by Sarah Kelly
Onyx took a knife and banged it against her champagne glass with a tink, tink, tink sound. The room quietened, and all eyes turned toward her. She nudged her boyfriend.
He looked distinctly uncomfortable, but stood up anyhow. His voice quavered as he spoke. “Thank you all for being here to celebrate the glorious comeback of Onyx Johnson. I’m Hayden Fleming, and I’m lucky enough to be able to call this gorgeous woman my girlfriend. I love this woman with all my heart, mind, and soul, and I know, that as well being the star of yesterday, she’s also the star of today, and the star of tomorrow.”
Onyx beamed and snuggled up to his waist.
“I’d like to take a moment to thank the team behind her,” he continued, getting into the swing of things. “Even the most amazing woman in the world needs a bit of support, right?”
A low titter spread through his audience, and he grinned as if there had been wild applause. Perhaps Onyx isn’t the only crowd-hungry person in this relationship, India thought.
“Firstly,” he announced with a flourish. “Me. I do all I can to take care of my princess, my queen, my special babe. I will protect her from anyone and anything. Next,” he said, gesturing toward the tall man, “her manager, Mark Meyer, who has been with Onyx from the very beginning. He’s the one who managed to snag these concert dates, which he tells me are well on the way to selling out. What a great guy.”
Hayden led the applause, while Onyx batted her eyelids up at him. She threw the manager a quick seductive glance, then turned back to Hayden.
“And, next, we can’t forget the woman who makes Onyx look so awesome, can we?” He gestured toward the vintage pin up woman. “Gianna Whelan, the accomplished image consultant.”
Onyx had daggers in her eyes. She sucked her cheeks in, pushed her lips out, and didn’t so much as turn her head in Gianna’s direction. Raging jealousy, India noted. Hardly surprising. Anyone would be intimidated by Gianna – she was gorgeous, fantastically put together in her rose and duck egg blue 50s ensemble, and probably around six feet tall. But maybe there was something more to it.
“And of course Answer,” Hayden said without enthusiasm, “Onyx’s spiritual adviser.” He said spiritual adviser as if there were quote marks around it, and no one could possibly have such a stupid job. “Anyways, thank you all for coming!”
He made a little bow in the ensuing applause, and then took his seat next to Onyx. He saw that she had drained her glass, so he reached under the table and retrieved one of his stashed champagnes. Her eyes widened with delight and she held it to her chest, but did not take a sip.
India would recall that moment over and over for the next few days. That look on Onyx’s face - so oblivious, innocent even. She had no idea that would be her last night alive.
CHAPTER 2
“The food went down a storm, I’m telling you,” India said, stacking empty plates on the side before Amy shoved them in the dishwasher.
It was true. Amy had prepared a feast of Thai steamed mussels, creamy pesto pasta topped with shrimp, and halibut fillets, which she’d wrapped in thin pancakes and baked to crispy perfection. There was not a scrap left on the plates India brought back in. There were, however, a couple of chocolate and lemon mousse cups left over, and India couldn’t resist diving in a chocolate one with one of the tiny golden spoons. It was so light and bubbly it felt like chocolate air on her tongue, and it soon melted into liquid deliciousness. To India, nothing could compare to chocolate.
“Hey, you’re supposed to be clearing up!” Amy said.
“Your mousse distracted me,” India said, taking another spoonful. “Therefore you have no one to blame but yourself. Anyways, they’ve all gone outside to get even more drunk.”
“You think Onyx was happy with everything?” Amy asked. “I gotta go ask her for the check, and I hear she’s kind of a drama queen. I don’t wanna get thrown in the pool.”
India giggled. “Well, she didn’t eat anything, but I don’t think that’s anything to do with you. Her diet probably consists of a celery stick a day. She’s put back a lot of champagne though. She must be off her head, with an empty stomach like that.”
“Probably likes the buzz.”
India nodded. “Well, performer types generally do, I think. That’s why they like being on the stage, all that nervousness, and applause, and stuff. They do it for the thrill, I reckon.”
