Rock Star Down (The Psychic Registry) (8 page)

"Maybe so. But
don't let her shoot her own foot," Archer replied.

"Not at all. In
fact, I think she just might earn her actor's fee."

Laurel joined them,
oblivious that she was the subject of conversation. "We both know Nathan
doesn't need the money but maybe you should reconsider, Detective?"

Archer smiled but
shook her head, "The Lieutenant wouldn't allow it."

The same thought must
have just occurred to Laurel, "Do you think
I'll
get in trouble?"

Nathan intervened, "I
don't think Fletcher will have a problem with it, provided that we close the
case, or at least clear these folks. If he gives you any flack, tell him it was
my idea."

Laurel paused and
studied him, "Uh-oh. You've got a plan involving me, don't you?"

"Nothing as grand
as a
plan
– not yet, anyhow – but remember how you were outside?"

"The tight-lipped
boss routine? That might work for a mob of reporters—"

"Just think of it
as a jumping off point. Anyhow, I want people to take you seriously, to worry
about you a little more, and to focus on me a little less. As for anything
more? We'll see."

"Okay,"
Laurel nodded. "What about Detective Archer?"

"I get to handle
the diva's coterie," Archer said.

Laurel looked at them
both and smiled, "You know, it's like we're a real team!"

The meeting took place in the dining
room and it seemed that everyone was there
except for Jaqui.
Nathan knew
it wouldn't be as simple as just dropping in and talking to the pop star, but
the continuing hurdles were beginning to try his patience. Thankfully there
weren't any cameras in attendance as none of the parties involved wanted their
part in the negotiations on TV.

They were clustered
around the dining room table: Nathan seated at one end with Archer at his side
and Laurel standing behind him, silently scowling, but watching all. At the
other end of the table was Jaqui's criminal attorney, Bruce Holdgren. He was
flanked by Silverman on one side and on the other Jaqui's elder sister turned
manager, Vanessa Scott. Natalie moved in and out of the room, coordinating an
unseen video crew in the kitchen, Nathan surmised, but she was never out of
Silverman's ear-shot. The housekeeper was unobtrusively serving coffee and
cakes to all, but Nathan suspected she was there to eavesdrop as well. It was a
big group to read and he wasn't about to exhaust himself trying.

Silverman was making
his pitch again, though he reiterated his cooperation with the investigation,
regardless of Nathan's participation – or lack thereof – in the show.
At
least the coffee and cake were good.

Nathan noticed that
Vanessa seemed to have little patience for the producer as well. She looked
upset, like a woman who'd lost a family member and needed some time to mourn,
not like the hardnosed manager of a platinum recording artist and booming
television celeb. And despite her apparent sadness and anger she was quite
beautiful. He wouldn't have been surprised to learn she'd been a model…
underwear catalogues and swimsuits, he imagined. She looked like she needed a
good hug and he half-wanted to be the one to give it to her.

He was getting a
little bored and losing his focus, he realized. Nathan held up a hand for
Silverman to stop, but he was looking at Vanessa, "Miss Scott, I realize
this is a difficult time for your family. If there is something that you would
like to say to us? Otherwise I don't see that you need to be present for this
discussion."

"Thank you,
Mister Miller. But I'm here to look out for my sister's interests. As for any
statement? I think Bruce wants to address some ground rules."

Holdgren nodded
thoughtfully and patted Vanessa's hand in real kindness. He was an older
fellow, of perhaps fifty, but his hair was full and his back was straight, and
if he was carrying a bit of extra weight from enjoying the easy life, then he
carried it well. He cleared his throat and spoke, "First of all, I would
like to remind you, Detectives, that my client has been fully cooperative and
supportive of the investigation into her husband's tragic death. And that while
we understand that all possibilities must be examined, my client steadfastly
maintains her innocence in any foul play. Furthermore, I wish to remind you
that my client is grieving the loss of her husband. In consideration of these
circumstances I caution you not to badger, berate, or attempt to intimidate my
client, otherwise the goodwill and courtesy that we have thus far extended will
be swiftly withdrawn."

Nathan nodded, "Of
course."

