Previously... Veronica discovered Rachel Zellers, a name from the list Andrea slipped into Veronica's wristlet, worked previously with Connor Larkin. She assumes Marcie left out key details of what lead up to Larkin's death. Channel 4 News announced there had been another murder at the Grand. There's now three actors who all died from asphyxia (via preliminary results) within weeks of each other. After staging two to look like suicides, why leave Evangeline to be found like that? Why the specific killings? We don't know the motive yet or pattern. Rob Grimes has been brought to the Sheriff Department because of his association to the victim; the same one he was with at the nightclub. Evangeline Palmer was a cast member in Katelyn Renner's film and Trina's costar. Rob had been casually seeing both of them until Trina told him to basically fuck off for good at Dick's MDW party. Veronica is going to uncover one of the missing links, which will put her one step closer to identifying the killer(s)...
Chapter 14
Veronica had sixteen tabs open in Safari. Each page mentioned either Evangeline Palmer or Robert Grimes. More than ever there was an urgency to solve this case. She skimmed through the new town article that was recently posted online, her eyes gazed over anything substantial.
*According to a statement from the Balboa County Coroner, they received a 911 call at approximately 11:35 am, that Palmer had been located unresponsive inside her room, 1610, at the Neptune Grand hotel. At this time, the death has been ruled a homicide due to the manner of which she was found, but a comprehensive investigation must be completed before a final determination is made. A forensic examination is currently scheduled for June 2nd with subsequent toxicology testing to be conducted.
Veronica needed to get her hands on that screening. As she read on, the last paragraph included one more significant detail.
Petra Landros, the owner of the hotel, has gone on to reveal that there had been a security breach. The multiple cameras found on ground floor and the sixteenth, as well as the ones located inside the elevators were in fact tampered. They effectively stopped recording during the early hours of Monday, May 31st. The hotel fixed the cameras shortly thereafter. Robert Grimes, 29, has been identified as the primary suspect. More information will be available as this investigation continues. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Balboa County Sheriff's Office at 999-326-5262.*
Evangeline died the night of Dick's party. The following day everyone had off for the holiday which meant the weekend murders could suggest that the killer has a tradition job. Someone intelligent, who could disarm the intense security system which was now in place at the Grand, was responsible. Robert Grimes didn't really fit the bill. He had the slack-jawed, big meat-head vibe down to a science. The background check Veronica ran proved Rob had no other job besides "acting" and resided in a 500-square-foot studio flat. He appeared in a few commercials, served as a TV extra in a slew of shows, and was one of the football players in a 2008 theatrical release of yet another underdog team who became champions against all odds.
Rob had been married once before to his high school sweetheart. However, 'til death do us part lost all meaning to him and after two years, the girl filed for divorce in 2009. Veronica figured it had more to do with that fact he couldn't keep it in his pants than irreconcilable differences. He also had a few misdemeanors on his record scattered throughout the years.
Veronica rose up out of her chair and sauntered into the waiting area where she found Mac scrolling through web pages. She wore black frayed sweatpants and her tattered grey Standford alumna shirt expecting not to be needed after regular work hours. However, Mac was glad to get overtime or at least Veronica's version of an IOU. She worried constantly about paying her rent but always managed. Thankfully aiding Keith last week in locating a bail jumper got her a cut of the reward enabling Keith and her to finally pay rent on time instead of asking for an extension. Marcie Jacobs though, continued to pay for the platinum packaged which meant Mac was getting paid to buy tech software and received enough to cover her bills for the time being.
After the 6 o'clock news ended and Veronica picked her jaw up from the floor, she had a long conversation with her dad about where to go from there. He promised to look into the list of women from the napkin to see if any could be traced back to the three victims. Veronica then called Mac for assistance. The clock mounted up on the wall now read 8:30 pm. Veronica barely had one bite of dinner before she went out the front door and drove toward the Warehouse District. She still wore her blouse and slacks from earlier hardly forgetting the conversation she had with Marcie. Her stomach growled like an angry beast. However, the new report took precedence. Veronica and Mac decided to meet at Mars Investigations knowing full well they were in for a late night.
Mac liked digging up just as much dirt as Veronica. Her three screens all displayed different information about the skinny, brunette actress. She began reading off the one in the middle. "Evangeline moved to Neptune when she was eighteen in 2012 to attend my alma mater." Mac made a face at Veronica.
