Hollywood Underworld_A Hollywood Alphabet Series Thriller

by M. Z. Kelly

  “What is it?”

  “I just had a feeling, maybe a distant memory. I think my biological father might have taken me fishing when I was little.”

  He nodded. “Then it’s high time you got a line back in the water.”

  My thoughts drifted to our earlier discussion with Pearl. “Do you think Pearl could be right that my bio-dad has been alive and hiding out somewhere all these years?”

  “Anything’s possible, but...”

  “What?”

  “All I know is that if he is alive, he must be in deep cover, and there has to be a reason he hasn’t come forward all these years.”

  “Pearl thought it was to protect me.”

  “That’s possible, but maybe there’s another reason.”

  “As in?”

  “Not sure. Maybe it has something to do with what he knows about the Rylands and their drug empire.” The check was set on our table, and Joe tossed some bills atop it. “What do you say we take a walk? Catch the sunset.”

  “I’d like that.”

  As it turned out, the sun was already low on the horizon by the time we made it to the shore. It was a beautiful evening, with hues of pink and gold coloring the sky above the ocean. Joe surprised me by taking my hand as we walked. We turned and watched as the last rays of the sun disappeared into the water. He then turned me in his arms and kissed me.

  After we parted, Joe smiled. “Wow. That was worth waiting for.”

  My voice was low, just above a whisper, as I pulled him closer. “Then let’s do it again.”

  TWELVE

  Emily Langford checked the time on her phone. Four-thirty. She reasoned that if she left her job as a docent at the Frye Art Museum at exactly five, she could catch the northbound bus to Lynnwood, and be home before six. Derek said he would be there at seven for dinner.

  Derek. She smiled when she thought about him. They had been dating for six months, and, recently, things had taken a more serious turn. Derek had even talked about them moving in together. Emily wasn’t sure if she was ready to give up her independence and move in with him, but she did have strong feelings for him.

  Derek was an accountant, working for Hargrove and Jennings, a well-established firm in downtown Seattle. It wasn’t the most exciting profession, but he was stable and kind, and made her feel things that had been buried for a long time. When she was with him, Emily felt like her life was finally back on track.

  “You’re going to need to work the weekend shift,” Robert Donnelly said, causing her thoughts to surface. “You’ll be on the schedule for Saturday until closing.”

  Donnelly was her boss, an older man who had been at the museum for over twenty years and seemed perpetually unhappy.

  “I have plans for Saturday,” Emily said. “Why am I on the schedule?”

  “A last-minute staffing shortage. It couldn’t be helped.”

  Emily knew that the staffing shortage was because Mary Jean Harlow worked whatever hours she pleased. She was convinced that she and Donnelly were involved. It might even be that he and Mary Jean had plans for Saturday.

  She pleaded her case again. “I already have plans for Saturday. Derek and I are going...”

  “Cancel them.”

  Her boss walked away without another word. Emily brushed her silky dark hair behind one shoulder and cursed under her breath. She wasn’t prone to using foul language, but Donnelly seemed to bring out the worst in her.

  The bus was late, and Emily got home just before seven. She had big plans to make lasagna, but, by the time she’d showered and changed, her doorbell was already ringing.

  She opened the door to find Derek standing there. He held her in his arms and they kissed. “Sorry I’m early. I couldn’t wait to see you.”

  After holding one another and exchanging more kisses, they finally parted. Emily explained her situation. “The bus was late, and it hasn’t been the best day...” She told him about having to work on Saturday.

  Derek held her in his arms again. He was tall, almost six feet, with brown hair and blue eyes. Despite his mundane profession, he played soccer and was in good shape. “Just so you know, I hate your boss. But we’ll deal with things. Maybe we can have a late dinner Saturday night.”

  She fixed her green eyes on him. “There’s also the matter of tonight’s dinner. The bus was late, and...I...I’m afraid I haven’t even started dinner.”

  “What do you say we get a sandwich? There’s that place around the corner...Elaine’s, or something like that.”

