She Sins at Midnight

by Whitney Dineen

  Lila remained adamant that she had seen enough to accurately judge Creigh’s guilt. Not only had she seen enough, thanks to the “Countrywide Inquisitor,” everyone else had too.

  Chapter 19

  Oscar Solomon was infuriated by the new round of press that Melinda became embroiled in. He tried to convince himself she was innocent and that the photos had been doctored. Oscar had a hard time believing his soon to be fiancée would strip naked at his attorney’s swimming pool, especially when his attorney was there. Of course, he knew that Melinda preferred to sunbathe in the nude, but he was astounded at her choice to do so in an environment unknown to her. Oscar finally decided that no matter what his gut was telling him, he needed to get behind Melinda and at least pretend he trusted her. His ego simply couldn’t take another public desertion.

  After much consideration, Oscar decided that the best way to handle the situation was to go to Bentley himself and stay with Melinda at Creigh’s house. Then, when the people saw them all together, they were bound to believe the press altered the earlier photos to suit their own agenda. He called Robert Felton with his request and then he called Melinda.

  * * * * *

  Robert Felton informed Creigh of the latest developments. Lila Montgomery had been let go by Amalgamated and as a result, Melinda and Oscar dismissed their lawsuit against the agency as promised. As far as Creigh was concerned the news was both good and bad. Good, because if Lila ever chose to speak to him again, there was no reason they couldn’t get to know each other better and bad because she no longer had a job. Then Robert let the other shoe drop.

  Oscar and Melinda were now suing Lila personally for slander and libel and while they had no better case against her than they had against Amalgamated, they were doing it on the advice of the PR team that the agency hired to get Melinda out of the seedy spotlight in which she had recently been cast. Creigh could see the writing on the wall. The PR firm must have decided the only way to get the stink off of Melinda was to throw it onto Lila. This was not going to aid his efforts in winning her over. As long as he represented Melinda, he would be construed as public enemy number one. Then there was the small sticking point that Lila still thought he was having an affair with the movie star.

  Creigh’s head began to pound like the Clydesdales were performing a river dance behind his eyes. He told the senior partner, “Listen Robert, I think it’s time I pull out of the case. Now that Melinda has resolved her complaint with Amalgamated, I’m ready to hand the baton over to you.”

  Robert’s response wasn’t the one he wanted, “Easier said than done, Creigh. Part of Oscar’s strategy is to keep you on board as his legal counsel. Thanks to the tabloids, everyone thinks there’s something going on between you and Melinda. His plan is to spend a lot of time with you so that no one will believe that the pictures in ‘The Inquisitor’ are real.”

  Creigh explained, “But the pictures in that rag are real. As usual, they just didn’t publish enough of them to tell the whole story.”

  “Of course I’m inclined to believe you, but from what I saw, I’m not surprised that nobody else does.”

  Exasperated, Creigh responded, “Well, I suppose you might think differently if you saw the shots of me yelling at Melinda. Unfortunately, those aren’t likely to ever see the light of day as they don’t support the soap opera the tabloids are selling.”

  Robert inquired, “Why do you care if the world thinks that you’re involved with Melinda? She’s extraordinarily beautiful and any connection to her makes you look like quite a player.”

  “Robert, I’ve already told you I want nothing to do with Melinda on any level, personal or professional.” Then something Robert had said hit him, “How exactly does Oscar plan to spend time together with me when I’m in Illinois?” Even as he asked the question, the answer dawned on him, “Robert, tell me he’s not on his way to Bentley.”

  The partner answered, “He’s not on his way to Bentley.”

  Creigh exhaled loudly, “Now tell me the truth.”

  “He’s on his way to Bentley. But that’s not the worst of it.”

  Creigh nearly yelled, “Not the worst of it? How could it get any worse?”

  Robert replied, “Oscar wants to stay at your house, with Melinda, as your guests. He figures that if he can convince the press you’re all good friends, they’ll start to print conflicting stories to ‘The Inquisitor’s.’”

