Marcus searched for the shooter for what seemed like a long time to Cait before he returned to the house, disappointment written on his face. Detective Rook called for backup to look for anyone on foot or a suspicious car parked on the side of the road at the bottom of the hill behind the theaters.
While the search continued, Cait returned to the Elizabethan theater. June summoned the actors and the crew so Cait could explain what had happened and what the police were doing to find the shooter. They congregated in the green room. A few drank bottled water; some sat on the sofa, others on the floor, while a few remained standing. They inundated Cait with questions the moment she walked in.
“Hold on,” Ray yelled. “If you stop badgering her, she’ll explain.” He handed Cait a bottle of water.
“Thanks,” she said. She appreciated Ray stepping in, as the questions came fast and furious without giving her a chance to answer. She glanced around the room, then took a deep breath. “Okay. What happened was directed solely at me. I hoped it wouldn’t come to this, but since it has, I owe you an explanation.” She cracked the seal on the water bottle and took a swallow. “Two years ago, while I was still a cop, I was called to a bank robbery. I shot and killed one of the robbers to save the life of another officer. I had no choice.”
“Two years is a long time,” someone said.
“Yes it is, but time means nothing for someone who craves revenge. We believe a family member of the person I shot is stalking me. How this person tracked me from Ohio to California boggles my mind, yet there’s no denying he, or she, is here.” She was positive the shooter was Wally, but she didn’t want to go into details at this time. She studied her audience’s faces and looked for signs of fear, anxiety, or anyone ready to make a quick exit. Her greatest apprehension, aside from a bystander being killed, was that Actors’ Equity would learn of the shooting and force her to close the festival.
No one made an effort to leave.
“Our concern for Tasha carries over to you, Cait,” Chip Fallon said.
“If you’re worried about us abandoning you, you needn’t be. We’re here for the duration,” said Toni Behren, the actress who was playing Ophelia.
“Tell us how we can help,” said Betsy Ryder, the Lady Macbeth actress.
“There are more of us here than him,” said a man Cait hadn’t met yet.
“Right,” another man said. “Our critical mass will kick his ass.”
Laughter erupted.
Their empathy brought a lump to Cait’s throat. She looked up and saw RT and Detective Rook standing in the background and motioned them forward. Niki trotted over and sat at Cait’s feet.
She stroked the dog’s neck. “This is Niki, my new dog. And this is Detective Rook from the Livermore Police Department, and that’s Royal Tanner. RT is a Navy SEAL on leave, who came from San Diego to help. While he’s here, he’ll be staying in the silver Airstream you’ve probably seen in the parking lot.”
“Love the Hummer it’s hitched to,” someone said.
Everyone laughed.
“Yeah, me, too,” RT said.
“RT and I are armed,” Rook said, “as is Cait, so go about your business as usual, but stay alert. Your safety is our priority. Your support for Cait means a lot to her, but please, no heroics. There will be plenty of police present this weekend in plain-clothes and in uniform. If you’re suspicious of anyone, let us know immediately.” Rook withdrew a business card and set it on the coffee table.
“When can I ride in the Hummer?” Chip asked.
More laughter.
“Maybe after we catch the SOB who’s after Cait,” RT said.
Cait left the theater and walked back to the house, her mind jumbled with memories. Her job as a cop had been to protect and serve, which was the reason she joined the police force. If she’d thought there was pressure then, her new life as proprietor of a vineyard and a Shakespeare festival was a million times worse—and growing.
At times, she wondered where she’d be if she’d refused to accept her inheritance and wondered what her parents would think of her now. She’d been consumed with guilt over their deaths for what seemed a lifetime. Would they be alive if she’d been able to prevent them from boarding the plane that later went down in the ocean? Would her ex-husband still be alive if she’d stayed with him and been able to give him the child he’d always wanted? She shook her head to dispel the unhappy memories. She opened the gate and continued walking. Up ahead, Kenneth Alt stood in Tasha’s meditation garden. As she approached, he turned, the sun striking the auburn in his graying hair.
“What’s that about?” he asked, pointing to the small copper sign at the edge of the garden.
“Exactly what it says,” Cait said. “This is Tasha’s meditation garden.”
“When did Tasha take up meditation?”
Cait thought Alt looked tightly wound, held together by sheer willpower. Tension showed in his shoulders, in the fine lines across his forehead and around his mouth.
“I’m the wrong one to ask,” she said. “I’m told she had morning tea in the garden, but I didn’t have the privilege of knowing Tasha. Since you did, maybe you could tell me about her habits.”
Alt arched a dark eyebrow and looked baffled.
Amused by his lack of comment, Cait said, “Look, all I know about Tasha came from others who did know her. I don’t know your history with her, but if you’d like to come in the house, I’ll fix coffee and we can sit down and talk. What do you say?”
He smiled slightly. “I was hoping to see the inside of the house Tasha last lived in and perhaps sense her presence.”
What an odd thing to say. She reached in her pocket for the remote to unlock the door, then held it open for Alt to enter. She felt his eyes on her as she punched the security code into the panel. “Have a seat while I fix coffee.”
