Bylines & Skylines (An Avery Shaw Mystery Book 9)

by Amanda M. Lee

  “Technically two,” I answered. “I recognize him from the fight, and we tracked the costume back to this storage room.”

  “That doesn’t mean Delroy checked it out.”

  “No, but Delroy did check out a costume the day of the attack, and it happened to be the Captain America costume,” I said. “Damien said he accidentally ruined that costume. That means Delroy was lying.”

  “That’s not technically a second source,” Griswold pointed out. “I don’t disbelieve you, mind you, but that’s not enough for me to go on.”

  “Well, there’s also the security video we have of the parking lot,” I said. “The sheriff has a team who will be able to match Delroy’s gait and body shape, which is really only half a source. If we can find the knife and get his fingerprints, though, that will be something else.”

  “I thought you said you didn’t want Delroy to be arrested,” Chucky protested. “That’s not how it sounds to me.”

  “Me either,” Griswold said grimly.

  “I don’t want Delroy arrested,” I said. “I don’t think he attacked me on his own. I think someone else forced him to do it.”

  “How?”

  “I don’t know,” I answered. “Maybe someone blackmailed him into doing it. Maybe someone lied and told him that I was a threat for some reason we don’t yet understand. Did you see the way he was looking at me? There was more going on there besides me being a blond Wonder Woman.”

  “I guess I can see that,” Chucky said, rubbing his chin. “Maybe he was hypnotized or something. That’s always a possibility.”

  I couldn’t stop myself from snorting. “I’m not sure I believe in hypnotism.”

  “It’s real,” Chucky insisted. “I’ve seen it happen.”

  “Here?”

  Chucky nodded.

  Okay, I’d heard crazier things. Why not? “Who here can hypnotize someone?” I asked. “That’s a Las Vegas thing, isn’t it?”

  “No, it’s a magician thing,” Chucky said. “Griswold hypnotizes people all the time. He makes them squawk like chickens and stuff.”

  The statement was enough to make the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. I lifted my eyes and found Griswold staring at my reflection in the mirror … and he didn’t look happy.

  “Griswold can hypnotize people, huh?” I swallowed hard as Griswold’s expression darkened. “How long has he been doing that?”

  Chucky blathered on, oblivious to my new suspicions and the growing sense of dread in the room. “He’s been doing it since I got here a year ago,” he replied. “I thought it was all bunk, too. Then I saw him hypnotize three workers one night. Heck, one of them was even Delroy.”

  “Uh-huh.” I felt along the hem of the corset as I searched for my phone. Then I realized Chucky still had it and there was no way for me to ask for it without calling attention to myself.

  “Yeah, it was really weird,” Chucky said. “Griswold ordered Delroy to grab one of the elves from the Lord of the Rings set and he did it. He really made her squeal and didn’t let her go even though she kept slapping him. He didn’t really remember doing it, but he had these little flashes afterward. He was really upset.

  “I tried to get him to hypnotize me after that,” he continued. “It didn’t work, though. Griswold says it only works on those open to possibilities. I guess I’m not one of those people.”

  “I guess not,” I said, cocking my head to the side. I was frozen in place, my heart pounding as I tried to decide what to do.

  Griswold forced a tight smile as he locked gazes with Chucky. I could tell he was agitated by Chucky’s inability to shut his mouth. “Did you really need to tell her that?”

  “Why does it matter?” Chucky asked.

  I sensed something was about to happen and sucked in a breath. Chucky was too close to Griswold and the magician’s temper was beginning to fray.

  “It matters because now I have to kill both of you,” Griswold snapped, taking Chucky by surprise. “Are you happy?”

  “I … what?” Chucky was beyond confused.

  “He’s the killer,” I supplied, turning slowly and taking a step away from the mirror. I needed to split Griswold’s attention and this was the only way I knew to do it. I was vulnerable, and we both knew it. Only Chucky seemed to have difficulty grasping the situation. “He killed Kristen.”

  “No way,” Chucky said, his mouth dropping open. “No freaking way!”

