A Fairy Tale (17 page)

Michael wished he’d kept his mouth shut, but now that he’d brought it up … “I caught her coming in early this morning. She said she’d only been out a couple of hours, but she was wearing the same clothes she had on last night, and she was all scratched up. I think she’s investigating on her own, and whatever she’s looking into, she didn’t tell you about it.”

“She may have just been going around to Emily’s favorite places, looking for her.”

“At that time of day? And coming back scratched and bruised?” Michael shook his head. “No, there’s something about her that doesn’t add up, something I don’t get.”

Tanaka nodded slowly. “I ran her for priors, and she’s so clean she squeaks. Not so much as a parking ticket. I did a quick Internet search, and from the looks of things, she pretty much runs her hometown. She’s all over the local paper. It’s a miracle the place hasn’t collapsed in the day she’s been gone. Otherwise, she teaches ballet and dances with a regional company. There’s some mention of a bunch of international dance awards, which makes it look to me like she way outclasses everyone else in the company, but I don’t know anything about that stuff.”

“See, she doesn’t add up,” Michael said.

“Last I heard, lack of ambition wasn’t a crime.”

“Can you really imagine
her
lacking ambition? She’d see world domination as an achievable goal.”

“I checked with the airline, and she’s on the passenger list for a flight leaving Shreveport early yesterday morning. She was in the air at the time Emily didn’t show up for cast call at the theater. Unless she hired a hit or is part of some conspiracy, she couldn’t have been involved in her sister’s disappearance.”

Michael shook his head. “No, I don’t think that. I just feel like there’s something very important—crucial even—that she hasn’t told you and that she’s doing on her own.”

Both men flinched guiltily when there was a knock on the door and a voice called out, “Detective Murray? It’s Sophie.”

“Come in,” Michael said.

She burst into the apartment, looking nearly as frantic as she had when she left the night before, then skidded to an abrupt stop when she saw Tanaka. “Oh, Detective Tanaka, hello. I didn’t realize you were here,” she said. After a pause, she added, as though just then thinking to ask, “Has there been any progress in the investigation?”

“I’ve been following up on the leads you two got last night,” Tanaka said.

She nodded. “Good, good. That’s good to hear.”

“Was there something you needed?” Michael asked.

“Oh! Yes, I was wondering if you have a skillet I could borrow. Preferably cast iron. You can’t make proper corn bread without it, and Emily doesn’t have a very well-equipped kitchen.”

Michael was starting to get used to Sophie’s non sequiturs. “Actually, I have Emily’s skillet. She usually cooks in my kitchen because it’s bigger than hers.”

“If you have an Easy-Bake oven, you’ve got a bigger kitchen than she does. Do you mind if I take the skillet?”

“Be my guest. I’m not using it.”

She went into the kitchen and emerged seconds later with the skillet, holding it by the handle and hefting it like she was preparing to brain someone with it. “Sorry to have interrupted,” she said, heading toward the door.

“I’ll see you at the vigil tonight,” Tanaka called after her.

She stopped and turned around, frowning. “The vigil?” Then the light dawned in her eyes. “Oh, yes, that. You’re planning to attend? That’s very considerate of you.” There was the slightest hint of sarcasm in her voice.

“It’s actually very cynical of me,” Tanaka replied with a grin. “You’d be surprised by the number of kidnappers and killers who can’t seem to resist showing up at these things. And, you never know, I might find more witnesses.”

“I’ll see you tonight, then, Detective,” she said with a forced smile. Pointing at Michael, she added, “And you should rest. I think yesterday was too strenuous for you.” She escaped rapidly enough that neither of them had a chance to say anything else.

Tanaka stared after her for a moment, then he turned to face Michael and the two of them exchanged a look. “Okay, you’re back on the case, but only for this one thing,” Tanaka said. “See if you can find out what she’s hiding. But don’t do anything stupid or dangerous. Talk to her, see if you can get her to open up. If you find anything interesting, let me know.”

The Theater District

Thursday, 6:00 p.m.

