Reel Stuff (27 page)
Authors: Don Bruns
She was gushing, and I was getting used to it. The table read had been awesome. Yes, she actually used the word. Awesome.
Funny, oh, yes.
“There's a joke that they repeat a number of times, but it's the theme of the show, Skip. âIf anything
can
go wrong, it will go wrong just before your grant is up for review.'” She chuckled. “It works so well in the script.”
A laugh a minute and the show could be,
should be
, a fabulous success. A cross between
The Big Bang Theory
and
Two and a Half Men
.
How could you fail with those two shows as your anchors?
“Skip, we were all laughing by the third minute. The writing is a hoot, and I really think I bonded with the guy who plays my brother. Well,” she ran on and on, “I bonded with everyone there. The guy who plays the head scientist, Evan somebody, you've seen him on
How I Met Your Mother
, he came up to me after the read and couldn't say enough about how well I did. I just shrugged my shoulders and smiled. I mean, what do you say? I've
never really acted before and then someone comes up to you and yadda yadda yadda yaddaâ”
I headed for the motel and a little peace and solitude. And, I wanted to call James. I needed to talk to him about the situation. Usually, to get some clarity, I call Em. She's almost always good for some straight talk. If I have some conflict, Em will straighten it out. Not this time.
We arrived an hour later and walked to our room without saying a word. She'd pretty much said everything she had to announce, and I'd kept quiet. It did me no good to rain on her parade.
I walked outside to call James just as he was calling me. Seven o'clock Miami time, so he must not have drawn a night shift.
“Skip, any more near-death experiences?”
“No, but I've got the prenup. And I've got the financial report. The guy was worth at least seventy-five million, James.”
“What can you buy with seventy-five million, Skip? What?”
“Two vineyards in New Zealand, property on St. Barts, a row of townhouses in New York City, a waterfront penthouse in Florida, a publishing companyâ”
“Okay, okay, I get it. Maybe it won't be seventy-five million, but we're going to be worth some serious jack, amigo. Soon. Very soon.”
“I'm just working on the case, James. No expectations. I've had some thoughts after talking to my girlfriend.”
“I'm not sure where you're going, Skip, but I've got my own news. You may be able to shed some light on this.”
“Yeah?”
“Don't know what it means, but it's interesting.”
“Spill.”
“Your buddy, Director Randy Roberts, and Mr. Clint Anders are flying back to California.”
“James, you told me that the last time we talked.”
“They left this morning, pally. Didn't mention it to anyone. They arrive the same time Londell's body arrives.”
“A day early.”
“Yeah. And they didn't tell Ashley. She's a little miffed. The three of them were supposed to be taking a private jet tomorrow, and those two took that private jet today. No explanation.”
Private jet. I couldn't imagine what that might be like.
“What do you think happened?”
“No idea, dude. Ashley is going commercial tomorrow morning and production has shut down.”
“So what are you doing?”
“Hey, the lady is springing for first class, pardner. And me, I'm with the blonde actress.”
“Still sleeping with the client?” I didn't know whether to be pissed off or envious. But then I was sleeping with the up-and-coming Emily Minard, soon to be of some other name.
“Guilty,” he said. “Still sleeping with the actress known as AA.”
Things usually came up roses for my best friend.
“Speaking of sleeping with actresses, Em got the role, James. They had a table read today.”
“Table read?”
“We have a different way of talking out here, Mr. Lessor. If you're coming west, learn to speak the language.”
“Damn, Em on TV?”
“It appears.”
“That just seems impossible.”
“Don't tell her that. I think I remind her every hour.”
“Anyway, maybe with the two of us we can get to the bottom of this murder.”
“Two heads are better thanâoh, one more thing, James. I've got an interview with a Betsy Timmermeister tomorrow morning
at ten. She was Jason Londell's financial advisor, sort of. She seems to have managed his investments.”
“Really? That's great news, dude. She's agreed to talk? About their financial situation?”
“Not exactly.”
“So what's the interview?”
“I've supposedly got three million dollars to invest, and she's interested in managing it for me.”
“You and your crazy girlfriend. You've been gone less than four days, and Emily is a movie star. You, you're now a multimillionaire. I can't wait to get out there, Skip. Imagine what
I
'
ll
accomplish in three days. Off the charts.”
“Wish me luck, James. I don't even know what I need to ask this Timmermeister lady, but I've been winging it ever since we got here and things keep falling into place. I feel certain that I'll figure it out.”
“You don't have to show her the money tomorrow?”
“Exploratory meeting. That's what she called it.”
“All right. Talk in vague generalities.”
That wasn't going to be hard since there were no specifics.
