I had the creepy sense that someone was watching me, and I turned suddenly to survey the room, half expecting to see the angry young woman I’d seen earlier. The room was empty, but the eyes in the portrait of Carlita Marquez seemed to stare directly into my own.
Creeped out, I fled the room and hurried down the hall to knock on Graf’s door.
CHAPTER SIX
“Joey, more wind chimes! I want tinkling and low notes! I want to
I sat in the shade, an electric fan sending a cool current of air over me, while they got the set ready. We were shooting Matty on the balcony, hot and sweaty, as a breeze springs up and sets off the chimes. My job was to look hot, in both meanings of the word.
Graf was across the patio, and he winked at me when he caught my eye. He’d already complimented me on the silk dressing gown that plunged almost to my navel. He arched an eyebrow and made me smile.
“Higher! Joey, hang them higher!” Federico yelled.
Joey leaned far out over the balustrade of the balcony, his long thin arms reaching for the branches of a
There was a grating sound and even as I started to rise to my feet, I watched the heavy balustrade begin to topple and Joey flail in the air as he plunged from the second story to the ground.
A cry rose from everyone on the set as Joey’s body hit the hard earth.
“Joey!” Federico was beside him in an instant. He looked up. “Get an ambulance. Hurry!” He turned his attention back to the prop man and spoke in a low, soothing voice.
A handsome young man rushed from behind one of the cameras and knelt beside Federico and Joey. “I called the emergency number, Dad. Help is on the way.”
Joey moaned softly, and Federico brushed sand from the side of his face. “You’re going to be okay, Joey. Try not to move. Medical help is coming.”
“The balustrade,” Joey managed. “It gave.”
“It’s okay,” Federico said. He looked up at all of us gathered around, unsure of what to do. “We’ll film in the morning. We’re done for the day. Please, leave us.”
The cast and crew slowly dispersed. Graf came to stand at my side. “This is awful. Are you okay?” he asked.
“Yes, I’m fine. The question is, is Joey okay?” I wanted to go over and help, but there was little I could offer. Joey was conscious, and his breathing wasn’t labored. It looked as if one arm might be broken, but he didn’t appear to be fatally injured.
Graf put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me against him. “What a crazy accident. That balustrade is cement and at least six inches thick. Isn’t that the balcony outside your bedroom?” he asked.
I nodded slowly. “It has the best light and Federico particularly wanted those white flowers from the tree.” It was a beautiful shot, and the balustrade looked heavy enough to hold back a herd of zebras.
“Good thing Ricardo speaks fluent Spanish. I wouldn’t know how to telephone for the emergency team.”
That was a point of interest. “I didn’t know Federico’s son was on the set.”
“Yes, assistant cinematographer. He shot your screen test. Didn’t you know?” Graf’s fingers drifted up to my hair, gently combing through my curls in a way that was both relaxing and exciting.
“I had no idea, but they look alike.” I tried to keep my mind on the conversation. “I met his daughter yesterday. She’s lovely, but… unhappy, I think.”
“It’s nice that Federico is giving his children a leg up in this business. Ricardo really wants to become a director, like his father. Estelle”-he shrugged-“Federico never talks about her.”
“Listen. The ambulance is on the way.” The sound of a siren came distinctly on the morning breeze. “I should change out of this dressing gown. Dallas will kill me if I get something on it.”
He bent closer to my ear. “I’ll be glad to help you get out of it.”
His words affected me, but I gave him only a laugh as I turned and went into the house. Glancing behind me I saw the medics arrive with a stretcher. Graf remained behind to offer help.
The cast and crew had scattered, taking off for the beaches or hiding out in their rooms, or going back to the hotel in town where most of them were booked. Only a select few members had been invited to stay at the house, and for the moment the mansion was quiet and cool.
I walked up the stairs and into my room. Opening the balcony windows, I could hear Federico talking with the medics. Stepping outside, I watched them load Joey into a waiting ambulance. A gentle breeze tinkled the wind chimes, and I examined the balustrade. It was thick cement, and a section three feet wide had simply broken.
Or not so simply.
Bending closer, I saw what looked like chisel marks in the cement, as if a tool had been worked into cracks to weaken the structure. But who would do such a thing? And why?
The notion that I was being watched came over me with such certainty that I backed away from the balcony and ran inside. My gaze roved from one side to the other, but the room was empty. Except for the portrait of Carlita.
I could have sworn there was a hint of satisfaction in her smile that hadn’t been there yesterday.
As soon as the medics were gone, I found Federico alone in the suite of rooms he was using with Jovan. The model was scheduled to arrive on the set any minute. She’d had a fashion shoot in Milan, so her scenes had been pushed back.
“Come in, Sarah Booth.” Federico sat wearily in a chair before a cold fireplace. “What a day. The medics seem to think that Joey will be fine. His right arm is broken and he’s badly bruised. They’ll know for certain that there’s no serious damage once they run some tests.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” I hesitated. The subject I wanted to broach wasn’t going to be pleasant. “I looked at the balustrade, Federico. It’s possible someone deliberately weakened the structure.”
His eyes widened and he rose slowly to his feet. “Are you saying this wasn’t an accident? That someone deliberately set out to hurt Joey.”
“Maybe not Joey.” It had occurred to me that had Joey not fallen, it might have been me. The script called for me to lean out into the breeze, letting it lift my hair and blow my dressing gown against my body while Ned watched from the lawn below.
He took my meaning instantly. “You think you were meant to fall?”
I frowned. “I don’t know. It doesn’t make sense. But something isn’t right.”
“This house has been empty for several years. It will be Estelle’s on her wedding day, but until then, I’ve neglected it. I sent a cleaning crew out last month to prepare for the film, but before that, no one lived here.” He paced as he talked. “Perhaps this happened when the house was empty, or somehow the cleaning crew did something.”
I didn’t disagree. Both scenarios were possible. “I’m not afraid, but I am concerned. I think you should hire some security here.”
He stopped pacing and nodded. “You’re thinking of Suzy, aren’t you?”
“Two serious falls, one of them fatal. Yeah, it’s an easy link to make.” I saw the worry etch itself more deeply in the lines of his face. “There probably is no connection, but I heard what Suzy said at Michael Mainheim’s party.”
He dropped his gaze. “I’m sorry, Sarah Booth. You shouldn’t have heard that.”
“She felt I stole this role from her.” I gave a wry grin. “I know what that feels like, and it isn’t very nice. She was upset.”
“Six years ago, I would have cast Suzy as Matty. But her time for that role passed. You
His words were high praise, but they didn’t answer the question of what Suzy was doing out in Lettohatchie Canyon. “Do you really believe Suzy was climbing around that canyon because she and Bobby Joe Taylor are
