After the customers left the boutique and they had a quiet moment, Kelly filled Pepper in on her visit with Nanette, leaving out the part where she was considering paying a visit to Janine.
“Now, since you’ve gotten it out of your system, let’s talk about the holiday event you want to have. I spoke with Betsy at the candle shop. She can donate a few jar candles for the goody bags.” Pepper stepped out from behind the sales counter with three blouses and rehung them. She then walked to what was originally the dining room and now housed circular racks, all filled with pants and skirts. Kelly had wanted to rearrange the merchandise in the store for a better flow and to encourage impulse buying, but she’d been involved with the accessory department, so she hadn’t gotten to the rest of the boutique yet. She made a plan for after New Year’s to tackle a new layout.
It wasn’t out of her system yet. But Kelly opted not to share that little tidbit. Like the tidbit about Marvin Childers. Even being consumed with a whodunit and holiday sales couldn’t keep her mind from fretting over the dark cloud named Marvin Childers.
The boutique’s telephone rang, and Kelly picked up the handset. “Thank you for calling the Lucky Cove Resale Boutique. This is Kelly.”
“Just the person I wanted to speak with. This is Janine Cutter. I’d like to consign some clothes. I heard you sold all of Wendy’s dresses.”
And just the person Kelly wanted to speak to. Talk about perfect timing.
“Yes, we did. I’m happy to meet with you about consigning your clothes. We do in-home estimates. Would you be interested in scheduling one?” Kelly squeezed her eyes shut and hoped Janine said yes.
“Sounds perfect. I’m busy packing for an upcoming move, so the sooner we get this over with, the better.”
Kelly glanced at Pepper. Could she leave her alone again? She seemed okay. She hadn’t coughed since Kelly had gotten back, and the color in her face looked better. “Not a problem. I can be there in a half hour.”
“Excellent. I’ve already sorted out the clothes I want to consign, and I know they’ll sell out as fast as Wendy’s. The only difference will be is people will want my clothes because they’re fabulous, while they only bought Wendy’s dresses because of the murder. See you in thirty.”
“I’m looking forward to it.” Kelly jotted down Janine’s address, then said good-bye. She set the phone down. She couldn’t help but wonder if it was truly perfect timing or too much of a coincidence? Could Janine have known Kelly had talked to Nanette earlier and the housekeeper had shared her suspicions about the husband-stealing reality star?
Pepper came back to the sales counter. “Your granny always hung stockings over the fireplace.” She nodded in the direction of the fireplace. It sat squarely at the center of the house and separated the two front rooms.
Kelly crinkled her nose. Big red felt stockings weren’t the look she was going for.
“Don’t worry. I’m not talking about those quilted stockings Martha has had for years. I found the most fashionable stockings. White and gold with ruffles. You’ll love them. Trust me.” Pepper continued past the sales counter and disappeared into the small hall that led to the staff room.
“Guess it’s decided then.”
“Heard that!”
Kelly laughed. Her jovial mood passed quickly when she realized she had to tell Pepper where she was going. She expected Pepper to think she’d initiated the appointment. She was right. Their conversation was anything but brief, and by the time Kelly left the boutique, she still wasn’t sure Pepper believed her.
Kelly arrived at Janine’s ranch-style house with a couple of minutes to spare, which gave her time to do a quick Internet search on the youngest cast member of LIL. Right out of college, Janine had landed a spot on another reality show, The Next Entrepreneur. She was cut in week five, but the show had given her enough exposure for her to launch her jewelry line. She returned to The Next Entrepreneur as a judge, and then she landed the job on LIL. A true reality-television success story.
Kelly navigated to Janine’s website and was impressed by the jewelry. Feminine, delicate, and way out of Kelly’s price range. She noticed the time on her phone. She closed the Internet and stepped out of her Jeep. A gust of wind slapped her, and she buried her hands in the pockets of her parka to make the short trek to Janine’s front door.
