A sheaf of papers slid out of the unsealed envelope and into my hand. I flipped through the three sheets.
Each contained a single screen shot of a text message bubble.
Eighteen
“Well, this answers one of my questions.” I smiled. “The Phantom has sent Scott Fisher messages, too. That’s three faculty members, so I’m going to guess there’s more.”
Luke circled the desk to stand next to me, pulling the flashlight from under my chin to shine a light on the paper. “Those are screen shots. That was smart. Must have sent the picture to his computer and printed them out.”
“Can my phone do that?” I asked.
“Your phone doesn’t do anything.”
“I think it can text, I just don’t pay for the plan. It’s only five years old.”
“Sugar, technologically speaking, a five-year-old phone is the equivalent of a dinosaur.”
I scowled. “I’m going to read Scott Fisher’s texts now. You stand back so you’re not accused of tampering with evidence.”
Luke stepped closer, pressing against my back. “I’ll just hold the flashlight for you. That’s what friends do.”
“Feels to me like your flashlight is in the wrong place.” I squinted at the wavering light highlighting the first text box and read aloud, “‘Your private lessons aren’t so private.’ This is dated two weeks ago.”
“Who’s it from?” Luke’s breath dusted my cheek.
“A bunch of random letters and numbers. Scott Fisher answered, ‘Who is this? What are you talking about?’”
“Maybe Mr. Fisher isn’t giving private lessons and the Phantom is just guessing,” said Luke.
“Could be.” I flipped to the next sheet. “‘I saw what you did.’ Fisher didn’t bother to answer. The last one said, ‘I know about you and your special student.’”
“These texts sound different than the ones Tinsley received.”
“Each message was ghosted. Just a bunch of random characters.”
Luke flashed the penlight on the desk. “You better get that envelope back in his drawer. We still need to check out the balcony.”
I slid the papers back in the envelope, replaced them under the bag of candy, and shut the drawer.
“If these are the kinds of messages the faculty are getting, I can see why they’re not telling anyone. What’s the purpose of sending these nasty texts?”
“Sounds to me like someone’s getting off on upsetting the staff,” said Luke.
“Is it illegal?”
“If they can be proven as cyberstalking. The fact that no one will report them to the police tells me they don’t feel suitably harassed to fear for their safety. Other than Tinsley.”
“And Tinsley refuses to go to the police.”
“Then, not much can be done about it. You can’t convince Herrera of cyberstalking unless he has some evidence to go on.”
I skidded a glance toward the desk drawer.
“And the evidence can’t be stolen,” added Luke.
“Dammit.”
With our thoughts quiet and our senses alert for more stalkers, we left Scott Fisher’s room to return to the auditorium. And discovered the left side balcony door opened without assistance from the master key.
Luke pulled open the door and squatted to examine the lock. “Looks like someone stuck a wad of gum in the jamb so the door wouldn’t close all the way.”
“So a kid probably took those pictures of Tinsley?” I shoved my finger into the lock hole and picked at the hardened square of gum. “Hubba Bubba by the looks of it.”
Luke rose from his squat. “I bet kids use the balcony for secret hookups. That’s what I would have done.”
I rolled my eyes. “Did you learn anything in high school besides sex ed?”
After a fruitless search of the balcony and a few misguided turns, we wound our way back to the drama lounge. Tinsley’s office door stood open, making the hollering-fest inside all the more apparent. With Luke trailing behind me, I hurried forward and halted just before entering. Camille Vail leaned over Tinsley’s desk, waving her arms and pointing fingers. Tinsley slunk in his chair. While his body displayed apathy, his face had hardened under her onslaught.
I pulled in a breath, but before I could charge into the office, a hand settled on my shoulder and yanked me back. I flicked a what-the-hey glance at Luke, but he lifted a finger to his lips and pulled me to the side of the door.
Grandma Jo might have had issues with eavesdropping, but if a cop encourages me, who am I to contradict him? I hugged the wall next to Luke, hoping for something juicy.
“I know you’re behind this.” Dr. Vail hadn’t stopped her rant. “Don’t think I can’t read between the lines. Your blog minions may love you, but I can see right through your bullshit.”
“Camille.” Tinsley’s voice held a mocking blend of compassion, pity, and annoyance. “I am sorry you’re so upset, but you’re being a tad overzealous.”
“Am I? We’ll see what Cleveland says.”
“Don’t bother Principal Cleveland with this. You know how distraught he is over Maranda’s death. I don’t expect him back to school this week.”
“Convenient for you, isn’t it? Then I’ll just take this to Brenda. She might be interested in what I’ve learned about your expenditures.” Her voice grew louder.
Luke and I slipped off the wall to pose near the table.
With her tunic billowing, Dr. Vail stalked out of Tinsley’s office. She whipped around to ply us with a hardened look, then slammed out the drama lounge door.
“Well, hell.” I glanced at Luke. “If the woman didn’t hate me before, she does now.”
He nodded his head toward Tinsley’s office. “Let’s see if we can get Tinsley to talk while he’s still shook up.”
“I bet you always play bad cop when you’re interrogating suspects.”
