CHAPTER 29
DESPITE THE LACK OF SLEEP, THE NEXT MORNING I dragged myself to work, though I only made it as far as the cafe. The place was quiet. Two women were talking softly in the corner, and D. J. was hovering over his computer at a nearby table. I went over and told him I was sorry about the vanilla people and their interruption. He looked pretty annoyed, but then finally let it go. “It wasn’t your fault,” he said. “I talked to Talia this morning and she said they’d gotten enough for the clip.”
Bob took one look at me and said he was making me a black-eye. I was glad for the pampering and gratefully accepted the cup of coffee with two shots of espresso when he brought it to the table. I was hanging over the brew when Dinah came in a few minutes later to pick up a cup of coffee before she went to the Hooker meeting.
“Molly, you look awful,” she said.
“Geez, thanks,” I said, trying to force myself to sit up straight.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded. I was saying it out of concern.”
“When I tell you what happened, you’ll know why I look this way.” I smiled weakly. “You might even wonder why I don’t look worse.”
“Spill,” Dinah ordered. I began with meeting Robyn Freed’s brother and the vanillites storming the Salute to Chocolate. Then I told her about Barry. She almost choked as I told her. As bad as my news was, it was nice to have Dinah there for support.
“You broke up with Barry.” Dinah jiggled her head as if she was trying to make sense out of everything. “I can’t believe you told me that part last. I think it rates higher than Robyn Freed’s brother and a bunch of flavor freaks.” Bob set her drink down. “I’m sure Barry will come around. Is he nuts? You’re offering him every guy’s dream, a relationship with no strings.”
“Not his dream, apparently,” I said. Then I explained what had caused my showdown with Barry.
“I can’t believe he went behind your back.” She stopped a moment to think. “Though I do kind of get why he was trying to push Mason out of the picture. You guys have way too much fun together.” When I told her about Mason’s late-night phone call, she smiled. “I bet Mason wasn’t exactly brokenhearted at the news.”
“He was very supportive.”
Dinah laughed. “I just bet he was. I still say don’t count things being over with Barry. You two have broken up before and then made up.”
“Not this time. I’m sure it’s really over. He already made arrangements to pick up his tools and the things he and Jeffrey had left at my house. He wanted to take Cosmo, too. But he accepted that the little black mutt is better off with me. He has Blondie for a friend and now the two cats, too. I have a nice yard and I’m dependable about taking care of him.” I took a drag of my coffee drink, hoping the caffeine would finally kick in and I’d be able to open my eyes all the way. It was tiredness mixed with crying. “It was awful. If he’d slammed the door and been angry, it would have been different. Then I would have thought we could work it out. He was just quiet, with that inscrutable cop face.”
CeeCee came in and saw us as she headed toward the counter. She detoured to the table and waved at Bob that she wanted her usual. “Dear, you look awful. Is something wrong?” I leaned on my elbow for support and waved to Dinah to fill CeeCee in. Nell was dragging a few steps behind CeeCee and she finally slouched in one of the chairs.
“That police detective showed up again. She gave me this whole number how they knew I was the one who had dropped off the sweetener. She said they had it on videotape. Then she had the nerve to try to get me to dress up in a hooded sweatshirt and carry an umbrella to see if I matched it.” She looked at me and mumbled something derogatory about the speed of my detective skills, but both CeeCee and Dinah gave her dirty looks and explained I was in the middle of a personal trauma.
“That’s okay,” I said, taking a deep breath and sitting upright. The caffeine at last was beginning to make me feel a little more alert. “I’d rather think about murder than breaking up.”
Rhoda and Elise came in and I waited to start the update until they joined us. But then the door opened again. This time it was Sheila. Everyone looked at her and began to talk among themselves about the change in her. She walked taller and her eyebrows were no longer permanently knit together. Now that she had one job instead of a bunch of little ones, she was actually thinking about moving out of the room she’d rented in a house in Reseda and getting an apartment with a roommate. Did I mention that Adele was trying to convince her they should share a place?
Sheila took one look at me and pulled out her emergency crochet stuff. “What’s wrong, Molly? You look —”
“Terrible,” I said, finishing for her. “I know. Everyone’s been telling me.”
Adele whooshed in from the bookstore just as Dinah began to tell Sheila about the breakup. I was really tired of hearing the story over and over. It was bad enough going through it.
But as much as I was tired of hearing my own tale of woe, I loved the support everyone gave me. Even Adele’s.
“Pink, I’m here for you. We’re sisters of the hook. Musketeers in mystery solving.” She squeezed me so tightly I could barely breathe.
“Molly was just going to bring us up-to-date on what she’s found out investigating Robyn’s murder,” CeeCee said. Everyone had found chairs and pulled them up to the table. Bob was in the process of bringing drinks over. Without even looking down, the whole group had taken out their crochet projects and begun to work on them.
I didn’t know who knew what so I threw all the information out there. “Robyn’s parents aren’t dead.” When I mentioned Becca Ivins and Derek Trousedale, Rhoda started to swoon.
“I loved them in all those comedies with the great dialogue. Remember
I brought up Miles and the phone message. “I tried to call him this morning but got his voice mail. I’m hoping whatever he remembered is some kind of amazing information that points to Robyn’s killer,” I said. Nell was incredulous that not only did Robyn have a brother, but she seemed to have cared about him.
Bob came over with a tray of drinks just as I told them about the charity event. Nell let out a loud groan.
“I forgot about that. I was supposed to be there,” Nell said, her tone drooping. “It’s supposed to be fabulous. It was going to be my chance to go to Palm Springs. Everyone was getting hotel rooms and everything. I heard from the other production assistants that it’s really an event for the show. Since Barbara Olive Overton is one of the sponsors, she gets to look like a good guy, she gets a big tax write off, and she has a lot of her upcoming guests there and gets clips to use in their background pieces, which again point out what a good guy Barbara is. Everybody is going to be there but me,” she said with a pout.
“Who is everyone?” CeeCee said. “I wasn’t invited.”
“That’s because you already were on the show. They don’t need any film on you.”
“Mason said his law firm was probably buying a block of tickets,” I said.
“Does that mean you’re going?” Dinah said.
“Mason isn’t going, but maybe I can get a couple of tickets,” I said to Dinah. “It would give us a chance to talk to Robyn’s parents.”
“I bet they’re super-VIP tickets,” Adele said. “Like right by the head table where Barbara will be sitting.” I saw Adele’s mind working. “Pink, I have to go, too. It’s my big chance to get her to see the light about crochet. We have to do something before she does the knitting show.”
“I’m not even sure I’m going,” I said by way of an excuse.
Nell sidled close to me. “If I could talk to Barbara herself, I bet I could get my job back. She’s always talking about injustices. How about my getting forced into a leave of absence is really a big one.” She took my arm. “I know you said you don’t have the tickets for sure, but if you do, can I go with?”
I was trying to think of a nice way to tell her it was a bad idea when D. J. came up to the table. He smiled at Nell in a flirty manner and reminded her that they’d met before. “Sorry for eavesdropping,” he said, “but I couldn’t help but overhear. I didn’t realize why I got the invite from Barbara for the golf thing, but I’m sure you’re right. It’s all about getting another clip for my background piece. They said I could bring a guest.” Nell was all set to accept, but CeeCee gave her one of her cease-and-desist shakes of her head.
At the same time, a woman at the counter recognized CeeCee. I’d seen it happen before. People always
