Adam began to laugh. He couldn’t help it. The thought of someone like sensible Ellie Pierce shoving her way into the discount shoe barns that seemed to pepper the outlet mall landscape was laughable.
Ruby reappeared with their food. “I see the two of you are enjoying yourselves here at the Ozark Star,” she gushed as she made a big show of putting their plates on the table. “I’m hopeful you’ll be interested in filling out that survey card sitting between the jelly and the salt and pepper shakers. Please just put my name down as your server and let me know how I did for you this morning!”
“Ruby,” Adam said quickly. “I wondered if you could get a message over to Mr. Lightman for me? Can you tell him that Adam Cathcart wants to speak with him at his earliest convenience?”
Ruby’s smile seemed to freeze in place on her lips. She looked at Ellie and then she looked back at Adam. “Wait. Are you saying that you’re Adam Cathcart?”
“Yes, I’m Adam Cathcart.” Adam huffed out a little sigh. He was tired of this false fame he was currently experiencing thanks to Kari Jo’s success.
“You mean, you are Kari Jo Mounds’ manager?” Ruby’s voice was getting breathless and starting to climb up the octaves. “You’re her manager. You’re the one who got her the contract at the Star?”
“Yes.” Adam’s voice was a little sharper now. “That’s me. So, if you wouldn’t mind? Can you get the message to Mr. Lightman please? Sooner rather than later.”
“Oh. Right.” Ruby looked almost frantic. “Right away, sir. And if you need another act because—well you know, because Kari is going to Nashville like she says all the time, so if you need another act at the Star, you just let me know. I can sing and dance and I play the piano and the violin. I’m really versatile on stage—”
“Thank you, Ruby,” Adam said with a sigh. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Ellie was actually laughing to herself by the time Ruby left their table. She grinned up at him as she very carefully and neatly sliced her bacon and eggs before mixing the hash browns into the concoction with a precision probably not achieved by a culinary professional.
“What?” Adam prodded. He sliced a huge bite of pancakes for himself and stuffed them in his mouth. “Go ahead and say it. I can see you’re dying to comment.”
“I just couldn’t do it,” Ellie finally admitted. “There is no way I could tolerate all of that pandering and posturing and I don’t even know what else you might call it. That horrible thing where you are always inundated by people wanting you to make them into the next Kari Jo Mounds.” Ellie looked thoughtful. “Which, by the way, I’m a little surprised she didn’t change her name when she went into a music career. The last name Mounds is a little—well, strange comes to mind.”
“I think it’s her family that is adamant she keeps the Mounds. Kari Jo likes being called Kari Jo. She thinks it’s country edgy and unique. Everyone knows there is only one Kari Jo.” Adam could actually feel his eyes wanting to roll when he made that statement. “At least that’s what I’ve been told about a thousand times when I broach the topic.”
“Ah. Got it.” Ellie shrugged and carefully took a bite of her meal. She chewed thoughtfully and then swallowed, wiped her lips with the napkin she’d placed in her lap, and then finally spoke again. “I suppose we should just be grateful that is the only thing her mother insisted upon. I have to tell you that Rhiannon Mounds is my number one suspect.”
Adam pressed his lips into a line. “I figured she would be at the top of the list. It’s impossible not to think that. The woman is a walking, talking liability. I might even believe she could be capable of murder if she thought it would somehow skyrocket her to the top of the social media fame list.”
“That’s pathetic,” Ellie murmured. She’d just opened her mouth to say something else when a man appeared beside their table.
Adam was shocked to see that Harvey Lightman had come to them. Harvey did not leave his table at the Ozark Star Restaurant. He summoned others to come talk to him. This was weird and Adam didn’t quite know what to make of it.
“Adam!” Harvey said with false heartiness. “It’s so good to see you! And how is Kari Jo? I hope the girl is getting on fabulously. She’s such a talented singer. I know all of Branson is excited to see what comes next for Miss Kari Jo Mounds, but we will always remember she got her start at the Ozark Star Theater!”
