Madison?
The caller wasnt Mike Greenwood. It was Eddie Archer himself.
Eddie! she said. Oh, Eddie, Im so sorry.
Then youve heard.
Yes.
Alistair didnt do it.
I believe that, Eddie. With my whole heart.
Thank you.
He was quiet.
I heard not to come in, Eddie, Madison said. Alfie called me.
Actually, Madison, I do want you to come in. I have a friend arrivinga film effects artist I worked with years ago. Hes a member of the FBI now, and hes going to handle a special investigation for me. Id like you to meet with him, show him around the studio.
II thought it was closed down, other than for the police? FBI? How had he gotten the FBI involved? She wasnt savvy about law enforcement, but shed always assumed the FBI only came in for serial killers or kidnapping or crimes that spanned several states.
And how the hell did a special-effects artist wind up in the FBI?
And, oh, God, why had Eddie chosen her?
She knew exactly why Eddie had chosen her. Hed never challenged her, hed never forced her into a corner over this. But he believedhad reason to believethat she talked to the dead.
The police closed the Black Box Cinema. But I closed the studio. And SeanSean Cameronwont be here until this afternoon. I just talked to him in the wee hours of the morning and hes coming from Virginia. Im picking him up myself, so Ill swing by for you after Ive collected him from LAX. If thats all right with you.
Madison exhaled on a long breath. The man she had hero-worshipped for his artistry throughout her formative years was asking for her help. The same man whod hired her and opened up a world that shed only dreamed of knowing.
Eddie, I would do anything for you, she assured him humbly. And for Alistair.
Thank you. I think youre the right person to work with Sean. And I deeply appreciate your friendshipfor Alistair and me. You can expect me around five.
Of course, she murmured lamely.
Eddie wasnt ready to hang up. Alistair didnt do ithe really didnt. He was quiet for a minute. He told me that the Egyptian priest, Amun Mopat, came down from the Sam Stone tableau, and killed her. Alistair tried to reach Jenny, but slipped in the blood, conked himself outand then came to and saw it was realhe was lying in a pool of blood. I guess its normal for the police to think that either hes crazy or his story is and that hes going to try for an insanity plea. But I know my son. I know he didnt do it. And only someone whos familiar with the studio can prove he didnt.
Were in Hollywooda place filled with actors and effects, Madison said.
Yeah, Eddie agreed, sounding bitter. But, oddly enough, I believe were the only ones who see the possibility that Alistair didnt do it. Anyway, Madison, Ill be by for you. If youre sure you dont mind.
Im happy to show your guy around the museum, Eddie.
Eddie Archer ended the call. Madison sank down into her art decostyle sofa, setting her phone on the coffee table in front of it.
Hey.
Madison nearly leaped a mile into the air at the sound of the voice. Her hand fluttered to her throat; her heart thudded.
She turned and saw the man whod spoken, standing just behind her.
The voice was soft. The man was slight, with dark graying hair and a wonderful face filled with character.
She let out a breath. Her sometime-resident invisible friendwhether extension of her imagination or real ghostwas seated on the arm of the sofa, looking at her sorrowfully.
You all right, kid?
She let out a breath, realizing that the very concept of someone being murdered where she worked was terrifying.
Yeah. It would help if you didnt startle me like that.
I spoke quietly. And Im not exactly a surprise now, Madison, am I?
No, not anymore.
She could see him plain as day, as if he were flesh and blood, a good friend whod stopped by in a time of need. He had a fascinating, ruggedly masculine faceincluding his slightly scarred lipand a lean, slight form. When he stood, he was on the short side at only five feet eight inches.
Um, Im fine. Im just stunned, Madison said. Then she rushed into words, well aware of how ridiculous shed look if anyone else was therebecause she saw Humphrey Bogart as he sat in her living room. I dont know how much you hear or fathom from phone conversations, but there was a murder at the studio last night. A starlet who was with Alistair Archer. I cant believe he killed her. I wont believe itnot Alistair. Eddie must be beside himself, desperate to help him. Hes such a loving father.
Watching a child suffer is a hard thing, Bogie said, his voice low and slightly nasal.
Bogie.
