by R A Wallace
Callie held on to it. “What did her car look like?”
“Blue mid-size SUV.” He grabbed the ten and it disappeared as quickly as the others.
Callie turned to leave. His voice stopped her at the door.
“If you wait until tomorrow, you can probably see her at the bank.”
Callie turned around. “What do you mean?”
The large man shrugged. “I’ve seen her there when I drop off the deposits.”
“The First Pomelo Cove Trust bank?” Callie clarified.
“Yep.”
Callie left the motel lot and pointed her car in the direction of her father’s house. She found both her father and her stepmother at home enjoying a leisurely Sunday brunch together. Neither Ariana, or her brother, Blake, were around. Leslie told Callie to grab a plate and help herself. Callie didn’t need a second invitation. She’d left her house without eating in the morning.
“What brings you by?” Wade reached for another blueberry muffin.
Callie added fluffy scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, and a muffin to her own plate.
“Actually, I’m looking for someone that works at the bank. I thought Leslie might be able to tell me where to find her.”
Leslie raised her eyebrows as she chewed a fresh strawberry.
“She was described as around five five, a few pounds lighter than I am, brown hair, and glasses.”
“Why are you looking for her?” Leslie asked.
“It’s part of a murder investigation,” Callie said.
Leslie’s eyebrows went up again.
“You’re working a murder investigation?” Wade asked. “It isn’t dangerous, is it?”
Callie looked at Leslie with an expectant look, hoping to hear a name.
Leslie wanted to hear Callie’s answer. “You first.”
“Not for me, no. It isn’t dangerous. The police are looking into it. It could be dangerous for the woman I’m looking for. I don’t know yet.”
“And Penny is involved? How?”
“Is that her name? Penny?”
Leslie pushed her plate away. “Yes. Is she in trouble?”
“Not that I know of, but she was last seen with a man I want to talk to. Do you know where she lives?” Callie listened to the directions then had another thought. “Do you know Ian Rubio?”
Leslie shook her head. “Should I?”
“It was a long shot. He mentioned that he worked at a bank. Since he’s with Penny…” Callie shrugged.
“As you know, there are a lot of banks. Even if he worked at The First Pomelo Cove Trust bank, he could be at another branch.”
“True.” Callie finished the last of her fruit and stood, the rest of the muffin in her hand. “I have to go. Thanks for breakfast.”
“Have you spoken with Ariana yet?” Leslie asked.
“No, I’ve been swamped, sorry. If I don’t see her before, I’ll make it a point to talk to her on her birthday. Love you both.”
Callie finished her muffin on the way to her car. She followed the directions to Penny’s house that Leslie had given her.
A woman matching the description given to her answered the doorbell.
Callie introduced herself and asked to see Ian. The woman in front of her wavered.
“I know he’s here, Penny. I need to speak with him.” Callie looked over Penny’s shoulder and saw Ian.
Penny turned around and saw him also. At his nod, she opened the door wider and stepped back to let Callie in. Callie followed them to the sunroom at the rear of the house and took a seat. It was a much nicer seat than the last one she’d sat in to talk to Ian.
Callie looked over at Penny.
Ian waved his hand in the air. “It’s okay. She knows everything.”
“Have you spoken to the police?” Callie asked. She noticed that he looked tired.
“Yeah. I’m pretty sure they think I did it.”
“Did you?” Callie asked.
“No!” Penny said before covering her mouth with her hand. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt. But I know he didn’t do it. He wouldn’t hurt anyone. Ian is kind. You have to believe me.”
Ian turned red at the praise. “I shouldn’t have called Penny. I shouldn’t have gotten her involved. I was just so upset when I found out that woman had been murdered.”
“What can you tell me about that?” Callie asked.
“Nothing. I don’t know anything about her. I told you that before. She stalked me.” Ian raised his hands palms down in front of him. “I know that sounds crazy. I’m not a great looking guy, I know that. I’m not rich. I have no idea why she became fixated with me. I just know that she made my life very difficult at a time when I was just realizing how much Penny means to me.”
It was Penny’s turn to blush. “I swear to you. Ian couldn’t have done anything like that. He would never hurt anyone.”
“How long have you two known each other?”
“We met at a training seminar many years ago. In fact, we recently celebrated an anniversary,” Penny explained. “We’ve actually seen each other many times over the years at different seminars. We just recently began seeing each other outside of the seminars. At least, it seems recent given how long we’ve known each other.”
“What kind of training seminars?” Callie asked.
“Mostly they deal with privacy laws and information security. Those are big issues in banks,” Ian explained.
“We’re still just learning about each other. I just found out that he’s also an actor, for example,” Penny added. “But I know in my heart he would never hurt anyone. That’s what years of friendship can tell you about someone before a relationship morphs into something else.”
Callie wouldn’t know. She’d never experienced the kind of relationship Penny was describing. She stood to leave.
“Please let me know where you are. I may have more questions as I work this case.” She gave Ian a pointed look.
“You’ll be able to find him here,” Penny said as she stood to walk Callie to the door.
