by Nigel May
‘You tell me,’ sneered Sarah, almost appearing to enjoy Georgia’s confusion. ‘You’re the one playing Jessica Fletcher.’
‘So then I thought that maybe the bullet wasn’t meant for him, which is why you fired a second. The one that hit Charlie. I started thinking that maybe you and Charlie knew each other. That maybe there was some connection there. You work on his mother’s show, after all. Your paths may have crossed. But then you said you’d only been on the show for a few months and that started me thinking. Did you know Charlie? Was there … is there something between you two that I don’t know about? I’m fully aware my fiancé can flirt like Casanova.’
‘Go on. You’re quite the storyteller aren’t you?’ Georgia could feel the sweat running down her back and on the palms of her hands. ‘I trust Charlie. I know him. He wouldn’t cheat on me. That’s why I didn’t ask him here with me. A woman knows. There’s no way. Besides, you’re not his type.’ Georgia couldn’t resist the dig. Sarah was beautiful but their two looks were poles apart. ‘So I guessed that maybe Charlie wasn’t the person you were aiming for either. There was a big crowd and people were moving around, shifting position to watch the screen.’
‘So if it wasn’t this Jack man, and it wasn’t your oh-so-perfect Charlie then who the hell was I aiming at? Have you worked that one out?’
‘It could have been Nova, it could have been Jacob. I thought it might have been Evie. What a way to gain your notoriety – killing off one of the most famous actresses on earth. But then it occurred to me. It could have been me. I was in front of Jack Christie and Charlie was right beside me. You could have been aiming at me. That’s why I didn’t say anything. I wanted to know if it was. I needed to ask you face to face. It was, wasn’t it? It was me you were aiming at?’
Sarah shifted uneasily on the sofa, taking her stare off Georgia for the first time since they had started the conversation. Her face was stony and severe in its expression as she looked back at Georgia to speak.
‘And there we have it. Finally the Brit girl gets it. I was aiming for you. That other poor stupid fucker moved himself in the way just as I shot and then your poor boyfriend copped an injury too. I should have tried a third and finished the job.’
‘But why me?’ It was the only answer she needed to hear. She moved her hands nervously behind her back, her palms still clammy with dread and fear.
‘Because of your incessant meddling. Why couldn’t you just leave things be, Georgia?’
The voice speaking was not Sarah’s. Georgia turned her head to the doorway leading out into the hall where a figure stood, gun in hand. It was pointed at Georgia.
‘I think it’s time we finish this, Sarah, don’t you?’ said Jacob Chevalier.
Eighty-Two
Jacob Chevalier marched over to the sofa and grabbed Georgia by the arm, pulling her to her feet. In an instant he roughly twisted her arm behind her back and pressed the cold barrel of his gun against her cheek. Nothing had ever felt icier to Georgia. Sarah grabbed her by the other arm and the two of them escorted her from the room and out into the hallway.
‘It wasn’t supposed to be like this, Georgia. But you just couldn’t stop yourself, could you? Interfering all of the time. Determined to try and find out more and more.’
Georgia was confused, despite the fact that she’d been having suspicions about Jacob. He’d been acting shiftily for days in her opinion. ‘Stop it, you’re hurting me,’ she cried, a blade of pain running up her arm. ‘To find out more about what?’
‘About what happened to Mitzi. All of this is because of Mitzi, don’t you understand?’ spat Jacob, his voice barking the words into Georgia’s face.
Sarah let go of Georgia to open a wooden door that led off the hallway of the house. Beyond it were a set of stone steps leading downwards. It was dark but the outline of the steps was clearly visible. Sarah disappeared into the dark while Jacob still gripped on tightly to Georgia, causing another thunderbolt of pain to shoot its way through her body.
A shallow light illuminated from within the room and as Jacob and Georgia reached the top of the steps, she tried to focus on what lay ahead. She could make out shapes but nothing more.
‘This is all Mitzi’s fault. Everything. So many people affected because of Mitzi. Mitzi and her stupid boyfriend. It’s a pity she didn’t die too. It would have made everything so much easier.’ Jacob was marching Georgia down the steps as he spoke. A stench hit Georgia’s nostrils as they descended. Jacob noticed it too.