Holdgren nodded in
acknowledgement and continued, "Furthermore, I wish to remind all present
that the appellate courts have ruled and the Supreme Court has upheld that the
testimony of psychics pertaining to the so-called thoughts and feelings of
others are inadmissible as hearsay. My client has agreed to this interview with
Detective Miller in the fervent belief that he shall confirm her innocence in
this matter, so that the police may direct their resources to finding whoever
is actually responsible for her husband's death. As counsel, I shall be present
for this interview and I expect you to heed my previous admonitions."

Archer replied, "We're
the good guys, here, counselor. Provided your client is playing us honest, you've
got nothing to be worried about."

Nathan smiled. They
would find out the truth soon enough.

Holdgren nodded, then
he looked to Laurel, "And you Miss Comfort? Does the City Attorney's
office have any objections to this arrangement?" He was talking down to
her a touch.

Laurel replied, icily,
"Objections? We're here at the express direction of Mister Fletcher."
Then her tone warmed, but only slightly, "And he appreciates your
cooperation as much as I do."

Holdgren neither bristled,
nor shrank, but he was effectively neutralized. "Very well, I shall fetch
Missus Scott,"  

Jaqui was a true beauty. Tall and
athletic, yet her face and eyes were delicate. Her long black mane contrasted
well with her cream complexion. Her bangs were cut straight and low, nearly
obscuring her eyes, providing a befitting veil. She wore a sleeveless Chinese
dress of red and black silk that was taut against her trim form.

She was dressed for
the scene, Nathan realized. But he'd nixed that plan.

Jaqui sat at the head
of the table in Holdgren's vacated spot while the lawyer took a place between
Vanessa and Archer.

"You look
stunning, Jaqui," Silverman complimented. No doubt he was imagining the
lost scene.

She managed a brittle
smile and a faint nod, "I know. But maybe it's for the best. People might
get the idea that I'm trying to cash-in on Rock's death. Besides, I don't think
I could handle the cameras right now."

"Nonsense, babe,"
Silverman replied.

Jaqui looked across
the table at Nathan and his cohort, "You have to forgive Aaron,
Detectives. He just wants what's best for me. And with Rock gone…"

"You have our
condolences, Missus Scott," Nathan said.

"Thank you,
Detective Miller. And I understand your objection to appearing on our show. I won't
hold it against you."

Nathan didn't have a
lot of questions, but he wanted to be thorough. Besides, the crowded room supplied
more background noise, requiring a more finely tuned read, and that would necessitate
more time. But he couldn't take too long, either, lest he risk exhausting
himself. Given her eagerness to cooperate, he doubted Jaqui was the killer and
he had a feeling that he would be conducting more reads before the day was
done. Plus her grief seemed genuine and he was wary of experiencing it
first-hand.

He nodded and offered
her his most reassuring smile. "I'm going to ask you some familiar
questions, Missus Scott—"

"Call me Jaqui,"
she said.

"Very well. First
I'm going to ask some general questions. Please tell me your name, where you
were born, and your age," he said.

"My name's Jaqui.
I was born Jacquelyn Scott in Fort Worth, Texas. And I'm twenty-five years old."

As she spoke, Nathan
eased into the read, gradually taking it to a 5.

"Tell me your
husband's name," he asked.

"Joseph Rock
Franklin," she said, a faint tremor in her voice.

And he saw Rock
sitting in a studio, guitar in hand, singing a song for Jaqui. And he knew that
he was indeed on the right frequency. Though the probability was low, it was
always possible that one of the others might try to
spoof
Jaqui's
thoughts. Nathan had never witnessed a successful spoofing but he'd heard stories
suggesting it was possible.

"What was the
name of the song?" he asked.

A wistful smile
flickered across her lips, "
Buy two roses
," Jaqui replied.

The others in the room
were getting excited, their own thoughts and feelings beginning to churn, but he
had to ignore them. The background noise jumped and his read got fuzzy so he
tightened up the intensity, increasing it to a 7. And then it was as if the
others had receded into shadow, until only Nathan and Jaqui remained in the
light. Of course he could see them both, simultaneously, her through his eyes
and he through hers. And although he much appreciated her looks, he closed his
own eyes to cut down on the stimuli. The thoughts of the others were more
difficult to filter out, sounding much like the murmur of voices at a party,
heard through an apartment wall.

