by Paula Lester
“She gave me the picture you found in my tent along with a crisp Benjamin. Said all I had to do was say I saw that guy on the beach the night of the murder. I studied it real good so the artist could make a good drawing, but I decided to come clean in the end. Didn’t want more trouble than usual with the department.” Old Pops sat up straighter and narrowed his eyes directly at Paige. “I told the cops this already, and they said I could keep the money.”
Paige shrugged—she didn’t care about that. She only wanted to know about the woman in the sedan. And one other thing. But before she could ask any more questions, Gypsy returned to the table and plopped down in a chair. “So,” she said. “Did you meet Mr. Dark-and-Handsome yet?”
Paige glared at the fortune teller. “No, and if he doesn’t show up, I expect a refund.”
Gypsy snorted. “Sorry, honey, that money’s long gone already.” She crossed her legs, kicking a pink-booted foot around lazily.
Pops got up and crossed to the bathroom, which was next to the coffee table. Feeling irritated at the interruption, Paige grabbed her mug and followed him, stopping for a refill. When Pops stepped back out, she rushed toward him, forcing him to back up into the bathroom without actually touching him. When the door latched behind her, she turned and locked it.
Paige realized she’d never been in Just Baked’s bathroom before. There were two stalls, and she quickly tapped both doors open to be sure they were empty. The décor was about as girly as it could possibly be. Everything, including the floor, walls, and counters, was done in black and white, and hot-pink items like picture frames and a vase of flowers provided a nice, fresh accent. But Paige knew she couldn’t keep Pops locked in there forever, so she brought her attention back to him. “What about the axe?” she said without preamble. “Did someone give that to you too? Maybe the same floppy-hatted woman visited you twice?”
But Pops shook his head. He narrowed his eyes and blustered like when he’d been angry at her and Lucy for entering his tent. “I don’t have to answer these questions. I’m a free citizen. Let me out.”
Paige shrugged and stepped to the side. “That’s fine.” When he took a step toward the door, she added, as though she’d just thought of it, “Oh, did you know Detective Scott Murphy is my brother? Maybe I need to talk to him again about that Benjamin of yours. It’s evidence, really, when you think about it.”
Pops didn’t look at her or say anything, but he stopped moving.
She made her eyes a little wide and fluttered the lashes. “I just wouldn’t want my brother to get in trouble for not doing a thorough job.” Paige pulled her phone out of a pocket. “Yeah, I’ll just give him a call.”
Pops’ shoulders slumped. “Fine.” He glared at her again. “I’ll tell you.” Then, shaking a forefinger at her, he said in a rush, “Because I didn’t do anything wrong, you hear me? Nothing at all.”
Paige cocked her head and pressed her lips together.
Old Pops drew a deep breath and then talked fast. “I found the axe in the parking lot at the beach bar next to somebody’s car. I thought maybe I could pawn it, so I nabbed it. Somebody obviously didn’t want it anymore. Really, it was just lying around waiting to get rusty. Anyway, I had it with me when I tripped over the dead guy on the beach.”
Pops shifted his feet from side to side and looked down. When he continued, his voice was softer and Paige leaned in to hear him. “I’m not proud of it, but I set the axe down so I could check the guy’s pockets. I thought he’d just tied on one too many and was sleeping it off. So many celebrities around town that day, I thought he might have enough money on him that he wouldn’t miss a little of it. When I touched him, I figured out he wasn’t sleeping. He was stiff and soaking wet.”
Pops gave her a hard look and continued. “I’ve been hearing lately about how the zombies are going to come for us all sometime soon. An apocalypse, you know? Some of the folks who live at the Camp have some funny ideas like that, and to be honest, I’d thrown a few back myself that night, so that’s where my thoughts went. I didn’t know if the stiff was a zombie or if he got killed by one who was still around. Either way, I wanted to get out of there. I guess I forgot the axe.” As he finished, he peered at Paige. “You don’t think I killed him, do you?”
Paige shook her head. She hadn’t had Lucy there to sniff out whether he was lying, but the baker had indicated he was telling the truth about the person in the sedan, so she didn’t figure he was lying about the axe either. “So you really have no idea what the woman in the alley looked like?”