Adam exchanged a glance with Ellie. There was no doubt in his mind that Lightman had his own agenda. Adam cleared his throat. “Actually, Harvey, Ms. Pierce and I were hoping you could do us a favor.”
“Oh? What’s that?” Lightman’s beady dark gaze narrowed. Harvey was a rotund, bald little man with a permanent snide twist to his lips. He wasn’t a pleasant person by nature and when he tried to fake it, the result was often disturbing. “How can we help you this morning?”
“Kari Jo has received some threatening letters and Ms. Pierce is with the private investigative firm we have looking into the issue.” Adam realized he was talking at light speed and tried to slow down and sound blasé. It wasn’t easy and probably totally unsuccessful. “I wondered if we could have a look at the credit card records for the last month to see if there are some repeated names that might offer some insight into who could be sending these letters.”
“What do credit card receipts have to do with letters?” Harvey asked flatly, all traces of joviality gone from his manner. “You need someone familiar with the mail.”
“No. The letters have been put on stage during the performances and wind up in her dressing room afterwards,” Adam explained. “That suggests the stalker is a customer.”
“I see.” Harvey cut a glance left and then right as though he were trying to decide who would know if he refused or not. Finally, he gave a little sigh and nodded. “I’ll message Margo and let her know you’ve got my permission to look at the audit trail. Please be discreet.”
“Thank you,” Adam told Harvey. He was more than a little surprised that Lightman had been so agreeable, which meant there had to be a catch somewhere. “We appreciate the help.”
Harvey gazed down at Ellie. “So, Rock Wolf Investigations is sticking its nose back into my business, is it?”
Ellie raised an eyebrow at Harvey. “I’m not sure what you mean by that, Mr. Lightman. Rock Wolf Investigations goes where the clients ask us to go. This is not a particularly large town and you seem to own or run a great deal of it. That means it seems rather inevitable that we will cross paths more than once or twice. Don’t you think?”
Lightman seemed to think that over. Finally, he shrugged and nodded. “I suppose you could be right. How is Mr. Dunbar and Ms. Houghton? I’m still waiting for Olivia to contact me so we can wrap up the Riley Saunders show. I want to move forward with the sale of the Moonrise as soon as possible.”
Adam could not imagine how any of this involved Ellie and he would have expected her to say as much. But she was evidently far more astute than most people would have been in her situation. “I’ll speak with Mr. Dunbar, Mr. Lightman. I hope you understand Olivia Houghton is very torn up about the death of her uncle, especially under such gruesome and personally devastating circumstances. I’m sure you can be compassionate and allow them a few days to grieve before you expect the business end of things to be tied up.” Ellie stared Lightman straight in the eyes. “Because you’re such an empathetic man who cares about his fellow man. At least that’s what I’ve heard around town. You have such a—pristine reputation.”
Lightman didn’t speak for a few moments and Adam thought Ellie might have overdone it. Then all at once he burst out laughing. Throwing his head back, he guffawed as though she had just told him the best joke ever.
When the laughter was done, Lightman smirked at Ellie. “Point taken, Ms. Pierce. I will expect you to relay the message to Ms. Houghton and Mr. Dunbar though, if you please?”
“I will certainly do that with all possible haste,” Ellie agreed. Then she nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Lightman. Your c
ooperation and help are very valuable in this case.”
Lightman’s brow furrowed just a bit and he glanced over at Adam. “They sure as hell better be.”
Adam didn’t speak. He did not breathe. He wasn’t even entirely sure what had happened. He just knew they needed to wrap this up quickly before it got even messier.
Chapter Seven
The conversation remained light and shallow as Ellie and Adam finished breakfast. Once it was over, Ellie made certain to pay the bill with her company credit card and then took the lead on the way back to the theater. Margo watched them walk back in through the front doors. She already had the audit trails on the counter waiting for them.
“I figured he would say yes,” Margo sniffed. She gave Ellie a sideways look as Ellie began to sift through the reports in an effort to decide what would be the best way to accomplish their task. “You’ll understand that I had to make sure though. Procedure and all that.”