"That was your
first hit?" Nathan asked.

She nodded, then
added, "That's how we first
met
."

"I see,"
Nathan said. And he did see, though that wasn't what he was after.

"Moving on to the
day of your husband's death. When did you last see him alive?"

"I saw him that
morning before he left for the studio," Jaqui said.

"Where were you?
What was he wearing?" Nathan asked.

"We were in the
bedroom. He wasn't dressed, yet."

"Good looking
guy," Nathan commented.

"Yes," Jaqui
giggled, though her mirth quickly faded.

"So you went to
take a shower and when you were done, he was gone."

"Yes," she
whispered. Though the thought was clear in his mind.

She didn't get to say
goodbye. They'd been arguing and she was angry. She hoped to cool off in the
shower, but when she returned, he'd already left the house!

"What did you
fight about?"

"I told him I was
going to LA again, to do a screen test. We disagreed about that."

"He didn't want
you to go?"

"I just got back
a week before. He missed me, was all."

He thought she was
fooling around on him out in Hollywood! Fooling around? She'd slept with the
director a couple of times. It was business and nothing more! But she didn't
dare tell him that… What did he have against LA, anyways?

"He was angry,
too," Nathan said.

"Yes, he was. I
was going to apologize, but he just stormed out."

He was so angry this
time! Would he really
leave
her
? Did she matter so little to him
that he would throw away all that they had together? And yet, what was she
planning to do? But the timing was just all wrong! It wasn't time for
ultimatums. It was time to reconcile.

"So you went to
the studio, to kiss and make up?" Nathan asked.

But he was
dead
. His body was sprawled out, flat on his
back, his limbs limp. All was still, frozen. Except for the blood, oozing into
the carpet. And there was a faint noise, the humming of an amp plugged into an
open cable. The room smelled like sweat covered over with Lysol, and something
metallic, like rust.

"Did you kill
him?" he asked.

"No!"

"Perhaps you
killed him in a rage? And forgot?"

"No. I haven't
forgotten
anything
."

"Did you ask
someone else to kill him?"

"No."

"Do you know who
killed him or have reason to suspect someone?"

"No. No. No."

So she didn't do
it.

Rock was gone forever.
But why would anyone kill him? He wasn't perfect, she'd come to realize. But he
didn't deserve to die. Unless someone was trying to hurt
her
?

"
Have
you
received any threats?" Nathan asked.

"Not that I know
of. People don't tell me everything," Jaqui replied.
What about Harold
Dean?

 "Who's Dean?"
Nathan asked.

"He runs an
unofficial fan site. Vanessa worries he's a stalker. But Rock said Dean's just
a little guy trying to make a buck," Jaqui said.

"You file a
report?" Nathan asked.

"No, Rock talked
to him. That was the last I heard of it."

Dean was a scrawny
little scrap of a man. How could
he
kill Rock?

"Okay. Back to
the studio. Did you see Dean or anyone else there?" he asked. "Anyone
acting suspicious?"

"Just Mister
Barnes, he was at the security desk on my way in."

But he couldn't have
hurt Rock! Barnes was what, sixty years old? And he was such a sweet old man.
Not him, no way. Not against her Rock— But she had noticed Barnes checking her
out when he thought she wasn't looking. It was harmless enough. But with Rock
turning jealous and suspecting her, could Rock have lashed out and provoked
Barnes?

Nathan's concentration
was flagging already and he realized that he'd crept up to an 8 in response to
all of the background noise around them. Not that anybody else was talking, but
their thoughts and feelings were strong, and everyone's focus was upon Nathan
and Jaqui. So he dialed it back down to a 7 and the pressure relented, just as
his read diminished in clarity.

"Did you ever
witness any altercations between your husband and Mister Barnes?" Nathan
asked, though he doubted it, too.

"No. And I just
can't believe it, either. I just— Not knowing makes me question everything."

Despite her infidelity,
he pitied her. And he didn't want to embarrass her and lose her cooperation, or
worse, to tip his hand to the rest of the table. Besides, her lawyer had
blocked the question once before. So he asked his next question not in words,
but in pure thought.