“You want a demonstration of my good cop skills after this?” A dimple popped in his cheek, and I mentally slapped my hormones back in place.
“Does Uncle Will approve of you searching personal property without a warrant and eavesdropping while hitting on his niece?”
“I’d prefer you not tell him,” said Luke. “Particularly the hitting on his niece part.”
“Then cool your jets, son.” I pivoted on my boot heel and marched into Tinsley’s office.
Tinsley jerked his head up and straightened at our entrance. Luke strode to his desk, tossed the keys on it, and retreated to stand with his back against the bookshelf. I parked myself across the desk from Tinsley. With his jacked up chair, we could look each other in the eye.
“We didn’t find anything in the balcony,” I said. “What’s going on between you and Dr. Vail?”
He rolled his eyes and began gathering papers into a neat stack. “An old rivalry. She’s jealous of the popularity of the theater department. Unfortunately, the art students have a bad reputation and it reflects on her. Rightly so. They need a strong leader to reign them in.”
“You mentioned this in your blog, didn’t you?” I accused.
“Perhaps, but I only speak in generalities. I never use names. Besides, it’s supposed to be funny.” He pushed out of his chair and lifted his briefcase to the desk, keeping his gaze from mine.
I folded my arms over my chest. “You know, that kind of stuff will come back to bite you in the butt.”
Bent over the desk, Tinsley peered at me over his glasses. “I’m not distressed over Camille. She’s harmless.”
“You don’t think Dr. Vail could be the one sending these messages? Or one of her students?”
Tinsley straightened and laughed.
“My dear, that’s why Dr. Vail is so irate. She’s received texts, too, and believes I wrote them.”
“What did they say?” Luke edged forward.
“I daresay it referred to something about her relationship to her notorious students, judging by the ferocity of her complaint.”
“Like covering up their drug use?”
“Something like that.”
“Do you think she’ll show the texts to the police?”
He shook his head. “She’ll do what she always does and complain to the principal. And Cleveland will look at the revenue I bring in versus her expenses in the art department and tell her to ignore me.”
I glanced at Luke and wondered if this was why he wanted to talk to Tinsley “still shook up.” Tinsley’s personality had grown cold.
“Don’t fret about Camille. Have you spoken to Mr. Avtaikin about contributing? How are the sketches for the set design coming along?”
“I’ve spoken. And I finished several designs for each setting.”
“Already?” Tinsley gasped. “I didn’t expect you to work this fast. If you finish so quickly, how can you watch the school?”
“I don’t do anything slow, Mr. Tinsley. That includes finding the Phantom.” I delivered a stiff smile. “I expect that’s why you hired me. I’ll bring in the drawings tomorrow.”
“Very good,” said Tinsley. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“By the way, do you know Scott Fisher?”
Tinsley’s features blanked out for a moment. “I believe he teaches science? Why?”
“His name popped up recently. Just curious if you’d heard of him. Or if something about him had appeared on PeerNotes recently?”
Tinsley shook his head. “I’m sorry. I don’t recall anything about him.”
“Just wondering. One more question, besides you and Dr. Vail, who else would be at school this late?”
Tinsley shrugged. “I’ve been in the theater or my office since dismissal. Any of the faculty involved in extracurriculars could stay late.”
“We’ll see ourselves out,” I said. “Don’t worry about those photos. I’ll keep my eye on the balcony while we work on the set. In the meantime, you better get someone to fix the lock to the balcony door.”
Tinsley bowed his head. “I am in debt to your service.”
“Just be careful with your blog.” I backed toward the door with Luke strolling behind me. “You might have pissed off more than just Dr. Vail.”
Maranda Pringle, Dr. Vail, Scott Fisher, Tinsley. Seemed the Phantom had several axes to grind.
With Tinsley’s assistance, we exited through the theater’s outside door, but stopped on the edge of the parking lot to survey the school and remaining vehicles. Two Prius, a Lexus, a newer model Dodge Ram pickup, a couple battered sedans, an old pickup, and a paneled van remained.
“If I were going to judge folks by their vehicles,” I folded my arms over my chest as a night breeze brushed over my skin, “I’d say that grouping of tired transit parked in the handicapped spaces belongs to the night cleaning crew.”
Luke nodded. “And I’d say one of the Prius belongs to Tinsley. Or maybe the Lexus.”
“So the green Prius, I’d guess is Dr. Vail’s. That is if she’s still here. That leaves the Ram and one other car.”
“I can run their plates,” said Luke.
“That’d be pretty cool if you did. One of them might be our flashlight stalker.”
“Or not,” said Luke. “There were more vehicles here when we arrived. They might have taken off. Or if it was a kid, they might have ridden here on a bike.”
“I’m not so sure if Peerless has the kind of students who ride bikes. Maybe a golf cart. Or a Bentley.” I rubbed the gooseflesh on my arms. “You’re being awful helpful.”
Luke rocked back on his boot heels. “I don’t want you to think I’m a total dick. And I do want to make it up to you.”
“And it helps that this isn’t your case.”