He shook his head. “Nope.”
Paige unlocked the door and let Pops out without another word. She turned to check the mirror, wondering if the bags under her eyes would let on to the day’s customers how little she’d slept the night before. The woman in the mirror gave her a small smile as Paige realized that Old Pops had kept a killer from going scot-free. If he hadn’t dropped that axe at the scene, Cash’s death might have been chalked up to an accidental, drunken drowning instead of the murder it was.
Chapter 19
Tuesday morning was slow at the bookstore. Actually, there were a number of customers, but it was pretty obvious most of them were looking for Jordan. They left when it was clear the actor wasn’t there. Paige knew Jordan was spending most of his day rehearsing for the play, so after she locked the shop, she walked three blocks down the boardwalk along the beach to the Wave Crest Theater to see him.
The building was old and regal, decorated in the style of an old Victorian theater, with lots of gold leaf, over-the-top chandeliers, and carved mahogany. It didn’t hold a huge audience, but there were about two hundred seats including the balcony. Paige slipped into the back of the main section and sat in an aisle seat to watch the actors rehearse.
Jordan was onstage with two women, having a rapid-fire back-and-forth conversation. It sounded like the big scene in which the characters worked out a love triangle. Paige got the feeling Jordan’s character would be losing both women. But then silence fell over the theater. The actresses looked expectantly at Jordan, but he didn’t say anything. His forehead wrinkled and his mouth worked a few times, but then his shoulders slumped and he dipped his head. “Line?”
Someone off-set mumbled a line to Jordan, which he repeated halfheartedly. A woman from the front row seats clapped her hands. “Let’s break for a few hours for lunch. We’ll pick back up after the auction. I assume most of us want to go see what happens.”
Paige stood and wandered up the aisle toward the stage until she caught Jordan’s eye. He exited stage left and came through a door adjacent to the orchestra pit, approaching her at a slow pace.
“You look tired this morning,” Paige observed. “Is everything okay?”
“I didn’t sleep well last night. Lines kept running through my head, and when I finally did fall asleep, I dreamed I was onstage for opening night and forgot everything. I just stood there with the theater lights baking my head, sweat rolling down my face and smearing my stage makeup, gaping like a fish.”
Jordan looked miserable, and Paige leaned forward and squeezed his arm.
“The dream woke me up and then I tossed and turned the rest of the night. The crazy business with my new agent is really messing with me focusing on the play.”
“I got some interesting news yesterday.” Paige thought maybe a change of subject would cheer Jordan up. “Did Didi or Scott tell you about Audrey?”
Jordan shook his head. “I turned my phone off after I talked to you last night. I thought if I blocked everything and everyone out, I could focus on my play better. What’s up with Audrey?”
Paige remembered her brother’s request to keep the news about Audrey under wraps. But he’d said not to say anything last night. She looked at Jordan’s mournful but expectant expression. She figured it wouldn’t hurt to say something now. “She got picked up by the police yesterday and ended up providing an airtight alibi for both you and Vanessa. She also took a deal to disappear from your life
in exchange for not being sent to LA to face charges for violating your restraining order.”
“Hey, some good news!” Jordan smiled, and Paige realized it was the first time she’d seen his dimples in a while. She couldn’t help but smile back. Then she sobered. “And Cash was probably drowned, not killed with an axe. Turns out the coroner is a nearly blind elderly gentleman who is a barber, not a doctor.”
Jordan’s eyebrows shot up under his hairline. “Seriously?” At Paige’s nod, he mumbled, “Maybe Didi’s right. This place is kind of Podunk.”
“Speaking of Didi, I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night either. I had an idea about finding some dirt on her. You know, something we can use to convince her to let you out of the contract and leave you alone. I searched the internet for a few hours, trying to pull up something negative about her.”
Jordan straightened and leaned toward her. “Did you find something?”
Paige sighed, the corners of her mouth pulling downward. “Not really. Turns out, if there is dirt on her, she’s managed to keep it under wraps pretty well. I found out she was a track star in high school, got a scholarship for college, and then went to law school. She’s called the Shark in talent agency circles because she’s known to circle around actors whose careers are bleeding out and dying.”