“But,” my friend continued, “turn the conversation to Jason. If he had that kind of money, who other than Juliana might have benefited from his death? Did this Betsy Timmermeister know Ashley Amber? Does she think Juliana might have had something to do with the death? If she'll visit that line of questioning thenâ”
“What possible reason do I give for questions about Londell? And to ask her if she thinks his wife killed him? Come on, James.”
“Somebody killed him. Chances are there was some financial reason. She's the finance lady. Tonto, you are good at the question game. It will come to you.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
“We'll be in around two o'clock your time tomorrow, okay?”
“We'll pick you up at the airport.”
“Skip, there'll be a limo waiting.”
“Oh, yeah. You're with AA. Limos are a way of life, am I right? Where are you staying?”
“Way of life, Skip. Let me live that life for two or three days, okay? It ain't going to last forever. I know that. Where am I staying? That's a little tricky. She doesn't want her friends to jump on our minirelationship so she's staying at the Chateau Marmont, and I was wondering if you could arrange something at the place you're staying.”
“What? She's embarrassed to be seen with you?”
He was quiet for a moment.
“Yeah. Something like that.”
“So this is just aâ”
“One-night stand? That's gone a little longer than one night? Pretty sure that's what it is.”
“Too bad.”
“Why is that, Skip?”
“Because, there's a chance you could be having a relationship with a lady whose sister is seriously rich. You know that game The Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon?”
He did. It was where everyone can tie into actor Kevin Bacon within six relationships. Usually fewer. You know a guy who knows a banker whose father lives in L.A. who plays golf at a country club where, well, you get the picture.
“Your new girlfriend may be one degree from being a multi-multimillionaire.”
“Wouldn't that be nice?”
“Think about it, James.”
“I hate to admit it, amigo, but I have.”
And I knew damned well he had.
We had dinner at Nate'n Al Deli on Beverly Drive. I had a huge corned beef sandwich and Em had a salad. Now that she was in showbiz, she couldn't gain an ounce. These actresses.
No one hit on her, but customers were eyeing our table. She looks like she should be somebody and in this town, if you look like you should be somebody you probably are. At least a B actor. But, as I said, B actors are a dime a dozen.
“James and Ashley are coming in tomorrow. I got him a room at our motel. She's staying in the elite district.”
“Glad you got him a room, because he's not sleeping on the sofa.”
“Roberts and Anders are coming in tonight. A day ahead of schedule.”
“Do you think there's any chance that they'll stop by the office? I'm supposed to be there tomorrow morning and go over some photos and stuff.”
“It's going to be awkward if we run into them.”
“Awkward? More than that. Randy Roberts doesn't know me,” she said. “But Anders won't forget. How am I going to explain?”
“He might not recognize you.”
“Trust me, Skip.” She frowned and looked toward the ceiling. “I shouldn't tell you this, but Clint Anders gave me a lot of reasons to believe that he will remember our little talk.”
Taking a deep breath, I exhaled loud enough for her to know I was annoyed. Tired. Exasperated. This was why she was so sure that Clint Anders was above being a suspect. Because he flirted with her?
“Does it get old having men hit on you?”
“You can't imagine. That's why I keep you around, to ward them off.” She was being flippant. I was dead serious.
“So I'm like garlic around your neck? To keep the vampires away?” It wasn't meant to be a humorous comment.
“Exactly.” She smiled and put her hand on mine across the table. “You're like garlic only you smell nicer.”
I swallowed a spiteful comment, and we finished our wine and took a cab down to Kiss, a nightclub owned by Eva Longoria. Em had always liked
Desperate Housewives
, so we had a drink there. Then another and I had a couple more. I recognized a couple of TV people, one from
How I Met Your Mother
, but it wasn't like seeing De Niro or Demi Moore. I wondered if she was a distant relative. Demi Moore? I mean, she spelled her last name the same way.
We took an expense-tab cab back to our motel, like an old couple, not looking for a big party, realizing we both had things to do in the morning. In the back of my mind, I was worried about Clint Anders coming in early. According to James, he'd expressed a concern that I wasn't on the job, guarding and securing his precious TV set on a public park on Biscayne Bay. So now he was coming out here, his home territory. I made a firm decision to stay out of his way. I was definitely not going to the funeral, and I needed to keep looking over my shoulder. I remembered that L.A. and especially Hollywood was a small town.
We woke at six and even though I felt a little rough around the edges, we had some great morning sex before hauling ourselves out of bed at six thirty and showering. Breakfast started at seven thirty across the street at a diner, and I dropped Em off at her agent's office at nine. I prayed Anders was not going to visit Juliana today.
