“To answer Tiara’s question, yes, this sort of thing has happened before and unfortunately, more than once. This studio seems to be some sort of target-practice site for budding young vandals.”
“Maybe you should move to a new neighborhood,” Seth said as they got out of the car.
Jack shook his head. “If history is to be believed, it’s not the neighborhood that’s the problem. My guess is that Taletha needs to start doing better background checks on her employees.”
Tiara gasped. “Do you think somebody who works here did this?”
Jack shrugged. “I’m not a professional investigator, but we’ve yet to have any vandalism that wasn’t performed by disgruntled employees or ex-employees. And I doubt anyone outside of the dance world is especially threatened by your presence here.”
“So basically, what you’re saying is that we’re unwelcome here.”
Jack wrapped his arm around Tiara. “I’m saying someone in particular doesn’t want you here, but I do. And so does Taletha, and so do a number of other people. Whoever did this will get caught, and they’ll be punished appropriately.”
“I bet it was Catherine,” Tiara mumbled.
Jack froze in his tracks. “What did you say?”
Tiara broke eye contact for a moment, but then looked Jack in the eye again. “I said I bet it was Catherine. She’s been nothing but rude to me ever since I arrived.”
“No,” Jack snapped, trying to control his anger. He knew that Catherine had been more than a little territorial lately and that she’d never warmed up to Tiara and Seth. But there was no way she would ever threaten them. “It’s impossible. I know you don’t like her, but you also don’t know her like I do. We’ve been partners for nearly ten years. I promise you, she’d never do a thing like this.”
“Who else could it be?” Seth asked. “Tiara’s right, Catherine is the only person who is consistently nasty to us.”
Jack shook his head. “I don’t know, but there’s no way it could be Catherine. She doesn’t have it in her to do something like this, and anyway, she loves the studio. She’s taught here longer than I have. There’s no way she could cause it physical harm.”
Tiara shrugged but seemed more dejected than convinced. “Maybe you’re right. You do know her better than we do.”
Walking into the main doors of the studio, they found Taletha talking to police officers near the front desk. She was nearly in tears and gripping the edge of the desk so hard that her knuckles had gone white. Although Jack wanted to rush up to her and figure out what was going on, he hung back in the corner, waiting until the officers dispersed to talk to other employees.
“Excuse me,” one officer said, approaching the trio. “I’m looking for Tiara Pryce and Seth Monroe.”
“That’s us,” Seth said, taking Tiara’s hand.
“If the two of you could please follow me, I have some questions for you.”
Jack watched the two of them disappear down the hall and then rushed to hug Taletha. “Do you know what happened?” he asked.
“I mean, besides the obvious? Not yet. Oh, except one thing.” She stopped, as though the information she had yet to reveal was too much to bear.
“Taletha, just tell me, please. I can handle it.”
“There was a note. The police are showing it to Tiara and Seth right now. It’s not in a handwriting I recognize.” Taletha paused again to gulp for air.
“Well? What does it say?”
“It’s a death threat. And an event threat, if someone could threaten an event. It says that if Tiara isn’t out of town by the day of the competition, every dancer at the event will get hurt. It doesn’t say anything about Seth, though, which is odd.”
Jack stood for a moment, dumbfounded. Finally, he managed to collect his thoughts. “Please tell me you have suspects.”
Taletha shook her head. “There’s nobody we can finger at this point and time, at least not with any definitive accuracy. Whoever did this has at least minimal knowledge of how to commit a crime. There aren’t any obvious staff suspects, either. Catherine has been pretty hostile, though. I think I’ll want to keep an eye on her.”
Jack felt his temper flare again. “Catherine wouldn’t do this.”
“I know it’s unlikely and that we can’t make any accusations without more solid evidence. But you have to admit her attitude is pretty suspicious.”
“Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty?”
“Jack, I don’t necessarily think she did it. I’m just saying that her behavior has been the most hostile, and it makes me wonder whether or not she might actually have done anything.”
“Catherine—”
Jack stopped as he saw Catherine and Callista walking through the door together. He didn’t want her to have any idea that such awful accusations were being leveled against her.
“Yes?” she asked as she approached the desk.
“Oh, I wasn’t actually addressing you. I was just, um, telling Taletha that she couldn’t rearrange our practice time again.”
“Good,” Catherine said. “It’s nice to know that our rehearsals have priority.”
“So what happened to the windows?” Callista asked.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Jack asked. “Someone with spray paint and a bad attitude.”
“I just can’t believe it,” Catherine said, shaking her head. “Who on earth would have so little respect?” She shrugged. “Well, I’m going to hit the locker room to change, and then Jack and I need to get to work.”
“Not so fast,” Taletha said. “Your practice is still scheduled, but you need to take a few minutes and talk to the police. Callista, too.”
“What?” Catherine snapped. “I just got here.”
“The crime didn’t occur in the past fifteen minutes. You’re going to need to tell them where you were last night.”
Catherine heaved a sigh that seemed bigger than her tiny body. “Fine. Just point me to some available cops so I can get this show on the road. I have work to do, and it doesn’t include chitchatting with the local law enforcement.”