"Can we skip over the conversation where I say I'm sorry for the umpteenth time?" Truthfully, Veronica had little regrets. Stanford was always her goal and then Columbia. Though admittedly, she could have visited Mac and Wallace more often back then if not for avoiding Neptune all together after the destruction she left in her wake. They visited each other during holidays and summer breaks, but it wasn't the same. "Anyway, you still had Wallace, Piz, Parker, and that guy who dated a stripper..."
"Max."
"Right, Max. Whatever happened to him?"
"Probably still selling answer keys to jocks and underachievers." Mac scrolled down the page she had up on the biggest screen. "Evangeline majored in theater and dance, go figure. She was one of the leads in Hearst's theater production of Hairspray her sophomore year. Her first acting appearances were at Neptune's performing arts center." Mac discovered the link to previous shows of the last few years. "Evangeline acted in Our Town and Into the Woods alongside Leah Vance in 2013 and 2014 respectively."
Bingo.
On the third screen showed the beginning article of an interview Evangeline had done for the town's newspaper about Into the Woods mentioning how Evangeline was now looking forward to acting in an indie movie, her first foray into a feature film.
Yet, nothing had come of it. There was no movie attached to her name in 2013 or 2014 on her IMDB. She ended up dropping out of Hearst in the middle of her junior year and moved to LA to find better paying jobs. The once optimistic teen had been consigned to minor roles in a b-movies and TV episodes. Being cast in Katelyn's untitled film could have been her one chance. Now, Evangeline would never get to have her breakthrough role.
She'll be famous for an entirely different reason.
Something clicked inside Veronica's brain. The proof Evangeline and Leah acted together. Veronica suddenly remembered the table of actors at Leah's funeral. She was always pretty good at putting a name to a face. "That's where I saw her before. Not on the set of Katelyn's movie. No. Leah's reception. Her photos. Those two were friends."
"Leah and Evangeline? Yeah. I'll show you." Mac typed away on her keyboard. She pulled up Evangeline's Facebook profile on the middle screen. Her wall was already filled with RIPs and I Will Miss Yous from her family and friends and Facebook acquaintances. Word traveled fast. Mac searched through her most recent photographs. "They were best friends." She pointed to multiple pictures of Leah and Evangeline together from a few months ago.
The same ones Veronica glanced at when she researched Leah but overlooked.
Veronica hunched over Mac to get a better look at the pictures seeing all of them now with new eyes. She stared at one dated February 15th which had twenty-two likes and six comments. The girls in tight, deep-V dresses stood with their hands on their hips in front of red velvet curtains wearing matching red lipstick. Mac clicked it once and enlarged the image.
Veronica's eyes double-blinked. She recognized everything. This was her break she had hoped for. "That's the interior of Vintage."
Mac swiveled her chair to face Veronica. "Do you think that Rob guy did it?"
"I bet my life he's not smart enough to execute it all. The Grand's security is top notch after the last unfortunate incident." The one with Grace Manning, Petra Landros would love for the public to forget. "They must have known when the security guards wouldn't be checking. If you were to block cameras from recording, how would you do that?"
"There's multiple ways. The simplest would be to just hack into the hotel's mainframe, shut down firewalls, change the access permissions, and sprinkle some magic pixie dust on the screen."
Veronica titled her head. "Really, I'm curious."
"The last time I told you something like this in detail you nearly fell asleep."
"Touché." Veronica wondered if a certain director would have that kind of knowledge. Then again, why would a person kill an actress on set of their own movie? Production automatically stops and the task of replacing said actress becomes a whole other issue. "So we're looking for someone who's just as savvy with code as you."
"Now-a-days, that might be a longer list than the one Santa's got for naughty children."
"It's lucky I have the best hacker in Southern California. Can you trace the IP address back to the original computer for me?"
Mac grinned. "Of course. I can't guarantee it'll be that easy to find the person once I do, but maybe it's Rob after all."
Veronica scoffed, finding the last statement ludicrous.
"Well, if you want my opinion," Mac began, "I think the murderer is somehow involved in Renner's movie, but not the director herself."
Veronica was just waiting for Langdon to make another public announcement. Veronica understood how these things worked. Evangeline had been staying at the Grand while filming. Her room was only a few doors down from Trina's. Especially, if Rob proved innocent; anyone attached to the movie would need an alibi.
