I’d like to say I was good at holding my tongue but, well, here we are.“So you’re sure it really was an accident.”
Ms.Terhune blinked, straightening with head-spinning speed.“Of course I am!Darling, he’d been drinking.He lost his footing.He fell.Simple as.”
Ron cleared his throat softly, giving me a sharp, disapproving look.“Sorry,” I muttered.“I just...It was so shocking.”
Denise had pity on me.“This has just been the most bizarre regatta season,” she sighed.“I’m surprised they haven’t cancelled the regatta outright!This is just too much.”
"The day’s race has been delayed until this afternoon due to the debris from that fire at the manky old place down the beach,” she said airily, oblivious to Ron’s sharp glare.“The organizers asked Pamela and me if we’d like them to cancel it but, really, Gerald would’ve wanted it to go on.We’re giving a little in memoriam speech before the deep-water event this afternoon.”She paused.“That was before theincident, though.Your Officer Nichols—or is it Sheriff?Lieutenant?”
"Just Heath," Ron offered."We don't stand on formality here."
Gwendolyn's smile was sharp and quick and vulpine."Just so.Heaththen, he has some volunteers out collecting the worst of the pieces.The organizers areadamant," she added, managing to sound horrified and thrilled at the same time."They'll be sailing with the tide, but I wanted to have a touch up first."She flashed her neutral French tips at us."Appearances are everything.Right, Damien?"
Ron gave me a look from beneath his lowered lashes.A clearwhat the hellglance.I returned it with a slight widening of my eyes.No freaking idea, man.
Gwendolyn pulled out her phone and started texting someone, humming under her breath a medley of pop hits from the Eighties.Cody finished up with Denise Gleaves and led her to the checkout stand, darting furtive, curious glances at Gwendolyn the entire time.Denise was not so subtle."I loved watching you when I was a girl," she said, pausing by Gwendolyn on her way out."Ladies Who Lunchwas appointment viewing for my mom and aunts.I used to love sneaking into the den to watch with them."
Gwendolyn smiled, a thousand-watt stunner, and offered Denise her hand."That's so lovely to hear, darling!That show brought so much joy into my life.I'm always happy to hear when others are still enjoying the fruits of our labor!"
Denise gushed a bit more before promising she'd watch the race this afternoon and shyly asking Gwendolyn for an autograph.Gwendolyn was gracious, signing the back of one of Denise's business cards and turning a kind smile to Cody as he hovered shyly near the register."You're far too young to have seen any of the show," she teased.
He shook his head, blushing."I saw you in that sci-fi series, the one with the tentacles?And you were the communications officer?"
Gwendolyn's expression froze for a second.I remembered the show and almost laughed aloud at the reminder.It lasted one season and had a strangely devoted cult following that, once in a while, demanded new episodes even though the entire cast refused to even speak of the series in interviews and one of the former writers had gotten arrested for punching someone at Comic Con who asked about a reboot."How thrilling to meet a fan of one of my more obscure works," she finally said, and Cody turned six shades of pink.Ron huffed softly, shaking his head as Cody awkwardly gushed aboutWarp Hole.
"He's great with acrylics and gels," Ron sighed."Gonna have to work on customer interaction though.We're done.Step on over here to the dryer."
Gwendolyn dropped her phone back into her purse as Ron led me to another little table and set me up at the nail dryer so he could clean his station."That's a lovely color," she noted."It suits you."
"Thank you.Ah, I'm guessing you've got car trouble?"I asked, nodding towards Bitty's side of the shop.
She lifted one shoulder in an airy, dismissive shrug."Nate had to break into Gerry’s car morning—we couldn’t find his keys anywhere.Your Heath swears the department didn’t find them.Allegedly." She spat the word like a rotten grape."We thought maybe he’d locked them in the car—he’d been known to do that when he was in his cups.But all he had in there were some old fast-food napkins, a receipt from the hotel in Boston, and..."she trailed off and I was sure her cheeks would be pink if she didn't have on such heavy foundation."Well.Someintimateitems from a rendezvous at the Chateau Revere."
"Revere?That's fancy," I murmured.Max had stayed there for a press tour a year or so back.The entire hotel was done up in a modernized version of Colonial chic.Lots of florals, lots of Federal blue.
Lots of dollar signs because every room was a suite the size of a nice apartment and came with personal concierge and a butler.
"Kind of ironic, calling it a chateau though," I commented, one eye on Gwendolyn and one on my nails.
She snorted elegantly."Well.People throwmoneyat chateaus.They throwpartiesat hotels." When I couldn't hide my smirk, she nudged me with her elbow—carefully, though, since my nails weren't done drying.“I understand you have Charlemagne," she said in a low, quiet tone.Cody was still eyeballing us from his station, and Ron was puttering around the other, pretending to be busy.“Pamela and I aren’t in any place to care for an animal, what with our travel schedules and, well, neither of us want to, but if you really can’t take him...”
I had the strong feeling that if I said I couldn’t, Nate would end up with the cat and I didn’t trust him with animals any further than I could throw a ball.“It’s okay.I don’t mind...My dog seems very taken with him.”
She nodded thoughtfully."Gerald adored Charlemagne.He said that was the son he never had."
"Uh."
Gwendolyn waved one dainty hand airily."I know, I know.One ofthosepeople.But he truly did dote on that cat.Which is why I was hoping to see him later, if you don’t mind?”She smiled prettily, decades of practiced charm pouring out.Smart move to do it in front of others, I thought as I gave her my own answering, equally fake, smile—harder to refuse if there’s witnesses.“It's as if Charlemagne is a connection to Gerald.Which, I know, sounds ridiculous out loud but it's true!He adored Charlemagne, took him everywhere."She sniffed, turning away to rifle through her bag for a moment and producing an honest to goodness handkerchief.Delicately, she dabbed at her eyes, swearing softly under her breath.
"We can arrange a visit,” I said diplomatically.
She nodded, satisfied, and went back to texting as Ron finished up my manicure.Beside me, Cody dawdled a bit but when it became obvious Ms.Terhune wasn’t going to interact with anyone else, he started to set up his station for his next client.
Ms.Terhune peeked up at me as Ron and I followed them a few minutes later, her gaze darting back to her phone when she caught me looking back.“The medium changes, but the content never does,” she remarked dryly, tilting her phone so I could see what she was looking at.
It was me, at the cocktail party, grainy but obvious.I was talking to Tubbs behind the screen, the angle indicating the photographer had been behind Tubbs and a little to the left, cutting off most of his arm and part of his head as they sneakily snapped the shot but catching my expression.I looked angry, maybe a little hurt.
Below it, in bold twenty-point font, was the legendFailed Child Star Tied To Celeb Death AGAIN????