“Trust you to psychoanalyze it to death,” Amy said, stacking plates in the dishwasher.
India finished off the mousse and placed the cup on the side. “Watch it, or I’ll start analyzing you.”
Amy lifted her hands. “Well, there ain’t no skeletons in my closet.”
India left to go continue clearing up the dining room. Hayden and Gianna were in the corner talking in hushed voices, and he kept casting nervous glances through the glass doors and out at the pool area.
India cleared her throat and they both started.
“Oh, hello,” Gianna said, looking flustered.
India smiled. “I just came in here to clean up. I could come back?”
“Don’t be silly,” Gianna said sharply. “There’s nothing going on that would mean you shouldn’t be in here. Do what you have to.” She turned to Hayden, her eyes softening. “We’ll talk about it later, okay? Not tonight.”
“Yes,” he said grudgingly.
She stepped out onto the terrace, and he flopped down into his chair at the top table. He rested his chin on his hand and looked out toward the pool, miserable.
India couldn’t resist the temptation to get a glimpse of what he was staring at. She manoeuvred around the glass tables toward the other side, intending to clear the plates and get a better view both at once.
Through the window, she saw Onyx and Mark Meyer, her manager, in the same pool she’d been splashing in with Hayden earlier. He sat on the poolside, a glass of champagne next to him, while she sat in the pool between his legs. She sipped on champagne while he massaged her shoulders, and there was an awful lot of looking back and giggling going on. No wonder Hayden was down in the dumps.
“India?”
India turned to see Amy at the doorway, waving at her like she was trying to rouse her from a dream.
“Sorry,” India said, gathering the plates. “I was lost for a moment there.”
“Yeah, in overthinking world,” Amy said. “What I want to know is why those waiters think their only job is to serve the meal, not to clean up afterward.”
India nodded toward the terrace. “Looks like they’re having a job keeping up with the alcohol demands out there.”
“Hey, you,” Hayden said to Amy.
“Yeah? I mean, yes, sir? Can I help you?”
Hayden reached under the table and retrieved the last champagne glass. “Could you please take this out to Onyx, and tell her that Hayden loves her more than Romeo ever loved Juliet?”
Amy smiled and frowned, both at once. “I’m not a waitress, sir, but I guess—”
“Awesome,” he said, then slumped down on his forearm, staring back out the window.
Amy rolled her eyes at India and headed out. India hurried out after her, knowing she shouldn’t be so nosy, but wanting to see how Onyx would respond.
“These people,” Amy huffed as they took the walkway.
“You love it really. The drama.”
Amy squeaked. “I do. You see right through me. I do.”
The pools were serene, though everyone looked a little tipsy.
Onyx was now kneeling in the shallow pool and looking up at Mark. He massaged her temples with his fingertips.
“That looks way beyond a manager-star relationship if you ask me,” Amy whispered.
Gianna was at the pool edge, her long legs dipping into the water infused with crimson light. India couldn’t help noticing it looked a bit like blood, and shuddered.
“Miss… Onyx?” Amy said, holding out the champagne glass for her. “This is from Hayden, who says he loves you more than sliced bread or somethi
ng.”
“More than Romeo loved Juliet,” India cut in.
“Oh, yeah.”
Onyx took the champagne glass with a wonky smile.
“About my check?” Amy began.
“You’d better not drink that,” Gianna said to Onyx.
“Why?” Onyx shrieked, making India and Amy jump. “Is it poisoned?”
Gianna sighed. “Look how crazily intoxicated you are. You’ll give yourself alcohol poisoning.”
Onyx laughed madly. “Oh, shut up, Gianna.”
Gianna breathed out through her nose, turning away. She looked to India like she was right at the end of her tether.
“The payment, Onyx?” Amy said, trying to defuse the situation.
Onyx looked up at them, her eyes glazed over. “I didn’t eat anything.”
Amy’s voice took on an edge. “No, but loads of your guests did.”
“What does that have to do with me?” Onyx said.
