Strawberry Kiwi and Slayings

by Allyssa Mirry

  Kelsey clapped her hands excitedly, but Lydia was having doubts. Proceeding with the show seemed very perilous to her.

  9

  Going On About the Show

  Lydia and Kelsey returned to the taffy shop. Mona and Annette were dealing with the customers but were also keeping an eye on them. Lydia couldn’t hide the anxiety she was feeling, but Kelsey was determined.

  “Are you sure about this?” Lydia asked.

  “I’m not quitting the show,” Kelsey said. “I can’t give up on something I love. You have to understand that. Did you throw in the beach towel when someone tried to frame you for murder? Did you let your taffy shop take the blame and get shut down? Did you let the ice cream shop owner spread nasty rumors about Doherty’s Taffy and Trinkets? Did you give up when you were nearly killed? No. You didn’t. And I won’t either.”

  Usually, Lydia would have liked to be seen as a role model, but she wasn’t excited about it this time. It seemed that she was setting the example that putting yourself in danger was a good thing. This was never something that she planned to do.

  She sighed. “I don’t want you to give up on something that you love. But I don’t want you in danger either. Every time you and Jeff ever helped me with a case, I tried to make sure you stayed on the outskirts and couldn’t get hurt. Now you’re right in the center of this.”

  “I’m in the ensemble of it,” Kelsey joked. “And I told Samantha what Peter said. The cast agreed that we would move forward for Stephen. They had been split down the middle for what to do after talking to the detectives, but this pushed them for it.”

  “Great,” Lydia said with no enthusiasm at all.

  “And this way you’ll still be able to see the show,” Kelsey continued as if Lydia had been excited. “We just need to figure out some details, and it will be great. It will be a tribute to Stephen Mills.”

  “As long as you don’t lose anyone else involved in the show.”

  “Samantha said that she would tell everyone to be careful. And you told the doctor to inform the police about Peter’s car. I bet Detective Doherty and Detective Grey are looking into that lead right now.”

  Lydia nodded. She was glad that she had found a way to get the information over to Leo without him knowing that it came from her. She had merely informed the doctor that Peter Welles was now concerned that his accident was the result of sabotage, and the medical staff promised to contact the authorities.

  Jeff entered the shop a moment later. He walked right towards them without stopping for a free sample of taffy, so Lydia could tell that he was serious.

  “Is the show really still happening?” asked Jeff. “And are you behind this?”

  “Well, I spoke to Peter, and I told him that I thought that the playwright would have wanted his work to still be presented,” Kelsey said.

  Jeff looked down, nervously at his feet. “Maybe Stephen would have wanted it, but I’m not so sure the phantom does. Maybe the phantom thinks we’re such bad actors that we shouldn’t be allowed to perform?”

  “That can’t be the case,” said Kelsey. “Even if we did do something to upset the phantom, it couldn’t be our talent.

  We’re great.”

  “Maybe you are! But I’m not. I’m just reading lines from a book while pretending to be Old Man Edwin. All this started after I joined the cast,” he said. “What if this is my fault?”

  “It’s not your fault,” Lydia said firmly. “The only one responsible is the person – yes, person – who killed Stephen Mills and who hurt Samantha and Peter.”

  “And you are really good on stage,” Kelsey added. “There’s no way the phantom could be mad at your performance.”

  “That’s nice to hear,” said Jeff. “Though I probably did come off a very needy and nervous actor to Detective Grey. I didn’t have much to add to the investigation, so I just talked about how insecure I felt on stage. But I feel a little more confident about finding clues than reciting lines.”

  “What did you find?” asked Lydia.

  “It’s nothing big,” Jeff said, taking a folded program out of his pocket.

  “This isn’t what was found in the victim’s hand, is it?” asked Lydia. “You didn’t steal this from the police?”

  “No,” Jeff said, quickly. “This is just a copy of the program for the show.”

  “You’re not really supposed to take them until opening night,” Kelsey muttered.

  “I needed to prove to my surfer friends that I was really going to be on stage,” Jeff said with a shrug. “Before people started dying, I wanted them to come and see it. But I thought it might be useful now because it has everyone’s name in it. I couldn’t remember them all before.”

  “I know everyone’s name in the cast,” said Kelsey.

  “It also has the little bios that everyone submitted,” said Jeff. “In Stephen’s he thanks his family and a special lady. But he doesn’t say her name. That’s interesting, isn’t it?”

  “It is,” Lydia agreed as she looked over the program.

  Then, she noticed something else very interesting, as well. Inside the booklet was a list of everyone involved with the show. It read: “The Family Hildenbraugh” by Stephen Mills. This was followed by: Directed by Peter Welles and Stage Manager – Samantha Harding. Then, it listed each character name, and the actor portraying the role.

  “Who’s next?” Lydia said. “That’s what was written on the program found in the victim’s hand. And the answer was literally next to the question.”