Paige realized what she’d said too late and winced. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say that your career is circling the drain.” She winced again. Lack of sleep wasn’t helping her in the tact department.
But Jordan shrugged it off with a smile. “Yeah, she also has a reputation of sleeping with her clients to gain leverage to manipulate them with. I wasn’t thinking clearly enough when I signed her contract—I guess I saw dollar signs and felt desperate. Now I’m worried if I don’t go to LA, her next trick will be to start coming on to me.”
Paige wrinkled her nose at the thought.
Jordan chuckled. “At least when my mom was my agent, I didn’t have to worry about that particular kind of treachery.”
Paige snorted. “Well, maybe there’s something about that manipulation technique of Didi’s that we can use to blackmail her with. If you think of anything, let me know.”
“Jordan!” They both turned toward the back of the theater. Vanessa Flowers was there, hurrying toward them. She looked positively elegant in a flowy, calf-length yellow sundress with a diving neckline. Her hair fell past her shoulders in perfectly arranged curls, and her makeup was so perfect it looked like it had been tattooed on. “You look beautiful,” Paige said when Vanessa got close. She had to crane her neck to gaze up at the tall actress.
“Thank you. My trick is always getting at least eight hours of beauty sleep every single night.”
“Ah. Well, it’s too bad Jordan didn’t get that much last night. He’s struggling today.”
“I was worried about my lines and couldn’t sleep,” Jordan explained.
Vanessa nodded, an understanding expression on her face. “I used to be the same way until I got my magic sleep-in-a-bottle pills from the doctor. Now I don’t ever have a bad night’s sleep.”
Paige glanced at Jordan. “Maybe you should try that.”
“I have. I’m always sick the next day when I take them, though. It sort of ruins any benefit I get from the decent night’s sleep.”
Vanessa stepped closer to Jordan. “Did you hear the great news? We’ve been cleared of Cash’s murder.” When Jordan nodded, Vanessa continued. “I’m heading out of town right after the auction this afternoon. I’m renting a car to take to Houston and then flying to LA. Once the medical examiner is done, Cash’s family will be having a memorial service there, and I don’t want to miss it. You’re coming too, right?”
Jordan shook his head. “I’m afraid to go to Los Angeles. Didi might find a way to make me stay once I get there.”
Vanessa’s perfectly shaped eyebrows knit together. “Didi Lambert? What does she have to do with anything?”
Jordan heaved a deep sigh. “I signed a contract with her. She’s my agent now, but I really wish I hadn’t hired her. She wants me to quit my job at Beachside Books and the play and head to LA for a bunch of auditions. You know how much I need this play. The last director I worked with said it was the best thing I could do to improve my craft . . . and my memory.”
The last thing Paige expected was for Vanessa to stomp her pump-clad foot and clench her fists, but that’s what the actress did. Her face darkened, and her eyes looked like their gaze might pierce a hole right through Jordan. “You signed a contract with that lying, cheating slimeball? She tricked you into it, didn’t she?” Vanessa stomped her foot again.
“What experience do you have with Didi?” Paige asked carefully, not wanting to become the focus of Vanessa’s fury.
“Cash fired her as his agent shortly before he died. She managed his money as it came in for a few years, and he discovered she was skimming off the top—taking five to ten percent that he never even knew about. Cash didn’t look at the contracts she drew up for his movies—he just trusted her and signed them.”
Paige nodded, encouraging Vanessa to go on.
“The nasty woman planted the story about me cheating on Cash in the tabloids to get back at him for firing her.” Vanessa looked down at her feet and when she spoke again, her voice was quieter. “The night Cash was killed, when we were at the beach bar, he admitted to me that he’d been sleeping with Didi. But he said it was over and he hadn’t done it in more than a month.” She leaned toward Jordan, her forehead wrinkled. “I didn’t tell you because it didn’t matter to anyone but me and Cash. I wanted to protect his reputation.”
Jordan nodded and caught her hand in his. “I understand.”
“I did love him.” Vanessa’s voice was tense and sad. Her eyes glistened.