The shrine to Emily had grown to include laminated posters of reviews and newspaper articles, photos of Emily in costume, her headshot, and several pictures of her with friends. Banks of flowers surrounded the posters. Sophie took a picture of the shrine with her phone because she knew Emily would want to see it. Olivia, Will, and other cast members wearing show T-shirts handed out candles with little paper holders, like the ones used for the Christmas Eve candlelight service at church. The sun was still up, which made candlelight seem pointless, but the news truck parked beside the theater explained why they’d chosen this time—it was the perfect time to appear live on the evening news.

Olivia saw Sophie and came over to her. “Oh, good, you’re here!” She turned to the others and said, “This is Sophie, Emily’s sister.”

They all took a step backward, but Sophie didn’t let her smile drop.
What
had Emily been telling her friends about her? They’d have to talk about that when Emily was safe. “Thank you all so much for doing this,” she said.

“We’ll do anything to help find Emily,” Olivia assured her. “Have a candle.”

Sophie stood beside the shrine, holding her candle and feeling rather silly. A couple of cast members handed fliers to tourists on the sidewalk. The vigil began with Olivia saying a prayer. Sophie stayed on the fringes of the group, keeping watch for the silver-haired fairy she’d caught the day before. So far, there was no sign of the fae here. There was, however, a police presence, as she noticed Detective Tanaka standing to the side, observing the vigil participants and bystanders.

A young woman sang a song Sophie didn’t recognize but that she assumed was from the show, based on references in the lyrics. Others picked up the tune as Will lit his candle and touched it to the candles held by the people beside him. The song swelled as the light spread around the group. The ritual was strangely affecting, and Sophie was surprised to find her eyes stinging with tears. She’d been so busy dealing with the situation that it hadn’t occurred to her to miss her sister, and now she suddenly felt the absence acutely.

The news crew moved through the crowd, filming as the candles were lit. Olivia approached Sophie and took her by the arm. “Come on, they want to talk to you.”

The last thing Sophie wanted to do was make a spectacle of herself. She let the tears that had been welling up in her eyes brim over and trickle down her cheeks. “I–I don’t think I can,” she whispered. “I’m sorry.”

Olivia gave her a hug that squeezed the breath out of her. “Oh, you poor thing. I’m sure they’ll understand. Do you mind if I talk to them?”

“Please do. Thank you.”

Sophie gave a sigh of relief as Olivia headed back to the news crew, but then she noticed Detective Tanaka watching Olivia standing in front of the camera and talking into a microphone. Michael had been suspicious of Olivia and Will because their stories didn’t add up. Olivia taking the spotlight wouldn’t look good. Publicity might count as a motive for an actress. Now Sophie regretted letting Olivia do the interview. She knew Olivia and Will were innocent, and she couldn’t let them become prime suspects.

She edged her way around the crowd until she reached Tanaka, then said, “Oh, Detective Tanaka!” as though she was surprised to see him. “Thank you so much for coming tonight. Have you noticed any suspicious characters yet?”

“Nothing extraordinary,” he said, his attention mostly on Olivia.

“It was very kind of Olivia to speak for me,” she said. “I just couldn’t face the camera. It was too much for me.”

That got his full attention, and he raised his eyebrows, as if to say he couldn’t imagine anything being too much for her. “You’re not a fan of publicity, I take it?”

“Does something like this ever help an investigation?”

“We sometimes get leads.”

“How many of them pan out?”

“Not many,” he admitted.

“I suspect it’s like a funeral,” she said. At his look of surprise, she explained, “Not because I think Emily’s dead, but because the event is more for the benefit of the ones left behind. It lets them feel like they’ve done something, even if it does no practical good.”

He nodded slowly. “I never thought of it that way, but you may have a point.”

“You suspect her friends, don’t you?” she asked as his attention drifted to the news crew.

He jerked his head back to her. “What makes you think that?”

“You’re watching them like a hawk ready to swoop down on a field mouse.”

“That obvious, huh?” He scratched the back of his neck. “Their story doesn’t add up. They didn’t mention the guy who left with them, and although they claim Emily was with them in the cab, I tracked down the driver, and he said it was only the two of them.”

“I’d think if they were up to something, they surely would have mentioned another person who made a better suspect, and why do you believe the driver over them? Not that the driver is lying, but he may not have noticed.”

“All good points, and I haven’t arrested anyone yet.”

