Page 14 of Her Last Secret

"My God, it's awful, right? I mean…God, Sarah Jennings. Now, there's someone who took her craft seriously. Professional to the core," Finn said, his admiration palpable even through the static of the line. "If dedication alone could make a star, she'd be in Hollywood already. Rumor has it she was on her way to New York before all of this mess went down."

“How much insight do you have into her personal life?” Rachel asked.

“Not much, I’m afraid. We got along well and all but we weren’t friends off the stage. The only time we ever hung out was at after parties. That sort of thing, you know?”

“Do you think there might have been anyone in your circle who may have been irritated by her work ethic? Maybe someone Sarah sort of rubbed the wrong way?”

"Hard to say," Finn mused. "In this industry, envy and jealousy are pretty common. But Sarah didn't let pettiness affect her. Always focused on the performance."

“Did she ever mention anything about boyfriends or maybe guys from her past?”

“Sorry,” Finn said, his tone indicating that he truly was. “I just didn’t know her that well.”

“Do you know anyone she worked with thatwouldknow her fairly well?”

"Um…well, actually, yeah. There's a woman named Barbara...Barbara Kingsley. She's an older lady, and she stopped coming out for auditions as frequently as she used to. I think she was like a mentor to Sarah for a while."

“Does she live here in Richmond?”

“She does. Over near University of Richmond somewhere. Her husband is a professor and the tennis coach or something.”

“Perfect,” Rachel said. “Finn, thank you so much.”

She again went through the nearly mechanical process of ending the call and giving thanks. As she did, Jack was already typing the information into the mobile database on Rachel’s laptop, searching for anything on Barbara Kingsley.

“You know,” Rachel said as Jack went through the motions to find the right information, “we’ll need to speak to the families, too.”

“We will,” Jack said, without looking away from the screen. “I’ve already seen where the cops spoke with Sarah’s parents soon after her death. And we…wait, here we are. Barbara Kingsley. You ready for the call?”

Rachel nodded and inputted the number into her phone. It rang twice before it was answered by a woman with a rough edge to her voice—the voice of a woman who had probably smoked for the majority of her life.

Rachel once again ran through quick introductions, doing her best to take her time so that she didn’t rush through the reason for her call, making it seem as if she might not care. Like the others, Mrs. Kingsley seemed quite impressed and scared that the FBI was calling to ask about the murders of two actresses.

“I’m glad to see these deaths are getting so much attention,” Barbara said matter-of-factly. Her voice was tinged with anger, but there was more sadness than anything else.

"We believe the fact that two actresses have been murdered in such a short time makes it clear that the killer is targeting a very particular population," Jack explained, speaking into the phone as it sat on Rachel's desk. "We were hoping you might be able to discuss your time working with Sarah."

There was a pause—a moment's hesitation—before Barbara replied. "I’d be happy to. But if it’s all the same to you, there are bits and pieces to this entire ordeal that are a bit…well, tense. Maybe not the best conversation for the phone. Do you think we could we meet?”

This struck Rachel as odd, but also slightly exciting. Maybe they’d finally find a lead worth chasing. “Of course,” she said. “Just let us know where and when.”

They worked together for the next minute to come up with a time and place to meet. By the time they’d ended the call, they’d come up with the small park by the Benchmark Avenue Library. As Rachel and Jack got up to make their way to the elevators, Jack reached out and took her gently by the arm.

“How are you?”

“I’m good.”

“And the headache?”

“It’s honestly gone.”

“Good. But…and please forgive me for saying this, you look sort of distracted.”

“I am. Janelle will be at the house to get Paige off the bus and I know the sedan with the agents are right out on the corner but still…”

“You feel guilty?”

“Yes.”

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