  Creigh shook his head, “How stupid can he be? You know I like Oscar and he’s always been an easy client to work for, but this is just ridiculous. There is no way anyone’s going to fall for this farce.”

  “Look Creigh, all I know is that the whole situation has blown up into an enormous mess. I also know that you are the only one who can placate Oscar and the partners are counting on you to do just that. Oscar Solomon is our biggest client and not to put too fine a point on it, we are relying on you to come through for us.”

  After Creigh hung up, he started to formulate a plan to resolve the lawsuit and get Lila to realize nothing had ever happened between him and Melinda. A hazy outline started to take shape, but he realized that he’d need the cooperation of several other people for it to work. He picked up the phone to make a very important phone call. “Will, its Creigh. Where and when can we meet? It’s important.”

  * * * * *

  Oscar called Melinda to let her know he would be arriving in Bentley that evening, and while she wasn’t delighted by the news, his next sentence positively thrilled her. They were going to be staying at Creighton Ashwood’s house, as his guests. This was Melinda’s opportunity to finally get Creigh between the sheets. Once she laid eyes on his palatial estate, she was more than convinced that she wanted a go at him. Vast displays of wealth were not unlike foreplay to Melinda.

  Oscar informed Melinda that she should be packed and ready to leave the hotel by ten o’clock that evening. Melinda purred, “But darling, I have a rental car. Why don’t I just pop over and get settled now?”

  Angrily, Oscar replied, “Because we’re trying to fix your reputation Melinda and I don’t think spending more time alone with Creighton Ashwood is going to do that.”

  Melinda did not agree so she pretended that the phone connection was bad and said, “What’s that sweetheart? I didn’t get that. My cell phone reception isn’t very good in the hotel. I’ll just meet you at Creigh’s then. Bye bye.”

  Oscar yelled, “Don’t you hang up on me Melinda! I said…” And before he could say anything else, she was gone.

  Of course he called her right back but she didn’t answer. She just started throwing her clothes into her suitcase, thrilled that she and her hot lawyer would be alone together for hours and hours before Oscar arrived. She was sure if that fat-assed Lila Montgomery hadn’t interrupted them that day by the pool, she would have successfully seduced Creigh at least once. But then again, if Lila hadn’t shown up, those would have been the pictures splashed across all the tabloids. The thought made her shudder.

  * * * * *

  Jessica sat in her breakfast nook, sipping a cup of coffee. She recounted the strange and wonderful past couple of days with Jilly and Lila. It was so nice to feel like she finally had friends who knew who she really was and didn’t hold it against her. What surprised her most was that these two women so readily invited her into their lives, even though she had not been a very nice person when they knew her last.

  Jessica was very insecure when she was younger. Her parents always told her how proud they were of her because she was so pretty and popular. Jessica grew to believe in order to be loved by them, she needed to achieve the two qualities they treasured.

  They never praised her when she got good grades or when she made use of her artistic talents. They were only concerned with her appearance and her popularity. Consequently, Jessica grew up feeling a lot of pressure to be everything her parents expected her to be. Every time she felt someone else encroaching on her rank as class ruler, she would make up a rumor or nickname for them th
at would inevitably cast them down a rung or two on the ladder of social success. Jessica knew the other kids in her class were afraid of her and even though that bothered her, it didn’t worry her as much as losing her parent’s thready interest.

  The real reason Jessica didn’t leave Charles right after the marriage was because her mother was so impressed that she had married a man like him in the first place. He was everything that Astor Bowman valued in a spouse. He was handsome, rich and very condescending. Her mother did not prize fidelity, gentleness and love, as those were qualities she knew nothing about.

  Jessica often thought of her parents and wished that her unhappy marriage was something she could have confided in them, but of course they were living in Austria and had been for the last seven years. She had only seen them once in all that time and that was for her wedding.