Sophie pressed on. “Neither of them has anything to gain from Emily’s disappearance.”

“I checked out the understudy who’s had to step into the role. She has a good alibi. But for those two, well, I’ve never met an aspiring star who didn’t want publicity.”

“Do you really think that appearing on the evening news under these circumstances will land someone the role of a lifetime?” Sophie was afraid she wasn’t making headway with him, but she was also afraid to push further.

“Like I said, I’m not arresting them.”

“But you’re watching them.”

“I’m watching everyone. Michael tells me you’ve been busy.”

She wished she knew exactly what Michael had said so she’d know how to address it. “I’ve been searching. I’ve gone anywhere Emily’s ever mentioned to me, like the place she sometimes works.”

“No leads?”

She wasn’t sure how well he could read her truthfulness, but she still chose her words carefully. “Nothing that would be of much use to you, I’m afraid. I’ve mostly learned how many people care about Emily. That’s nice, but not very helpful.”

“That’s what you were doing before dawn this morning?”

My, someone is a tattletale,
she thought. “The dog wanted to go out, and I couldn’t sleep.” Sort of true. “When I took dance workshops here, I liked early mornings the best, when the city was quiet.” Also true, even if not applicable in this situation.

But it seemed to satisfy Tanaka. “You’ll have to forgive Michael. He’s edgy about cases like this.”

“Yes, he told me about his wife. I can see how he’d worry about the well-being of any women in his vicinity.”

Tanaka laughed. “That’s putting it mildly. I thought his partner would deck him when they first started working together and he was so concerned about keeping her safe.”

“This situation
is
hauntingly similar, don’t you think? I can understand why he’d be edgy about it. But don’t worry, I’ll try to keep him out of it as much as possible.” A crease formed between Tanaka’s eyes and his lips thinned slightly. She got the strangest feeling that she’d said exactly the wrong thing, and that was something that happened very seldom to her.

“Yeah, you do that,” he said gruffly.

Olivia rescued her by coming over and saying, “We were live on the six o’clock news, so let’s hope that gets the word out and you’ll get plenty of leads, Detective. Oh, and the reporter would like a word with you so she can put together something more extensive for the late news.”

Tanaka grunted and said, “Well, okay then. Excuse me, ladies.”

Olivia turned her attention to Sophie. “Now, is there anything you need?”

“I’m fine,” Sophie insisted.

“This is all so unfair. She finally got her big break, and then this happens. I wonder if it was someone who saw the show. She was amazing, and I guess that could have sent some unhinged fan over the edge. Though you’d think that kind of person would have grabbed her at the stage door, not hours later.”

“People who kidnap other people can’t be expected to think the way the rest of us do.”

“Good point,” Olivia said with a nod. She kept talking about what had happened the night of Emily’s disappearance, but Sophie lost track of the conversation when she noticed a silvery head on the edge of the crowd.

She watched for a moment, made sure it was the fairy she captured the night before, then placed a hand lightly on Olivia’s arm as she interrupted to say, “It’s been lovely talking to you, but I just saw someone I need to go torture and interrogate. Please excuse me.”

As she hurried toward the fairy, she heard Olivia say to someone else, “I always thought Emily was exaggerating about her, but now I don’t know.”

Sophie was more amused than insulted, but her focus was on the silver-haired fairy. She palmed her iron keychain, then grabbed his arm and demanded, “What do you want?”

He hissed in pain and jerked his arm out of her grasp, but he made no move to run. Before she could grab him again, he pulled a length of frayed pink ribbon from his pocket. She recognized the ribbon she’d tied to the package she’d sent Emily. Either he was working with Emily or he was her captor. “I bring you a message from Emily. And a warning.”

“Where is Emily?”

“She wants you to stay away.”

“That wasn’t what I asked.” She moved toward him again with her horseshoe and wished the cast-iron skillet had fit in her purse.

He backed away from her. “I can assure you that Emily is not being harmed, and I will bring her home as soon as I can.”

“So you’re friends, is that it?” Sophie knew she needed to get Emily out of the Realm soon. If Emily was ignoring everything she’d taught her and making friends with fairies, next she’d be eating the food, and it would be like detoxing an addict to return her to the real world.