Staged 4 Murder

by J. C. Eaton

  I could tell Marshall was taken completely off guard. “Um, er, do you think maybe you and Cecilia would want to go inside and sit down?”

  “Oh heavens, no. It’s bad enough being seen in Curley’s parking lot. What do you think, Cecilia?”

  By now Cecilia had gotten out of the car and wedged herself between Shirley and Marshall. I didn’t think it was possible, but given her dramatic dark attire and lack of makeup, she could have scared someone. The heck with Miranda’s ghost. When the parking lot lights illuminated her face, it made her appear more frightening than what I imagined she and Shirley had seen in the theater.

  Her voice was loud and direct. “Are the men still in there? If so, I’m not budging. They’ll only razz us. I knew we should have taken a picture of it. I kept saying, ‘Shirley, take out your phone and snap a picture.’”

  “Good Lord. How on earth could I snap a picture when my hands were shaking like leaves in a windstorm? I couldn’t even open my clutch to get to the phone. And, speaking of which, you should join the rest of us in the twenty-first century and buy yourself one of those smartphones. No one uses those antiquated flip phones anymore.”

  Marshall kept turning his head back and forth from Cecilia to Shirley. It was like watching a ping-pong game without having to keep score. “Ladies. Ladies. Can you please backtrack and tell us what happened? What makes you think you saw Miranda’s ghost? Start at the beginning.”

  The expression “start at the beginning” had no reference point for my mother’s friends. “The beginning” could refer to the first time Shirley found out about the play or perhaps to the moment she thought Miranda’s spirit was haunting the building. I bit my lip and held my breath. Fortunately, as soon as Marshall heard her utter the words “It all started when . . .” he moved up the timeline and saved us the lengthy prologue.

  “I didn’t want to go alone, and since I drove Cecilia to rehearsal tonight, she felt she should go with me to the theater. The parking lot was empty, except for the two cars by the maintenance doors. The deputy on duty had already left, so we weren’t sure if we could get inside, but the night crew hadn’t locked the doors yet, so we walked right in.”

  Marshall nodded and Shirley continued.

  “The hall and foyer lights were still on, so Cecilia and I went down the hallway to the costume room. I have a key, you know. To the costume room. Nothing else. We got inside, and I saw my clutch bag on the counter, I picked it up, and we left the room. We started to go back down the hallway when all of a sudden the lights went out. Cecilia said it was the cleaning ladies turning off everything, but those safety lights in the hall shouldn’t have gone off, leaving us in the dark. Lordy, I knew something was wrong. Right there and then. We yelled out for the cleaners, but no one answered. Isn’t that right, Cecilia?”

  “Oh, yes. Absolutely right. We headed straight for the auditorium because it looked like the wall lights were still on. Then, as soon as we walked in, the lights dimmed and we saw her. It was Miranda all right. On the stage. Wearing one of those shimmery dresses of hers. I would recognize that coiffed hairdo anywhere. She was standing upstage behind the couch. Seemed to come right out of nowhere. I thought my heart was going to jump into my mouth.”

  Marshall gave Cecilia a quick pat on the shoulder. “Okay, okay. Calm down. What else happened?”

  “The lights went off. Not at once. Dimmer and dimmer. Then we were left in the dark. I swear I could feel her breathing on the back of my neck.”

  “Um,” I muttered. “Are you sure that wasn’t Shirley? I mean, she was standing right next to you.”

  “I wasn’t breathing down anyone’s neck,” Shirley said. “In fact, I don’t think I was breathing at all. It was awful. Lordy, I couldn’t even open my mouth to scream. Not right away. Then the good Lord gave me my voice back, and I screamed. Isn’t that right, Cecilia?”

  “That’s right. We both did. We screamed and screamed our heads off, and then, all of a sudden, wouldn’t you know it, but the wall lights came back on in the auditorium, and we could see the safety lights in the hallway.”

  “Couldn’t that woman you saw have been an image from the projector booth?” Marshall asked. “You said she seemed to come out of nowhere. Maybe it was a hologram, and one of the guys from the lighting crew was testing out something.”

