by Fiona Grace
Great. She’d managed to find the only teenage employee worried about ethics in LA.
She rummaged in her pocket and pulled out a crumpled dollar bill and a stick of gum, laying her bribe out on the countertop. “How about now?”
His eyes scanned the paltry offering. His expression was a combination of confusion, shock, and wariness.
“Do I need to call security?” he said.
Ali shook her head, thinking on her feet. What would Teddy do in this situation? Improvise!
She channeled the Valley Girls from her high school days. “Okay, like I totally get it. But, it’s just like, I’m his niece, and I’m supposed to be throwing him a birthday party. And like, he totally loves LazerZone, but, like, I don’t want to throw him a party if he’s been here like, I don’t know, in the last week or whatever. So can you, like, maybe just tell me if his name’s in your booking system…” She squinted to read the name tag pinned to his bright blue polo shirt. “…Todd?”
She flashed her best airhead smile.
But Todd the Receptionist looked unimpressed. He gave his head a single, resolute shake.
“Sorry. Company policy. You’ll have to ask him yourself.”
“Like, I would, but it would totally spoil the surprise…”
It was useless. Valley Girl was getting her nowhere. Todd wasn’t budging. She’d have to think of something else.
Just then, Ali spotted a visitor’s sign-in book behind the ridge of the desk. If she could get Todd away from his desk, she’d be able to take a peek and find out for herself!
“Okay, well like, thanks, I guess. But like, do you have any pamphlets or flyers or whatever that I can take with me? You know, to drop in his mailbox and see if he mentions it in conversation that he’s been recently.”
Todd’s suspicious look remained. He pointed to the corner by the double doors where there was a spinning display of pamphlets. “Over there.”
Darn! Ali had wanted him to have to leave his desk.
She wandered over to the stand and began idly looking at the flyers, keeping one eye on Todd. He, meanwhile, was keeping an eye on her. She rotated the squeaky display, trying to get herself a bit more cover.
Just then, a beeping sound came from the desk. It sounded like some kind of alarm. Todd glanced up at the screen behind him, then fumbled to unclip the walkie-talkie at his hip.
“Everything okay?” he said into it, sounding panicked.
Through a gap in the flyers, Ali observed silently. On the screen she saw a bunch of kids had gotten into a shoving match. A female staff member in the same uniform as Todd was attempting to break them up, while shouting animatedly into her walkie-talkie.
“You’re going to have to handle it,” Todd said, looking harried. “I have to supervise the desk.”
His gaze went to Ali, half hidden behind the pamphlet display. Ali realized this was her moment. She took one of the pamphlets and waved it in the air at Todd.
“Found it!” she announced.
She pushed through the glass doors and out onto the sidewalk. She waited, peeking through the glass as Todd disappeared back through the white doors she’d first seen him enter.
Ali hurried back inside.
On the security screen she could now see both Todd and his colleague grappling with the fighting kids. She didn’t know how long she’d have, so she quickly launched herself onto the reception desk, stomach first, legs dangling behind her, and snatched up the sign-in book. She quickly flicked through the pages to find the date of Preston’s murder, then scanned all the names listed.
There it was, in plain blue ink: O’Neal + 3.
So Kerrigan had been telling the truth. His alibi checked out. He wasn’t the killer.
Ali lay supine across the reception desk, staring at the name in the book, her heart sinking at the realization that her investigation had already hit a dead end.
“Hey!” she heard an angry voice snap.
Ali dropped the book and slid off the desk, landing awkwardly on her feet. She turned to see Todd emerging through the industrial doors with two pissed off boys held in each of his hands by the collars of their shirts.
“Thanks! Bye!” she exclaimed.
She hurried away, out into the bright seaside sunshine.
