Page 46 of Behind the Scenes

He’d always been able to count on Gideon to focus on the big picture. At least the big picture according to him.

“Thanks, man. Call me as soon as you find out anything.”

“You got it. And relax up there. She’s safe and sound with you around. Hey, I like that. I think I’m going to suggest that for the group motto to Persephone. Maybe it will get me out of all this goddamned busy work she has me doing.”

“Bye, Gideon.”

Hunter ended the call and shook his head at his friend’s suggestion. Persephone would likely double his workload after hearing that idea of his.

Tossing the phone onto the bed, he mentally ran through every person on that list he gave Gideon. None of them had exhibited even the slightest behavior that would indicate they were behind the letters and packages Alexis had received. The LAPD had no real leads on any possible suspects either. And his suspicion about Kyle was nothing more than that. Suspicion.

Mumbling to himself, he said, “How is it someone could do this and no one would know who it is?”

Frustrated, he headed to the kitchen where he found Carla hurrying back and forth between the oven and the counter preparing dinner. He couldn’t help but be surprised since no one had cooked much of anything since he’d been there. At least nothing he’d been offered.

He leaned against the doorframe and watched her for a minute. “What are you making?”

Carla looked over and a sheepish look came across her face. “Lauren thought it would be nice if Alexis had her favorite food. She can rarely eat it, especially when she’s filming, so now’s a perfect time to make it. And since she’s…”

She didn’t finish her sentence, but she didn’t have to. Hunter knew what she meant. Lauren was having her make Alexis comfort food.

Hunter scanned the countertop. Fresh carrots, peas, and green beans sat cut up and in bowls. Baby red potatoes waited for Carla’s knife to cut them up, and various spice jars sat lined up next to the cutting board. Perhaps comfort food for movie stars meant vegetables. This was Alexis’s favorite food?

“What is all this?”

The assistant opened up the oven door and took out a pan. “Pot roast with glazed carrots and baby peas. The green beans are for Lauren. She loves them with garlic.”

She smiled as she tossed the vegetables into the pan around the pot roast that sat in the center on a metal rack. “And I always throw in potatoes for good measure.”

“You weren’t her cook back in LA, though, right?” Hunter asked, seizing on that point as he remembered Alexis telling him about another woman who stayed behind when they all came east.

“No. I just fill in sometimes. I learned how to cook from my mama, so whenever Alexis needs a home cooked meal, I do my best.”

“Hmmm. Go figure. I would have never guessed her favorite meal would be something so common. I would have thought someone famous like her would like fancier food. I’d guess she could have anything her heart desires. Who’d think pot roast would be what she wanted?”

Carla ripped off a sheet of aluminum foil and began tenting it over the pan. “It comes from growing up in Minnesota, I think. Alexis is from ordinary people. She wasn’t born with a silver spoon in her mouth.”

“I had no idea,” Hunter admitted as he watched her continue to make the meal with loving care. But he noticed her hands were shaking.

She nodded and gave him a smile. “Yeah. That’s why she’s so down-to-earth.”

Grabbing a piece of carrot, Hunter bit into it. “Carla, you’ve been with Alexis for three years, right? In that time, is there anyone you can think of who would want to hurt her?”

She stopped covering the pan with foil and shook her head. “No. Until all this started with the letters and packages, I would have said everyone loved her.”

“Okay, thanks.” He watched her for a few more moments and asked, “Is anything wrong? Your hands are shaking.”

Carla quickly shook her head. Wiping her hands on a dishcloth, she forced a smile. “No. No, nothing’s wrong. I probably just need to eat something.”

“Okay. I’m here if you have anything you want to talk about.”

Hunter grabbed another slice of carrot and started to leave, but Carla touched him on the sleeve to stop him. Turning around, he saw she had something else to say.

“I’m sorry about lying to you earlier, Hunter.”

“I understand, Carla. You have to do what your boss tells you to do.”

With sadness in her eyes, she forced a smile. “Thank you. I just want you to know I would never do anything to knowingly hurt Alexis. I hope you find out who’s doing this to her so she can get back to living her life. She deserves it.”

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