Kate stepped back. “Okay. I’ll steal food from Mrs. Aiken and find Chris.”
Sara glanced over her shoulder at Byon, who was glowering for her to quit talking and get back to work. She leaned forward and whispered, “Take Nicky’s tux to him. I think it’ll fit.” Sara gave Kate a knowing look, then shut the door.
Kate stood there for a moment, as the realization dawned on her.
Twenty minutes later, she had a basket full of food—Mrs. Aiken prepared it when Kate told her it was for the man who was going to play Nicky—and a tuxedo in a garment bag. She did her best to stay out of sight of everyone as she hurried to the gatehouse to find Chris. They sat outside and ate, and she told him everything she knew—and the two of them conjectured on what they didn’t know.
Twenty-Four
Just after five, Jack arrived in one of the little work trucks in a flurry of gravel and dirt. He was carrying two sealed brown envelopes.
Chris and Kate were sitting outside, the lunch basket nearby.
Jack handed them the envelopes. “Read your parts and memorize your lines. Get to the house at six thirty.” He looked at Chris. “Wear your tux.”
“I need to get dressed,” Kate said. “There isn’t enough time for me to memorize anything.”
Jack pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. “Nadine isn’t seen until Act Five. And by then, I’m dead.”
“Who killed you?” she asked. “I mean, killed Sean?”
“You think I was told that?” He looked at Chris. “Your script is fat. I think you have a lot to do.”
“I’ll help you with your lines,” Kate said. “We can—”
“No!” Jack said. “Orders from Queen Sara and Byon, the Court Musician. No one is to read anyone else’s script.” He looked at Kate. “Stay or go?”
She got in the truck beside him and looked at Chris. “You’ll be okay?”
Jack snorted. “Do you mean can he dress himself, read and walk all the way to the house by himself?”
“Stop being a jerk,” Kate said.
“I’m in character. Poor ol’ Sean dies tonight.” Jack turned the truck around, gave a thumbs-up to Chris and drove as fast as the vehicle would go back to the house.
Kate ran upstairs to her room, flopped down on the bed and began reading her pages as Nadine. In the first part she was in the bathroom. Pregnancy made her throw up. “A fun part to play,” Kate said.
As she turned the pages, her eyes widened. What happened after Nadine discovered that Sean was gone fascinated her. It called for her to retrieve something that might or might not still be there.
She looked at her watch. Maybe she had enough time to do a little preplay searching. When she got off the bed, she saw the note that had been slipped under the door between hers and Jack’s room.
Sara said you can’t go and look. jack
Kate laughed. It was bad and good to be known so well.
She began to get ready for the evening in the beautiful green dress. It was going to be very interesting to watch the others when they saw Chris for the first time.
* * *
Try as she might, Kate didn’t get downstairs until nearly everyone was there, including Jack. He was in his tux and drinking a beer. She went to him. “Shouldn’t you be in the stables? And in jeans?”
“I’m part of the audience until Act Two.” He was looking at Chris, who was standing close to Teddy. She did indeed have on a very short minidress. If she sneezed, she’d be eligible for a porno.
“How’d they react when they saw him?” Kate asked.
“So you knew who he looked like, but you didn’t tell me?”
“I only found out a few hours ago. I saw a photo of Nicky, and Chris looks just like him.” She was watching the others sneaking glances at Chris.
“I think we have a hint as to why she ran away, but I hope I’m wrong. She must have—” He stopped when Willa came in, her arm entwined with that of a handsome man.
“Your parents have arrived,” Jack said.
“I didn’t tell her you said that.” Kate put down her drink. “By the way, I think he’s a possibility as the killer.” She walked away.
“At least it wasn’t me,” Jack said, but she didn’t look back.
To Byon’s dismay, only a cold buffet supper was served, but he did like that Sara allowed him to tell everyone their parts. He handed out a paper telling where each act would be staged and who the actors would be. “I will be reading the narrative bits. The actors not in the lights—and our thanks to Jack and Clive for their luminous job—are to stay to the side. You are not to get between the camera and the players. As in any theater, the audience is to remain quiet. However, at the end of each act, applause is appreciated.”
Byon looked at Diana, his face sad. “Please forgive us for what we now know.” He raised his glass. “Break your legs, my darlings.”
Twenty-Five
ACT ONE
SCENE ONE
THE DRAWING ROOM AT
OXLEY MANOR WITH MOVE TO TERRACE
“Where is everyone?” Nicky asked. He was lazily slouched in the ratty old chair that no one else dared sit in.
“Willa is looking for Clive,” Byon said.
“She is always looking for him. What is new?”
“Ah, the eternal search,” Byon said. “Something new and different to entertain us. To make us sure that we actually exist.”
Nicky didn’t reply but went outside. He staggered a bit as they’d all had far too much to drink. “The last night,” he said when Byon was standing beside him. But then, Byon was always nearby, always seeking more of Nicky than he wanted to give.
“It is a beautiful place,” Byon said softly, looking out over what could be seen of Oxley Manor in the dark. But they knew what was out there. “It will be yours soon.”
“The weight of it all will be mine,” Nicky said. “And I am charged with looking after it and keeping it whole. Already, my ancestors look down on me.” He raised his glass to the heavens. “They see a failure.”
“You’ll have Diana,” Byon said.
“Oh yes, the wondrous Diana. Common as dirt, smart as a...a farmer.”
He and Byon exchanged little laughs.
“We all do what we must,” Byon said.