This couldn’t be the end, Ali knew. There were plenty of people in this town who could have done it. She would just have to go back to where it all went down, she realized with a shiver—back to the pier…
*
It took a while for Ali’s heartbeat to return to normal. The run-in with Todd had been a close call, though somewhat exhilarating, if she were honest. Not that she would’ve enjoyed the experience quite so much if Todd had been a beefy six-foot-something security guard rather than a pimply high school graduate…
She headed for the boardwalk, mulling over everything she’d learned that morning about Preston. It seemed like everyone thought he was an odd guy. An annoyance. Was she barking up the wrong tree with this whole enemies theory? Was it more likely that the balloon man was the innocent victim of bullies?
She looked around. Everyone who passed looked suddenly suspicious. Ali had no idea where she was going to find her next lead…
“Ali!” a voice called.
She halted. Nate was trotting toward her, in boardshorts and nothing more. In the bright sunshine, his torso looked golden.
“Nate?” she said, her mouth going immediately dry. “How are you?”
“Me? I’m fine,” he said. “It’s you I’m worried about.” Concern flashed in his eyes.
“Why are you worried about me?” Ali asked, scratching her neck. Having his focus so intently on her was making her quite hot under the collar.
Nate’s eyes sparked. “Well, because you saw the body!”
“Oh. That.”
Ali had been so distracted by Nate’s hotness, she’d briefly forgotten all about her woes. They came crashing back down around her in an instant.
“Who told you that?” she asked.
“Delaney,” Nate replied. “So it’s true? You were there when he was reeled in?”
He sounded genuinely concerned for her well-being. She could add him to the list of people in this town who didn’t have it in for her. A list easily counted on one hand.
“I was there,” Ali told him. “But I’m doing fine.”
He reached out and touched her arm. Ali’s skin prickled.
“Are you sure?” he pressed. “Because if you’re not fine, that’s totally normal. I know I’d be a blubbering wreck if he’d died the same night he’d accosted me.”
Ali could hardly tear her eyes off his golden-hued hand resting on her fish-belly-pale arm.
“I’m sure,” she squeaked. “Thanks for checking.”
Nate removed his hand. Without the distraction, Ali’s brain finally reengaged.
“Wait,” she said, looking at him questioningly. “He accosted you?”
Nate shrugged like it was no big deal. “Sure. I mean, every new store owner gets the Preston Lockley treatment. He comes in, shouts at us and threatens to ruin us, yadda yadda. If he’d gone on to be murdered the same day he’d done that to me, I’d be a gibbering paranoid wreck about it. ’Cause, you know… it gives you a motive.”
Ali knew all too well it gave her a motive. Only by what Nate was telling her, it sounded like a motive shared by more store owners along the boardwalk than just hers. As his revelation sank in, Ali realized that Kerrigan’s situation with Preston was far from unique. It wasn’t just her store he was hassling for the lease of, it was everyone’s.
She became suddenly animated.
“Which other stores got the ‘Preston Lockley treatment’?” she questioned Nate. “Specifically.”
He looked surprised by the 180 in her demeanor. “I only know of the ones that opened up after me.”
“Which ones were they?” Ali pressed.
Nate’s eyes widened further. “Since I moved here? Er, well, the book shop.” He p
ointed it out. “And the bikini store.”
“Great!” Ali said, suddenly energized. “I’ll see you around, okay?” She turned and headed toward the bookstore.
“Oh. Yeah. Okay,” she heard Nate say from behind her. “And if you need to talk, you know where I am.”
“Thanks!”
She flashed two thumbs up over her shoulder and hurried away, leaving Nate standing alone and confused on the boardwalk.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Of all the brightly colored stores on the boardwalk, Bookworms was the brightest of them all. Its facade was painted every color of the rainbow, which appealed to Ali’s inner child. If only she was visiting under better circumstances…
Inside, the decor was just as bright. The walls were blue, and all the signs were painted onto wooden white clouds, to make it look like the sky. The rows of wooden bookshelves were lacquered to show off the grain, and had big green leafy plants in pots on top of them, making a strange sort of forest. All the stools and chairs for reading were shaped like flowers or painted to look like mushrooms. A huge rainbow arched across the entire store, going up onto the ceiling before ending at a big golden pot with a leprechaun statue next to it. His speech bubble proclaimed: Donate your change to help send books to the world’s poorest children. It was, quite simply, the most charming place Ali had ever been.