‘Christ, Sarah, I told you to keep this place as clean as possible. What’s the point of me letting you live here rent free and paying for everything if you don’t do as I say?’
‘Sorry Jacob, I cleaned up last night. There was crap everywhere.’
Georgia tried to focus on what was around her as they reached the bottom of the stairs. The smell was getting stronger, almost like a sewer in its pungency. ‘Why is it Mitzi’s fault? What has she got to do with any of this?’
‘Why don’t you ask her?’ snapped Jacob. He pushed Georgia away from himself and onto the floor. It was only when she fell that Georgia spotted the body in the corner of the gloomy basement, curled up in a ball, roped at the wrists and ankles. It was animalistic. Alongside the body was a bucket, the contents of which were obviously the source of the smell.
Georgia could feel the vomit rising up from her stomach. She swallowed in an attempt to keep it down. Even in the body’s dirty state, Georgia knew exactly who it was. The blonde hair, although matted with dirt from the floor of the basement, gave it away. It was Mitzi.
Georgia moved to the body and spoke Mitzi’s name as she lifted her friend’s face from the floor. Mitzi opened her eyes slightly in recognition. She was alive. Her body, one that a few weeks before had been bursting with pure energy and dynamic power, now looked angular and disjointed where she had lost muscle mass. Her fingers were bloody and her skin branded with scorch lines from the ropes. Georgia could feel the tears begin to run down her own face as Mitzi, still with the tiniest sequin of sparkle in her eye, looked up at her and attempted a smile at her recognition of Georgia. Relief flooded through Georgia’s body, her quest to find her best friend had been finally achieved. But her relief was tinged with the toxic taste of what was now to happen.
‘What have you done to her, you bastards? How long has she been here?’ Georgia held Mitzi in her arms, as tightly as she dared, given her condition, and attempted to undo the restraints.
‘Too fucking long, I swear. She shouldn’t be here. I didn’t want this, none of us did,’ said Jacob, his hand shaking as he held the gun which was still pointed in Georgia’s direction. ‘This should all have been so fucking easy, just a bit of fun. But no. It turned into this sorry fucking stinking mess.’ His voice was maniacal. It scared Georgia even more. Jacob could be harsh, she knew that, but she’d never heard him shouting like this before.
‘They made me do it.’ Jacob glared at Georgia, the gun still pointed towards her and Mitzi. ‘They all did.’
‘All of you? Who are you talking about? Who else is involved? Not Nova?’ said Georgia.
‘Oh for God’s sake, no. She’s one of the last few remaining good things in Hollywood. She may play fake for the TV, but Nova couldn’t be more genuine if she tried. She doesn’t have a clue about any of this. She’s not been tainted by it. And I suggest you stop trying to untie those ropes if I were you. There is no point.’
Georgia did as ordered, still holding Mitzi in her arms, unable to let go now that she had finally found her. ‘Tainted by what?’ If Georgia was going to die at the hands of this madman then she needed to know why.
Jacob continued to rant, the gun shaking in his hand. ‘The club. My club. A secret society. Hollywood’s biggest. I run it. There are big names from all over Hollywood in it. Actors, producers, casting agents, film backers. It started as a kind of old boys’ joke a few years ago, back before I met Nova. Some boring old suits with too much money, including me, looking for the
next kick. We have more money and power than we know what to do with, so what else was there? We needed more. We needed thrills. All those dollars can become boring when there’s no challenge to anything anymore. One night at an industry party a few of us were talking about how bored we were and that it would be good to spice things up. I suggested a sex club. Everyone in Hollywood loves something a bit kinky. Especially ever since 50 Shades became all the fucking rage. But everyone talks in this town. You could guarantee that someone would let slip that they’d seen me or some Oscar-winner all strapped up and being whipped at some club and I can’t have that getting back to the wrong people, especially now I’m with Nova. So we started our own club, behind closed doors.’
Georgia listened on as Jacob explained, her mind trying to deal with the situation around her, her hands stroking Mitzi’s hair and rocking her in her arms as he spoke. She glanced around the room, her eyes now accustomed to the dark, wondering if this was to be the place that she would die. And if it would be at the hands of a man that she had come to trust.
