Smile And Say Murder [On Hold]

C h a p t e r T h r e e

Dedicated to dimplesncheeks for the wonderful cover.

I KNOW THAT MY UPDATING SCHEDULE IS VERY IRREGULAR BUT SINCE WE'RE HAVING OUR WINTER BREAK, I'M TRYING TO MAKE GOOD USE OF IT SINCE I WILL BE VERY VERY VERRRRY BUSY WHEN SCHOOL REOPENS. HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS CHAPTER! :)

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Blue stared down at the broken glass which littered Yvonne's carpet, then rested her gaze on the red-faced, trembling Brian. Wow, she thought, he really is dangerous! His anger was truly frightening. Without another word, Brian turned on his heel and strode out of Yvonne's office.

For a moment, the publisher stared blankly at the smashed crystal. Blue almost thought she was going to break down and cry. But then a look of gloating satisfaction stole across Yvonne's face. "You see?" she said. "He doesn't have a hold on himself. Half the time I have a feeling he's about to throw me across the room like that."

"That was quite a display of anger," Blue agreed cautiously. She picked up a piece of glass and studied it, thinking. It certainly looked as though Yvonne were in danger. But what about Blue herself? It seemed to her that Brian could easily turn his fury on anybody who was near him. And since Yvonne had so thoughtfully made Blue his assistant, she was going to be near him quite a bit.

But there was something else. Brian's anger hadn't been unprovoked. Yvonne had goaded him into it. And the nasty comments had come as much from Yvonne as from Brian. The case was complicated, more complicated than Yvonne was making it seem.

"I'd like to make a phone call," Blue finally said, remembering that her cellphone was dead.

"Oh, please, use my telephone," Yvonne offered.

"Uh, no," Blue replied, trying to think up an excuse quickly. It was never a good idea to talk about a case in front of anyone who was involved — even the person who'd hired you. "You need to clean up here," she said. "I'll use another phone." Blue got to her feet and scooped her bag off the couch.

"Okay," Yvonne answered. "Brian's going to be starting a photo session pretty soon. We're doing an article on Danielle Artman— you know, the lead singer from that new all-girl rock band, Spiders?"

"Hey, great!" Blue said enthusiastically, suddenly remembering that Flash had a lot more to offer than just the promise of an interesting mystery. "Their single is terrific."

"Well, as Brian's assistant, and as a detective gathering information about a man set on murder, you should be there. So why don't you wait for Brian in the photo studio when you're done with your call?"

"Okay." Blue nodded.

"And make sure you check in with me often so we can talk about the case." Yvonne began picking up the larger pieces of broken glass.

Blue hurried out of the office. She rushed past the receptionist and caught the elevator to the ground floor. She found a pay phone and dialled Leo Andersen's number.

Leo's going to be really upset, she told herself. Still, she couldn't help smiling at the thought of her handsome, longtime boyfriend. Leo was too much in love with her to stay mad for more than a few minutes. No doubt about it, she was lucky to have such an understanding guy.

The phone rang twice before Blue heard Leo say, "Hello?" His deep and sexy voice sent chills down her back.

"Leo, hey it's me. And you'll never guess what's up," Blue said excitedly into the receiver.

"Wait, don't tell me. You're on to another mystery."

"Yes! How did you guess? This time, it looks really serious — maybe even dangerous. I might need your help!" Quickly she recapped the scene in Yvonne's office.