Wicked Hearts (An Ivy Morgan Mystery Book 9)

by Lily Harper Hart

  Simone balked. “It was just a little love tap.”

  “For which you did nothing,” Ivy pointed out. “You didn’t even reprimand her.”

  “That’s because I don’t think she did anything wrong.”

  “And that right there is why you’re being removed as coordinator for the pageant,” Brian said, his statement catching Simone off guard.

  “Excuse me?” She was livid. “You don’t have the authority.”

  “I don’t,” Brian agreed. “The town council does, though. They just held an emergency meeting. You’ve been removed as pageant coordinator. Here is a letter from the council president explaining things to you.” Brian slapped an envelope against Simone’s chest before focusing on the girls. “As for you, the pageant is still going on even though I tried to have the entire thing cancelled.”

  “But who is going to run things?” one of the girls asked. “We need someone to coordinate. Without Mrs. Graham, we have no one to tell us what to do.”

  “That’s not true,” Brian countered. “The council also named a successor for Mrs. Graham.” Brian slapped a second envelope in Ivy’s hands. “Congratulations.”

  It took a moment for the words to sink in. “Excuse me?” Ivy was convinced she was stuck in a nightmare.

  “You can’t be serious,” Simone shrieked. “She’ll ruin everything.”

  “I guess we’ll have to wait and see,” Brian said. “Either way, you’re out, Simone. In fact, you’re banned from this building during practice. If we see you here, we will arrest you.”

  “But … no!”

  “It’s done.” Brian was firm. “Now collect your things – I’ll watch as you do – and get out. The pageant is no longer your playground. It’s Ivy’s to do with as she sees fit.”

  For Ivy, that wasn’t exactly a win. “Who saw that coming?” she muttered. “I think I want to go back to bed and start the day over again.”

  Jack chuckled. “You’ll do great.”

  Ivy wasn’t so sure.

  Twelve

  Simone’s rage was palpable as she gathered her things, the furious looks she lobbed in Ivy’s direction serving to make Jack distinctly uncomfortable.

  “Don’t blame her,” Jack chided, keeping a close eye on the woman as she shoved overflowing handfuls of makeup in her bag. “She didn’t do anything to you.”

  “Oh, I don’t know who you’re trying to fool, but she’s been after my position since I got it,” Simone spat.

  “Trust me. That’s not true.”

  “Bull! She’s always been jealous of me.”

  Jack couldn’t claim any special knowledge on the inner workings of the female mind, but that sounded like a load of bunk to him. “And why would she be jealous of you?”

  “Because I won the pageant.”

  “And?”

  “And what?” Simone’s cheeks were flushed with embarrassment … and hatred. “I won the pageant my year. Ivy didn’t win. She got beat by both Maisie and Ava, which is downright pathetic.

  “Listen, I know you think she’s something special just like all the other guys in town, but she’s not,” she continued, adopting a reasonable tone. “People only look at her because she dresses like a freak in those long skirts she likes to wear … and the fact that she has pink in her hair. It’s all an act.”

  “An act for what?”

  Simone was incredulous. “Are you slow? To get men to like her.”

  “Yeah, see, that makes zero sense to me,” Jack argued. “When I met Ivy, the last thing she wanted was a boyfriend. In fact, she seemed to shun male attention as much as possible.”

  Simone snorted. “And you believe that?”

  “I do.”

  “Then you’re dumber than I thought,” Simone said. “I don’t know what she’s done to make you think that you love her, but you should look really hard at the woman you’re marrying. She’s clearly cast some sort of spell over you.”

  “I know the woman I’m going to marry better than anyone. The reason people gravitate toward her – even though she fights it – is because she’s a genuine person with a good heart.”

  “Yup. You’re an idiot.” Simone grabbed a bottle of hairspray. “I’m going to make sure the people in this town realize what Ivy has done. In fact – yeah, I’m sure of it – she’s probably the one who has been poisoning the girls and framing me in the process. It’s the only thing that makes sense. That’s why she volunteered her time.”