*x**x**x**x*
Around nine thirty on the morning of June 2nd, Veronica figured it was around the time Trina would be just getting up. She arrived at the hotel and quietly walked toward the glass elevator. The place was eerily empty. She assumed a lot of guests checked out once news broke of a murder on the inside.
Previously on the 16th floor, Trina was relocated to 1407 instead while the investigation into Evangeline Palmer persisted. Veronica made her way over to the third door on the left. She lifted her arm and banged the door twice with her fist. She waited for almost five minutes while hearing the shuffling of feet.
The door swung open. Trina wore a robe tied around her waist. No foundation, cream, or bronzer, Trina overall had a very pale complexion for living in one of the sunniest states. Dark circles under her eyes; Trina was barely awake. She looked caught off guard, expecting her room service instead. "Ver-hi...?"
"Hi Trina, sorry to bother you..." Veronica trailed off choosing her words carefully. She tried her best to act concern. "You okay?"
"I'm just great, like I could run a triathlon." Trina muttered sarcastically while rubbing her eyes. "Actually, no. What happened with... It's hard to swallow."
It's not like you haven't had plenty of practice. Veronica shook her head.
"Everyone from the set is obviously shocked," Trina continued while Veronica still stood in the hallway. "What, um, can I do for you?" She acted politely, but there was a clear undercurrent of vexation apparent in her voice.
"I was actually hoping to talk to you about Rob and Evangeline. If this is a bad time, I'll go."
Trina's face contorted into a frown. "Uh, well that's a sour topic."
She loved the spotlight above all else. Veronica banked on Trina wanting to gossip. "But, you've seen the news. I was just wondering if you saw her that night." Veronica eventually let herself in and plopped down on the sofa.
Trina shut the door behind her, sighed audibly, and folded her arms. "No, I hadn't yet. I got the call yesterday first thing in the morning. Production shut down for the time being. It's a travesty. Not to mention, in the same night Rob and I split."
"That's why I came to see you actually."
"You think Rob has something to do with Evie's death?!"
"He's been taken into custody."
"Really?" Trina genuinely appeared surprised. "I hadn't checked the news updates." Realization dawned on her face. "Oh. My. God! This is going to be all over every outlet. I have to make sure I check my phone for interviews. I wonder if Trish Turley will want me to come on her show. I can't believe I was dating...wow. Poor Evie. That could have been me!"
Veronica rolled her eyes while Trina wasn't looking. "Nothing's certain. What can you tell me the night of Dick's party?"
"I don't remember much. I'm terribly upset about it all."
Over the death of one of your co-stars or over Rob? Veronica assumed the latter. "I don't believe Rob did it. I doubt you were in any real danger." Veronica excluded the small detail of how she believed the Larkin case tied in. "Where were you after the party ended? At the hotel? Did anyone see you? The concierge? The nightly security guard?" Veronica rattled off question after question while Trina stood there in silence.
"No. I-I..." Trina paused; her lips formed a hard line. She didn't know which question to answer first. "For starters, I barely knew Evie. We worked together playing sisters on set but we were never, like, close you know? Never had the chance."
Veronica sighed. "Do you remember how you got home?"
Trina shook her head. "It's a blur after that jerk-off left without me."
"Well you probably should have stayed away from Jack, Jim, and Jose, too."
"Oh, you know me." Trina flashed a smile before it quickly disappeared. Trina wasn't that great an actress and Veronica could see right through her shtick of being upset about Evangeline. She was only worried about what it would do to her. From what Veronica overheard at Dick's, Trina didn't even seem to like her.
"Were you with Rob on Friday, May 13th?"
"What? That night? Sure, if I remember, we went to the theater and after that back here. It was our second or third date."
So, there was no possible way Rob would have been anywhere near Connor's apartment complex in LA.
"Do you have ticket stubs leftover?"
Before Trina could answer, there was a knock on the door.
"Good, my breakfast has arrived." Trina walked around Veronica while asking, "Have you ever tried their French toast here? It's to die for."
Not exactly a term I used in lieu of recent events. Veronica thought. Trina never did have much tact.
However, as Trina opened the door, instead of a hotel employee bringing up gourmet French toast and orange juice on a silver platter, Veronica caught sight of a familiar man in uniform. Deputy Clayton.
Trina froze. "Deputy...is there a problem?"
"Trina Echolls, you're needed at the Sheriff's Department." Norris gave a slight nod after noticing Veronica seated on the couch.
