“I don’t think Simone is a bad person because she likes the pageant,” Ivy clarified.
“Good.”
“I think she’s a bad person because I’ve met her and she’s an idiot most of the time.”
“Oh, geez. Why are you even here if you have this attitude? I know why I’m here. I volunteered to do the sets because it garners free advertising for the lumberyard. Why are you here, though?”
Ivy averted her gaze. “Maybe I’m interested in community theater. Did you ever consider that?”
“Not for a second.” Max folded his arms over his chest and tapped his chin as he regarded her, things finally clicking into place. “You’re here to watch the girls because someone purposely poisoned Aubrey. You think one of the girls is guilty.”
“I’m here to donate my time,” Ivy corrected, leaning forward. “Also, keep that theory to yourself. I don’t want anyone getting suspicious of me.”
“Because you’re here to spy on them?”
“Because I don’t want them on edge,” Ivy countered. “Now … go make some sets. I’m here to be a mentor so … I need to start mentoring.”
“Uh-huh.” Max watched her with amused eyes. “Do you even know where the girls are?”
“I know where they are.” She didn’t have a clue. “They’re … in the dressing room.” She played a hunch because Simone disappeared in that direction.
“Well, you should probably get over there and start your mentoring then,” Max teased. “I’m sure the wisdom you impart on those girls will be nothing short of amazing.”
“Don’t make me kick you, Max,” Ivy warned.
“Your head is in a great place for mentoring,” Max said. “Those girls won’t know what hit them.”
“That’s the idea.”
“WE PROMISE NOT TO take up too much of your time, but we have some questions regarding the incident at pageant rehearsals yesterday,” Brian started once Poppy Miller, Peyton’s mother, ushered the partners into the house.
“No, I understand.” Poppy was somber. “This is a big deal.”
“It totally is,” Peyton agreed, sitting on the couch next to her mother. “Now that Aubrey is down and out, there will be an opening in the pageant ranks. Have you heard who they’re going to pick to fill her place?”
Jack was caught off guard by the question. “We’re not here to talk about that.”
“Why not?”
“Because it looks like someone tried to poison Aubrey Daniels and we’re trying to figure out who,” Jack replied, his patience wearing thin.
Brian took a more conciliatory approach. “Aubrey is still in the hospital and will be for some time,” he said. “This is a very serious issue.”
“It was probably an accident,” Poppy said pragmatically.
“Not likely,” Brian countered. “My understanding is that there was some … static … between Peyton and Aubrey regarding the pageant. We’re here to make sure that things didn’t accidentally spiral out of control.”
“What do you mean?” Poppy asked blankly.
“They think I poisoned Aubrey, Mom,” Peyton volunteered, rolling her eyes. “They think I wanted to murder her to get back in the pageant.”
“Get back in the pageant?” Jack furrowed his brow. “I thought you were already involved in the pageant.”
“If I were would I be here now?” Peyton challenged. “Everyone else is at practice. I’m here. Shouldn’t that have been your first clue that things might not be what you think they are?”
Jack was seriously starting to get agitated with the entire pageant ordeal and he’d barely started. “I was under the impression that Aubrey was the frontrunner.”
“She was,” Peyton agreed.
“I was also under the impression that you wanted to win,” Jack added.
“I do, but I didn’t make the final cut to be able to compete.”
“I don’t understand what that means,” Jack hedged, looking to Brian for help.
“I don’t understand what that means either,” Brian said, his face unreadable. “What cut?”
“It’s something new they started this year,” Poppy explained. “There were so many girls interested in competing, they had to cull the number. They cut about half the girls and only fifteen made the final cut.”
“Who decided on the final cut?” Brian asked.
“Simone Graham. She’s the pageant coordinator.”
Brian briefly locked gazes with Jack before licking his lips and continuing. “I guess we didn’t realize they were cutting out girls before the pageant even started. That doesn’t seem fair.”
