Part 21 (2/2)
”Hagan disqualified her and Zippy for suspicion of cheating and had security physically remove her,” I explained, more than eager to share what I knew. ”Oh. If Gia did kill her husband, and now the filmmaker, someone might want to keep an eye on Hagan Stone. Gia was none too pleased that he disqualified Zippy. She vowed to get even with him.”
Malone sighed. ”You just can't help yourself, can you?”
I smiled. ”Not really.”
”Find Betty. I'll have my team look for Gia.” He stalked off.
I elbowed Darby. ”You heard the man. Let's find Betty.”
Chapter Twenty-Four.
”WHAT DO YOU make of all this?” Darby asked as we hustled through the park searching for Betty.
It wasn't lost on me that recently I'd spent an inordinate amount of time looking for Betty. Seriously, what could possibly require her to disappear at the most inconvenient time? I realized there was a lot about Betty that I a.s.sumed I knew.
I readjusted my backpack. ”I'll admit, I thought there was something fishy going on. I mean, she should have been everywhere filming. I didn't think it was because someone had killed her. This whole thing doesn't make sense.”
”Do you think the two murders are related?”
I slid Darby a sly look. ”Are you poking your nose in Malone's investigation?”
My buddy's face blossomed into an attractive shade of pink. ”I was just curious. I know you're thinking about it.”
I laughed in delight that I was slowly pulling kindhearted Darby to the dark side. ”Gia could be the killer. She had every reason to shoot her unfaithful husband. And we know Stephanie recorded Gia's threats.” I grimaced. ”I even told Gia that the video could be used against her.”
”Her bad choices are not your fault.” Darby adjusted her messenger bag. ”At least we know where Betty's gun is.”
The whole situation with Betty's gun was like a nightmare come to life. Why did Betty have to bring it to the race in the first place? Talk about bad choices. Sheesh. By now we'd covered the entire food area. We made our way back toward the racetrack.
”Like Malone said, that's not necessarily good. With Stephanie dead, all Malone has is Betty's word that Stephanie took her gun. And what if that gun was used to kill Richard and Stephanie? I'm not convinced this is good news for Betty. You've seen her. You can't tell me you didn't notice the red marks on the lower part of her neck.”
Darby shuddered. ”I'm trying not to think about it. I'm scared for her.”
I was sure this whole situation stirred up unwanted memories for her. I stopped. Darby stopped next to me with a questioning gaze. I rested my hand gently on her arm. ”Look, I totally understand if you need to sit this one out. I can look for Betty on my own.”
She shook her head with a great deal of determination. ”No way. You helped me when I was in trouble. The least I can do is help Betty.”
I was all about paying it forward. But there was a big difference between settling the bill for the people behind you in the drive-up and purposely poking around in an active murder investigation.
We started walking again. I wondered where Gia was hiding and if she'd heard about Stephanie. Apparently, Darby was also thinking about Zippy's owner.
”Do you think Gia left for home once she was kicked out of the compet.i.tion?” she asked.
”Not a chance. She's already proven she doesn't handle public humiliation well,” I said, referring to her brawl with Fallon.
”Hey,” Darby gasped in surprise. ”Is that Betty?”
I turned in the direction Darby had pointed. Sure enough, there was Betty in her ugly polyester slacks and oversized T-s.h.i.+rt sneaking off toward the street where she'd parked her Mini Cooper.
This was it. I was about to catch her in the middle of her disappearing act. ”I'll be back.”
”Wait. What are you going to do?”
”Malone said to find her. Well, we did. Now it's time to follow her. She's not as sneaky as the thinks she is. Besides, it's better if I find out what she's hiding than Judd Malone. He has no misgivings about tossing people in jail. Not even the grandmotherly type.” I sprinted toward the parking lot where I'd left the Jeep.
Darby chased after me. ”Hold on. I'm coming.”
We had to run past the crime scene to reach the parking lot. I caught Malone off to the side talking to one of his officers. His head jerked in our direction as we darted past. I refused to make eye contact, worried he might order us to stop.
As soon as we reached the Jeep, I asked Darby, ”Are you sure? You're the official photographer. The big race will start soon.”
Darby opened the door and gently set her bag behind the pa.s.senger seat. ”You're wasting time with all that talking.”
A big Texas grin spread across my mouth. ”I love it when you talk dirty.”
I opened my door and shoved my backpack behind my seat. We scrambled inside and slammed the doors. I yanked my cell from my pocket and tossed it into the cup holder, then shoved my key into the ignition. The engine made a sad ”wrrrr” sound, refusing to start.
”Seriously? Now?” I tried again. It still wouldn't start. I pounded the steering wheel. ”Argh. What's the deal?”
”Come on. We'll take my car. I'm parked a couple of rows behind you.”
We jumped out of my Jeep and grabbed our bags. I followed Darby to her blue Fiesta. We piled in and fastened our seatbelts.
”Betty's not the best driver,” I warned.
”That doesn't surprise me,” she muttered.
Thankfully, Darby's car started on the first try. She s.h.i.+fted into reverse, but the car didn't move.
”What are you waiting for? She's getting away.” My voice rose in frustration. I motioned toward the direction where Betty had somehow managed to hop the curb as she sped off. Lordy, she was a horrible driver.
”Over there.” Darby pointed toward a row of port-a-potties. ”Is that Gia and Zippy next to the black SUV?”
Gia had changed into a pair of jeans and red halter top. Her hair was still in a ponytail, but at least she'd brushed it at some point. I wondered where she'd changed her clothes. She didn't strike me as the type to change clothes in her vehicle.
She had her back to us. It was hard to tell for sure from where we were parked, but it looked like she was loading Zippy into his car seat. ”There's no way she's talked to Malone yet.”
”Do you think she knows about Stephanie?”
”Honestly, I think she killed her husband. I wouldn't put it past her to kill the one person who recorded her las.h.i.+ng out in anger.”
Darby's thumbs beat out an anxious rhythm on the steering wheel. ”We need to choose. Do we follow Betty or Gia?”
”Gia,” we said simultaneously.
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