Deadly Performance: A British Cozy Murder Mystery with a Female Amateur Sleuth (A Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery Book 7) by Victoria Tait

Author:Victoria Tait [Tait, Victoria]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781915413444
Publisher: Kanga Press
Published: 2023-07-13T23:00:00+00:00

Having spent a leisurely lunch with her parents, Dotty returned to the flat with her father.

She’d expected her mother to rush back to work, but in the end, she told Karen to go to the office and she’d settle her dad at home before heading to the Pleasance for the evening show.

In the back of the taxi, on the way to the Pleasance, Dotty sent Karen a message.

Dad at home watching football. Pasta bake ready to go. 30 mins in the oven. Salad in the fridge. I’ll be back around 9.

Dotty walked into the Pleasance Side Theatre at five past five. The students were gathered in small groups at the edge of the stage, and Skye was in her control booth.

When Skye saw Dotty, she bent down and then straightened up, holding a black police jacket.

“Let’s see if this fits,” she said, descending from her control booth to meet Dotty at the bottom of the steps.

Shrugging off her raincoat, Dotty slipped the jacket over the black t-shirt she was wearing. She’d borrowed it from Karen for the performance, together with a pair of tailored black trousers.

Neither she nor Karen owned a 1950s style skirt, and Dotty only needed to symbolise that she was a police officer, not be dressed in the full attire.

As Dotty buttoned up the front of the jacket, Skye ran her hand over the shoulders and down the back. Finally, she stood in front of Dotty, appraising her. “Perfect.”

“That looks great,” enthused a breathless Jenny as she joined them.

“Sorry I’m late. We’ve been sitting with a pedantic solicitor all afternoon while she prepared our statements for the police. Luckily, she let me leave, but Willow, Toby and Robbie are still with her.” Jenny glanced at her watch. “I hope they get here in time.”

“Is there anything you want to go over?” asked Skye.

“Maybe a few scenes with Dotty. Now she’s dressed the part,” grinned Jenny.

With only the two of them on stage, and with nothing else to do, Jenny helped Dotty, showing her where and how to stand, and what to do when the action was taking place elsewhere.

Jenny reminded her to remember her feet, and that they were grounded to the stage; to focus on her breathing; and if she felt she was starting to panic, to concentrate on one of the props she was holding.

Dotty certainly felt more at ease by the time the rest of the cast arrived, entering through the emergency exit door.

“Twenty minutes until curtain-up,” called Robbie as he rushed up the steps onto the stage. Everyone get dressed and take your positions.” He hurried across the stage, looking across at Skye.

Was that Davy standing beside her? Dotty hadn’t seen him or Morag arrive.

“Any problems?” asked Robbie.

Skye shook her head.

Dotty remained by her peg as Jenny helped Willow fasten the buttons on his shirt and Toby cursed as he pulled on his trousers.

“Where have they been?” asked Sheena, the play’s victim, as she sidled up to Dotty. “Enjoying a leisurely lunch?”

“We were all at the police station this morning,” Dotty revealed.

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