A fresh-faced, barefoot Janine greeted her. Her faded denim shirt was as well-worn as her distressed boyfriend jeans. She looked like someone Kelly could hang out with, not a TV diva.
“Right on time. I like you already.” Janine’s thin lips slid into a smile as she stepped aside to allow Kelly into her small entry hall. Wisps of her glossy brunette hair had slipped from her ponytail and framed her diamond-shaped face.
“Thank you for inviting me over.” For more reasons than one. “I know you’re on a tight schedule.”
“It’s crazy town. Between work and moving and Diana’s death, I barely have time to get a manicure. Follow me.” Janine pushed her violet cat-eye frames up the bridge of her nose before she turned and led Kelly through the living room. Janine’s steps were light and quick.
They entered the master bedroom. A king-size bed dominated the room and was flanked by two nightstands; a triple dresser anchored the opposite wall. Janine’s toes were buried in the plush carpet as she walked to a rolling rack of clothes.
Janine did a Vanna White motion with her hand. “Here are all the clothes I want to consign. They’re all in season.”
In-season clothing was definitely a plus. Kelly stepped closer and did a quick scan of the garments. She liked what she saw. A nice selection of blouses, shirts, pants, and skirts and a couple of day dresses, though they were kind of short. She looked back at Janine, who stood about three inches taller than her. On someone of average height, the dresses and skirts would fall lower, closer to the knee. Not having been the owner of the boutique for very long, she wasn’t sure how mini lengths would sell. On closer inspection, she noticed the clothes were all size zero. Didn’t any of the LIL eat? Good thing she had her website to sell merchandise.
“What do you think? Better selection than Wendy’s, I’m sure.” Janine moved away from the garment rack and over to a box beside the dresser.
“You have great pieces here.” Kelly pulled out her phone and calculated how much she could sell each item for and then how much Janine could earn. The items weren’t high-end designer, so their price point for the boutique would be perfect. Kelly suspected Janine’s wardrobe would get an upgrade once she became the new Mrs. Aaron Delacourte.
“I’m sure I’ll have more stuff once I’m all settled in my new place. Those are items I know I don’t want to keep.” Janine covered a framed photo in Bubble Wrap and placed it in the box.
“Where are you moving, if you don’t mind me asking?” Kelly glanced up.
Janine stiffened and paused before continuing with her packing. She picked up another photo and length of Bubble Wrap.
“I guess it’s no secret. I’m moving in with Aaron.” Janine’s voice had hardened and sounded defensive. “I’m sure everyone will have an opinion about it.”
“People talk about a lot of things that aren’t any of their business.” Kelly had experience in that area.
It seemed everyone in Lucky Cove had an opinion after Ariel’s car accident, and most of those opinions were about Kelly. She gave herself a mental shake. She wasn’t there to travel down memory lane. She was there to get merchandise for the boutique and see what she could learn about the reality show and Diana.
Janine nodded vigorously. “Sounds like you know what it’s like to have your life out there for public consumption.”
Kelly lowered her phone. “Sort of. But our situations are different.”
Janine held up her palm. “I know. I chose to put my life out there on TV. You know, sometimes I regret the decision, but then I wouldn’t have met Aaron.�
� She lowered her hand, and her voice softened. “He’s the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time.”
“What about his wife, Diana?”
“What about her? Their marriage was over long before I came on the show and met Aaron. She was just hanging onto her marriage for the show. Without Aaron being the bad guy, she had no story line. Her life was boring. Had I had the foresight to know my relationship with Aaron would prolong Diana’s presence on the show, maybe I would’ve done things differently.”
Like not pursue a married man?
Kelly gave herself another mental shake. No judging. She was there for merchandise and information. Judging was wrong, and it shut down a conversation faster than asking a woman if she was pregnant. Never do that. Let the woman tell you if she is. Lesson learned at her first job in retail.
“They fired her, so I guess it worked out for you.” Kelly slipped her phone into her tote bag.
