Silenced in Sequins by Debra Sennefelder

Author:Debra Sennefelder
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lyrical Press
Published: 2019-10-17T22:51:52+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Breena arrived to open the boutique and said she could stay until Kelly returned. She didn’t have to work at Doug’s Variety Store until Sunday. Knowing she didn’t have to rush eased Kelly’s nerves about driving into Queens and meeting Patrice Garofalo.

She’d messaged Patrice on social media and asked to meet. Kelly had a hard time explaining why she wanted to talk because she wasn’t sure herself. She had a feeling in her gut that Patrice could help shed light on Diana’s murder, at least where Wendy was concerned. Then again, if that were the case, the police would’ve talked to the former LIL employee. However, in one of Patrice’s messages back to Kelly, she said they hadn’t contacted her. So this might be a complete waste of time on Kelly’s part.

They agreed to meet in a small coffee shop around the corner from Patrice’s apartment building in Jackson Heights. When she entered the shop and approached the table, Kelly recognized the twentysomething from her online profile picture.

“Hello, Patrice. I’m Kelly. Thank you for meeting with me.” Kelly pulled out a chair, and it scraped along the battered floor. As she sat, a larger man brushed by her and grunted.

“I’m not sure how I can help you.” Patrice’s dark hair fell loosely on her shoulders, and her brown eyes were hooded and bloodshot. In front of her was a large coffee and a tablet she tapped to close the document she had been working on.

“Neither am I right now.” After a quick inspection of the table, Kelly chose to set her tote bag on her lap. She wondered when was the last time anyone had wiped down the tables in the coffee shop.

Patrice nodded as she lifted her disposable cup. Her fingers wrapped around the cup, giving Kelly a full view of her high-maintenance manicure. Her stiletto-shaped nails must have required frequent appointments. One finger on each hand had an intricate design of miniature crystals. Patrice had also loaded her fingers with silver-tone rings. Feeling a little self-conscious, Kelly slid a glance at her own hands. They hadn’t had a proper manicure in months.

“I’m sorry Diana died. She was a nice lady. Well, at least to me.” Patrice took a long drink of her coffee.

“She wasn’t nice to the crew or her castmates?”

Patrice laughed—but not in a jovial way. No, her laugh was dark. “No one on that show is nice. But it is what it is.” She shrugged. “People love to watch the lives of those uppity ladies who spend more money on one lipstick than I spend on a day’s worth of food. They don’t want to see someone like me struggling to pay the bills. No, they prefer to watch the lifestyles of women like Diana and Wendy.”

“Do you know Wendy is a prime suspect in Diana’s murder?”

Patrice’s mouth fell open. “You’re not serious? She couldn’t have murdered Diana.”

“They had a public feud. It sounds like it was nasty.”

“All of those women had feuds. It was good for ratings.

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