  Jessica had always been close to her mother’s sister Bess. Aunt Bess tried to get her to open up and talk about what was troubling her. Bess was actually one of the reasons she finally decided to leave Charles. Her aunt visited her two months earlier in Chapel Hill to tell her she had just been diagnosed with breast cancer. She explained that the cancer was too far advanced for surgery or chemo and she wanted Jessica to know that she was leaving her entire estate to her. The money would remain in the hands of her estate agent until Jessica requested the transfer. Bess told her this so if she felt that her marital situation might be about to change, she wouldn’t have to share her inheritance, nor would she have to worry about how she was going to take care of herself.

  Bess died three weeks later leaving Jessica shattered. She now realized two more people had entered her life to fill Aunt Bess’s shoes and she felt very, very blessed.

  The telephone interrupted Jessica’s reverie, “Hello, this is Jessica.”

  “Jessica, its Creighton Ashwood. Please don’t hang up.”

  Jessica didn’t hang up, nor did she speak at all.

  “I know you think I’m messing around with Melinda and I would like a chance to prove to you that I’m not. I’ll need your help though.”

  “My help? Why in heaven’s name would I want to help you?”

  “Listen, Jessica, I’m with Lila’s father right now and we want to stop by and talk to you for a few minutes.” He added, “No one loves Lila as much as her dad, so if you won’t do it for me, please do it for him.”

  Jessica reluctantly agreed and told Creigh that she would expect them in a few minutes.

  Creigh hung up the phone and looked at Will. “It’s all going according to plan. Now all we have to do is trust Melinda to be Melinda and hopefully this nightmare will end very soon.”

  Will approved, “It’s a good plan, Creigh." It’s that there are just so many variables I’m not going to rest any easier until I see it in motion.”

  Creigh agreed whole heartedly with Will’s assessment of the situation. That’s why he picked up the phone and made one more very important call.

  Chapter 20

  Jilly dropped the kids off with her mother and then made a quick stop at the grocery store to pick up a few things. While standing in the checkout line, her eyes were drawn to the cover of “The Tell All Tattler.” What she saw nearly made her choke. The entire cover was a picture of Lila sitting in a black suit behind what must have been her desk at work. It was obvious to Jilly the photo had been stretched to make her friend look twice her normal size. She could tell because the coffee cup on the desk had been stretched too, and it looked like something right out of a Salvador Dali painting. The headline read;

  Fat Assistant Jealous of Fabulous Starlet:

  Plots Her Demise

  Hollywood Assistant, Lila Montgomery, is rumored to be trying to hire a hit on starlet Melinda Forrester. Montgomery, a want-to-be actress herself, is reported to have gone off the deep end when Forrester offered to have her co-star in her next film. Witnesses recall Montgomery screamed, “Co-star? I should be the star!” It was reported that later that day, Montgomery was seen letting the air out of Forrester’s tires. Montgomery, a very zaftig woman of robust proportions has never been able to “make it” in Hollywood due to her plump proportions. Eyebrow-waxer to the stars, Nastacia, heard Montgomery threaten to “have Melinda whacked.” Police are investigating. Apparently Montgomery is so ashamed of her size that she sews size 8 labels into her size 22 clothes. This reporter has learned that Montgomery’s weight is currently hovering around the 275 pound mark.

  Jilly was astonished by the unbelievable array of lies in the article. The only facts were Lila’s name and occupation. She picked up every copy of “The Tattler” she could find and dumped them into her cart. She steered the cart around produce and through the door of the ladies’ room where she spent the next half hour locked in a stall ripping out the article about her friend. When she finally emerged, she paid for her groceries and high-tailed it over to the Montgomery’s house.

  * * * * *

  Something had been bothering Lila all day, but she couldn’t seem to put her finger on it. It had something to do with Amalgamated Artists. Well, of course there was the fact that she had been fired, but that wasn’t it. It wasn’t until Josh called her later that day that she remembered what it was. Lila picked up the phone to hear her very smug ex-boss say, “Hello Lila. You’ve been a very busy girl, haven’t you?”

