Ivy Morgan Mystery Box Set 5

by Lily Harper Hart

  “She’s got defensive wounds on her hands and arms.” Simon lifted his arms and covered his face to show how Éclair died. “A lot of the bruises are on the underside of her arms. Those would’ve been facing out when she was attacked.”

  “She was looking at her attacker straight on then,” Brian mused. “That must mean she knew whoever it was who went after her.”

  “That’s up to you to figure out,” Simon countered. “I only know she was hit at least twenty times. I’ll be able to get a better number for you once I’ve had time with her in the lab. I suspect she has a skull fracture, although I’m not sure yet. I can’t give you an exact cause of death. She could have internal bleeding or something else could’ve tipped her over the edge.”

  “We know the basics,” Jack noted. “She was beaten to death.”

  “Pretty much.”

  “Would her assailant have bruises on his hands?” Brian asked. “After that vicious of a beating, it would only make sense, right?”

  “In theory. He could’ve worn gloves, though. He could’ve struck her with foreign objects. I’m not that far into my examination.”

  “Can you give us anything?” Brian pleaded. “How about a likely gender for our killer? I’m assuming it has to be a man.”

  Simon worked his jaw, uncertainty swimming in his compassionate eyes. “I honestly can’t even give you that much,” he said after a beat. “I don’t have any angles on the blows.”

  “Are you saying a woman could’ve done this?” Jack was doubtful. “Whoever beat down Éclair had a lot of rage … and strength.”

  “I would agree with that,” Simon conceded. “The thing is … women feel rage. They’re also stronger than we often want to give them credit for. If it came down to it, I think Ivy could’ve inflicted that much damage if she really wanted to do it.”

  Jack scowled. “Why would you point the finger at Ivy?”

  “I was using her as an example,” Simon reassured him. “She’s not a big woman. She doesn’t work out. She’s fierce, though, and she can protect herself. I think a similarly-sized woman – one with a lot of rage and hatred – could’ve exacted that amount of damage on Éclair. I just can’t be sure either way, at least until I get her in the lab and start measuring things.”

  That wasn’t the news Jack wanted to hear. “So, basically you’re saying that we have no choice but to consider everyone a suspect.”

  “As of right now, yes. The only thing I can give you is that she died about three hours ago … although I think she was attacked hours before that.”

  Jack was appalled. “You’re saying she was out here suffering before she died.”

  “Yeah. Bruises had time to appear. If she’d died at the same time, the wounds would’ve looked different.”

  “Could she have lived if we found her sooner?” Brian asked.

  “I can’t answer that until I get a cause of death. I simply don’t know.”

  “Can you get us a preliminary report before the end of the day?”

  “I will do my best.”

  “And we will do ours.” Brian turned to his partner. “Where do you want to start? There are a lot of new faces in town … and we could honestly be looking for an old one, too.”

  “I don’t know.” Jack was at a loss. “I guess we should start with the people at the hotel last night. They were the ones with her right before it happened.”

  “That’s as good a place as any to start. Let’s do it.”

  Five

  Ivy had more fun with Jordan and Blaine than she expected. They were gregarious, outgoing, and easy to talk to. They were also eager to volunteer help. Since they were stuck in Shadow Lake anyway, production limbo holding them off from making plans, they decided that whatever Ivy was doing was more interesting than waiting at the hotel.

  “Tell me about your tall drink of water,” Blaine instructed as Ivy used a sketch pad to map out the various routes between the hotel and the bar.

  “My tall drink of water?” Ivy furrowed her brow. “I ... what do you mean?”

  “Jack,” Jordan volunteered. “He wants to hear about your boyfriend.”

  “Oh, well ... Jack is great.” Ivy smiled to herself as she used a pencil she found in the console of Jack’s truck to shade the street on her drawing. “He’s a lot of fun ... and he’s nice to look at.”

  “He’s definitely nice to look at,” Blaine agreed, his tone whimsical.

  Ivy snapped her head in his direction, surprised. “Wait ... are you ... ?” She didn’t finish the sentence. It felt somehow rude given the circumstances.