  “What?” asked Kelsey.

  “The killer is going after people involved in the show, and he’s going after them in the order that they are listed in the program,” Lydia said, pointing it out. “The playwright was killed first. The director was in his car accident right after he spoke to Samantha, and then when she left her house later, she had her fall.”

  “Who comes next?” asked Kelsey, biting her lip.

  “Cosmo,” Lydia answered. “He’s the top-billed actor.”

  “We should go and make sure that no one is after him,” Kelsey said.

  “We have another problem,” Jeff said. “I’m all the way at the bottom of the list, and Kelsey is above me. Someone could be after her soon.”

  “We’ll just have to protect her,” Lydia said. “But we need to protect Cosmo too.”

  Lydia led the way out of the shop, hoping that they wouldn’t arrive too late to help the actor.

  10

  Attack on an Actor

  Kelsey called Cosmo to check on him. He assured them that he was fine, but invited the trio to come over to his home if they were not satisfied. They accepted his offer and hurried over to him.

  Lydia almost felt silly rushing to his rescue when she saw his manicured lawn and potted plants. The actor was waving happily from his front porch as they arrived. However, she believed this was definitely a time when it was better to be safe than sorry.

  “I’m thrilled to see you all. Please, do come in,” he said, gesturing inside.

  They followed him into the house, and it looked just as cheerful inside as out. They sat on his yellow sofa as he offered them a soda to drink.

  “No, thank you,” Lydia said. “We really just wanted to make sure that you were safe.”

  “But, of course, I am,” he said. “Though this has unnerved me some. I kept thinking I heard someone in my backyard. But, of course, when I checked, there was no one. All this talk is making me paranoid.”

  “Maybe there’s a reason to be,” said Jeff.

  “No, my dear boy. The phantom would only attack people at the theater. That’s part of its lore. But I do hope that won’t discourage you from coming to the theater when it reopens. I do love having an audience when I perform. I hope there will be one for our opening night tomorrow. I’m glad we decided to go through with it, but it might seem rather slapdash in the end. I hope people come.”

  “I do too,” Kelsey said. “For Stephen’s sake. We’ll just have to do as much a
dvertising as we can when we know where we will be performing.”

  “And we’ll have to keep the cast safe,” Jeff added.

  “Samantha did mention that,” Cosmo said. “And now you’re all here. But I really don’t know what you’re worried about. The phantom only has power in the theater. What happened to Peter was an accident, and the police will uncover who the phantom was possessing at the time of the murder. It’s a shame that this person will have to pay for the crime, but they shouldn’t have made themselves a vessel for possession.”

  “What?” asked Lydia. This certainly wasn’t a version of the myth that she heard before.

  “Yes. The younger generation seems to think that this phantom is a creature that stalks the stage, but really, it is a spirit. Sometimes it gives an actor a boost of confidence or talent, but it could act for evil as well – as it seems to have done in this case. You see, our phantom is related to the Jersey Devil.”

  “The stories of the Jersey Devil relate to the Pinelands. Not the shore,” said Lydia.

  “Oh, really?” asked Cosmo. “And then, how do you explain what happened to Stephen?”

  “I think a human killed him and is using the story of this Ocean Point Phantom, so we don’t look too closely at real suspects,” said Lydia.

  “I say. That’s rather interesting.” Cosmo stoked his chin. “That even sounds like it might make for a good theater play.”

  “And who do you think would be cast in the role of the killer?” asked Lydia pointedly.

  “I’m sure I could handle the challenges of any role. Obviously, my look is more suited for mature roles, but I could play older or younger if need be. I could portray a hero or a villain. Comedy or tragedy.” He trailed off and looked at her. “Wait a moment. You’re talking about real life, aren’t you? I don’t know who could have killed Stephen if not an evil spirit.”

  “There was no one who had a problem with him?” asked Lydia.

  “Actors can be temperamental at times, but there was no one who wanted to kill him. Most people were satisfied with their roles. I greatly enjoyed mine. I am trying to keep the family together, but it’s difficult. I want to support Kelsey’s character in her dreams to become a dancer. And my son is in such need of money that he is considering killing his grandfather. But in the end, I manage to remind everyone of the meaning of family.”

  “I play his father,” Jeff said. “Which is funny because he’s the right age to be my dad. But they put a lot of makeup on me.”

  “What about Stephen’s love life?” Lydia asked, changing gears. “Sometimes, that could be a powerful motive for murder.”

  “And Stephen mentioned a woman in his bio for the program,” said Jeff.

  “Yes, that. I’m pretty sure it’s Brooke,” Cosmo said. “I saw her and Stephen leave the theater together holding hands. And you saw how she was carrying on at brunch. I gathered they were an item but were trying to keep it secret. She must not have wanted anyone to think that she got the role for any reason other than her talent.”

  “Did anything seem different between them lately?” asked Lydia.