“It’s definitely not fair,” Peyton said. “Simone thinks she’s the queen of the world and she does whatever she wants. We’re considering suing because of what she did. Isn’t that right, Mom?”
“I don’t know that we’re going to sue,” Poppy clarified. “We’re definitely going to give her a good talking to, though.”
“No, we’re going to sue.” Peyton was firm. “I want to make that woman pay.”
“Yes, well, it sounds like you have good reason.” Jack forced a smile. “Just for the record, where were you yesterday afternoon?”
“I was at the school hanging out with the other girls who were cut,” Peyton replied. “We were talking about starting our own pageant to compete with the old one.”
“I see.” Jack rolled his neck. “I don’t suppose you could give me a list of names for whom you were with, could you?”
“Sure. That’s no problem.”
“Great. As for the pageant … um … we’ll talk to Ms. Graham and get back to you. We’re not sure exactly what’s going on there.”
“Definitely,” Brian agreed. “We’ll get to the bottom of the new … rules … and keep you updated. It’s the least we can do.”
“UGH. I DIDN’T LIKE being around teenage girls when I was one of them,” Ivy groused, sinking to the floor next to Max as he painted a set and cracking the seal on a bottle of water she purchased from the vending machine. “Now that I’m an adult, they seem especially obnoxious.”
Max smirked as he slid her a sidelong look. “Let me have a drink of that.” He grabbed the bottle of water from Ivy’s hand before she had a chance to hand it over and stared at it a moment before drinking. “No one gave this to you, right?”
Ivy snorted. “You sound like Jack. No, I bought it from the vending machine. He gave me strict instructions to drink the water in its entirety in one sitting and not leave it around so someone can poison it.”
“He’s a smart guy.” Max took a long swig and followed Ivy’s gaze toward the girls. They were giggling and screeching, snarky comments flying in every direction as they practiced for the opening number. “I can’t believe you ever wanted to be part of this.”
“I didn’t want to be part of this,” Ivy argued. “If you remember correctly, Mom made me be part of it because they didn’t have enough contestants.”
“I remember. You complained for three days straight.”
“See.”
“Once those three days were over, though, you got as crazy as the other girls because you wanted to win,” Max added. “Now, I get you didn’t care about the frilly stuff and only cared about winning, but you still got manic about it.”
Ivy tilted her head to the side as she considered the statement. “I’m embarrassed about how I acted.”
“I’m embarrassed about how you acted, too.”
Ivy elbowed Max in the stomach, causing him to bark out a laugh. “Jack asked me about it and I was mortified. That pageant is one of those things I wish I could travel back in time to eradicate from my memory.”
“It’s long over with, Ivy,” Max said. “You’re an adult now. Last time I checked, you were a pretty high-functioning adult. You even have a new fiancé and house renovations in front of you. Why would you want to fixate on the past when you have so much going on in the present?”
“I don’t know. I can’t seem to help mysel
f. I think it’s a mental defect.”
Max’s chuckle was loud enough that his shoulders shook. “You’re here to watch the girls to see if they try to poison one another. You’re not here because you felt a yearning to go back to that point in time. It’s okay.”
“I know.”
“Have you seen anything nefarious?”
Ivy shrugged as she reclaimed the water bottle. “They’re all horrible to each other. I don’t know if time tweaks memories or something, but I don’t remember being quite this terrible when I was a teenager.”
“I think time does alter perception, but I agree that these girls are particularly annoying,” Max said. “They seem to be … fake, for lack of a better word. It’s as if they’re all putting on a performance.”
“That’s exactly what it’s like,” Ivy agreed. “Jack told me to watch them to see if anyone stood out as a potential suspect. So far, they all stand out as potential suspects. Not one of them has expressed any worry or remorse over Aubrey. Instead, they’re all giddy that she’s not competing and they have a chance at winning.”
Max cocked an eyebrow. “Have you considered that maybe several of them are working together?”