“Of course,” Adam murmured. He was probably a lot nicer than Ellie would have been if she’d been the one to thank the snide Margo for her “help.” After all, it had been plain as day earlier that Margo didn’t believe Kari Jo Mounds deserved any help. In fact, you might say Margo was one of the people who thought Kari Jo deserved what she got.
“We’ll just take these to my office and then bring them back later today when we’re through making our own notes,” Adam explained to Margo.
Margo gave a dismissive shrug. “As you wish. Just have them back to me by the end of day. I still have to close out the month.”
Ellie scooped the reports off the counter and then followed Adam on a winding path back to his office. About halfway there, they stumbled upon a man who was muttering to himself in what appeared to be a staging area not far from Kari Jo’s dressing room and Adam’s office.
“Is that Ron Skaggs?” Ellie whispered to Adam.
Adam nodded as he inserted a key into his office doorknob. “Yes. That would be Ron. He has a pretty unorthodox way of getting ready to perform.”
Pretty unorthodox. Ellie couldn’t begin to imagine what preparations were occurring. The old man was shuffling back and forth in front of a leather sofa as he gesticulated wildly with his hands. There was a large and very elaborate puppet sitting on a chair as though it were the only audience the old man needed.
Ellie bit her lower lip and tried to decide how to proceed. She really needed to talk to this guy. He was likely a source of information. He was someone who was obviously around the theater on a regular basis and probably saw far more than anyone gave him credit for.
Thrusting the audit trail reports at Adam, Ellie gestured to Ron Skaggs. “I’m going to have a quick chat. I’ll be there to help with these in just a moment.”
“Uh. Okay.” Adam Cathcart looked annoyed. And come to think of it, when had she started to think of him as just Adam? That was entirely inappropriate.
“Mr. Cathcart, I just want to get as many interviews of staff and other employees as I possibly can. If he is around the stage when Kari Jo is performing, he might see something that the rest of us miss.”
Adam looked somewhat mollified. “I suppose you’re right. Just—just take what he says with a grain of salt. All right? He’s a very odd guy. Nice, but very odd.”
Ellie nodded. So far, she’d met nothing but odd people since this case began. Granted, she hadn’t been working it for very long. But so far, she had been nearly assaulted by a woman trying to treat her twenty-two year old offspring like a minor, and she had received veiled threats from a man universally recognized as a shrewd businessman and a bit of a shitty human being. Ellie could not wait to find out what was next.
“Um, Mr. Skaggs?” Ellie took a few hesitant steps into his practice area, if you could call it that. The green room area was very cluttered with props and other stage equipment. “Can I have a word?”
The old man spun around and gave her a strange look. He was obviously in his sixties or older. His hair was a shock of white that stuck up at all angles. His face was jowly and covered in white whiskers that matched his hair. He looked disheveled in his overalls with only one strap to hold them up and his pant legs rolled halfway up his calves. His flip flops seemed to top the whole outfit off. It was a very odd combination indeed.
“What can I do for you?”
His dark eyes were bright with intelligence. Interesting, maybe this is his stage costume. That thought explained a lot. Like why he seemed to look like a homeless person.
Ellie slowly extended her hand to him. “My name is Ellie Pierce. I work for Rock Wolf Investigations. We are investigating some threatening letters Ms. Mounds received over the last month or so. The letters are being handed to Ms. Mounds by an unknown person along with the regular flowers, candy, and stuffed animals she typically receives from her fans after her show is over.”
“You don’t say,” the old man murmured. His lips were turning into a very obvious looking smirk. Obviously, this was news to him, yet he didn’t seem all that surprised. “In my day, we would have called that girl a tease. A cock tease if you don’t mind my language, but a tease all the same. She’s forever getting the young bucks all revved up for no reason. The girl is the worst for that sort of nonsense.”
Ellie was a little aghast at this condemnation of Kari Jo’s moral fiber. Except, it really wasn’t a surprise. Ellie wondered how to turn the topic around just a bit. “I didn’t realize Kari Jo had quite so many boyfriends. Have you seen any of them get particularly violent or upset with her?”
