position commanded a sweeping view of the flood plains that acted like a natural moat for a European castle.