She stalked off toward a free officer, but Callista hung back.
“What’s wrong?” Jack asked, eyeing Callista with suspicion. She wasn’t the first person he would have guessed to be capable of defacing the studio or threatening people. He’d been her instructor for several years, and she’d never given him reason to believe that she was capable of anything so cruel. In addition, she’d been excited when she found out that Tiara and Seth were going to be visiting instructors and had arranged for private lessons with them. There was no reason he could think of for her to be the culprit. Yet the way she was hanging back and looking guilty gave Jack cause for concern.
“Callista, is there something you need to tell us?” Taletha asked when she didn’t answer.
“I can’t talk to the police,” she said, her voice barely breaking a whisper.
“Why not?” Jack asked, clenching his fists in order to control his temper. Try as he might, he could not stop his mind from jumping to conclusions.
“I–I have an outstanding speeding ticket. More than one, actually. I’m going to get arrested if I talk to them.”
Taletha breathed a sigh of relief. “You’re fine. They’re not concerned about traffic violations right now. They won’t check up on that unless they have a reason to suspect you.”
“They don’t have a reason to suspect you, do they?” Jack asked, raising an eyebrow. He still didn’t trust Callista.
Callista shook her head. “I have an alibi. I was actually out at a social dance event, scouting for a new partner. There are people who can verify that I was there.”
“Go talk to them, then,” Taletha said.
“And if they give you any trouble, I’ll pay your parking tickets,” Jack said. “I’d rather have you at the studio than in jail.”
Callista smiled. “Thanks, Jack. I really appreciate it.”
“That was generous of you, especial
ly the way your eyes were shooting daggers a few minutes ago,” Taletha said once Callista was out of earshot.
Jack shrugged. “I really don’t think she’s capable of doing such a thing, and anyway, I’d feel bad if she got busted on a technicality.”
“You, the eternal rule-abider, would feel bad if someone got arrested for not paying their speeding tickets?”
Jack couldn’t help but grin. “I might have met someone who’s loosening me up a bit.”
“I’m glad. As much as I appreciate that I can always depend on you to not break the rules, it’s good to see you a little relaxed for once.”
“Jack! Hurry up!” Catherine, evidently done with the police, was standing in the main studio, tapping her toe in irritation.
“Duty calls,” Jack said with a grin. But before he could start his practice, shouts coming from Taletha’s office distracted his attention.
* * * *
Seth couldn’t believe what he was seeing. An angry-looking scrawl covered a crumpled piece of white paper. Although the note consisted of just two sentences, the large letters took up most of the page.
If Tiara isn’t gone by Saturday, all dancers attending the competition will be in danger. You have been warned.
“Who did this?” he snapped, thrusting the note back toward the police officer.
The officer shook his head. “I wish we knew. We don’t even have a solid suspect yet. But we’re questioning studio staff members right now. And of course, we’ll bring out extra protection for the two of you. Your hotel room will be guarded, we’ll dispatch some extra protection for the studio itself, and we can even assign you full-time bodyguards for the duration of your stay in town.”
“As in, people who follow us around?” Tiara asked.
“Exactly.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Seth said. “I think we’ll be leaving town. Preferably tonight.”
“What?” Tiara gasped. “No, Seth, we can’t.”
“Why not?”
She turned to the officers. “Would you mind giving us a few minutes of privacy, please? We have a few things we need to discuss.”
The officers stepped out, and Tiara turned to face Seth. “We are not leaving.”
“Why not?” Seth asked, trying to keep his cool.
“I don’t want to. You can take off without me, I guess. I won’t be able to compete, but I suppose I can sit on the sidelines for this one event. I am not giving up my teaching and judging duties, though.”
“Tiara, you can’t stay here. It’s not safe.”
“I’m not going to be a coward. I’m not going to let whoever wrote this stupid note push me around and drive me away. That’s exactly what they want, and I’ll be damned if I give in. So you can take off if you want, but you’re going to have to leave me here.”
“You’re being ridiculous,” Seth snapped, not caring that his voice was getting louder. “You’re putting your life at risk.”
“I’ll have the police protection,” Tiara replied, her tone rising to match his.
“Not good enough. You’ll be safest if you leave town.”
“I’m not leaving town!”
Seth paused, trying to understand why she was being so stubborn. “This is about Jack, isn’t it?”
“What?”
“This is about him. You found some guy, the three of us have a nice time in bed, and now you want to stay, even though you barely know him.”
“That’s not it!”
“I don’t believe you!”
“Fine! Don’t believe me! I don’t need you to believe me! I can do this myself.”
They both jumped as Taletha and Jack rushed through the door.
“What is going on here?” Taletha asked.
“Just a little disagreement,” Seth said, glaring at Tiara.
“When everyone in the studio can hear you, it’s more than a little disagreement. There’s already enough stress here this morning. I don’t need the two of you adding to it.”
“Seth wants to leave, and I don’t,” Tiara said.
Seth felt his face start to burn. As much as he wanted to keep Tiara safe, he also didn’t want other people getting involved.