  Griswold responded by shaking his head and sighing. “I really wish you hadn’t said that, Ms. Shaw.”

  That made two of us. I opened my mouth to say something snarky, hopeful I could distract him, but the glint of a knife blade caught my attention and caused my tongue to seize.

  “This is on you,” Griswold said, lashing out with the knife and lunging in Chucky’s direction. “This is your fault!”

  CHUCKY’S reflexes were so slow it was as if he was stuck in quicksand on a 1970s television show. I telegraphed what Griswold was going to do before Chucky and did the only thing I could to keep the Goth boy alive. I threw my Wonder Woman bracelet at Griswold’s face with enough force to cause a smacking sound to echo throughout the storage room.

  Griswold’s knife slashed through the shoulder of Chucky’s shirt, causing the young man to fall backward. I scrambled in his direction as Griswold cried out and grabbed his nose, a gush of blood squeezing through his fingertips as he screeched his disapproval.

  “What in the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  I ignored the question as I tugged Chucky’s arm and dragged him away from Griswold’s knife – and fury. Chucky was pale and the blood seeping from his shoulder was magnetic as he stared at it.

  “I’m bleeding.”

  “Yes, you’re bleeding,” I agreed, jerking Chucky’s arm again. “Move!”

  Chucky acted as if he didn’t hear me. “How did that happen?”

  “Griswold the Geek stabbed you,” I replied. “Move!”

  “I’ve been stabbed?” Chucky’s face was devoid of color when his odd-colored eyes locked with mine. “That is so … .” He didn’t finish the sentence, instead pitching forward as his knees buckled and he lost consciousness. For what seemed like forever – the real time was probably three seconds – I grappled with Chucky’s dead weight. Ultimately I had no choice but to let him topple to the floor. His body made a sickening thud when he hit the concrete.

  “Well, great.”

  “I can’t believe you hit me with … something,” Griswold said, his voice nasal as he kept his hand pressed to his nose in a fruitless effort to staunch the bleeding. “What was that?”

  I held up my bare wrist. “I’m Wonder Woman. I don’t have access to a magic lasso – which would really come in handy right now, so I’m totally bummed I don’t have that prop – so I used what I had.”

  “You threw a bracelet at me?”

  “It’s all I had.”

  “That hurt!”

  “You just stabbed Chucky,” I snapped. “How can you blame me for hitting you in the face with a bracelet when you stabbed Chucky? That’s just ridiculous.”

  “If you hadn’t gotten involved, none of this would be necessary,” Griswold shot back. My stomach turned when I saw the blood seeping into his mouth and covering his teeth. “I blame you.”

  “Oh, that’s neat,” I said. “My mother blames me for everything, too. Maybe you two should spend some time together. Just leave your knife at home, though. She’s going to hit you with something bigger than a bracelet if you try stabbing her. I’m guessing she’ll use the weight of her motherly disappointment.”

  Griswold glanced around, incredulous. “Who are you talking to?”

  “You’re the only one here.”

  “Yes, but I don’t care about any of that,” he hissed. “I don’t care about you, and I certainly don’t care about your mother.”

  “That’s really going to hurt her feelings,” I said. “I hope you’re proud of yourself.”

  “I … what
?”

  I’m a master at confusing people – or at least deranging them – when I put my mind to it. Griswold was barely hanging on by a thread before I started messing with him. Now he was clearly teetering.

  “I don’t understand any of this,” I said, switching tactics. “Why did you do this? Why did you kill Kristen?”

  “I would deny killing her, but I really see no point in doing so,” Griswold replied, lifting his nose into the air in an effort to stop the bleeding. “You’re already convinced of my guilt, and I’ll have to kill you before I leave this storage room, so I don’t have a lot of energy to lie.”

  “Especially since you’re losing so much blood,” I added.

  “There’s that, too,” Griswold conceded. “I’m not upset about killing you, for the record. You’ve got it coming for sticking your nose in things that aren’t your business. I actually like Chucky, though. I’m sorry for what’s going to happen to him.”

  “You won’t get away with this,” I said. “You know that, right?”

