Chapter 49
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
Courtney’s brow furrowed in confusion. Why were the cops here, and why did Dana seem completely blasé? And who were these three men and this random young woman she called Olive? She’d almost died when Dana handed Olive one of the stacks of bills. Who just gives someone ten grand? Courtney couldn’t wrap her brain around what was happening.
The police officers herded them toward the house, with Officer Holloway leading the way and his partner, the very stern Vivian Johnson, bringing up the rear. Toward the back and off to the side, Courtney took it all in. Both of the officers had serious expressions, a counterbalance to Dana, who was chattering away with Olive and a very tall man she called Nolan. Anyone would think they were old friends. Brayden and Charlie were talking as well. She couldn’t hear what they were saying, but at one point they high-fived. Ian and Kristy were a show of silent solidarity. The other two men, she realized, were identical twins, right down to the scowls on their faces.
Ian directed the young officer through to the enormous white sectional sofa in the living room. The décor was half hotel, half funeral home, and none of it was comfortable, but Courtney could admit that it did make a statement. Now she looked at the group, at the three strangers with their grubby jeans and herself with sweat stains on her T-shirt, and Brayden with his flip-flops. In one evening, this sofa would be exposed to more dirt and wear and tear than it had in its lifetime in this house. Oh well, one of Dana’s favorite things to do was redecorating. The sofa could be gone in a week, and no one would miss it.
But the sofa was the least of it, of course. Dana was back! She was wearing the butterfly skirt with matching top from the photo. Both pieces were rumpled and her hair was a bit of a mess, but otherwise she looked none the worse for whatever this experience had been. Courtney had so much admiration for her friend.
Dana was a survivor.
Before they took their seats, Dana sidled up to her and asked, “Do you know where my phone is?”
She reached into her crossbody bag and pulled it out. “Right here. It’s charged.”
“Perfect,” Dana said with an approving nod.
Officer Johnson said, “Everyone take a seat.”
They all sat down on the sofa, Courtney across from Dana so she could keep her in sight. When she flashed a smile in her direction, all of her previous worry melted away. Dana was back. All was right with the world.
Before anyone said anything, Ronald appeared in the doorway, with Martha peering out from behind him. “Oh good, Miss Dana, you’re back!”
Dana got up and waved them in. “You might as well join us. I have a lot to say.”
Martha and Ronald crossed the room and sat next to Courtney on her end of the sectional. She gave them a nod, but they didn’t notice.
Officer Johnson addressed the group. “Okay then. I’m going to need all of you to be quiet and only speak in response to my questions. We’ll start with names.”
Dana, still standing, strode to her side. “I’ve got this, Officer. I think I can clear up all of this and let you be on your way.” Once again, Courtney admired her take-charge attitude and the way her very presence filled a room. All eyes on Dana! She exuded calm and competence, a perfect balance to Courtney’s own worry and doubt. The police officer began to object, but Dana overrode her, pointing to each person and naming them in turn. After she was done with those Courtney knew, she said, “And then there’s Olive, my Lyft driver; my friend Nolan; and Nolan’s two cousins, Pete and Hunter.” She pursed her lips. “Or maybe it’s Hunter and Pete.” She laughed. “It’s easy to confuse them. When you hear them talking in the next room, it sounds like someone is talking to themselves. Seriously. It’s the same voice.”
Courtney was still stuck on the fact that Dana had paid her Lyft driver ten grand when her friend launched into the Dana show. All Dana, all the time. She settled back in her seat, ready to hear a good story.
Dana tended to walk when she entertained her audiences, and today was no exception. The two officers shrank to one side as she commanded the room. “I’m sorry you were brought into this, Officers. It’s a personal and professional family matter, not one requiring the help of the law.”
“So you weren’t abducted against your will?” young Officer Holloway asked.
Dana threw back her head and laughed. “Absolutely not.”
Nolan let out a relieved sigh, and the scowls on his cousins’ faces turned to smiles. Seemed as if everyone liked her answer.
“So where were you, and why did your assistant report you missing?” Officer Johnson was not quite as convinced. When she gave Courtney a pointed look, she had to avert her eyes.
“A misunderstanding,” Dana declared. “Let me tell you the story.”
Was it Courtney’s imagination, or did everyone relax back in their seats to listen? Brayden and Charlie, who normally wanted nothing to do with the older generation in this house, looked like they were rooted to the sofa and weren’t going anywhere.
Dana continued. “I often do very extensive research for my novels. You wouldn’t believe everything I’ve done. I’ve visited a monastery, gone rock climbing and skydiving. Not going to lie, that last one was a little scary. I’ve also learned how to open a safe and detonate a bomb.”
