Knot Guilty Page 15

Paxton Cline waved at me from the Cline Yarn International booth on the other side of the entrance. Ruby Cline, his grandmother, was bustling around the interior, and I saw her put out a sign that said “Show Specials” next to a display of yarn.

  I was in a hurry to check the Shedd & Royal mini shop. I lifted back the tarps we had covered it with and looked inside. I felt a sense of relief when everything appeared as I’d left it. The “Crochet Spoken Here” banner was still hanging, and the velvet pedestal with the big gold crossed crochet hooks was still intact. Only the blinking colored lights were turned off.

  Seeing them reminded me of Adele and my plan to do some investigating before the show opened.

  “Everything okay with your stuff?” Thea Scott had come across from her booth and stopped next to me. She must have seen me checking things over. I nodded and let out a sigh of relief.

  “I was pretty sure it would be, but after what happened, who knows.” I glanced over at her booth. It seemed ready for business and she assured me everything was fine. She pulled her filmy, toast-colored mohair shawl around her shoulders and tied the ends together.

  “I’d really like to know what happened, though I suppose we’ll never know. The cops dropped it and the manager isn’t going to tell anything he knows. Any ideas?”

  “Someone could have tried to take the knitting needles because of their value. They’re worth $3,500. Or maybe the person wanted them but couldn’t afford to bid on them.” Thea looked toward the administration table. “But if you want to know what I think—” The store manager held up her hand to shield that she was pointing at Audrey, who was leaning against the long table holding some pink knitting in her hand. Mason was standing a discreet distance away.

  “Why would she steal them? She’s already paid for them,” I said, watching the actress and Mason do something.

  “She might think that getting rid of the evidence would make sure the charges got dropped. I think she’d do anything to keep out of jail. Anything,” Thea said. “In case there are any second thoughts about pressing charges.” Thea explained the charges couldn’t be officially dropped until the lawyers for K.D.’s estate determined who was in control.

  I brought up that I’d heard K.D. was supposed to be making some big announcement at the show. Thea wanted to know who I’d heard it from. “I worked for the woman, managed her yarn shop and she didn’t say anything to me about any sort of announcement. Well, things are going to change for sure now. I wonder how it’s going to affect me.”

  She glanced toward the administration table again as someone came up to Audrey and showed off something they’d knitted. “That’s sure a joke,” Thea said.

  “What do you mean?”

  Thea looked at me and rolled her eyes. “She’s putting on this act like she’s some kind of hotshot knitter.” Thea laughed. “As if any of the regulars who come to the studio are. It’s the in thing now for celebs and the Beverly Hills and Westside crowd. You should see the money they spend on yarn. And those needle sets.”

  “What did they make with all that fancy stuff?” I was just curious now.

  Thea laughed. “It’s more like what they claimed they’d made. The arrangement was that if they bought the yarn from us, they could be part of the regular group that met at the store and we’d help them with their projects. It was more like we made them for them. We had to keep them working on simple things like scarves and fingerless gloves to keep our sanity. Then K.D. had this idea they should make scarves for a homeless shelter, and they all picked out ridiculous, impractical yarns.”

  I was surprised at how hostile she sounded toward the customers. “The truth is,” Thea continued, “the yarn that Julie slipped in would have been much more practical. That stuff lasts like iron.”

  I told Thea I’d seen the same woman have a problem with K.D. again right before she was murdered.

  “Am I glad to see you,” I said as Dinah joined me in the booth and gave me a hello hug. As soon as I’d gotten back inside, I’d started making some more packets of thread and beads for the granny square pins with the supplies I’d picked up. “And thank you for this,” I said, holding out the pendant that had hidden edges for cutting the thread.

  She put down her things and started to help me. When I offered to share the pendant, she showed me she had one of her own. The doors were set to open soon and I wanted to get everything ready to go. “I don’t know what I would do without you. It’s my job to be here, but it’s from the goodness of your heart that you are. And the help with the pins is the cherry on the sundae.”

  “Are you kidding, spending time with all these yarn people, surrounded by yarn and with my Hooker friends? You couldn’t keep me away,” Dinah said. She finished several packets and dropped them in a plastic container.

  “I don’t know what happened to Adele. I thought she’d be here by now,” I said. “Where is she?”

  “You don’t think she got arrested?” Dinah said. “It sounds like she is the main suspect.”

  “It’s funny you should mention that,” I said. “I made a deal with Barry about just that.” Dinah’s eyes widened as I continued. “He promised not to arrest her until the show is over.”

  “When exactly did you make that deal and what did you have to do to get it?”

  “It’s not what you’re thinking,” I said, rolling my eyes. “You don’t really think I’d offer myself as some kind of bribe.”

  Dinah pretended to think about it for a moment and then laughed and shook her head. “Of course not.” She wanted to know all the details.

  I explained that I’d asked him over and basically pleaded with him to wait. “No matter what Barry says, I think he has his doubts, anyway. C’mon, it’s Adele we’re talking about.”

  “Right, right,” Dinah said quickly. “So what happened when he left?” I knew she meant how did we say good-bye. She knew about all the ups and downs of our relationship and how he had taken himself out of the picture.

