A/N: Sorry this is a little late. I've been pretty preoccupied, now that school is back. Mrs. G is giving us tons on this extremely complicated book called The Time Machine. I'll try to get my chappies up ASAP! Bear with me here please:)
Disclaimer: Yeah, I own ASoUE and all the characters. And Illini won the game and my Stephanie is sane and milkshakes are made of scrambled eggs and my computer will explode in 5...4...3...2...1...
Day Two
Part Two
At The Regal Washington Theatre
I walked into the theatre. There had been a huge mob outside protesting. It was a nightmare trying to get through that crowd. Once inside, I wished I had never come in. There in front of me was the worst sight I had seen since the sight of the charred remains of my home. There in front of me was a funeral wreath. I took the note off and grimaced. I opened the note and read it.
Planning a funeral
Is such a dreadful pain...
Wouldn't you rather
Just cancel the demolition?
It sickened me. Violet was now is much more danger than I could have imagined. Everyone I had met so far was definitely a suspect.
No exceptions.
I had to go and question everyone. The first person to talk to was James. I hastened up the stairs to the projection room. I reached out to open the door, but just as I was about to turn the handle, I noticed something tacked to the door. It read;
MISSING
Name: Violet Baudelaire
Age: 14
Gender: Female
Appearance: Shoulder length dark brown/black hair, commonly tied up in a ribbon. Last seen wearing a black dress with puffed/netted sleeves.
Accessories: Last seen with a black hair ribbon and a press pass.
Below was a picture of Violet, and even below that, was a picture of Kent. I read the paragraph next to Kent's photo and my stomach was instantly sick. This "Missing" poster was just promoting Kent as the big hero. I glared at the poster, as if Kent could actually see my sour face, then continued on my way into the projection booth.
"James?" I asked, looking around.
"I'm here!" called a voice. James wheeled out from under the projector. He was lying on his back on a skateboard. Apparently he had been trying to fix something with the projector's inner workings.
"Oh!" Isadora yelped, jumping backwards, completely surprised.
"I'm sorry you had to see that funeral wreath, Isadora," James said, standing up. "It's disgusting."
"I'm afraid Violet may be in some real danger now," I said nervously. James tried to comfort me.
"I'm sure we'll find 'er Isadora. You just wait," he said, offering a small smile. I smiled back. "Have you seen those missing posters?" he asked me.
"Sure did."
"Can you believe how they used that poster to promote Kent as the big hero?" he asked incredulously.
"No I can't!" I yelled back. "I mean, Violet's the one who's in danger here!"
"We'll find her though, Isadora," James said reassuringly. Isadora smiled once again.
"I have to go question everyone now," I said.
"Don't let the turkeys get you down!" he said, then wheeled himself back under the projector. I went back down to the lobby, of course, to question Brady. Before I could get one word out of my mouth, he began to talk.
"Isadora!" he exclaimed. "Wait 'till you hear this!"
"What?"
"I did some research on the laptop in my van, and I got the phone number of the widow of Houdini's cousin! Eustacia Andropov, I think."
"So you saw those documents too?" I asked.
"Sure did! I wrote her phone number down. It's in the ticket booth," he said.
"I'll call her right away!" I said excitedly, and ran for the ticket booth door, my shoulder length straight brown hair flying wildly behind me.
Once inside I searched the desktops for the number. Eventually, I found it written on a post-it, and hurriedly picked up the phone and dialed.
"Hello?" said an extremely annoyed, slurred voice.
"Umm...This is Isadora Quagmire. I-I was wondering if you could give me some information about Harry Houdini," I said, nervously. "You're Houdini's cousin's widow...right?"
"Yes. But Houdini is dead. And my husband is dead." Eustacia said.
"Um...yes. I was wondering if you knew what happened to the half of the theatre that Houdini inherited. I'm doing some research over here at the Regal Washington."
"Oh, yes...wait...no," Eustacia began. "I don't know what happened to Harry's half. But I do know who knows. I could give them a call, and they'll send you a package containing the information you'll need," Eustacia said.
"Thanks Eustacia, you've been a big help," I said, smiling to myself.
"Save it for my funeral," Eustacia said, and I heard her slam the phone into the receiver. I removed the phone from my ear and set it down, then exited the ticket booth to inform Brady of what I had learned.
"Did you call? What's the story?" he asked instantly.
"Keep your eyes open for a special delivery!" I proclaimed.
"You're cooler than I thought, Isadora," he said as I was turning my back. I turned to face him once more.
"And you're smarter than I thought," I said, smiling, and then turned once to wander the halls.
Once in the halls, it hit me. I still hadn't questioned that woman whose life was apparently the phone. I broke into a run and when I finally found the door to the women's dressing room, burst through the door. The woman, amazingly, set down her phone and turned to me.
"Sorry I couldn't correctly introduce myself last time." she said. "I'm Simone Muellar," Simone Muellar said, and held out her hand to me.
"Hello," I said tentatively, shaking her hand.
"Now don't worry," she continued, "Your friend will be fine, we canceled the premiere. Kent's out pasting those missing posters all over town." I instantly felt anger rising inside me.
"Those posters were just a big advertisement for Kent," I snarled through clenched teeth.
"Oh, hunny, it's just for the cameras. Go along with it!" she said cheerfully. Now I was livid.
"I'd rather be crushed by an elevator," I growled.
"Ooh! Hunny, you've got spunk! Ever think about acting? We'd have to think of a stage name though. Isadora Quagmire is so utterly forgettable," Simone said, now going off on another subject.
"Okay fine. It's only a girl's life that's in danger," I yelled after her, as she continued her incoherent mumbling. Now, to question "Mr. Big Hero". Once inside the men's dressing room, I found Kent leaning on the wall, reading a magazine. He looked up, saw me, set down his magazine, and folded his arms. I set my face and walked right up to him. He was only taller by about three inches, so I could easily look menacing.
"Hey Isadora!" he said. "Did you see the missing posters?"
"Yeah, I did," I snarled. "And it's all just a big advertisement for you, Kent."
"This is all Simone. I'm just a victim on her runaway train," Kent said, but I didn't let him explain anything more.
"Oh really?" I said, folding my arms. "I don't see any gun to your head."
"It's a lot more confusing than you think, Isadora," he said. I guess that softened me up a bit, and I decided to change the subject.
"So where'd you find Violet's hair ribbon?" I asked. This caught him off guard.
"Uhh...it was the basement! I mean...the balcony! Yeah, it was the balcony." I raised an eyebrow. Wow, that was so convincing (I'm being sarcastic).
"Oh, it really doesn't matter," I snarled. "It's just an innocent girl's life we're talking about here. Now I'm asking everyone: Where were you when the kidnapping took place?" He looked extremely nervous.
"I was late getting back from a haircut. I-I...This is really hard for me. I think my hairline may be receding! Simone's going to go through the roof!" Kent said, sadly. He absentmindedly started jabbering away to himself about him and his hair. I rolled my eyes and left him there to talk to himself.
As I meandered through the halls, I heard something in one of the rooms. Talking, it seemed. Lots and lots of talking. I decided this would be a good time to stop and eavesdrop. I pressed my ear to the door, and listened intently.
OOO! I'm so evil, stopping right at this crucial part! Stay tuned and review to find out what all those people in the room are talking about. And also...REVIEW!