“Defuse a bomb,” Courtney said, correcting her. “Detonate is when it goes off.”
“Of course,” she said smoothly. “That’s what I meant. I am now an expert at defusing a bomb.”
Courtney wouldn’t say “expert,” but this was Dana’s show, so whatever words she spoke became reality.
Dana extended her arms. “I’ve traveled the world over to visit the places Rebecca would go, and sometimes it came at great peril. One time Courtney and I got lost in some catacombs in South America. Remember that, Court?”
She nodded. She couldn’t have forgotten the experience. She’d had a panic attack and began hyperventilating, thinking they were going to die down there. Dana had talked her through the crisis, placing her hand on Courtney’s back while instructing her to concentrate on taking deep breaths. Later, it made a great scene in book four, with Rebecca doing the same thing for another character.
“In the next Rebecca Cavanaugh book, a famous author is going to be kidnapped, so of course I needed some firsthand knowledge.” She dramatically gestured toward the three men at the end of the sofa. “That’s where these fine gentlemen came in. I arranged for them to take me to a secluded location, already set up ahead of time, so I could experience everything the character would go through. I had Rebecca’s handy gadgets with me, of course, because once she gets trapped with the author, she’s going to save the day. My wonderful assistant Courtney made sure I had just the right gizmos for that plot device.”
After Courtney nodded in agreement, it occurred to her that in doing so she’d made it look as if she’d known about this all along, implying that she was involved from the start. Which made her look stupid, since she was the one who first reported Dana missing.
Oh well. She’d never been one to disagree with Dana, and she wasn’t going to start now.
“It was a learning curve, wasn’t it, boys?” She directed the question to the men. One of the twins vigorously nodded. “Nolan had a pivotal role, playing the kindhearted kidnapper who had serious doubts about the whole thing. He enacted it beautifully.” Dana tapped on her temple and directed the next part to Courtney. “I’ve got it all up here, Court. This novel is going to write itself.”
Under his breath, Nolan said, “Really?” Despite what Dana had just said, it appeared this was news to him.
One of his cousins nudged him with an elbow. “Told ya.”
Nolan gave them a pointed glare. “I can’t believe you strung me along like that.”
Officer Johnson frowned. “So you staged this whole thing but didn’t tell your family?”
“I left them a note,” Dana said, her voice innocent and sweet. “I guess they didn’t see it.”
“This doesn’t surprise me in the least,” Ian said, his voice smug. “The whole time I said Dana was behind this.”
Kristy added, “I’m sure I would have remembered a note. Where did you leave it?”
Dana waved a hand as if to wipe away the question. “It’s over now, so does it even matter? The point is that this was all a misunderstanding. No crime was committed. This was all planned for and carried out by me.” She leaned over to adjust her skirt, making the decorative butterflies shimmy.
The younger cop tilted his head to one side. “But what was with the drone and the bag of money? Was that part of it too?”
“Smart man!” Dana exclaimed, and he beamed. “Indeed it was. I had every detail worked out ahead of time. Per usual, some things didn’t go as planned, but that’s the way of it. Sometimes it’s just as well, because it provides content for the novel.”
“I see.” Officer Holloway looked impressed. “I always wondered how novels came together.”
“It’s all part of my process. I do have one favor to ask everyone here.” Dana’s gaze swept across the room. “If you could keep this to yourselves, I’d really appreciate it. I like to surprise my readers. I still remember when the plot of book three leaked out ahead of time. It ruined the reading experience for so many fans, as you can imagine.”
Courtney remembered the leak as well. It turned out that an intern at the publishing house had overheard a phone conversation they’d had with Dana’s editor, and she’d given the information to a media outlet. Dana was right. It had been a huge spoiler for those anticipating the next book. They’d been more careful after that.
“I won’t say anything,” Charlie said, and everyone in the room bobbed their heads in affirmation.
“Great!” She clasped her hands together. “I’ll make sure to mention all of you in the acknowledgments, and if you want, I can provide you with signed copies. I can even get books out to you the day before it goes to the retail outlets.”
Officer Holloway said, “That would be awesome! Could you make it out to my mom? Her name is Rita.”
“Of course! Rita, what a lovely name.” Dana turned and singled her out. “Courtney, could you make a note of it? I don’t want to forget.”
The truth of it was that Dana had already forgotten. Once the words came out of her mouth, she was finished and the promise became Courtney’s problem. She was used to it and didn’t mind. At least not too much.
“I hope this clears things up for you,” Dana said. “Brayden, could you show these fine officers to the front door?”
“Of course, Aunt Dana.” Brayden got up, and Charlie also stood at the same time to follow along. God forbid he get left behind in a room full of Brayden’s people.