by Leena Clover
“Where do you keep the parachutes? Could someone have tampered with them?”
He waved his hand toward the hangar.
“There’s plenty of people underfoot here all the time. I guess anyone could have done it.”
“Do you have any security cameras?”
“Just one. The cops are going through the tapes.”
“Could it have been an accident?”
“What do you mean?”
“Surely the parachutes have some wear and tear? Could it get ripped on its own?”
“Unlikely. If the chute is not packed properly, it can get stuck. But there’s always the reserve.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s a backup parachute,” Captain Jorge explained. “If the main parachute is not open at a certain altitude, the backup opens. It’s a lifesaver.”
“But that didn’t happen in this case,” Jenny sighed.
“I heard it was turned off.”
“Could that have happened accidentally?”
Captain Jorge shook his head.
“Anyone who values his life would never turn the reserve off. So no. And it doesn’t get turned off on its own.”
“So someone made very sure neither chute would open,” Jenny pressed.
“Sure looks that way.”
“Could Wayne have caught hold of her mid-air?”
“It depends on a lot of things,” Captain Jorge said. “It’s possible theoretically but it’s not easy.”
“Are you a sky diver too?” Jenny asked. “Just curious.”
“I am. But I’m also an overworked pilot. I hardly ever get to jump.”
“Did you notice anything out of the ordinary that day?”
“That singer guy was sweating like a pig. Wedding jitters, I guess.”
Wedding jitters, or a guilty conscience, Jenny wondered.
“Look, I have to go now,” Captain Jorge said, glancing at his watch again. “Here’s my card. Why don’t you give me a call if you have any more questions.”
The girls thanked the suave pilot and loitered around for a while.
“We should go sky diving some time,” Molly said enthusiastically. “Looks like fun.”
“Count me out,” Jenny shuddered. “I’m twenty years too old for it.”
One of the instructors looked up when he heard that.
“Age has nothing to do with it, lady. You need a strong will. Ain’t nothing like that feeling, when you spread your arms up in the sky and feel the wind in your face.”
“Sorry, but it’s not my thing,” Jenny said, thanking the man.
They piled into the car and drove into the city.
“Do you miss it?” Heather asked, as Jenny peered at the tall buildings and big shops.
“Not one bit,” she smiled, honking her horn as a semi cut her off. “See that? Who needs that in life?”
Heather had looked up a Thai restaurant she wanted to visit. They ordered the largest mai tais and toasted their friendship.
“Ooooh, spicy!” Heather exclaimed, fanning her mouth as she dunked curry puffs into a sweet chili sauce.
“What did you think of Captain Jorge?” Molly teased. “Was he a hunk or what?”
“Molly Henderson! I saw how you were staring at him.”
“I’m single and unattached. I can look. Unlike you two.”
“My divorce is final now,” Jenny declared tipsily. “I’m as single as they come.”
“What about the two men you’ve wrapped around your finger?”
“There’s no such thing,” Jenny muttered, sipping her cocktail through a straw.
“And Heather’s with Chris. Let’s not say any more.”
“Until Chris pops the question, I am free to flirt with whoever I want to.”
“Why don’t you propose to him?” Jenny suggested. “It would be the scandal of the century in Pelican Cove.”
“I know what you should do,” Molly laughed. “Go sky diving with Chris and propose to him in the air.”
There was a moment of silence and they all turned serious.
“What do you think Bella planned to do?” Jenny asked the girls.
“I think she wanted to ruin Crystal’s wedding but it went horribly wrong.”
“What if Bella messed with the parachutes? The bad chute could have been meant for Wayne but she wore it by mistake.”
Jenny looked at Molly in shock.
“So you’re saying she was the actual killer. But she ended up killing herself.”
“It’s possible,” Molly protested. “Why wear a wedding dress at all? I think it was a ruse.”
“How so?”
“She wanted to pass herself off as Wayne’s bride. No one was going to stop a woman dressed like that. The sapphire must have been part of her disguise.”
“I guess that makes sense,” Jenny agreed.
“What if Wayne wanted Crystal out of the way? He booked the flight for the both of them, right? He could have messed with the parachute beforehand. But Bella wore it and jumped to her death.”
“Who do you think Wayne was actually interested in?” Heather asked. “Crystal or Bella?”
“Maybe he was sick of them both,” Jenny mused. “But chances are, he didn’t want the baby.”
“What baby?” Heather and Molly chorused.
Jenny told them about Bella’s condition.
“Only a monster would kill his unborn child,” Molly spat.
“We don’t know who the father is,” Jenny said.
“Do you think Crystal found out about the baby?” Heather asked. “She could have decided to get rid of Bella.”
“But how did Crystal know Bella was going to be on the plane?” Jenny shot back.
“You’re right,” Heather sighed. “That doesn’t make sense.”
“What about that girl who talks to you?” Molly asked Jenny. “She knew Bella, didn’t she?”
“Rainbow?” Jenny asked. “Are you saying Rainbow sent Bella up on that plane? But why?”
“It could have been a gag of some kind.”
