After Stanton Lane left, Cait refilled her glass and went upstairs. When she called Shep, he was unavailable, so she left a message. She turned the desk lamp on and settled in with her laptop to check her email. A red light flashed on the landline. Everyone she knew called on her cell phone. Marcus used the landline for theater ticket sales and other property business.
She hesitated to listen to the message in case it was from Actors’ Equity. Did Ray Stoltz change his mind and call Actors’ Equity to complain about the incidents that continued to plague the festival? Was Sam Cruz calling to warn her he was shutting her down?
“Bang! Bang! You’re dead!”
Click.
Cait dropped the receiver, as if bitten.
Definitely not Actors’ Equity.
Her cell beeped. She replaced the receiver and shuffled through papers on the desk until she found her phone. She grabbed it, relieved to see Shep’s name.
“Hey, Shep.”
“You okay?”
She sipped her iced tea and sat back in the chair. “Just had a threatening call on the landline. Wally must not have enough to do.”
“He has your cell and landline numbers?”
“Apparently. I can’t change the landline because it’s my business number. People need to call for theater reservations.”
“Does Detective Rook know?”
“Not about this one. Two officers are here, but Rook had to leave. He gives me more time than he should.” She set her glass aside. “Shep, Manning asked to see the theaters and said a cop told him about them. Was he referring to Chuck Levy? Do you know anything about that?”
“I read Levy’s notes,” Shep said. “I don’t recall the theaters being mentioned, but I’ll check on it. Maybe the commander told him.” He hesitated. “Is there reason to keep the theaters a secret?”
“No, but I hate that he knows more about me than I do about him. And guess what? Manning’s the anonymous reporter. He admitted he sent my picture to the Dispatch and shrugged it off as no big deal.”
“He probably knew you’d find out sooner or later.”
“Yeah, maybe. There was another shooting today, but the only damage was to a rose vine. He got away, but a piece of paper with an address was found. Rook’s looking into it.”
“Wally’s playing with you.”
“Of course he is. Wally also calls Manning for money. If Manning has as many contacts around the world as he claims, he should be able to find Wally.”
“The police should follow Manning.”
“That’s what I told Rook.” She rubbed the back of her neck and noticed her hair had grown. Something else she hadn’t found time for. “Manning asked me to dinner, which I refused, and then accused me of racism. How bizarre is that?”
“Don’t go anywhere with him.”
“Are you kidding? I’d have to be desperate.”
Cait stared at the computer screen and the dust motes floating in the lamplight, then checked her email. A couple were from her best friend, Samantha, asking about the festival and if she’d heard from their mutual friend in Santa Cruz. Cait didn’t want to burden Sam with her problems and sent a breezy note before logging off.
Her cell beeped.
“Detective Rook,” she answered. “You’re going to get in trouble for devoting so much time to a case that’s not in your jurisdiction. But without you, I’d probably be dead by now.”
“Your case involves the LPD and the sheriff’s department,” Rook said. “I talked with Wally’s mother.”
Cait picked up a pen and reached for a tablet. “She called you? What did she want?”
“Your friend, Detective Church, told her what’s going on out here, and she wanted to know how she could help.”
“I just got off the phone with Shep. He didn’t mention it.”
“I told him I’d call you.”
“Mrs. Dillon must have had a good reason to call you.”
“She said Wally came into some money recently, apparently enough to get him to California,” Rook said, “He wouldn’t tell his mom where the money came from or why he was going to California, but she did say Wally’s cousin lived somewhere in California.”
Cait twirled the pen in her fingers. “I can tell you where the money came from. Manning.”
“Then why does Wally blame the Mannings for Hank’s death? Wally thought they adopted Hank to get him off the streets and out of a gang. Obviously, that didn’t work and Wally thinks the adoption is the reason why. Remember, the two families knew each other from church.”
“I don’t understand. Is Wally’s mom afraid he’ll hurt the Mannings?”
“She’s afraid he’ll take his anger out on Calder Manning’s three-year-old daughter.”
“Oh, God.” Cait shut her eyes against the painful thought of that happening. “I didn’t see that coming.” She opened her eyes. “Can Shep protect her?”
“He says she’s safe as long as Wally’s in California.”
“So what have we got here, Rook? Wally and Manning are at odds with each other, while I’m in the middle accused of murder and racism?”
“In all my years in law enforcement, Wally has to be the most complicated criminal I’ve encountered. I think Wally and Manning have contradictory reasons for being in Livermore, neither with your best interest at heart. So be careful. Manning’s a smooth operator.”
“No fooling.” A seed of an idea began to germinate. “This needs to end. How about using me to force Wally out into the open. Set something up.”
He hesitated. “I’ll have to think about that. Maybe they’ll kill each other and put an end to it. I have to go.”
She picked up her gun, slipped it into her pocket, and went downstairs.
Niki wasn’t in the kitchen. She opened the backdoor and tripped over him sprawled on the step. Arms flailing, she fell, landing hard on the brick walk. Except for an aching hip from hitting the ground on the side where she had her gun, she wasn’t hurt.
The alarm went off. Cait winced as she stood and used her modem to stop it.
Officer Vanicheque appeared, stopping short when he saw Cait. “What happened?”
June and Jim ran from the side of the house. “Cait? Are you okay?”
Embarrassed, Cait laughed. “I tripped over Niki.”
“I thought he was supposed to protect you, not hurt you,” Jim said, a smile on his face.
“Come inside. I want your opinion on something.” Cait told them about the message left on the landline and Rook’s conversation with Wally’s mother. “I want this to end now, so I asked Rook to set a trap for Wally and to use me as bait. But we’ll need Calder Manning’s cooperation.”
“I certainly would not use you to corner Wally, and I seriously doubt Detective Rook would approve,” Vanicheque said. “We’re here to protect you, not endanger you. I hope you won’t try something on your own.”
“I agree,” June said. “Let the police handle it.”
Cait shook her head. “Then they need to find a way to end this before Wally or someone else harms Manning’s mother and daughter.”