  It was a levelheaded question and something I would have expected to come from Marshall, but Shirley and Cecilia didn’t seem to be in a mood for levelheadedness.

  I’d never heard Cecilia get so loud. “It could have. It most certainly could have. But it wasn’t. It was Miranda all right. And I’ll tell you something else. Holograms don’t wear perfume. The room was filled with that scent of hers. And as for the lighting crew, those beer-guzzling fancy pants hightailed themselves out of the building as soon as Cliff ended the rehearsal. There was no one there.”

  “Ladies, there has to be a logical explanation. What about the cleaning crew? You mentioned two women.”

  “Yes. Yes. They both came running when they heard us scream,” Shirley said. “They’d been in the restrooms, and the lights were still on in there. They never knew everything else was pitch black. Said they’d leave it in their nightly report for their supervisor. A lot of help that’s going to be.”

  Marshall let out an audible sigh. “Shirley, did you tell them about the woman you saw?”

  “English isn’t their native language. Good Lord. We were lucky we could explain about the lights.”

  Then Cecilia broke in. “I know you’re probably wondering why we didn’t just drive across the street to the sheriff’s posse office, but they wouldn’t have believed us. That’s when Shirley called Harriet at the Homey Hut and found out where you were.”

  “I’m surprised my mother didn’t announce it to everyone. She was the one who insisted we go to Curley’s in the first place to dig for dirt with Herb’s crew.”

  “Get out your shovel, Phee, and start digging,” Marshall said. “Looks like the crew is coming this way.”

  Chapter 16

  Sure enough, the entire pinochle playing entourage was headed our way. The traffic from the road behind us was no match for Herb’s voice.

  “If we knew you were holding a tailgate party, we would’ve joined you sooner. Hey, Shirley, what brings you and Cecilia here? Don’t tell me Miranda’s ghost chased you out of the theater.”

  “Hush! You hush your mouth, Herb Garrett. For your information, Cecilia and I wanted to know how the investigation was going, and Harriet told us Marshall and Phee would be here. We were too busy during rehearsal to talk with them.”

  “You could have joined us, you know,” Bill said. “Ain’t like we’re going to bite your heads off or anything.”

  “Maybe another time. And place.”

  “Okay. Let me know and I’ll make reservations at Buckingham Palace for you, or would you prefer the Taj Mahal?”

  “What I’d prefer is for—”

  Shirley never got to finish her thought. It all happened way too fast. First the bright headlights that blinded all of us, then the rubbery smell from the tires as the car got closer. I expected to hear the screech of brakes like when Shirley had burst into the parking lot, only this driver had no intention of slowing down. The car was headed right toward us.

  Marshall shoved the ladies out of the way and screamed at me, “GET OUT OF THE WAY!”

  Someone grabbed my arm and yanked me to safety. It was Bill. He and Herb were inches from me while Wayne and Kenny were still a good five or six feet back.

  The car never stopped. Whoever was behind the wheel tore across the parking lot and out the other exit. They were back on the road before any of us could catch our breath.

  Bill ran to the road in a futile attempt to get a better look at the vehicle. “What the hell? Damn drunks. Did anyone get the license?”

  Herb shook his head and gave the parking lot a once-over. “License, my ass. I didn’t even see what kind of car it was.”

  “L
ordy, Lordy, I did!” Shirley shrieked. “I saw what kind of car it was. It was Miranda’s. Silver and black like the spawn of Satan.”

  Shirley and Cecilia were literally feeding off each other’s panic, and Marshall had all he could do trying to calm them down.

  Shirley was insistent Miranda’s spirit had put the driver up to this. “It’s that she-witch. Back from the grave.”

  Marshall took Shirley by the arm and spoke softly. “It’s not a spirit from beyond. Take it easy. Bill’s right. Probably a drunk driver. I’m phoning it in to the sheriff’s office. Even without a good description, they can send a car or two down the road and alert the police in Surprise.”

  As Marshall placed the call, Herb asked Kenny and Wayne if they’d gotten a decent look, but neither of them did.

  “If you ask me,” Kenny said, “it was kids out drinking and joyriding. Lucky none of us got killed.”