“Eh?” The old man actually rolled his eyes. He picked up the puppet and fit his hand inside what was evidently a replica of himself. “I don’t know, Charlie Puppet Master, what do we have to say about Kari Jo’s boyfriends?”
Ellie was pretty sure she had slipped into an episode of “The Twilight Zone.”
“I’m sorry. Did you say you knew some of her boyfriends?” she asked Ron, hoping to avoid being answered by a puppet.
The puppet looked at Ellie through its frowning, thick fabric-jowled face. “That girl is no good!” The puppet’s voice sounded just a slight bit higher than Ron Skaggs’. “But it isn’t the boys you need to worry about. You should be worrying about Mr. Cathcart. He’s the bad one.”
“Excuse me?” Ellie drew back with no small amount of shock. Then she shook her head. “Mr. Skaggs, can I please talk to you and not the puppet? I’ll confess that I’m not used to interrogating a puppet.”
Ron Skaggs laughed. It was so weird. One second, he was a dotty old guy talking to a puppet as though he belonged in a mental hospital and the next second, he was a serious old man in a strange overall costume with a lucid look on his face.
“I’m sorry,” Mr. Skaggs told Ellie. “You’ll have to forgive me. I’m not used to having visitors back here when I’m getting ready for my show. I suppose there’s no doubt that trying to become a character actor comedian is strange work. Method acting, I believe they call it.”
“I wouldn’t know,” Ellie murmured. She was just relieved to be talking to a normal person. And an actual person for that matter. “But I would like to know more about what you just said of Mr. Cathcart. Are you trying to tell me he could be somehow involved in the delivery of these letters?”
“I’m just saying that Adam Cathcart isn’t what he seems,” Ron Skaggs said after a moment of thought. “Cathcart is a nice man, don’t get me wrong. But managing Kari Jo Mounds is no small feat. The girl is a pain in the behind, if you know what I mean. She leaves here with a different boy every night and she’s always quick to demand her due as a star, as she sees it anyhow. The girl is an insufferable snob. Yet Cathcart caters to her. That’s the problem. He needs to give her a swift kick in the pants.”
“Yes, but have you seen anything suspicious backstage?” Ellie pressed, desperate for any kind of actual evidence or even someone’s eyewitness account. “If you’re telling me she leaves with a different boy every night, you must be watching right?”
Skaggs lo
oked as though he didn’t want to say more. “There was this one kid. He’s a DJ, I think, or some other nonsense job that isn’t a job yet these youngsters call a career nowadays.” Mr. Skaggs looked disgusted. “A DJ. Can you imagine? I believe he works at one of the clubs in town. But mind you, most of them have live music. There’s plenty of that to be had here in Branson. So, you find the club that uses CDs so he can do his spin top table turning crap and that’s where you’ll find Kari Jo’s on-again, off-again boyfriend.”
“Thank you,” Ellie said honestly. “Do you happen to know his name?”
The old man made a face. “One of those ridiculous trendy new names. Aston Martin or some such nonsense like that.”
Ellie almost could not catch her snort of laughter in time. Aston Martin? It did sometimes seem as though names were getting more and more creative in ways that weren’t exactly understandable. “I appreciate your help, Mr. Skaggs. If you can think of anything that might help this investigation, please call me.” She held out her card.
The old man took her card and stared at it. “Oh. You work for Titus Holbrook?”
“Yes, I do.” Ellie was mildly surprised that Ron Skaggs knew Titus. Perhaps she shouldn’t have been. Titus traditionally knew a lot more people than you might initially think he did, considering he was an antisocial son of a bitch who wasn’t even from the area. “I’m one of four investigators working in his office.”
Ron Skaggs looked as though he were undecided for just a moment. His lips pursed and he seemed pensive in a way that had nothing to do with the current case. Then he finally made a face as though he had decided something. “Tell him that he needs to come and have a chat with me. I’ve seen some things when I’ve been out and about that might interest him.”
“Are they about this case?” Ellie demanded suddenly.
The old man frowned. “No, of course not. I’m not stupid. They have something to do with a case that Titus keeps an eye on. That’s all. Just tell him, will you?”
Rock Wolf Investigations: Boxset Page 29
