I stifled a groan.
“Deputy Wild, what can you tell us about the situation?”
“No comment,” I said, following JD’s previous advice.
“Is it true a body was discovered in a barrel?”
The camera focused in tight on me.
I climbed into the passenger seat of the Porsche, and JD cranked up the engine. I smiled and waved as we pulled out of the parking lot and headed back to the station.
Brenda had a lot of work to do. The chemical needed to be positively identified. Then the barrel needed to be moved to the medical examiner's office, the remains extracted and analyzed, then the waste disposed of.
After we filled out paperwork, I found Denise at her desk. Her perfectly manicured fingers clacked the keyboard. Phones rang, and the daily hustle of activity filled the air. Rays of sunlight filtered in through the blinds, and motes of dust swirled in the shafts. Deputies fielded complaints and processed perps.
JD grabbed a cup of coffee and brought one for me loaded up with cream and sugar. It was early, and the coffee relatively fresh.
“I heard about your discovery,” Denise said. “That's really creepy."
I agreed.
"How horrible. I couldn't imagine that. Do you think the girl was alive when she got stuffed into the barrel?"
"For her sake, I hope not."
“I’ll never understand why people do the things they do.”
“Search the records for missing females over the last couple of years.”
"Could you be more specific?"
"Not yet. Keep it broad. I just want to get a head start on this thing."
"Will do.”
Jack’s daughter called from Los Angeles. Scarlett shrieked into the phone. “Have you seen it?”
“Seen what?”
6
"The trailer for the Bree Taylor project is out!” Scarlett squealed. “I’m sending you a link. Watch it and call me back."
She hung up the phone, and a moment later, the text buzzed through. I clicked the link, and it took me to the clip. The logo for the studio flashed on the screen, and the trailer began.
I called JD over, and he huddled beside me, his eyes glued to the screen.
Scarlett had been cast as the lead in the film. It was based on the last three days of Bree Taylor’s life. Three days that I was in the middle of.
At the time of her death, Bree was topping the box office charts. She had it—the elusive quality that every aspiring actor desires. She was a classic movie star in every sense of the word. She had all the beauty and glamour of old-school Hollywood. Ironically, her death cemented her as an icon that would be remembered for generations.
Scarlett filled her shoes well.
They couldn’t have cast a better actress in the role.
Scarlett was breathtaking when she appeared on screen, and her likeness to Bree was stunning. Her hair and makeup were done to perfection, and the features of her face were contoured to look more like Bree.
I had been on set during several days of filming and watched on the video monitors. Her resemblance sent chills up my spine at the time. Now, watching the final product, it was even more remarkable. She had studied Bree’s mannerisms and embodied the star perfectly. Every nuance, every smirk, every flick of the hair and bat of the eyelashes.
She was Bree.
The trailer ended, and the title flashed on the screen. The studio had kicked around a number of titles—Death on the Riviera, The Last Icon, Fatal Blonde.
They finally settled simply on Bree.
It appeared on screen in a beautiful script font—carefree, almost whimsical.
JD beamed with pride at his daughter's accomplishment. "That kid is going places."
If the movie was half as good as the trailer, it would be a hit. I had sold the story to the studio and was due a nice chunk of residuals on the backend. But more than that, I wanted Scarlett to achieve success. This was a pivotal moment in her career.
I called Scarlett back right away and congratulated her. I put the call on speakerphone. "I'm here with Jack. We just watched the trailer. It was amazing. You look fantastic."
"I'm so excited!"
"You're making your old man proud," JD said.
"You guys are coming for the premiere, right?"
"We wouldn't miss it."
"The press tour is starting up. Things are gonna get really crazy."
“Just don't let it all go to your head," JD said.
"I won't. But I can enjoy this moment."
"As you should."
"Gotta run,” she said. “Love you guys. Oh, by the way, I have something to tell you when you get out here. Show you, really.”
JD groaned. “Should I be concerned?”
She laughed. “You’ll see.”
The call was over as quickly as it began.
JD's enthusiasm was tempered with concern. "I just hope this isn't too much too soon.”
"She'll be fine," I said.
"Yeah, but I have a feeling her whole life is about to change."
Scarlett had been in Los Angeles pursuing the acting thing for a while now. She had her ups and downs, starring in a low-budget horror film that never got released. Topless photos from the set were leaked on the Internet. She had dealt with the tabloids, crazy stalkers, and invasive paparazzi—all within the span of the year.
With the release of Bree, and her upcoming role in Ultra Mega 2, odds were good that Scarlett would become a household name by the end of the summer blockbuster season.
As far as I could tell, she'd been keeping her nose clean and hadn’t relapsed. Los Angeles can be a dangerous place for a person with a history of substance abuse. Everything is available and at your fingertips, especially when you're a rising star.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. A door that opened quickly and could close at any moment. All it would take was a few missteps. I figured she had enough life experience under her belt to recognize that now. At least, that was my hope.
We left the station and grabbed lunch at Diver Down.
Teagan greeted us with a smile as we sat at the bar. “What’s shaking?”
“Same ol’, same ol’,” JD said.
She
