“Thank you for your kind offer, but I’m not going to be available much longer. I’m retiring from all this glamor and settling into a restaurant of my own.”
“I’m sure you can at least discuss options with us?” he persisted.
“I don’t travel, Mr. Karas.”
“Did I say travel, Miss … I’m sorry I didn’t get your last name?”
“Starvling, sir.”
“We live in a digital world, Ms. Starvling. I am quite sure that physical presence holds no barriers to the willing. And, I assure you, I can make it well worth your time.”
“You don’t even know if I’m good.”
Asa tapped his finger against his head. “First impression. It’s always the best. You are young enough to be successful at something few conquer. Enough so to allow you to retire at an age when others wonder where their future lies. Now you want to open the kind of restaurant that meets your requirements. You are unique. A go-getter who will settle for nothing less than absolute perfection. Otherwise, you would stop and watch the broadcast. But it’s more important for you to please your client. Not for their sake, but for yours.
Asa reached up and ran his finger along the brim of her hat. “And you have style, if not a flair for the dramatic. An asset in your line of work. Am I correct?”
Hannah said nothing for a second. Instead, she finished ticking off additions to her Asa mental file. Intelligent. Determined. Deductive. Probing. Manipulative. Untrustworthy. The last one was her second impression of Asa. “Pretty much,” she confessed.
“Then we’ll talk?”
“As you wish.”
As the personal conversation ended, the groups parted ways. Hannah watched as Asa, Jazlyn and Miller disappeared into the elevator.
“What the…” Cate exclaimed.
“Later.” Looking around, though she saw no cameras, she whispered, “Audio is easy to hide and more likely to be where cameras are not.” The three then entered Vera’s office and ‘chatted’ about nothing for the next hour.
From Vera’s office, Hannah could just see the parking lot and know when most of the cars had left. By around 5:20, the majority had exited. “I think it’s time,” she announced. With that, Vera led the way up to the apartments. She chose the one further from Jazlyn’s for the women to hide out in. After letting them in, Hannah suggested Vera exit back down to the lobby to make an appearance without her guests. “They’ll think we left some time during the afternoon exodus,” Hannah explained. “When you’re done, go back to your apartment and wait for my call.”
“Good luck,” Vera said. “And please, be safe.” With that, she departed.
In the meantime, Hannah and Cate waited in the plush, furnished apartment.
“So what was all that with Asa earlier?” Cate asked
“I think he wants to get closer to me to analyze the situation. He first meets me with his dead wife’s long lost friend. Then he sees me with her protégé. We share a common background. If he is the control freak we think he is, he not only wants to know what I’m up to, he’s got to. It’s an obsession.”
“We still have no idea what this is all about, do we?”
“No. All we have are suspects, theories and a confirmed cover up. Frustrating.”
Around 5:40, they heard someone enter from the elevator. Then came the undeniable voice of Jazlyn and that of another male. As far as Hannah could tell, it was neither Asa nor Miller.
Cate rolled her eyes and whispered, “She’s got more studs than a horse farm.”
The comment almost made Hannah laugh out loud, and she just aborted the noise by biting her own tongue. Ten minutes later, Jazlyn and her companion left.
“Ten minutes?” Cate with sarcasm. “Just ten?”
Hannah punched her in the arm. “You’re incorrigible.”
At 6:55, Hannah decided the time had come to get to Julia’s old kitchen set to try the key. “If you’re going to back out, now’s the time. Speak now or forever hold your peace.”
“No comment.”
“By technicality, that’s speaking.”
“Just get on with it.”
As they made their way down the stairwell, checking for cameras, Hannah was thinking over the case. Since she was working in an unofficial capacity, if she found evidence, she would need someone to turn it over to. The problem was how to find someone at the local police department. Either Miller or Asa bought off the former county medical examiner. Perhaps both. Who else on the force might be part of this? Having met Alexander Borg, whom she trusted, she could turn to him to recommend a reliable officer still working.
Dodging cameras like pros, the two made their way down to the level housing Julia’s old set. The entire floor was dark, except for the light pouring in from the stairwells they had utilized. They could just make out the security cameras. Once they had the timing of the movement down, they began their attempt. They crept along the walls, shifting positions to avoid camera angles, finding spots where it was coverage overlapped was a great relief.
Reaching Julia’s old studio, they slipped into the pitch-black room. The whole enterprise was intriguing and frightening to both women. On the one hand, the darkness assured no camera visibility. On the other, it made things more worrisome. A sudden burst of light from the small flashlights they brought along might activate them, giving the two away.
After a second of whispered discussion, both agreed on a course of action. They would feel their way over to the set and try to do the deed blind, as it were. Much to Hannah’s surprise, it took just a few minutes to complete the feat. The real struggle came with getting the key in the lock and for a moment, there was some concern that it might not be the right one. But after Hannah failed to get it to work, Cate took a final shot and managed to work the case open. Feeling around inside the box, Hannah came up with a single item, a large envelope. She passed it over to Cate, closed the safe, replaced the utensil organizer, and closed the drawer. Then they made their way out the door again. They retraced their steps out and back up to the apartment. Although the whole affair had taken just twenty minutes to finish, it felt like hours. Now, they had to face their next big challenge. Escaping.