  Jordan was so amused by her attack of manners he chuckled. “You can say it. He’s used to it ... and, yes, he’s gay.”

  “But ... you’re on a dating show.” Ivy kept her voice low as she glanced around. “I don’t understand.”

  Blaine’s eyes twinkled with mirth. “What don’t you understand? I can be on a dating show and gay. It’s perfectly acceptable.”

  “Yeah, but ... you’re supposed to be dating a woman.”

  “Oh, you’re so cute.” Blaine slung an arm over her shoulder and snickered. “I’m not in this for true love, honey. I’m in it for the exposure.”

  “Yeah, but ... .” Ivy felt out of her element. Finally, she merely shook her head. “Don’t call me honey.”

  “Oh, I get it.” Blaine winked at her. “You’re a feminist. I am, too. I won’t call you that again.”

  “I’m not a feminist. Er, I am.” Ivy was off her game and she didn’t like the feeling of not being in control. “You’re just not allowed to call me honey. I have a name.”

  “Fair enough.” He turned his attention to the drawing. “Why are you doing that? We know where she was found.”

  “Yeah, but there are multiple routes.” Ivy put the sketch pad in the middle of the table. “The hotel is here.”

  “And what a dump that is,” Jordan intoned.

  Ivy shot him a look. “I happen to know the woman who runs the hotel and she’s very nice. She works hard.”

  “I didn’t say she was dumpy.”

  Ivy waited.

  “Fine.” Jordan blew out an exaggerated sigh. “It’s a lovely space.”

  “That’s better.” Ivy turned back to the illustration. “According to the security guy, he was downstairs. He says he wasn’t drunk. Can you guys confirm that?”

  “He didn’t appear drunk,” Blaine replied, turning serious. “We were kind of drunk, though, so I can’t be a hundred percent sure. I mean ... he seemed fine. Guys like that can always hold their liquor better, though.”

  “Guys like what?”

  “You know, the repressed military type who want to break out and have a good time. I felt for him. He was clearly bored ... and this was not his idea of a fun assignment.”

  “Not everything in life is fun,” Ivy noted. “As for him, well, he’s definitely not fun.” She chewed on her bottom lip as she scanned the drawing. “There are four exits to the hotel, one on each side. She didn’t necessarily have to leave through the front door.”

  “No, but I can see why Moss assumed she would only leave by the front door,” Jordan said. “The parking lot for that place runs completely around the two sides and back. It wasn’t well lit, though.”

  “No, it’s not.” Ivy was thoughtful. “So ... why would she go out one of those doors?”

  “You’re assuming she went willingly,” Jordan argued. “What if someone hit her over the head, shoved her in a suitcase, and simply rolled her out?”

  Ivy arched an eyebrow. “I see you’ve given this some thought.”

  He grinned. “I moonlight as a writer. I have a lot of different ideas for murder mysteries. That’s only one of them.”

  “Does the hotel have cameras?” Blaine asked. “I mean ... you should be able to see if she left on her own or was rolled out if they do, right?”

  “If they do have cameras, I’m going to bet it’s only on the front door,” Ivy replied. “Still, it’s not a ba
d idea. I’m sure Jack is on that, though.”

  “Oh, Jack.” Blaine batted his eyelashes in a way that made Ivy giggle. “Tell me about Jack. Are you certain he doesn’t roll my way?”

  “Oh, puh-leez.” Jordan rolled his eyes in exaggerated fashion. “He clearly only has eyes for Ivy. You saw them together. The dude practically whipped it out and urinated around her to make sure we knew to stay away.”

  Ivy frowned. “He did not. I wish you guys would stop saying that.”

  “It’s a guy thing,” they said in unison.

  “I wish you would stop saying that, too,” she complained, her eyes flashing. “Jack is not that way.”

  “Oh, he’s totally that way,” Blaine countered. “There’s nothing wrong with it. He obviously loves you more than anything else in his life. That’s the way we all want to be loved. Don’t get worked up about it.”

  “It honestly is a good thing,” Jordan agreed. “I’m totally jealous because I want to steal you for myself.”

