A Vintage Murder (26 page)

“It’s a bad thing when you’re in a relationship. That’s why people break up all the time in Hollywood,” Nikki replied.

“You’ve read one too many of those magazines,” Kane said. “Now come on, it’ll work out. Let’s order.”

Nikki wasn’t sure that
any
of this was going to work out, but she could see that none of these guys were on the same wavelength as her, so she ordered her dinner and tried to get comfortable with them.

They made small talk about the movie industry before dinner came, and Nikki had herself two full glasses of wine. She was completely out of her element and knew she shouldn’t be drinking, but it was helping her get through the meal, which was actually delicious. She’d noticed that Shawn was going through quite a bit of wine himself.

Halfway through the meal, with either enough liquid courage or stupidity flowing through her, she turned to Kane. “So what’s your story? How did you get into this business?”

“It’s not interesting. Shawn’s story is better than mine.”

Shawn shook his head. “Go on, tell her. Your story
is
interesting. What you probably don’t know is that Kane started out as a filmmaker, producer, director, writer, even an actor. Man, you did it all. You are the man.”

“I didn’t know that you did all that,” Nikki said.

“Yeah, documentaries were your thing, right?” Nathan asked.

Kane nodded. “I was into that for a while, but then I met Shawn and saw a star. That was my ex-wife’s gig—the documentaries—so she stayed with it, and I went in another direction. Not a lot of money in documentaries. I wanted to produce big-time action films and mega movies. Shawn and I hooked up and we’ve done that.”

Shawn nodded, but wasn’t as enthusiastic about Kane’s story. “That we have. Lots of movies together.” He smacked Kane hard on his back. “I do whatever Kane needs. I am his superstar, aren’t I? Love those movies.”

“Don’t you like making the big films?” Nikki asked.

“Oh I love it,
love
. Didn’t I just say so?” He looked at Kane.

“It’s getting late,” Kane said. “What do you say we all head out?”

“I wouldn’t mind another drink. I think Nikki and I should talk some more,” Shawn said. “I get the feeling she could really understand me. Wouldn’t that be a good thing, Kane?”

“Not tonight. I think we should get back. You ready Nathan?”

Nathan nodded and looked as bewildered as Nikki felt. They paid the bill and headed out. It was a quiet drive home and Nikki was relieved to get back into the RV with Simon, who was not pleased with her.

“Real nice. Thanks a lot, Snow White,” Simon ranted once they got back inside.

She held out the doggie bag. “I got you food to go.”

He snatched it from her. “Food to go. Woo-hoo. You’re all tight and cozy with your movie-making friends, and what am I now, chopped liver? Having to stand at the door. Jeesh.”

“‘Jeesh’ yourself. Get over it. You were the one who said you could go all Rambo on people. Kane assured me that Marne Pickett wouldn’t be lurking, but she obviously was, and so you had to do your job. Remember, you were the guy who claimed to be my bodyguard.” He started to say something. “Uh-uh, I would seriously think before I opened my mouth with one of your smart-ass comebacks. I want you to keep in mind that the reason you had to stand at the door tonight is because of choices
you
made. Not me.”

He stared at her and then peered into the bag. “You should be somebody’s mother,” he mumbled. He took out the foam box from the bag and opened up his steak dinner.

Nikki left to put her pajamas on. When she returned, Simon had poured them both a glass of port. “Sorry,” he said. “I guess I was a little jealous is all.”

“It’s okay. I’m sorry you couldn’t have joined us. Trust me, I would have rather had you at the table. There were some strange dynamics going on between Kane and Shawn.”

“What do you mean?” Simon asked.

“I don’t know. It was almost like an undercurrent of dislike from Shawn toward Kane—something I had not picked up until tonight. Granted Shawn had quite a bit to drink, and so did I, so I appreciate the after dinner drink here, but I think I’ll have a glass of water instead.”

“Suit yourself, Snow White. I didn’t get to party like a rock star.”

She shook a finger at him. “Don’t start that again.”

“You know that a lot of times when people drink, real feelings come out. Maybe there is a problem between Shawn and Kane. I could try to talk to Shawn about it.”

“Mind your own business.”

“Look who’s talking,” Simon replied.

“I know, you’re right. Hey I have to watch the rest of those documentaries on Elizabeth. Care to join me?”

He shrugged. “Why not. I’m all about KPBS and National Geographic.”

They settled back into the bed and first watched one on koalas, kangaroos, and other marsupials. Again, all Nikki learned from it was that Elizabeth was as decent as everyone suggested. The production credits went to the Ferrisses. Nothing new. She’d watched part of the shark documentary the night before, so she decided to pop in the other one. She looked over at Simon, who was starting to fade. “You should go to bed,” she suggested.

“No, no. I’m good.”

She didn’t have the heart to make him leave. She started the movie, which to her horror was about reptiles. A young Andy Burrow was there, smiling and assisting Elizabeth, who handled all of the reptiles, from poisonous snakes to crocodiles to some kind of poisonous lizard. And then, something happened that made her pause the DVD, reverse it a few frames, then play it in slow motion.

Elizabeth had a snake in her hands—a brown snake—and then she handed it off to another woman. Nikki looked closely and replayed it again, then again. That woman . . . yes, she recognized her. She was younger and much thinner, but it was her, same scar on her face and same red hair—it was Sarah Fritz.

