by Laina Turner
“I know, but I just stepped out for a minute to make a phone call. It was important, I—”
“It’s going to have to wait until we get this situation under control. I don’t have time for this,” he said, walking away to where the paramedics were now administering to the girl who I recognized as Angela. Again someone different, helping to solidify the theory that this was about Harvey, not about a specific contestant.
“Something wrong in paradise?” Elaine said, walking up to me.
I pointedly looked at her, trying to see if anything in her face would give away her guilty conscience. “Things are fine.”
“Oh. He seemed angry.”
“Not at me,” I lied. “When was the last time you talked to Angela?”
“I don’t know. I guess before the girls started lining up and Harvey went on stage. That’s when I came out here. Why?”
“It just seems you are always around when something happens?” I couldn’t help myself, but to make a comment about this.
Elaine raised her eyebrows at me. “You think I have something to do with all this? I’m not the only one who is around these girls 24/7 at these pageants.”
“Yeah, but you’re the only one who doesn’t seem fully vested in the whole process.”
“It’s a job, not a calling, Presley. That doesn’t mean I’m a murderer.”
“Presley, can I talk to you for a minute?” Cooper called over, interrupting.
“Duty calls.”
“Nice talking to you,” Elaine said, waving her fingers at me.
“What was that all about?” Cooper asked.
“Just a friendly conversation.”
“Right. The paramedics said Angela had an asthma attack.”
“Oh. Well, I guess it’s good news that someone wasn’t trying to murder her.”
“Except she isn’t known to ever have had asthma.”
I looked at him. “You think someone did something to induce an asthma attack?”
“It looks that way. Did you see anything?”
“No, but I wasn’t in back, either. I was out front watching the stage for a good twenty minutes before the rehearsal started. Harvey was giving his speech.”
“Why did you leave? I told you to stay.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. But when you hear why, I think you’ll forgive me.”
Chapter 18
Thank goodness this is almost over,” Linda said, sitting down next to me on one of the many chairs backstage. The first rehearsal had concluded and we were both tired.
“Is it always this crazy? I mean the pageant in general. Not so much everything else.”
“Yes. It’s a super-packed five days. Usually I love the frenzied pace, and the outcome is such a joy to watch as all the hard work of everyone comes together in this great presentation. I’m just not feeling the excitement today.”
“It has been unusually nuts with everything going on,” I said sympathetically. “How’s Harvey holding up?”
“As well as can be expected. His whole life is this company. I think that’s part of why I have stayed all these years. His passion is contagious and I’ve always enjoyed being a part of this. Now with all that’s happened at this pageant I’m not sure how our next one will fair. If there even is a next one.”
“Is it that bad?”
“Close, he’s actually talking about cancelling the next pageant until we get this mess straightened out,” Linda said, leaning forward to set her water on the table and then leaning back and crossing her legs.
“Nice tattoo. I didn’t notice that before.” Linda had a tattoo of a dolphin jumping out of the water on the inside of her ankle.
“Thanks. I got it back in college when I was thinking I would be working with dolphins one day. I suppose I should have gotten a tattoo of a beauty queen. It would have been more appropriate.”
I made a show of looking at my watch. “Oh crap. I’m late to meet Cooper. Nice chatting, Linda. I hope your day gets a little easier.”
She smiled at me. “I will see you later at the final run-through, won’t I?”
“I’ll be there.” As I walked away, I pulled out my phone and dialed Cooper. We hadn’t planned on meeting until later. I had used that as an excuse, because now I really needed to talk to him. Thank goodness he answered and I didn’t just get his voicemail. “Meet me in the security office. Now! Just do it. I promise this is important.”
Cooper arrived at the office to find me giving instructions to the guy running the computer. “I’m having him pull the tape again from the night Hollie was killed,” I said to him over my shoulder.
“Did you find something?”
“I think so,” I replied and then turned my attention back to the computer. “Fast-forward to Hollie getting on the elevator and then hit play.” We watched again as the elevator doors closed on Hollie and the door to her room opened. The person stepped out of the room, closed the door behind them, and turned to walk to the stairwell. “Stop it right there,” I practically yelled at the poor guy running the controls. I leaned forward until my face was inches from the screen.
“I can zoom in if you need me to,” the computer guy said to me, probably afraid I was going to sneeze on his screen or something. Maybe he felt I was just invading his personal space. “Zoom in on her ankle.”
“What is it, Pres?”
“There,” I pointed. “On her ankle. A dolphin tattoo. That’s Linda.”
“Are you sure?” Cooper asked.
“I’m positive. I was just talking to her and I noticed the tattoo. It’s the exact same one. I asked her about it and she told me the story. Didn’t try to hide it. She must not realize it was visible to the cameras.”
Cooper took his phone out of the case on his belt and started to dial.
“Who are you calling?”
“Detective Miller. If she was the one sneaking out of Hollie’s hotel room, we have to let him know,” he said, stepping outside the tiny office.
Thanks for your help,” I said to the guy running the computer, who nodded in return. I followed Cooper out of the room, to where he was sitting on the couch in the reception area, and sat next to him just as he hung up the phone. “What did Detective Miller say?”