‘But we needed to find some women. What is the good of a group of dirty old men wanting to get their rocks off in interesting ways if you can’t find the women to satisfy you? But it’s amazing what ambition can do to a girl. The answer was out there under our eyes all along. Young actresses come to Hollywood every day looking to become the next big thing. Waitresses, secretaries, dental clerks, nail technicians … all the same, with a headful of hopes and one big dream. To make it big in Hollywood. To be the next Evie Merchant or Jennifer Lawrence. And dreamers will do anything to achieve their lucky break, even if it means pleasing somebody who can give them a helping hand up the Tinseltown career ladder. Pay them for their silence, offer them bit parts in films to bump up their CVs, even get them on the payroll like Addison and Sarah here and they’ll do whatever you want. Prostitution is a time-honoured tradition, it’s been feeding media players like me for years. This town is built on corruption.’
‘You’re not saying that Mitzi was one of your …’ Georgia left the sentence open.
‘No. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I keep telling you I didn’t mean for this to happen, none of the club members did. It was supposed to be harmless.’ Was Jacob’s voice beginning to crack as he spoke? Was there regret forming in the words of the madman?
‘Then how?’
‘Just having sex parties wasn’t enough. We wanted more. More power, more thrills, more kinks. The club was getting bigger, we were selecting members from all over California. Even further afield. It’s like any secret society, invitation only. For the chosen few. But for those invited, it’s a case of everyone wins. The money men get to play away from home, behind their wives’ backs, maybe regaining a bit of that playboy nature we used to have when we were younger. Pumping our egos with something more than just the ability to fund whatever our society wives want. Where’s the excitement in that? They say you can never have too much money. Well, let me tell you, you can. It becomes boring. So we created our performance nights.’
‘What are they?’
‘They’re what Mitzi and Foster stumbled across. Every few weeks the group will go somewhere and we perform a ‘ritual’. Call it mock devil worship if you like. It’s just an excuse for us all to dress up in hessian robes, dance around a camp fire and mock up a sacrifice before indulging in an outdoor orgy. I’d seen it on a film and thought it seemed erotic and exciting. All very Wicker Man. Of course we have to be very careful where we do it, so our locations have to be remote and known to someone in that area. They’re handpicked. We went to Hell’s Canyon as one of the group members owns a hotel there. He owns a chain of them in fact, and he knew somewhere remote in the Canyon where we could act out our fantasies. Mitzi and her boyfriend were there and sadly saw us. We couldn’t risk them spilling the beans. They might have taken photos or anything. There are too many big names involved. The scandal would destroy this town like a disaster movie earthquake. I can’t risk losing what I have, Georgia, not for anything. I’ve spent years achieving what I have today.’
‘So you killed Foster?’ Georgia was horrified at what she was hearing.
‘No, not at all. Are you not listening, you stupid, stupid girl? It’s all supposed to be harmless. Sex is harmless. We saw your friends in the Canyon just after we had performed our mock sacrifice. Fake knife and a bit of comedy blood. Like something out of one of those third rate horror flicks and as an alternative kind of foreplay it worked for the group. A thrill that no amount of money can buy. But we saw the reflection of your friends’ binoculars watching us and we couldn’t risk them telling. So we chased them. I guess the plan was to bribe them with money for their silence. But the guy, Foster, he fell in the panic of running away and hit his head. Must have hit it bloody hard, too. He was dead when we reached him. We were suddenly left with a body on our hands. Who’d believe it was an accident? And we could hardly offer Mitzi enough money to silence her about her boyfriend’s death, could we? It wasn’t our fault, but we can’t have any kind of scandal linked to us. Hollywood would fall apart. So the group panicked and blamed me. I was stupid, let Mitzi see me. We hid Foster’s body in a remote cave in the Canyon and we kidnapped Mitzi and brought her here. We didn’t know she was famous in your godforsaken country. We even filmed a ransom message from her. We were going to use it. Try and push the blame onto somebody else. Some local criminals. But what was the point? As long as Mitzi could talk about her ordeal she might be able to say who she had seen. I was careless, she saw my face. That’s why I had to sort this. The others in the group said I had to. Gave me no choice. Even at Nova’s party they were telling me over and over that I had to finish it, get rid of any loose ends. Making their demands to me. That’s not the way I work, but I couldn’t risk losing everything. They said that if fingers were pointed then I was to be the fall guy. Their word against mine. Not even I could take them on. I’ve too much to lose. I can’t spend the rest of my years in prison. Mitzi saw me, so she couldn’t be allowed to live. If she does, then I’m damned. She’s been here ever since.’
