Page 21

Chapter 21

Something’s Gotta Give

KEENAN

V anessa grins at her stunt double, Jessica, and mimes lifting her hand in slow motion. Jessica, wearing the same costume, makeup, and hair, does the same as they mirror each other. Vanessa cackles and high fives her.

We’re in the makeup trailer, Jessica and Vanessa getting touchups while Stelios prepares the stunts for their next scene.

I tear my eyes from Vanessa as Rachel pushes the door to the trailer open and pops her head inside, her clipboard under her arm, her expression serious. “Keenan, can I talk to you?”

“What do you need?”

“Let’s talk outside.” She opens the door wider as I step into the warm afternoon air.

I follow her, positioning myself at the door of the trailer in case Vanessa needs me. She treats her stunt double and the makeup artist like long-lost sisters so I can’t imagine anything happening.

Rachel launches in. “It’s about the accidents.”

“I thought we were done with that,” I say, my tone hardening. Part of the deal in my agreeing to bring Vanessa back to set was the accidents needed to stop.

“We are,” she assures me, “but we never found out who was causing them. The police couldn’t trace them to a source, but I’ve narrowed down a suspect list.”

She hands me a sticky note with five names on it. I don’t recognize any of them except one. Hailey Whitmore. The actor who left the film.

Frowning, I hand it back to her, but she shakes her head. “Keep it. I need a favour.”

“What’s that?”

She glances over her shoulder, then lowers her voice. “Everyone on set knows I’m involved in finding the saboteur, so I can’t ask questions without alarming them. The police are at a dead end. I need someone to investigate these people.”

“And you think that’ll be me?” I shake my head, about to deny her request, but she holds up her hand.

“I heard you have a police detective for a brother and figured you might know a thing or two about questioning people.”

I almost laugh out loud at her assumption. Does she think I go on stakeouts with my twin? I’ll be the first to admit I don’t know a lot about the human world, but I suspect police officers don’t bring their brothers to work.

“If you won’t do it for me, then do it for Vanessa.”

“What’s this have to do with Vanessa?” I demand, narrowing my eyes at her. “The saboteur has no reason to go after her. Besides, there hasn’t been an accident since the shelving was pushed on top of you. Maybe they were warning you and now that you’ve got the message, they’ve stopped.”

She narrows her eyes back. “Is that a risk you’re willing to take with your mate’s life?”

Dammit, she’s right. I’m not willing to risk the possibility of another accident around Vanessa.

She smirks, knowing she has me. “I think it’s Ms. Whitmore, but I can’t prove it.”

“Why do you think it’s her?” I glance down at the woman’s name, printed in tidy letters on the sticky note. “According to Vanessa she’s famous enough that we’d know if she was hanging around the set.”

“Exactly, so I think she hired someone to create chaos around here, set the movie back, bleed money until the studio shuts production down. And if she’s truly pissed about losing her role, then she might go after Vanessa.”

The idea has my hackles rising. “Why did she lose the role? Vanessa said something about creative differences.”

“That’s just business jargon.” She brushes the idea off. “I don’t know exactly why she left. She and Zach didn’t often see eye-to-eye, but they seemed to be working through their differences when out of nowhere she demanded a meeting, then left the set in a hurry. I think Zach fired her because she was too difficult to work with.”

I nod, running my thumb down the other names on the list. “What about the others? Why do you suspect them?”

She points at the name Derrick Bowman. “He worked in the stunt department and was fired the first week we got here. Someone messed with Stelios’s vehicle. We never found out who, but Derrick was the only one with a beef.” She points at another name. “This person and the one below were both on set for every single accident. I cross-referenced with the entrance list.”

I’m impressed by her thoroughness. “I’ll check them out, but it’ll have to be when Vanessa is filming. It’s the only time I trust she has enough security to keep her safe.”

“Good enough,” she replies, releasing a breath. “Let me know if you come up with anything. I appreciate the help.”

Rachel is right, this needs to be investigated further. I’ve gotten complacent in the weeks since we’ve been back on set. I’m under my mate’s sex-induced, cooking-induced spell and I’m not paying attention to the dangers potentially surrounding us. Pinky tried to warn me too; now it’s time to pay attention.

During the hours when Vanessa films, I hunt down each person on the list, asking them questions before one-by-one crossing them off.

Derrick Bowman lives in Mesa and is easy to locate. Two minutes in the man’s presence has me convinced he isn’t our saboteur and that he will definitely die young. He’s torso deep in a running engine, six-pack of beer resting on the bumper of his monster truck while he answers my questions.