“They’re coming out here to pick her up.”
“You don’t really think she killed Hollie do you? I still think Elaine is involved somehow.”
“If you would have asked me before I saw this tape I would have said no. She just doesn’t seem the type, but you have to admit the evidence is there. Regarding Elaine, we knew she didn’t kill Hollie. She wasn’t even in the hotel at the time.”
“She could have been the one to knock out Camille,” I said, still having a feeling she was somehow involved in all this. But what possible motive would Linda have? She loves her job and she’s been with Harvey for a long time.”
“I don’t know, but we are going to find out. The police should be here in a couple minutes so we need to head downstairs.”
Chapter 19
When we got down there, the police were already talking to Linda and Harvey.
“I don’t understand. Why are you arresting me?” Linda said hysterically, as two uniformed police officers were doing as Detective Miller directed and handcuffing her while he read her rights. She didn’t look guilty, she looked terrified, but the tape proved she was at least there, which didn’t look good for her. Even though I had been the one to spot the evidence putting her there, I still had a hard time believing it.
“There must be some mistake,” Harvey cried. He saw Cooper and me walk up. “Cooper, you must do something. They think Linda had something to do with Hollie’s murder.
“Harvey, I’m the one who called them,” Cooper said as gently as he could. Because of how close Harvey and Linda were, he had told me he purposely wasn’t giving him the heads up.
“What! Why in hell would you ever think Linda would do anything to hurt me? Hurt Pageants Unlimited? You should have talked to me
about this. I could have told you she would never do this.”
“Harvey, now calm down. Let’s come over here and talk about this,” Cooper said, leading him to the couches in the foyer for some privacy. But Harvey pulled away.
“Linda, I will be down to bail you out and we will get you the best lawyer to fight this,” Harvey said as the police led Linda away.
“Thanks for your help, Cooper,” said Detective Miller, walking up to us. Harvey had stormed off, obviously not wanting to hear what Cooper had to say.
“It was the right thing to do. Let me know what she says, will you.”
“Sure thing.”
“I didn’t think cops were so forthcoming in sharing their knowledge,” I whispered to Cooper.
“Well, you know about quid pro quo. He’s grateful I told him about the tattoo. Now he’ll be willing to share some information. Rest assured he won’t share it all, but that’s to be expected. It’s good to build trust with local law enforcement.”
“I can’t believe you did this. Why do you think its Linda?” Harvey said walking back up to us. Maybe he had just needed some time to cool down, but still visibly upset. I couldn’t blame him. Linda was his right hand, and had been for years.
“Harvey, I know this is hard to hear, but we have proof that Linda snuck into Hollie’s room right before she died.”
“Maybe Hollie gave her a key to get something for her. Did you ever think of that?” Harvey snapped.
“Look, Harvey, I know you’re upset. But you have to face the facts. Linda snuck into Hollie’s room dressed as a maid. She wouldn’t have done that if she wasn’t trying to hide it. She wanted in that room for a reason and it wasn’t with Hollie’s permission.”
Harvey hung his head dejectedly. I looked at Cooper with a look that said what should we do? I knew this had to be an immense shock for him.
“Harvey, why don’t I take you back to your room and you can relax for a while? Detective Miller said he would call me as soon as they had a chance to talk to Linda. Maybe once we can get to the bottom of things you will feel better.”
“Okay.”
“Presley, can you go check in with Elaine after you see Harvey to his room and tell her Linda won’t be here for the rehearsal? See what you can do to help.”
I leaned over to whisper in his ear. “I’m not Sandra Bullock from Miss Congeniality, and I’m still not convinced Elaine isn’t mixed up in this.”
“I am not asking you to participate in the show, just help. Plus you can keep an eye on Elaine that way,” he whispered back.
“Fine.”
Chapter 20
What’s she doing back here?” I asked.
Cooper had just walked up to me in the empty rehearsal room, and I saw Linda right behind him, making her way over to Harvey. The contestants had left for a break, and I was gathering my things. Filling in for Linda was not easy She was like Superwoman. My feet were aching and my head was about to explode. The girls were whiners, or maybe I was just fed up. They complained about everything from smudged nail polish to hair that wasn’t teased as high as they wanted it. I understood about wanting to look your best, but half the things they complained about weren’t anything I would even notice, but I realized this was a different world.
I saw Harvey give Linda a hug, and surprisingly, it wasn’t one of his creepy ones. It was more a fatherly hug. He really cared about her.
“Harvey posted bail,” Cooper said.
“They let her out on bail for murder?”
“Well, she’s holding fast to the claim she didn’t murder Hollie, and Detective Miller says he believes her. So far they have charged her with unlawful entry while the investigation continues.”
“I didn’t kill Hollie,” Linda said, walking up behind me and scaring the crap out of me.
I stood there speechless. What was I supposed to say?
“Why don’t you tell Presley and Cooper what you told the police, Linda,” Harvey said to her gently.