The following morning there was a quick meeting with regard to the change to the script that Liam was suggesting. Nikki did not want Kane or Nathan to know that she was the one who had initiated it. The day before, she’d thought there was a good chance that one of the Hahndorf women had killed Lucy, and she hadn’t ruled them out completely, but now there was a strong possibility that Nathan Cooley had actually been the killer, considering the poems and letters he’d written to Lucy. That reminded her of the crumpled up note she’d found in Lucy’s jacket the other day. And what about Kane Ferriss and Shawn Keefer? And now, Sarah Fritz.

What she did know about Sarah was that she didn’t have any affection toward Grace Hahndorf. She had no problem talking trash about Grace, and Nikki knew she’d been involved in that documentary with Elizabeth and Liam. The woman knew how to handle snakes. But what could be her motive for killing Lucy? That was one Nikki had not been able to figure out yet. She had to go back to the Fritz Winery again and speak with Sarah. There was no other way around it. She wondered if she could get Simon to tag along again.

First she would have to endure the day of shooting and then she would figure out how she could go and see Sarah.

 

 

Both the producer and director agreed with Liam’s script change. They shot one scene prior to it. Nikki saw that Liam had brought Grace down to the set. She hoped the revised scene would work to convince Grace that her husband truly loved her and had not pushed for the movie to be made because he was still devoted to Elizabeth.

 

 

James continues: “But it
did
happen, and she loves me and I love her. I really do. It’s best this way.”

 

 

“Cut! That was wonderful,” Nathan said.

Nikki glanced at Liam and Grace. At first she couldn’t read Grace’s expression. Her face was pale and she stood there, not reacting for about a minute. Liam was watching her, too. No one else noticed because they hadn’t realized what the two of them had done. Then Grace looked up at Liam and Nikki could see the tears. She put her arms around her husband and leaned into his chest. Liam stroked the top of her head. A minute later, Liam took his wife by the hand and they walked off the set. Nikki brushed her own tears away.

“Nikki, are you all right?” It was Shawn.

“Yes. Feeling kind of, I don’t know . . .”

“Off? Too much wine from last night. I know I had too much.”

“I think I’m having a hard time blending real life here into a movie.” The scene she’d witnessed between Liam and Grace was exactly what she’d hoped for, but it also made her realize that what she was doing by making this movie had so many implications. These were people’s lives, and all of it hit her at once, especially thinking about Liam dying. “You guys make movies. You
pretend
. And I don’t know if I can keep doing this.”

He put an arm around her. “Of course you can do it. I understand that the lines can get a little blurred, but you have to be a professional. You have to learn to go into character and out of character. When you’re out, you do real life. This is only a job.”

“Is that all it is?”

He nodded. “It is.”

“Do you like what you do?”

“Sometimes I’m not sure, but I’m a professional, so I do it. I get it done. Now, what do you say we get back to work?”

“I would say that’s being professional.”

“Good.”

The rest of the day wasn’t as eventful as the morning, though they had to do a lot of reshooting because Nikki was not on her game.

Finally the day ended, and Nikki was back in the RV sans Simon, who had gone into town—oddly enough—in Harv’s car. Harv had invited him. Simon was bored and Harv was hot, even though he was a jerk. And of course, in Simon’s book Harv was gay. Nikki was sure he was at least right about that.

As tired as she was, both emotionally and physically, Nikki still wanted to talk to Sarah Fritz. She really wanted a buddy to go with, but she knew everyone was probably off having dinner or doing their own thing.

She did need to stop in at the wardrobe trailer and see about a larger size pair of pants. Harv had given her a size too small for tomorrow’s shoot, and even if she starved herself for a night and morning, it wasn’t going to matter. Plus, although she hadn’t seen hide nor hair of Marne Pickett around, she thought maybe it best to get a wig or hat or something, just in case. Without Simon to pull his bodyguard act, she might want to go as incognito as possible.

She hunted through her own wardrobe. There was a beanie—the one that her character Elizabeth wore. That would help. Throw on a pair of jeans and a big sweatshirt. No. She couldn’t look like a bum. Maybe Amy’s trailer, since she had to return the pants anyway. Yeah. If she could somehow get into wardrobe she might find something.

The sun had started to go down. She wrapped her coat around her. The nights were definitely getting colder. She knew that Napa Valley would be feeling plenty of heat these days as early summer set in there. Just thinking about her stomping grounds made her want to go home. As beautiful as it was in the Barossa, and as kind as the people were—most of them—she wanted to get back to the real world.
Her
real world.

She smelled a campfire and saw some of the crew pouring wine and warming themselves by the fire. She reached the wardrobe trailer and knocked. No answer. She pulled the handle, thankfully found the door unlocked, and went in. She had her purse, which lucky for her was the size of a diaper bag. She put the pants back and got the new size.

Nikki knew that Amy kept the wigs and hats in a large trunk. She found it, lifted the top, and peered in. There was the perfect wig. Nothing outlandish, a simple black bob. With the beanie over it, she thought she could pull this off. She noticed Harv’s leather bag next to the trunk.

Nikki knew it was wrong, but she’d been curious to see what he’d shoved into his bag the other morning when he and Amy were having coffee in the snack room. She opened it up and found a first-aid kit. Inside it, in addition to the usual stuff, were syringes and vials of antivenom.
Antivenom?
These two had their own antivenom case? Maybe it was for nothing more than being prepared after Lucy had been killed; still, it made Nikki wonder.