“I like this version of the phantom,” Jeff said. “It’s kinder and gentler than the others.”
“Stephen heard some other version about seashells being left behind to show displeasure and the theater being pulled into the sea, but I didn’t like that one,” Brooke said.
“I knew the part about the theater getting pulled into the ocean,” Kelsey agreed.
“But it had to be a real person who killed him,” said Brooke. “And I guess who tried to kill me too.”
“Do you know anyone who stayed at the theater after the rehearsal ended?” asked Lydia. “And what did you do?”
“I wanted to go home and rest because the show was coming up,” Brooke said. “I told Stephen that we could go out after the show. I don’t know who stayed at the theater, but I guess Stephen must have. I just came here and went to bed. I suppose you’re asking me that because you think I might be a suspect?”
“You always have to ask the significant other,” Jeff said. “Which is kinda sad if you think about it. Love and hate so often going hand in hand.”
“I only loved Stephen. And I wouldn’t have tried to poison myself.”
“But you didn’t eat any of that candy,” Lydia pointed out.
“If I were looking for a suspect, I’d look at Stephen’s family,” Brooke said. “They didn’t seem all that broken up by his death at the brunch.”
“Well, they weren’t crying as much as you,” Jeff agreed.
“And I think there might be something wrong with them,” said Brooke. “I don’t know them well enough to be sure. But look at Stephen’s play. It’s all about a dysfunctional family. He wrote about what terrible people the Hildenbraughs are. What if they are based on his real family?”
“Do you think so?” asked Lydia.
“Peter gave Stephen the advice to pull from his own life experiences when writing. That’s what he said last summer. Peter said this would make his writing more believable, and this year, he wrote a play that was good enough to be performed. I think he took the advice to heart and wrote about his own family.”
“They could certainly be worth talking to,” Lydia agreed.
“And in the play, the grandson was thinking about poisoning the grandmother – well, the part was turned into a grandfather so Jeff could play the role. But my point is poison. It looks like this killer tried to use this method again in my candy,” said Brooke. “And I’d guess that it was Stephen’s brother, Hugh.”
Lydia thanked Brooke for sharing her suspicions and told her that she should notify the police right away about the poisoned candy. She suppressed a shudder as she gave this advice. She hated all murder methods, but poisoned candy always felt unusually cruel.
12
Debates and Discussions
“What better says that we’re sorry for someone’s loss?” Lydia asked. “Strawberry kiwi or salted caramel?
She had returned to the taffy shop with Jeff and Kelsey. There was a lull in business when most tourists were enjoying their dinners, so Mona and Annette were also joining in the conversation.
“I think dark chocolate fits the traditional black for mourning,” said Mona.
“Maybe choose an assortment,” Annette suggested. “Then, they can eat what they’d like to eat.”
“That seems like a good idea to me,” Jeff agreed. “I like all the taffy flavors.”
“Let’s just decide quickly,” Kelsey said. “We need to visit the Mills family and see if any of them are the killer. If we don’t act quickly, we definitely won’t be able to use the theater tomorrow.”
“And someone else could get hurt,” said Jeff. “Maybe even you.”
“I’m not worried about me,” said Kelsey.
“You should be,” said Jeff. “I called Robert, who is the one person in front of you and he is taking precautions. So is Elaine, the person after you. You should be careful too.”
“I am careful. I’m with you all,” she retorted. “I couldn’t be any safer.”
“I’m afraid I disagree,” Lydia said as she collected the assorted taffies into a container. “The killer seems to know things about the people involved in the show or is following them. You being here is part of your regular schedule.”
“You should go home and lock yourself inside your house,” Annette suggested. “Your family could protect you.”
“I’m not going to put my family in danger,” Kelsey said. “My sister drives me crazy, but I don’t want anything to happen to her.”
“You don’t have to go home right now. My suggestion is that we bring you to the police station. We can tell Leo how we’ve noticed the pattern of who is getting hurt, and we want you protected.”
“I guess this is serious,” Kelsey said, crossing her arms. “You’re willing to let Leo learn that we’ve been investigating if I go and ask for protection.”
“I am,” Lydia agreed. “But maybe we try to have him see the subtle difference between investigating a murder and protecting future attacks, including those on my staff.”
“I wish I could see the Mills family though,” said Kelsey. “That seems like the strongest motive to me so far. Maybe Stephen really did base his play on them, and they are all crazy.”
“I think it might be someone lower on the list,” Jeff said. “Maybe they thought that they wouldn’t have to go all the way through it and could stop early.”
“There are many possibilities of who it could have been,” Lydia said. “And there are still many things about this case that don’t make sense to me. However, right now, I want to focus on getting Kelsey to a safe place and then see what the victim’s family has to say.”
