Ник Сайнт - Purrfect Advice. Purrfect Passion. A Purrfect Gnomeful

Chapter 9

The investigation was picking up pace and Dooley and I were in the thick of it as usual. After talking to Kingman and Buster we’d returned to the Gazette in the hope of finding Odelia there. As I’d surmised she was engaged in conversation with Chase inside, in her own office, devising a plan of campaign. So when I told her about the UPS guy she actually picked me up (with some effort, I might add) and planted a kiss on my head!

“That’s great news, Max,” she said. She immediately related my words to Chase, who nodded. He was in full detective mode now, judging from the stony look on his face.

“We have to find this UPS guy,” said the cop. “Hopefully he’ll be able to tell us more about what happened.”

“One thing’s for sure. Heather Gallop’s visit to Dan is connected to Maria Power.”

“What makes you think that?”

“The message she sent Dan. Gnomeo?”

“Could have been related to the Gazette.”

“According to Dan, Gnomeo refers to a movie starring Maria Power that has been lost for years.”

“A lost movie!” Dooley cried. “So romantic!”

“Yes, it is,” said Odelia with a smile. “So Maria Power’s very first movie, back when she was a complete unknown, was also the last movie made by Rupert Finkelstein.”

“I think I’ve heard of him,” said Chase, his brow creasing as he searched his memory.

“Rupert Finkelstein was the most successful and famous director of his time. He made half a dozen movies that are considered masterpieces today. But when he made a version of Romeo and Juliet, a whimsical farce, the movie ended up costing so much money the studio fired him from his own production. In retaliation Rupert quit the business, but not before destroying every last copy of the movie.”

“So the first movie of Maria Power never came out?”

“No. But the studio rumor mill had it that Maria’s performance was the best thing about the whole project, and soon her name was on everyone’s tongue, Hollywood’s hottest new property. Her career really took off then, and she was in hit after hit.”

“All based on a movie that no one ever saw.”

Odelia nodded, and chewed her bottom lip. “Dan thinks that maybe this mystery guest, this Heather Gallop, was going to offer him a copy of the movie—hence the message.”

“So... Gnomeo refers to this mystery movie?”

“Yeah. Maria’s character spends a lot of time talking to a gnome.” When Chase crooked an eyebrow she shrugged. “I told you it was a whimsical farce.”

“More like a whimsical flop if you ask me. No wonder the studio shut it down.”

“So Dan thinks Heather Gallop had a copy of the movie?” I asked.

“But I thought the movie doesn’t exist?” asked Dooley.

“If it does exist, it’s probably worth a great deal of money,” said Chase.

“Oh, it’ll be priceless,” said Odelia. “Absolutely priceless.”

“How can something be priceless, Max?” asked Dooley. “Doesn’t everything have a price?”

“Some things are so valuable it’s impossible to put a price on them,” I explained.

“But why come to Dan?” asked Chase. “Because of the Gazette?”

“No, because of the Gnomeos,” said Odelia, and laughed when Chase made a face.

“What are the Gnomeos, Max?” asked Dooley.

“I have no idea,” I said. “But I have a feeling we’re about to find out.”

“The Gnomeos is what the members of the official Maria Power Fan Club call themselves,” Odelia explained. “There is a second fan club, though, run by a man named Jack Warner: the Maria Power Society. But Dan is founder and chairman of the first one, the original. And in his capacity as club leader he’s in charge of the Maria Power retrospective, organizes exhibitions dedicated to her life and career, publishes a monthly club newsletter and much, much more. It’s one of his biggest passions in life.”

“So if our mystery woman had a copy of this lost movie in her possession somehow…” said Chase slowly.

“She would take it to Dan in his capacity as leading expert on all things Maria Power,” said Odelia, nodding.

Chase’s phone rang out the A-Team tune and he picked up, walking into the corridor.

“Do you think Dan is a killer?” I asked.

“Absolutely not,” said Odelia. “Dan is one of the kindest people I know. He’s not a killer.”

“Did you find this Gnomeo movie on Heather Gallop’s person?”

“Nope. And neither did we find her phone, which I think is very suspicious.”

I nodded. Odelia was right. What person doesn’t take their phone nowadays? For most people the tiny gadget is practically glued to their hands. “Is it possible that the killer phoned Dan to lure him away and then entered the building and struck?”

Odelia smiled. “Exactly what I was thinking.” Her smile disappeared. “Though my uncle doesn’t seem to agree with me. He seems to think Dan is Heather’s killer.”

“Your uncle has been known to be wrong before,” I pointed out.

Chase had returned and said, “They found the victim’s hotel room. She was staying at the Star.”

It was our cue to hurry out of Odelia’s office and head over to the Hampton Cove Star, the town’s premium hotel. Odelia and Chase hurried over, with Dooley and I following at a slower pace.

“A priest, a rabbi and a woolly mammoth walk into a bar,” said Dooley, and I eyed him strangely.

“Dooley, what’s with you and these lame jokes?” I asked.

“Do you really think my jokes are lame?” he asked, looking a little hurt.

“Well, they’re definitely not funny.”

“Oh, but Max, you have to laugh. It’s very important. Maybe we shouldn’t even be involved in this murder case. Murder is not a laughing matter, and you should be laughing, laughing, laughing!”

Now I like to laugh as much as the next cat, don’t get me wrong, but this obsession with jokes that Dooley was displaying frankly struck me as unhealthy.

“Look, if you want to laugh, Dooley, maybe we can watch a funny movie tonight. I’m sure Odelia and Chase would love nothing more than to sit down after a long day and watch something funny.” Because in that respect Dooley was right, of course: murder is not a funny business.

“Oh, that would be so great,” said Dooley, cheering up considerably. “We could watch funny movies every day from now on. It’s very important.”

We’d arrived at the hotel, and walked in. A police car was parked right in front, and all we had to do was follow Abe Cornwall into the elevator to be taken to the right place.

Abe, whose hair was pointing in every direction as usual, eyed us with amusement. “Why is it that wherever Odelia is, you guys are hanging out there, too?” he asked. It was a rhetorical question, I presumed, for Abe doesn’t exactly speak our language.

The elevator jerked to a stop and we got out. Abe heaved a weary sigh. “You know, this murder business is getting old,” he said, even though I assumed he didn’t think we’d understand. “Why do people insist on killing each other? Why can’t they just get along?”

“You’re absolutely right,” I responded. “It is getting old.”

My words made the coroner look down at me in wonder. Then he laughed. “For a moment there I thought you knew what I was talking about!”

And shaking his grizzled head he walked into a room whose door was open, and where plenty of people were milling about. And the moment I entered there was that pervasive scent again: the one that was also in Dan’s office. And it only took me a moment to know why: on the little desk, a nice collection of garden gnomes had been placed, and behind them a large, signed and framed picture of Maria Power.