Page 50 of Shadow Redemption
“Any problems in Autumn’s background that you know about?”
“Not really. I think an old boyfriend was stalking her a while back, but that’s been resolved. Tito confronted him when he found out about the harassment. When that didn’t work and the stalking continued, he and Autumn contacted the police with security camera footage of her ex breaking into Autumn’s apartment and taking personal items from her home. The police went to his home and found the stolen items plus many more that he’d taken over several months and a bedroom with the walls covered with pictures of Autumn. Most of them were obviously taken without her consent, especially the ones with her undressing and in the shower.” Ruth swallowed hard. “The ex had planted cameras throughout her house, recording hours of video footage. The police arrested him and he’s serving time now for stalking and breaking and entering. Other than that, I don’t know of any problems.”
Trace frowned. “Autumn doesn’t sound like a threat.”
“Nico asked for the names of models I work with most often and the ones who compete for my jobs. Autumn is part of the list. I don’t believe she wants to harm me. We’re not close, but I consider her a friend.”
Ben laid his hand on hers. “But someone who has access to you on photoshoots is threatening you. If these models aren’t involved, they might have seen something that would help us catch the culprit. We can’t afford to blow this off. I don’t like the strawberry incident. Figuring out that you avoid strawberries and why wouldn’t be hard.”
“But why would Ruth be foolish enough to eat a strawberry if she’s allergic to it?” Sam asked.
“She wouldn’t. It’s the threat of harm. What worries me is the possibility they do know about the allergy and plan to use it to cause Ruth to go into anaphylactic shock.”
“We’ll be vigilant,” Sam promised. “I’m prepared in case Ruth has a problem.”
He was prepared as well and so was Ruth. But would it be enough to keep her safe?
Nico looked at his own laptop. “I checked into Sapphire Willis. And before you ask, yes, Sapphire is her birth name. She’s from Dallas, Texas and is engaged to Tom Hatcher who is also a model. The two of them are considered a power couple in the world of modeling and have been contracted for this assignment, too. No trouble in Sapphire’s background. Her financial standing is solid and has grown exponentially in the past two years. Ruth?”
“Sapphire is driven and aggressive as is Tom. They work hard.”
Ben’s eyes narrowed. “You know more than you want to say. We need to know everything, rumors or facts included.” Together, he and his team would figure out what was fact or fiction.
She sighed, reluctance in her eyes. “They’re antagonistic on photoshoots, always stealing shots from other models. They frequently work together and complain about the other models on their jobs, running them down when talking to the photographers and fashion designers. The camera loves Sapphire and Tom, but they’re both troublemakers. If I have a choice, I prefer not to work with them.”
He stiffened. “Have either of them physically threatened you?”
She shook her head. “It’s all verbal, Ben. While they don’t mind badmouthing others, I’ve never seen them do anyone bodily harm.”
“But one or both of them have been on site when other accidents have occurred?”
“It’s just a coincidence.” Ruth held up her hands in mock surrender. “Don’t say it. I know. There are no coincidences in your line of work. In my world, coincidences do happen.”
“Any other insights to add about Sapphire and her boyfriend?” Nico asked. At her head shake, he pointed at Ben. “What do you and Ruth have on Lindsey Collette?”
“Lindsey looks like the girl next door, but she was questioned in the death of her best friend in high school and was on site when several accidents that injured other models occurred on photoshoots. She’s ambitious and doesn’t mind stepping on other models on her way to the top. She’s only been in the business for two years, but she’s made the most of them. Financial background is good. She’s making bank on her modeling gigs. She’d love to see Ruth out of the business altogether.”
Nico’s eyebrows rose as he turned his attention to Ruth. “Is that true?”
“Unfortunately. Everyone loves working with her except her fellow models. She’s even becoming the media darling.” Color stained her cheeks. “I hate to say it because this might not be true, but rumors are flying hot and heavy around the modeling community that Lindsey is sleeping her way to the top of the modeling profession. I hope the rumors are wrong, but they might have some merit. Her rise to the top has been meteoric. I don’t want to know if that part’s true and I won’t repeat that outside of this setting. You can look into the rumors if you want, but I’m not going there.”
Trace scowled. “Did Lindsey try to hurt you?”
“Yes, although I can’t prove it.”
“What did she do?” Sam asked.
“There were several incidents, one of which stands out. Although I’m usually sure-footed, I tripped and nearly fell face-first into a glass table while I was on a photoshoot in Morocco with Lindsey and a few other models. No one saw the push even though I felt a hand shove me. Lindsey was directly behind me.”
“That could have been an accident if Lindsey or someone else behind you tripped and fell into you, then didn’t want to admit it,” Sam said.
“I would believe that if Lindsey hadn’t been on site when another model fell into a glass table and sustained serious, deep cuts to her face. That model never worked in the industry again. A year after that incident, the injured model committed suicide.”
Silence greeted her statement as the operatives exchanged glances. Finally, Joe rubbed his jaw and said, “Good grief. Who would have thought the world’s most beautiful people were that dangerous?”
“Money and power.” Trace shook his head. “That’s what it boils down to. These models want top billing as a supermodel and Ruth is standing in their way.”
“All right,” Nico said. “Dig deeper into your assigned models when we’re at Casa del Mar. Instead of having too few suspects, we have too many. Whoever is threatening Ruth is good enough to evade detection. We’ll have to be in top form to catch them and stop the campaign of terror before they lay a hand on Ruth. Between now and the time we land in Mexico, catch some sleep.”