Page 20 of For Better or for Ransom

“We’ve been told Leonardo’s situation could be attributed to his workload,” Divya tentatively said, and Luke was grateful her partner had taken over. He hoped she had more success with Penny than he had.

“I don’t follow,” Penny said, and of course she didn’t follow. But then again, the publicist had been the one to impose the use of euphemisms.

“From what we know, Leonardo’s been working back-to-back and may just be taking some time off,” Divya continued.

“I’m afraid I still don’t follow.”

Once they were back in London, Luke needed to buy Divya a beer or two—maybe even dinner. Talking to Penny Carr was an art form. The only good thing about the whole situation was that Sol was having a blast. There was nothing the woman liked more than getting involved in one of his investigations and making fun of the extreme singularities of the people in the Hollywood industry. If she could mix the two of them—she was ecstatic.

Divya breathed deeply. “Leonardo’s disappearance has been described to us as some sort of possible stunt so that he could get a couple of days off in between jobs.”

“Who told you that?” Penny’s voice rose.

“Penny, you’re not talking to the media here. This conversation won’t leak. We’re just trying to find Leonardo,” Divya said. If there was something Luke knew, it was that Divya would not give the publicist Moon’s name. Plus the whole thing was a bit paradoxical considering Sol was listening in, but they could trust her. She wasn’t there for the journalistic thrill, she was there for the mystery. “Has Leonardo ever pulled a stunt like this before?”

“He’s never pulled any stunts.” Indignation crept into the publicist’s voice.

Sol scrawled something on a piece of paper and passed it to Divya. The detective read, then asked: “Could you tell us what happened last year during Leonardo’s performance of The Bath of Oedipus in London? There were reports of him skipping a couple of the nights because he was hungover.”

“Journalists are the worst conniving leeches!” For the first time during their chat, Penny’s words rang unfiltered. Her next words were back at her usual composure. “Please don’t tell them I said that! I still have to work with journalists.”

Luke’s smile was smug. He winked at Sol. “We won’t.”

“But Leonardo wasn’t hungover, he just had the flu,” Penny explained. “So of course he missed a couple of nights of performances. He’d have put the whole cast at risk, not to mention he was feeling utterly miserable.”

Sol’s gaze drifted upward. She scribbled something else, and passed the note again to Divya.

“What can you tell us about Bibliophilia?” Divya asked.

“For a couple of PIs, you guys sure read the trades,” Penny grumbled.

Luke chuckled. If only the publicist knew.

“Bibliophilia was supposed to be Leonardo’s next project.” A snap of frustration cut through the publicist’s words.

“But it isn’t?”

“Leonardo signed in for the project but writing and pre-production took a lot longer than we anticipated. They were supposed to start shooting a few months ago, but repeated postponements kept delaying things. They say they’re ready to start shooting now. But Leonardo had to exit the project because he had previous engagements for the new shooting dates. As I’m sure you know, because they hired you, he’s doing the Meshflixx show in London instead of Bibliophilia. Listen, this happens all the time,” Penny said.

The two detectives looked at Sol. She nodded in agreement.

“Do you have any idea of where Leonardo could be?” It was Luke’s turn to ask.

“Even if I knew I probably wouldn’t tell you. But I’m afraid I have no idea—for real,” Penny said. She was obviously worried about Leonardo.

“Did he know anyone in Spain? A friend he could have wanted to spend a couple of days with perhaps?”

“As far as I know, he only knew the people at El baño de Edipo. But it’s not like he tells me everything. He’s quite the private person, understandably.”

“What do you mean?” Luke pressed.

“Stardom is a very lonely quality.” The publicist’s words seemed to carry more candidness than before. “Even if I’ve worked with him for a couple of years, I can hardly know what he feels, can I? I’m not chased for autographs and pictures everywhere I go—and fandom is certainly getting a bit intense around Leonardo. People don’t obsess over my love life—or the apparent lack of it. But they do about his.”

“Do you think he may have been tired of stardom and perhaps is seeking some alone time away from the spotlight?” Divya asked exactly what Luke was wondering.

Penny sighed at the other end of the line. “See, this is why I prefer to give vague answers. The moment you give someone a more concrete one, you guys invariably latch on to that. No, I don’t think he was feeling any pressure and is now on some island sipping margaritas and lounging by the pool, if that’s what you were implying. Leonardo has been working extremely hard toward this his whole life. He’s finally able to choose his projects and do things that truly inspire him. He’s not going to throw everything away just because he felt overwhelmed!”

“What can you tell us about Leonardo’s family?” Luke asked. It was always delicate to inquire about someone’s family when they were missing. But then again, they needed to cover all the angles if they wanted to find the missing actor.