Some Like It Shot (Movie Club Mysteries, Book 6)

by Zara Keane

  The man behind the counter was amused. “Hungover?”

  “I wish.” I gestured to my sling. “I’m running on no sleep, pain meds, and a mammoth to-do list.”

  “Got it. The second Red Bull’s on the boat.” He snorted at his own joke. “Get it?”

  “Barely,” I said, “but thank you.”

  Clutching the energy drink in my only functioning hand left me to the mercy of the gentle rocking. Thank goodness the water was mild today. If it’d been choppier, I’d have face-planted on the stairs. As it was, I made it back on deck without incident and was searching for a free seat when a towering behemoth of a woman blocked my path.

  Theresa Crawley loomed over me, her hands on her hips. She’d slung a sizeable red bag over her shoulder, and its snake pattern didn’t gel with the rest of her outfit. Unlike Storm MacKenzie, Theresa couldn’t pull off clashing colors and patterns. “You again.” Her hostility crackled like static electricity. “Are you following me?”

  “Your cab cut in front of mine,” I remarked, recalling the incident in front of the ferry terminal. “You’re an extra in the movie?”

  “Yes,” she barked. “Not that it’s any of your business. Are you stalking me? I’m not going to hire you if that’s what you’re after. You and your assistant ought to be locked up.”

  I drew in a breath and counted slowly to five before releasing it. “I’m not following you, Theresa. As far as I’m concerned, my dealings with you finished the moment I returned your letter. Like you, I’m on my way to Dolphin Island to participate in the movie shoot.”

  Her nostrils flared. “I suppose your sister pulled strings to get you a role.”

  “Believe what you want.”

  Theresa looked over my shoulder. “I don’t see that Lenny guy lurking. Please tell me he won’t be part of the shoot.”

  A sly smile snuck across my face. “Sorry to disappoint you, but Lenny is already on Dolphin Island. But take heart. There are over two hundred extras there this weekend, plus the regular cast and crew. You shouldn’t have a problem avoiding us.”

  She snarled and barged past me, deliberately jolting my bad arm with her large red bag. I sucked in a breath at the stab of pain caused by the impact. Seriously, I was almost to the point of sympathizing with the sender of the poison pen letters. Theresa Crawley was a nasty piece of work. On the plus side, her blatant aggression eliminated all feelings of responsibility I harbored over solving her case. As far as I was concerned, she could look after herself.

  For the duration of the journey, I sipped my energy drink and typed a one-handed email to Lenny. I’d filled him in on the basics last night after Liam had dropped me off at my door, but we needed to discuss strategy. Once we knew what our respective roles were, we’d focus on questioning the people we were working with and divide everyone else between us.

  Unsurprisingly, my assistant had been thrilled to learn he’d be a movie extra after all. The thought of Lenny’s enthusiasm on the phone brought a smile to my lips. We’d have no trouble making his cover story appear authentic. My only concern was that he’d become so caught up in the movie role that he’d forget we were on the set with an ulterior motive.

  Selling my presence on set would be more difficult, mainly to Liam. He knew how unenthusiastic I’d been about the movie and would be skeptical about me scoring a last-minute role. After last night’s meeting with Con, I’d avoided discussing the film set with Liam on the drive home. He’d told me he and Hannah were leaving on the earlier ferry. This gave me more time to concoct a convincing cover story to explain my sudden U-turn on appearing in Wedding Belles. Most people would buy my story about supporting Beth on her first movie set, but Liam wouldn’t believe it for a second. I had to figure out a way to put him off the scent of the real reason I was on the island.

  When we docked at Dolphin Island, Luke Vaglietti waited for me on the pier. He wore his official bodyguard uniform of black suit, white shirt, and dark shades. A telltale bulge underneath his jacket indicated he was packing metal. I doubted he had a permit to carry a weapon in Ireland, but with a potential nutcase on the loose, I wasn’t about to rat him out to the cops.

  He removed the shades when he recognized me, revealing a pair of brown eyes framed by dark lashes. “Hey, Maggie. Let me help you with your case.”

