Hollywood Dirty: A Hollywood Alphabet Series Thriller

by M. Z. Kelly

  “Thanks,” I said. “And I think your highlights are really working for you, as well.”

  Pearl said to me, “Your hair kind of reminds me of the way my wife wore hers. I think it suits you.”

  I thanked him before Glade smiled and said to me, “Hey, I heard a rumor that you’re thinking about taking some yoga classes.”

  “Not in this lifetime.”

  “We’re taking papa Charlie to Teddy’s at the Roosevelt for a drink,” Gooch said. “He’s hoping to meet someone, get laid. Care to join us?”

  Before I could answer Edna said to me, “Some of us are fucking going home. See you back at work on Monday.” The lieutenant turned and headed down the hallway.

  “I think I’ll pass,” I said to the brothers. “I’ve got an errand to run.”

  “We’ll do a rain check,” Gooch said. “Hey maybe next Friday we can get together. You can bring your fine looking friend, Natalie.”

  I smiled. “And Naw-naw?”

  The brother’s faces sagged in unison like melted wax. Gooch solemnly said, “I don’t want to see that woman again in this lifetime.”

  “Or the next one,” Glade added.

  ***

  After leaving the station I drove to Northridge Studios in the San Fernando Valley. Natalie and Mo had checked with the studio a couple of times during the past month but had no success in finding Ryan Cooper or John Felton as he was now calling himself. I found the studio just before closing time in an industrial complex off the 405 Freeway.

  I showed my credentials to a receptionist named Spanx—I didn’t ask—a large woman with bright red hair. Without going into details I explained that I was checking into John Felton’s background.

  “Haven’t seen him in a couple of months,” Spanx said, at the same time biting down on a red nail. “He probably got another gig somewhere. In this business, you gotta go where the money is.”

  “How long did he work here?”

  She ended the nail bite. “What’s this about? Is John in some kind of trouble?”

  “I’m sorry but I can’t go into specifics.” I repeated my question.

  “He was working here off and on for the better part of the past year. I remember some of the girls said he was a wizard when it came to makeup. A real artist.”

  “If he was here that long he must have had an office or area where he worked. Is it possible that I could take a look at that?”

  She shrugged. “Guess it wouldn’t hurt. Almost everyone’s gone for the day anyway.”

  Spanx waddled down the hallway with me following. We passed by a couple of empty sound stages with cameras and overhead lights before coming to a row of offices.

  She opened a door in a back office and said, “You’ve got twenty minutes before I close up for the day.”

  “That should be plenty of time.”

  I thanked her before she turned and left me alone in the office.

  The space where my father’s killer had worked was small and non-descript. There was a makeup chair with a lighted mirror in one corner and a small desk across from it. There was nothing on the desk. It occurred to me that Cooper had probably cleaned out his belongings, maybe after finding out that my friends were making inquiries about him. I made a quick check of the desk drawers and found them empty. Then I lifted up the blotter on the desk and almost fainted.

  “What in the hell?” I said, picking up the DVD. It was in a clear unmarked case but had the name Kate written across it.

  I hurried back down the corridor and found Spanx at her desk, polishing her nails. “A DVD player,” I said, unable to catch my breath. “I need to play this.” I showed her the disc.

  She shrugged. “There’s one on the sound stage and a TV set. They use if for reviewing the dailies.”

  “Show me,” I said, my heart doing a drumbeat against my rib cage. She continued working on her nails. “NOW!”

  Spanx jumped up, dropping the polish on her desk. “Okay…follow me.”

  A couple of minutes later I had the DVD in the player, turned it on, and held my breath. Spanx disappeared down the hallway as the screen came on.

  The video appeared to have been shot in Cooper’s office. There was a man sitting in the makeup chair with his back to the camera. All I could tell from the way the camera was positioned was that he had silver hair. When he spoke, I had the impression that Ryan Cooper or John Felton, as he was known, was purposely altering his voice.

  “Welcome, Detective Sexton. I’m so glad that you could drop by my little studio. It took you a very long time to find me. I hope you will find this encounter stimulating.”

  He paused for a moment, shifting in his chair. “You might be interested to know that I only learned of your existence about a year ago. I happened to be using your mother’s computer one day and realized that she’d been following you online for quite some time. As it turns out she knew all about your life and career.”

  Cooper hesitated again, turning slightly toward the camera. I could see a partial outline of his face. He had a dark complexion but nothing about him seemed familiar. He looked nothing like the man I’d seen in the photo on his driver’s license from five years earlier.

  He continued. “After I found out about you, I did a little research and confronted your mother. She admitted that she had been keeping the deep dark secret of your existence from me for over thirty years.”

  Cooper laughed, his shoulders heaving up and down. He turned ever so slightly again and I saw more of his unfamiliar profile.

  “Unfortunately, Judie suffered a fall shortly after I learned of your existence.” He shook his head. “I’m afraid your cheating whore of a mother just hasn’t been quite the same since then.” He laughed again but this time it was low, full of contempt.