  “Eleanor’s.” She smiled. “They do have the best sandwiches in the city. I’ll get my coat.”

  Emily went to the closet, reached in, and got her coat. She was about to close the door when something caught her eye. She hesitated, then reached down, picking up the paper that had fallen out of the coat’s pocket. She took a moment, studying the newspaper clipping.

  “What is it?” Derek asked, coming over to her.

  She pushed the clipping into her pocket and lied. “It’s nothing, just something I clipped out of the newspaper about a yoga class.”

  As they left her apartment, Emily put a hand into her pocket and crushed the newspaper clipping into a tight little ball. Derek knew nothing about her past life. She intended to keep it that way.

  THIRTEEN

  I got home at eight after spending another hour strolling on the beach with Joe and exchanging kisses. Our night had been both exhilarating and strange. I realized that I had repressed deep feelings for Joe, and, even though those feelings were now surfacing, it felt strange to contemplate an intimate relationship with him after all we’d been through. That said, what was happening between us felt so right that it made me wonder why I’d held off being involved for so long.

  Then I thought about Eva Valdez. I knew that she and Joe had been in a brief, intimate relationship. Having her present during our investigation would likely complicate things. As I walked in the door that night, I decided that I would need to level with her about becoming involved with Joe. Those thoughts quickly evaporated when I found two roller derby queens in my living room.

  “I’ll block her if you want to go high and score,” Natalie said to Mo, after coming over and pretending to throw a body block at me. She was wearing pink booty shorts, fishnets, and a skintight blouse that had the words “Hollywood Girlz” on the front.

  I’d previously made arrangements for my friends to pick up Bernie at the station. I set my bag down as he came over to me.

  After giving Bernie some attention and taking in Mo’s identical costume, I said, “Don’t tell me you two got part-time jobs in a roller derby.”

  “Baby sis and me are going undercover at Wallbangers,” Mo said, coming over. Her shirt had the name Moola emblazoned on the front. Her and Natalie’s shirts were so tight that I had a thought that “the girls” might suffocate. “We’re trying to catch a girl that’s been cheating with our client’s husband.”

  “We need a blocker next Saturday night and signed you up,” Natalie said, punching my arm. “We’re up against the Tarzana Outlaws, so we need all the help we can get.”

  “I have my limits,” I said, “and participating in a roller derby contest is one of them.”

  Mo shook her head and said to Natalie, “She’ll come around.” Her gaze moved over to our butler. “Otto’s even gonna help out. He’s our towel man.”

  Otto looked at me and shrugged. “I thought it was the least I could do, madam.”

  “Bring us some of them Honey Slugs,” Natalie said. “Kate looks like she’s kinda windblown and probably needs to wind down.”

  I fussed with my unruly hair as I was dragged into the sunroom, where they asked me about my evening.

  “I went to Paradise Cove with Joe,” I said, giving up on my hair. “We had dinner, then went for a walk on the beach.”

  Natalie’s hazel eyes were huge. “You and the G-man are gettin’ chummy, aren’t you?”

  I couldn’t help but smile. “A little.” My smil
e grew wider. “It’s taken a long time, but I finally think the chemistry is working.”

  “Chemistry,” Mo said. “You’re ‘bout to catch fire and explode.” Her eyes narrowed on me. “This ain’t a false alarm, is it?”

  “I can’t say. All I know is tonight felt really special.”

  “This calls for something special.” She stood. “Let me go tell Otto.”

  After she was gone, Mo said, “I hope this works out. I always thought you and Joe were a good match, despite your crazy jobs.”

  “Speaking of that, I have to leave for Phoenix early in the morning. Do you think you and Natalie could watch Bernie?”

  “’Course.” Her dark eyes were fixed on me again. “Is this about that Phaedrus nut job and what he did to that girl?”

  “I can’t say.”

  Natalie came back into the room with Otto. They were carrying cocktail glasses containing a dark liquid. “We whipped up a batch of Barking Spiders.” She looked at me. “I know you got that insomnia problem. A couple of these, and it’s lights out.”