  “You asked her to volunteer her time before any of this ever happened,” Jack reminded her.

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “I was standing right next to her when you did it.”

  “You’re remembering it wrong. That doesn’t surprise me, though. You’re clearly mentally defective where she’s concerned. I hope you wise up and see the truth before it’s too late.”

  “Yeah, I’m good.” Jack leaned forward and lowered his voice so only Simone could hear. “I don’t know what your deal is, but I’m warning you right now, if you go after Ivy, you’re not going to be happy with the outcome.”

  Simone’s eyebrows flew up her forehead. “Is that a threat?”

  “Think of it as a promise,” Jack replied. “I can see you’re upset. You clearly have impulse control problems, just like your daughter. Don’t even think of making a move on Ivy. Take a long and quiet moment to reflect before you do something you’ll regret.”

  “Don’t ever tell me what to do.” Simone stood with a flourish. “Come on, Sadie. We’re out of here.”

  For her part, Sadie looked conflicted. The look she shot Ivy was one of desperation. “Are you kicking me out of the pageant?”

  Ivy stared at her for a long beat, unsure. “I don’t know. You’ve had a bad attitude from the start.”

  “Did you hear her, Sadie?” Simone asked. “She’s not going to give you a chance.”

  “I’m not the judge,” Ivy reminded her. “You can compete if you promise to adjust your attitude.”

  Sadie opened her mouth but didn’t speak as she glanced over her shoulder, her mother’s disapproval landing hard as her shoulders slumped.

  “Go home with your mother,” Ivy instructed. “Give some serious thought to what you want. We’ll start fresh for tomorrow. We don’t have a lot of time, but we can still make the pageant something great.”

  Sadie nodded, solemn. “I’m sorry I hit you.”

  “That’s a concern,” Ivy conceded. “It’s also a concern that you were trying to hurt Mackenzie.” Ivy raised her voice so none of the girls could later declare they hadn’t heard the statement. “Going forward, there will be no more bullying. I don’t care what kind of behavior was considered acceptable before, we’re working under new rules now.

  “First off, all of the girls who were unilaterally cut before will be invited back to participate,” she continued. “If anyone has a problem with that, you can go ahead and leave now.”

  “But … the pageant will be too long,” Miley complained. “People won’t stay and watch the entire thing.”

  “Well, there are ways around that, too,” Ivy noted. “We can cut some of the dance numbers to make sure that it doesn’t run too long.”

  “You can’t do that,” Simone hissed, scandalized. “I worked forever to choreograph those numbers.”

  “And they’re unnecessary and boring,” Ivy countered. “You only need the opening dance number. Then the girls can jump straight into their talent. They can do the evening gowns after … and then the interviews. There’s no need for anything else.”

  “What about the bathing suit competition?” Miley challenged.

  Ivy tilted her head to the side, confused. “What bathing suit competition? You guys never practiced for a bathing suit competition. In fact, there’s never been a bathing suit competition for this pageant before.” She turned her attention to Simone. “What’s going on?”

  “It was a new surprise this year.” Simone’s tone was chilly and clipped. “I thought it woul
d draw a bigger crowd.”

  “Of perverts,” Ivy said. “You can’t parade a bunch of teenagers around on a stage in skimpy bikinis. It’s not right.”

  “The girls are almost adults.”

  “I don’t care.” Ivy was adamant as she crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s not going to happen. Period. There is no swimsuit competition.”

  “But … that’s not fair,” Miley screeched. “I got a bikini wax and everything. Do you have any idea how much that hurts?”

  “You’ll live.”

  “I’m going to tell my mother.” Miley narrowed her eyes to dangerous slits. “You’ll be sorry you messed with me.”

  “Go ahead and give her my number,” Ivy said airily. “I’m sure we’ll have a very enlightening conversation.”

  “Oh, don’t think I won’t.”

  “Do it.” Ivy flicked her attention to the other girls. “As for everything else, it remains the same. We’ll start over fresh in the morning. Spread the word that the girls who were cut can come back. Since I think some of you will be reticent to do that, I’m going to make sure to spread the word myself. Does anyone have any questions?”