  “I’ve already gotten away with it.” Griswold was unbelievably smug, which I found annoying. I hate smug people. Er, except for myself.

  “You haven’t gotten away with it,” I shot back. “Delroy is with the sheriff and the head of security. He knows something is going on. The head of security – who also happens to be my boyfriend – knows I was in here with Chucky. There are cameras all over this place. Do you really think they’ll miss you going into this room?”

  Griswold balked. “I’m a magician. Perhaps I made myself invisible.”

  “Oh, and I’m a Jedi,” I mocked. “Perhaps I’ll choke you with my mind.” I held my fingers up and glared at him, feigning concentration. “Is it working? No? I’m guessing that’s about how well your invisibility works in a busy room.”

  “Shut your mouth!” Griswold bellowed, blowing a few blood bubbles in the process and making me cringe. “I’m Griswold the Magnificent! I can bend minds and control souls.”

  “You’re Griswold the Magnificent Tool,” I corrected. “The only thing you can bend is your knee. I’m not afraid of you.”

  “You should be.”

  “Well, I’m not,” I said. “My boyfriend is on his way back here right now. When he finds out what you’ve done to Chucky, well, I wouldn’t want to be you. That’s on top of threatening me. He’s going to kick your ass.”

  “I don’t believe you,” Griswold spat. “You’re making that up.”

  “He’s coming through the door right now,” I said, inclining my chin to the spot over Griswold’s shoulder. I was trying to get him to turn so I could attack him – or at least put more distance between us – but to my utter surprise, the door actually was opening.

  Hope coursed through me. “Eliot?”

  It wasn’t Eliot, though. The woman who pushed her way into the storage room was a good six inches shorter and fifty pounds lighter. She had long dark hair and a nasty look on her face. I recognized her right away.

  “Cara?”

  “Who is this?” Griswold asked, confused.

  “What are you doing here?” I wasn’t sure what to make of any of this.

  “I’m here to talk to you,” Cara replied. “You stole my boyfriend, and now I’m going to make you pay.”

  Oh, well, good. I was worried this situation wasn’t crazy enough. Cara fixed that right up. Whew!

  IS THIS really happening? I felt like pinching myself in hope I would wake up. Instead, I sucked in a breath and collected myself.

  “What are you doing here, you dumbass?”

  What? That was me collecting myself. I didn’t say it would be pretty.

  “Who is this?” Griswold asked, his voice climbing an octave. “Why are people wandering into this room without anyone stopping them? Where is security?”

  I was asking myself that very question. I desperately wanted to see the head of security right now. “Don’t worry about her,” I said. “She’s no one. Focus on me.”

  “Oh, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?” Cara made a disgusted face. “I’m no one and you’re the queen of the world. Isn’t that how you see yourself?”

  Only on good days. “Cara, this really isn’t a good time,” I gritted out, hoping she was smart enough to remain close to the door instead of charging in my direction. “If you want to fight later, we can set up a time to meet in the parking lot. I’ll even let you get in a good hair pull or two before I throw a punch.”

  “I’m not playing this game with you, and I don’t care about pulling hair,” Cara spat, taking a step closer. She was still out of Griswold’s reach – which I was thankful for – but if she took another three steps that would change. “I’m a mature adult. I don’t pull hair.”

  “That’s great,” I said. “I really don’t like hair-pulling contests either. I find them annoying and immature. We’ll do a slap fight instead.”

  “What is the matter with you?” Cara took another step. “Do you think this is a game? Jake broke up with me!”

  “Who’s Jake?” Griswold asked. He still held his nose but the blood had slowed to a trickle. “Is this the guy with the long hair or the one who looks like he has birds living on top of his head?”

  “The bird guy,” I replied. “He’s not my boyfriend, for the record. My boyfriend is the one with long hair. He’s the one who is going to kill you if you don’t run away right now.”

  “She’s lying,” Cara said, causing my stomach to flip. “She wants both of them. She’s greedy.”

  Griswold glanced at me for confirmation.

