“It was obviously unplanned, a total fling. And Christian was...let’s just say she wasn’t thrilled by the prospect of having him in her life permanently. When she found out about his drug connections, she really didn’t want to be involved with him anymore, definitely didn’t want to bring a child into that kind of lifestyle. She said he’d gotten rough with her once, and she was afraid, but I don’t know how true that is, I never saw it. He definitely wasn’t interested in settling down, either. He wasn’t even interested in seeing Sienna exclusively. When she realized she was pregnant, Sienna came over here really upset, asking for advice on what to do. I didn’t know the whole story then, or why she was so anxious about things, but we came up with the idea of saying it was my baby, which calmed her down.”
“So that’s why Jesse killed Christian? Was he jealous or something?” Penelope said, thinking back to the time she saw them together at the hotel suite.
Max shook his head. “No. Jesse told Sienna what was going on over at the agency. I just found out myself. I had no idea Christian was into something so...disgusting.” Max’s voice was flat, a big difference from his usually jovial tone. “Sienna just told us all of this when she came to talk to Arlena and Dad about the baby.”
“Well, when did she find out? She could have helped do something,” Penelope said.
“She did. Sienna says she found out the day before the fashion show, when she went over to bring the final payment to Joyce for all of Christian’s fittings and work on the show. Christian told her if she needed any other type of help around the house to ask Joyce and she’d be able to provide inexpensive labor, something odd like that, so she asked. And was totally freaked out about what she was offered in return. She agreed to buy the girls, get whoever she could out of there before they could be sold to someone else. There was only one left, so Sienna took her.”
Penelope remembered the girl in the suite, and how protective Sienna and Jesse both seemed towards her. “Why didn’t she go to the police?”
“Jesse had her convinced that Joyce had gotten away with it before, that the police were on her side. That’s what she said, anyway,” Max said, shrugging. “Then Hannah, who is crazier than I realized, walked in on us while I was hugging Sienna, got the wrong idea. Even though she doesn’t like me in real life, she didn’t want to be embarrassed by me fake breaking up with her on the show.”
Penelope’s head started to hurt, thinking about everything that had happened.
“All I was trying to do was help my friend with whatever she needed,” Max said, picking up his wineglass again and taking a healthy sip, “in a really terrible situation.”
“But why? Does Sienna really mean that much to you?” Penelope asked. “It’s not like you’ve been friends your whole life like she and Gavin have.”
Max shrugged. “That’s the one thing I learned growing up the way I did, with no roots and never staying in one place very long. When you find a good friend, someone important to you who is genuinely a good person, you stick by them. That’s what Dad does, you know? He taught me that as a little kid.”
Penelope nodded slowly and kept silent. She hadn’t thought about Max’s upbringing making a difference in his adult friendships, but decided it made sense.
“What about Gavin? What’s his part in all of this?” Penelope asked. Gavin was Sienna’s longtime fiancé, now ex-fiancé, who had recently come out as gay, effectively ending their engagement.
Max shrugged. “Before she left, she said we could drop the charade. She’s an independent woman, and she’s going to do it on her own, or with Gavin’s help, if he’s up for it. I think he will be, they’ve been close friends forever.”
“Seems like you all are, Max,” Penelope said. “You were in so much jeopardy because of all of this…I wouldn’t blame you for steering clear of them for a while.”
“I knew I’d be fine in the end. I have my family, and you, and now I feel like Sienna is part of my family too,” Max said sweetly. “You can never go wrong with that many people pulling for you.”
Penelope left Max’s building a little while later, wishing Jimmy a merry Christmas on her way out. She pulled her scarf closer around her neck and walked towards the bookstore, waving at Angel through the window before slipping inside.
“I’ve got something for you,” Penelope said, pulling a bound script from her messenger bag.
“What’s that?” Angel asked, eyeing the dog-eared cover curiously.
“It’s an original copy of the script from Rolling Thunder. Signed by Randall Madison. Arlena promised you his autograph that day you agreed to help us.”
“Oh wow, I forgot about that. This is awesome, thanks!” Angel’s face was pink with excitement as she carefully accepted the script from Penelope.
“They’re very appreciative of your help, of course,” Penelope said. “Merry Christmas.”
A few minutes later Penelope left, gingerbread latte in her hand, slipping into the crowd rushing down the sidewalk.
Chapter 38
Penelope knocked on Mrs. Sotheby’s door, balancing a covered plate in her hand.
“There you are, I was getting worried,” Mrs. Sotheby said, pulling the door open wide. “Where is Joey?”
Penelope looked behind her down the stoop. “He’ll be right up. He’s trying to find a spot.”
“Here, come inside,” Mrs. Sotheby said, looking up at the falling snowflakes.
Penelope dusted the snow from her jacket and handed the dish to Mrs. Sotheby.
“What’s this?”
“A wreath cake. A chocolate Bundt that I decorated,” Penelope said. “I’m not the best baker, but I can make a few things.”
“Look who I found outside,” Joey said. Officer Gomez and Joey came in together.
“Everyone come in and let’s sit in here by the fire. Sinay, come on out,” Mrs. Sotheby said, rubbing her hands together.
Sinay came into the sitting room carrying a tea service then took a seat next to Mrs. Sotheby on the settee.
A small Christmas tree twinkled in the corner of the living room, decorated with candy canes and colorful glass balls. Mrs. Sotheby poured the tea.
“How are you, Sinay?” Penelope asked.
“I’m doing fine, thanks,” the girl responded shyly.
“Are you and Adir still seeing each other?” Officer Gomez asked, warming her hands on her mug.
She smiled and nodded, blushing and looking off at the fireplace.