Taletha sighed. “Look, I know the situation this morning was pretty bad. I won’t blame you if you want to take off. I hope you’ll both agree to stay on for the competition, but there won’t be any hard feelings if you decide you want to head back to Denver. I’ll even pay you your full fee for the week.”
“That’s very generous of you, but we’re staying,” Tiara said.
“Come on, we’re going to get paid either way. Let’s go back to Denver where nobody is out to kill us.”
Tiara rolled her eyes. “You’re being dramatic. I’m staying. I’m not capitulating to this person’s stupid demands.”
Seth sighed. As much as he wanted to get out of town, he wasn’t going to abandon his dance partner when her life was in danger.
“Fine, if you want to stay, we’ll stay.”
“I can assure you, you’ll have extra protection,” Taletha said. “This will not happen again.”
Jack took Tiara’s hand. “I’ll help, too. I’m not going to let anyone threaten people I care about.”
Seth took Tiara’s other hand and hoped that Jack made good on his words. He wasn’t sure he could trust anyone, even the man who had shared the woman he loved.
Chapter Seven
Tensions ran high at the studio for the rest of the afternoon. Even after the police had declared the area safe and set up an officer out front to keep an eye on things, everyone at the studio remained on edge. Taletha was more reserved than usual and had become prone to snapping at her staff. She was still on her best behavior with Tiara and Seth but was not as warm and friendly as she had been for the first few days of their visit. Students seemed shaken, as though they themselves had been the victim of the threats. Most of the other staff members kept their distance, as though Tiara and Seth were cursed.
“What is with you?” Seth snapped as he and Tiara neared the end of their rehearsal time.
Seth had spent the entire day storming around and glaring at everyone who dared to meet his gaze, which wasn’t doing much to inspire people to offer comfort or sympathy after the morning’s events.
This was their second rehearsal of the day. They’d tried to practice earlier that morning, but both were still so rattled that even their warm-up was off. Seth had been impatient and frustrated, and Tiara needed a break. They both took their free time to get out of the studio to clear their heads, agreeing to meet up again after their teaching duties were over.
Unfortunately, between the stress and the fact that Tiara refused to focus on Seth and his bad mood, even the practice had not gone well. As it had been earlier, the dancing had been mechanical, without any semblance of passion or artistry. They hadn’t been listening to each other’s bodies, and Tiara had struggled to follow even the most basic steps.
Tiara shrugged. “It’s been a long day.”
“There’s more to it than just that. I can tell. You won’t even look me in the eye.”
“Well, maybe if you weren’t acting like a jerk to everyone, I wouldn’t be trying to avoid you even while I have to share my personal space with you.”
“Me? Being a jerk?” Seth looked shocked. “I’m not being a jerk. I’m just pissed off.”
“You’re making everybody else miserable by displaying the chip on your shoulder with such pride.”
“I think I have every right to be angry considering what happened this morning. I’m surprised you’re not more upset. Those threats were leveled directly against you. How can you go around acting like nothing has happened?”
“I’m not acting like nothing has happened. I’m just as upset as you are, and I’m willing to acknowledge that. But I also have a job to do, and I’m not about to do poorly at it just because of a little vandalism.”
Seth snorted. “You’re not about to do your job poorly? What do you
want to call the waste of time that’s been the last hour? What about the disaster we had in the studio this morning?”
Tiara sighed. She knew he had a point. “Fine. I haven’t danced well in rehearsal. But I threw all my energy into teaching and tried to make all of my students feel comfortable, especially in light of this little incident. And it’s not like you have done particularly well at any aspect of your job today. So don’t get on my case. You’re just as responsible for this crappy practice as I am.”
Now it was Seth’s turn to sigh. “You’re right. I haven’t been on my best behavior today by any stretch of the imagination.”
They heard a throat clear behind them. Turning around, they saw Jack, looking slightly nervous. Although earlier he had been insistent on being her protector, Jack had grown increasingly distant as Seth continued to project anger to everyone in the building.
“I couldn’t help but overhear the two of you.”
“I bet nobody in the studio could help it,” Tiara said with a sigh. She hated arguing in public and resented Seth for bickering with her in the middle of the floor.
Jack gave her a small smile. “Don’t worry about it. Nobody really cares. All pros have arguments in the middle of practice from time to time. It comes with the territory.”
“I still don’t like it.”
“Neither do I, but it happens. Anyway, I wanted to offer to take the two of you somewhere nice for dinner. I think we’ve all earned an extravagant meal after the stress of the day.”
“That sounds great,” Tiara said.
Seth glanced at the clock. “We still have ten minutes left in our practice time.”
“Were we really going to accomplish anything in those ten minutes other than squabbling?”
“You have a point.”
Tiara and Seth hurried to change out of their practice clothes, and then the three of them piled into Jack’s car. Tiara caught her breath when he pulled into an expensive-looking French establishment.
“Jack, are you sure you can afford this?”
“I wouldn’t have offered if I couldn’t. Come on, enjoy a nice meal. Don’t worry about it.”
Jordan, Olivia - Tiara's Foxtrot Fantasies [Studio Seductions 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 7