  “I’m totally greedy,” I conceded. “I think a threesome might be fun. Eliot vetoed it, though. As for wanting them both, that’s ridiculous. I can barely keep up with the one boyfriend I have.”

  “I hear that,” Griswold said, shaking his head. “I couldn’t keep up with Kristen either. She was going to leave me.”

  “Is that why you killed her?”

  Griswold shrugged. “She threatened to tell people I was a fraud when she realized I couldn’t really read minds,” he said. “I thought she already knew that. I mean … hello! No one can read minds.”

  “I can,” I countered. “I use the Force, not magic, though. Forget that. Did you mean to kill Kristen?”

  “I didn’t do it on purpose,” Griswold said. “She kept demanding money to keep her mouth shut. I can’t stand blackmailers. It’s not my fault she didn’t know how the game worked.

  “She was so full of herself,” he continued. “She thought everyone here was straightforward and pure. That only lasted until she got to know them … or at least hear the whispers. After that, she didn’t want to know them at all. She thought she was above them. I wasn’t lying when I said I liked her because she was different. In the end, though, she was just as jaded as everybody else. She wasn’t the woman I thought she was.”

  Looking at him now, I couldn’t believe he fooled me. There was an undercurrent of crazy racing across his features. I brushed it off when I first met him because I believed he was genuinely mourning. He probably regretted what he did, but he obviously wasn’t balanced enough to stop now. He would kill all of us to get away with Kristen’s murder.

  “What are you two talking about?” Cara demanded, taking another step forward. She was dangerously close to Griswold, although she apparently hadn’t taken notice of the knife gripped in his hand. “We’re supposed to be talking about me. My heart is broken. Wait, why are you in a Wonder Woman costume?”

  “I’m fighting crime,” I replied, my agitation bubbling up. Is she blind? “In case you haven’t noticed, this man is a criminal.”

  “He looks like a magician.”

  “He’s that, too,” I said. “He’s Griswold the Magnificent Tool. He’s also a murderer and he stabbed this poor kid.” I nudged Chucky with my foot in the hope he’d regain consciousness. He remained deathly still. “Right now we’re talking about why he killed his girlfriend. You should probably stay out of it.”

  Cara didn’
t look impressed. “You’re just trying to get rid of me,” she complained. “I’m on to your games.”

  I exploded. “What do you want, Cara? I didn’t end your relationship. You did that. You didn’t trust Jake even though nothing is happening between us. You pushed him until he broke. Haven’t you seen how unhappy he’s been over the past few months? Think about him instead of yourself for five freaking minutes!”

  “He was unhappy because you led him on,” Cara shot back. “You’re the reason we broke up. I know the truth.”

  “You’re an idiot,” I muttered, shaking my head as I glared at Griswold. “What are you going to do, Gris? Are you going to kill all three of us? How do you think you’re going to get away with that?”

  “I haven’t figured that out,” Griswold admitted. “I will, though.”

  “Because you’re magnificent?”

  “Exactly,” Griswold said, bobbing his head. “I got away with Kristen’s murder. I wasn’t even planning to kill her. Things just got out of hand.”

  For the first time since entering the room, realization dawned on Cara and she widened her eyes as she focused on the knife. She wisely kept her mouth shut, but I couldn’t bank on that lasting for more than a few minutes. She was bound to panic.

  “You didn’t get away with Kristen’s murder, though,” I pointed out. “The police are unraveling it right now. You might’ve gotten away with it if you hadn’t enlisted Delroy to do your dirty work, but he’s spilling his guts to the sheriff right now. That was rotten to take advantage of him the way you did. He doesn’t understand what’s going on, and you used him.”

  “He doesn’t even remember what happened,” Griswold shot back. “I made sure he would forget.”

  “He remembers, though. He recognized me.”

  “I’m still not sure how that happened,” Griswold admitted. “It doesn’t matter, though. He won’t turn on me. I’ll kill the three of you and perform my show tonight as if nothing happened. I’m still the star.”

  “You’re nothing more than a con man in a robe,” I countered. “Why did you send Delroy after me at all? He’s the reason we caught you.”