Cry Wolf (Silver Hollow Paranormal Cozy Mystery Series Book 4)

by Leighann Dobbs

  She reviewed her notes again. “Did you give Tucker Rockwood a napkin from The Coffee Connection with your lipstick print on it?”

  “Yes.” Alissa’s expression clouded over and her eyes welled with tears. “He hadn’t been feeling well, and I gave it to him as a kiss to carry with him to chase away the sickness when I wasn’t around.”

  DeeDee managed to suppress her gag reflex at the sticky sweetness of it all. She pulled out a pen and flipped to a new blank page in her notepad. “Right. And where were you early Tuesday morning between three forty and four seventeen a.m.?”

  “Filming a sunrise scene over at the mausoleum in the small family graveyard near the back of the property. Dozens of other people were there too. They can attest to my location.”

  “And you were there the entire time?” DeeDee asked, not looking up from her paper. It was easier to stay objective and focused without getting distracted by the actress’s wild gestures and exaggerated expressions.

  “Yes. The only time I left was to get the wooden dolly. But I wasn’t alone. Jules walked over to the props trailer with me since we weren’t in the next scene they were shooting.”

  “I’m assuming this Jules person is another actor in the film?” she asked.

  “Of course. Jules Mannington. He’s quite talented. Handsome too. He’ll be a big star someday. Maybe even as big as Tucker.”

  DeeDee scribbled more notes. Perhaps this Jules Mannington got tired of waiting for his shot at the spotlight and decided to speed things along by getting Tucker Rockwood out of the way. Maybe he’d even gotten Alissa Snow here to help him. She tapped the tip of her pen against her pad. “And this Jules can verify your whereabouts?”

  “Sure.”

  “Great.” It seemed everyone was covering for everyone else on this set. “What time would you say the two of you went to get this dolly?”

  Alissa frowned, her brows drawing together in deep concentration. “Around three thirty, I think. You can check with Johnny to be exact. All our film takes are time-stamped. Anyway, after we went and got the dolly, Jules and I had to go right back to film another scene. It was a busy night, and we didn’t get done until nearly seven that morning. That’s when we heard all the commotion…”

  “Okay. So you and this Jules went to get the dolly around three thirty and then came right back to start filming again and stayed on the set then until the body was found. Is that correct?”

  “Yep.”

  Except that didn’t make any sense. DeeDee already knew from Tucker’s FitBit record that the body had been moved between three forty and four seventeen, and their crime scene technicians had proven that wooden dolly had transported the body. “What happened to the dolly while you and Jules filmed your scene?”

  “Not sure,” Alissa said. “Running props around the set isn’t my usual job. I’ve got more important things to do. I assume it stayed there on set until someone on the crew returned it to the props trailer.”

  “So you didn’t notice if it was still sitting around when you left then?”

  “No. Of course not.” More tears and sniffles. “With Tucker’s death, I was totally devastated. Why would I notice where a stupid cart was when the man I loved was dead?”

  DeeDee waited until the actress’s sobs calmed to a few hiccupping gasps, then continued. If they gave out Oscars for being drama queens, this gal should have won one.

  Finally, Alissa Snow dabbed her eyes and nose. “Look, if you think I killed Tucker, you’re just wrong, Deputy. I loved him, truly, madly, deeply. If there’s anyone you should be questioning, it’s Tucker’s wife. Laura was stalking him, you know? I saw her doing it myself, the day before he died. Found her spying on us outside that coffee shop.”

  It was possible Alissa was trying to set up Rockwood’s widow. DeeDee hadn’t quite figured out her plan yet, but she would. “Don’t worry, Ms. Snow. We’re questioning the widow as well.”

  “Good.” The actress’s expression turned stubborn, and she crossed her arms. “And if you don’t believe what I just told you, please, ask Jules. He’s right over there.”

  Following the direction in which Alissa pointed, DeeDee spotted a young, dark-haired man of medium build with a dazzling-white smile and dimples that would let him get away with just about anything. She finished with Ms. Snow then made her way to the opposite side of the set, where Jules Mannington was holding court.

