Obsessed (36 page)

Since Michael was still working at the studio and Carla’s part was finished, they hadn’t seen much of each other. In the brief time they’d managed to spend together, Michael had talked about Heidi’s obsession with him. He’d said that he’d much rather be with Carla, but he really couldn’t tell Heidi to get lost. He was hoping that his association with Mr. Robinson would lead to a major career move. He couldn’t jeop ardize that just because Heidi was making a play for him.

Carla understood. Really, she did. But she was be ginning to hate the sight of Heidi’s head, nestled close to Michael’s chest. Heidi had a way of hugging Mi chael when she walked, and making sure that her body pressed up against his in all the right places. And Michael wasn’t exactly immune to her charms. He was flattered that Heidi found him so desirable.

There was the sound of the front door opening, and Carla jumped up from her chair. No one was supposed to be here tonight.

Carla switched off the lights in the office and listened as footsteps sounded on the wooden floor. Two sets of footsteps, one heavy, one light. She crept out of the office, careful not to make a sound, and almost screamed as the lights snapped on. And then she saw them, Michael and Heidi, walking across the brightly lit stage.

Michael had his arm around Heidi’s shoulders, and she was smiling up at him. Carla watched as Michael placed two stools in the center of the stage, and took his guitar out of its case.

“Sing your new song first.” Heidi slid onto one stool, and clasped her hands in front of her. “I think that one’s your best.”

Carla’s heart beat faster as Michael started to play. Michael had sung his new number for her, and she thought it was wonderful. But now the words took on new meaning, as she stared at Heidi and Michael. It was about a singer who’d won the heart of a beautiful girl by writing all his songs for her.

Heidi waited until Michael had finished, and then she sighed in pleasure. “It’s perfect, Michael! The best song you’ve ever written. I was just wondering if . . . no, it probably wouldn’t work.”

“What?” Michael looked interested. “Tell me, Heidi.”

“I think it might be better if you had the girl join in on the last chorus. I mean . . . there he is, singing to her. And she’s so enchanted, she joins in.”

Michael took a moment to think it over, and then he nodded. “You’re right, Heidi. It might add just the right touch. Do you want to try it?”

“Sure, if you want me to. But we’ve never re hearsed it, so you’ll have to excuse me if I don’t get it right.”

Carla frowned deeply. Heidi looked like the cat that ate the canary as Michael started to sing again. She gazed up at Michael with an adoring expression, and when he came to the last chorus, she joined in, her voice rising and melding with his. The harmony was perfect, the timing was exactly right, and Carla listened in awe as they finished the song together. It really was better this way.

“That was fantastic!” Michael reached out to hug Heidi. “You’re amazing. How did you manage to do it so well?”

Heidi shrugged. “It was easy. Our voices just blend together, naturally. It’s almost as if we were born to sing duets together.”

“Maybe we were.” Michael stared deeply into Heidi’s eyes. “You’re . . . you’re wonderful, Heidi.”

Carla’s breath caught in her throat as Michael pulled Heidi closer. And then he was kissing her, their lips melting, their bodies pressed tightly to gether.

She couldn’t watch. Carla turned to go back into the office. She couldn’t stand to see Michael taken in by a girl like Heidi. Denise had told Carla all about Heidi, and her series of up-and-coming boyfriends. Heidi had dated all the young stars of her father’s movies, but the day after the movie premiered, she’d dropped them cold. Heidi might want Michael now, but she wasn’t the type to be loyal. The moment the premiere was over, Heidi would dump Michael just like she’d dumped all those other actors.

It took only a moment to gather up her purse and car keys. There was a back door to the building, and Carla walked toward it with tears in her eyes. She’d really thought that Michael cared about her. Perhaps he did, but right now he was blinded by Heidi and his ambition for stardom. She was very afraid that Michael was in for a real let-down, but there wasn’t a thing she could do about it.

As Carla locked the back door behind her, she glanced around. Michael must have parked on the street because her car was the only one in the parking lot. They hadn’t known she was here, and that was good. Michael had no idea she’d seen him kissing Heidi.