“This isn’t a case at all.” Luke grinned. “But yeah, it helps a lot, sugar. You’ve given me a couple ulcers in the past, but this here has been fun.”
“Are we friends now, Luke?” I swung my gaze up. And found myself centered within dusky gray eyes staring back at me.
“We’re trying, sugar,” he whispered. “But it’s real hard when you look at me that way.”
Shit. He was looking at me that way, too.
Thoughts of Tara, family feuds, and squirrels fled my brain. A rush of heat invaded every cell in my body like the rumbling of a volcano ready to erupt. I felt barely cognizant of strolling up to Luke, my hand reaching to brush his bruised cheek, and he capturing my hand to place his lips against my palm.
I pulled in a breath as his lips feathered from my palm to my wrist, and down my arm to the crook of my elbow. His eyes met mine and I caught the wicked glint of steel that doused me in more fire, until I couldn’t breathe. I realized I held my breath and let it out in one long rush as Luke hitched me against his body. His hard planes met my soft, slight curves. His lips fell over mine and set to plunder and invade my mouth.
I was the defenseless village to his barbarian horde. And I had thrown open the village gates to give a welcome party. One of my hands curled to fist his ripped t-shirt and the other tangled into his luscious, soft curls. Luke’s hands slid lower to hike me harder against his body.
“Lord, I missed you.” Luke’s mouth fled my lips to anoint my neck with pledges and promises of what he’d like to do to the rest of my body. His hands slipped beneath my thighs, hoisted me up, and he began to carry me across the parking lot to his truck.
I wrapped my legs around his torso, closed my eyes, and tried not to think about anything other than Luke’s lips. And tongue. And hands.
Oh my Lord, his hands.
This was wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. My family was going to kill me. The town was going to scorn me. Tara would die of heartache.
My body told my brain to shut the hell up and just enjoy myself for once.
When my back bumped the side of his truck, Luke fumbled in his pocket for the keys. “Put me down, Luke.”
“Sure, baby.” He slid a kiss against my cheek and lowered me to the ground. “Just give me a second.”
I shook my head. “No, we’re not ready for this.”
“I beg to differ. That felt like we’re both pretty ready.” Luke forced a smile, but his eyes had tightened. “Don’t do this to us, Cherry.”
“Look where we are, Luke. We’re in a school parking lot. It’s no different than when we were kids. We haven’t grown up at all.”
He leaned forward, fitting his forehead against mine. “You’ve grown a little. You want me to show you where?”
I glared up at him. “You’re not helping.”
His grin popped a dimple, but his eyes remained sad. “I’m trying, sugar. I really am.”
“It’s not just you. I’m just as guilty.” I grabbed his hands and squeezed. “I can’t do this to Tara.”
“Tara? Tara is crazy. She created a whole relationship that never existed in her head.” Luke dropped my hands to grasp my shoulders. “Baby, what about us?”
“I don’t want to be with you just for our relationship to blow up in our faces again. You’re gasoline and I’m the match.”
His hands slid up and down my arms. “We just need to figure out how to keep that match from sparking. We can do it. I can’t get you out of my system, Cherry. Believe me, I have tried.”
“We have to work at this friendship and get to a place of stability first. Where our friends and family accept us, too,” I said, wondering when I started channeling Red’s TV psychology speak.
“Hell.” Luke stomped away from me to kick a tire. “Why does everything have to be so complicated? I just want to be with you.”
I slumped against his truck. “We just need some time. I don’t know abo
ut our families, but Tara will eventually get over you. And then the town will forget about it, too.”
“And when do you see that happening?”
“Well, considering Halo’s a small town with a long memory...”
“Screw that.” Luke pivoted, took two steps, and captured my face between his hands. His palms cupped my cheeks and one thumb stroked my bottom lip. “I’m not letting a small minded town and a psychotic woman get between us.”
“I don’t think Tara’s so much psychotic as very determined. She took her cheer team to All State finals four years in a row. Even when she had a broken ankle her junior year.”
“Listen, Cherry. I am going to explode here in a second. You make me nuts, but I’m crazy for you. Just shut that brain off for a minute and let me kiss you until we’re all better.”
“Okay,” said the drunk-in-love idiot girl. I tipped my face toward his, but a flash of movement caught my attention.
Damn my excellent peripheral vision.
Before Luke could lower his head, I had turned mine. Hopping on my toes, I leaned against his arm to see around his broad shoulders.
“Baby?” I said. “Why’d you think there’s someone running away from the school like their tail’s on fire?”
Nineteen
Luke jerked his head from mine, spun around, and trained his eyes in the direction of my point. In the distance, a teen sprinted toward a far corner of the parking lot, where a forested area grew as part of the “naturalizing” of the Peerless landscape.
“Looks like he came from behind the school.”
“I’ll get him and meet you back there,” Luke called over his shoulder, charging after the student.
I galloped onto the sidewalk. A moment later I heard the distant sound of an engine firing, but didn’t bother slowing to check. Rounding the corner of the auditorium, I passed the back theater door and continued down the sidewalk, cursing Peerless’s architect for choosing to spread out the structure instead of building something more compact.
DEATH IN PERSPECTIVE Page 15