  “I’m not on the market.” Ivy lifted her chin and indicated the two women on the other side of the park, both of whom were flirting like mad and giggling like school girls as the rest of the group interacted with them. “They, on the other hand, are totally on the market.”

  Jordan frowned as he watched Maisie drape herself over Waltrip’s back. “She is not fun at all.”

  “Not your type?”

  “Nope.”

  Ivy gestured toward the other woman, one who had arrived only recently. “What about her?”

  Jordan narrowed his eyes as he took in the mop of flaxen hair and slim waist. “What’s her story?”

  “That’s Ava Moffet. She’s the police chief’s daughter and works in the station.” Ivy grimaced. “I went to high school with her.”

  “Oh, do tell,” Jordan enthused, rubbing his hands together. “You obviously hate her. I want to hear the details.”

  Ivy suddenly turned evasive. “There are no details.” She tapped her drawing. “We should map out routes for Éclair to take and then rank them from likeliest to least likely. That might help Jack.”

  “Screw Jack.” Blaine completely forgot his crush on Ivy’s fiancé. “We want to hear the Ava dirt. Why do you hate her?”

  “Was she a bully in high school?” Jordan interjected. “Does she flirt with your man?” At Ivy’s scowl, he perked up. “Oh, she does flirt with your man. Tell us all about it.”

  JACK AND BRIAN MADE THEIR way to the town square after leaving the medical examiner. There was nothing more they could do with the area behind the bar until after they were finished, so they decided now was the perfect time to start questioning the production team. Since everyone was congregating in the same area, that made things convenient.

  “What are you doing?” Brian asked, confused when his partner pulled up short and stared at the bustling activity in the small park.

  “Ivy” was all he said.

  Brian followed his gaze and snorted. “Well, you had to know that she wasn’t going to leave simply because you told her to.”

  Jack pursed his lips.

  “She’s never been one to follow orders,” Brian added.

  “I know that,” he said finally. “It’s just ... what is she doing with those guys? They’re with the show, for crying out loud. You don’t think she could possibly like them, do you?”

  Brian exhaled heavily, the sound long and drawn out. “Oh, geez. You guys are nutty sometimes. I swear. I try to remind myself it’s a side effect of being young and you’ll get over it, but sometimes you’re freaking ridiculous.”

  Jack turned sheepish. “I didn’t mean I thought she was flirting with them or anything.”

  “You’re simply worried they’re flirting with her.”

  “Hey, look at her. Who wouldn’t flirt with her?”

  “She doesn’t seem upset,” Brian noted after studying the pink-haired woman for a few seconds. “She’s loyal to you to a fault, so if they were trying to flirt with her, she would handle it herself. That’s who she is.”

  Jack knew that was true, so he relaxed ... marginally. “You’re right. They would be on the ground if she felt they were overstepping their bounds. Although ... that doesn’t explain what she’s doing here.”

  “You could ask her.”

  “Good idea.” Jack immediately set off in her direction, leaving Brian shaking his head in the man’s wake. He didn’t stop until he was right behind Ivy, casting a shadow over her drawing, and when he realized she was mapping out locations, he forgot what he was originally going to say. “Do you think you know which direction she headed when she left the hotel?”

  Ivy jolted at the sound of his voice and quickly glanced over her shoulder, pasting her ‘I’m cute and you love me, so yelling is out of the question’ smile on her face. “Hi. I was wondering if you were going to head this way.”

  “Uh-huh.” Jack was dubious. “You look as if you were prostrate with worry over me. You and your two friends, I mean.” He glared at both men. “Why are you still here, by the way?”

  “This is Jordan and Blaine. I’ve been asking them about Éclair’s movements last night. They said she was holding court in the bar until something happened to irritate her.”

  Even though Jack was also irritated, he focused on Ivy’s words rather than the fact that she was flanked on both sides by guys who were participating in a dating show, which automatically meant they were suspect in his book. “I thought she wasn’t allowed to interact with the contestants.”