Alt remained standing in the middle of the kitchen. “Are the theaters alarmed?”
Cait turned. Why would he care? “Yes.”
“I just wondered because people have been going in and out all day without an alarm going off.”
“It would be inconvenient to constantly lock and unlock the theaters while everyone is here, don’t you think?”
“Yes, I suppose you’re right. Skip the coffee. Would it be all right if I looked around the house?”
A warning bell rang in Cait’s head. Something about Alt didn’t add up. She hadn’t forgotten the intense argument between him and Chip Fallon. The diamond studs he wore in his ears glittered from the overhead fluorescent lights as he dragged his fingers over the black speckled granite counter. “I can show you the first floor.” She led him down the hall. “The gift shop is temporarily housed in these two rooms.”
Alt peered in them. “They’re not convenient to the theaters.”
“No, but I’m having a shop built in the theater complex.”
“Hmmm. Sounds like you plan on staying.”
Did I detect disappointment in his voice? “This is my home now.”
He stepped inside one of the rooms. “Is a gift shop really necessary for such a small venue?”
“Apparently Tasha thought so.” She observed his intense interest in the pictures on the walls, but then he walked out and went into the front room where he paused before each Shakespeare picture. He didn’t mention the lack of furniture in the room, but he struck a few chords on the grand piano. “Nice. Do you play?”
Cait smiled. “Not a note. Obviously, you do. Sit down and play if you’d like.”
Alt pulled out the bench and sat on the edge. He placed his hands on the keyboard and stared up at Cait. “I can’t get over how much you look like Tasha.”
Cait froze but quickly recovered. “So I’ve heard. Had you known her a long time?”
He blinked, frowned, and began to play. “Yes.”
Cait recognized the music from A Midsummer Night’s Dream and wondered if there was some significance to the haunting song he’d chosen. Any other time she might have enjoyed it; today it gave her the chills, being alone in the house with Alt. When she’d had enough, she interrupted. “Mr. Alt, it’s time we talk about Tasha.”
Alt rose. “I thought we were. It’s a fine piano. You should learn to play.”
They returned to the kitchen and sat on stools at the counter drinking sparkling mineral water.
“What would you like to know about Tasha?”
“How about where and how the two of you met?”
He smoothed a crease from his trousers. “New York City. I was twenty-three and Tasha twenty-nine. I was rehearsing my role when she walked in and lit up the room.”
“Shakespeare?”
“Actually, no. I was with the Acting Company of New York at the time. Tasha was there to audition. Trust me, that can be a soul-baring experience, a stripping down of humanity. Tasha had a lovely voice but was as nervous as a hummingbird.”
“Did she ever talk about her family?”
He drank half his water. “She said she had a twin brother.”
Cait waited and wondered how far she should press him for details. “You became friends, like a confidant?”
Alt set his bottle of water on the counter. “Very good friends.” He pursed his lips. “Look, what can I tell you? She was lively, beautiful, and everyone was in love with her.”
Cait cocked her head. “Including you?”
His jaw dropped. Before he could answer, someone pounded on the back door.
When Cait opened it, Niki ran in ahead of RT and Detective Rook.
RT looked over her shoulder. “Who’s that?”
She turned and was surprised by the look of amusement on Alt’s face. “Kenneth Alt, this is Detective Rook. You called him last month to verify I was who I said I was. And this is Royal Tanner. Kenneth is with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and was a close friend of Tasha’s.”
Kenneth shook Rook’s hand. “Cait hasn’t told me the reason the police are here, but I assume it has to do with the gunshots I heard.” He looked at RT. “Are you also with the police?”
RT didn’t shake hands with Kenneth. He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes on him. “Not exactly.”
Cait enjoyed the frigid exchange and the firm set of RT’s jaw.
Alt laughed. “What does that mean, Mr. Tanner?”
Rook stepped in. “Would you mind if I asked where you were, Mr. Alt, during the time of the shooting?”
Cait remembered Alt wasn’t present in the green room when she explained the shooting incident to the actors, but now she was anxious to hear his answer.
Alt frowned. “Are you accusing me of something?”
Rook smiled. “Not at all. I’m sure you understand I need to know where everyone was when the shooting occurred. That’s all. If you saw something, I’d like to know.”
“Oh. Sorry.” He walked to the door. “I was admiring the meditation garden. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll get back to the theaters.” He looked at Cait. “Maybe next time you’ll allow me to see the rest of the house.”
In your dreams, Cait thought.
RT and Detective Rook left soon after Alt. When RT didn’t return by eight, Cait took a Lean Cuisine dinner from the freezer. She removed the cellophane wrap and popped it into the microwave. While her dinner went from rock solid to steaming hot, she did something she seldom did—she drank alone. The chardonnay grapes came from the Bening Estate and gave her a sense of pride. Niki watched as she sipped her wine.
As her dinner heated, she tapped the Pandora app on her phone and listened to Jim Croce. Within moments, however, she shut the music off again. The last thing she needed was to get poignant over a relationship that couldn’t possibly go anywhere. After dinner, she took Niki upstairs.