  I happily relinquished my bag to him. “Thanks, Luke. The one-handed business is taking some getting used to.”

  “Yeah, I can imagine.” He kept his voice no louder than a whisper. “You sure you’re up to this? Con’s the boss and all, but I’m concerned it’ll be too much for you to handle with your injured wrist.”

  “Lenny’s here,” I replied, equally careful to keep the volume low. “With two of us on the case, we’ll be able to cover more ground in less time.”

  Luke screwed up his face. “No offense to Lenny, but he’s not exactly Mr. Muscle.”

  A mental image of my wiry assistant bulked up with muscles almost made me laugh out loud. “Lenny’s started a martial arts class.” At which he totally sucked, but I didn’t add this observation. “Besides, we don’t know that the incidents weren’t simple accidents. At this stage, there’s no reason to worry about danger.”

  The bodyguard didn’t look convinced. “I know Eliza can be a drama queen at times, but she’s genuinely shaken.” At the end of the pier, he hooked my case onto the back of a golf cart. He gestured for me to climb into the passenger seat.

  “Neat ride,” I said when we were motoring past the other ferry passengers.

  Luke slid me a sideways glance. “Don’t knock it. Dolphin Island is a car-free zone. You can imagine how much fun we had getting all our equipment up to the castle.”

  “I’m not knocking the cart. I’m relieved we didn’t have to drag my bag all the way to the castle. I visited the place last summer, while the renovations were in full swing. If I recall correctly, it’s on the other side of the island, right?”

  “Correct. It’s two miles as the crow flies, but we can’t drive straight.”

  “Too many hills?”

  Luke laughed. “That’s an understatement. The drive around the island adds an extra mile and a half. At the speed this baby moves, it’ll take us fifteen minutes to reach the set.”

  “That’s not too bad,” I said. “It gives us the perfect opportunity to talk about the incidents on set. Harper included a list of everything that’s happened when she emailed my contract.”

  “Yeah, I read the list.” With his shades back on, it was hard to read his expression, but his tone held a hint of skepticism.

  “Do you have anything to add to Harper’s list?”

  Luke took his time in answering. “As far as I’m concerned, most of the items on her list were down to bad luck. Judd and Eliza getting food poisoning, for example. We ate at a fish restaurant the night they got sick, and they both had mussels. End of story.”

  “You say ‘most’ of the incidents were bad luck. How many did you find suspicious?”

  “Three,” Luke replied, this time with no hesitation. “The first was when a sandbag fell while we were shooting an indoor scene at the Belfast studio. The rope was sawn through. It didn’t look like an accident to me. The second was the time a pane of stained glass shattered next to Eliza. A prop collapsed onto it, but I never figured out how it could’ve happened. The third incident was yesterday’s drama. A hanging light fell right near Eliza and one of the crew.”

  “So, you’re saying my sister is the target?”

  Luke ran a steady hand through his close-cropped hair. “I don’t know, Maggie, but I’m not inclined to dismiss her fears as fast as Con is. Harper’s list of incidents—which is really Con’s list, by the way—makes it look like the movie set is the general target. But if we focus on the three incidents I mentioned and strike all the others, it seems Eliza was the intended victim.”

  Despite the warm day, goosebumps prickled my skin. Had I been too quick to dismiss my sister’s fears? What if someone was trying
to hurt her? I glanced at my sling. In my current condition, I wasn’t in a position to defend her. I’d never forgive myself if Beth got hurt. Had I made a massive mistake in accepting this job?

  11

  While I brooded over my sister’s allegations, the golf cart bumped over the track, passing the entrance to the bird sanctuary and veering away from the coast through a wooded area. Luke was an excellent driver, but nothing could save us from a thorough rattling as we navigated the rough terrain. My injured wrist didn’t appreciate the constant vibrations, and I breathed a sigh of relief when we once again reached smoother ground.

  “Let’s say someone on set is a saboteur, and Eliza is their intended target,” I said, once my teeth were no longer rattling in my head. “Do they want to hurt her? Or sabotage her debut movie role?”