  “Nothing. Not even a handshake or pat on the shoulder. He was strictly homicide detective Barry following up on a lead.”

  “Whatever you say,” Dinah said.

  “It’s over. It really is this time. I only contacted him because of Adele.” I hoped it didn’t sound like I was protesting too much. But it really was over between us, and we both had moved on. I was glad that Dinah let it go, and we went back to talking about Adele and what Barry had that pointed toward her guilt.

  “He said our booth neighbor had overheard Adele fussing about K.D. and saying that she was going to talk to her and straighten things out about the banner and the crochet logo. Adele is insisting she didn’t really go to K.D.’s room, but that hook got there somehow.” Dinah began to set out the hooks and needles that we let the people making pins use.

  “Do you think Adele might be lying about going up to the suite?” Dinah said.

  “I suppose she could be. Maybe the whole thing about not knowing where her hook was is just a charade. She could think that denying she was even in the room is the best policy. You never know what Adele will do. In any case, I figured out that if I could establish that the hook was there when K.D. was still alive, it would make the evidence irrelevant.”

  “Didn’t you say K.D. drank champagne and took a bubble bath? I wonder if the champagne was waiting for her or if room service delivered it.”

  “You are such a good Watson,” I said to my friend, giving her an impromptu thank-you hug. “It was delivered.” I remembered the conversation I’d had with Rain. “The woman who thought we were in her spot told me she saw the waiter arrive with the champagne when she was leaving K.D.’s room.” I thought back to what Barry had said. “And Barry talked to the waiter and K.D. signed for the bottle, so she was definitely alive then. I wonder if he’d remember seeing a hook on the table?” I shook my head in answer to my own question. “Probably not. But that woman, Rain, was
in the room. She works with yarn and I bet she would have noticed the hook.”

  I looked out at the aisle and saw that the few people going by were wearing badges, which meant they were vendors. “I was hoping to do a little investigating this morning, and they haven’t opened the doors yet. I’m going to go talk to Rain.” I paused and looked at my friend. “That is if you don’t mind keeping an eye on things here?”

  Dinah laughed. “You’re talking to a community college instructor who is used to being in front of a class of immature freshmen. Watching an empty booth is a snap. Go on.” She waved her hands at me, urging me to go.

  I remembered the new location of Rain’s booth. When I approached it, I saw that she’d made some adjustments to it. The space was more defined with curtained panels on the side and a white picket fence along the front. She appeared to have just arrived. I was still working on my story as I got closer. Maybe the cops could be direct with their questions, but I’d found that didn’t work for me. Whenever I’d tried, I’d gotten weird looks and questions about why I was asking. I needed to blend my questions into some kind of conversation.

  Rain looked up and greeted me with a friendly hello. I glanced over the racks of knitted items. There seemed to be less than when I’d been there before. “It looks like you’re doing well.”

  “Not bad,” she said. She began straightening the pieces she had piled on some wire shelves on a table at the back of the small area. To break the ice I began to ask her about how she decided what items to bring.

  “After all the years, I’ve got it down.” She showed me that she had shawls folded and stacked on the shelves. A sample done in gray yarn was draped around a half torso in the middle of the table. She explained she had refined it down to bringing just six designs, a short vest, a long vest, a short jacket, a long jacket that was more like a coat, a poncho and a shawl. As she talked she took a short gray vest and put it on the first dress form, then a long blue vest on the next one. A long coat went on the dress form on the side. She shook a wrinkle out of the poncho before she put it on the dress form in the middle. “And I’ll wear this,” she said, picking up a gray jacket off the end of the rack. “I keep rotating the samples between the displays and me,” she said with a smile.

  She took off her own blue jacket and stowed it along with her purse behind the curtain hanging off the back table before putting on the knitted garment and then doing a model swirl to show it off. As she did one of the buttons fell to the ground. I rushed to pick it up and handed it to her.

  “That’s why I have samples. Let them get the wear and tear,” she said. She took out a tote bag and searched through it until she found a needle and some thin yarn. She had the button sewn back on in no time. All this was very informative, but I needed to direct the conversation to what I wanted to find out.

  And worse, when she finished with the button, it was clear she expected me to leave.

  “Did you want something?” she asked finally when I didn’t move on.

  “My friend and I were here before, and she admired a shawl and her birthday is coming up.” Dinah would be pleased. She was acting like my Watson and she wasn’t even there. Dinah had liked something in the booth, but in all honesty I didn’t even remember what it was. And her birthday was coming up. It was sort of true. August could be considered coming up, coming way up since it was only January. Sensing a possible sale, Rain was very solicitous and asked if there was a particular color I wanted.

  I glanced at the sample quickly. “She liked that one.”

  “The gray pieces are all samples, but I think I might have brought one shawl in a shade close to that color,” Rain said. She went through the pile and then, acting like I’d just won the lottery, pulled out a lighter gray shawl. She went into asking for the order mode, and I stalled by asking about the yarn.

  “I use only the best quality. It’s a bit of investment, but that’s why I get a good price.” I stalled more by asking about the time involved in making them and how she managed to make them so uniform.

