Ava Montez, Her Life and Death

by Chuck Antone, Jr

  Max shook his head. "I didn't even notice the make of car. I was much too bothered about pulling you out of the way. All I know is that it was a dark color."

  They had reached her building and were standing on the steps, when Rae asked Max, "Why were you phoning me? Why were you worried about me?"

  She paused for a moment, thanking God that Max had been there at just the right time.

  Max said, "Ever since I read the article about you in this morning's Reader, I wondered if it was a good thing for Sam to print it. Perhaps he shouldn't have put your picture in the paper saying you were going to investigate the murder of Ava Montez."

  Rae felt confused, not knowing what Max was talking about. She was curious, so she asked Max if he would like to come up to her apartment, and was happy when he accepted her invitation.

  As they walked up the stairs to the second floor, she asked Max, "What article? I haven't looked at the Reader today. I've been back to the police station, and been too busy researching my story on Ava Montez in old magazines in the library and on the Internet at home. I've not been to the office."

  Max said he had a copy with him. She was still trembling, wet and cold, as she fumbled for the key to her apartment door. They went in and she asked Max to make some hot tea, showing him where everything was.

  "Max, excuse me for just a moment. I want to get out of these wet clothes."

  She tossed him a towel. He had on a good raincoat that had kept him mostly dry, but his shoes and socks were soaking wet, so he removed them, quickly dried his feet, then started to make the tea.

  Rae wanted to take a hot shower but decided against it. She dried herself off, blow-dried her hair quickly, and put on warm lounging pants and a sweater.

  When she came back into the living room Max had the tea ready, and the Reader, open to the second page, was spread out on the kitchen table.

  Max was right. There was her picture. Above was written in bold letters, READER'S VERY OWN REPORTER INVESTIGATING THE MURDER OF AVA MONTEZ. The article gave her name and the names of the four people she would be interviewing, who had once been suspects. It went on to say that the story was for a new magazine that was soon to be published.

  Rae sighed in annoyance. "Why did Sam do this? Murder? All that the public need know at this time is that I'm writing a story about a once-famous movie star known to the world as Ava Montez, the most beautiful woman the world."

  Max said, "You know that, and I know that, and even Sam knows it. I'm sure he wants to promote his new magazine's first issue, and create some interest in it. Everyone loves a mystery, and Sam's whetting the public's appetite for what's coming. I don't think he imagined that mentioning the murder might put your life in danger."

  Rae felt a rush of adrenaline. "What do you mean?" But deep down she knew exactly what Max meant.

  Max had concern in his voice. "The killer may still be out there. For forty years they've been safe, and now everyone knows the case is being re-opened. If the murderer is still alive, they won't want the case opened, and will do anything to stop it. Maybe even murder again. Maybe try a hit-and-run accident."

  Another chill went through Rae. This time not because she was cold, but a chill of fear. Could it be possible that someone would really want to kill her? The chill caused her to tremble a little. She shook it off, and said, "Well, I'm not going to stop. I'm a reporter and I want to prove I'm a good one. I'll just be more careful about walking in the rain!" She gave a half hearted laugh, but she knew it wasn't at all convincing. Turning to Max with a forced grin on her face, she said, "Max, you're not after my story, are you?"

  Right after she said that, she was sorry. He looked kind of hurt. She apologized immediately. "It was just a joke, Max. A poor one at that, and I'm sorry. I know you're not that kind of person."

  Max shrugged, and pretended to look offended. "To make up for it, how about dinner tomorrow night?"

  "Sorry, Max, not tomorrow. On Tuesdays I have choir practice at church." But the thought of dinner with Max had made her heart skip a beat.

  "Wednesday night?"

  Her first impulse was to say yes. But she couldn't. "Max, Wednesday is church fellowship night. I never miss a Wednesday night. It's just too much fun and I get so much out of it."

  As soon as she said it, she wished she'd said yes. It wouldn't hurt her to miss one night. Others had, and no one thought anything of it. And now Max would think that she saw him as no more than a work colleague.