  “I don’t know,” Luke replied, keeping his focus on the track. “The three incidents I mentioned were near misses. Eliza was lucky not to be hurt.”

  “Okay. We’ll roll with the assumption that our mystery troublemaker wants to hurt Eliza. Who on set has a grudge against my sister?”

  “I’ve thought of little else,” he said, “and I can’t think of anyone.”

  “Come on, man. My sister is a successful beauty influencer who scored a major movie role based on her social media following. There have to be a few actors on set who aren’t thrilled they didn’t score the lead role.”

  He grunted a noncommittal acknowledgment.

  “And seeing as we’re talking about Beth’s health and safety here,” I continued, “I’ll be blunt. My sister is not exactly known for her tactful handling of those she considers beneath her. With a starring role and a retinue of staff to do her bidding, she’ll be in full diva mode.”

  Luke gave me a look of bemusement. “Most actresses I’ve encountered are divas, but they don’t all attract stalkers with a fatal grudge.”

  “Have you seen my sister yell at anyone involved with the movie? Or be particularly nasty when she didn’t get her way?”

  A flush crept over Luke’s tanned face. “A couple of times. Eliza gets impatient.”

  This was an understatement. My sister didn’t do deferred gratification any more than she tolerated not getting her own way. “Who did my sister yell at?”

  “Miss Coco, the dance choreographer. They had an argument on the second day of the Belfast shoot and haven’t spoken since.”

  I made a mental note of the name. “Anyone else?”

  Luke sighed. “I heard her be catty to a couple of makeup artists. They were in a group. I can’t remember who she got upset with. She also had an argument with Larry, the catering guy, over a non-vegan salad.”

  While Luke was talking, I’d switched on the voice recorder on my phone. “Anyone else?”

  He shrugged. “We’ve had a couple of arguments. I guess it’s only fair to mention that.”

  A tense silence hovered in the air. “I’m sorry, Luke, but I have to ask. Did you try to harm my sister?

  He whirled to face me, aghast. “Of course not. I’d never lay a hand on Eliza. Couples fight, Maggie.”

  Especially couples where one partner was a soaring star and the other a humble bodyguard.

  “Apart from the people you’ve already mentioned, can you recall anyone expressing dislike of my sister, or mentioning an argument they’d had with her?”

  “I’ve got a job to do, Maggie. I don’t listen to gossip.”

  I had the feeling Luke was being discreet by mentioning just a couple of examples of my sister in movie-star-behaving-badly mode. Knowing Beth, she’d have annoyed more than a few people on set.

  We reached the end of the woods, and the track opened onto a lush green hillside. “Hang tight, Maggie. This part gets bumpy.” Luke accelerated, and the cart surged up the hill.

  A couple of minutes later, we crested the peak, and I gasped at the impressive edifice before me. “Wow. The castle looks fabulous.”

  “They’ve done a nice job with the renovations,” Luke said, “if you’re into old buildings.”

  From his tone, I guessed he wasn’t. I hid a smile. “Not looking forward to spending the night here?”

  He screwed up his nose. “I wouldn’t mind so much if I had a bed in the castle. I have to sleep in a tent.”

  Now that he mentioned tents, I spotted a group of them dotted on the far side of the hill, alongside two massive marquee-style constructions. My heart sank. “Are we all in tents?”

  “Everyone but Con, Harper, Judd, and Eliza. The castle only has a few functioning bedrooms.”

  He didn’t mention bathrooms, and I was afraid to ask. “Any way I can persuade my sister to let me bunk in with her?”

  Luke cast me a sympathetic glance. “You can try. She told me she needed her beauty sleep. She’s terribly nervous about the wedding scenes. They’re kind of make-or-break for her character, you know?”

  “Yesterday, Beth wanted you by her side constantly. Why didn’t she agree to share her room with you?”

  “That was Con’s decision. With extras on set, he wants us to be especially discreet.” In other words, Luke wasn’t considered a PR-friendly boyfriend for Con’s next breakout star.

  “How do you feel about that?”

  He shrugged. “It’s part of the Hollywood game. I knew that when we started dating. Con will find a suitable fake boyfriend for Eliza to take publicity shots with. It’ll probably be Judd.”