“Kind of. Diana was campaigning to get back on the show. She even tried to sell an angle of being all earth-conscious. She got herself a hybrid car. Talk about a load of bull. The only reason she got a hybrid was because her Mercedes was repossessed and she couldn’t afford another luxury vehicle.” Janine stopped packing up her dresser and walked to Kelly. “I wasn’t the only one who didn’t want Diana back on the show.”
“You’re talking about Wendy?”
“Absolutely. It thrilled her when Diana was canned. I have a theory.”
“You do?”
“My theory is that Wendy and her new BFF, Summer, planned to make sure Diana never returned to the show.”
“You think they killed Diana?” A heaviness settled in Kelly’s stomach at the accusation. She wasn’t a fan of Summer—never had been—but she was certain her uncle’s wife wasn’t a murderer. To suggest that was careless and damaging to Summer’s reputation.
Janine gave a “you bet your sweet Louis Vuitton Speedy bag I do” smile as she nodded her head. “You can’t deny that it makes sense. Wendy gets rid of Diana for good, and Summer gets on the show.”
“There’s another theory.”
“Oh, yeah, what?” Janine crossed her arms over her chest.
The smugness reverberating off of Janine reminded Kelly of the attitudes of high school cheerleaders. She was one for two years, so she knew what they were like. Well, not all of them. Most of them. She’d lay money on Janine once being a cheerleader.
“The other theory is you killed Diana. Maybe you two got into a fight because she was still dragging her feet with the divorce. Or maybe Aaron killed his wife for the same reason. Or maybe you two did it together.”
“That’s absurd!! You’re way off base.” Janine turned around so fast, her ponytail nearly whipped Kelly in the face.
“Am I?”
Janine tramped to the open bedroom door, and she spun around, placing both hands on her slender hips. “I’ve reconsidered consigning my clothing in your shop. You may leave now.” With that dismissal, she lifted one hand from her hip and pointed to the hall.
So much for getting merchandise for her boutique. Why did Kelly have to defend Summer? She could’ve let it go and just pumped Janine for more information in a more subtle way than blurting out her possible motive for murder.
Kelly gave a final look at the rack of clothes before exiting the room. She thought maybe she could salvage the deal, but the stern look on Janine’s face told her otherwise. There’d be no deal. She was leaving empty-handed.
Once Kelly passed over the threshold and out into the short hallway that led to the living room, Janine disappeared from sight. It looked like she trusted Kelly to make her way out of the house on her own. No worries. Kelly was eager to leave.
As she walked past the coffee table, covered with magazines, file folders, and rolls of packing tape, a piece of a document peeking out from a folder caught her eye. It looked like a legal document.
Kelly looked over her shoulder. No Janine. Curious about what the document was, she bent and flipped open the folder. It was a legal document. Not wanting to linger too long, she pulled out her cell phone, snapped a few photos, and then closed the folder. She raced to the door.
Outside, she hurried to her car and slid in behind the steering wheel. After starting the ignition to warm up the Jeep, she opened the photo on her phone and enlarged it. From her limited knowledge of legalese, she could make out that the paperwork was a restraining order placed on Janine on behalf of Diana.
Whoa!
Maybe Kelly’s theory wasn’t too far off. Maybe Janine broke the restraining order and confronted Diana and then killed her.
Her cell phone rang, jolting her out of her thoughts. The caller ID told her it was Ariel calling.
“Hey, you won’t believe what I found out,” Kelly said.
“Tell me later. I’m at the bistro on Seabreeze, and Yvonne Patterson just came in. Want to meet me? Maybe you can talk to her.”
Kelly considered the time. She’d been away from the boutique for over an hour. But she had to eat something. She thanked Ariel and told her she was on her way. Before pulling out of the driveway, she texted Pepper to see if she wanted anything from the bistro. Pepper replied no thanks; she had soup.