More and more vulnerability was creeping into Jacob’s words. ‘I thought if we stole the road vehicle and made it look like poor Mitzi had done a runner then maybe the spotlight of blame would fall onto her, even though she was totally innocent.’
Georgia was relieved to finally know that Mitzi had had nothing to do with Foster’s death. She had never doubted her friend but it felt good, albeit for just a split second, to have it confirmed. ‘How long were you going to leave her here?’
‘We’d not thought that through. The others wanted her dead; to dispose of the one women who could potentially crumble an empire. Bring them down. They kept telling me, ordering me, but I couldn’t do it. But now I’ll have to.’ Sarah, who had been smiling throughout Jacob’s confession, moved behind him as he spoke, as if ready for action. ‘This has all gone too far and loose ends need to be tied up. You leave us no choice. Another stupid death. Addison and now you.’
‘Addison?’
‘Poor Addison had to go. She was one of our girls, she was the faux-sacrifice Mitzi saw, but it seems she couldn’t handle the guilt of what happened. I promised that I would wangle a few roles for her and her flatmate, Diana, not that she was involved, but Addison bottled it. I had her phone bugged, I do it with all of the girls. If we’re paying for their houses and providing them with flashy cars and jobs then I hardly think they can complain if we invade their privacy a bit. I think we’re entitled to, don’t you? She left you a message, I guessed she was about to open up a little too much so sadly she had to go. A shame, as she was a great worker and a dirty little bitch at the parties.’
‘You killed her?’
‘Not me. I couldn’t do it. I may be ruthless in business, Georgia, but to have blood on my own hands is not part of my make-up. She did it for me. It’s so much easier to order others.’ He pointed to Sarah standing behind him. ‘She’s an ambitious one, is Sarah. She’s been
waiting in the wings for a while. I set her up here to keep watch on Mitzi while we decided what to do. She was always keen to grab Addison’s glory. Second assistants always feel just that though, second best. And as I like to sometimes take my carnal desires beyond the club, shall we say, and both Addison and Sarah were more than happy to fulfil my every fantasy it was easy to play them off against each other. I kept suggesting they were up for the same roles outside of the bedroom too so there was always an unhealthy rivalry between them that Sarah here was happy to end once and for all when I needed her to.’
Sarah was happy to confess. ‘Caving her head was easy – I’ve done it countless times before to disease-riddled animals back on the farm at home. It’s where I learnt to shoot, too. I was state champion for two years running. I could have shot Addison, but I think bashing her head in kind of fitted the whole interrupted burglary theme I was going for. Nice girl, but with her gone there are more acting parts for me and a tidy little promotion with Jacob. Plus it made me number one on the bedroom front as well. Opportunities like this don’t always come the way of a girl with my kind of upbringing. I’d have killed off Mitzi ages ago too if it wasn’t for Jacob pussyfooting around and letting her linger on.’
Sarah squeezed Jacob’s shoulder in an attempt to show her allegiance to him. He ignored her.
‘But I spoke to people who saw Mitzi after the disappearance. That girl, Alice, at Hell’s Canyon who told me about Tijuana.’ Confusion blazoned itself across Georgia’s face.
‘Worked at the hotel owned by one of our club members. He said she could be bought easily. We gave her some cash and told her what to do. Her entire story was false. As for Tijuana, another unfortunate incident, but it took you out of my hair and away from Nova and me. One of the club members had driven the road vehicle directly from Hell’s Canyon to Tijuana the night of Foster’s death. It seemed as good a place as any and given Tijuana’s size we thought it might be easy to make it disappear. We needed to make it look like Mitzi had done a runner. That’s why I had somebody pretend to be her and accidently happen to be at the same hotel I booked you and Charlie into in Mexico. Didn’t you think it was rather coincidental that both you and the road vehicle should happen to be at the same hotel in such an immense city?’