  “Experience,” she said. An edge was starting to appear in her answers. She kept looking toward the doors, which would open any minute. She very subtly held it out toward me and then reminded me that there was only one of them and Saturday was the biggest day.

  Segueing into the hook wasn’t easy, and since I was running out of time I had to wing it. I pointed toward the fringe on the end of the shawls.

  “Have you ever thought about adding a crochet edging instead?” I didn’t wait for an answer. “You could use one of the bigger crochet hooks that are popular.” I looked at her directly. “If you don’t know how to crochet, I’m sure Adele would be glad to show you.”

  “You mean the woman who didn’t want to let me leave the dress form?” When I nodded, Rain shook her head. “I don’t think that would work, but thanks for the offer.”

  She held the shawl out again. “Shall I wrap it up for you?”

  She had me in a corner. “Silly me,” I said, looking down and pretending to be surprised that I didn’t have my purse. She offered to hold it until I came back, reminding me that there wasn’t another.

  “What about the sample?” I said.

  “I don’t usually sell them,” she said. “But if you wait until the end of the show I could give it to you for a discount.” I was just trying to get out of there without buying anything, but she thought I was negotiating.

  I was definitely running out of time to talk to her. It was now or never. I had a plan that might work.

  “It’s amazing how everybody is just going on about their business around here,” I said, trying to sound annoyed. Rain was still holding out the shawl, and I finally said I wanted to make sure my friend would be happy with it. I noticed she cooled quickly after I said that.

  “You knew K.D. pretty well, didn’t you?” I said, trying to keep my voice calm, like I didn’t know that she was trying to get me to leave. “Don’t you think that putting a wreath in the front of the vendor area is a pretty lame tribute?”

  Rain put away the shawl. “K.D. and I had a professional relationship. I hadn’t really thought about the wreath, but now that you mention it, it does seem a little lame.”

  “Didn’t you say you went up to her suite?”

  “Well, yeah, I knew there had been a mix-up with my booth, and I thought the best way to straighten it out was to go talk to her.”

  “So then you were actually in the suite,” I said. Rain nodded and glanced toward the double doors that were still closed, but even here we could hear the din of the crowd waiting to get in.

  “You probably heard that I’m the one who found her. I did my best to look around at things. You know, so when the cops talked to me, I could tell them about anything I saw.”

  “That sounds like a good idea,” Rain said in a dismissive tone. “They’re about to open the doors. I’m sure you want to get back to your booth.”

  She was definitely showing me the door this time, but I’d come so far and I didn’t want to have to start from scratch with her again. Just a few more minutes and I’d ask her about the hook so naturally she wouldn’t even notice.

  I did the politician thing and merely ignored her comment and continued on. “You know, personally, I was kind of surprised. All that talk K.D. did about knitting like it was the only yarn craft that mattered and then to see that thing on the coffee table in the living room of the suite.” I looked at her. “You must have seen it.”

  Rain seemed puzzled. “Must have seen what?”

  “What was on the coffee table when you were there?” I said.

  “I don’t know. There was some stuff. Some copies of the magazine, I think.”

  I didn’t want to ask her directly about the hook. I was hoping she would volunteer the information, but she was not cooperating and I had no choice but to be direct. “You must have seen the crochet hook. It was bi
g and made out of wood.”

  “Crochet hook? K.D. Kirby with a big crochet hook? I certainly didn’t see one.” Rain laughed at the absurdity of it.

  I didn’t have to worry about trying to hide my disappointment at her answer. She was instantly distracted as the doors opened and the crowd surged in. I don’t think she even noticed when I left.

  I’d barely taken a few steps when I heard Delvin on the microphone announcing the beginning of the day’s programs. Rain’s booth was on the front end of the last aisle, and the open area with the stage and catwalk was just beyond. I stopped to watch. Delvin had walked to the end of the catwalk and had a handheld microphone. I suppose a headset version would have interfered with his hat. A smattering of people had gathered around the end of the long, narrow walkway. He directed his comments at them as he reeled off the morning’s schedule and listed the knitting classes that still had room for last-minute sign-ups.

  “And in case you’re new to the show, we’ve added crochet classes this year. I know you’ve all heard of our celebrity crocheter CeeCee Collins.” She joined him then, and he put his arm around her as though she were some kind of treasure. I was sure that CeeCee was glad that instead of talking about how long her career had been and calling her a veteran actor, which was another way of saying old, he went right to her current work. “Not only is she the host of the reality show Making Amends, but she costarred in Caught by a Kiss, the first in the Anthony the Vampire movies. Incidentally, Anthony is a crocheter. Fingers crossed that when the Oscar nominations come out later in the month, CeeCee’s name will be on the list.” He looked over the crowd with a bright expression. “She is the leader of a local group, the Tarzana Hookers.” He paused to let the usual response of laughter over the name go through the crowd. “The group focuses on making items to give away, either to charity sales to raise money or directly to those who benefit.” There was no loud whoop when he said that CeeCee was the head of our group, so I was sure Adele was still AWOL. No way would she have let that pass without some kind of noise.