  Ivy waited to see if a hand would shoot up, but everyone remained quiet. “Great. I’ll see you guys in the morning. It’s going to be a long day so … plan accordingly.”

  The girls gathered their things, heated whispers passing between them. The looks they shot Ivy as they left weren’t fond, and Jack wasn’t keen on the glares. He leaned against the wall and watched as one girl – Mackenzie – remained behind to talk to Ivy.

  “Thank you for stepping in the way you did,” Mackenzie said hesitantly.

  “It’s okay.” Ivy patted the girl’s shoulder. “I didn’t realize she was going to do what she did. Is she always that out of control?”

  “It’s her mother. She makes everyone crazy.”

  “I can see that.”

  “Still, you jumped in to help me and didn’t pull back when she hit you,” Mackenzie said. “Everyone else is afraid of her. You stood up to her … and her mother. I … thank you.”

  “Oh, sweetie, don’t thank me.” Ivy’s smile was rueful. “Part of me wanted to pound her in the face.”

  “I’ll help you clean up before I go,” Mackenzie offered. “My mom won’t be here for twenty minutes anyway.”

  “That will be nice.”

  The duo lapsed into comfortable silence as they sorted through discarded clothing and makeup, Mackenzie ultimately breaking it.

  “Um, thanks for getting rid of the bathing suit part, too.” She sounded shy, younger than her seventeen years. “I wasn’t looking forward to that.”

  “Whatever Simone was thinking, that was wrong,” Ivy said. “Trust me. We’ll come up with a new plan tomorrow. Hopefully it will be something everyone can live with.”

  “That would be nice for a change, huh?”

  JACK AND BRIAN COMPARED notes for a few minutes, the older cop finally leaving Jack to help Ivy and Mackenzie. They were done for the night – there wasn’t much more they could do – so there was no sense in Jack returning to the station.

  Jack busied himself folding clothes and towels, enjoying the way Mackenzie peppered Ivy with questions. Now that it was just the two of them, the girl was turning out to be something of a chatterbox.

  “I like to write poetry a lot, but my mother says it’s not a good way to make a living,” Mackenzie explained. “I get that I need to make money but … I really like writing poetry.”

  “I was that way when I was your age,” Ivy said. “I didn’t write poetry or anything, but I loved working in the garden and spending all of my time outside. Eventually I decided to run a nursery and it combined what I love to do with money. Maybe there’s something you can do that will end up the same way.”

  “Like what?”

  “I don’t know. Let’s brainstorm.”

  Jack smiled as he walked away, pulling up short when he caught sight of Max loitering in the hallway. He cast a glance over his shoulder to make sure Ivy would be busy for a bit longer and then approached her brother.

  “Where did you disappear to?”

  “I was out in the parking lot listening to Simone rant and rave about how Ivy is out to get her.” Max ran a frustrated hand through his dark hair. “Women are nuts, man. There’s no other way to put it.”

  Jack chuckled. “I think they say the same about us.”

  “No. Women are worse.”

  “I’m not sure that’s true, but I get that you’re caught.” Jack licked his lips, uncertain how far he should push things. Finally, he decided he might as well come out and say what was on his mind. “Are you going to keep dating Simone?”

  “Okay, first off, we’re not really dating,” Max said. “We went to dinner at the diner because we were having a good time chatting. There was potential for dating.”

  “And now?”

  “And now I think all women are crazy.”

  Jack snorted so hard he choked, sputtering until he regained control of his breathing. “Max, you can’t have thought this would go well. I mean … it’s clear that Ivy and Simone have hated each other for a long time. Did you really think your sister would simply open her arms and accept Simone?”

  “I don’t know what I expected. I just thought I would be able to have some fun with Simone. That’s clearly over, though. I can’t date a woman who says terrible things about my sister.”

  Jack knit his eyebrows. “What did she say?”

  “You don’t want to know. It wasn’t pretty.”