“Everyone I talked to said Bella was a sweet girl. I find it hard to believe she wanted to ruin Crystal’s wedding.”
“Nice girls don’t have affairs,” Molly argued.
“Surely Wayne must have noticed her on that plane?” Jenny asked. “What do you think?”
The girls had peeked into the airplane while Captain Jorge was doing some pre-flight checks.
“There’s no way anyone could stay hidden in that space,” Heather nodded.
“So Wayne Newman is definitely lying about something.”
Chapter 14
“How was your trip?” Star asked Heather on Sunday morning. “Did you find out anything useful?”
“I am more confused than I was before,” Jenny admitted, taking a big sip of her coffee.
“Why don’t you write it down? It must be hard to keep it all straight in your head.”
“You spoke my mind,” Jenny told her aunt. “I made a rough sketch in a notebook last night. I couldn’t sleep.”
“Sketch?”
“Sketch may be the wrong word. I just wrote down the names of all the people and who they are connected with. You’d be surprised what the common thread is.”
“Don’t make me guess.”
“Rainbow! She knew all of the players, except maybe Ray Fox. But I am thinking she might have known him too.”
“Are you going to talk to her again?”
Jenny nodded.
“Be careful, okay?” Star cautioned. “I don’t want you getting hurt.”
“Relax! Rainbow’s harmless.”
“Not if she was mixed up in hurting that poor girl.”
Jenny went to the café later than usual. Many people preferred to come for brunch on Sunday. Jenny made a batch of muffins and chopped fresh herbs for her scrambled eggs.
“You could plant herbs in your own patch out back.”
Jenny recognized Mandy’s voice but ignored h
er.
“Have you and Petunia gone through my list?”
“Don’t you have someone else to pick on?” Jenny grumbled. “I’m busy.”
“Some people have already started with their renovations,” Mandy proclaimed. “We are painting park benches today. The curbs will be the last.”
“We have a contractor coming in to give us an estimate,” Jenny told her reluctantly.
“That’s a step in the right direction,” Mandy said approvingly.
Jenny called Heather at the inn.
“Fancy a trip to the country club?”
Heather had a headache.
“That’s what too many mai tais will do to you,” Jenny teased. “You need some solid food inside you.”
“Don’t mention food, please,” Heather begged.
They drove to the club a couple of hours later. The first person they ran into was Wayne Newman.
“Ladies!” he greeted, tipping his hat at them. “Here to see Crystal?”
Jenny nodded vaguely. She didn’t want to reveal the purpose of her visit.
“She’s at the pool with her girls.”
“What are they doing?”
“What they always do,” Wayne shrugged. “I have no idea.”
Jenny had a thought.
“We went to Eagle Aviation,” she told Wayne. “Got a tour of the place. We saw the plane you jumped from.”
“It’s one of the bigger ones,” Wayne told them. “That’s what I liked about the place.”
“I thought the plane was really small,” Jenny persisted. “It didn’t even have a toilet.”
Wayne looked uncomfortable.
“Most of the planes they use for sky diving don’t.”
“So here’s my question,” Jenny rushed ahead. “How is it possible you didn’t see Bella before you jumped?”
Wayne turned red.
“I was excited. I didn’t look around.”
“You didn’t see that big old white dress she was wearing?”
“Hey! It was my wedding day. I just wanted to get the dive over with so I could stand with my wife.”
“You sound like you were doing it against your will.”
Wayne clammed up after that.
“I got to go.”
“Why did you challenge him like that?” Heather exclaimed as soon as Wayne was out of sight.
“I couldn’t help it,” Jenny said, shaking with anger.
“It changes nothing, except now he knows what we are thinking.”
“Good. Maybe he’ll slip up.”
They went looking for Rainbow after that. One of the maids at the country club told them where her room was.
Rainbow looked a bit disheveled when she opened the door. She was wearing a silky robe and her hair was mussed. Jenny’s nose twitched as she tried to smell something.
“Do you have a hangover too?” Heather laughed as they went in.
Rainbow stifled a yawn.
“There’s not much to do here. I decided to sleep in.”
“It’s a beautiful day,” Jenny said. “Don’t they have a pool here?”
“Crystal and the girls are hanging out there,” Rainbow said. “I couldn’t take it anymore. I just want to go home.”
“Do you know Ray Fox?” Jenny asked.
“Bella’s husband? Sure.”
“Do you know he’s here in Pelican Cove?”
“I saw him in town.”
“He seems lost without Bella.”
“He loved her a lot.”
“You know what I am thinking, Rainbow?” Jenny asked. “You seem to be the common thread here. You knew Bella, you know Wayne and Crystal, you even know Ray Fox.”
“What are you implying?”
“How do we know you didn’t carry messages between these people?”
“You think I was spying on someone?”
“You could have. For example, you could have told Crystal about Wayne and Bella. Or you could have told Ray Fox about them.”
“Why would I do that? Bella was my friend.”
“That’s what you told us before. But we heard that you were sworn enemies.”
Rainbow rubbed her hands, pacing across the room.
“Who’s feeding you this stuff?”
“Do you deny it?”
“There’s someone else who knew Bella…”
Jenny’s eyebrows shot up.