“Oh, jeez,” Gianna said. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you get paid once everything’s cleared up.”
“Oh no you won’t,” Onyx slurred. “You’ll have nothing to do with it.”
“Calm down,” Mark said soothingly, placing his hands on her shoulders. “Let me keep giving you that massage.”
“No,” she said like a spoilt child, wiggling away from his grip. She stared at Gianna, murder in her eyes.
Gianna got up sharpish and strode back over the walkway. “Answer! Answer, come make this crazy girl see sense!”
Onyx snorted with contempt, then backed down the glass of champagne Hayden had sent for her, all in one gulp. She then stared at Amy and India. “What? What do you want? Stop looking at me. Go away.”
They didn’t need telling twice.
As they crossed back over the bridge, Answer hurried out of the dining room doors, clutching her little bottles, and dashed past them toward Onyx.
“What the heck are those, anyways?” India asked.
“They look like essential oils to me,” Amy said. “Aromatherapy’s pretty popular around here, with the celebs.”
“Sounds a bit woo,” India said. Her inner skeptic was still alive and well, even after seeing Luis start a fire and put it out again, using only his mind. She’d doubted everything for so long that it had become second nature, and sometimes she’d even wondered if she’d hallucinated the whole thing. But then he’d visited her in Florida and put that theory to bed.
Amy shrugged. “Not really. There’s a lot of scientific evidence for it.”
“Oh, right.”
They both turned to look back at the pool. Answer was dabbing oils on Onyx’s neck and wrists. Then Onyx stuck her tongue out and Answer dabbed a drop of oil onto it.
“Onyx is off her rocker,” Amy said, “let’s be honest about it.”
India looked over at her. “She’s certainly troubled. I wonder what happened to make her like that. There’s some deep stuff going on there. Deep seated emotional issues.”
“Too deep for me,” Amy said, then pouted dramatically. “She’s ruined my childhood. I’ll never be able to listen to Cutie Pie Lover in the same way ever again.”
“Thank goodness for that,” India said as they went back into the dining room. “That song is tragically bad.”
“Nah, it has a catchy tune.”
“Please don’t sing it. Or hum it. Or anything it.”
They began to stack plates together.
“Well, I think overall this went pretty well,” Amy said. “Just gotta get the check from that giant Marilyn Manson and we’ll be on our way.”
“Huh?”
“Marilyn Manson. You know, the girl who… you know, JFK and all that.”
“That’s Marilyn Monroe!” India said, bursting out laughing. “Marilyn Manson’s that creepy guy with the white face.”
“Oh yeah,” Amy said with a giggle. “I’m super tired.”
“Anyway, Gianna’s not like Marilyn. She’s more like… Bettie Page.”
Amy lugged a stack of plates onto her hip and turned toward the door. “Whoever that is.”
A scream erupted from outside at the pool area.
A man was shouting, “Erica! Erica!” and when India darted outside, she saw it was Mark. He was knelt over Onyx’s lifeless body at the poolside.
Answer was at the other side of her, her head bowed as if she were praying.
Guests started to swarm over.
“Onyx!” came a yell, surprisingly close.
India and Amy whipped round to see Hayden rush out of a side door. He pushed his way through the crowd and across the walkway. Within seconds he was at Onyx’s side.
For a few minutes, India and Amy couldn’t see what was going on.
Eventually, Mark began to cry heavy, grating sobs, which carried over the hubbub of the crowd. Soon Hayden joined in. The sound made India’s stomach turn.
Answer got to her feet and turned toward the crowd. She held her head high, and her voice was smooth and even. “She’s gone. Death has taken her.”
***
“Nobody leaves!” Xavier hollered. “We need you all to stay here until we’re done taking details.”
His presence eased India’s heart. The way he wore his midnight blue uniform with pride and held his head high spoke of his integrity. She always felt safe when he was around.
His cop colleagues milled between the guests, taking down their names, addresses and contact numbers. It was sure going to be a long night.
Xavier came over to where Amy and India sat on the terrace, and knelt down in front of them.