Madison stared at him. Was he an imaginary friend? She would never be sure. Shed had strange experiences as a child. Shed tried chalking them up to growing pains, teenage angst and, as her parents had suggested, an overactive imaginationthe kind that had led her right into a career. Shed also had experiences that had broken her heartand might be part of the reason she embraced her work, day in and day out.
Bogie hadnt come with the bungalow, though hed lived there briefly in the 1920s. Hed told her once that he had loved it and loved living there. Shed first met him at the wax museum when she was a college student; shed assumed he was a look-alike actor hired to play the part. Theyd spoken and laughed together.
And hed followed her home.
Bogie showed up whenever he wanted to. Apparently he had other places to haunt, as well. Madison simply accepted him as a friendimaginary though he might be. Sometimes she thought she was crazy; sometimes she thought she was incredibly lucky that such a man had chosen her to haunt. Although she believed that now, she hadnt always. Hed scared her to death at first, and had occasionally made her life hell.
Hed just startled her today; the first night shed seen him sitting on her sofa, however, hed practically given her a heart attack. Shed fumbled to call the police, and theyd come and almost arrested her, assuming she was another college kid trying to make trouble. Bogie had been apologetic and courteousso sorry for causing her distress. He was what he was, and hed tried to explain, but she hadnt believed him.
Maybe he was imaginary, but she didnt know what part of her mind triggered his appearances.
And if he was, what about the other dead people whod spoken to her?
But imaginary or not, he was there for her now.
Have some coffee, kid. Thatll make you feel better.
Im not sure it will help me feel better. But at least itll wake me up.
What are you waking up for? You could go back to sleep.
Why is it that everyone thinks I can sleep now? she muttered.
Bogie ignored that, standing and stretching as he gazed out the windows. He turned to look at her. The murder took place in the studio? he asked.
She shook her head. The underground tunnel between the Black Box Cinema and the studiowhere Archer has his film noir museum.
Interesting, Bogie mused. By which display?
Madison frowned. The news didnt say, but Alfie told me it was by the tableau for Sam Stone and the Curious Case of the Egyptian Museum. Sounds crazy, doesnt it? I mean, especially since the studio is now in lockdown because of The Unholythe Sam Stone remake.
Madison frowned. The news didnt say, but Alfie told me it was by the tableau for Sam Stone and the Curious Case of the Egyptian Museum. Sounds crazy, doesnt it? I mean, especially since the studio is now in lockdown because of The Unholythe Sam Stone remake.
A lot has been crazy in Hollywood through the years. Youve heard about the case of the Black Dahlia? Poor girl, tortured and then displayed, chopped right in two, Bogie said, shaking his head. Theres always been murder out hereand out here, it becomes sensational, with more emphasis on the drama than the tragedy. You had Fatty Arbuckle and the murder of Virginia Rappe back in 1921, and later, you had the Manson murders and then the Simpson murders, and anytime anyones killed here, the press is out looking for every sordid detail. He shrugged. I watch the news, you know, he told her seriously, as well as old comedy reruns. And, kid, this is a big place full of illusion. Murder isnt confined to Tinseltown, but theres no way its not going to occur here, too.
Madison nodded absently. She glanced over at Bogie and wondered sometimes why he didnt haunt some of the other places hed loved. And some of the people Hed told her once, though, They cant see me. I cant reach them. So it just hurts, kid. It just hurts. And hed grinned at her. You reply when I speak to you and I like that. Its why I keep coming back, kid.
And now, most of the time, she was glad. Very glad.
Sam Stone and the Curious Case of the Egyptian Museum, Bogie said. I couldve been in that movie. I think I was busy at the time. Something else going on. Might have been Casablanca. Yeah, probably. That was 1942. Anyway, I always thanked God I wasnt on that set, because there was a death back thenand it might have been a murder, too.
Madison tried to see if she could remember her Hollywood lore and legend well enough to recall a murder that had happened during the making of Sam Stone.
I dont recall ever seeing anything about itin any of the lurid books about true Hollywood murders or on any of the history or entertainment channels, she said.
Bogie joined her on the couch again. Watching him, she hid a smile. He seemed to sit differently from other people she knew. He was relaxed, and still, somehow appeared proper.
