Strawberry Shortcake Murder (23 page)

“Of course not,” Hannah lied through her teeth. “I’m just interested in Rudy’s outtakes. I think he’s very talented.”

Mason’s frown grew deeper. “He is, but nobody’s that interested in outtakes. I think you’d better tell me what you’re really after. Are you working with the sheriff’s department again?”

“No, and I wasn’t working with them before,” Hannah declared honestly. She hadn’t been exactly working with the sheriff’s department; she’d been working with Bill.

“But I heard you solved Rod LaSalle’s murder.”

“Bill solved it, not me. I just happened to overhear something that helped him, that’s all.”

Mason shook his head like a dog coming out of the lake, not quite as fast, but just as definite. “No way, Hannah. I’m not getting in the middle here. If you don’t tell me exactly why you want to watch the outtakes, I can’t let you do it.”

“Okay.” Hannah sighed deeply. She wasn’t about to mention the pictures that Lucy had taken of the murder and her search for the killer’s cuff links, but she had to tell Mason something convincing. “Look, Mason. I know it’s a long shot, but maybe there’s some footage of Boyd before the contest started. Rudy told me he taped the audience coming in. If Boyd stopped to talk to anyone, Bill and Mike should know about it. Then they can interview that person and find out about Boyd’s state of mind and what he said.”

Mason thought about it for a minute. “Okay. I don’t remember any footage of Boyd, but I didn’t watch the whole thing.”

“Is that a yes?”

“Sure. I don’t have any objections. There’s only one problem.”

“What’s that?”

“You’ll have to watch the tapes tonight.”

Hannah groaned. “Tonight?”

“I’m afraid so. Tomorrow’s the final day of the contest and we’ll be so busy, I won’t be able to spare anyone to help you.”

“Can’t I do it alone?”

“No. The engineer will have to find the right tapes for you and load them. You’ll be using a sophisticated piece of equipment, and he’ll have to teach you what to do. It’s possible we’ll need some of that footage for the final montage. I can’t take the chance that you’ll accidentally erase it.”

“Okay. I’ll watch the tapes tonight. What time does the engineer leave?”

“He doesn’t. We never leave the truck unattended at night when we’re out on location. There’s just too much valuable equipment inside.”

“Then I’ll have time to run home and feed my cat first?”

“Sure. Take as long as you like. I’ll tell P.K. to expect you.” Mason turned to go back into the truck but hesitated. “If you wait a second, I’ll walk you to your truck. You shouldn’t be out here alone at night.”

“Thanks, Mason.” Hannah stood at the base of the metal steps and waited for Mason to talk to his engineer. It only took a moment, then the door opened and he came back down the steps.

“You’re all set. I told P.K. which tapes you wanted, and he’ll have them all ready for you. Do you really think you’ll find anything, Hannah?”

“Probably not, but I have to do it. And there might be some good shots of Tracey. I didn’t lie to you before, Mason. I really am interested.”

“If you find any footage of her, write down the time codes. The engineer will show you where to find them. We can dupe a tape of her for you. She looked great on camera.”

It was snowing as they walked across the parking lot, and a cold wind whistled across the asphalt. Mason lifted his arms to turn up his collar and Hannah had all she could do not to gasp. Mason was wearing a pair of antique cuff links with ducks on them.

“Those are beautiful cuff links,” Hannah said, hoping her voice wasn’t shaking. “Are they antique?”

“Yes. They belonged to Ellen’s grandfather. He had quite a large collection.”

Hannah was almost afraid to ask, but she did. “Did Ellen’s grandfather happen to have a gold pair of cuff links with horse heads on them?”

“Maybe. I know he had a couple of pairs with dogs on them, and I’ve got this pair with the ducks. Is it important?”

“Yes.” Hannah’s mind raced for a plausible excuse. She certainly didn’t want to tell Mason that Boyd’s killer had worn horse head cuff links. “Mother collects antique jewelry, and she’s looking for a pair like that. I thought they’d make a great Christmas present for her, but I haven’t been able to find any.”

“I’ll ask Ellen to look through her jewelry box. Would they be valuable?”

“Yes.” Hannah left it at that. Mason had no idea how valuable those cuff links were. While it was true that they’d be worth a bundle on the antique jewelry circuit, they were equally valuable when it came to proving that Danielle hadn’t murdered Boyd.

“I hope Ellen didn’t sell them. She wanted to buy new furniture and she sold off part of the collection about six years ago.”

