Alice Kimberley - The Ghost and the Femme Fatale

"Then how'd she get into the movie business?" Seymour asked.

I continued skimming the text. "Seems Hedda's two older sisters were known to make, uh…'dates' with men for money. They encouraged Hedda to do the same."

"That's a libelous accusation!" Brainert cried.

"Dr. Lilly claims it was one of Hedda's 'boyfriends' who got her a break at sixteen, a bit part in a Gotham Features film that was shooting exteriors near Hedda's neighborhood. Apparently, Hedda worked hard after that first break. She took speech lessons, dance lessons, and kept on moving up the Gotham ladder of players until she finally landed a leading lady role at twenty. You know the rest."

Brainert frowned. 'The rest is an unsubstantiated charge of cold-blooded murder. And I still don't believe it."

I exhaled, trying to puzzle out a next step. How could I or anyone else prove-or disprove-Dr. Lilly's theory of Irving Vreen's death? Irene Lilly herself was dead, so we couldn't ask her to back up her accusations. And the crime happened so far in the past, pretty much everyone connected to the crime was dead. Everyone except Hedda and-

"We could talk to Pierce Armstrong!" I exclaimed.

"And ask him what?" Brainert demanded.

"We can ask him if Dr. Lilly's charges are true!" Seymour replied. "That's a great idea, Pen!"

I vigorously nodded. "If Pierce Armstrong was railroaded, then he has a powerful motive for wanting to see the truth about the past come out and Hedda Geist brought to justice."

"I suppose so… " Brainert reluctantly admitted.

"It would also prove that Hedda Geist had a reason to want Dr. Lilly out of the way," Seymour said.

Brainert frowned. "Surely you're not suggesting that frail old woman murdered Dr. Lilly?"

"Okay, maybe she didn't do it herself," said Seymour with a shrug, "but she is rich enough to buy an accomplice."

"Or keep it inside the family by using someone like her granddaughter, Harmony," I noted.

Seymour shook his head. "So sad to think that a hottie like that could actually be a hellion. But I guess rotten apples don't fall far from the tree."

Brainert tightly folded his arms. "I don't like this."

"Then there's something else you won't like," I said and informed Brainert about the break-in at Dr. Lilly's rented bungalow. "Her laptop, tape recorder, and a number of audio cassettes appeared to have been stolen. I'm betting Dr. Lilly had damaging evidence in her possession-all the more reason we should speak with Pierce Armstrong as soon as possible."

Brainert nodded. "I suppose Mr. Armstrong could shed some light on all this. He'll be at the festival sometime this weekend. He's a surprise guest, you know. It was my colleague who arranged his appearance."

"Which colleague?" I asked.

"The dean," said Brainert. "Dr. Wendell Pepper."

Seymour blinked. "Dr. Pepper? The man named after the soft drink that uses prunes for flavoring?"

Brainert exhaled in disgust at Seymour 's relentless needling.

"We should strike while the iron is hot," I quickly suggested. "Has Armstrong even arrived in Quindicott yet?"

Brainert nodded. "Oh, yes," By now he should be here.

"Great!" I said. "Where's he staying?"

"With Dr. Pepper," said Brainert. "He has plenty of room. He owns a very large house on Larchmont Avenue and-"

"He's the most original soft drink ever in the whole wild world-"

"Stop it, Seymour!"

Seymour laughed. "It's just too easy to get a rise out of you, Parker. So, Pepper lives on Larchmont, eh!" Seymour clapped his hands and rubbed them together. "Man I'd love to see the inside of one of those giant old mansions. Ring Dean Soda Pop up and get us an invite."

Brainert wrinkled his nose at Seymour 's disheveled postal uniform, now stained with grass and dirt. "Shouldn't you go home and change your clothes?"

"That's a great idea. I want to look my best when I meet Pierce Armstrong-Big Mike O'Bannon-in the flesh," Seymour said, grinning. "Lucky for me, I don't have to go home. I have civvies packed in the trunk of my car."

"But don't you still have mail to deliver?" Brainert pressed.

"I already called in a favor, asked a colleague to finish my route for me," Seymour replied. "I'm free to pursue this case for the rest of the weekend. I'll just run along and fetch my clothes, and we can be off."

Scowling, Brainert pulled his cell phone from the pocket of his blue blazer. Before he could dial Dr. Pepper's number, however, Aunt Sadie stuck her head through the stock room door.

"Sorry to interrupt," she said softly.

"Aunt Sadie!" I approached her with a copy of Murdered in Plain Sight. "Do me a favor. Is Spencer home from his Little League clinic?"

"Yes, he just got back. He headed upstairs to play a video game, but he asked for permission to go to his best friend Danny's house tonight for dinner and a sleepover in Danny's new tent. Sounds like fun. Apparently, Mr. Keenan just set it up in their backyard."

"A sleepover in a tent…?" I frowned, my mind shifting gears to mother mode. I couldn't help worrying about everything Spencer might need for an outing like that-PJ's that were warm enough for a May evening, his sleeping bag, toothbrush, underwear. It might get pretty chilly so he'd need extra blankets, a sweatshirt. And all of that would be hard to carry. I checked my watch and shook my head. I couldn't drive Spencer over to Danny's house! My Saturn's battery was still dead, and-

You're being a real Killjoy Jane, you know that?

"Excuse me, Jack," I silently told the ghost, "but this doesn't concern you-"

That kid's no infant. He can carry his own kit across town, for cripes sake. What's the problem? He got an invite from his best friend. Let him play Davy Crockett for a night if he wants to.

"The problem is…" I started to argue, but then I stopped myself. "Wait. Did you just say he got an invite from his best friend?"

Wake up, Wanda.

I blinked. Spencer never had a best friend before. Oh, he'd been friendly with classmates back in the city, but he'd been so shy and morose when Calvin was alive-wilting in his father's depressive shadow.

Things were different now. And Spencer was different, too. He'd been in the same class with Danny Keenan for the past year, but it was only lately, since Little League had begun, that the two had become really tight. I hated to admit it, but Jack was right. This invitation was important. And it was exactly the reason I'd moved back to Quindicott, so Spencer could get away from his worries, make friends, enjoy the world around him, enjoy living.

I faced Aunt Sadie. "Do you think Danny's mother or father could pick Spencer up? My car's battery is still dead."

Sadie smiled. "I'm sure they'd be happy to do that."

"Well, if not… I can always ask Seymour to help out and drive him over. Either way, it's okay." I nodded. "Tell Spencer he's allowed to spend the night at Danny's.

Nice call, baby.

"Thanks, Jack," I whispered to the ghost-and then I remembered Dr. Lilly's book in my hands. "Oh! Aunt Sadie, one more thing: Ask Spencer to run this book over to Fiona Finch. She'll know what to do with it."

Overhearing me, Brainert groaned. "You're not bringing Fiona into this?"

"She's already involved, Brainiac," Seymour informed him.

"And she's a true-crime expert," I added. "I want her opinion of what Dr. Lilly's written."

"Good idea," said Aunt Sadie, taking the book from my hands. "But the reason I came back here wasn't to tell you that Spencer was home."

"What's up?"

"I wanted to let you know that Ms. Hedda Geist-Middleton has just entered the bookshop with her granddaughter, Harmony."