  “She wasn’t,” Jordan volunteered, offering Jack a saucy grin. Jack would later wonder if the man understood that he was agitating him with his very presence. “She was with her friends and Prickwillow.”

  “What kind of name is that anyway?” Ivy complained. “You would think he would change it. I mean ... we’re talking about Hollywood here. Wouldn’t you change it?”

  “Probably not,” Blaine replied. “I mean ... it’s one of those names that’s hard to forget. Plus, I think he enjoys seeing people’s reactions when he introduces himself. It’s like he’s daring people to say something.”

  “What about Éclair?” Jack asked, bringing the conversation back on point. “Did she do anything of note last evening other than disappear?”

  “I wasn’t really paying attention to her,” Jordan admitted. “I would guess there were about fifteen to eighteen of us in the bar at any given time. People mostly hung out there, although occasionally people ran back to their rooms.”

  “Was everyone there the entire night?” Jack asked.

  “I don’t know. I definitely wasn’t paying enough attention to answer that.”

  Jack flicked his eyes to Blaine and found the man looking him up and down with an eye for detail that caused Jack to shift from one foot to the other, self-conscious. “What about you?”

  “What about me?” Blaine asked, meeting Jack’s gaze and tilting his head. “Do you have something specific you want to ask me, big guy?”

  “Knock that off,” Ivy admonished, lightly slapping Blaine’s arm and shooting him a warning look. “I know you think you’re funny, but Jack is trying to find a killer. Éclair is dead. I know you didn’t know her — or care about her, for that matter — but she’s still dead. That’s a tragedy.”

  Blaine was appropriately abashed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for that to come off as crass.”

  “Am I missing something?” Jack asked, confused.

  “I’ll tell you later,” Ivy replied. “As for Éclair, I don’t know what to tell you. There are four doors to the hotel. I can’t imagine there are cameras around any of those doors other than the front one.”

  “We’re going to head over to the hotel and ask,” Jack acknowledged. “We need to question some people here first. Do you have any suggestions on where I might want to start, honey?” His question was pointed.

  “Oh, that’s why we can’t call you honey,” Blaine said, his eyes widening. “Your tall drink of water calls you that.
It’s kind of cute.”

  “Tall drink of what?” Jack furrowed his brow.

  “Ignore them,” Ivy instructed. “They’re harmless ... and not interested in what you think they’re interested in. You need to focus on the others.” She pointed across the way. “Waltrip is over there and I’ve been watching him because of what happened in the alley.”

  “Yeah?” Jack shifted his gaze in that direction. “Wait ... is that Maisie with him?”

  “It is,” Ivy confirmed. “She and Ava have been here for a good hour. They’re practically tripping over themselves to impress the production crew ... although I have no idea why.”

  “Oh, come on,” Jordan complained. “You’re smarter than that. How can you not know what they’re doing?”

  Ivy was honestly at a loss. “I ... .” She looked to Jack for help. “Do you know what they’re doing?”

  “Oh, yeah.” He bobbed his head. “Totally.”

  “What?”

  “I want you to figure it out on your own.”

  Ivy made a face. “Oh, you don’t know.”

  He chuckled as he moved his hands to her neck and gave it a rub. “I don’t. I hate that your new friends seem to think they’re smarter than us, though. I was trying to save face.”

  “It’s not that we’re smarter,” Jordan countered. “It’s simply that we’re used to playing the game. You guys live in a much different world. In your world, the only two people who matter are you. It’s obvious whenever you look at one another.”

  “And I’m totally jealous,” Blaine lamented.

  “I am, too,” Jordan said. “The thing is, we live in the entertainment world. Sure, it’s not the same here as it is in Los Angeles, but there’s still a method to the madness. Any attention is good attention in our world. You guys are perfectly happy laving attention on each other. We need attention from outside sources to survive.”

  “I don’t get that but continue,” Ivy prodded, leaning back so Jack could have better access to her tender shoulders.

  “This is a television show,” Jordan said. “Money has already been paid out. The network is expecting a product. It doesn’t matter to them that the so-called star is dead. They’re not simply going to abandon the money they’ve already shelled out.”