“Keep talking!”
“Crystal’s mother. Why don’t you go talk to her?”
“Don’t worry, I will.”
Jenny grabbed Heather’s arm and they swept out of the room.
“Didn’t you smell something familiar in there?” she asked Heather.
Heather shook her head.
“Do you believe that girl?”
“She just wanted to get rid of us. But I know Crystal’s mother lied to me. I want to talk to her again.”
Kathy Mars was seated on the patio, sipping a frosty glass of lemonade. Her summer dress made her look ten years younger. She looked up at them with sparkling blue eyes the exact shade of the sunny skies.
“What brings you here, girls?” she asked. “Do you have any news for us?”
“Some,” Jenny answered, choosing a chair opposite her.
Kathy poured some lemonade for them. She settled back in her chair and gave her a speculative look.
“Something’s been bothering me since our last meeting,” Jenny began. “You knew Bella Darling, didn’t you?”
Kathy sighed, looking beaten.
“I met her a few times.”
“Why did you keep that from me?”
“Bella and I didn’t meet under the best of circumstances.”
“Did you have a fight with her?” Jenny asked, sitting up.
“Nothing of that sort.”
Kathy Mars gazed over the grassy dunes.
“Crystal is so beautiful. I knew she was special right from the moment I held her for the first time.”
Jenny didn’t know if Kathy was going somewhere with her reminiscences but she didn’t interrupt.
“I gave her the best of everything. When Crystal won a talent contest in junior high, I knew her future was in Hollywood.”
“So you were a supportive mother.”
“I planned her whole career. We had big plans, you know. Then we went to Hollywood.”
“Wasn’t it like you imagined?”
“It was everything we imagined and more. There was just one tiny problem. Everyone was beautiful and talented. Crystal needed something extra to stand out. I’m afraid she didn’t have it.”
“She didn’t find any work?” Heather asked.
Kathy Mars snorted rudely.
“She got small roles. A cameo here, a music video there. We managed to get by but none of them were enough to launch her career.”
“Until she landed the reality show,” Jenny said flatly. “But she wasn’t the first choice there too.”
“Bella was the star of the show,” Kathy said bitterly. “Crystal was one of the minor contestants. They wouldn’t have kept her for more than one episode.”
“What did you do?”
“I pulled in some favors. There was a scandal. Bella was off the show and Crystal was in.”
“You managed that by yourself?”
“I had help. Money talks, Miss King. There are plenty of starving girls out there, ready to do anything for a bit of cash.”
“Did you know Wayne Newman at that time?”
Kathy looked triumphant.
“That’s where I scored a home run. Bella was having an affair with Wayne Newman at the time. He seemed like a good fit for my Crystal.”
“Did you pay him to go out with your daughter?”
“Give me some credit,” Kathy Mars bristled. “I just arranged for them to meet accidentally a couple of times. I knew Wayne is a ladies’ man. He fell under Crystal’s spell.”
“It didn’t bother you that he might be cheating on your daughter?”
&nbs
p; “My Crystal turned thirty this year. Her time’s running out. She needed to tie the knot with someone influential and soon.”
“I thought Crystal was the bigger star,” Heather said.
“She is now,” Kathy Mars said proudly. “Her star’s been on the rise since she met Wayne. They are good for each other.”
“What happened to Bella after you got rid of her?”
Kathy shrugged.
“I heard she had a husband. I figured she would be fine.”
“Who helped you get rid of Bella?” Jenny asked.
“It doesn’t matter now. Bella’s gone.”
“Was it Rainbow? Did she tell you some deep dark secret about Bella Darling?”
Kathy Mars changed the subject and refused to divulge any more information.
Jenny stood up and stomped to Rainbow’s room. Rainbow had showered in their absence. She was dressed in a pair of shorts and a bikini top.
“What do you want now?” she asked, rolling her eyes.
“You’re a two faced liar, Rainbow!”
“What have I done?”
“You threw Bella under the bus, didn’t you? Kathy Mars paid you off.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“It’s like I said, Rainbow,” Jenny fumed. “You are the connection between all these people. Did you spy on Bella for Ray Fox? Did you tell him about the affair?”
“Look! I didn’t ask him to come here, okay? I just saw him in town the night of the rehearsal dinner.”
“What?” Heather and Jenny exclaimed.
“Are you sure you saw him the night before the wedding?”
Rainbow nodded.
“Crystal had sent me on an errand. I saw him go into that pub, what’s it called?”
“The Rusty Anchor?”
“I guess. How many pubs do you have here anyway?”
“According to Ray Fox, he was back in L.A. when Bella fell to her death.”
“No he wasn’t,” Rainbow shook her head. “He was right here in Pelican Cove.”
“This doesn’t let you off, Rainbow. You’re up to something.”
“Have you ever thought I might be a victim too?” she cried.
“Can you elaborate on that?”
Rainbow shut up after that.
“I’m going to the pool,” she said, picking up a towel.
“Do you really suspect Rainbow?” Heather asked Jenny that afternoon.
They were watching the sunset from Star’s porch, their feet up on the railing.