by Rose Pressey
After ringing the doorbell, I waited, glancing over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching. Not a soul in sight. Sound came from the other side of the door and then a woman answered. She was probably in her mid-forties with medium brown hair that fell past her shoulders. Standing there barefoot, she wore a white t-shirt tucked into denim shorts.
“May I help you?” she asked, eyeing me up and down.
She wasn’t exactly mean, but she wasn’t the most pleasant person that I’d encountered either.
“Good morning, I’m sorry to bother you so early. My name is Julie Kenmore.”
Okay, clearly, I was making up things as I went along. I didn’t want to give my real name. What if she recognized me from the show? Oh, right, people had to actually watch the show first before they’d recognize me. I was getting ahead of myself. If I didn’t figure out this crime there might never be an airing of the show.
She stared at me as if she was losing her patience by the second.
“I’m a private investigator and I’m looking into a murder. Can you tell me about your neighbor?” I gestured to the right.
Oh, boy. What a big lie I’d told. If the detective heard me what would he say?
Her eyes widened. “Oh, yes, it was terrible. I heard what happened.”
“Is there anything you can tell me about Ruby? Maybe if there were any confrontations recently at her home? Anything out of the ordinary?” I asked.
She frowned. “Well, I know that she was having arguments with her boyfriend. We weren’t close, but we did talk when we saw each other outside. I happened to see them arguing one day. I tried not to listen in and I went inside because it was really awkward.”
“Then what happened?” I pressed.
“Well, the next time I saw Ruby she apologized and told me that they were having problems. She was suspicious that he was having an affair.”
“Yes, I heard about that,” I said.
“Do you think that the boyfriend may have something to do with the murder?”
“I’m not sure about that. There was something else I noticed the other day.”
“Oh, really?” I asked with a raised eyebrow. “What was that?”
“I saw a guy walking around her property. It looked as if he was looking in the windows. I was ready to call the police but then he left.”
This was a scary detail.
“What did this man look like?” I asked.
“He wore a hat so I’m not sure about hair color and he was probably six foot tall. Or maybe five foot tall.”
That didn’t give me much to go on with such a wide range in height. Who had Lucille seen at my house sneaking around and possibly trying to open windows. Had this been the same person who was walking behind me at the restaurant? I hadn’t seen the exact color of the hair of that person either. I thought the person had been tall, but maybe I wasn’t sure after all. Clearly Lucille and I were bad with the details. Along with this person too.
The thought that someone might be stalking me sent a shiver down my spine to know that I had suspected that Finn was that person. Finn had been at the studio at the time the murder occurred. Could he be the one who had been at Ruby’s house? But why would he be at my house? As far as I knew he had no idea where I lived. I should just come right out and ask him. Although I had done that last night and he denied being behind me.
It wasn’t like he would admit that he had been snooping around. How would he have found my address? Could someone have given it to him? Perhaps Kristen. I would ask her about that.
“You didn’t call the police about that? Did you tell Ruby?” I asked.
“Yes, I told them about that.”
“Is there anything else you can think of?” I asked.
She frowned as if concentrating on remembering any details. “I can’t think of anything.”
“Does Ruby live alone?” I asked.
She frowned again. “Exactly who hired you? I assumed you were hired by some of her family. Wouldn’t that be information that they had given you?”
Oh, no. Now she was suspicious of me. How would I get myself out of this one? I had to do more quick thinking.
“I just wanted to see if you had information you were withholding,” I said.
“That’s all I know,” she said as she closed the door.
Chapter 15
Soon I arrived at the studio. Today we were making more cupcakes. And I was the cupcake queen. Not to brag or anything but I had a special talent for cupcakes. When people ate my cupcakes, their eyes rolled back in their heads as if they’d had an out-of-body experience. Maybe I messed up on other things, but cupcakes… they were my specialty. That was what I got right all the time. So today I was standing my ground and insisting that we make the cupcakes specifically my way. No argument from Finn. I was going to tell him the way it was going to be.
I parked in one of the worst parking spots available in the parking lot, while Finn still had his space up by the door. I seriously needed to find out what that was all about. I grabbed my bag and headed for the door. At least I’d made it without being late.
I walked down that long dark hallway again. The only sound was the click of my footsteps against the floor This place gave me the creeps. Thank goodness I made it to my dressing room. I hurried in and shut the door. Releasing a deep breath, I looked around the room. Apparently, my outfit had already been chosen for me. The clothing had been pulled from the rack with a big note pinned on that read: Wear this. I guessed I was no longer trusted to make that decision.
I put on the black skirt with a black and white floral blouse. Next I slid my feet into the black heels and headed for the studio. When I reached the set, I realized that I was the only one there. The silence that filled the room added to the spooky feeling that already overwhelmed me. This place was kind of always dark until they turned the lights on for the show. Right now, I was getting strange vibes as if someone was watching me. I stood in the middle of the kitchen area and looked around. Where was everyone?