Chapter 13
When Hannah and Cate slipped back into the apartment, it was just 7:32 p.m. From their discussion with Vera earlier, they knew that there would be just one security guard for the evening. The studios were not Fort Knox, and Zebulon was not located in some high-risk city like New York. In fact, Vera had mentioned under employment of the studio security staff. No one had ever broken into the studio. She was not even sure if anyone had ever tried. All Asa’s precautions were to meet his overreaching control issues. Thus, the exit strategy was simple. After giving Vera a call, she in turn would phone the guard at the front desk and ask him to check her office to see if she had left her home keys there. Vera knew from the pre-show prep plans that the on-duty guard for the night was Malcolm Bernard. She also knew that he would perform, without question, any tasks she asked of him. It seemed that, like all men, Bernard was not immune to the effects of a ‘crush’. The routine route for checking the studio as well as the location of Vera’s office meant he would take the foremost stairwell. Hannah and Cate, in turn, would take the rear stairwell and exit as the two passed on opposite sides of the building. The front lobby door would be open for runners making their way from the broadcast area to the equipment rooms in the studios. Everyone else would be at the event, in most part at the insistence of Asa. It was another show of his control, power, and status.
The plan went almost perfectly. There was a slight moment of pause as one of the runners entered the lobby just as Hannah and Cate were exiting. But after holding the door for them, he darted on in, passing the guard desk, and disappeared into the back. He never questioned their presence. Once they were out of the building, Hannah grinned. “Act like you belong and you do.”
They made their way down to the event area some half mile by foot, arriving just about the ti
me the broadcast was wrapping up. They avoided the crowd, made their way back to the RV, and slipped inside.
“How’d it go?” Buster called.
“Buster! You scared me!” Cate cried out. “Why aren’t you with Louie?”
“I think he wanted to be alone.”
Hannah lifted a brow and twisted her lip, “In a crowd?”
“Sounds more like someone didn’t want to see someone else,” Cate teased.
Buster shrugged, half in admittance. “Well?”
Hannah lifted the envelope.
“That’s it?”
“Yup.”
Buster shifted with anticipation. “Well, what’s in it?”
Hannah looked at Cate then back to Buster. “That’s for Vera to find out. We’re taking it over to her now. Stay here with Louie. When he gets back, tell him we’ll be back later.” Hannah could tell that Buster would rather come along. His curiosity was getting the better of him. But she felt that if there was something upsetting in the contents of the envelope that it might be better coming from her and Cate. And she did not want to further upset Louie. His earlier outburst had proven to her that the details of the case were a strain on him. So Buster could keep him in check while the girls handled the possibilities.
Hannah gathered up her things and Cate followed suit. “Don’t worry. We’ll fill you in on the details. I promise.”
Buster plopped down. “This is just not my day.”
Once they were in the car, they began to make their way out of the event along with all the others who had attended. During the slow process, Hannah again went over everything about the case, just aloud this time.
Cate listened in silence. This was a role she played in ‘the game’ as Hannah often referred to such investigations. It had been this way since they were children ‘investigating’ in Twilight. After a session of reading youth detective novels, they would head to the Starvling Diner to give their account to Hannah’s Gran. She in turn would tell them about ‘the time I’.
Then came the inevitable game. They would gather up Buster and the three would be off to find a case. A stolen bike. A missing cat. Someone acting suspiciously. And they always ended with someone saying something like, “Aren’t you three regular Hardy Boys.” Hannah would respond, “Hardy Girls.” Cate would then point to Buster and say, “Buster Drew.” Buster would get mad and stomp off. They would run after him knowing he would forgive them. It was all so great fun. Now, listening to Hannah go over the case ‘one more time’, she wondered if this would be the last time the three got to do this. She hope and prayed otherwise.
Cate’s thoughts were interrupted as Hannah concluded her observations once they reached Vera’s apartment. Vera greeted them with joy and relief that they were not caught. Once they settled into her living room, Hannah returned Vera’s key. She noticed the urgency with which she put it on the necklace. Once on, she placed her hand over it. A great comfort fell over her face.
Cate held the envelope up for Vera as Hannah explained. “We felt you should look at it before we did.”
Taking the manila container with caution, Vera replied, “I’m afraid to look inside.”
“We could wait and go to the attorney’s office,” Hannah offered.
Vera thought for a moment. “No. Whatever it is, whatever it means, I think its best we all know.” She tore the fold back.
Just as she was opening the envelope, Hannah heard a thumping noise outside the door. The sound of receding footsteps followed. She leapt up from the sofa, made her way over to the door, and jerked it open to find no one. She checked down the hall and examined the area. Finding nothing, she shut the door and turned back. “I suggest we get this over with fast. Whoever that was, they may be onto us. I’d feel safer back with the boys.”
Vera pulled the contents out but paused. “Read them please,” she said handing a stack of papers to Hannah.