Paige felt bad for the beautiful woman, but her mind was whirling a million miles an hour. This was exactly what she and Jordan needed. It was their ticket to getting Didi off Jordan’s back.
“Thank you for your help,” Vanessa was saying to Jordan. “I hope you get out of your contract with Didi so you can do what you want.” She glanced around. “And I hope I never see this town again.” She hugged Jordan tightly and turned and left the theater.
“Since the director said we can break until after the auction, do you want to get lunch or something?” Jordan asked.
But Paige shook her head. “There’s something else we need to do. Come on. We can take your Jeep.”
Chapter 20
Paige’s mind whirred with the sound of the engine as they drove over to the Devine Hotel. Her nose tickled and she reached up to scratch it. It was probably from cat hair. She sure hoped she wasn’t becoming allergic. She’d grown to love that crazy Casper.
Jordan pulled the Jeep Cherokee smoothly into a parking spot right in front of the hotel. “Why are we here?” He seemed a little nervous about being at Didi’s hotel.
“Vanessa gave us the dirt we need to get Didi off your back,” Paige explained, turning slightly toward Jordan in the seat. “She was sleeping with Cash and fed the tabloids the false story about Vanessa cheating on him. She stole from Cash. If Hollywood finds out about that, no one will want to sign her as their agent again. I’m sure she’ll let you out of your contract to keep all those future clients.”
Jordan bobbed his head slowly. “I suppose . . .”
“It’ll work. You’ll see. Come on, let’s go find her.” Paige jumped out of the Jeep, and Jordan followed her into the lobby of the four-star hotel.
A young woman with a severe blond bun on the back of her head stood behind the counter. The hairstyle made her look older than she probably was. Maybe that was her intention. She looked up at Jordan and Paige and smiled radiantly. “Welcome to the Devine Hotel. Do you have reservations?” Then her jaw dropped open, and she bounced up and down on her toes a few times. “Wait! You’re Jordan Rake.” She squealed, continuing to bounce up and down and clap her hands together. “You’re my absolute favorite. I’ve watch
ed every single thing you’ve been in and always read anything I can get my hands on about you.” She spoke in an excited rush, and Jordan smiled back at her, turning on all of his actor charm and showing his dimples.
Paige chuckled. This was just what they needed. A fan.
“I had no idea you were in town, though,” the receptionist continued. “I guess I wasn’t watching the papers as closely as I usually do. It’s been so darn busy at the hotel that I’ve been working overtime and haven’t really had a moment to even get online. I’m so excited you’re here. Do you need a room?”
Jordan shook his head.
Paige read the young woman’s nametag and turned on her own charm. “Sophie, wouldn’t you like a picture with Mr. Rake?”
“Boy, would I!” She handed her phone to Paige. Jordan leaned in and she snapped the photo. Handing the girl back the phone, Paige said, “Actually, we’re hoping to surprise someone who’s staying here. We don’t have a room number, though.”
Jordan picked up smoothly where Paige left off. “I really want to surprise her. She doesn’t know I'm in town, either, and we haven’t seen each other in a while. We’re old friends. Could you tell us which room she’s in? Her name is Didi Lambert.”
“I don’t recognize the name but let me look it up for you.” Sophie’s fingers flew across the keyboard in front of her and she studied the monitor closely. Frowning a bit, she punched more keys and studied the screen again before glancing up. “I don’t see anyone here by that name. But, you know, I’ve learned this week that lots of show business people register under assumed names. It helps keep the paparazzi away from them. Maybe your friend Didi did that?”
Paige and Jordan exchanged looks, and Paige pulled the phone out of her purse, quickly punching Didi’s name into the search engine. When she held the screen up for Sophie to see, recognition flooded the young woman’s face.
“Oh, yeah. I know her. She’s registered as D. Spielberg.” Her fingers flew across the keyboard again while Paige choked back a laugh. Apparently, Didi wasn’t averse to the Shark nickname she’d been given by other agents, embracing it by using the Jaws director’s last name as an alias when she checked into hotels in small towns. Sophie drew Paige’s attention back. “She checked in on Thursday afternoon and is in room 254.”