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Margot stood behind the couch, her eyes wide with horror. Her hair was greasy, her face pale. She looked as though she hadn’t slept at all the night before. Josie didn’t blame her. Behind her stood a tall man with a dark, neatly trimmed goatee. He wore khakis and a white polo shirt with WYEP embroidered on the upper left side of his chest. Over it, a name had been stitched in black: Raffy. One of his hands rested on Margot’s shoulder. Soulful brown eyes gazed down at her as she looked on at the spectacle, bewildered. When Raffy noticed Josie and Noah, he leaned closer to Margot and spoke softly. Josie read his lips.The police are here.Tell them.
With that, he nudged her gently forward. Clutching her phone to her chest, she maneuvered around the couch and past the knot of people now staring at Josie and Noah. “Thank you for coming,” she said.
“Who are these people?” said Kathy.
Josie and Noah introduced themselves, providing their credentials for everyone to see. Beau reappeared, suddenly the gracious host, introducing them to the staff, including Liam, who kept his distance. The other people present included two other camera operators: Sean House and Jim Fogle; the person responsible for lighting: Jewell Cartwright; an audio-video technician: Kyle Schwarber; a floor director: Marissa Parker; and two stylists: Cindy Stamm and Stephanie Horvat.
“I’m sorry for what you just witnessed,” Beau said. He sent a sympathetic look in Liam’s direction. “I had the staff come in for an emergency meeting so I could tell them about Claudia myself. As you can see, not all of us are handling it that well. Anyway, I know you two needed to speak to the staff, so feel free—”
Josie looked past him to Margot. “Where’s Eve?”
Beau looked confused. Slowly, he scanned the room. Margot looked at Raffy, who gave her an encouraging smile, and then she stepped forward. “She’s not here.”
Beau shook his head. “No, that’s not right. She was supposed to get coffee and bagels.”
Margot said, “That was hours ago, Beau.”
“No. That’s not possible.”
“Yes it is! She left my apartment around five this morning. You were there!”
There were a couple of murmurs from the rest of the staff. Margot rolled her eyes and addressed the group. “We were freaked out, okay? I mean, Eve and Beau saw Claudia’s body.” She put emphasis on the wordbodyas she panned the faces in the room. From the corner, Liam made a small noise, something between a gasp and a choking sound. Cindy Stamm, the stylist who had picked up his glasses, patted his shoulder.
Beau waved his hands up and down, signaling for his staff to bring down the tension in the room. “I know it sounds odd,” he said. “But we were all very, very upset and traumatized. Eve was a wreck. Margot told her she could stay at her place. I was going to go to a hotel—I don’t know how I can ever go back to that house.” He shuddered, eyes closing briefly before refocusing on everyone surrounding him. “Margot and Eve were kind enough to let me stay as well. I don’t think any of us slept a wink.”
Noah tried to get the conversation back on track. “Was that the last time you two saw Eve? At Margot’s apartment?”
Margot nodded. “She was still awake at five this morning. She said she was going to drive back to her place to shower and get changed. She had already made all the calls to everyone here the night before, letting them know to be here by eight. She said she was going to get bagels and coffee. Not that any of us can eat. I guess it just felt like something to do.”
Josie said, “But she never showed up. No one here has seen her today?”
Some murmured no and others shook their heads.
Josie said, “Does she live alone?”
Margot nodded.
Noah said, “Is she dating anyone? Does she have close friends nearby? Anyone whose house she might have gone to?”
“I don’t know,” Margot said. “I don’t think so.”
Kathy said, “She’s dating someone.”
All heads turned toward her. Beau said, “How do you know?”
Kathy shrugged. “I’ve seen her on her phone when she thinks no one is paying attention, texting away with this smile on her face. That is the look of a woman in love.”
Josie looked around at the stunned faces. “Does anyone know who Eve is seeing?”
Silence.
Noah said, “Did any of you try calling or texting her?”
Margot thrust her phone toward Josie. “I did. Starting around seven, after we got here at six thirty. We called and texted. No answers at all. Not everyone was here yet, so I went over to her apartment. Her car wasn’t there, but she keeps a spare key under the potted plant outside her door and I used it.”
Josie said, “You know where her spare key is, Margot. Do you know of anyone she might be with now?”
Margot shook her head. “No. If I did, I would have called them! That’s why I went to her apartment. I know it’s intrusive to go inside, but I was really worried. I didn’t touch anything. I only wanted to make sure she was okay, but she wasn’t there.”