Taking them, Hannah relented. Vera and Cate waited in silence as she scanned the sheets. The first page was a signed and notarized cover sheet. It indicated that Julia had taken this action shortly before her death. Her eyes narrowed as she noticed the change in beneficiary. She twirled her tongue inside her mouth.
Cate leaned forward, “Hannah.”
Hannah responded with a quick look up before returning to the sheets. She ignored the anxious sound of Cate’s clicking nails against an end table. Vera made constant readjustments to her blouse. Hannah’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open.
No longer able to contain herself, Cate burst out, “What?”
With a look of shock on her face, Hannah laid the papers in her lap and looked at Vera.
“Okay. Uhmm. A couple of things. There’s a lot here. We will need to see an attorney tomorrow. But I can tell you some things.”
Vera trembled with a mixture of fear and anticipation. “There’s a lot of motives here. For a lot of people. But beyond that, as of right now, you are a wealthy woman.” Vera sat back, frowning in a lack of understanding. Cate had a similar reaction. “You, Vera Moira Bessinger were born Vera Moira Durbin.” Vera swayed a bit. “You are the daughter of Julianna Lucille Durbin, otherwise known as Julia Karas. And you are the sole heir to half of the fortune she built with Asa.”
By this time, the color was draining from Vera’s face, and she collapsed onto Cate’s lap. Cate looked at Hannah. “You already knew, didn’t you?”
“I suspected it.”
“You are such a drama queen. You could have handled that a little better. That’s a lot for her to take in.”
“You don’t know the half of it. It gets better.”
After a moment, Vera came back to life. After assurances that she had indeed heard right, she was shaking. A myriad of emotions made their way across her face. Happiness. Sadness. Disbelief.
“It makes sense to me. Yet it doesn’t. Why didn’t she just tell me? She was always there with me. She could have just said, “You are my daughter.”
“I’m sure she had her reasons. You can look into that later. There is one other thing.” This time Hannah prepared her. She looked straight at her. “A real big thing.”
Vera grabbed Cate’s hand and grasped it so tightly, she looked as though she might scream. Patting her arm, Vera got the signal and eased up. Vera took in a breath and nodded, bracing herself for the next revelation. Hannah picked up the top sheet on the pile and read. “I name Vera Moira Bessinger my natural daughter. I appoint Louie Maclevoy Woolridge, her natural father, as the trust manager.”
Vera blinked as Cate sat, stunned and silent. “It says here you are to have graduated access to your part of the estate as administered by Louie.”
“My father.”
Hannah looked up at Vera’s shocked, unflinching expression. She then readied herself to catch her should she pass out again. Instead, she stood. “My actual father and mother.”
“Are you okay?” Hannah broached.
“Do you know what this means?” Cate asked.
“Yes.”
Vera paused as Cate and Hannah waited for an unknown reaction.
“It means that I am Julia’s legacy. It means that I have two sets of parents. It means that I am an American. And it means…” Vera slipped back into French. “Je vais TUER mon père pour ne pas me dire!” Cate looked at Hannah for an explanation as she had a better grasp on French. “What did she say?”
“She said she is going to KILL her father for not telling her.”
Chapter 14
“I DIDN’T KNOW!” Louie yelled. He was red-flushed, with fingers extended, hands to the side of his head as if it were exploding. Vera watched across from him with a disbelieving face, trying to hold it together. When she did speak, it jumped between French and English.
Buster, Cate, and Hannah observed from Louie’s couch.
Pulling in one corner of his mouth, Buster proposed, “Big guy’s gonna have a heart attack.”
“I hope not,” Hannah admitted, twisting her back from her waist. “Pickin
g him up off the floor once was enough to give me a backache.”
“Maybe you should intervene then, Ms. Drama Queen. This is your fault.”
“I just gave him the facts.”
“It’s not what you gave him. It’s how you gave them.”
Buster rose. “They’ve been at this for half an hour.” He walked over between the two and extended his arms. “That’s enough.”
Vera pointed at Louie. “Comment pourriez-vous lui permettre de me prendre? Comment vous ne pouviez pas savoir?”
“Vera. English,” Buster suggested.
“How could you allow her to take me? How could you not know?”
Louie dropped his head and looked at his palms, as if he were trying to read them. Or perhaps to see the past or maybe the future. “I didn’t know. I promise you. I … did no t… know. It was just one time. That’s all. Just one night. A couple of months before we graduated.”
For a moment, the silence was deafening. He looked up at Vera. “I’m sorry.”
“What happened then?” Vera demanded.
“She left. Right after graduation. Sent me a note. All it said was, ‘I am so sorry.’ He walked over to the picture of Louie and Julia with their graduation class and took it from the wall. He flipped it over and removed the back, producing a small note card. He offered it to Vera. She scrutinized it and then the man.
“Why didn’t you go after her? Did you no longer want her?”
“Of course I did. I was in love with her. I had been for some time. More than you can imagine. After that one night, I thought, ‘This is it!’ I made plans for us both. I was going to marry her. And we would open a restaurant, become a family and live the dream. But they were just my plans. Not hers. She had her own dreams. She told me she loved me and that we would always be friends, with an emphasis on the ‘friends’. I was heartbroken.”
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