“To a private collector?”

“No, she placed them on consignment with one of the jewelers out at the mall.”

Hannah felt her spirits plummet faster than a gunned-down goose. If the horse head cuff links she’d seen in Lucy’s photo had been up for sale at the Tri-County Mall, anyone in the area could have bought them.

“Isn’t that your truck?” Mason pointed to the vehicle that was rounding the corner of the building.

“Yes. Andrea’s bringing it around for me.” Hannah waved her arms, and Andrea pulled up next to them. Her sister slid over to the passenger’s side and Mason reached out to open the driver’s door for Hannah.

Hannah was pleased. Chivalry wasn’t dead. She smiled at Mason, and said, “I think you’re doing a great job with the show. Everyone seems to love it.”

“Thanks, Hannah. The numbers are in, and we’ve got a lot more viewers than I thought we’d have. You’re really pulling them in by doing that baking on the news.”

“Good.” Hannah climbed behind the wheel and waved good night to Mason. “Don’t forget to ask Ellen about those cuff links. If she still has them, I’d like to buy them for Mother’s collection.”

Andrea waited until Hannah had pulled around the corner, then she reached out to grab her arm. “What cuff links? Mother doesn’t collect cuff links.”

“I know. That was just an excuse. Mason was wearing a pair of antique cuff links with ducks on them, and he said they were part of a collection that Ellen had inherited from her grandfather.”

Andrea gasped. “You think that Mason has the horse head cuff links?”

“No. He told me there might have been a pair like that, but Ellen sold off part of the collection about six years ago through a jeweler at the mall. If she had them and if she sold them, anyone could have bought them. It’s another dead end.”

Andrea sighed. “Oh well. Nobody ever said this would be easy. Where are we going first?”

“To my place. I want to change clothes and feed Moishe. If I don’t get there soon, he’ll eat my couch. Mike and I went through a couple of bags of pretzels on Wednesday night, and I haven’t had time to vacuum the crumbs. One bag was garlic, and that’s Moishe’s favorite.”

To say that Moishe had been glad to see them would have been a gross understatement. The moment Hannah had unlocked the door to her condo, he’d hurtled into her arms and licked her face. When that had been done to his satisfaction, he’d jumped down and raced to his empty food bowl to yowl pitifully.

Hannah had gone straight to the kitchen to get out his food. As she’d taken off the bungee cord that held the cupboard door shut, she’d noticed that it had been chewed almost through. She’d gotten there just in time. Five minutes more and the whole kitchen floor would have been ankle deep in kitty crunchies. She’d fed Moishe, changed into more comfortable clothes, and they’d left. And now they were in the garage, preparing to climb back into Hannah’s still-warm Suburban.

“Where are we going?” Andrea asked, opening her door.

“Vera Olsen’s house. I want to check with her to see if she’s seen Lucy. If she says she hasn’t, I’m going to ask her if we can go up to Lucy’s apartment. We might find a clue to where she’s gone.”

“Do you really think that Vera will let us in?” Andrea sounded doubtful.

“Sure. Don’t sweat the small stuff, Andrea. I’ll think of some excuse when we get there.”

It didn’t take long to drive to Vera’s house. Hannah parked on the street, and they got out of the truck.

“Lucy’s not home,” Hannah stated, as they walked up the sidewalk to Vera’s front porch.

“What are you, psychic?”

Hannah laughed. “I wish. Then we’d know where Lucy is.”

“How can you tell that she’s not home?”

Hannah pulled Andrea back a couple of paces and pointed up at Lucy’s windows. “There’s only one light. It’s the one in the kitchen over the sink, and it was on this morning. You don’t think she’s up there sitting in the dark, do you?”

“I guess not.” Andrea opened the porch door and they stepped inside. “Have you thought about what you’re going to tell Vera?”

“No, I’ll let you play it by ear.”

Andrea shot her a startled glance. “Me? Why me?”

“Because you’re better with people than I am.” Hannah reached out to press the doorbell that was mounted on the wall next to the heavy door. “After all, you’re a real-estate agent.”

Andrea muttered something that she never would have said in front of Tracey. And then she poked Hannah as they heard footsteps coming toward the door. “Shh! Here comes Vera.”

Vera Olsen pulled open the door and smiled as she saw them standing on her porch. “Hannah and Andrea. What a surprise. Did Lucy send you with my cookies?”

