Chapter 84
Tessa could hardly focus on the rest of the signing. Henry and the kids were sitting with Nellie and Tris in the bookstore’s coffee shop. Harper—Barbara—had positioned herself in front of the magazine rack, pretending to browse, her back to Tessa.
Emily—still in that ludicrous getup—had come out from behind the bookshelf. She bent down, close to Tessa’s ear, whispered, “That’s my stepmother.”
Almost unable to breathe, Tessa welcomed the next person in line, then gestured toward Emily, as casually as if she hadn’t just revealed something utterly shattering.
“My assistant,” she explained to the customer.
“Lucky you,” the woman said. She turned, looked behind her. “Wow, I’m the last person in line. Can you put it to Justine?”
“You’re so patient,” Tessa said as she signed. “I do appreciate it.”
“What on earth is she doing here ?” Emily stayed close, kept her voice low. “My stepmother?”
“I hope you’re writing another Annabelle book,” Justine said.
“In fact I am,” Tessa said. “Want to hear about it? Since you were so patient?”
“Can’t wait,” Justine said.
“Well,” Tessa began, and put a hand on Emily’s arm, signaling her to stay.
“It’s about two teenage girls, who, on one wild night, hit a deer on a back road.
But the evil sheriff told their parents they’d hit a person.
Killed them.” Tessa felt Emily flinch, and looked at her, nodding.
“Isn’t that horrible? And for years and years, their families were blackmailed, at least one of them was, to cover up a crime that never happened.
And even when one of the girls grew up, the blackmailer continued to ask for the hush money.
There’s a lot more to it, but, turns out… Well, guess who the blackmailer was.”
“Her stepmother?” Emily said.
“Yes,” Tessa said. “And her father, until he died.”
“Whose stepmother?” Justine looked confused.
“It’s complicated,” Tessa said to Justine.
“I’m still working on it. But one day, listen to this.
One of the girls, now an adult, and a bit of a celebrity, is essentially kidnapped by the stepmother, and pretends to agree to the blackmail.
But later, they confront her in the back of, oh, I don’t know, a bookstore?
And little does the blackmailer know, the girl’s best friend has called the police about it.
So they come and arrest her. The stepmother, I mean. ”
“What friend? And how does the friend know?” Justine asked.
“Exactly, and there’s the plot hole,” Emily said. “The police couldn’t just arrest her. They’d need evidence.”
“Right. And I just figured that part out,” Tessa said. “Listen to this. They have evidence! It’s in a book she just signed.”
Justine tilted her head. “Who just signed?”
“Oh, Tessa,” Emily said. “Wouldn’t it be cool if the friend knew a police detective?”
“Does she?” Tessa’s eyebrows went up.
“No, sadly. But she might know someone who does. How about you make her husband a lawyer. Would that work?”
“Whose husband?” Justine asked.
“We’ll fix that in the editing,” Tessa said. “Writing a book is so hard.”