“It will be sad if they’re not involved in the death and still have to be questioned,” said Annette.
“That’s why we’re bringing a gift to express our sympathy,” said Lydia. “And we will be subtle with our questions.”
“And we really do have sympathy for them,” said Jeff. “Stephen seemed like a nice guy. He was so excited about the show. And he made me feel welcome – even though I was a last minute fill-in when someone moved and he had to change the character a bit. I’m sad he’s gone.”
Lydia placed a hand on his shoulder, supportively.
“Maybe I should have some of that mourning taffy,” he joked.
Lydia nodded and handed him a piece of strawberry kiwi. Then, she checked that Annette and Mona would be all right alone for a little longer. After they had assured her that they would be, Lydia turned to Kelsey.
“It’s time to go.”
“Okay,” Kelsey said. “I guess we really can’t afford to lose an actor in the show at this point. I’ll do what the detectives tell me to stay safe. But I’m going to perform in the show – whatever version it ends up being, tomorrow night.”
Lydia agreed. She knew it would be pointless to argue, and she did really want Kelsey to be able to perform. They were about the leave the shop but were delayed when Daniel walked inside.
“I’m sorry,” Lydia said. “You caught me on my way out again.”
“I did?”
“I’m about to go into police protection,” Kelsey said unhappily.
“Is everything all right? What’s going on?” he asked.
“It’s a long story,” Lydia said with a sigh. “One that includes actors, a phantom, a killer, and lots of dangerous situations in between.”
“So, you’re investigating a new case?” asked Daniel.
“The person who wrote the play I’m performing in was strangled,” said Kelsey. “And now there have been several attempts on other people’s lives involved in the show too.”
“Though it’s possible one of them might have been staged,” said Lydia. “I’m not sure right now. What I am sure of is that I want to bring Kelsey to see Leo and Detective Grey and then I have some other people to question.”
“It sounds like you have been very busy,” Daniel said. “I guess that’s why you didn’t tell me about all this?”
�
�It’s been a bit of a whirlwind adventure,” said Jeff. “Similar to the whirlwind that’s in another version of the phantom story.”
“I’m not exactly sure what’s going on,” Daniel said. “But maybe I can help. I saw your brother and his partner on the boardwalk a few minutes ago. I bet I could catch up with them and bring them here. Then, they could escort Kelsey wherever they think is best.”
“That would be amazing,” Lydia said.
“And we could go talk to the Mills family right away,” said Jeff.
“We’ll keep an eye on Kelsey until they arrive,” Annette promised.
“That’s right,” Mona agreed. “No phantom, ghost, or ghoul will get past us.”
“I don’t think I need all this fuss,” Kelsey said. “But I do appreciate that everyone cares.”
She gave Lydia a hug who gladly returned it. Then, Lydia and Jeff headed to the door. Daniel was right behind them.
“Lydia?”
“I really can’t thank you enough,” she said. “This also saves me having to face Leo right away.”
“I’m happy to help,” Daniel said. “But could we find a time to talk soon?”
“Sure,” Lydia said.
She smiled at him, but inwardly she thought this sounded like bad news. Being told that she needed to find a time “to talk” with the person she had been pseudo-dating sounded more ominous than facing a killer.
13
Facing the Family
Lydia felt awkward standing on the steps outside the Mills family home. It was clear that Jeff did too. However, Lydia needed to find out if someone there was terrorizing the theater and might be after Kelsey.
She took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. Melinda, who had been at the meeting earlier, greeted them.
“Can I help you?” she asked. Then, she seemed to recognize them. “Wait. You were at that theater meeting earlier, weren’t you?”
“That’s right,” said Lydia.
“I was in Stephen’s play,” Jeff said.
“I also own a taffy shop, and we just wanted to bring a small gift to express our condolences,” Lydia said.
“That’s sweet,” said Melinda. “And different. Everyone that has been visiting my mom today has brought a casserole. But she likes taffy. I’m sure she’ll appreciate it.”
“We brought an assortment so everyone would have their choice of flavors,” Jeff said.
“Would you like to come in?” asked Melinda. “Lots of people have been stopping by today to comfort my mom. But don’t feel like you have to. I know it can be very upsetting.”
“We’d love to come in,” Lydia said.
Melinda showed them inside. There was indeed a line of casseroles on the table, but Eddie came in to grab one.
“You remember Eddie?” Melinda said. “He was my brother’s best friend. He was at that meeting this morning that turned into an interrogation. But he’s been very helpful.”
“I’m just trying to do what I can. Trying to keep busy,” said Eddie.