  Lila sarcastically answered, “That’s right Josh. I’ve been hard at work ruling my little kingdom of naked people. I’m so glad that you noticed.”

  Josh laughed, “I’m not talking about that.”

  Lila didn’t want to play games, so she asked, “What are you talking about?”

  There was a pregnant pause before he answered, “I’m talking about the contents of your desk. I just cleaned it out for you this morning.”

  “So?” Then it hit her, her desk! The letter from Mitzie about She Sins at Midnight hitting the Best Seller’s list was in her desk. Hoping against hope that Josh didn’t actually read it, she said, “Go ahead and send everything to my parent’s house.”

  Her boss offered, “Of course I’d be glad to.” Then he added, “But just so you know, I did have to read through everything. We can’t have you in possession of any agency secrets, after all.”

  Trying to remain calm, she asked, “And?”

  “And it would appear that you have some secrets of your own. I have my new assistant picking up a copy of your masterpiece as we speak. It sounds like it’ll be quite titillating.”

  Lila tried to brave it out and say, “I’m sure you’ll love it, Josh. You might find Baron Bratwin rather fascinating. I patterned him after you.”

  Josh replied, “I can’t wait.” He added, “There was also a copy of your contract with Mitzi Feinman in the drawer as well. I was astonished that you were so adamant about writing under a pen name. I would think that you’d want the whole world to know that you wrote a book.”

  Lila cut Josh off, “What do want Josh?”

  “First off,” he said, “There will be no wrongful termination suit against Amalgamated. Got it? Next, you forget everything that you know about me and my social life.”

  Lila wished she could shove her arm through the phone and wring Josh’s neck. “You’re blackmailing me?”

  Josh laughed sardonically, “Let’s not call it that, hm? Let’s call it two friends keeping each other’s secrets for the mutual good.”

  Lila wanted to scream. She calmed down long enough to say, “Fine Josh, but the very second someone finds out about my book, I will be placing a very informative phone call to your wife.”

  Josh replied, “I would expect nothing less. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have an appointment.” On that note, he hung up.

  Lila’s heart was beating a million miles an hour. She couldn’t believe that Josh was actually blackmailing her with her own book. For about the millionth time in the last week, she wished she had never written it. If only she could just tell everyone the truth about her alter ego. But she knew there was no way she could witho
ut shocking the hell out of them. Even with as racy as her mother had become, Bitsy would drop dead if she discovered what her only daughter spent her free time doing.

  For a brief moment, Lila considered how bad it would actually be if her family found out her secret. After all, the tabloids had already started to paint her as the villain in the whole feud with Melinda. One scandal sheet even went so far as to print that “witnesses” saw Lila sit on Melinda’s head and try to smother her with her enormous rear end. Lila delighted at the image and promised to try that maneuver the next time she saw Melinda.

  Lila had suffered through three full days of what felt like house arrest when she made the decision that the muckrakers were no longer going to hold her hostage in her own home. She worked it out with Jilly that her friend would come over wearing a very distinctive outfit. Jilly would bring an identical one in Lila’s size so she could change into it and leave the house, impersonating her friend. Even though there was a four inch height difference between the two, they hoped that the paparazzi wouldn’t notice the switch.

  Jilly showed up at the Montgomery’s in a bit of a dither. She parked so close to the front door that she ran over the hydrangeas. When she walked into the house, Lila’s jaw dropped. Jilly was wearing a hot pink jogging suit, that was miles too long, with a bright orange baseball cap covering her hair and electric blue sunglasses that were so big that she looked like a pulp fiction character. The Fly came to mind.

  When Lila finally found her voice, she asked, “What in the world are you wearing?”

  Jilly took off her hat and sunglasses and replied, “It’s brilliant, right?”

  Her friend managed, “If by brilliant you mean so bright you could blind someone, then yes, bravo.”