  I accepted the drink and sniffed it. “Why do they call it a Barking Spider?”

  She smiled, her gaze moving over to Mo. “Maybe ‘cause it sneaks up and jumps on you, ‘cause it’s got a load of curacao liqueur in it.”

  “I thought that curacao was blue.”

  “Think of it as a dark liqueur.” She lifted her glass. “Bottoms up.”

  I took a sip of the drink, as Mo did the same. I grimaced and set my glass down. “It’s kind of bitter.”

  “Keep drinking and you’ll get used to it. In the meantime, tell us about the curious case of the wax museum murder. By the way, the girl’s pics are all over the Internet. You got a certified monster on the loose.”

  I took another sip of my drink, made a face, then said, “I know, and I can’t talk about it.”

  “I suppose that means you don’t want our help,” Mo said.

  “The case is with the highest level of the feds.”

  “We heard Buckley’s in town, probably looking for a bomb.”

  “What? How did you...?”

  Natalie had drained her Barking Spider. “Rumor has it it’s gonna level the whole city when it goes off. No one is safe.”

  My friends had a lot of sources in the police department and on the street, but they were talking about something that was highly confidential, and, as far as I knew, hadn’t been leaked to the press.

  “As I already told you, I can’t talk about it. But, if what you said is true, I would suggest you consider leaving the city.”

  Mo scoffed. “And miss all the action? Not a chance.”

  I exhaled and looked at her. “You want to tell me what you know?”

  “We got a week, maybe less. When it’s done, they’re gonna drive the bomb into the city.”

  “Who are you talking to?”

  Mo burped. “I can’t say.”

  I held on her eyes. “Listen to me. This situation is extremely serious and urgent. If you know something, you’ve got to tell me.”

  Mo’s large eyes shifted, taking in Natalie. She raised her brows.

  “Might as well spill the ketchup,” Natalie told her. “Kate needs all the help she can get on this.”

  Mo looked back at me. “Elmer Road.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  She shook her head. “Like we told you before, when Jimmy left Myrna, she hopped on the Toad faster than you can say ‘Kermit.’”

  When their former boss, Jimmy Sweets, had left his wife, Myrna, she’d taken over his PI business. If what they said was true, she’d hooked up with an ex-cop who not only looked like his rhyming namesake, he had a voice to match.

  “What exactly did Elmer say?”

  Mo answered. “What we just told you. You gonna talk to him?”

  “As I mentioned, I have to go to Phoenix in the morning.”

  “Harlee?”

  “Is there anything you don’t know?”

  “What Pearl told you.”

  I realized I’d finished my drink, deciding it wasn’t as bad as I thought. “I might as well have another Spider if we’re going there.”

  Natalie took care of me. “Let’s hear all the details, and don’t leave nothin’ out, claimin’ you can’t talk about it.”

  I sipped my drink, then surprised myself by the emotion surfacing, as I said, “He thinks my bio-dad is alive.”

  It took a of couple tries, but Mo managed to extricate her ample girth from her chair. She came over and sat next to me. “What you talkin’ ‘bout, Willis?” It was a line from an old sitcom that she used only when the conversation turned serious.

  “Pearl told me that when he was in Brazil, as he got closer to finding out what happened to my father, the Rylands were desperate to kill him. He thinks my bio-dad has something on the Rylands that has kept both him and me alive all these years.”

  Natalie’s eyes were wide. “Maybe he knows where the bodies are buried.”

  “I think it’s more likely he knows the identity of others who have been involved with the Rylands, and they might still be alive.”

  Mo put a big soft arm around me. “If that’s the case, he’s done it all to protect you. We gotta find him.”

  I realized there were tears in my eyes. “I’m going to ask Harlee what she knows about him tomorrow.”

  Natalie was also at my side, placing a hand on mine. “Your daddy walked away, gave you up for adoption, knowin’ it was the only way to save you.”

  I wept and nodded, unable to speak.

  My friends spent the next half hour trying to comfort me, while I consoled myself with a third Barking Spider. When I finally regained control of my emotions, I realized I was half drunk.

