Chapter 8

“I ’ve known Levi since I was in my early twenties. Why?” Clar took a deep breath. She really didn’t want to open old wounds. She’d been living in a state of shock and despair when Levi came to her rescue. The hurt and pain of those years following the death of her parents were long buried, giving way to peace and acceptance. It all seemed to be slipping away and that scared the hell out of her.

“How did you meet? Pardon my lack of knowledge in how things work in Hollywood, but it seems unlikely someone like you would become friends with a person in the adult film business.” Cameron remained standing, his pencil gliding across the pad. Clar found it odd that in this day of handheld electronic technology; he didn’t use his phone or tablet to make notes.

“Strange bed fellows sometimes make the best of friends, as I’m sure you are well aware of, Cameron.” Jimmy moved next to Clar. She was grateful for his presence next to her. Until recently, Levi, Jacki, and Jimmy were the only people who knew of her unstable past—and her supposedly anonymous new life. A life that was about to be revealed to those who cared enough to listen. Her new friends and clients didn’t know about her past. Of course that would all change now. It saddened Clar to think she may lose everything she’d worked for all because of some evil doer with vengeance on their mind, but didn’t deter her from the chosen path. Cameron was after her for a reason and it behooved all of them to pay attention.

“I’ll get to you later, O’Brien.” Cameron glared at Jimmy with a hatred Clar had never witnessed before. There was probably a lot more between them than Jimmy had let on. Definitely a history there, but what could cause such contempt for each other? A woman? No, she didn’t think so. She would have known by now. Regardless, there certainly wasn’t a love affair with those two bull-headed men. She touched Jimmy’s hand to show unity, hoping to calm the waters.

Cameron sneered and wrote in his book. “Ms. Turner, I’ll get straight to the point. Where were you the night of the murders?”

“At my home, in Wisconsin, making chocolate bunnies. You know the kind that the kiddos love to eat the ears off of on Easter. I’m sure you’ll recall me calling the studio right after and Evie crying crocodile tears until you took the phone.”

“Yeah, the poor kid, she was really upset.”

“Poor kid,” Clar murmured, shocked. No one ever thought of the obnoxious receptionist in those terms. She shared a startled look with Jacki.

Cameron glared at her.

“Damn best chocolate in the world, I might add,” Jacki remarked, winking at Clar, making Cameron turn his glare on her.

“Doesn’t prove anything. The call came from a cell. You could’ve been anywhere when you made it.”

She could hardly believe the accusation. He had to know it wasn’t true, didn’t he? Cameron continued watching her, as if waiting for her to break. Well, he didn’t know her at all if he thought that was going to happen. He was like a shark in the water trying to scare up dinner. Damned if she’d let any of her friends go down in the feeding frenzy. “There’s a way to triangulate cell signals isn’t there, Jacki?”

“Damned straight there is,” Jacki said.

Clint nodded.

Jimmy squeezed her hand. “I used it once following—”

“Me,” Clar cut in.

“Fine, play it your way. When did you allegedly hear about the attack?” Cameron flipped a page and continued wearing out the lead in his pencil.

“On SXY a few minutes after O’Brien outted me on national TV. Check the tape if you don’t believe me.” Clar squeezed Jimmy’s hand to let him know it was okay. “You know that moment when the old lady in Titanic is molding her pottery and she hears the news cast that a diving team has found a portrait of a young woman wearing the ‘Heart of the Ocean’ and she stops her spinning and walks slowly over to the TV?

“I was molding chocolate bunnies when the breaking news report about the murders at the studio came on. I followed up with a call to the studio to find out if Levi was involved; then one more to Jacki asking her to meet me here in LA.”

“Involved? Do you think he orchestrated the entire attack?” The constantly moving pencil ceased its scratching. Cameron’s black eyes squinted at her.

“Humph! That’s a pretty big word for you, isn’t it, Cameron? Orchestrated. Do you even know what it means?” Jimmy huffed, then rubbed his rib where Clar jabbed him with an elbow.

“And can anyone verify your alibi?” Cameron queried, the scratching on the paper increasing.

“How about your alibi, Cameron,” Jimmy cut in. “It’s pretty damned convenient that you were at the crime scene.”

“Chocolate bunnies? Am I a suspect here, detective? And no , I don’t believe Levi had anything to do with the murders.”

“At this point we’re still gathering information, Ms. Turner.” Cameron kept his eyes on his pad as he flipped back several pages. “What was your connection with Dylan Cameron?”

“What are you getting at here? He was a fellow actor at the studio and a friend. Dylan was really a great guy.” She saw his eyes soften and sucked in a breath as it all came together. Cameron? They shared the same last name. Was it possible they were related? “We co-starred in only one film together.”

“And his relationship with Mr. Andres?”

“It was a working relationship. Detective, it is no secret Levi is gay. Nor is it a secret that he had a crush on Dylan. If for any reason you think he’s involved, I would bark up a different tree,” Jacki interjected with a touch of sarcasm.

“Ms. Turner, please ask your friends to pipe down or I’ll take you into the precinct for questioning, and our deal will be off,” Cameron threatened, his back straightening ram-rod.

“I’ve got this and I appreciate your protection. I’ve got nothing to hide, and neither does Levi.” Clar glanced at her friends who wanted nothing more than to protect her. “It’s true, Levi did have a crush on Dylan. However, Dylan wasn’t interested in his advances. And for the record, Levi was devastated when Dylan died.”

“Would you say the killing was a crime of passion?” Cameron’s gaze, vacant of any passion but filled with sadness, met hers. Oh god, it was true, there was a link between him and Dylan. What could she say?

“What the hell does Dylan Cameron’s murder have to do with the recent attacks? I’m not following your reason for the line of questioning,” Jimmy stammered, suspicion edging his words. “Be careful where you go with this, Cameron—your friends aren’t here to protect you.”

