Chapter 9 #2
“Too bad, he was my best suspect.” Jonathon gently tugged on Romeo’s leash, and they started moving again.
“On the other hand, with what I’ve heard about Mason, he seems more the type.” Rarity shrugged. “But of course, he’s dead.”
“One less suspect to consider.” Jonathon started to say something, then paused.
“What are you thinking?” Rarity paused at the edge of her driveway.
“I’m just wondering if these two cases are tied by more than just Darby being Mason’s author wrangler the night of his death.” Jonathon held his hand up to stop Rarity from responding. “Look, I’m not saying that Darby’s a killer. Just that she’s involved in both situations. It’s just odd.”
“It’s bad luck, that’s what it is. Anyway, will I see you tomorrow? Are you going to the memorial tomorrow night?”
“I’ll be writing with Romeo at the bookstore during the day if it’s still okay I bring him.
Then I’ll take him home and come back with Drew for the memorial.
I suspect black suits will not be the dress code since we’re having it at the theater before his movie reveal?
” Romeo lay down as Jonathon was talking.
“I’m really not sure. Maybe at least muted colors?” Rarity would text Shirley regarding the dress code. She’d know. “I’ll let you know if I hear anything.”
At that, Jonathon coaxed Romeo to stand and walk the few additional blocks home. Rarity watched them leave from her porch. From the dark, she heard a rocking chair move. “Terrance, is that you?”
“Guilty as charged. I was staying up to see if Shirley might come by, but she texted me that she’s worn out from today. That woman is going to run herself into an early grave if she doesn’t watch herself.”
Rarity unlocked the door and let Killer inside. He was beat. “I know. I worry about her too.”
Then she went inside. Worry did no one any good. Not the person worrying or the one they worried about. That’s what Rarity’s mom had always said. So she hadn’t worried about anyone. But Rarity had taken the other side of the coin and had worried more.
She headed straight to bed. Maybe she’d even fall asleep. Miracles did happen.
* * *
Wednesday morning, Rarity dressed in a darker blue dress and flats. Over it, she had a light floral sweater jacket. She looked at herself in the mirror and felt she’d hit the mix between being ready for a memorial or a movie premiere. It was a hard line to balance.
Today, she left Killer at the house. Terrance would check on him before he left for the premiere and then she’d be home early to snuggle with him.
The joys of having a dog. You always had to include them in your plans or figure out someone to help out.
Thank goodness Terrance loved Killer almost as much as she did.
At the store, she finished her chores and relaxed a little after she’d marked tasks off the list. Shirley had the Mommy and Me class today so who knew what kind of uproar and disaster the store would be after that club.
It wasn’t the babies from the class that were the problem.
It was their older siblings who ran wild in the bookstore.
But the mamas bought books, so Rarity didn’t quite mind.
Killer, on the other hand, hated Wednesdays.
Another reason she’d left him home. He usually spent most of the day hiding under the cash register cabinet where no one could see him.
And yet, the kids still knew he was there and did what they could to get him to come out.
While the store was quiet, she opened her laptop and started looking for anything on Talia Brooks.
The good news was that she was easy to pick out from the line of Talia Brookses on the search engine since she looked like Darby.
She was an actor. Or had been. It didn’t look like she’d had many parts in the last few years.
Was that due to the relationship with Mason?
Had she not wanted to go on set and away from him?
Or was it just the ebb and flow of her career?
Rarity didn’t know, but she kept making notes.
The last movie she’d had a role in had filmed in Scotland.
Now that couldn’t be a coincidence, could it?
Now the dots between her and Darby were coming together.
And as she thought about Jonathon’s question last night, she wondered if he was onto something.
She set it away to consider later and dug deeper into the material available to her.
She wrote down the names of Talia’s parents and looked them up with little luck.
As she was about to give up, she saw a mention of a boyfriend or at least someone Talia had been connected to as she made her way through the premieres and social events.
Bret Black was handsome, charming, and an up-and-coming actor.
He’d also played Talia’s love interest in the last movie she’d been hired to play a part in.
Was the studio trying to make some news to bring attention to the movie? Maybe.
And maybe he’d be here at the memorial tonight. He might talk about their relationship, especially if he thought it would help his career. Oh, the things she did in the name of snooping.
Jonathon and Romeo came into the bookstore, followed closely by Shirley with a plastic bowl filled with cookies. Either she’d gotten up early to bake, or she’d stayed awake late and had lied to Terrance about being tired. Maybe she was just worried. Like Rarity.
There were a whole lot of maybes floating around the bookstore and in Rarity’s head this morning.
And the Mommy and Me crew would be arriving any second.
Rarity mentioned the fact to Jonathon, and he immediately moved from his regular table to a place in the back room with Romeo.
“At least there I can shoo wandering children away. Romeo likes Savannah, but I’m not sure how he would react to a horde. ”
Shirley laughed as she heard him. “Those children are angels. Well, except for that Thompson boy and the Cartwright girl. Those two could scare off a crossroads demon in less than ten minutes. But the rest, they’re good kids. A little loud at times, but good.”
“Shirley, I think you have a different definition of good kids. I just hope that between Drew and his sister, they keep the grandkids under ten. Edith, of course, is hoping for double digits. It makes me feel ill.” Jonathon refilled his coffee.
“Anyway, I’ll be in here until the club is over.
I need to get words on the page. I’m falling behind. ”
“I think that’s an excuse, but you’ve been very helpful this last weekend, so I’ll forgive you this one white lie.
” Shirley grabbed a bottle of water and headed out front.
“Rarity, I need you at the register as soon as class is over. You know most of them need to get to lunch before their babysitters have to leave.”
Rarity stood in the doorway and told Jonathon what she’d found about Talia. “At least we have another person to check into. Maybe this Bret Black wasn’t acting in his relationship to Talia and was jealous of Mason?”
“It’s a theory,” Jonathon said as he continued to type.
Rarity turned as the front door opened and kids ran into the shop. Time to play hostess and keep the books from being destroyed in the process.