"In this?"
He stared up and down at Trina who still only had on a light green robe. "I can give you a minute."
Trina let out a nervous chuckle. "Am I under arrest?"
Norris frowned. "Not unless you come with me now."
"What's the offense?" Veronica inquired while standing up. She took a few steps towards Norris.
"She's being considered as an accessory."
"For what?" Trina's brows furrowed.
"Assisting Robert Grimes in the murder of Evangeline Palmer."
"This is absolutely nonsense. I didn't even see her that night. Veronica, tell him he must be mistaken."
"To me, of course, you're innocent. However, you shared the same floor, worked together, and both dated the same guy; it doesn't look good." Sharing the same floor meant Trina's movements were untraceable that night. "Those ticket stubs from the movies, do you have them by chance?"
"Rob paid that night."
Veronica got out her iPhone and texted Dick. He must have been sober enough to know when the party finally shut down and everybody left or found a spot to pass out on. Trina managed to get back to the hotel room the same time the cameras were off. That much was clear, but did she leave separately or with someone? Did that person see anything out of the ordinary?
*x**x**x**x*
Back at the office, Veronica slumped in her chair. Rob and Trina would get stuck taking the fall. While not a big fan, Trina hardly deserved to be accused of something she didn't do. Logan was in San Diego for the day so at least Veronica could wait to tell him the news.
On her computer, she typed up an email to send to Rachel Zellers hoping Marcie was wrong.
Hello Rachel,
My name is Veronica Mars. This is going to sound strange and I doubt you've heard but I'm the P.I. Marcie Jacob's hired to investigate Connor Larkin's murder. I see you two were cast-mates on The Husband's Revenge. I was wondering if you could tell me anything else about your relationship with Connor or if you knew anything about him and Katelyn Renner. This is a life or death matter. Please contact me immediately.
Her phone suddenly buzzed.
*No idea. I was too busy up in Keira's business to notice.*
Veronica rolled her eyes. *I don't need to hear about your sexcapades, Dick.*
*She probs left with some dude. IDK.*
Her phone then rang as an incoming call came through right after she finished reading the second text. The sound of Mac's voice indicated that she was extremely frustrated. "They used a computer inside the library."
"At two am?"
"Yup." Mac grumbled. "They signed in as a guest. Could literally be anyone. We can check the computer's history if they're dumb enough to leave any traces behind. I'd say it's basically another dead end."
"I don't believe in dead ends, just detours." Veronica pulled up Neptune's community library website, which hadn't been updated in years, while on the phone with Mac. "Every detail of the crime is planned out well in advance," she elaborated. "By leaving Evangeline like that in the hotel, it means they miscalculated the amount of time they had to get out before the cameras started rolling again. They might screw up again and that's when we'll catch them..." Veronica trailed off. "Off topic, can you look up the toxicology results for Evangeline?"
"No problem. I think I hacked into the coroner's files so often, they should just make it public access at this point. Want me to check out the library with you?"
"Later, there's a few things I need to do first."
Veronica hadn't stepped inside the decrepit library since high school. It was located in the same vicinity as a Valero gas station, which was the cheapest in Neptune, as well as a CVS, pizzeria, and an empty store that had been once used for DVD rentals over ten years ago. Across the street was the community pool. The area known to be mostly populated with the disenfranchised. The residents who worked for Neptune's wealthiest. The library building had tons of graffiti on the side walls. Not enough funds to keep continually painting over the tags, the ones who managed the library eventually gave up trying. No cameras either. There were usually only six or seven working computers. No '09er would ever need to step foot inside.
*x**x**x**x*
When Logan came home, Veronica granted him an hour before she mentioned Trina's predicament. She waited in the kitchen and wasted time reorganizing the fridge and washing the counter-tops while Pony followed her every step. Once he came down stairs in new clothes, Veronica slipped her arm through his elbow and stretched up on her tippy-toes to kiss him.
"Mm-mm. Hi," he smiled. "You smell like lemons."
"I did some light cleaning." Veronica paused and took a deep breath. "So, did you hear about Trina?"
Logan's mouth twitched. "No, but I'm sure it will be good."
Veronica brought him over to the couch in the living-room where they sat while she retold what happened earlier. Logan simply listened, nodding his head a few times. He then snickered with a slight smirk completely unsurprised by the news.
"I take it by your reaction that you find it amusing?" Veronica asked, concerned when Logan didn't say anything.
