Julia
Chapter 6"Julia, it's Gloria."
Julia had a smile on her face before she responded. It was always good to hear from her best friend. "Hi, Gloria. How's everything going?"
The words belied the tone. "It's great for me, honey, but you may have a problem."
"Why? What's wrong?" Julia hadn't thought about her husband in almost a month, but he immediately came to mind. She'd gone to see Cary Everly, the attorney who offered to file for her divorce for free, and he'd prepared those papers for her. She signed them in his office and his intent was to mail them to Harvey the next time he was in Los Angeles, where he had a post office box, so Harvey wouldn't know where she was living. Had something gone wrong with that?
"I was contacted by a private investigator looking for you. His name is Stuart Bailey, and he has an office in Hollywood. He told me he'd been hired by Harvey to find you and wondered if I knew where you were. I told him no, I hadn't heard from you and had no idea where you were living. I thought that would be the end of it, but it wasn't."
"What happened, Gloria? Tell me."
"He just showed up at my door again, honey. He told me he'd been investigating Harvey, and he thought the man was dangerous. He says he's not working for Harvey and wants to give you some information about your ex that you might not know. I told him I still hadn't heard from you but promised to let him know if I did. He kind of gave me the impression that he wanted to . . . well, that he wanted to help you. And listen, honey, the man is gorgeous. Six feet, black hair, well-built, with the dreamiest eyes and voice. Told me he had a married sister that lived nearby, and if her husband was Harvey he'd do everything in his power to protect her. I think you ought to give him a chance, Julia. He really did seem sincere."
"He could have been lying to you, Gloria." Julia might be trembling, but her voice was steady.
"I don't think so. I'm a pretty good judge of character, and I think he meant what he said." Julia started to say something but Gloria interrupted her. "You could call him from a payphone and he wouldn't know where you were."
Julia thought about that. "I'm not sure, Gloria. It might be too risky."
"Well look, honey, let me give you his information and if you decide to call him you've got his number."
Julia got a piece of paper and a pencil and wrote everything down. She set the paper down on the table and sat the phone on top of it. "Ok, Gloria, I'll think about it. Thanks."
Julia poured herself another cup of coffee and sat down in the living room. Who was this Stuart Bailey? Was he working for Harvey or was Gloria right in listening to the man? Julia laughed a little; Gloria was so easily swayed by good looks. And it sounded like Bailey had them in abundance.
It was Saturday and she had a house to clean and errands to run, so she got up and put her dishes in the sink when she was finished. She left the information on the private investigator sit under the phone until Friday, when Mrs. Orlofsky asked her to run into Long Beach and pick up some supplies for her. Julia used the company van, and once she'd loaded the supplies she stopped to get a bite to eat. When she went to pay for her meal she found the piece of paper with Bailey's number on it. She had no idea why, but she'd slipped the paper into her purse just that morning. She removed it now and stared at it for a minute or two, then went to the payphone and dialed the number.
The next thing she heard was a lovely French voice saying, "Bailey and Spencer, may I help you?"
Julia hesitated. Was she doing the right thing? She hesitated so long that she heard the same voice. "Hello? Hello? Is there anyone there? This is Bailey and Spencer."
"My name is Julia Benson. May I speak to Mr. Bailey, please?"
"Just a moment, Mrs. Benson." The voice was gone before she could correct it to 'Miss.'
Thirty seconds later she heard a deep, rich voice. "Miss Benson, this is Stuart Bailey."
"I, I got your information from . . . "
"Gloria Thomas. I thought you might, Miss Benson. That's why I left it with her."
"Harvey hired you to find me?"
"Well, yes and no. Yes, he thinks he hired me. After the things I learned about him, I won't be giving him information or taking his money any time soon. That's what I wanted to see you about. There is knowledge that I believe you should have about your husband."
"My ex-husband, Mr. Bailey."
"You've filed for divorce then?" Did she hear relief in his voice?
"Yes, I have."
"And you've no desire to return to the marriage?" She didn't imagine it then; he did sound relieved.
"None."
"It's urgent that I see you as soon as possible, Miss Benson. There are facts your attorney might not be aware of, and he should be."