When I glanced over at the counter I realized that there was another note left for me. They’d told me what to wear and now they were going to tell me what to bake as well? I supposed it shouldn’t surprise me. Kristen had done it before. But like I’d said, I was standing my ground and making the chocolate cherry cupcakes. Then I read the note and it felt as if the blood drained from my body. This was not telling me what to bake. This note was telling me what was going to happen to me.
Stay out of the way or you’re next.
My hand shook as I held the paper. Was this meant for me? Considering I’d received another note at my house, I assumed that yes, this one was for me too. What would I do now? I supposed I needed to let the detective know about this latest development. But there was no time to call. Voices carried as people approached on the set. Everyone was showing up now. Would they realize something was wrong by the look on my face?
“You’re here early,” Kristen said.
I shoved the note into my pocket. I wasn’t even going to mention this right now. I didn’t want to jeopardize the show. It was already on thin ice so one more thing might shut it down completely.
“Are you okay?” she asked with a frown.
“I just decided I’d get here early. I’m just fine. By the way, I want to do my chocolate cherry cupcakes today.”
Finn opened his mouth as if he was getting ready to say something, but I guessed the glare I gave him made him realize that I was completely serious.
“Chocolate cherry cupcakes it is then,” Kristen said with a smile.
Finn and I took turns reading the lines from the prompter. Of course, Finn was putting on the charm again. And I had to admit that the chemistry between us was a bit there. But maybe he was putting it on too thick.
Finn and I took turns adding more ingredients to the mixer. And occasionally he would accidentally touch my hand. Was he doing that on purpose? Was he doing it to add a bit of sizzling hot tension to the show? Or was he d
oing it because he was that flirtatious in real life? I couldn’t tell the difference. But maybe it was making me a little flustered.
“Oh, wait,” Finn said.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
This wasn’t part of the script. Finn liked to go off script a lot and that caught me off guard too much.
“You’ve got flour in your hand,” he said. “You need sugar.”
“I need sugar?” I asked, still confused by what was happening.
“Lots of sugar,” Finn said.
I stared at him for a moment as if I was in a trance. There was dead silence, which wasn’t a good thing in my opinion. Or Kristen’s either, by the way she was waving her hands.
“Oh, right,” I said. “Sugar.”
I grabbed the ingredient and dumped it into the bowl. I couldn’t believe I’d made that mistake. See, this was what Finn was doing to me.
Finally when I added the last bit of sprinkles to the top of the chocolate icing, we wrapped up the show. Finn decided it was a good idea to touch my nose with the chocolate icing. And so help me, I couldn’t stop myself from laughing.
“Oh, my gosh, guys, that was an adorable episode,” Kristen said as she headed toward us. “What’s going on with you guys? Is there love in the air?” She wiggled her eyebrows.
“There’s nothing going on between us,” I said with a wavering voice.
Kristen stared at me as if she didn’t believe a word I said. Finn just smiled and winked.
“Okay, we had dinner, but that was only to discuss the show,” I said.
“Right,” Kristen said, stretching out the word. “Well, whatever it is that you guys have going on then, keep it up. The chocolate icing on the nose… that was a perfect touch.”
I grabbed a napkin and wiped the icing off my nose. Kristen walked away, leaving Finn and me alone again.
“So I was wondering if you wanted to get together and discuss what we didn’t discuss last night?” Finn asked.
I wiped my hands on the apron and then took it off. “Well, we really didn’t discuss anything about the show last night, so I’m afraid that it would just be a repeat of that.”
“No, I know we got off track, but we really do need to discuss this. We want to continue the show, right?”
“Of course we want to continue, but unfortunately, I have other things to do right now,” I said.
“Like what?” he asked with a smile.
“That’s none of your business, Finn Fine. Maybe we can do it later. I’ll call you, okay?”
“I’ll be waiting for that call,” he said.
As I headed across the studio I waved over my shoulder. I just couldn’t read Mr. Fine and his motives. He was just too flirtatious. He probably did that with all the women.
I hurried back into the dressing room to change. I wanted to talk with Ruby’s now ex-boyfriend, but I had no idea how to find his address. I still hadn’t figured out if they actually lived together. It wasn’t for a lack of trying either. As scary as it was, I had to talk to him. Detective Bailey would probably frown upon me snooping around and asking questions of people, but I had to take this matter into my own hands. I couldn’t wait around for them to find the killer.
Getting back into my jeans and T-shirt, I then slid into my tennis shoes. I placed the clothing back on the rack because I didn’t want anyone say that I was slobby. Grabbing my bag and keys, I headed for the door. I had to admit that I was pleased with the way the show had turned out. I’d known we needed to make those cupcakes. I guessed the flirting kind of worked too. Even if Finn frustrated me at times.
Immediately upon stepping out into that dark hallway, chills appeared on my arms. It always seemed as if someone was watching. This place was just creepy. I really needed to talk to them about getting more lights in this place. But considering I was just trying to save the show, I wouldn’t press the issue with brighter light bulbs. I didn’t want to seem like a diva.