“How did you meet Mr. Andres, Ms. Turner?” Flipping his notebook closed, Cameron slipped the pad and pencil into a pocket of his suit jacket.

“That is a long and personal story. The short version is after my parents’ car accident, Levi literally saved my life.” Clar clung to the thread of sanity slipping away.

“When you left Wisconsin the first time.”

It seemed he knew her history. Just how far back did this go? She remembered Jimmy’s words. “It’s not surprising you know, seeing you worked side by side with my father.”

Cameron’s eyes narrowed. “Yeah, and he wouldn’t like you sticking your neck out this way. Take my advice and stick your head back in that candy box, things are gonna get messy.”

He stood, nervously adjusting his crumpled suit jacket. Seemed she’d hit a sore spot. “You know my dad wasn’t very popular in some circles because he worked internal affairs.”

This had to end. She couldn’t take much more of opening her life up to scrutiny by this man who carried a badge.

“Hmm, okay, that’s all for now, Ms. Turner. I’d advise you to let the police handle this. We could be dealing with a deranged fan.” Cameron’s gaze scanned the room, pausing for a moment with each set of eyes. “Don’t do anything on your own. I’m warning you. Accidents happen all the time, don’t they?”

Clar sat there stunned as her world collided. Why would he mention accidents happening when that’s how her parents died? Cameron knew something but wasn’t saying.

***

“A ND JUST WHAT MIGHT that be, Cameron? Actually solve the case?” Jimmy spat back to the detective following him out the door. He didn’t trust the man one bit. He couldn’t help it; Cameron was a festering wound in his soul but that was kid’s stuff compared to what he’d just dropped on Clar. “What’d you have to do with her parents’ death?” he said in a deceptively calm tone.

“Not a fucking thing, not that you’ll believe me.” Cameron turned, his gaze blazing hot. “She needed a shock to keep from doing something stupid and getting hurt, she got it.”

The guy knew a lot more than he was saying.

“Just leave it be for now, O’Brien, and stick with the case at hand. You know how the law works. I want to get to the bottom of this as much as any of you do. And if it means putting the lot of you behind bars to do it, I will!” He pulled his shoulders back and puffed out his chest.

“Detective, you certainly must have a suspect.” Clint stood, ogling Cameron. If Clint was intimidated by the veteran of the streets, he didn’t show it. Jimmy admired Clint for his cool and calm manner, while all he wanted to do was shoot Cameron between the eyes and put him out of his misery.

“As a former Texas Ranger, Mason, you know I couldn’t divulge that information even if I wanted to.” Cameron shook his head, stuffing his hands into his jacket pockets. “I’m not about to give you any information that may send you off on some chase down a rabbit hole.”

“He knows something, Clint,” Jimmy interjected, walking over to the door leading out to the beach. “He’s not saying, and he won’t. Even if it’s just an inkling, the man who protects people from thugs isn’t going to tell you who is or who isn’t on his list of suspects. It might have one of his cutthroat buddies scribbled on it.” Sarcasm rang in Jimmy’s words, and he smiled seeing Cameron bristle at them. It was a small victory to see him squirm. The SOB deserved it for all his years working on the wrong side of the law with the wrong guys.

Cameron glared at everyone in the room before a crooked little smile slipped across his face. “I know you’re planning something. Whatever it is, at least let me in on it. It’s the only way I’ll be able to protect and keep any of you from being the next victim. Meet me at the studio tomorrow at noon. Have a pleasant evening.” He nodded, then walked through the door Jimmy held open.

Jimmy followed Cameron out onto the beach. He needed to get a few things straight, like finding out why he was in California. “Cameron!”

The detective paused then turned, a hand slipping to the inside his jacket. “What is it now, O’Brien?”

Jimmy swallowed back the acid taste of bile building in his mouth. As true as his strong dislike for what Cameron stood for, Jimmy needed to know a few things from him and no one else. “Why are you in LA? I can’t imagine DeLuca sent you out here to retire in the sand and surf of sunny California.”

“Listen, those days in Chicago are in the past and behind me. I paid my dues and I needed a change of scenery. Why not spend the rest of my days soaking in the sun rather than shoveling snow six months of the year?” Cameron smiled briefly, shrugging his shoulders.

“Those days are never in the past. You of all people know you don’t just walk away from the mob. Do you take me for a fool?” Just because he was thousands of miles away from the streets of Chicago didn’t mean he’d left that life behind. A life Cameron had built on the side of the law which Jimmy tried to destroy the only way he knew how. Uncovering evidence and reporting the truth.

“Who do you think saved your ass back then? Who do you think negotiated that deal sending you to LA?” Cameron started walking back over to Jimmy, his hands firmly planted on his hips. “If not for me, you’d have been fish dinner.”

“You’d have me believe that you destroyed my life, my career, just to save my ass?” Jimmy all but laughed out loud. “Why would you? What did you have to gain?”

“Because I took an oath to protect the people of Chicago, good or bad, and that’s what I did and still do!” Cameron shook his head, looking out to the ocean and the waves lapping along the shoreline. “This time it’s personal. And now I’ve got things of my own to take care of.”

“That’s a switch. It’s usually ‘nothing’ personal with you,” Jimmy accused.

“You really want to know? Dylan Cameron was my sister’s son, damn it! And I promised her I’d find his killer.” Cameron came so close Jimmy could feel the heat of his breath as he hissed his secret. “There’s a connection with Dylan and the latest attack, and I’m going to find it. Keep an eye on Clar, Jimmy.”

The words belted Jimmy in the gut. Speechless, he watched Cameron slip around the corner of the house and into the night shadows. For the first time since Chicago, Jimmy felt sympathy for the man.

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