  He got up, put on his wet shoes and socks, and they walked together to the door. As Rae held the door open, she asked, "Are you a church person, Max? I know so little about you."

  "Not anymore. I used to be. While I was growing up I enjoyed it, but it took too much of my time." He hesitated.

  Rae was thinking: Used to be? Maybe that's a good start.

  She said, "Saturday night the choir's putting on a musical presentation at my little church at eight o'clock. Would you like to come and hear us? It's our annual Easter cantata."

  He didn't hesitate this time. "I'd like that. Shall I pick you up or meet you there?" He laughed. "I don't even know where your church is."

  "It's right around the corner from here. Meet me there at seven-thirty and I'll make sure you have a good seat. I have to get there early for our last rehearsal."

  She gave him the directions.

  As he got to the bottom of the stairs, Max turned and waved to her. "Please be careful."

  Rae could tell by his voice that something inside of him was excited. He sounded as though he was looking forward to Saturday night, even if it was just going to church.

  Rae waved back. "And you be careful too."

  She watched as he disappeared in the rain.

  She thought to herself: He answered back so fast when I invited him to the church, I wonder if he really will show up. Mmm, his name is definitely going on my prayer list!

  CHAPTER 9

  Thoughts of Max

  For the rest of the evening Rae's thoughts were on Max. Why was she feeling like this? Whatever the cause, she sure enjoyed the experience.

  Maybe Max was having the same feelings. Rae smiled to herself, suddenly making sense of the little things Max had said and done over the past few months. Was it really possible he had been falling in love with her? Or was that just wishful thinking on her part? Wishful thinking? She wanted romance, but was this what she wanted? Yes, she'd been praying for the Lord to lead her to the right man. To Max? Yes, it could be to Max.

  Rae took the shower she'd wanted to take earlier. When she was through she felt exhausted, and much too tired to get out her notes and start her story. Besides, she just couldn't get Max off her mind. She crawled into bed and didn't take long to fall fast asleep. But it wasn't a peaceful sleep, as she tossed and turned most of the night.

  She kept having the same dream of a car chasing her down a dark road. She was running as fast as she could, but the car came closer and closer. Every time, before it hit her, she woke up shouting, "A bird, a bird!" It was always the same car, but because of the bright lights in her eyes she was unable to make out the color. She knew it was dark, perhaps black, or dark blue or green.

  In the end she got up and went into the bathroom, washed her face, and went back to bed, unable to sleep. She looked at the clock; it was only 5:00 a.m. After fifteen minutes of lying there she got up, went into the kitchen and made a cup of tea . . . and thought of Max again.

  She wanted to call him, but of course it was much too early. She wondered whether to call him around eight, as he should be up by then. But she decided it would be better to go to the office and talk to him in person. She wanted to tell him about her dream and waking up shouting about a bird.

  Maybe subconsciously she had seen a bird somewhere on the car. Perhaps it was a bumper sticker, or some kind of symbol on the license plate.

  She wasn't sure what it all meant. All she remembered were the bright lights of the car racing toward her, it brushing against her, and then watch
ing it speeding away. She silently thanked the Lord again for Max being there to pull her to safety.

  She thought to herself: I guess God's not through with me yet.

  By her kitchen clock it was 5:52, much too early to go to the news room. Hardly anyone got there before eight, so she took out her notes, opened her laptop and started putting her story together.

  At 8:00 Rae copied her work onto her memory stick ready to print it out at the office, and closed the lid of her laptop. She had re-read what she had written at least six times and was happy up to this point with her story, and was hoping Sam would be happy too. It still had some work to be done, but all in all it was coming together pretty good.

  She went in, took her shower and got ready to go to work. But this morning for some reason it took her a little longer to find just the right outfit to wear for the office. She changed her mind a couple of times, as well as making subtle alterations to her hairdo. She thought to herself: Why am I having such a hard time deciding what to wear this morning?

  Then Max came to her mind.