Chapter Sixteen
She hadn’t expected the butterflies. The excitement of practice had become routine over the many weeks, but everything so far had been without an audience. Margaret peered out from the side of the stage and watched as the seating area of the theater began to fill. She heard the stage manager, Peter, speaking behind her.
“Looks like a good crowd for a Sunday matinee.”
Margaret turned to face him, her hands on her stomach.
“You’re going to be fine,” Peter said. “Once you start speaking your lines, all of the practice will kick in and everything will go smoothly, I promise. If you didn’t have butterflies, I’d worry.”
Margaret managed a weak smile. She could only hope the man knew what he was talking about. At the moment, she wasn’t certain of anything.
Camille waved to her. Margaret followed her to the wardrobe room. She had already applied her stage makeup but had yet to get dressed.
“Ready for your first costume?” Camille pulled an outfit from the rack.
Margaret reached for it automatically. Her brain was filled with a jumble of words that she recognized as her lines, but none of the words were in the proper order.
“I remember my first play,” Camille continued. “I was on the stage a few times back in the day, you know. Just very small parts. I was volunteered at the last moment when someone couldn’t make it. Since I happened to be there anyway handling the wardrobe, it was convenient for the director and it helped them through a difficult time.”
Camille kept up a one-sided conversation while Margaret dressed. She explained to Margaret that everything she was feeling right now was part of the moment, and that she should embrace it as the gift that it was.
“There. All finished now.” Camille nodded approvingly at Margaret when she had finished dressing. “Go break a leg.”
This time, Margaret’s smile was more natural. She knew that Camille didn’t have to hold h
er hand while she dressed. It was just a kindness on behalf of the other woman and Margaret very much appreciated it. She would have to find some way to repay her.
Margaret returned to the wing. The butterflies were still in her stomach, but this time they didn’t scare her. Greyson was already waiting in the wing when she returned. He reached down and clasped her hand briefly. Then he walked out onto the stage and began speaking his lines. Margaret watched from the wing in awe and anticipation. At a cue from Peter, Margaret took a deep breath and walked out on stage to join Greyson, her head held high and her voice easily projecting out to the audience. Just as they had practiced.
“Wow. That’s Grandma?” Eight year old Cassidy asked in awe.
She thought she was whispering, but Callie knew it was loud enough for several seats on either side of them to hear. She could understand the surprise she heard in her niece’s voice. Callie was feeling it herself. Her mother was on stage and it looked like she was having the time of her life. Elliot had truly given her mother a gift to remember this time. Callie was just glad that her babysitting duties had allowed her the chance to bring her nieces to the performance. It would be something for them to remember for as long as they live.
“She looks beautiful.” Eleven year old Josie leaned forward in her seat as the magic on stage drew her in.
“Who is that man on the stage with her?” Cassidy asked in another stage whisper.
Callie raised her finger to her lips. She didn’t want to disturb anyone else in the audience and she definitely didn’t want to talk about Greyson Divine. She had to admit though, he was pretty okay. Maybe a little better than okay.
As planned, at the intermission Callie, Josie, and Cassidy worked their way backstage to meet with Margaret. They found her in the middle of activity as several of the crew handled changes to the set. Margaret was now dressed in her green ball grown.
“My darlings!” Margaret called to her grandchildren as they joined her.
“Grandma, you look beautiful,” Cassidy said as she hugged her.
“We can’t stay, we need to get back to our seats and we should probably stop at the restroom first,” Callie said as she watched the activity backstage. She didn’t want the girls to get in the way of the cast and crew and she definitely didn’t want them to be separated from her.
“I’ll see you after the show?” Margaret asked.
“Of course.” Callie turned and walked into Greyson. “Oh!”
Laughing blue eyes looked down at her. “Hello again.” Greyson looked down at Josie and Cassidy. “You have friends with you.”
“These are my grandchildren. They’re my oldest daughter’s children and Callie’s nieces,” Margaret explained.
“What do you think of the play so far?” Greyson asked them.
“Grandma looks beautiful,” Cassidy repeated.
“You’re pretty good too. Don’t you think so, Aunt Callie?” Josie asked.
Callie looked back at Greyson. He wasn’t trying to hide his amusement.
“Not bad, for an understudy,” Callie agreed as she steadily met his gaze. “We need to get back to our seats.”
By the time they got back to their seats after a stop at the restroom, the play was underway again. They applauded with the rest of the audience at the end and then made their way backstage once more.
“Mom is going to be mad that she missed the play,” Josie said.
“There will be other performances next weekend,” Callie pointed out. “Maybe she can make it to another one.”
“If she brings us, we’ll be able to explain what is happening,” Cassidy said. She’d asked several questions during the course of the play when she didn’t understand what was going on.
The mood backstage was ebullient and bordered chaos. There were people everywhere coming and going. Many were gathered around Margaret and Greyson and everyone was talking over everyone else until it was nearly impossible to make anything out.
“Great performance everyone,” Peter shouted above it all as he worked his way through the crowd with his clipboard still tucked under his arm.
Margaret held out her arms when she saw Callie and the girls. She enveloped Josie and Cassidy in a hug.