Ivy pursed her lips. “No, but that’s an interesting theory.”
“Just be careful,” Max said. “I’m not sure I trust any of those kids. They all seem manipulative.”
Ivy took another drink from the bottle and then handed it to Max. “Finish this up. Don’t leave it around.”
“You don’t have to worry about that.” Max accepted the bottle and drained it. “You be careful, too. They’re all going to be suspicious of you because you’re engaged to Jack and this isn’t your regular scene.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“Do better than that,” Max instructed. “Be very careful. I don’t like any of this right now.”
“That makes two of us.”
Seven
“I need to practice for my talent.”
Miley Winthrop, dressed in a sparkly leotard, fixed Ivy with a pointed look as Ivy sat with her back against the barn wall.
“Why are you telling me?” Ivy was beyond bored with pageant shenanigans. Jack texted twenty minutes before and informed her he was on his way to take her to lunch. She was biding her time until then, trying to stay out of the line of fire.
“Because I need you to watch me and tell me what I’m doing wrong.” Miley firmly gripped a baton with ribbons attached to the end. “Talent is the second most important part of the pageant.”
“What’s the most important part?”
Miley offered up a “well, duh” eye roll. “Being pretty.”
“At least you have your priorities straight,” Ivy drawled. “Go ahead and practice. I’m leaving for lunch in a few minutes, but I can watch you until then.”
“You’d better watch the whole thing,” Miley groused, tossing her blonde ponytail over her shoulder and scurrying to the middle of the floor. She cued up a music selection Ivy didn’t recognize and began gyrating her hips in such a manner that Ivy was surprised she didn’t have herself wrapped around a pole while delivering the dance.
“Is that allowed?” Ivy asked, flicking her eyes to Simone as the woman passed.
“Is what allowed?” Simone was confused.
“That.” Ivy pointed toward Miley. “She’s dancing like a … stripper.”
Simone watched Miley for a long beat and then shrugged. “That’s simply how the girls dance these days. You would know that if you didn’t lock yourself away in your house constantly. I mean … I get it. You snagged the new guy. You don’t want him spending too much time around other women in case he decides he wants to trade up. You should still get out once every other day or so.”
Ivy narrowed her eyes until they were nothing but glittery blue slits and glared as Simone sauntered away. That’s how Jack found her two minutes later.
“Oh, you look happy, my love.” Jack grinned at the way Ivy snarled. “Did you miss me that much?”
“This is pure torture, Jack,” Ivy admitted, frowning when Jack turned his attention to Miley and widened his eyes. “You see it, too, right?”
“She’s going to poke her eye out with that stick.”
His simple delivery of the line was enough to cause some of the tension in Ivy’s shoulders to lessen. “That’s exactly what I was talking about.”
Jack extended a hand to help Ivy stand and then planted a firm kiss on her mouth. “Why is she dancing with a stick?”
“It’s a baton and that’s her talent routine.”
Jack gave the dance another once over. “I’ve seen dances like that before. They usually come accompanied with full frontal nudity and a happy surprise at the end.”
Ivy snorted, amused, and then the full meaning of Jack’s words washed over her. “How much time have you spent in strip clubs?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know.” Jack tapped the end of her nose. “What do you care anyway? That was before I met you. I’m a reformed man.”
“You’d better be careful, or I’m not going to massage you later,” Ivy warned. “I made a fresh batch of oil before heading in this direction and everything.”
“I take back everything that I said.”
“That’s what I thought.” Ivy took a moment to give Jack a lingering hug and then pulled back. “I’m sorry if I’m grouchy. These girls are wearing on me.”
“I can see why.” Jack smoothed Ivy’s hair. “How about a break for lunch?”
“That’s the best offer I’ve had all day.” Ivy quickly collected her coat and boots. By the time she was bundled up, she turned to find that Jack was the center of attention in the middle of the barn. It seemed some of the teenagers – and a few of their mothers, for that matter – had discovered him and were eager to talk.