Mrs. Sotheby patted her on the leg.
“They’re taking it slow, right, dear? Just kids, you know,” she said knowingly to Penelope. Joey took her hand, lacing his fingers in hers. “School is the most important thing right now, and Sinay is doing wonderfully.”
“I’m glad it worked out that you could stay here with Mrs. Sotheby,” Penelope said.
“I’m officially a foster parent. Imagine that,” Mrs. Sotheby said, taking a sip of tea. “Would you mind getting my glasses from the office, dear?”
Sinay stood up and left to go upstairs.
“I don’t like to bring up all of the ugliness of the past few months around her, you understand,” Mrs. Sotheby said. “So tell me the latest.”
Officer Gomez leaned forward, putting her tea cup on the table and clearing her throat. “Jesse has confessed to the murders of both Joyce and Christian Alves.”
“And they were actually related to each other?” Mrs. Sotheby asked.
Officer Gomez nodded. “He was her great-nephew.”
“Jesse was one of the first kids Joyce brought over. She sold him to a family out on Long Island who treated him very badly,” Penelope said. “He was locked in a closet of the house, only let out to work and clean until a neighbor called the police and the family was arrested. This was years ago.”
“So Joyce brought over both boys and girls?” Penelope asked.
“In the beginning, she did. We only have records of girls in the past few years, but Joyce seemed to be an equal opportunity exploiter of children over the years,” Officer Gomez said grimly. “Jesse moved to the city and got hired at a club downtown as a waiter, which is where he met Christian one night. Christian recruited him into his modeling circle, and he started doing the club openings with the other models. One night Christian was talking about his great-aunt Joyce, and Jesse thought maybe it was the same Miss Joyce he remembered, since they had the same last name. He got himself invited to one of Christian’s parties at the house to find out.”
“It sounds like Christian was his friend. Why would Jesse kill him?” Mrs. Sotheby asked, glancing at the staircase.
“He said he wandered downstairs after everyone had passed out one night and saw Sinay scrubbing the kitchen floor at three in the morning. That confirmed for him that Joyce was still bringing kids over and using them as servants. Jesse says he figured Christian had to be helping her, and how could he not be, being her own family.”
“Was Christian helping her with the girls?” Mrs. Sotheby asked in a hushed voice.
“We can’t find any evidence of that,” Officer Gomez said. “Jesse had lost track of Joyce; she used to operate out of Queens and he was just a little boy the last time he saw her. He said he’d built a happy life here and all of that was behind him. But when he came across Joyce again and saw she was still hurting children, he decided it was a sign to do something about it. He assumed Christian was in on it.”
“Why didn’t he go to the police?” Joey asked.
“He said he tried that before, had filed reports, but nothing had been done…he thought he should try and do something on his own,” Officer Gomez said, shaking her head sadly. “The girls were in the back room of the bodega, like he said they’d be. He’d saved up thousands of dollars from his modeling work, was planning on having them live with him until they could be either reunited with their families, or be here legally on their own. His intentions were good. He just went about things the wrong way, I think.”
“You can’t really blame him,” Mrs. Sotheby said. “Sounds like Jesse had it rough growing up,” Mrs. Sotheby said. “It’s a shame Christian, if he really had nothing to do with Joyce’s side business, had to die. But I still find it difficult to believe he had no idea what was going on downstairs, even if he wasn’t working directly with her.”
They pondered Jesse’s fate silently for a moment. Then Officer Gomez said, “Jesse is cooperating, which will hopefully make the outcome better for him. And the charges against Max Madison were officially dropped when Jesse confessed.”
“Whatever happened to the gun?” Penelope asked.
“He threw it in the Hudson, off the edge of the GWB. It’s gone,” Officer Gomez said. “He didn’t go over there intending to kill anyone, says it was a spur of the moment decision to confront Christian, and things got out of hand. We’re lucky he didn’t shoot Max too.”
“Jesse may have had a rough life, but he chose to kill two people, and attempted to kidnap this one, don’t forget,” Joey said, grasping Penelope’s hand. “Maybe Joyce and Christian weren’t the greatest examples of humanity in the world, but they were still people.”
They fell silent when they heard Sinay’s footsteps on the stairs.
Penelope shrugged her coat over her shoulders as they walked down the sidewalk to Joey’s truck.
The snow had begun to fall harder and she glanced at the empty brownstone on the other side of the courtyard as they passed by. A “For Sale” sign was propped in the front window. Penelope wondered how long it would take to sell, considering all the terrible things that had happened inside.
Joey held the door open for her and she climbed in, rubbing her hands to warm them as she watched him walk around to the other side. The truck roared to life.
“Where are we headed now?”
Joey looked at her and leaned over for a kiss, holding her gently behind the head and lingering for a few beats.
“I want to go see the tree in Rockefeller Center with you. And then I was thinking we’d head back to Jersey, let someone else cook for us tonight.”
“Oh really? Who?”
“You know who. We’re heading back to the old neighborhood to see the family.” He winked at her as he pulled away from the curb.
About the Author
Shawn Reilly Simmons was born in Indiana, grew up in Florida, and began her professional career in New York City as a sales executive after graduating from the University of Maryland with a BA in English. Since then Shawn has worked as a bookstore manager, fiction editor, convention organizer, wine consultant and caterer. She has been on the Board of Directors of Malice Domestic since 2003, and is a founding member of The Dames of Detection. Cooking behind the scenes on movie sets perfectly combined two of her great loves, movies and food, and provides the inspiration for her series.
The Red Carpet Catering Mystery Series
By Shawn Reilly Simmons
Read all about it at www.henerypress.com
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