  “You bastard,” I said, seething with anger.

  Cooper went on. “Since that happened, I’ve taken some time to get to know you myself, Kate—I hope you don’t mind me calling you Kate. I know all about your career, your partner, Charlie Winkler, the cases you’ve worked, and your failed marriage to that poor sap, Doug Witherspoon. I even know about your roommates and your dog.” Another spasm of laughter followed before he added, “You have surrounded yourself with a most interesting menagerie, I must say.”

  Cooper took another moment and shifted his body again. I had the impression that he was deliberately showing me more of his face as he went on.

  “I am what you might call a chameleon, Kate. My gift is the ability to change my appearance, my voice, virtually everything about me in an instant. You will also find that I am an extremely cunning and determined adversary.”

  Cooper sucked in a long breath and hissed as he released it slowly. “While I’m no longer a young man I must admit that I would like one final hurrah. You might consider this a payback for you and your meddling friends trying to find me. That’s why I want you to know, just like what I did to your father, I am going to kill you.”

  My adrenaline spiked, my heart thumping in my chest. Blood rushed to my temples and I felt dizzy. I took a moment and looked around the sound stage but saw nothing as Cooper went on.

  “Not to worry, Kate. I have no plans to kill you tonight or even tomorrow for that matter, but rest assured I will kill you. You may have a gun and a badge and a dog, but, as I said earlier, I do have the advantage of altering everything about me and suddenly appearing when you least expect it.”

  Cooper shifted again. His face was still shadowed and turned away from the camera, but something about him now seemed vaguely familiar.

  “So, the game is on, Kate. I am the hunter and you are the prey. And one of the advantages of being the hunter is that I have the element of surprise on my side.” He laughed again, and then said, “And here is my surprise.”

  Ryan Cooper suddenly turned in his chair and directly faced the camera. My heart beat wildly. I couldn’t catch my breath and was dizzy again. The man facing me continued, now speaking in a middle-eastern accent that was all too fam
iliar to me.

  “I will be seeing you very soon, Kate. Oh, and you might want to say hello to your adoptive mother for me. I hate to break things off with her so abruptly, but I’ll be rather preoccupied in the coming weeks. I’ll be busy killing her daughter.”

  I watched in horror as the man laughed again, walked over, and turned off the camera. Ryan Cooper, the man who planned to murder me, was my mother’s boyfriend, Shumi Duvall.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

  Bernie and Bubba followed me into the family room where I’d asked my roommates to gather. Mack’s housekeeper, Piper, had dropped the furry black and brown puppy off over the weekend. I now had permanent custody of the little dog that Bernie had sired after his romp with Mack Mackenzie’s black lab.

  I’d spent my first day back at work catching up on paperwork. I’d also met with Lieutenant Edna and John Duncan of the department’s cold case unit. My father’s homicide case had been officially reopened and placed on active status, along with an investigation into the death threat made against me by his killer. We had no leads regarding Ryan Cooper’s current whereabouts or his appearance. Duncan thought he might be working as a makeup artist for another studio, but I had my doubts.

  I’d spent part of my Sunday with my adoptive mom, breaking the news to her that the man she’d been dating had killed her husband. Needless to say, she didn’t take the news well, even suggesting that I’d made the story up because I didn’t like her boyfriend. She’d tried calling Shumi’s cell phone but found it was disconnected.

  As it turned out her supposed boyfriend had produced a phony book, plagiarizing someone else’s work, and had never given Mom his address. Duvall had disappeared, just like John Felton and Ryan Cooper before him.

  Natalie came over and scooped Bubba up in her arms. “Betcha you’re gonna be just like your daddy,” she said to the puppy. “This one’s gonna be on the hump in no time.”

  “Let’s hope not,” I said. “I’ve got enough trouble with his father.”

  Bernie seemed to understand that I was talking about him. He sat in front of me turning his head from side to side and doing a tail thump.

  I walked over to where Mo, Nana, Elvis, Tex, and Prissy had all gathered. Natalie settled in on the sofa next to Tex with Bubba in her arms.

  I said, “I’ve asked you all here today…”

  “Don’t tell me,” Mo interrupted. “You’re gettin’ married.”

  Natalie jumped up off the couch. “Is it Mack? Did he come back with his tail between his legs like a horny SEAL look’n for a happy meal?”

  “I’ll bet it’s that other guy,” Nana said in her Willie Nelson voice. “The one who looks like an Italian stallion.”

  “I used to be a stallion,” Elvis said. “Now I’m just a broken down old mule ready for the glue factory.”

  “Maybe Kate’s marrying that Brain Hamlin guy that she dated,” Prissy suggested. “A lot of women like to marry jailbirds.” He adjusted his skirt that had the names of dead rock stars. “It’s the ultimate bad boy trip.”

  Tex said, “The need to express one’s sexuality in relationship to undesirables is, in essence, at act of robust rebellion. It is usually the result of childhood trauma, involving less than adequate parenting…”

  “STOP,” I yelled. “I am not getting married.”