Carla got into her car, but she didn’t put the key in the ignition. She sat there, under the cover of darkness, and thought about Michael and Heidi. Michael was her best friend, the guy she was beginning to trust and love. Somehow she had to protect him and keep him from falling into Heidi’s trap. Michael was fascinated by Heidi, and Carla couldn’t blame him. Heidi was beautiful, and talented, and her family had plenty of Hollywood connections. If all things were equal, Heidi would be a perfect match for Michael, but things weren’t equal at all. Heidi didn’t care about Michael. All she cared about was herself. Michael might think he was dating the perfect girl, but he was bound to end up with a broken heart.

It was hot in her car, and Carla rolled down the window. It was a perfect summer night in Southern California with a full moon casting romantic shad ows over the palm trees that lined the parking lot. Things would be much better if Michael broke up with Heidi. Then Michael would be with her, and he might just . . .

Carla groaned and put her romantic thoughts firmly out of her mind. Michael wasn’t with her. He was with Heidi. And Heidi was the wrong girl for him. If she wanted to save Michael from future heartbreak, she had to think of a permanent way to break them up.

Heidi smiled as Michael began to sing another love song. He was so cute, and he had a wonderful voice. Heidi was sure that Doug Emery, her father’s record producer friend, would love Michael. If she could get him an audition.

Naturally, Heidi had fibbed a little. She didn’t re ally have an audition lined up. But that should be simple enough to arrange if she told Daddy that she wanted to give her new boyfriend a shot at the big time. Daddy would do anything she asked, now that she’d broken it off with Derek Peters. He’d hated Derek with a passion. But he liked Michael. He’d told her he thought that Michael was a very nice guy.

Heidi shivered a little. Daddy had been very angry when he’d found out she’d gone to a party at Derek’s apartment. She guessed she really couldn’t blame him. If she’d known that the police were going to raid the party, she never would have gone.

Naturally, Daddy had grounded her. He’d even threatened to hire a bodyguard to make sure she didn’t get into any more trouble. But that was all in the past. Daddy liked Michael and he approved of her new romance. Of course Michael was a bit of a nerd, but it gave her great pleasure to take him away from Carla.

The song ended, and Heidi smiled up at Michael. It was a tender smile, full of promise. “I think you’re going to be great, Michael. All you have to do is get more emotion in your love songs.”

Michael looked a little puzzled. “Whatever you say, Heidi. But how should I do that?”

“Look at me when you sing. And pretend that you’re completely in love with me.”

“That shouldn’t be too hard.”

Heidi’s smile grew wider. She was winning, and Carla was losing. There was no way Michael could think of Carla when she was coming on to him. It was a game she was playing, a test of her power to attract any guy she wanted. Keeping Michael away from Carla was a real ego trip for her.

Michael had flicked a few switches before they’d stepped out onto the stage, but he hadn’t really both ered to light them like a stage act. Heidi moved her chair to a position directly under the overhead spot and got ready to sing with Michael. His face was in shadow, and he looked so handsome, she got a lump in her throat. Michael was good, and perhaps he’d make it . . . as long as she helped him. With her fa ther’s connections, they could even land a spot on television. The talk shows were always looking for musical numbers between the guests. Their television appearances could lead to bigger and better things, like their own show. Anything was possible.

As Michael sang, he gazed at her admiringly from the shadows. Heidi basked in his attention, and got ready to join in on the chorus. But just as she was about to open her mouth to sing, Michael stopped abruptly.

“Did you hear something?”

Heidi listened for a moment, and then she shook her head. “No. What’s the matter?”

“I thought I heard someone moving up on the cat walk.”

Heidi felt a prickle of alarm. What if someone had heard them singing and come in? “Did you lock the door behind us?”

“I think so.” Michael nodded. “I’ll go and check it.”