  “Excuse me.” DeeDee squeezed between a flock of crew members and makeup people. “Mr. Mannington, I’m Deputy Clawson of the Silver Hollow—”

  “Yeah, I know who you are,” Jules said, turning his mega-watt smile on her. “I’ve seen you and the other detective around the set the past few days. Wondered when you’d get around to questioning me.”

  “Well, then. Today’s your lucky day.” She gave the actor a flat stare, letting him know she wasn’t impressed with his slick persona. “So Mr. Mannington. I just spoke with your friend Alissa Snow, and I need you to verify a few facts for me.”

  She went through the same questions with him as she had with Alissa, and darn if he didn’t give the same exact answers. DeeDee’s gut told her these two might be lying, but then again, she tended to be biased when it came to anything Hollywood. Just look at how she’d suspected poor Caine when all along he’d been innocent. Not only that, but he’d also turned out to be her treasured online friend, Threads99. The familiar tingle of awareness started once more in her gut as she remembered their steamy kiss in his kitchen.

  She shouldn’t be thinking about Caine. Shouldn’t be remembering their kiss. It could never work, because she was promised to another. The mustard seed necklace warmed against her skin. But what if there really was a chance…

  Nope. DeeDee stepped back and frowned. This was ridiculous. This was getting out of hand. Her fate was sealed. It was better to focus on work. This was her murder investigation, and she needed to stick with the facts and only the facts, leaving her emotions and personal opinions out of it.

  And the fact was, the sheriff’s department had only released Tucker Rockwood’s time of death, not the fact that they knew the time the body was moved. This gave her an advantage. It also meant Alissa Snow was smarter than she let on. By saying she and Jules had retrieved that dolly from the props trailer then left it on the graveyard set gave them an instant out if any of their fingerprints or other DNA evidence turned up on the dolly. And it could also be used as an excuse if anyone had seen her or Jules with the dolly.

  Still, no matter how smart this Alissa Snow thought she was, no way would she outsmart DeeDee. She’d worked too hard, been through too much to give up on her case. Now, all she had to do was figure out a way to prove the actress was lying, and she’d be all set.

  She went back to her cruiser and pulled out of the driveway to head back into town. It was close enough to five now that she could call it a day. But as she approached a red light, she glanced over and saw Caine Hunter walking into The Coffee Connection.

  Before she realized her actions, DeeDee signaled and pulled into the parking lot.

  CHAPTER 20

  C aine glanced out the window of the coffee shop and sighed. Darn. He’d thought he’d gotten inside quickly enough to avoid DeeDee seeing him, but he’d been wrong. He watched as she pulled her car in beside his Bentley.

  He’d been trailing after her since she’d left his place earlier, despite his sister’s warnings to the contrary. No matter how ridiculous or unwanted his help might be, he had an obligation to his future mate, just as he’d told Carletta. She was his responsibility now, and he’d do everything in his power to make sure no harm came to her from this point forward.

  His shoulders tensed as he waited for the bell above the door to jangle, though now that their connection was even stronger since that kiss, he didn’t need to see DeeDee to know she was close. Still, she never came inside, just sat out in the parking lot, watching him through the window.

  It seemed he wasn’t the only one doing a little surveilla
nce.

  He placed his order, paid, then moved down the line to wait for his coffee.

  To distract himself from the zinging awareness jolting through him, even with the windows separating them, Caine went through what he knew about the case so far. He’d discovered Tucker and Gina were fooling around together and that there was also a third woman involved. He’d suspected it was Alissa Snow, though he hadn’t confirmed that yet. He also knew Tucker liked to frequent this place with his girlfriends. He’d come here hoping maybe one of the servers might’ve heard something.

  As the line in front of him dwindled, Caine stepped up to the counter and smiled at the cute little barista making his macchiato. He pulled out the two headshots he’d brought with him of Tucker and Gina. When she turned to face him with his coffee in hand, he made his move. “Hi there. I’m Caine Hunter. I’m the producer and director of the movie shooting in town.”

  The barista returned his smile, a hint of color staining her cheeks. “I know who you are.”