“I got no reason to be mad at Stelios,” he shouts, his face millimeters from a moving belt. “He told me the rules and I broke them.” He climbs down and reaches for a beer, cracking the tab and taking a swig before adding, “I’m a daredevil, not a stunt coordinator. All those rules are for pussies, I’d rather have the freedom to do what I want.”

The freedom to die, I add silently. “Who do you think might want things to get messy on set?” He doesn’t seem like he knows anything beyond the tip of his dick, but it’s worth a try.

Surprisingly, he answers without hesitation. “Hailey Whitmore.”

“Why her?”

“Woman’s a fuckin’ piece. She hung around the stunt department, flirting with Stelios and screaming demands at the grunts. She also held up production for a day until a suitable cage could be found for her parrot. Never saw the thing, but I heard it squawking at night. It was annoying as fuck.”

Not sure why an annoying parrot makes the woman guilty, but I leave, crossing Derrick Bowman’s name off the list. Not our guy.

The next person on the list was on set during all the accidents, but I’m able to confirm that they were operating an onset camera during Rachel’s accident. It takes a while to find my next person of interest.

I finally find her crawling around underneath one of the trailers, glasses askew, dirt streaking her coveralls, hair frizzing everywhere like she’s been electrocuted. Bending, I look Ginger Abbot in the face as she approaches me. Startled, she stops, her eyes wide.

“You’re the wolf shifter,” she squeaks.

Offering her a hand, I say, “I have a few questions.”

She hesitates, then takes my hand. As I pull her out, I do a scan. It’s as I thought, she’s a mouse shifter.

She yanks her hand away the moment she’s standing and wipes it down her front. “Is this about the accidents?”

I nod. “What do you know about them?”

“Everyone’s been talking, so I probably know as much as anyone around here. You’re singling me out because I was on-set for every one of them, wasn’t I?”

I frown down at the diminutive woman. “How would you know that?” Unless she’s the saboteur.

“I live here. I’m here all the time so I’d be surprised if I wasn’t here during the incidents.”

I wasn’t expecting that. “You live here at the film lot?”

“Not exactly. C’mon, I’ll show you.” She sets off, scurrying away from the trailers. I reassure myself that Vanessa is safe with Stelios and set off with the mouse shifter.

She stops at the edge of the parking lot and points at a tree. “There’s a hollow.” A popping sound accompanies her shift as she shrinks into her clothes until they collapse onto the ground. A small furry brown mouse jumps out and rushes toward the tree, scurrying up the side until she reaches a small hole, then disappears inside.

I peer into the hollow. She’s created a cozy space with bright bits of cloth, fluff, seeds and nuts. I step back as she comes out and climbs down the tree and into her pile of clothes. As I watch, the coveralls seem to come to life as first the legs, then the sleeves fill out, then her head emerges from the neck hole.

“That was fucking cool,” I tell her with a grin.

She smiles back as she perches her glasses on her nose. “Rent and food are cheap when you only weigh a few ounces.”

“That makes sense, I guess, but doesn’t exclude you from the list of suspects.”

“I’ve got a good thing going here. Why would I mess with it?” Her eyes take on a sparkle. “And I love everything about this. Movie magic is being created in my own back yard. Of course I want to be involved. The commute is super easy and it’s a wonderful way to make some money while enjoying all the perks, like the fresh fruit buffet and unlimited access to bathrooms and showers. This is the most time I’ve spent as a human in a long time.” Her gaze becomes serious. “Which is why I’m not your saboteur.”

I shake my head, stroking my beard as I think. “Or you are and you’re trying to prolong your time here by setting back the filming.”

She mimics me, pretending to stroke her beard as she stares into the distance. “Or you’re looking at this from the wrong angle. Who has the most to gain from sabotaging the film?”

I laugh. “I think we just established you do.”

“No,” she says insistently. “Who has even more motivation than me?”

“I don’t know.”

I tilt my head as I stare at her. She seems to have a bead on everything going on in the area and she never leaves the set. She might be able to end my search here and now by giving up the culprit.

Her eyes widen. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You made it sound like you know who was causing the accidents.”

In a heartbeat, her mood changes from pensive to lighthearted. “Oh no, not at all. Good luck with your investigation, though.”

She drops to her hands and knees and crawls under the nearest trailer.

I lean over. “What are you doing down there?”

“Making sure the water and electricity lines are secure. After the incident with Hailey, I’m super careful.”

Before I can ask what she means, she’s gone.

Straightening, I ponder the mouse. I don’t want to suspect her, but she didn’t exactly clear her name. Still, based on what she said, it seems all roads lead to Hailey Whitmore.

It’s time to pay her a visit.