Heidi began to shiver slightly as Michael got up. For some strange reason, she didn’t want to be alone on the stage. She felt like a sitting duck, right here under the bright spotlight. As Michael went down the steps into the audience, she almost got up to join him. But that was silly. There was no one here except the two of them.

“It’s okay. The door’s locked.” Michael’s voice floated up from the darkness. “Wait there, Heidi. My throat’s dry. I’m going to get us a couple of drinks from the kitchen. What do you want?”

Heidi took a deep breath. She still felt uneasy. “Apple juice, if they’ve got it.”

“Okay. I’ll be back in a second.”

Heidi heard Michael’s footsteps travel across the floor. The kitchen door creaked as it swung open, and then there was only silence. She imagined Mi chael flicking on the kitchen light, and rummaging around in the cooler, looking for her apple juice. Why hadn’t she asked for something simple, like tap water? That would have taken much less time.

And then she heard it, stealthy footsteps high above her head. She almost screamed, but then she remembered Andy talking about the squirrels that lived in the tree by the side of the building. The noise she’d heard was probably the squirrels, scampering across the roof.

What was taking Michael so long? Heidi shivered again, and wished she’d brought a sweater. The air conditioning was on and it was cold up here on the stage with only two spots to light it.

There was another sound, and Heidi held her breath. She didn’t like being out here all alone, but she knew it would be foolish to move out of the light. She might trip over a cable and hurt
herself. If she sat here quietly, Michael would be back in just a mo ment.

And then she heard the sound of breathing. It sounded very loud in the stillness, and she began to panic.

“Michael?” Heidi’s voice was low, barely more than a whisper. She didn’t want him to know that she was frightened. But there was no answer. Michael was still in the kitchen.

Suddenly the spots went out, plunging the stage into darkness. Heidi jumped as she heard a loud snap, high overhead. A cable had broken! She opened her mouth to scream, but before she had time to utter a single sound, a heavy arc light hurtled down to crash on top of her head.

Eleven

It
was Monday noon, and the cast and crew were sitting around the round table at Covers. Mr. Cal loway had called them in, to tell them what had hap pened. Only one person was missing and that was Michael.

Carla shivered, and glanced around her. Although they were only a few feet from the stage, no one was looking at the spot where Heidi had died.

“Where’s Michael?” Linda asked the question that was on everyone’s mind.

“He should be here any moment.” Mr. Calloway looked grim. “He called about fifteen minutes ago, and said he was just leaving Detective Davis’s of fice.”

“They let him go?!”

Winona looked shocked, and Carla knew that the rumors were flying again. She took a deep breath and tried to explain. “Of course they let him go. The only reason he had to go in was to give Detective Davis his statement. After all, he was a witness.”

Just then the front door opened, and Michael came in. He looked tired and haggard, and Carla knew he hadn’t had any sleep. She patted the empty chair next to her, and Michael sat down gratefully.

At first no one seemed to know what to say, but after a few moments of uncomfortable silence had passed, Mr. Calloway cleared his throat. “Would you like to tell us what happened, Michael?”

Michael nodded. “I’ll tell you what I know, but that’s not much. It’s like I told Detective Davis. I was in the kitchen, pouring Heidi some apple juice, when all the lights went out. Then I heard a terrible crash, and I called out to Heidi, but she didn’t answer. It took me a minute to get to the light box. It was dark, and I had to feel my way. I turned the lights back on, and then
I . . . I saw what had happened.”

“Oh, my God!” Linda’s voice was shaking. “And you . . . you found her?”

Michael nodded, and Carla reached out to squeeze his hand. She could tell he was having trouble speak ing.

“The arc light was down on the floor of the stage, smashed to pieces. And then I saw Heidi. She looked like . . .” Michael swallowed hard, “. . . like a fallen angel, all crumpled up on the stage.”

Michael stopped and swallowed again. It took him a moment to gain control of his voice. “I guess I was trying to fool myself by feeling for her pulse. It was pretty clear that she was dead. The arc light was heavy and it fell right on top of her . . . her head.”