“Not yet,” I said. I took another step in, to be confronted by Sylvia.
“Is there something I can help you with, Savannah?”
I saw that her suitcase was packed and sitting on her bed. “Why is your door propped open?”
She grimaced. “Can’t you feel it? The heating unit is stuck on high, and it’s become a blast furnace in here. I’m going to insist that they move me to another room.”
“Then you’re not leaving?” I asked.
“I would like nothing better than to return home, but the police have asked me to stay, and I’m complying as a courtesy, at least for now.” She glanced at Jenny and asked, “Are you still tagging along?”
“I am,” Jenny said.
“As a friend of Savannah’s, or her attorney?”
“Why can’t it be a little bit of both?”
Sylvia didn’t seem to care if Jenny was there or not. She looked sternly at me as she said, “I repeat, was there something I can help you with?”
It was clear that there was no use trying to pretend I was on Sylvia’s side. It was time to take her head-on and see what she had to say for herself. “I heard that you had an appointment with Derrick after I left him the day he was murdered,” I said.
“Where did you hear that?” she asked.
“Does it matter? I just need to know if it’s true.”
Sylvia had a face that was devoid of expression, and I wondered if she’d been drawn to bridge because of it, or if she’d developed it over the years to help her play with a poker face. I suddenly realized that what she did must take a great deal of thought and planning, bidding and playing her cards to yield the most points. It was a methodical game, one that most likely wouldn’t appeal to someone who took a lot of chances, at least that’s how it looked from my perspective. I was looking for a gunslinger, not an accountant.
Finally, she admitted, “I had an appointment, but I chose not to show up for it. We were originally going to discuss a new column, but after the way he treated me, I was in no mood to work for him on another project.”
“And you said you were here in your room the entire time, is that right?”
“I’m growing weary of the same questions over and over, Savannah.”
“Just think about how I feel having to ask them. Did you hear about Kelsey Hatcher?”
Sylvia asked, “What about her? Don’t tell me she’s rejected another one of your little puzzles.”
“Someone tried to kill her today.”
That finally shook loose a little of Sylvia’s iron expression. “Did they use a knife?”
“No, they tried to do it with a bus.”
She looked puzzled by that. “How do you commit murder by bus?”
“It’s a pretty effective weapon if you push your victim in front of one that’s still moving,” I said.
“I hadn’t heard,” she replied. “Is she all right?”
“A little shaky, but other than that, she’s fine. When’s the last time you saw her, Sylvia?”
“I don’t know that it’s any of your business, Savannah.”
“Do you mind telling me where you were this afternoon?”
Sylvia frowned, and then admitted, “I was here, working on next week’s column.” It was clear she was upset by my questions, but I couldn’t stop just yet.
“You seem to spend a great deal of time alone in your room,” Jenny said. “It’s tough to prove that you were here.”
“I had a salad sent up from room service,” she said. “Would I have been able to do that if I was out shoving people in front of buses? I waited an hour for it, if you can believe that.”
I wasn’t sure what I believed, but I did know that I was going to check up to see if Sylvia had ordered a salad as she claimed.
A maintenance man appeared at the door. “Do you have a problem with your room?”
“Not if I want to open a sauna,” Sylvia said.
He nodded, refusing to rise to her baiting. “Don’t sweat it. I’ll have it fixed in no time.”
“ ‘No time’ is what I’ve got. I’m demanding a new room.”
He shrugged. “Lady, I can’t help you with that. I’m just the maintenance man.”
“Then I suggest you leave and return with someone who can.”
If the man was upset by her treatment of him, he didn’t show it. “Yes, ma’am. Right away.”
As he left, Sylvia said, “I’ve had enough of this foolishness.”
“From me, or the hotel?” I asked.
“In equal amounts,” she said.
Sylvia grabbed her suitcase, kicked the telephone book away from the door, and walked out of her room. We had no choice but to follow.
“What are you going to do now?”
“I’m going to the front desk and demand a suite for all of the trouble they’ve caused me. It’s the least they can do.”
“Good luck with that,” I said.
As she marched to the elevator, Jenny asked me, “Should we follow her?”
“No, I doubt we’ll get much more out of her. Did you see her face when I told her that someone tried to kill Kelsey today?”
Jenny thought about it, and then answered, “I’d say she was hearing it for the first time, wouldn’t you?”
I nodded. “I think so, too, but then again, she’s mastered a game that allows her to bluff, plot, and plan, so I’m not sure how much we can trust any of her reactions.”
“I never thought about it quite that way before,” Jenny said. “Who’s next on our list?”
“I think it’s time we spoke with Brady again,” I said. Sylvia was still waiting on an elevator as we walked past her.
I asked her, “Do you happen to know what room Brady’s staying in at the hotel?”
She arched an eyebrow. “You don’t honestly believe that sweet little Brady could be a murderer, do you?”
“I don’t know what to believe,” I said, “but I thought you’d welcome the chance to get me off your back.”
Sylvia shrugged, and then said, “He’s in the room beside mine. We checked in at the same time.”
“How interesting,” I said.
“Don’t read anything into it, Savannah. We met to discuss Derrick’s behavior before our meetings, so naturally, we checked in together.”
The elevator pinged once, and the doors opened. There was a woman in a suit with a clipboard who stepped out as Sylvia stepped in.
The woman approached Sylvia’s room, knocked tentatively at the door, and then knocked again, louder this time.
“She just left,” I volunteered.
“What? I was told she was going to wait on me.”
“I have a feeling you’ll find her downstairs at your front desk,” I said.
The woman bit her lip, and then turned back to the elevator. As she waited for it to open, I took Jenny’s arm and we walked to Brady’s room and knocked.
“I’ve been waiting all day for you,” a beautiful young brunette in a purple satin nightgown said as she opened the door.
“You’re not Lee,” she added with a pout when she saw that it was us.
“Sorry, we must have the wrong room,” I said.
She closed the door, and I looked at Jenny. “Too bad Zach wasn’t with us. He would have enjoyed that.”
“But not as much as you’re going to like telling him what he missed, I’ll wager,” Jenny said.
I smiled at her. “You know what? You’re right. This way is a lot more fun.”
We walked to the door on the other side of Sylvia’s room, and I knocked again.
“Yes?” a voice called out from inside.
“Brady, it’s Savannah Stone. I need to speak with you.”