"I was just thinking, first dad, then yours truly. It was only a matter of time before Trina got her turn on stage."
"Chalk it up to Neptune's nonexistent, lopsided justice system. Lamb's actions were ninety-nine percent dogshit." Marcia was an improvement, but change in Neptune took time.
"I don't believe it," Logan scoffed, "Lamb did actual work 1% percent of the time? I don't believe it."
Veronica had a feeling the media would start making comparisons to the rest of Trina's family once news spread. Publicity Logan wouldn't want.
She figured Logan was there in Neptune for her and Dick on some level or he would have left a long time ago. However, he chose to drive an almost sixty minute drive to San Diego instead of being closer to the base. Granted, he could get there in forty speeding in his BMW. Logan did it all because he knew Veronica belonged in Neptune and she belonged to him. Neptune brought nothing but bad memories, though, and tomorrow would be even worse. Especially for Dick, who always drank himself into oblivion on June 3rd.
"Have you spoken to Dick?" Logan wondered. "He might be enough of an alibi for Trin." As much as Logan disliked Trina, she was still family, and he didn't want her rotting away in a cell.
"Yeah, Dick was about as helpful as a blind dog." Veronica sighed. "I already have some plans in motion." The library. The community arts center. Keith confirmed the escort hadn't been in contact with anyone involved in the case. She just waited on Rachel Zellers to respond and access to view Evangeline's autopsy report. "I'll make sure Trina walks free."
*x**x**x**x*
Five days later, Veronica was heading toward the county court house in hopes of convincing Langdon that she didn't have the real culprit for the crime in lock-down. Simultaneously helping Trina was an added bonus. She felt confident she had gathered enough information to hand over. On the passenger seat was a file of her findings. Veronica needed to steer them in the right direction. That Langdon should question Katelyn Renner instead, which hadn't happened yet. That, if they didn't do something soon, someone else in the film industry would be found in a similar manner.
She had put off going to the library among other things giving more time to finding a way to prove Trina's innocence. She didn't have substantial proof Trina wasn't involved, but the connections between Leah and Evangeline were too hard to ignore by the Sheriff's standards. The two autopsy reports were too similar for one to be ruled a homicide and the other one a choice. Trina wasn't even in Neptune when Leah Vance died.
At the traffic light, Veronica thought back to the beginning of the case. Her mind combing over the evidence she so far compiled. There was still something she must have overlooked. Connor was found in his bedroom. Two glasses in the sink. No break ins. Nothing out of order.
In the preliminary reports, Vicodin, Xanax, and Oxycontin were found in both victims.
All three were actors of varying success. Some people believed appearing on screen gave them instant celebrity status. Attention they craved. Logan despised the whole world of fame. How it could twist everything into what it wanted the world to perceive. Veronica recalled a conversation she had with him on the subject.
"They don't realize what they miss until they lose it."
"What's that?"
"Anonymity."
What happened after their fifteen minutes of fame was unknown.
Veronica had assumptions. Educated guesses at this point. Whoever killed Connor, Leah, and Evangeline did so because of their profession. Whoever orchestrated it knew them personally. And, more than likely, they had help.
Veronica felt suspended in perpetual animation. Her mind tracing back every single thing. Picturing her Carrie Mathison Wall that detailed the case to an obsessive degree. The connections between the three...the names on the napkin... Sean...Marcie...Greg...Vintage...
Trina was so sure Katelyn was going to be the next big thing. That by just being a part of a project directed by her, Trina would get recognition. The kind of recognition that didn't involve any of her other family members.
Trina and Marcie both said it. Katelyn was paranoid. If that's true, Veronica was spit-balling to herself, Katelyn had a bodyguard because she needed protection from whoever killed the rest.
Was she barking up the wrong tree? Unless Veronica was right from the get-go and being the ex-lover caused Katelyn to go off the deep end. Maybe, Katelyn was creating a cat and mouse thriller for the whole world to see live in real time.
Veronica hadn't noticed when the light turned green or when the car behind her honked for the first time. Not until the second loud honk that Veronica snapped alert.
Author's Note: This was a transitional chapter. I wanted to reiterate a lot of things. More action in the next one. Bad news? (on how you view it) Six more chapters to go. Start to buckle your seat-belts. It's gonna be a crazy ride to the finish line.
Think you know the murderer? Comment and let me know!