Viva set down her tanned leather tote bag, deciding to finish the conversation with Murray Dean’s assistant there at her parents’ place, instead of outside amid steadily dipping temps.
“What’s he riled up over?” Viva asked once she’d slipped into the Hails’ spacious laundry room. She heard Arty’s dramatic sigh—one she’d heard the aspiring actress deliver on countless occasions. Arty had perfected the gesture over the years and it’d become difficult to tell whether the sigh meant true distress or only mild irritation.
“Well, if you don’t know, how the hell do you think I do? I only called because Murray goes back farther with you than anyone.” Arty let the sigh make an encore.
“He’s been jumpy, snappish and hard to reach. I mean that literally and figuratively, Veev. Half the time, his clients are calling my line because they can’t get through to him on his cell. When they do manage to get in touch, they say he’s distant. More than a few of his top names are getting nervous and you know what happens when you guys get nervous.”
“Yeah...” Viva was working the bridge of her nose between thumb and forefinger. Folks jumped ship when they got nervous. “And you’ve got no idea what brought this on?” She played the angle, hoping to plumb information Arty may’ve cast aside.
The practiced sigh made another appearance. “Hard to say... In this business, there’s always one thing or another to get pissy over but he did seem more on edge than usual after that meeting a couple of weeks ago.”
“Meeting?” Viva peeked out of the laundry room to ensure her privacy was still intact. “Any idea what that was about?”
“Not much. I didn’t even have it listed among his appointments. I can tell you they weren’t in the business.”
“Meaning they weren’t actors?”
“Not actors or anyone else connected with the business. They had an...official look about them.”
“Cops?” Viva wondered if Sophia had sent investigators to get a feel for their suspect.
“Not sure. I got the feeling their business didn’t skirt the right side of the law. Anyway...” Arty’s sigh sounded more natural then. “It was just a feeling,” she added.
While Viva didn’t need the sharp assistant growing suspicious of her questions, she risked one more. “Do you think you’d recognize them if you saw them again?”
“Sure I would. Veev? Do you think Murray’s okay?”
“I’m sure he is, honey. Don’t worry, I’ll see what I can find out.”
“Thanks. Oh, hey! Be on the lookout for that script and the delivery from wardrobe.”
“Thanks for the reminder, Art. Hold down the fort and we’ll talk soon.” Viva ended the connection, waited a beat and then located the number to place a second call. She muttered a curse when she heard the voice-mail greeting.
“Murray? It’s Viva. Give me a call, okay?”
“So these two and these three?” Sophia tapped her fingers to the two-by-three-inch black-and-white mug shots that coincided with her questions.
“Yeah. Those are all I remember from the bunch.” Viva leaned back from the small round conference table in her sister’s office.
Sophia nodded firmly, looking pleased. Viva had just positively identified the sons of Sylvester Greenway. The construction entrepreneur, and one of their father’s oldest friends, had recently come forward with suspicions of his sons’ involvement in the money-laundering scheme that had already deposited so many of Philadelphia’s finest in holding cells.
Viva’s identification of the Greenways was another direct link. Viva had recalled seeing the men at a Malibu party with Murray Dean. The identification added another layer to the case being built around the security-agent-turned-Hollywood-agent-turned-suspected-money-launderer.
Viva watched Sophia remove the book of mug shots. “Is Murray going to jail, Sophia?” she asked after watching her sister quietly for an extended moment.
“It’s not a done deal until there’s a verdict.” Sophia sat on the corner of her big desk. “But a verdict requires a trial first,” she said with an encouraging smile for good measure.
“Doesn’t seem like I had that much to offer after all.”
“Are you kidding? An eyewitness putting Murray with these guys in Cali with the ones here? It’s gonna help the DA build an even stronger case. Police work can be a lot of tedious piecing together, but it often results in one colossal wrecking ball at the end.”
Viva responded with an airy laugh. “Thanks, Soap, that helps.”
“It’s the truth.” Sophia vacated her spot on the desk and began to browse the files there.
Viva, meanwhile, walked the perimeter of her sister’s new and spacious office digs in the heart of downtown. The building, one of Philadelphia’s oldest and most stately, boasted offices befitting what the exterior conveyed.
A person with an eye for interior decorating and design, Viva appreciated the efforts taken to ensure Sophia’s office was both warm and functional. The formal blackwood paneling and tables of rich cherrywood were softened by suede furnishings of rich earth tones mingled with a few bolder splashes of color that lent the room an efficient yet appropriately chic appearance.
“I can hear your brain over there, but unfortunately I can’t translate,” Sophia called once silence filled the room for almost two minutes.
Viva turned from the breathtaking wall of windows that presented a glorious view of the city. She looked at her sister who held a handful of folders over a bottom drawer to one side of her desk.
“Is there anything more I could do here, Sophia? Anything more that you’d want me to do?” Viva asked.
Sophia frowned. “Anything more?”
“I called Murray,” Viva blurted, knowing that was the only way she could share what she was sure had been a boneheaded move.
Sophia pushed up slowly to stand. “What the hell, V?”
“I didn’t want to risk him running, after I talked to his assistant.”
“Viva—”
“The girl was at her wits’ end when she called, talking about how out of it Murray was acting. She mentioned something about him having a meeting with folks she knew weren’t in the business. She said they looked ‘official’ but she wasn’t sure if they were cops or...worse. I thought maybe they could’ve been cops and I know you can’t divulge all the moves you’re making in this case, but she said Murray was acting...off ever since and I—I just wanted to help.” Viva took a breath following the long spill, winced and waited for the cop in the room to explode.
Sophia stood hunched over the desk. Her hands were splayed across the surface as she inhaled. She straightened, appearing very calm without leaning the slightest bit toward wanting to explode as Viva expected.
“Making sure that a suspect doesn’t run isn’t your job.”
“I was only—” Viva cut herself off, raising her hands in a look of surrender when Sophia’s eyes flashed.
“You’ve done everything I’ve intended for you to do.” Sophia rounded the desk, her expression schooled. “With that in mind, I think it’d be a good idea for you to stay out of sight for a few weeks.”
“I agree.” Viva began an eager nod, closing some of the distance between her and Sophia. “That won’t be a problem at all. The cast