It was 1942. The war effort was in full swing. Movies were being made to encourage heroismor to try and divert the public from the war. Casablanca, he said, and grew thoughtful. Ah, that was a good one for me. There was some great writing on that movie. I wish some of those lines had been my own. That and The African Queensome of those were my ad-libs. And both of them gave me a persona to live up to. He paused and looked at her with his famous lopsided grin. Anyway, I digress, kid. And Im talking out of line. The death of Pete Krakowski was never officially called a murder. No real inquiries were made, no one was investigated and no one was arrested. There were just rumors on the set, rumors that traveled around. Gotta remember, back then, the studios were king, and they were powerful. Krakowskis death was seen as a tragic accident, and thats the way it went. It was long ago and in the middle of a world war, and it wasnt particularly noted at the timehe was a bit player, not a big star.
How did Krakowski die? Madison asked, puzzled.
There was some kind of fault with the wiring. He was electrocuted. From what I understood, he was fooling around on set before the filming was to start, and then he was dead. Fried, Bogie said, shaking his head sadly.
Were doing a remake of that movieand I never even heard about it. Why do you say it mightve been a murder? Madison asked.
You didnt hear about it because there were accidents on sets from time to time. Krakowski wasnt the only film person who died that youve probably never heard ofno internet back then. You just heard about these things if they happened to a major star or if someone was killed by a lover or a spouse. He cocked his head toward her. Bit player, and what was deemed an accident. Nothing sensational about it, and Krakowski was hardly a household name. Like I said, no way for every little piece of news to be known across the country back then. No Twitter, no Facebook and no Google. He was quiet for a minute. I woulda liked a Facebook page, he said.
Actually, there are several devoted to you, she said. But why would someone suspect it was murder? It sounds like an accident.
I knew the key grip and the lead electrician on that film. They were the best in the business. If they were working the rigging and electric, both were safe. Bogie waved a hand. Anyway, Krakowskis death is a far cry from a starlet being sliced up in the tunnel. A far cry, indeed. He leaned back, nostalgic. I remember that old cinema from way back. Played silent films, even before my time. Its a shame, a damned shame. That Eddie Archer has a real appreciation for the pastthis shouldnt have happened on his property. Shouldnt have happened to the poor girl, either.
Madison realized that shed been feeling sorry for and worried about Eddie Archer and his son, Alistair. Shed almost forgotten the victim.
Was that how it had been when the death had occurred during the original filming?
Lord, she whispered. Youre right. The poor girl.
Thats Hollywood for you, Bogie said. Itll steal your soul, if not your life. Thereve been so many who came here with such dreams and wound up dead. Christa Helm, Dorothy Stratton, Dominique Dunne, Elizabeth Short or the Black Dahlia, Sharon Tate. Peg Entwhistle, the only one to really jump from the Hollywood sign. I remember that, Bogie said. She found her fame in death. And we may never find out what really happened to Marilyn Monroe. He paused. Did you know the young woman who was killed?
Madison nodded, then shook her head. I cant say I knew her. I met her a few times when she was with Alistair and once at an office party.
You work too much, kid. Youve gotta remember, none of its worth anything if you dont have a life.
Madison arched a brow and refrained from reminding him that the last time shed brought a date home, shed acted like an idiot because Bogie had been watching something on her television and had said, Dont mind me, kid. He loved TV. He couldnt do a lot on the physical plane, but he could manage such simple tasks as pushing buttons on the remote control. He adored old sitcoms and liked to keep up with the television news.
There has to be some information on Krakowskis death, she said, returning to their previous topic.
There wasone newspaper article. No follow-up. He died. It was sad. He was buried. And that was that. Im sure many of us thought about it back then. But time goes by.
This is so horrible. For the poor girl, yes, of course. And for everyone who will be touched by it. She sighed. Alistair really loves his dad. He didnt usually bring people to the studio. I mean, I dont know what went on beforeIve been there for about three years now. But as far as I can tell, Alistair respects the studio. And he loves film. He wants to get into directing rather than special effects, butalthough I didnt really know Jenny Henderson, I saw the way Alistair followed her around like a puppy dog. He had a huge crush on her. I cant believe he wouldve killed anyone. And I especially cant believe he wouldve hurt Jenny. He was crazy about her.