As I walked toward the door, footsteps sounded from behind me. I looked over my shoulder, but I didn’t see anyone back there. That was odd. Maybe the sound had echoed from somewhere else. I tried not to let my imagination go wild.
I hurried my steps. Was the hallway getting longer or was it just me? I needed to just calm down and not worry about it. All the stress from the murder was freaking me out. I’d only made it a couple more steps when someone grabbed me from behind.
The person placed their hand over my mouth, pulling me back as if they were trying to pull me away from the exit. Where were they taking me? I was being dragged backward. My feet were barely making contact with the floor. I wasn’t going to go down without a fight though. I struggled, moving my arms and trying to break free from the person’s hold.
Somehow, I needed to get all my strength and get away from this person. I maneuvered my elbow where I thought I had it in position to shove it into the person’s stomach. It was probably my only shot. Where was everyone anyway? Didn’t anyone see what was happening to me? Couldn’t someone help? I couldn’t call out because my mouth was covered.
With all my strength I shoved my arm backwards into the person’s stomach. They let out a groan and released the hold on me. I raced forward, practically stumbling over my own feet as I headed toward the door. My heart was beating so fast that I thought it might jump out of my chest. I reached the door and burst out into the sunlight.
I glanced over my shoulder briefly to see if the person was following me. There was no one back there. I was breathing heavily as I ran for my car. There was no way I was waiting around to see if the person came out. I pressed the key fob and then fumbled with the door handle, finally getting it open. Still no sign of the person who attacked me.
I shoved the key in the ignition and started the car. Thrusting the gear into reverse, I squealed my tires as I headed toward the exit of the parking lot. Just as I was making it halfway across, Finn walked out the door. He looked my way and held his hands up as if asking what I was doing. There was no time to stop and tell him. Maybe I should warn him that there was a killer attacking people, but I wanted out of there.
Once out of the parking lot, I took off down the street. My heart was still beating fast and I was trying to catch my breath. I had to calm down if I was going to drive without wrecking. But first of all, I needed to tell the detective what happened.
Up ahead a red light caught me. My hands were still shaking, but I managed to fish my phone out of my bag. I immediately hit resend and dialed the detective’s number. Thank goodness he picked up. The light turned green and I pushed the gas.
“I was just attacked at the studio,” I said breathlessly.
“Is this Scarlet?” he asked.
“Yes, it’s me, Scarlet Baker. And someone left me a note. I got out of there as fast as I could. But I didn’t get to look at who the person was.”
“Can you meet me at the coffee shop?”
I took a deep breath and exhaled. “Yes, I can be there in five minutes.”
“I’ll see you then,” he said. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
“Yes, I’m fine. I got out of there and I don’t see the car behind me.”
“Okay, I’ll see you soon,” he said.
I ended the call and drove the rest of the way to the coffee shop. Thank goodness there were no strange cars following me and I made most of the green lights. I didn’t want to sit at a red light and risk someone coming up to the car.
I whipped the car into the parking lot, jumped out, and ran inside. The detective wasn’t here yet, so I grabbed a table close to the door. As I sat there, I tapped my fingers against the table, anxiously waiting for him to arrive. I still couldn’t wrap my mind around everything that had happened. Things were getting scary.
To think just a short time ago I’d sat in the coffee shop talking to him thinking that things would be okay. I shouldn’t have been that naïve. There was a killer around and I needed to face that fact. Maybe I shouldn’t be looking into this murder on my ow
n. Maybe I should just let the show end so that I wouldn’t be in danger.
Thank goodness, after another minute I spotted the detective’s car pull into the parking lot. He parked beside my car and got out. There was definitely a look of concern on his face when he walked into the shop. He crossed the floor and then sat down across from me. I pulled a note from my pocket and placed it on the table.
My hands still shook as I pushed it toward him. “I found this on the counter in the studio’s kitchen.”
He picked up the note and read it. “When did someone grab you?”
“As I was leaving the studio. The hallway’s dark and spooky. I thought I heard footsteps. The next thing I knew someone grabbed me from behind. It was a good thing I got away. I just ran right out into the parking lot after that.”
He studied the note for a moment longer without saying a word.
“I think it’s just like the one that was at my house. What do you think?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Yeah, I think it is. It’s obviously the same person.”
“Yes, but unfortunately we don’t know who this person is,” I said.
“Well, I’m going to find out,” he said. “They can’t hide from me for long.”
I wasn’t sure I would make it much longer with this person out to get me.
Chapter 16
“I’ll go back over to the studio and have a look around,” Detective Bailey said.
“I just don’t know what to think,” I said. “Can I ask how Corina was killed?”
He frowned and I knew he was debating on revealing this detail. “That’s something we have to keep private with the ongoing investigation.”
“Right…,” I said. “I understand.”
He walked me out to my car. “Is there anything else that you can tell me about the whole event? Anything that stood out? I know you didn’t see the person’s face, but maybe there was something else, like you saw the shoes? A smell or perhaps the size of their hands? Anything that could lead us to the right person.”