“Yes.” Andrea responded immediately, picking up on the cue that Vera had given her. “We didn’t bring them in because we weren’t sure you were home. Go get the cookies that Lucy gave us for Mrs. Olsen, will you, Hannah?”

Hannah raced back to the truck as fast as she could and grabbed a bag of cookies. When she came back, she found Andrea and Vera sitting on the awful lime-colored, sectional sofas in Vera’s living room, talking like long-lost friends. Hannah figured that Vera must have gotten the furniture at a massive discount. No sane person would pay retail for that color.

Vera smiled at Hannah, took the cookies, and waved her down to one of the bilious-colored cushions. “That’s what I mean, Andrea. Even with all the hours Lucy’s been putting in at the paper, she still remembered my cookies. Sometimes I have to complain about the mess in her apartment, but other than that, she’s a real sweet girl. I figure she’ll learn to be neater if I just keep reminding her.”

“I’m sure she will,” Andrea gave Vera her sweetest smile, “especially since she has you to teach her. She was really concerned that we bring you your cookies before you went to bed. When did you ask for them?”

“Yesterday morning. I have a sweet tooth, you know. I expected her to bring them last night, but she must have gotten home late.”

“You didn’t hear her come home last night?”

“No. She told me she had to take some pictures out at the inn, and the party must have lasted a long time. I didn’t go to bed until eleven-thirty, and I know she wasn’t home yet.”

Hannah couldn’t keep silent. It was just too important. “You didn’t see her this morning?”

“No, she was already gone when I went up with her breakfast. I made waffles, and they’re her favorites.”

Hannah avoided Andrea’s eyes. Both of them knew that Vera hadn’t knocked on Lucy’s door with a plate of waffles. Hot Stuff had climbed the inside staircase to the attic to answer the e-mail she got from Silver Wolf.

“That girl works too hard.” Vera sighed. “And she never gets enough sleep. Rod depends on her for everything, you know. She writes all the big stories, and she’s out taking pictures for the paper at all hours of the day and night.”

Hannah bit the inside of her cheek to keep silent. The pictures that Lucy had taken certainly weren’t for Rod at the paper!

Andrea shot Hannah a sharp glance, one that said, Keep it zipped! Then she turned to Vera again. “Lucy asked us to pick up some film for her. Is it all right if we go up to her apartment to get it?”

“Go ahead. Use the inside staircase. Then you won’t have to go out in the cold again. She gave you her key, didn’t she?”

Andrea turned to Hannah. “You have it, Hannah?”

“No, I don’t.” Hannah played it with a perfectly straight face. “I thought you had it.”

“Never mind. You can use mine.” Vera reached out, picked up a key chain from the coffee table, and handed it to Hannah. “Go upstairs and open the door at the end of the hallway. There’s another set of stairs that leads up to the attic and the light’s on a switch just inside the door.”

Andrea thanked her and Hannah followed her up the stairs. Neither one of them said a word until they’d climbed up to the second floor and shut the hallway door behind them.

“That was brilliant.” Hannah patted her sister on the shoulder as they started up the second, much narrower staircase.

“Thanks.” Andrea turned to smile at Hannah over her should. “But you get to wing it if Lucy’s there. I’ve already done my part.”

Lucy didn’t answer their knock, and Hannah used Vera’s key. She opened the door, flicked on the light, and both sisters halted, as if they’d run into an invisible wall. Someone had been in Lucy’s apartment since they’d left it this morning.

“What happened?” Andrea gasped, staring at the mess in Lucy’s main room.

“Somebody was searching for something,” Hannah stated the obvious, “and they didn’t straighten up after they were through.”

The room looked as if a tornado had ripped through it the bedding had been stripped from Lucy’s bed and lay in a heap on the floor. All the drawers in Lucy’s rolltop desk had been pulled out and dumped, and film canisters with strips of ruined film protruding like long, curled tongues were scattered on the rug. Lucy’s computer was on and a message was flashing on the screen. It read, ALL FILES ON YOUR C: DRIVE HAVE BEEN DELETED.

“Did Lucy do this?” Andrea asked, shivering slightly.

“Not Lucy.”

“How do you know?”

Hannah bent down to examine one of the gutted film canisters “Lucy would never do something like this. It would ruin all her photos.”

“The killer!” Andrea shivered, then shuddered. “He must have been searching for the pictures that Lucy took of him. And since he couldn’t tell which film canister Lucy used, he destroyed them all.”