India wanted nothing more than to collapse into his arms right then, the look on his face was so kind, but of course he was on duty. Besides, they hadn’t reached that level yet. So far their relationship had consisted of a whole bunch of lingering glances and skirting around their feelings.
His ebony skin was warm in the golden lamplight, and fairy string lights twinkled behind him.
“It’s not good news,” he said.
“What do you mean?” India asked.
Amy bit her nails and said nothing. All her bubbliness had gone flat.
“Well,” Xavier said with a grimace, “I know you have nothing to do with it, Amy, but we might have to take you into custody.”
India felt her stomach lurch.
“What?” Amy said hoarsely. “Why?”
Xavier edged closer and kept his voice low. “Because you were the person that gave her the last glass of champagne. We think she’s been poisoned, but obviously there’ll be a lot of tests before we make any conclusions.”
“But her boyfriend gave me the drink to give to her!” Amy said. “You should be arresting him, not me.”
“Really?” Xavier said, his eyes widening.
India nodded. “I was there when he asked her.”
“Well, isn’t that interesting.” He made a note on a tiny pad of paper, then slipped it back into his pocket. “I’m really sorry, Amy. I know you’re just here to cater, and this is nothing to do with you, but it’s procedure, and the guys have instructed me to. My guess is you’ll be in there for the night, have a quick interview in the morning, where you can tell us about the boyfriend stuff, and then you’ll be on your way before lunch. It won’t affect your record or anything.”
Amy didn’t look any less worried. “This sucks.”
Xavier nodded. “It does. I’ll make sure you get a good breakfast though.
Whatever you want, I’ll go out and get it for you.”
“Thanks,” Amy said flatly.
“But you can’t take her in,” said India. “She’s totally innocent, you know that.”
“I know that, you know that,” Xavier said, his voice softening when he spoke to her. “We all know that, but—”
“What motive could she possibly have, Zave?”
His face creased into stress. “I keep telling you I know she’s innocent. But my hands are tied, India.”
India’s chest felt it might b
urst. He only called her by her full name when he was annoyed. Otherwise it was Indie, or even sometimes In.
“Now let me go tell the guys about the boyfriend,” he said. “The guests will get processed, and then the people who’re staying here will remain under surveillance for a while. No one’s allowed to leave town.”
“Oh, man,” Amy said as he walked away, pushing her forehead into her palm. “I hate this.”
India slipped her hand into her friend’s. “Me, too.”
“What if Xavier’s just telling us he knows I’m innocent so I’ll go without a fuss? Maybe he’s tricking me and they’re gonna slap charges on me down at the station. What if someone tells them about how rude she was to me about the money? Then they might think I killed her over the payment.”
India thought for a moment. “But you already had the drink in your hand when she was rude, so you’d have had no chance to slip any poison in. Everyone would have seen.”
That didn’t seem to bring much comfort to Amy. She flopped down, touching her head to her knees. She said something but it was so muffled India couldn’t hear.
“What did you say?”
“I said,” she said, sitting up, “look into all this. It’s so obviously that horrible so-called boyfriend Hayden. He put the poison in the drink and gave it to me, to make himself look innocent. Find some proof of it, and bring it to Xavier as soon as you can. Then they’ll have to let me go.”
“But didn’t you hear him? He said they’ll let you go by lunch tomorrow.”
Amy raised her eyebrows. “Yeah, he says that now.”
“He’s not a liar,” India said hotly.
“Yeah, but when that awful Julian guy’s around, anything can happen.”
That was true enough. Xavier had a complaint about Detective Julian Kimble nearly every day – how he didn’t seem to care who the real perp was as long as he hauled someone’s butt into court, how he was rude to staff, those behind bars, and victims alike, how he was generally all-round obnoxious.
“All right,” India said. “I’ll do it.”
Amy’s eyes were wide and fearful. “Please.”
“Look, like they said, they won’t let us clear up anymore tonight. So I can come back here tomorrow to clean up, and snoop around some.”