“Are you coming to the party afterward?” Margaret asked Callie. “Elliot put together a little something.”
“We can’t, I’m sorry. I need to get the girls back to Gemma.”
Margaret looked down at her granddaughters.
“Do you want to come out on the stage with me?” Margaret took each of them by their hand and excused herself from the crowd around her.
Callie watched as they walked toward the stage. A voice in her ear startled her.
“She did very well, don’t you think?” Greyson asked.
“She did. I was very impressed. I didn’t realize you played the inspector in the play,” Callie said. “You looked almost as though you could play the role for real.”
Greyson gave an enigmatic smile. “Well, that’s the whole idea of acting, isn’t it? To make the audience believe in you, if only for a couple of hours. Have you heard any more about Anilese Moore?”
Callie shook her head but was interrupted before she could respond as they were joined by others wanting to congratulate Greyson on his role. Callie recognized several of them. She had spoken to them when searching for Ian.
“How were our numbers?” Greyson asked a woman standing next to him. Callie recognized her as Audrey, the woman who took the tickets.
“We almost had a full house. I don’t know who handled the marketing on this project, but we should be so lucky to have them for every production.”
“The set looked wonderful,” Callie said to the Nina, the set designer.
Nina gave a confident smile. “I thought so too but I have these guys to thank.” She motioned to Hank, Steve, and Wes.
“I think everyone was amazing,” John Laslo said as he joined them. “And we couldn’t have had a better turn out.”
Callie agreed with the director. She was certain that Elliot had hired someone to market the production. She excused herself when she saw her mother returning with Josie and Cassidy and moved to meet them as they reached the backstage. A hand on her arm held her back.
“Are you sure you haven’t learned anything new about Anilese Moore or her death? You didn’t by any chance manage to find Ian, did you?”
It was Callie’s turn to give an enigmatic smile. “Well, that’s the whole idea of being a private investigator, isn’t it?”
“You’re sure you can’t make it to the party?” Margaret asked.
Callie was positive. The last thing she wanted to do was spend an evening dodging questions from Greyson Divine.
Chapter Seventeen
On Monday morning, Callie stopped at her office first. She was happy to find a check in the mail from the Turpins. It was a good feeling to know that she would be able to pay some of her bills from a job that hadn’t been funded by Elliot.
“How did the play go?” Sierra asked.
“It was really good, actually.” Callie stood from her desk.
“I hear the leading man is pretty impressive.” Sierra glanced over at Michael. As usual, the earbuds leaked the music he was listening to into the office. He was oblivious to their conversation.
“How did you hear about the leading man?” Callie asked. She had her suspicions. Sierra confirmed them with her next comment.
“Your mom called. She wants you to stop by as soon as you get in.”
“Did she say what it was about?”
“No, but I thought she sounded a little stressed. She didn’t say anything was wrong, though.” Sierra pushed her glasses back up on her nose and returned her focus to her monitor.
“Thanks.” Callie had planned to go there next anyway. A short time later, she was pulling in her mother’s drive. She found her mother sitting in her sunroom.
“There you are,” Margaret set aside the magazine she’d been reading. “I was hoping
you’d stop by this morning.”
“I wanted to ask you some questions.” Callie took a seat across from her mother. “What do you know about Greyson Divine?”
Margaret gave an elegant shrug as she tried to hide her smile.
“He seems like such a nice man, doesn’t he?”
“No.” Callie watched her mother frown. “What I mean is, what do you know about him? Where does he come from?”
Margaret waved vaguely. “I don’t recall him ever really saying.”
“What does he do when he isn’t acting?” Callie asked.
Margaret drew her brows together. “I can’t say that it came up in conversation.”
“Mom…”
“No, listen Callie. I’m glad that you’re interested in Greyson.”
“I’m not interested.”
“But I need to talk about something more important.” Margaret took a dramatic pause. “There’s been an incident.”
“An incident?” She looked more closely at her mother. She appeared to be fine. “What happened? Are you alright?” Maybe something had happened at the cast party after the play?
“It isn’t me, dear. It’s the money. It’s all gone.”
“You were robbed? When, at the cast party? What happened?” Callie heard the volume of her voice increase as she continued to imagine possibilities.
“No, not me. The money from the play.”
Callie frowned. She still wasn’t following.
“You know. Like the ticket money. It’s been stolen.”
“The money that they collected for the performance yesterday?” Callie tried to do the math in her head. She knew there were several hundred seats in the theater. The ticket sales would have run into the thousands.
“When did it happen?” Obviously, it was sometime after the performance they’d attended yesterday.
“They discovered the theft this morning when Audrey got there to deal with it. She was going to take the ticket sales to the bank.” Margaret looked at Callie. “Of course, she called Elliot and he called me.”
Callie knew that look. “You want me to check on it?”
“That would be lovely, dear. I know Elliot can afford to lose the ticket money, but it’s the principle of the thing, you know? To think that someone just waltzed in there and stole the money from my very first performance.” Margaret shook her head. “It even could have happened while we were all there.”