“Is Aubrey still alive?” Joslyn Dalton asked, her brown eyes wide. “Did she die?”
“Last time I knew, she was still in the hospital,” Jack replied. “I’m not at liberty to release her prognosis. She hasn’t died, though.”
“It must be so gratifying to be a police officer,” Jennifer Dalton, Joslyn’s mother, intoned as her eyes wandered to Jack’s wide shoulders. “You protect and serve. I mean … you’re a real hero.”
“I … well … I like being a police officer.” Jack shifted from one foot to the other, clearly nervous. He was penned in and uncomfortable. “I don’t consider myself a hero, though.”
“Oh, he’s just being modest,” Ivy interjected, earning a few sets of curious eyes. “He loves being a hero. He really likes it when people fawn all over him and call him a hero, although he’s too shy to admit it.”
Jack scorched Ivy with a dark look. “Don’t make this worse.”
Ivy’s grin was mischievous. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Are you two really getting married?” Anna Buckley asked, her eyes darting to Ivy before returning to Jack’s handsome face. “My mother says that Ms. Morgan put a spell on you because she’s a witch – you know that, right? – and that you’ve been caught even though you don’t want to be caught.”
Fury lanced through Ivy’s stomach, but she managed to contain it. “Did you hear that, Jack? I put a spell on you.”
“You certainly did,” Jack agreed, forcing a smile. “As for what your mother said … you might want to tell her to cut back on the liquor.” Jack was done being polite and he forcefully cut through the girls so he could join Ivy. “Are you ready for lunch?”
Ivy spared a glance for the disappointed girls – and their suspicious-looking mothers. “You have no idea.”
Jack grabbed her hand and pointed her toward the door. “Let’s get out of here. I told Brian earlier that this pageant sounded like a freak show. I think I might’ve been underestimating just how bad it really was.”
“Wait until I tell you how I spent my morning.”
“I’m almost frightened to hear the details.”
“WAIT … SIMONE
IS DOING WHAT?”
It only took Jack and Ivy about twenty minutes to catch each other up on their days. They were already settled across from each other in a booth at the diner, orders placed, when Jack explained about the pageant culling.
“You have the same look on your face that Brian did,” Jack noted. “What’s up with that? Why is it such a big deal?”
“Because the pageant was set up so no one was ever cut out,” Ivy explained. “If Simone is unilaterally picking kids to keep out of the pageant – with no one there to stop her – that’s not fair.”
“It’s just a pageant, though.”
“It’s just a pageant to you and me,” Ivy clarified. “It’s important to the girls who participate. I don’t really agree with the sentiment – heck, I don’t understand the sentiment – but what Simone is doing isn’t fair.”
“I take it she hasn’t told anyone what she’s doing.”
“No, and it makes sense in a weird way.” Ivy sipped her tea. “I wondered why I didn’t see Peyton. I thought maybe she was guilty and was trying to keep a low profile. Now we find out she didn’t even have access to the barn. Do you have a list of the other girls who were kept out?”
“Brian has it.”
“Make a copy so I can look at it tonight,” Ivy ordered. “I don’t know all of the girls in that age group, but I know quite a few of them.”
“The thing is, we’re dealing with girls in two different groups now,” Jack pointed out. “You have the group who never even got to compete and the other group who were going to get to compete even though Aubrey is the frontrunner. They all have massively different motives.”
“And Aubrey?” Ivy asked. “I know you couldn’t say anything in front of the girls but … has she said anything?”
“She hasn’t regained consciousness yet,” Jack replied. “The doctors are still working to correct organ damage. Apparently her kidneys were compromised.”
Ivy felt sick to her stomach. “All because of a pageant.”
Jack grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze. “It’s a mess, but we’ll figure it out.”
Wicked Hearts (An Ivy Morgan Mystery Book 9) Page 6