"Mr. Bailey, I'm sure my attorney knows everything he needs to know."
"Please, Julia." This time there was a pleading note to his voice. And the way he called her Julia sent shivers up her spine.
"Alright. Monday at noon."
"Can you come to my office? You'll have complete privacy here."
"I can be there, yes."
"That's good, Miss Benson. Thank you. I'll see you Monday at noon."
"Monday. Goodbye, Mr. Bailey."
He heard the sound of the receiver hanging up and he breathed again. "Suz . . ." he cleared his throat. "Suzanne, can you mark my calendar from noon to three on Monday, for J. Benson."
"Certainly, Stuart. Is that Julia Benson?"
"Just leave it as J., would you?"
"Yes, sir."
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Julia arranged to take Monday off and Orlofsky's' let her borrow the car. On Monday she found herself standing in front of her closet at nine in the morning, trying to decide what to wear. She'd been able to buy a few things in the time she'd been working, and that's where she turned now. There was one black dress she'd fallen in love with when she tried it on in J.C. Penney's. It was short-sleeved and pencil-thin, and it fit her perfectly. She decided on that and laid it on the bed, then went to the bathroom to get ready. After brushing her teeth and washing her face she applied a minimum of makeup and brushed out her hair. It was getting really long, she thought, and decided to wear it up, the way she usually did.
She was ready to go by 9:30 and she caught the bus to work, where she picked up the car and started towards Hollywood. She'd given herself plenty of time to get to Hollywood, since she didn't know how far it was or how long it would take. She arrived at ten of twelve and pulled into the parking lot. A great looking young man opened her car door for her and directed her to the Bailey and Spencer offices. She walked in and was greeted by the same lovely French voice she'd heard on the phone. "Good morning, may I help you?"
"Yes, ma'am, I have a noon appointment with Mr. Bailey. I'm Julia Benson."
"Of course. Let me tell Mr. Bailey you're here."
Julia looked around. One door was marked 'Mr. Bailey' but the second door was open and she couldn't see that it said 'Mr. Spencer' on it. The man sitting behind the desk was very handsome, with a radiant smile and nice eyes. Then the other door opened and she had to keep herself from gasping. He looked just as Gloria had described him, tall and well-built, with black hair and an absolutely beautiful smile. All in all, gorgeous. She almost chuckled to herself; he was wearing a black suit with a white shirt and a deeply patterned purple tie. "Miss Benson? I'm Stuart Bailey. Won't you come in, please?" and he offered his arm to escort her. She went with him, feeling almost overwhelmed by the man himself, and he took her into his office, closed the door behind them, and helped her into a chair.
His desk was a good size but not ostentatious, and seemed to suit him perfectly. He sat down behind it and reached for his pipe in his coat pocket. "Do you mind if I smoke?" he needed something to steady him, just as he had on that day long ago in New York, and he was hoping she wouldn't object.
"Not at all, Mr. Bailey. I love the smell of a pipe." She had a voice that matched her looks very nicely.
He looked at her and laughed. She liked his laugh. "I see we had the same thought when we dressed this morning," he told her, referring to them both wearing black.
"When in doubt wear black," she told him, and they both laughed.
"Miss Benson, I thought you should be aware of some things I found out about your husb – ex-husband. Before we get started, would you like some coffee? Or something else to drink?"
"Coffee would be wonderful, Mr. Bailey."
"Please, it's Stu or Stuart. How do you take your coffee?"
"Black, please." She giggled. "Black seems to be the color of the day. And I wish you would call me Julia."
"It will be a few minutes. We have a reciprocal trade agreement with Dino's next door. We don't brew coffee and they don't pose as private detectives."
He had a good sense of humor. She liked that, too. In fact, there wasn't anything about him that she didn't like.
The coffee arrived quickly, delivered by Suzanne, their lovely French receptionist. They'd both removed the lid to their cup; Julia took a sip of hers and Stu set his aside. "I found something that you might or might not be aware of. How much do you know about your husband's prior life?"
"Not much," she answered quickly.
"Did you know he was married before?"