  “Great.” He stirred the whipped cream and caramel into his cup. “Would you possibly have a second to answer a couple questions for me?”

  She glanced at the empty register area then shrugged. “Uh, sure.”

  “Perfect.” Caine showed her the picture of Tucker. “Did you see this man in the shop?”

  “Yes. He’s the actor who got killed, right? Yeah, he came in here a lot,” the barista said. “His wife did too.”

  “Ah, so you knew Laura too?” Caine flashed her another charming smile.

  “I did. She was super nice. Always gave us huge tips.” She tucked a strand of loose brown hair from her ponytail behind her ear. “I was sad to hear about what happened to him.”

  Caine sipped his macchiato and leaned his hip against the counter. “How about this woman—did you ever see her in here with Mr. Rockwood?”

  He showed her the headshot of Gina Presti.

  The barista squinted at the picture. “Yes, I think I saw her in here with him a few times. Why?”

  “Did you ever see Tucker Rockwood with other ladies who weren’t his wife? Maybe see him get overly friendly with these women?”

  The barista hesitated.

  “It’s okay, you can tell me,” Caine said, using his best calming voice, the one he used on set all the time with his overwrought actors and actresses. “It won’t go any farther than us.”

  She nodded, her gaze lowering. “Yeah, I saw them.”

  “Did he happen to come in with one of these other women on Monday?”

  “Yes.”

  Caine pulled a third headshot from beneath his coat, this one of Alissa Snow. “Was this the woman you saw with him that day?”

  “Yeah,” the barista said. “That’s her.”

  “And you’re sure it wasn’t this woman I showed you before.” He placed Gina’s picture beside Alissa’s. “They’re both blond, so it might be easy to confuse them.”

  “No. It was definitely the second lady. The funny thing is, though, that first lady showed up later in the day too. I remember because she came in with Laura.” The barista shrugged. “I thought it was weird, the two of them hanging out together and being all cozy.”

  Frowning, Caine gathered the pictures and thanked the girl for her help then took a seat at an empty table near the windows so he could keep an eye on DeeDee.

  Why the heck would Gina Presti and Laura Rockwood hang out in a coffee shop together? From what he’d heard, the two women couldn’t stand each other, unless it was all a ruse to throw people off. And why would they want to do that?

  Caine had the disturbing feeling that his future mate could be in far more danger than he’d ever imagined. The connection between them flared brightly, bringing all his alpha protector instincts to the forefront. He downed the rest of his coffee before hazarding another glance out the window.

  But when Caine looked out to the parking lot again, DeeDee was gone.

  CHAPTER 21

  DeeDee settled into her booth in The Main Squeeze juice bar and pulled out her cell phone. The fact she’d just wasted twenty minutes of her life staring at the man she’d kissed earlier in the day left her decidedly off-kilter. She wasn’t a stalker. In fact, she wasn’t the type of woman who chased after men at all. Yet there she’d been, wistfully watching Caine Hunter through The Coffee Connection windows as he’d flirted with a barista.

  Envy and embarrassment roiled inside her, preventing her from fully enjoying the tasty Pomegranate Passion drink she’d ordered. It was best to forget all about Caine and the kiss they’d shared and the fact he seemed to affect her as no other man ever had and get back to business.

  That was the proper thing to do. The safe thing to do.

  She dialed Owen’s number then sat back and unzipped her coat while she waited for him to pick up.

  “Sheriff Gleason.”

  “Hey, boss,” DeeDee said. “Is Dex there too? If so, you might as well put me on speaker phone so we can get this all out at once.”

  “Sure, hang on.”

  Moments later, the sound through the phone line shifted from regular to airplane-hanger mode. The noise of chairs being shuffled across the floor echoed. DeeDee sipped her drink and stared out the window as snow flurries whipped around in the breeze over the Silver Hollow town green across the street from the shop.

  “Hey, partner,” Dex said at last.

  “Hey, buddy.” She smiled and pulled out her notebook. “Okay, so I just got done questioning Alissa Snow, and I’m pretty sure we’ve got ourselves a new top suspect.”

  “Really?” Owen said. “Why’s that?”