By the time Kelly arrived at the bistro, a quaint little restaurant set on an adorable street off Main Street, Ariel had to bail. She got called into the library for a last-minute staff meeting. Bummed she couldn’t be there in person to see Kelly in action, she texted that she’d settle for a recap later in the day.
Kelly pulled off her sunglasses after entering the bistro and scanned the dining room for Yvonne. Thanks to her Internet search on Janine earlier, she knew what Yvonne looked like. All the Long Island Ladies had popped up during Kelly’s scroll through data about Janine. She spotted her.
Yvonne sat at a table for two by herself, sipping coffee and reading something on her cell phone through a fashionable pair of readers.
Not a size zero like the rest of the cast, Yvonne was mature and not ashamed of it. Her short and side-swept hairstyle was both easy and elegant. Her hair color was a light gray with white highlights, and while it was appropriate for her age, Kelly was confident the color was boosted by a standing appointment with a hairstylist.
Kelly approached Yvonne’s table, and when she arrived in front of Yvonne, she was at a loss for what to say. She should have prepared something, but she hadn’t. It looked like she would wing it.
Yvonne peered at Kelly over the rim of her readers. “Can I help you?”
“Yes, no, I mean . . . I’m Kelly Quinn. I own the Lucky Cove Resale Boutique and was just at Janine’s house to do an estimate. She expressed an interest in consigning with my boutique.” Expressed and then changed her mind. But Kelly didn’t want to bore Yvonne with the details of the meeting.
“How nice for her.” Yvonne’s voice was as cool as her lavender-striped, button-down shirt. The color played well against her coloring and gray hair. Her jewelry was tasteful; she’d limited herself to stud earrings, a chunky necklace, and a wedding band. There wasn’t anything blingy, flashy, or showy about Yvonne.
“I’m hoping she’ll consign. I’ve revamped the boutique and am attracting a broader customer base.”
“Ambitious. It’s always nice to see a young woman engaged in entrepreneurship. Would you like to join me?” Yvonne set her phone down and removed her readers. “I’m between appointments.”
“Thank you. I’d love to.” Kelly pulled out a chair and shrugged out of her coat after setting her tote down. A waiter appeared and took Kelly’s order for a coffee. She was hungry but didn’t get the vibe from Yvonne that she wanted a lunch companion.
“You’re Ralph Blake’s niece, aren’t you?”
Kelly paused a moment before answering. She wasn’t sure how people felt about her uncle. He was a shark in business, which made him a lot of enemies but also ma
de many people rich. Kelly wasn’t sure which camp Yvonne fell into.
“I am.” Before she could ask how Yvonne felt about her dear uncle, the waiter appeared with her coffee. She added a dash of cream and stirred. “How did you like his holiday party?”
“I couldn’t attend. I had a prior engagement. This time of the year, the invitations are endless. Ralph must be proud of you being a young businesswoman.”
Proud? Not exactly the word Kelly would use to describe her uncle’s feelings about her. Disappointment. Annoying. Problem. Those three words were more like it. He was disappointed that she wouldn’t sell the building and annoyed that he was the estate’s executor, which meant Kelly was one big problem. Definitely not proud.
“My uncle admires business owners.” While she had her differences with her uncle and his wife, she didn’t want to air them publicly.
“I heard you used to work at Bishop’s in the city. Do you know Serena Dawson?”
The name Serena Dawson still sent a wicked chill through Kelly.
Serena was the person she least wanted to talk about. (Uncle Ralph came in second place.) From her first day on the job, she’d never clicked with the high priestess of fashion, and their relationship hadn’t improved while she was there. Maybe Serena didn’t like her pedigree as the granddaughter of a consignment shop owner. Whatever the reason, Kelly never got the chance to find out. Because after a series of events on what was a rather normal day—she’d returned with the wrong coffee order, picked up the wrong sample skirt from a designer’s showroom, and missed confirming an appointment that left Serena arriving at another showroom with no one there to greet her—she was terminated.
Silenced in Sequins Page 9
