Reel Sharpe

by Jenna Baker

The next morning, I was sitting next to my sister in a spa chair while a woman did my fingernails and a man did my toes. My mother had only mentioned the manicure part, so I had foolishly worn a short sundress. Now I was sitting with my legs spread and a man kneeling at my feet putting various lotions on my calves. The spa had given me a towel to drape over my legs for privacy, and my sister and all her bridesmaids couldn’t stop laughing at my poor choice of wardrobe. I hadn’t remembered to shave my legs either, and I cringed every time the man ran his hands up and down them. I figured I would stop home after my hair appointment and before the rehearsal for a quick shave.

  The orange spray tan had completely faded off my skin, and I was back to looking like a human corpse. I would have liked a little color on my nails to offset my pale skin, but Ginny wanted everyone to have white French tips.

  Our next stop was the hair salon, where they practically dipped my face in makeup and pulled my hair every which way to make the perfect updo. The makeup artist told me it would require a bit of extra work to cover up the bags under my eyes, but she felt up to the challenge.

  In the end I looked pretty good. I mean, I was wearing more makeup and hairspray than I could have ever imagined and was on the verge of resembling a drag queen, but the photos would turn out nicely. I checked my watch and saw that I had just enough time to run home and shave my legs before the rehearsal began. Plus I wanted to grab my Spanx, which I had also forgotten. I knew my dress would be tight, and I didn’t want to take any chances that it wouldn’t fit.

  I sped up the 405 at a cool twenty-three miles per hour and got home forty-five minutes later. I parked the car underground and raced upstairs to my apartment. On the way, I checked my voicemail but no one had called. It was all for the best – today was not the day to get interrupted by work.

  I put the key in my front door, turned the knob and walked in to see Rose sitting on my couch. “Huh!” I cried out.

  She was dressed in a strapless black dress with red high heels. Her hair was down and covered up some of her bulging cleavage, but not much. Her eyes were rimmed with eyeliner, and although it looked like she had spent some time putting her look together, she also looked very tired.

  “I hope you didn’t get all dolled up on my account,” Rose said, smiling.

  “How did you get in here?” I demanded.

  “I nailed your landlord.” Rose smiled.

  “We’ve been looking for you.”

  “I know.”

  “Kitt’s dead.”

  “I know.”

  I whipped out my cell phone and started to dial Reid.

  “What are you doing?” Rose asked.

  “I’m calling the cops.”

  “No, don’t do that!” Rose said, jumping up. She took the phone from my hands and ended the call before it began. “I need to talk – but not to them.”

  “To who, me? I thought you hated me.”

  “I do, but you’re the only one I can trust.” Rose handed me back my phone and ran a hand across my cheek. “Can we talk, please?” she asked sweetly. I wasn’t gay, but I was getting a little turned on– Rose just oozed sex.

  “Rose, this is really bad timing. My sister is getting married today and I just came home to shave my legs.” I felt very stupid for telling her that, but the words had come out and I couldn’t take them back now.

  Rose looked down at my legs and then back up to me. “I’m next, I know it. They’re going to come for me.”

  She looked like she was close to tears. I knew I only had seven minutes to get back on the road if I wanted to be on time and didn’t know what to do.

  “All right, come with me.” I led Rose into the bathroom and sat her down on the toilet. I returned a moment later wearing a pair of boxer shorts. I placed one leg on the counter, lathered it up and started shaving. I mean we were both girls, right? “Why don’t you start from the beginning,” I said.

  “No, I’m not ready to talk.”

  “Then why are you here? I don’t have time for this, Rose.”

  “I told you, they are coming after me!” she said, standing up. “It’s too bad you forgot to shave for three weeks, but my life is being threatened!”

  “It hasn’t been three weeks! Besides, the only people after you are the cops. We all know you did it, Rose, it’s obvious!” I suddenly realized that I was yelling at a killer. I hadn’t even frisked her and I was holding a razor. How did I know she wasn’t going to turn on me and make me her next victim?

  “Is that what you think? That I did this to two men I loved?”

  “Pretty much.” I nicked my leg shaving and the blood started running down. I saw Rose’s eyes focus on the blood and I panicked that the sight of it might send her into a killing frenzy. I froze and stared at her.

  “You dumb bitch, I’m not gonna hurt you,” Rose said.

  Ordinarily being called a bitch was a real hot button for me. I’d been known to fly off the handle very easily once that word was uttered. In this case, however, I decided to let it go. Instead, I posed a question. “If you didn’t do it – who did, Rose? You’re the only suspect we have in the case.”

  “I can’t tell you. They’ll kill me – but it wasn’t me, I promise you that.”

  I switched to the other leg and lathered it up. “Why don’t you talk to the cops? They’re good guys, honestly.”

  “No,” Rose said.

  “So what do you want me to do?”

  “I need a place to hide out, one they wouldn’t think to look,” Rose explained.

  “Well, they certainly won’t think to look at a wedding reception. You’re going to have to come with me. I don’t want them finding you and shooting up my apartment.”

  I wiped off my legs, changed back into my dress, and the two of us headed out the door.

  Rose and I hopped in my car and headed back over to the West Side. The temperatures outside were nearing ninety, and we were starting to sweat.

  “Don’t you have AC in this thing?” Rose asked.

  “You don’t need AC when you’re in a convertible.”

  “Then put the top down.”

  “I can’t mess up my hair, I’m sorry,” I explained as a bead of sweat dropped down the back of my neck.

  “Big shot producer and you’re driving around in this piece of shit.”

  “We can’t all make our money smuggling people across the border.”

  Rose turned her head slowly and glared at me. If the heat wasn’t making me sweat, her stare certainly was. My phone chirped and I jumped. “Saved by the bell.” I pulled my cell phone out of my purse. I could see that Reid was calling. “Hi, honey,” I answered.

  There was a lot of silence on the other end, but finally he spoke. “Um, hi, babe.”

  “Don’t be late for the wedding tonight,” I said, hoping he would catch on. “The rehearsal starts in an hour and you should really be there.”

  “What? Sharpe, this is Reid you’re speaking to.”

  “Yes, I know that,” I said smiling. “Do you have the address of the hotel or should I give that to you?”

  “Are you drunk?” Reid asked.

  “I’m starting to think you are,” I said still smiling. “Rose, can you grab me a napkin out of the glove box?”

  Rose gave me a dirty look but managed to pull out a tissue for me .

  “Thanks, Rose,” I said, blotting my forehead.

  “Rose is with you?” Reid asked, finally getting it.

  “The address is 407 Ocean Front Walk. I’ll see you soon, and remember to wear a suit, okay?”

  With that, we hung up. “Who was that?” Rose demanded. “That dumbass cop you say you’re not nailing? I told you no cops.”

  “I’m not involved with him. That was my date on the phone.”

  “Oh, really?” Rose asked suspiciously. “Where’d you meet?”

  “At the tanning salon. He gave me a spray tan and we really hit it off.”

  “Uh-huh.” Rose relaxed a little bit more into her seat.
I had hoped that she would open up to me, but she remained silent for the rest of the trip. I didn’t know what I was going to do with her during the wedding and how I would keep tabs on her. She was dressed like a prostitute, and I had no intention of bringing a potential murderer or murder victim into my sister’s wedding. I figured Reid would know what to do, and I was so glad that he had called.

  I had to acknowledge that my little run-in with Reid before I left the station wasn’t entirely embarrassing. I actually wouldn’t have minded it if we hadn’t had an audience present. I smiled as I thought about him and wondered what he would look like in his suit.