  “Looks like someone’s a little touchy ‘bout their relationship issues,” Mo said. She looked at Natalie. “We need to find Kate a guy. Let’s put that on the top of our priority list.”

  “I know a guy who works over at the deli,” Natalie said, taking her seat again. “Rumor has it that Jimmy’s hung like…”

  “Enough,” I said. “You all need to listen to me carefully. My life has been threatened by Ryan Cooper, the man who killed my father and put my birthmother in the hospital. He left me a DVD telling me that he’s going to kill me. You all could be in danger.”

  Mo scoffed. “Is that what this is ‘bout? I thought it was something I needed to worry about.”

  “This is important,” I said. “Ryan Cooper is a makeup artist. He recently disguised himself and went by the name, Shumi Duvall. He was dating my mother.”

  “At least she found a guy,” Mo said. She looked over at Natalie, shaking her head.

  “Is that the guy you had that row with your mum about?” Natalie asked.

  “Yes, but at the time I didn’t know he was Cooper.”

  “I think we should all get guns,” Nana said, her Leo’s gleaming in the overhead lights. “That Cooper moron comes around here and I’ll blow his dingle berries to Santa Monica.”

  “I’m going to start working on a security system,” Tex said. “Perhaps an electrified grid with bioengineered components.”

  “If you’re really worried about this, Kate,” Mo said, “I’m gonna have my guy Larry hang around. He can help with protection.” She looked at Natalie again. “Looks like we’ve got our work cut out for us, baby sis.”

  Natalie clapped her hands in excitement. “We’ll find the piece of clunge and flush him down the crapper.”

  I raised my voice again. “Listen to me. The department has reopened the investigation into my father’s murder and the death threat made against me. This is an official police investigation. No one can interfere. I’m telling you about this so that you can take precautions.”

  “We ain’t talking ‘bout interfering with nuthin’,” Mo said. “We’re talking about protecting you and our home.”

  Elvis shook his big head. “We’re all dead ducks. I’m going to find a noose and hang myself or throw myself in front of a bus.”

  “I wish I could help you guys find the killer,” Nana said. “But I’m going into the hospital for that work I told you about. When I come home I’m going to give you the big reveal, show you all Laverne, Shirley, and maybe even Minnehaha.”

  Minnehaha? I sat down, shaking my head. It was truly hopeless. Elvis had the right idea. Maybe I should check the local bus schedule.

  “Hey, I almost forgot,” Nana said. “When I came home a few minutes ago there was some guy hanging around out front. He had on a baseball cap. Maybe it’s the killer?”

  Natalie and Mo stood up. Natalie said, “Let’s go put some lumps on the dirty lizard.”

  They started to head for the front door when I yelled, “STOP!” I went over to the counter and got my gun out of my purse. “I’ll check this out. Everyone stay put.”

  There was a chorus of boos as I left the family room.

  While I loved my friends, I was put off by them always trying to take things into their own hands. I’d survived many things in my life, including what had happened to my father and birthmother. I was now more aware than ever before how those losses had affected me. But I also knew that I was a survivor. Despite my past relationship issues, I’d made a way for myself in the world. I’d gone up against some very bad people and I’d survived. Ryan Cooper might be out there, determined to kill me, but I would not hide from him or the world.

  I closed the front door as my friends went on, still talking about how to deal with Cooper. Bernie and I walked out into the front yard, my big dog on alert and ready to attack.

  I saw there was a man on the sidewalk in front of the house. Bernie yanked on his leash and began growling as I approached the man with my gun in hand.

  “Who are you and what do you want?” I demanded.

  The man put his hands out to his sides and then reached up, removing his baseball cap.

  “For God’s sakes, don’t shoot me,” Jack Bautista said. “I’m that guy you used to date.”

  “Jack? What…why…”

  I told Bernie to settle as Jack said, “I was just in the neighborhood, looking for real estate.” He smiled in that way he has that makes something inside me tingle.

  “You stalking me, Bautista?”

  He shook his head. “Just hanging around, trying to get up the nerve to talk to you, tell you about a case I’m working.”

  “What kind of case?
”

  “Things with Homeland didn’t work out for me. I got my old job with the department back. I’m working cold cases and heard something about a guy who made some threats against you.” He paused, came closer, and touched my hair. “God, your hair is beautiful.”

  I looked up into his deep caramel eyes. Despite everything that we’d been through, the feeling I’d had before when we were together came rushing back to me. I’d been wrong about Jack. I had been insecure and judgmental in our relationship because of the losses I’d suffered. If there was anything good that had come out of the last few days, it was that lesson. And if Jack was ready to forgive me and move on, I would find a way to make it up to him.

  I smiled up at him and said, “Why don’t you come in, Jack. I’ll show you the Brazilian Nut Effect at work and introduce you to a guy name Elvis. Then, maybe you can help me catch a killer.”

  ***

  Thanks for reading, Hollywood Dirty . . .

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  ***

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