enough. Ms. Betham is just furthering her troubles by going to the police. Miss Brecht is not expected in today, but if you give me your card, I’ll give it to her and she can forward your name to our lawyers. I’m sure they will educate you.”
Marge sat, thought a moment before she spoke. “Do you know where Miss Brecht is?”
“She checks in with us frequently. I assure you she’ll get the card.”
“Did she check in with you today?”
Kelley hesitated, her eyes suddenly thoughtful. “I’ll forward your card. Now if you’ll excuse—”
“Was Miss Brecht expected to come in today?”
“What difference does it make? She won’t talk to you without advice of an attorney—”
“I’m not interested in talking to Miss Brecht, Kelley. I only want to know if Miss Brecht was expected to come in today. Or did she take the day off?”
Kelley bit her lip. “You’re asking strange questions.”
“On the contrary, they’re not strange questions. They’re just not the ones you expected. So keep things simple and answer them.”
Kelley paused. “Miss Brecht took the day off.”
“Is that unusual?”
“Not at all. She frequently takes Wednesdays off. She experiments with new recipes for the kitchen. What’s this all about, anyway?”
“She hasn’t called in, has she?”
“No, she hasn’t.”
“Then you probably don’t know.”
“Know what?”
“Miss Brecht was attacked last night—”
“My God!” Kelley’s hand went to her throat. “Who … Is she all right?”
“She’s going to be okay. She was beaten. She’s in the hospital now, but she’s conscious. I need a guest and employee list—everyone who was on the grounds last night. Especially the men.”
Kelley covered her mouth and shook her head. “This is outrag … God, I’m shocked. This is horrible. Does her mother—?”
“We’ll take care of her mother, Kelley. I’m requesting that you don’t talk to anyone about it.”
“Of course. How about Frederick? Does he know? Frederick’s her brother.”
“He’s being contacted.”
“I don’t know what to say …” Kelley said. “I’m …”
“Were you here last night?”
“Of course. I live on the premises.”
“Then you know who else was here last night. I’ll need that list as soon as possible.”
“You don’t suspect any of the guests—”
“We’ll be as discreet as we possibly can.”
“Where is Miss Brecht?” Kelley said. “Can I call her?”
“My partner is going to talk to her soon. I’ll tell him you’d like to speak with Miss Brecht. Back to the list, Kelley. I’m especially interested in the men who work here—cooks, janitors, handymen, teachers. Do you have male instructors?”
“Just Eubie Jeffers and my broth—Oh, you can’t possibly think they had anything to do with Lilah.”
“What kind of suit is this Ms. Betham involved with?”
Kelley wrinkled her forehead. “Ms. Betham is a psychotic old witch. She actually had the audacity to claim that … that one of the men who works here made a pass at her.”
“Which one?”
“The whole suit is ridicu—”
“Which man?” Marge pushed.
Kelley hesitated, then said, “My brother, Mike. If you knew my brother, you’d know how inane the suit is. I shouldn’t be telling you this, but since you’re not investigating that … she was the one who made a pass at my brother. And when he refused, she became vicious. We have none of that kind of nonsense in Valley Canyon Spa. Most of our clients have been referred to us by former clients. She was what we call a ‘walk-in.’ They’re always the ones who give us the most problems.”
“Was your brother, Mike, here last night?” Marge asked.
Kelley’s eyes narrowed. “What are you saying?”
“I’m not saying anything. I’m not even suggesting anything, Kelley, I’m simply asking. Was your brother on the premises last night?”
“He lives here.”
“Your brother often visits Miss Brecht’s house, doesn’t he?”
“No, he doesn’t often visit Miss Brecht’s house!”
“I mean to pick vegetables from the garden, maybe fix the sink … that kind of thing.”
“Oh …” Kelley relaxed her shoulders. “Yes. Lilah does send him on errands for her. That should show you how much she trusts him.”
Marge remained casual. “You want to start compiling that list, I’ll look around the grounds, get my bearings. You don’t mind, do you?”
Kelley had turned pale. “I’m not sure I should do anything without Ms. Brecht’s say-so.”
“Ms. Ness, why aren’t you jumping to help out? Your employer was attacked, beaten. Don’t you want to find who did it?”
“Of course I do! It’s just such a shock—My God, this is unbelievable!”
Marge stood, slung her purse over her shoulder. “You know the best thing to do when you’ve been jolted by something like this? You do something concrete. Like make a list. The little details always bring you back to earth. Believe me, I know what I’m talking about.”
“I guess—”
“I’ll be wandering around,” Marge said. “Page me when you have the list.”
“Detective!” Kelley blurted out. “Detective, no offense, but I don’t want to scare the women by having the police nose around.”
“I understand completely. I guarantee you, I won’t be disruptive.” Marge winked. “Hey, I’ll grab myself a guava juice and blend in with the crowd.”
5
The group had begun the cool-down portion of the workout when
