Page 36 of Reckless Chance
Wrapping my arms around her waist and pulling her back against me, I joke, “I’m the only one who should elicit those sounds from you.”
“You’re on a roll tonight with the teasing.” She laughs.
“I can’t help it when I’m around you. My mind wanders elsewhere.”
“So do your hands. Is it your mind or your cock that’s in charge?”
“Both. But I’ll be good and let you take in a little nourishment while we share what we’ve learned today. Then I have a surprise for you.”
“If I’ve seen it before, is it really a surprise?”
“Very funny. I’m referring to a real surprise. Now let’s talk about your interviews. How did they go?”
With the tragedy, we’ve quickly fallen into the “Tell me about your day” marriage routine. Surprisingly, my stress level is lower after talking with Lowri—never expected that.
After summarizing her meetings with Amelia, Kenny, Reese, and Ron, she asks, “How was your day?”
“Infuriating. Detective Fielder stopped by to tell me they aren’t sure Mr. Brentwood’s death was an accident. Then as an aside, he mentioned that there had been several unexplainedaccidentsduring rehearsals for the show. Unbelievably, that was the first time I’d heard about them. My staff hadn’t mentioned a single one. Do you know how embarrassing that was, not to mention upsetting? Hell, you just said the performers discussed the accidents with you today. Why hadn’t one of my employees brought the incidents to my attention?”
“You should have been told. I could understand not mentioning one or two minor incidents. However, if someone is burned on the stage, that should escalate to your level.”
“I’d expect to hear about that the day it happened.”
“Exactly. Do you remember the guy who limped off stage during the performance?”
“Yes. It looked like he sprained his ankle. Regrettably, dancers are always pulling muscles and twisting joints. I don’t expect to hear about those injuries unless it’s serious.”
“That’s not what happened to Reese. His aerial silk tore, causing him to fall.”
“No way. The rigging specialists are extremely diligent about inspecting the silks. The performers’ lives depend on them.”
“He swears the silk was fine when it was rigged.”
“You spoke with him?”
“Yes. He didn’t say it explicitly, but it’s clear he suspects sabotage.”
“We’ve never had these problems in prior shows. We have to figure out what’s happening.”
“What’s going on with the police investigation? Why do they think it wasn’t an accident?”
I share what Fielder told me and add, “Even in light of that conversation, it appears more likely than not that Mr. Brentwood’s death was unintentional.”
“True, but something still seems off to me.”
“What’s bothering you?”
“It’s a nagging feeling that I’m not connecting some facts together. Do you know if there is video from the night Mr. Brentwood died?”
“They usually record the shows, and the theater is filled with security cameras. What are you looking for?”
“I’m not sure. I’d like to watch the portions leading up to the two incidents to see if anything looks out of place.”
“I’ll let Daniel know tomorrow. He can set up the replays for you.”
“Would the cameras have recorded the accidents that occurred during rehearsals? If so, I’d like to see those as well. Those videos could help solve the mystery behind the injuries.”
“During a rehearsal, people are constantly moving, which would trigger the motion-activated cameras. We have some on stage and backstage that would have been recording during rehearsals. It depends on when the accidents happened as to whether we still have those video files. The IT team deletes them regularly to save disk space. If Rob can pinpoint when the incidents occurred, Daniel can have his team check.”
