Murder At the Cubbyhole. Alice Zogg
Murder at the Cubbyhole
Alice Zogg
Copyright © 2012, Alice Zogg
First Edition
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the copyright owner of this book.
Published in eBook format by eBookIt.com
ISBN-13: 978-1-4566-0760-9
This book is a work of fiction.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
ALSO BY ALICE ZOGG
Revamp Camp
Final Stop Albuquerque
The Fall of Optimum House
The Lonesome Autocrat
Tracking Backward
Turn the Joker Around
Reaching Checkmate
In memory of my parents,
Paul and Berta Rutz
CREDITS
A special thank you is due to Hal Sweesy who allowed me a glimpse into the stage world. I so enjoyed your class, Hal! Once again, Gayle Bartos-Pool graciously invited me into her home to give a show-and-tell demonstration of her fabulous handmade Christmas crafts and walked me through the process of creating a 25-inch-tall Santa. Credit for a superb job of editing goes to Valoise Douglas. Her eye for detail is spot on. I could never do without my daughter Franziska, who proofreads my initial manuscript and catches grammatical errors. My gratitude goes to the members of the Los Angeles chapter of Sisters in Crime. I cherish their support and friendship. Last but not least, I applaud my husband, Wilfried, for putting up with my absentmindedness during crucial times in the writing process of this book with the patience of a saint.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
R. A. Huber Private investigator; a lady sleuth par excellence
Peter Huber R. A. Huber’s husband; a writer
Antoinette LeJeune Huber’s assistant; a dynamic young woman
(Andi)
Megan Maguire An actress; had the lead role in the play
Owen Maguire Megan’s father; brews beer
Eileen Maguire Megan’s mother; grows roses
Amber Pierce Megan’s roommate; works at the local gym
Mr. and Mrs. Kingsley Cubbyhole owners; struggling to keep the theater open
Madame Dubois Megan’s employer; proprietress of a fashion boutique
Yuri Novokoff Acting instructor; has connections in the theater world
Sal Silverberg Director; his motto is “the show must go on”
Todd Brighton Actor; is full of self-importance
Adriana Rippling Actress; Megan’s understudy
Mercedes Cleveland Actress; has a true love for acting
Chad Lindhurst Actor; cast as the character Fortitude in the play
Ralph Weatherford Theater critic and reviewer; has high standards
Hailey Tuckfield Megan’s longtime best friend; the girl-next-door type
Brent Halifax An old boyfriend; followed Megan to California
Sergeant John Wolf Retired Police Officer; asked Huber to investigate the case
Chapter 1
Megan rose to her feet from a kneeling position, lifted her eyes and arms to heaven and proclaimed, “I swear to God and to the world, justice is ultimately served!”
The final curtain of the play From Sin to Virtue fell, and tremendous applause thundered through the small playhouse. When it was raised again and the entire cast took a unanimous bow, the enthusiastic audience gave a standing ovation.
A tall and portly man in center-fifth orchestra row scrambled to his feet and cried out, “Amateurs!”
His companion, a small bald man, raising his voice in an effort to be heard over the noise of people clapping, stated, “I liked it.”
“A bunch of amateurs,” the former insisted, “The characters Vanity and Mother Earth were the only ones worth a damn, until Vanity screwed up her last line!”
“I didn’t notice,” the bald man murmured as he followed his friend out of the theater.
People shuffled toward the exit of the auditorium as cast members made themselves available in the lobby for a chat with fans.
Minutes later, Megan sat at her dressing table backstage, taking off the heavy stage makeup. She stared at her mirror image, lost in thought. The young woman was well cast as the character Vanity with her hazel eyes, thick dark-brown hair, high cheekbones, 22- inch waist, and a general air of arrogance. Did I get the point across with my last line? Will anyone even make the connection? she wondered. Maybe there’s nothing to worry about and I’m just paranoid, she reflected, shrugging off her fear. Then she glanced at the corner table and noticed the pot of exquisite Cattleya orchids with fuchsia and light-pink flowers peeking out of its bright red aluminum foil wrapping. How sweet, a Valentine from a fan, she thought. Searching for a card and finding none, she bent over the orchid pot, reaching deep into its depth.
An ear-piercing explosion shook the dressing room, and her last thought before she left this world was, “They wasted no time!”
Chapter 2
There were four men and two women assembled in their secret meeting place. They had arrived one by one in assigned five-minute intervals, donning their eye masks before they entered, and now sat in their numbered chairs at a long rectangular table, three on each side. Seat number one at the head of the table, reserved for their leader, was empty. The members of the group stayed nameless within that setting and simply referred to themselves as Member One, Two, Three and so forth.
Member Seven asked, “Does anybody know why this special meeting was called?”
No one spoke up.
“Come on, some of you must know! I just flew in this morning. What’s up?”
Again, there was no response.
Member Seven was about to press the point further but shut his mouth when the door was pulled open and Member One entered. As he walked to his place at the head of the table with his customary long stride, the rest of the group got to their feet and only sat back down after he did.
There was no question about Member One’s mood when he glared at the assembly and said, “I called you here because we have to deal with the stupidity of two of our members.” He paused and, staring at Member Five and Six in turn through his eye mask, continued, “I’m referring to the theater episode.”
His voice cut like a knife as he went on, “You violated two of our rules. We only acknowledge one another during assignments and in this room. Knowing good and well that contact among our members outside the job is forbidden, you did so regardless. On top of that, you broke our non-violence code. You put us all in jeopardy by your pinheaded action.”
He