  Speaking to herself out loud, she said, "This is ridiculous!" But she still took one last look at herself in the hall mirror as she left her apartment. She had a smile on her face and her heart again was racing. She could almost feel it pounding against the red sweater she was wearing. Max had told her once that she really looked great in red.

  Rae got to the office by 9:15. Every time she crossed a street she was careful to look both ways, as well as making sure that there was no car double parked. At each corner, when she had to cross, she did it quickly, with other people.

  When she arrived she could see Max and Sam through the glass windows of Sam's office, both talking fast and sometimes at the same time. Max had his back toward her. Sam saw Rae and motioned for her to come into his office. Max turned around and did the same. They didn't have happy faces.

  When she opened the door to the office, the first thing Sam said was, "Rae, I'm so sorry about the article in the paper. In my wildest dreams I never thought I'd be putting you in harm's way."

  Rae nodded. "That's alright, Sam, I'm okay. It could have been just a freak accident and not related to the story at all. Anyway, Sam, you could have used a better picture of me!" She smiled, looking at the two of them, but still there were no smiles on their faces.

  Sam said, "I called my brother-in-law, Larry. You and Max have an appointment to go see him at the police station at ten-fifteen this morning. He wants to pick both of your brains about last night and get a description of the car."

  Rae was going to tell them about her dream and the bird, but decided to wait until she and Max went to see Chief Larry Edwards.

  Sam apologized again. "In tomorrow's paper I'm going to say that you're not investigating the murder of Ava Montez, just doing a story on her life as a movie star. I'm not sure if it will do any good, but I feel like I have to do something."

  Rae looked at Sam. "Sam, please don't worry about it. Leave the article as it is. It would be great if I was able to help with solving a murder case, especially one that happened forty years ago, before I was even born." She smiled again at Sam. "You would definitely then have to give me a big raise!"

  Still there were no smiles from either one of them. It made Rae feel good that they both were so concerned about her safety.

  It was ten o'clock when Sam called out, "The two of you better get going. Larry doesn't like to be kept waiting. By the way, Rae, he thinks you're a very nice young lady."

  Rae made no comment, but gave Sam a big smile.

  She walked to the police station with Max, neither of them saying much to each other. It was an awkward situation, with Rae feeling she ought not to get too close to Max, yet wanting to. She even felt too embarrassed by these thoughts to strike up a conversation. She wondered if Max's silence meant that he was thinking the same about her.

  Chief Edwards was waiting for them. First the Chief had Rae tell her side of the story and then he had Max tell his. Neither account was very helpful, as neither could remember much. They said everything had happened so fast.

  The Chief asked, "Is there anything else that might be important? Any little thing that might be helpful?"

  "I woke up several times last night." Rae was ready to tell them about her dream. "I kept having the same dream over and over. A car was chasing me down the street. I stopped to look, but the car lights were very bright. They almost blinded me. Then I saw a bird, much like the ones you see in paintings, flying above the ocean or over mountains. Not a whole bird, but just its wings, flying high in the sky."

  The Chief said, "Well, that's a beginning. Maybe a bumper sticker or a license plate decoration, or maybe even something painted on the car."

  Rae said, "That's what I was thinking."

  Max shook his head. "I'm not going to be any help. I was only thinking of Rae at the time."

  Rae's heart was acting funny again as Max looked at her with so much concern, and what seemed like a hint of affection.

  Chief Edwards said, "I'll look into it and see what I can find. It's not much to go on, but who knows what we'll find. If either of you think of anything else, please let me know. The two of you get together, have lunch and go to the park. Talk over last night again and again, while it's still fresh in your minds. Perhaps something will pop up that will give us another clue."

  Max agreed it was a great idea. In fact, he sounded so enthusiastic about going to the park that Rae again felt her heart beating a little faster. In her head she was thanking the Chief for suggesting that she and Max spend more time together.

  She walked out of the office with Max, looking forward to the day's event and hoping that maybe the day might include an early dinner before she had to go to Tuesday night choir practice.

  Max then turned to her, and said, "You really look great in red."