  I blinked. “Is that wise? I thought Con was keen to push my sister to the next level. Judd and his history won’t make a good impression.”

  “Depends on what impression Con wants to make.” Luke’s bitter-tinged smile didn’t meet his eyes. “Budding actress and beauty influencer saves troubled star from his demons? That sort of bull goes down well with the public. Make no mistake, Maggie. Con will do anything to make this movie a success.”

  “That sounds ominous. Are you sure Eliza’s dramatic tendencies aren’t rubbing off on you?”

  “I’m serious. Con’s got more riding on this movie’s success than you know.”

  My ears pricked at this revelation. “Like what? I know he’s had a string of flops and needs this movie to make bank at the box office. And he mentioned that picking Judd as the male lead was a risk, and he needs the guy to stay on the straight and narrow. What don’t I know?”

  Luke fell silent. “I shouldn’t have mentioned anything, Maggie. Con’s my boss, and he’s been good to me.”

  “But?” I prompted. “Come on, man. If I’m here to investigate a possible threat against my sister, I need the dirt on everyone, including the guy who pays your salary.”

  “Con had issues getting investors interested in the movie. Casting your sister wasn’t as big a risk for him as you might think. She has a massive social media following, and her target demographic segues nicely with the kind of people who’ll go see a modern romantic comedy. Signing Eliza got investors on board, but it wasn’t enough.” We neared the castle, and Luke slowed the golf cart to a putter, biding for time. “Con invested his life savings and mortgaged his house to get the rest of the money needed to finance the movie. If Wedding Belles flops, Con’s finished, and not just in Hollywood.”

  A thought stirred in my brain, taking a moment to crystallize. “If the success of this movie is essential for Con’s finances and future career, why did he take a massive risk and cast Judd Ryan? He said last night he’d had trouble getting insurance for the movie because of Judd’s past. Why gamble everything on an unreliable actor?”

  Luke brought the cart to a standstill and tapped the side of his nose. “That is the question, Maggie. I have my suspicions, but no proof.”

  “Care to share those suspicions?”

  “Nope. They’re literally more than my job is worth.” He grabbed my case and carried it over to a small tent next to a row of portable toilets and showers.

  I regarded the tent with trepidation. “Is this mine?”

  “Yep. With your busted hand, Eliza thought you’d
appreciate being near a bathroom.”

  I shot a glance at the porta-potties. “I fail to see the correlation, but okay.”

  “On the plus side,” Luke said, dropping his voice so the people milling past couldn’t overhear, “you’re right in the middle of drama central. Your neighbors are all part of the dance crew, and they like to talk. Any gossip going, they’re your best source.”

  “Good to know. Thanks for the ride, Luke.”

  “Anytime.” He patted my case. “I’ll put this in your tent.”

  “Thank you.”

  He disappeared into the tent with my case, reappearing a moment later. He dropped a tiny key into the palm of my hand. “This is yours. See the lock attached to the zip? This fits it.”

  I eyed the little key. How was I going to manage to use it with my left hand?

  “Oh, and you’ll also need this.” He looped a neck strap over my head. “You’ll have to flash this to security whenever they ask. It’s an Access All Areas pass.”

  I fingered the laminated pass at the end of the neck strap. “Won’t this mark me as different from the other extras?”

  “Yeah, but if anyone asks, tell them you got it because you’re Eliza’s sister. We didn’t give one to Lenny, though. He’ll have to find other ways to move around the set.”

  “Harper said I’d have a role that’d allow me to roam,” I said. “I guess this pass will help.”

  The bodyguard’s radio crackled. “Anything else I can do for you, Maggie? I gotta get back.”

  “I’m good, thanks. I can take it from here.”

  “Okay.” He raised a hand in farewell. “See you later.”

  Luke strode in the direction of the castle, and I stepped into what would be my bedroom for the next two nights. The tent was even smaller than it looked on the outside. At least it contained a camper bed, not a sleeping bag on the ground. Luke had lifted my case onto the bed. With a sigh, I unzipped it and unpacked the essentials.