“He’s been running all the errands we needed done,” Melinda said. “You don’t realize how much there is to do. And it comes at a time when you don’t feel like doing anything.”
Melinda’s brother walked up to them, looking upset. “What are they doing here?”
“They brought a sympathy gift, Hugh.”
“That’s rich,” Hugh scoffed. “Since they might have been the ones to kill Stephen.”
“That’s awful to say,” Melinda responded.
“But it’s true,” Hugh said. “One of his little friends must have done it. Why else would it have happened at the theater?”
Lydia was content to let the siblings talk. While she didn’t like being accused of being a murder suspect, it seemed wise to hear what Melinda and Hugh thought of the matter.
“I don’t know,” Melinda said, starting to tear up. “I don’t understand any of this and how Stephen could really be dead. But I know that we shouldn’t be mean to people who are trying to show us compassion at this difficult time. They might be hurting as well.”
“Yeah,” Jeff said. “Stephen was really great. I was a late addition to the play, but he made me feel welcome.”
“I’m so tired of hearing about this stupid play!” Hugh said. “It was all Stephen could talk about. How he finally found his muse. How happy he was that he had finally written something that was going to be performed. But for what? This show got him killed. Someone in that cast killed him.”
“Hugh…”
“What else are we supposed to believe, Melinda? That it was that stupid phantom that he told us about. We better be careful, or we’ll make it mad too. It will leave a seashell trail and try to wash the theater away. That story is more stupid than anything that Stephen ever wrote.”
“You probably heard something similar,” Melinda said to Lydia. “Stephen used to tell us this crazy story about a phantom at the Ocean Point Theater.”
“I hate that theater,” Hugh said before storming away.
“You’ll have to excuse him,” Melinda said. “He’s dealing with this death with anger. It’s just how he’s coping. He’s not like this all the time.”
“No?” asked Lydia. “He never lashed out in anger like this before? Never at Stephen?”
“Siblings don’t always get along, but Hugh isn’t normally angry like this. It really is because he misses Stephen so much and can’t completely face the loss. But he can be supportive. Can’t he, Eddie?”
“That’s right,” Eddie agreed. “He was very supportive when my grandfather died. I expected the kindness from my best friend, but not from Hugh. He really surprised me.”
Tears started to fall from Melinda’s eyes again. “I’m sorry. This is just very hard for all of us.”
“I can only imagine,” Lydia said.
“Do you want me to get you something?” Eddie asked Melinda. “Anything at all?”
“No. I’ll be fine. And I might just try one of these taffies,” Melinda said, putting on a brave face. She picked a taffy at random and placed it in her mouth. “It’s very good.”
“I’ll keep reorganizing the kitchen to find space for the casseroles,” Eddie said.
Melinda thanked him and then led Lydia and Jeff into the other room. A woman was dressed all in black, holding a theater script. Her eyes were red, but she wasn’t crying. She was quiet.
“Mom, these are some of Stephen’s friends from the theater,” Melinda said. “They brought us some taffy.”
“That was very kind,” Mrs. Mills said. “Both bringing the gift and coming here. I know it must have been hard to decide to come. Since we don’t know exactly what happened to my Stephen, it’s hard to know who to trust. But I am grateful that you came.”
“We are so sorry for your loss,” Lydia said. “And everyone at the theater is too. They just have different ways of showing it, and there has been some funny business going on that has them all on edge.”
“I know,” Mrs. Mills said. “At least, I know a little of it. I spoke to some detectives when they told me the news. They think that someone is pretending to be a phantom and is committing these horrible crimes.”
“I believe that is what they think,” Lydia agreed.
“I’m glad that the cast is still planning on putting on Stephen’s show though,” Mrs. Mills said. “What he wanted more than anything was for people to see what he wrote performed. He worked so hard at it. For years he tried, and he got better and better. He tried different genres. He tried outer space stories and then spy thrillers and then finally found his niche in family dramas. I don’t know where he got his ideas.”
“Did you read the play?” Lydia asked. “Or were you waiting to see it performed live?”
“I read it,” Mrs. Mills said. “And the family is so unlike our own that I don’t know where it came from.”
“It’s that different?” asked Jeff.
“Well, we don’t have any extended family like in the play. I was an orph
an,” said Mrs. Mills. “It’s just the four of us here. I mean, three now…”
She looked down sadly. Melinda sat next to her and hugged her mom.
“There is one part that seemed familiar,” Melinda said, trying to cheer her up. “The part where the son character talks about baseball. That seems exactly like something that Hugh would say. I think that part was based on Hugh.”
Strawberry Kiwi and Slayings Page 6