The store was cordoned off into separate reading nooks, each decorated with a different theme. Ali glanced around, looking for the clerk. She found her in an underwater-themed area, with shimmering decorations dangling from the ceiling and a big squishy octopus bean bag to sit on. She was a young woman, petite, with light brown hair cut into a pixie crop. She was wearing a relaxed pair of jeans, ripped at the knees, and a bright pink vintage T-shirt. A pair of battered Converse shoes completed the look.
Her appearance didn’t exactly scream murderer. In fact, she reminded Ali of her thirteen-year-old self. She’d had a penchant for Converse as a teen.
“Ooh, hello,” the clerk said, tunefully, when she noticed someone was there. She stood, placing the handful of books she’d been sorting onto the shelf. “Do you need any help?”
Ali noticed her name tag. Jenna.
“I do,” she said. “But it’s not literary related.”
“Oh?” Jenna asked.
“I just opened a new store along the boardwalk,” Ali explained. “I’m offering free coffee to all the local businesses, as a sort of hello neighbor.” She was quietly proud of how quickly she’d managed to think of that on her feet. Teddy would be impressed by how much her improvisation skills were improving. “This place is incredible, by the way,” she added.
Jenna smiled sweetly. Despite her childlike features, the crow’s feet beside her eyes indicated she was actually older than her fashion choices might suggest.
“Well, thanks, new neighbor,” she said with an inviting chuckle. “Kids love rainbows. And I just so happen to love coffee. I’ll definitely be taking you up on your offer. Which one is your store?”
“Seaside Sweets,” Ali said.
The change in Jenna was instant. The big grin faded from her face. Her eyes bulged with alarm. It didn’t take a genius to work out why. She’d heard the rumors about Ali, and thought she was standing face to face with a killer.
It didn’t matter that Ali was entirely innocent; her stomach still dropped with shame.
“You’ve heard of me, huh?” she asked, sadly.
Jenna turned to the shelf and started neatening the books, busying herself with an unnecessary task so as to avoid eye contact.
“I’m not sure if I have,” she murmured in response, lying incredibly unconvincingly.
“No?” Ali replied. “I’m right by the pier. Sandwiched between Emilio’s and Marco’s pizzerias.”
Jenna could pretend she’d not heard the rumors about Killer Ali from the Bakery, but there was no way she could pretend not to know the suave Italian twins.
“Oh… yes, maybe I do know it,” Jenna said, evasively.
Her voice seemed to have gone up in pitch by about an octave. She was no longer able to meet Ali’s eyes.
Ali felt awful that her mere presence could cause such discomfort in another, and it didn’t do much for her self-esteem to be treated like some kind of dangerous animal. She very much wanted to get out of Bookworms as quickly as possible. But she still had to find out if what Nate had told her about Preston hassling all the new store owners was true, and whether Jenna had an alibi for the night of his murder. As much as it made Ali squirm, she’d have to cut right to the chase.
She drummed her fingers on the top of the brown wooden bookshelf. “You heard about what happened on the beach, I take it?”
“With the dead man?” Jenna replied, reticently. “Yes, of course.”
“Did you know him? His name was Preston Lockley. I understand he was pretty well known in these parts.”
Jenna seemed to be shrinking before Ali’s eyes.
“Of—of course,” she stammered. “Everyone did. I met him the day I opened my store. He came in here and…” She mumbled herself to silence.
“…And?” Ali pressed.
Jenna’s eyes went big and round. She shook her head, clearly not wanting to finish her sentence.
“…And accused you of stealing his lease from under his nose?” Ali offered for her.
A frown flitted across Jenna’s forehead. “How did you know that?”
“Because he did the same to me,” Ali explained. “And a bunch of others, apparently.”
So Nate was right. Preston had had a habit of hassling the stores along the boardwalk. It wasn’t just her he’d argued with, she just happened to be the person he’d argued with before his death.