  “Yet. Yet,” Shirley said. “They always come back. You think they’re dead, but they always come back. It’s that evil spirit Miranda.”

  Bill stomped his foot and took a step toward Shirley. “What needs to come back are the rational thoughts that have evaporated from your mind.”

  Kenny made some sort of deep guttural groan and marched directly over to Shirley. “Bill’s right. It wasn’t a ghost. Ghosts have no way to pay for a license and registration. Not to mention gas.”

  Cecilia, who had been sniffling and shaking, looked over at Kenny and shouted, “You think that’s funny? That’s not funny. We weren’t going to say anything because we knew you’d make fun of us, but we saw something tonight in the auditorium. Something horrible.”

  “What? The damn rehearsal schedule for next week?”

  “Cecilia’s being serious.” I glared at Kenny. “She and Shirley saw someone after everyone left the building. They went back inside because they forgot something in the costume room.”

  Just then Marshall waved his hand and spoke. “I just got off the phone with a sheriff’s deputy. They’ve had reports all night about kids out joyriding. They’ve got patrol cars on the county roads, and they’ve notified the Surprise Police Department.”

  “See,” Kenny said as he looked directly at Shirley. “I said it was probably kids out for some kicks.”

  “Kicks, huh? Maybe if you all stopped talking and took a deep breath, you might change your mind. Well, go ahead. What do you smell?”

  For a minute no one said a word.

  Then Bill finally spoke up. “Yeah. Fine. I smell it. Car exhaust. Old cigarette smoke. And, yeah, I hate to say it, but I smell that damn perfume of hers.”

  “We’re in the parking lot that belongs to a local bar. What’d you expect it to smell like?” Kenny asked.

  “Not Shalimar,” I said. “This isn’t the crowd for it, and Curley’s isn’t the place.”

  “You recognize the perfume?”

  “Unfortunately, yes. It was all the rage when I was a teenager.”

  Marshall gave me a quick smile and took a step closer to Kenny and Bill. “Look, this isn’t getting us anywhere. We’re all tired and some of us have work tomorrow. I promise I’ll look into the incident in the auditorium. As for the perfume . . . I’m sure we’ll figure that out, too. It’s certainly been an eventful evening. What do you say we all call it a night and head home?”

  Herb and the guys all answered at once.

  “No complaints here.”

  “Yeah, sure.”

  “I’m beat. Why not?”

  “Damn juvenile drivers.”

  As the guys headed to their cars, Marshall asked Shirley if she was going to be all right driving home. Big mistake. She said no, and insisted Marshall follow her all the way back to her house. Not only that, but since Shirley had given Cecilia a ride to the rehearsal, it meant Marshall had to follow Shirley to Cecilia’s house first and then over to Shirley’s place before taking me back to my car at the pizza parlor.

  What a nightmare. Shirley refused to get behind the wheel of her car until she was certain no one had snuck in while the commotion was taking place in the parking lot. That meant Marshall had to escort the women to Shirley’s car and look under the seats and in the trunk before Shirley was satisfied.

  As both women buckled up in the large maroon Buick, Marshall leaned over and spoke to them. “I know what you saw must have been really unnerving, but I think you’ll be perfectly safe once you get to your own homes. Phee and I will go inside with you if it’ll make you feel any better.”

  It was worse than tucking in a five-year-old who was scared of the boogieman. Cecilia insisted Marshall check all the closets and the garage. She also wanted him to open her car, which was parked inside, and look on the floor in case something was lurking.

  Shirley was worse. Marshall even had to open the dishwasher and look inside the washer and dryer, as well as under the beds. By the time we left her place, we were both wiped out.

  “All those teddy bears, Phee. Did you get a look at all those teddy bears?”

  We were finally heading out of Sun City West and back to the pizza place.

  “Yeah. I’ve seen the entire collection. Shirley sews them herself. She’s amazingly talented.”

  “Talented and imaginative. I don’t know what the heck she and Cecilia saw in that auditorium, but I’ll bet anything it came from the projector booth. Maybe someone stayed behind.”

  “Who? All of the guys were hell-bent on getting out of the rehearsal. You heard that yourself tonight.”