  Rae thanked him. She had been waiting to hear those words all morning.

  CHAPTER 10

  Someone's Inside Rae's Apartment

  While Rae was getting changed that evening, she kept thinking about her day with Max. They had walked straight to the park, going over the last night's events. Both agreed they knew little about makes of cars. And since everything had happened so fast, it was hard for either of them to remember anything in detail. For Rae, it was just one big blur.

  They ended up talking mostly about themselves: their childhoods and their future plans. Rae told Max again, as she had so often before, about growing up and always wanting to live in the Golden Towers. And now she could tell him just how beautiful it was, even more so than she had expected it to be.

  Max told her how he dreamt of owning his own newspaper or news magazine, and already had a name picked out for it.

  Rae asked, "What's the name?"

  Max hesitated for a moment. Rae thought he looked embarrassed, like a little boy revealing his big secrets.

  He finally said, "The Maxi News. The stories we'll cover will be only the top news, and will give more detail. They'll be longer than the coverage of other newspapers or magazines, yet written to hold the readers' interest."

  Rae smiled at him. "Great name!"

  Max frowned a little, as though unsure if she was serious or not, but he thanked her anyway.

  "Maybe someday I'll come and work for you," Rae told him. "I like detailed, newsy, interesting stories."

  Max looked right into her eyes. "I'd like that."

  Even now, she could still feel those beautiful blue eyes meeting hers. She had waited for him to kiss her, but it never happened. Not that she would have let him. After all, they were business associates. They had never dated and had never even held hands. But she did wonder what it would be like! It was nonsense of course, she told herself, but she felt like she was falling in love with Max Bright.

  They had stayed in the park until around 3:30 in the afternoon. The time seemed to pass by so quickly. Instead of an early dinner, they had eaten a late lunch. It had been a wonderful day, and Rae wondered
if it could be considered a date.

  All of a sudden she realized she had forgotten to call Jake Austin, and she only had twenty minutes before choir practice began. She had wanted to ask Max to go to the church with her, but decided against it. She didn't want to appear over anxious about their relationship. Anyway, as she told herself yet again, there wasn't a relationship.

  She dialed Jake Austin's number and he answered the phone himself.

  "Mr. Austin, this is Rae Collins again."

  His response was very friendly. She thought: I hope he's not the murderer!

  Then she wondered why she had even thought such a thing. It must be because in the park she and Max had been over the four names that Sam had given her, wondering if any of them could possibly be the murderer of Ava Montez -- even Ava's husband, Jake. And Max had said he wondered why Jake Austin was so curious to be kept up to date on the story.

  "I was hoping you'd call," Jake Austin said. "I've been in touch with Ava's best friend and agent, Kim Blakely, and she says she would love to talk to you. She's as anxious as I am to get Ava's life in print and maybe find the killer after all of these years. She said tomorrow afternoon at one-thirty at her apartment would be good for her. Here's her number. It's unlisted, so please don't give it to anyone. Please call her to confirm details. Joseph's in Hollywood but wasn't home when I called. The housekeeper said she'd give him the message. You may remember that he was Ava's director. He called right back saying he's coming back here to New York City on Thursday, and that Friday sometime would be a good time to talk to you."

  Rae had to think for a moment as she recalled the list Sam had given her. Joseph was Joseph P. Morgan, film director and Jake Austin's best friend, the man who had helped make Ava world famous. It would certainly be interesting to meet him. Three contacts and one to go. All she needed now was a way to get in touch with Martha Brown, Ava's housekeeper at the time of the murder.

  "Joseph's number is also very private," Jake Austin said on the phone. "He wants no one to have it. I gave him your office phone since I didn't have your home or cell number. If you remember, you phoned me to make the appointment. He said he'd call you at work sometime Thursday evening or Friday morning. I hope that was okay."

  Rae thanked him. "That's fine. Everyone leaves early at the office, but I'll wait until nine, and work on the story while I'm waiting. Please let him know that if he can't call me by nine, he can call me Friday morning."