  “Did she threaten Ivy?”

  “Not physically or anything,” Max replied. “It was more that she threatened to go to the town council and have Ivy yanked as the coordinator. I pointed out that probably wouldn’t go over well since Brian is the one who instigated this little takeover, but she wouldn’t listen. She’s determined Ivy has been after her for years.”

  “Yeah, she said the same thing to me,” Jack said. “She sounds a little unhinged where Ivy is concerned. She also sounds bitter, even a little jealous that Ivy attracts attention from men. My guess is that someone Simone once cared about might’ve had a thing for Ivy.”

  “Probably Scott,” Max supplied. “That’s Simone’s ex-husband. He used to have a huge crush on Ivy, so much so that it made me uncomfortable. I mean, he was like twenty-seven – and married – when I caught him hitting on Ivy in the high school parking lot one day.”

  Jack didn’t like the sound of that. “And where is he now?”

  “He moved to Traverse City. He’s remarried. You don’t have to worry about him.”

  “I’m not worried about him as much as Simone.” Jack was matter-of-fact. “She’s a legitimate suspect in these poisonings. It would help if Aubrey would wake up and tell us what happened, but she’s still unconscious.”

  “Ivy said she’s improving.”

  “She is and we’re grateful. There’s nothing we can do to push her, though, so we just have to wait.”

  “I get that you think Simone is crazy – and after her performance today I want nothing to do with her – but I don’t think she’s a murderer,” Max supplied. “She’s manipulative and does underhanded things. I was appalled when I heard that she cut a bunch of girls out of the pageant – and that bathing suit thing is kind of sick – but I don’t think she’s a killer. Mostly because she knows she wouldn’t do well in prison.”

  “I don’t know what to make out of it, but I’m not letting my guard down,” Jack said. “In fact … .” He broke off and spared another glance over his shoulder to make sure Ivy and Mackenzie were distracted. “I need you to keep working here even if you’re close to being done.”

  Max’s eyebrows winged up. “Why?”

  “Because I’m not sure Simone is to blame either,” Jack said. “If she’s not, that means it’s one of these girls. I’m worried that Ivy will get distracted or let her guard down because she’s convinced that Simone is to blame. I’m going to talk to
her about it over dinner – stress that it’s still important for her to remain vigilant – but you know how she is.”

  “Oh, I know. We’re back to women being crazy, right?”

  Jack grinned. “I happen to love my crazy woman. I just want her safe.”

  “I’m glad to see you guys seem to be none the worse for wear after you told her to be quiet yesterday.” Max was eager to change the subject. “As for sticking close, I will. I love my sister, too, although I’ve decided you’re a saint for putting up with her.”

  “Sometimes I think she’s the saint,” Jack said. “I want her safe more than anything. As for what happened yesterday, I guess you could say I learned my lesson.”

  Now it was Max’s turn to smirk. “Did she make you sleep on the couch?”

  “Yes, but we made up in our dreams.”

  “Ugh. That’s still weird.”

  “We woke up together. That’s all I care about.”

  “Not to ruin the moment, but what’s going to happen if you don’t catch whoever did this?” Max asked, legitimately curious. “I mean … once the pageant is over, the motive for the poisonings will be gone. What happens then?”

  “I’m not sure,” Jack said. “So far, no one has died. That’s the one thing we’ve got going for us.”

  “Actually, you now have two things going for you. Ivy is taking over as coordinator so she’ll get a better feel for the girls. That can only help.”

  “In some ways, yes. In others … Ivy just moved up a rung on the target list because she’s insisting on bringing those other girls back. She’s going to attempt to make a level playing field. That’s the last thing someone wants.”

  “Well, I’ll watch.”

  Jack clapped his shoulder. “I will, too. We’ll keep her safe.”

  “That’s been my job for a long time,” Max said. “I didn’t want to give it up. Now I’m glad to hand it over. That’s one of the reasons I thought about dating Simone. I used to have to spend all my time worrying about Ivy. Now that’s not much of a concern because of you. I have more time on my hands.”