  “Not that I noticed, but I do try and focus on my performance more than the trysts of my fellow cast members. And it will be such a good performance. It really is deserving of a large audience. I hope we’ll have more than that trio who came for the dress rehearsal to support the playwright,” Cosmo said. “Come. Let me show you a sample of my performance. Then, you can tell your friends and get them to come to the show.”

  “My friends and I were already planning to see it,” said Lydia. “To support Jeff and Kelsey.”

  Cosmo stood up and started walking toward his back door. “Follow me. It will be better if I use my booming outdoor voice. I wouldn’t want to frighten you inside the house.”

  They followed him to the door. However, Lydia thought she noticed something odd in the way that the door swung. Acting instinctively, she grabbed Cosmo and pulled him back.

  It was lucky she did. A large potted plant fell directly where Cosmo would have been if he had continued walking. He stared at the remains of the broken pot mixed with broken seashells on the ground and touched his head.

  “That could have hit me,” he said. “How did my plant get there?”

  Lydia looked at the door and saw a rope attached to the outer handle. “It looks like someone rigged it to fall.”

  Cosmo placed a hand on his chest. “My dear lady, you saved my life. I am truly indebted to you. How can I ever make it up to you?”

  “Well, I guess there is one thing,” said Lydia.

  “Anything. Name it.”

  “When you call the police to tell them about this, maybe don’t tell my brother I was here.”

  He nodded solemnly. She thanked him and started to leave. She thought it was important that the police learn about this latest attempt on the life of someone involved with the show. She just didn’t want to be around when they did. She was pretty sure that Leo wouldn’t see this as trying to help an actor and would only see it as meddling in his investigation.

  11

  The Love Interest

  Lydia was glad that she had been able to help Cosmo, but she was worried about how the attempt on his life meant that they were getting closer to when the killer would make a move to hurt Kelsey. What if he was successful then? Lydia wouldn’t be able to live with herself if anything happened to her.

  She tried to focus on the positives. Though what had almost happened to Cosmo was nerve-wracking, this meant that there was new evidence that the police could examine. Maybe the killer had made a mistake, and Leo would be able to uncover a fingerprint that would point him in the right direction.

  However, while Leo and Detective Grey would be examining that crime scene, she wanted to talk to the next person on the cast list to make sure that they were not in danger. It just so happened that this was the person that she was anxious to talk to as a suspect: Brooke Hart. If she and Stephen had been dating, she might know more about who would want to hurt him than other members of the cast. It also meant that she might have a motive for killing him too.

  When Lydia, Jeff, and Kelsey arrived at Brooke’s house, she was no longer crying. It seemed as if she had used up all of her tears and was now moving robotically as she ushered them inside.

  “Thanks for coming to check on me,” she said. “You must have seen how hard this death was affecting me.”

  “That’s right,” Lydia said. “Though we only just learned that you had been dating Stephen.”

  “I guess there’s no point in denying it now,” Brooke said. “We were trying to keep it a secret so no one would gossip, but it looks like they already were. And I’m proud that we were together. We actually had a summer fling last year too when Stephen’s scripts were getting denied by the theater and when he worked crew. But we only just rekindled it. And now he’s gone…”

  “We’re very sorry for your loss,” said Lydia.

  “You run a candy shop, right?” asked Brooke. “That’s what Kelsey said before.”

  “I like to brag about my job,” said Kelsey.

  “We sell treats and trinkets,” Lydia said with a nod. “Taffy is the only candy we make in the shop. It’s what we specialize in, and we have many flavors.”

  “All delicious,” said Jeff. “And I do really like the strawberry kiwi taffy. Even in flower form.”

  “You don’t do chocolate?” asked Brooke.

  “We have some novelty chocolate, but it’s not something we make by hand,” said Lydia. “Why?”

  “So, it wasn’t you who sent me this box of chocolates?” Brooke asked, gesturing to an open but uneaten box of candy on her table. “I’ve been trying to figure out who left it outside my door. I thought it might have been one of you because of your shop.”

  “It wasn’t us,” said Lydia. “And I don’t think you should eat any of it.”

  Brooke shrugged as if she didn’t care about it. Lydia moved closer to the box and sniffed it. Th
ere was a strong scent of almonds, but the flavor chart claimed that the seashell shaped candies were filled with caramel.

  “I think these chocolates might have been poisoned,” Lydia said.

  Brooke shrugged again. “If someone killed Stephen, then it makes sense that they would come after me too.”

  “You said someone,” Lydia pointed out. “You don’t think it was the phantom who did this?”

  Brooke shook her head. “The phantom was supposed to be supportive of the theater. It would try and communicate on the wind. It wasn’t supposed to kill anyone. Not in the version I knew anyway. And even if there are some more deadly accounts, why would it want to hurt Stephen? All he did was write an amazing play. That’s something he’s been trying to do for years.”