Murder At the Cubbyhole. Alice Zogg
Читать онлайн книгу.
“I’m not a mother, but feel for Megan’s family.”
“How long did Megan work for you?”
“About two years.”
“What are the requirements for hiring sales personnel for your establishment?”
“You mean education-wise?”
“No, I meant what are you looking for in an employee?”
Madame Dubois’s mannerism became extremely French when she answered, “My collections are not for the masses. I am fortunate to count on a small elite clientele. Each season, my customers tend to buy their entire wardrobe at Le Monde Fashion. We provide private modeling for them, if desired. To answer your question, my salesgirls need to have a sense of fashion, be discreet, friendly, honest, and able to take care of the shop while I’m busy elsewhere. It is also important that they look presentable and preferably be tall, so I can use them as models.”
“What do you mean by ‘discreet’?”
“My customers are like loyal old friends, and many of them are famous. What they tell us goes no farther than these walls.”
“I see.” And with a sweeping gesture encircling their surroundings she asked, “And this is the area where the modeling takes place?”
“Certainement.”
“Was Megan a competent employee?”
“Yes, she did a good job and was reliable. She had great looks and carried herself well. Many of my regular customers asked for her in particular when they wanted outfits modeled.”
“Did she act differently or seem afraid in the days before her tragic death?”
“I did not notice anything like that.”
“Was she friends with the other sales staff?”
“I only had one other sales clerk besides Megan. Angie, the young woman who showed you in just now, is new. And, no, Megan kept to herself.”
“Am I correct in presuming that you’ve lived in the States for many years?”
“Twenty-two, to be exact.”
“Is your husband also French?”
“My Robert was a born American.”
“Was?”
“I became a bride at 20 and a widow at 21.”
“So sorry to hear that.”
Madame Dubois brushed it off with the flip of her hand. “It was long ago. Robert served in the first Gulf War in Operation Desert Storm. Even though there were a relatively small amount of American casualties, Robert was one of the unlucky few killed by enemy fire.”
“The reason I assumed that your spouse was French is because of your name.”
“Oh, I went back to my maiden name when starting Le Monde Fashion. Robert’s name was Nelson.”
“Dubois certainly has a more authentic ring.”
They sat in silence for a moment while Huber reflected on what to ask the lady next. She finally said, “How did you find out about what happened to Megan?”
“Pardon?”
“Did you read it in the paper or did you first learn the news from the police?”
“I knew right away.”
“You mean you were there at the Cubbyhole Theater to watch Megan perform?”
“Not just her. My boyfriend is also one of the actors in the play.”
Huber raised her eyebrows and said, “Oh, who is that?”
Madame Dubois said, “Chad Lindhurst. He is the character Fortitude in the play.”
Then she continued, “When I heard the explosion coming from backstage, I was paralyzed for a moment. As soon as I could move again, I ran there in panic, thinking that my boyfriend might be hurt. There was chaos all around, but I finally spotted Chad and he told me that Megan’s dressing room was completely blown to pieces with her in it.”
“So by coincidence one of your salesclerks and your boyfriend acted on the same stage?”
“It was no coincidence. Chad has belonged to an amateur theater group for years. One day Megan told me that she was taking acting lessons and would like to get experience on stage, so I had Chad put a good word in for her with the director of From Sin to Virtue. She auditioned and got the lead part.”
“Do you have any idea who could have wanted to harm Megan?”
“No, I can’t imagine. Some of the other performers could have been jealous, but surely not to the point of wanting to kill her. She was a bit self-important which was only natural considering her looks and talent.”
“She was talented then?”
“Chad thought so, and I did too.”
Huber could think of nothing else to ask and let the woman resume her window dressing.
Chapter 10
Peter swallowed the last bite of salmon and said, “You’re an excellent cook when you put your mind to it!”
“Meaning my mind is mostly elsewhere?” his spouse replied with a smirk.
Minutes later they lingered over coffee and she said, “I called Andi to keep her posted on the interviews I’ve held so far. Her last final is Wednesday morning and then she’s free to help me with the investigation.”
Peter asked, “So how’s it going?”
“I’ve got some interesting information from the people I’ve seen, but it’s way too early to form an opinion.”
“Tell me about the folks you’ve talked to.”
So she did just that, starting with Amber Pierce and ending with Madame Dubois.
Peter paid keen attention and when she came to a halt in her narrative, he asked, “What is Amber like?”
“If you mean to look at, she has a horse face with a lean body.”
“A horse face?”
“Sure, there are two basic types of human faces; baby faces and horse faces.”
“I learn something new every day! But what I really wanted to know is what kind of a young woman did she strike you as?”
“I got the impression that Amber was not sensitive, but honest. For example, she had no problem telling me of her gripes with Megan. In fact, she was vexed that her roommate had the nerve to die, leaving her with the entire rent check due.”
Peter said, “She seems emotionless.”
“Or extremely clever.”
He gave her a puzzled look but then caught on. “Oh, I see. She might have been using reverse psychology on you.” Then he asked, “What did you think of the Kingsleys?”
“On the surface the old couple was rather sweet. I believe they purchased the Cubbyhole for the love of the performing arts. They’re struggling to keep the place running, though.”
“I thought you said that the play is doing well.”
“From Sin to Virtue seems to be a success, but how long can that last?”
“You’re right, that won’t help them in the long run. What did you mean by ‘On the surface the couple was sweet’? Are you suggesting that they’re a fake?”
“Not really, they just acted a bit strange, but it was probably all in my imagination. For all I know they could have had a fight just before meeting with me and tried to hide