“I admit I snuck into Hollie’s room, but I didn’t kill her, and I swear I don’t know who did. I had my suspicions Hollie was the one behind the pranks played on Allie and Janine. I thought maybe something in her room might give me a clue. I wanted to expose her and save the reputation of Pageants Unlimited from getting any worse.”
“What made you suspect Hollie?” I asked.
“She was very competitive and jealous of anyone who placed above her. I mean, most the girls are to a certain extent, but not like this. Hollie was downright mean, and vocal about how she felt she deserved it more any time someone else won. I was standing next to her when Allie’s hair turned black, and Hollie laughed. I overheard her on the phone a few minutes later saying things were working out just as planned.”
“Are you sure she was talking about what had happened to Allie? I mean, do you know who she was even talking to? Plus she had personal issues with Allie.”
“I know, but I just had a feeling. It’s hard to put into words.”
“That’s why she didn’t tell any of us about her suspicions,” said Harvey to Cooper.
“That’s right. I didn’t want to talk out of turn and wrongfully accuse someone. I thought if I could get proof to bring to you it would help.”
I understood about feelings and being apprehensive to share them in case you were wrong. “Did you find anything in her room?”
“Just her journal and now the cops have that.”
“Did it say anything?”
“It talked about how much she hated all the other girls and that they weren’t as pretty or smart or talented as her. She was very narcissistic.”
“But did it specifically say anything about pulling pranks on the others?” Cooper asked.
She looked at Harvey.
“Tell them, Linda.”
“She was the one who took the photos of the girls changing and put them on the Internet.”
“You’re kidding me,” I said. I couldn’t believe a girl would do that to another girl. Wow people were mean.
Linda shook her head. “No. It said it in her journal, so unless she was lying…”
“But what about the pranks that have happened since Hollie died? And who killed Hollie?” I asked. “Obviously, those weren’t her.”
“I don’t know,” Linda said. “She didn’t take credit for any of the other things that have happened.”
Cooper looked lost in thought for a few seconds and then said, “Linda, I would appreciate it if you didn’t talk about this to anyone else, except of course the police. Let’s not let the contestants know you think Hollie was behind things.”
“Okay. The police basically said the same thing. I just didn’t figure they would care if I told you. But the girls know I was arrested and they’re going to ask about it.”
I looked at Cooper. “She’s right, they were asking me about it all morning.”
“Just tell them the truth. That you can’t talk about it,” Cooper said.
“Come on, Linda, you need some rest,” Harvey said.
“Are you going to come back and help tonight?” I asked her, hoping she was going to say yes. I realized she had just had a very traumatic experience, but tonight was getting ready for the actual performance and I couldn’t imagine how hard that would be if the practice today had been this tough. I wasn’t sure I could handle it.
“Yes. I wouldn’t miss it. It’s the best part.”
I nodded, thankful she felt that way.
As they left, I turned to Cooper. “You know, something doesn’t make sense.”
“What?”
“Hollie leaking explicit photos is a transgression on a much bigger scale than the other things that have happened, such as dye in conditioner, a dead mouse in a dress box, and the self tanner incident. Hollie being murdered is on an entirely different plane altogether. So maybe we are still looking for two other people. It’s like one step forward, two steps back.”
“I was thinking that, too. Two people, two motives, all cro
ssing each other which is what is making this all the more difficult.”
Chapter 21
So this is it?” I asked Linda. “The final practice before the big show?”
“Yep. We have tonight and then tomorrow, and at about 10:00 p.m. it will be all over.”
“Almost seems like a let down. All this hard work over the last few days and the actual show is only a couple hours long. Except for the winner, it must seem like a lot of work for nothing for everyone else.”
“Most the girls are happy to consistently stay in the top five, as the prizes extend to fifth place. Except, as it seems, Hollie. She was almost always in the top five and she didn’t find that good enough,” Linda said ruefully. “Such a shame.”
“I’m going to go ahead and make my way backstage. Cooper has his men staggered through the aisles and at each entrance. I will be in back with the girls, and fingers crossed this will go off without a hitch. We can celebrate after with a glass of wine.”
“Sounds good.”
I walked backstage to see girls everywhere in some form of panic over something. Just watching them stressed me out. I checked to make sure Cooper’s guys were all in place, and I went to stand off to the side to stay out of everyone’s way but still able to keep an eye on things. I had been standing there for a few minutes when Elaine came up to me.
“Presley, Cooper asked me to tell you to meet him in the Cambridge suite when I saw you.”
“Really?” I asked, surprised.
“Yes. He was here just a few minutes ago. He said there were a couple last minute logistical changes he needed to discuss with you. Now you better go before he gets mad again.”
I frowned at her. “Okay, but I will be right back. Tell Linda if you see her.” I walked out the back entrance of the stage and took the service elevator up to the second floor where the Cambridge suite was and pushed open the door. No one was here and the all the lights weren’t even on.
“Hello? Hello?” I paused. Did I hear voices? I heard something coming from the adjoining room to the Cambridge, which was the station room. I quietly walked to the adjoining doorway and peeked through the slit. My eyes widened in surprise. I’d had my suspicions but had hoped I was wrong. I slowly pushed the door open.