  “All but one. What if Kevin didn’t really go home to be served a hot meal? What if that was a bunch of malarkey to throw us off? He’s an electrician and would be more than familiar with projector images.”

  “But why would he stick around when the rehearsal was over?”

  “Good question. Unless he was the one responsible for Miranda’s death, and he has another victim in mind.”

  “Oh my God! That’s awful. My mother was right about no one being safe.”

  “Look, I’m only speculating. Theorizing. That’s what we do. I don’t have any substantive reason to suspect Kevin of anything. But that’s how we investigate. We look at all the inconsistencies and rule them out.”

  “So, what does that mean?”

  “Means I’m going to be doing a little more digging on his background. Somehow, someone other than Len Beckers and Cliff Edwards had relationships with Miranda Lee.”

  “You don’t think Kevin dated her, too? Before he was married, I mean. Because if he did, I’m positive Herb would blab that all around.”

  “I don’t know about dating her, but there are lots of reasons outside of the intimate ones that might lead to murder. Like I said before, I need to find out if there are any connections Miranda might have had in her past that resulted in her death.”

  “What bothers me, Marshall, is the fact all this weird stuff seems to be going on in the theater. Let’s face it, everyone knows Shirley and Cecilia believe in the afterlife. Ghosts, if you will. So, it could be quite possible Miranda’s killer is trying to throw us off by creating this hubbub and using them as the perfect patsies. Geez, I wish this play would be over with.”

  “When’s opening night? I know it’s coming up soon.”

  “The first week in December. On a Friday night. The play will run that weekend and the next.”

  “The first week in December? That’s only two weeks away, more or less.”

  “I know. Not much rehearsal time left. Plus, they won’t be practicing on Thanksgiving Day or Black Friday. According to my mother, if they called a rehearsal for the Friday after Thanksgiving, they’d be missing half the cast and most of the crew.”

  Marshall laughed as he turned into the pizza parlor’s lot. I was surprised the place wasn’t deserted. In fact, it seemed even more crowded than it was a few hours before.

  “My gosh. I’m glad we ate when we did. We’d never get a seat now. I keep forgetting this is ‘the real world’ and not Sun City West, where everything closes at eigh
t.”

  “Looks like your car is still in one piece. You going to be okay getting home, or did you want me to follow you? It’s no bother. Really.”

  My God! What’s he going to do now? Offer to check inside the closets and under the bed?

  “I’ll be fine. If Miranda’s ghost follows me home, I’ll share a nightcap with her.”

  “I can think of better company.”

  Is that a proposal? A proposition? A what? “You can say that again. Well, I’d better get going, or I might as well just drive straight into work. Thanks, Marshall. You were a good sport to put up with Shirley and Cecilia.”

  “It was kind of fun, actually. Except for those teddy bears. I’m going to have nightmares about finding them under my bed.”

  “I think you’ll be safe. See you in the morning.”

  Marshall waited while I started my car and drove out of the lot. I was so damn tempted to invite him back to my place, but then what? I was too old to be playing the damsel in distress. Besides, he’d see right through me. Maybe Shirley and Cecilia were freaked out about spirits, but Marshall knew me better. If anything was going to develop between the two of us, it would have to take a different course.

  Chapter 17

  It was way too late to give my mother a call when I got in, so the following morning I sent her a quick email. Essentially, I postponed the inevitable conversation we would have regarding any gossip Marshall and I managed to glean from Herb and the lighting crew.

  Augusta was already at her desk when I walked into our office. “Good morning, Phee. Mr. Williams is in his office and said I should send you right in as soon as I saw you.”

  “Thanks, Augusta. I can barely keep my eyes open. You wouldn’t believe the night I had, thanks to my mother’s play.”

  “Mr. Gregory didn’t sound so good, either. He left a message. Something about going to a radio station.”

  “Stanley Krumpmeyer.”

  “What? Who’s that?”

  “That’s the person Marshall’s going to see. Possibly a suspect. Oh, what the heck. Everyone in that play is a suspect. I’ll tell you about it when I get a chance. I’d better go see what Nate wants.”