“Oh. Well.” Jenna shrugged, dismissively. “There you go.”
She was giving off very clear leave me the hell alone vibes, and Ali couldn’t blame her. As far as Jenna was concerned, she was conversing with a potential killer. But the fact she even thought that was reason enough for Ali to ignore her very clear non-verbal signals. Despite how awkward and uncomfortable it made her feel, it was better to have a few awkward social interactions now, rather than spend the rest of her life having them in prison.
“Seems like we all have that in common,” Ali added, trying to prove to the terrified woman they were on the same side. “Scary to think there’s a killer out there. I know I won’t be going for lonely strolls on the pier at night again anytime soon. One close call is enough for me.” She felt beyond awkward at her clumsy attempt to steer the conversation in the direction she needed. She drummed her fingertips self-consciously on the shelf. “You?”
“What about me?” Jenna asked.
“Did you have a close call on the pier that night?”
Okay, this was getting ridiculous. Ali was being so far from subtle with her question she may as well have out and out asked Jenna if she had an alibi. As it stood, she didn’t need to. Jenna was smart enough to read between the lines.
“Are you asking me if I have an alibi?” the young woman asked, looking both incredulous and afraid at the same time.
“No!” Ali exclaimed, trying to think of a way to backtrack out of this dead end she’d steered herself into. “I’m just, I dunno, just really freaked out and building up a picture is my coping strategy.”
Jenna’s face softened, but her eyes remained suspicious.
“I didn’t see him that day,” she said. “Or that evening. I closed up at the usual time and went home to watch TV with my housemate.” She folded her arms with finality. “If that’s not enough for you and you want to do some research on me, the show is an epic fantasy and that night the main dragon died.”
Ali’s questions had infuriated her. If she could be that annoyed just by being asked a question, you might think she’d be able to empathize with Ali and the difficult situation she’d found herself in.
But it wasn’t to be. Instead, she glowered at Ali, seething, blowing air through her nostrils much like
a dragon in her epic fantasy.
“Thanks,” Ali mumbled.
She hurried out the bookstore and back onto the boardwalk, her heart racing. The whole encounter left her cheeks burning. And being covert clearly wasn’t going to work. Everyone already knew who she was and had tarnished her with the murderer label. She’d have to try a different approach in the next store.
Boardwalk Bikinis was, somewhat amusingly to Ali, positioned directly next to Bookworms. She went inside, a blast of air conditioning cooling the nervous sweat on her neck and palms.
She glanced around, her eyes catching the amazing stock of bikinis. In other circumstances, she’d love to buy one. But she couldn’t splurge on luxuries anymore, not with her business in such a perilous situation. In fact, she may never be able to have luxuries again if she didn’t solve this murder. Prison commissaries didn’t exactly stock fashionable beachwear.
“Can I help you?” a voice said.
Ali turned to face the bikini store owner. She was the typical California beauty, wearing Daisy Dukes that showed off endlessly long, tanned legs and bleached blonde hair. She looked like the sort of girl Ali would expect to see on Nate’s arm, and she found herself inexplicably struck by a pang of jealousy. She swiftly brushed it aside. There were more pressing matters at hand than her hormones.
“Hi!” Ali said, brightly. “I’m new in the neighborhood and just wanted to check out the stores.”
She dropped the whole free coffee thing. What was the point? Even coffee-lover Jenna had backtracked when she’d found out who Ali really was.
“Oh, cool. Willow Bay is a great place to live. How are you finding it?”
“Honestly, not what I was expecting,” Ali said. “I mean, a dead body washed up on the beach pretty much after I arrived so…”
“OMG!” the girl cried, her eyes widening with excitement. “That is literally the craziest thing to ever happen here. The guy was like the local perv as well. He was always in here ‘looking’ at the bikinis, if you know what I mean.”
Bikini Woman was a gossiper. Ali knew her exact type from high school. All you had to do with them was plant the seed and sit back and let them talk the rest.