  I set my glass down and stood, feeing wobbly. “I’m going to bed. I have an early flight tomorrow.”

  Mo also stood. “One way or another, we’re all gonna find your daddy.” She hugged me. “If it’s the last thing we do.”

  FOURTEEN

  What Mo had said about finding my bio-dad being the last thing we did was on my mind all night. I tossed and turned, thinking she might be right, given that the city could be obliterated in a few days. The next morning, as I got ready for my day, something else was on my mind: Barking Spiders. I did my best to suppress the aftereffects of last night’s cocktails but was unsuccessful.

  Natalie had been in the hallway and heard the noise. She came into my room. “You okay? For a minute, I thought the bomb you’re trying to stop went off.”

  “Sorry,” I blushed. “Just a little...gas.”

  She smiled. “I shoulda told ya. It’s the aftershock from your Barking Spiders. It should only last twenty-four hours.”

  “Are you kidding?”

  She shook her head, her expression solemn. “A day of fartin’, and you’ll be good as new.”

  “I have to be on a plane all day, and...” I saw she was smiling now. “You’re pulling my leg.”

  “If I did, you’d fart.” The smile grew wider. “You’ll be fine.” She found an antacid in her purse. Her expression then grew serious again. “You gonna be okay? Me and Mo worried ‘bout you all night.”

  I sighed. “I’ll be fine.” Bernie had come over, looking for attention, or maybe thinking about burying his nose in his paw. “Take care of my dog, and I’ll see you tonight.”

  ***

  The FBI used a small airport in Van Nuys for their flights to and from Southern California. As I waited in the terminal for a couple minutes, I saw Joe arrive with Eva Valdez. I thought it was unusual that they arrived together, given their history. I gave Joe a questioning look, but it was ignored as they said hello and made small talk.

  “I’m glad the rain has finally let up,” Eva said. “But I hear the storm is headed for the Phoenix area.”

  “Could be a rough ride,” Joe said. He nodded to a steward, who had come in from the tarmac. “Let’s go.”

  After the three of us took seats at a small workstation and we
were wheels up, the topic immediately turned to our taskforce and upcoming meeting with Harlee.

  “Agent Reed called me last night,” Eva said. “There are over a thousand agents converging on the city today.”

  Leo had texted me on the way to the airport and said that he and Pearl were working with the other agents to contact local law enforcement.

  Joe confirmed what Eva had said, adding, “The problem is La La Land is a big place. We’re gonna need to catch a break on this.”

  I was reluctant to tell them what Natalie and Mo had said last night, but I knew I couldn’t sit on any possible lead. I took a moment to tell Eva about my friends, and Mo’s street contacts.

  I said, “Please believe me, I’ve kept everything about this case confidential, but my friends were knowledgeable about the potential for a nuclear weapon being in the area. She said her source is a former cop who’s apparently hooked up with their boss, Myrna Sweets, who runs their PI business. His name is Elmer Road. He’s not...” I paused, trying to find a way to describe the ex-cop. “He’s an alcoholic, who had his share of problems before he retired. That said, he just might have a lot of street contacts, so I think it would be worth talking to him.”

  Joe looked at me and smiled. “Elmer Road?”

  I couldn’t help but grin. “His nickname is the Toad.”

  That made Eva laugh, as we hit some turbulence and the plane rocked. “Let’s make it our priority to talk to him when we get back this afternoon.”

  Joe said to Eva, “Kate and I had dinner last night. She had the idea that maybe we need to try and play Harlee when we interview her.” He looked at me. “Any more thoughts on that?”

  I’d spent part of my sleepless night thinking about the upcoming meeting with Harlee and gave voice to what I had in mind. “I’m assuming you told Eva about our discussion with Pearl.”

  Joe nodded. “She’s in the loop.”

  “Suppose we make it sound like we know that Harlee and her grandfather have been covering for others close to them all these years.”

  “You mean make it sound like your bio-dad is our source?” Eva said.