And the winner is, Tessa Tweed!”
The applause was deafening. Tessa Tweed clearly was a popular choice. She rose from her seat, a look of wonder on her face, as her friends patted her on the back and cheered her on.
Teddy was pleased, but cautiously so. He couldn’t help glancing over at Viveca to see how she was taking it. It was hard to tell. Her face was averted, and she was looking in the direction where her boyfriend had gone.
As Tessa started up the aisle, Teddy scanned the audience for trouble. His eyes kept coming back to Viveca. She looked around now at Tessa Tweed, and her look was not one of jealousy or envy or anger, it was of alarm and concern.
She rose from her seat. “Tessa!” she cried, but the words were swept away in the thunderous applause.
Bruce pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. This was it. The worst had happened. Viveca had lost yet again, and her damn costar would be walking up on stage at any moment.
He’d promised Viveca she would not see Tessa Tweed accept the award, and he would keep his word. He reached the bottom of the stairs.
A gaggle of men and women were clustered around a monitor. He watched as Tessa Tweed received hugs and congratulations from the people around her, and began to walk toward the stage.
Suddenly a young woman in an evening dress disengaged herself from the group. Her eyes were wide, a look of incredulity on her face. She seemed familiar, though in that moment he could hardly have cared. His attention was drawn to the monitor, and—
He suddenly realized. It was that damn production assistant who’d shown him around the theater. It had never occurred to him that she’d be here, but here she was, and apparently she recognized him.
He turned and walked away, hoping she wouldn’t follow. He could no longer see the monitor, but it didn’t matter, he could hear the audio. His cell phone still had a clear line to the detonator. Practically anywhere beneath the stage would do.