  “Well, for starters, she was the one who retrieved the dolly from the props trailer.”

  “Really?” Dex asked.

  “Yep. Boss, can you pull up the crime scene technician’s report for the wooden dolly and tell me if they found any other DNA evidence linking Alissa Snow to the murder of Tucker Rockwood? Hair or skin or fingerprints.”

  Owen came back on the line a few moments later. “Nope. The only prints found at the crime scene were the wife’s on Tucker’s personal effects—his FitBit and his wallet—but that’s not unusual since they were married.”

  “What about on the dolly itself?” DeeDee asked.

  “That thing was a mess of prints. Seems just about everybody and their brother used it. They did find epithelial cells matching Rockwood’s DNA, so it was definitely used to transport his body.”

  “Shoot.” She frowned and sat back. She’d thought they’d find at least some hair or fingerprints linking Alissa to that stupid dolly. She sighed, staring down at her notes while Owen and Dex chatted between themselves. She’d written the words “time stamp” in bold. Alissa had said all the scenes they filmed for the movie were time-stamped. If she had killed Tucker Rockwood, then that would mean Alissa would’ve somehow had to tamper with the time stamp on the scenes she shot with Jules Mannington. Was that even possible?

  DeeDee flipped back to a few days earlier in her notes. Gina Presti had said she helped the assistant director by uploading the dailies for the editorial team. Gina mentioned the assistant director had brought her a batch of film to upload early Tuesday morning, the day Tucker Rockwood’s body had been found. Maybe Gina would be able to tell her more about the time stamps.

  “Hey, boss?” she said after taking a long sip of her Pomegranate Passion. “I’m going to head back over to the movie set before the end of my shift. I’ve got a few more questions for Gina Presti.”

  “Be careful, Deputy.” Owen said. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Bye, DeeDee,” Dex said.

  “See ya later.”

  She ended the call then bundled up again before heading back out to the cruiser.

  GINA ANSWERED the door on her RV, her expression surprised. “Deputy Clawson?”

  “Hello again.” DeeDee gave her a polite smile. “May I come in? I’ve just got a couple more questions for you.”

  “Oh, uh...” Gina glance
d into the trailer then back at her. “Okay, I guess. I was just on my way over to the set to work, though, so it’ll have to be fast.”

  “Sure.” She climbed the steps into the trailer. It was nice, fully appointed and cozy. Fine for temporary lodgings on a film set but way too cramped to be comfortable for long-term living otherwise. She took a seat at the booth opposite the kitchenette area, noticing the expensive Louis Vuitton handbag on the opposite seat. Gina fussed with a blender on the counter and set some dirty dishes in the sink. A few clothes were strewn about too, as if she hadn’t had time to clean up in a while. In the living room area, near the front of the RV, sat a gigantic flat-screen TV perched precariously atop a rather wobbly-looking end table.

  “What can I help you with, Deputy?” Gina asked, taking a seat across from DeeDee.

  “Well, I was wondering about those…” A familiar tickle started in her sinuses, growing stronger and stronger until—Acccchhhhoooo!

  Great. Another sneezing fit. Her arms and hands itched like crazy as small hives appeared. Mistletoe. There must have been some close. This species must have been the kind she was super allergic to. It was affecting her much more than any other mistletoe she’d been near. She searched for it as she tried asking her question again. “Sorry. One of the actresses mentioned all the film scenes shot are time-stamped. Can those stamps be changed?”

  “Oh.” Gina pushed a box of tissues across the table toward her. “I suppose they could be. You’d have to have access to the system, though.”

  “Who would have that kind of access? Any of the actors or actresses? Alissa Snow?”

  “I don’t think any of the cast would.” Gina frowned as DeeDee scratched her hands raw. “Are you okay?”

  “Allergies.”

  DeeDee sneezed again, knocking over a few books and a coffee mug. DeeDee bent to pick them up and spotted the corner of a note sticking out from one of the books. She pulled it out, spotting Tucker Rockwood's distinctive sloping signature across the bottom. She leaned in to read it, but Gina stood and crossed her arms.