Nancy walked over to the lighting technician, who was gloomily gathering his things together. “Excuse me,” she said, “but—could I ask you a question?”
The man turned around and looked at her for a moment. “Oh, hi, I remember you. You’re the girl who saved Rick’s life,” he said with a smile. “I guess I should thank you. I’d have been in real trouble if he’d gotten hurt.”
“You don’t have to thank me,” Nancy waved him off. “But you could tell me what this is.” She showed him the bolt she’d found.
“Why, that’s a C-clamp. They’re used to hold the lights on the bar.”
“Does it look odd to you? Is there anything strange about it?”
MacPherson studied the clamp briefly. “One end’s been sawed,” he gasped. “Almost clean through. The rest looks like it snapped off. This must be— But if—”
“Just what I was thinking,” Nancy said, agreeing. “That was no accident this morning. The light was rigged so it would fall. Somebody tried to kill Rick Arlen—and almost succeeded!”
Chapter Four
“Do you believe me now?” Mattie was on the verge of tears as she pleaded with the chief of security. She and Nancy had just shown him the broken clamp. “I’ve been telling people for weeks that someone was after Rick, but nobody believed me. You’ve got to believe me now!”
“Now, Mattie,” Pappas said, patting his leading lady on the arm. “Let’s not get hysterical and blow this out of proportion.”
“Well, I’ll be,” the security man muttered as he examined the C-clamp. “Where exactly did you say you found this, young lady?”
“By the back wall of the set,” Nancy replied.
“Well, it proves the light was sabotaged. No doubt about it.”
“This is just what I need,” Pappas muttered in frustration. “I don’t have enough problems without someone sabotaging my show!”
“Mr. Pappas, who actually has access to this stage?” the chief wanted to know.
“Well, the crew and the actors, of course. Nobody else, really. Maybe an occasional guest, but they all register at the front desk.”
“Wasn’t there a tour group in here earlier today?” Nancy asked.
Pappas snapped his fingers. “Right!”
“And some of them were mad at Rory Danner, too,” Nancy said.
“You don’t suppose some crazy fan could have—” Pappas shook his head.
“There’re a lot of nuts out there, Mr. Pappas,” the chief said. “All it takes is one person who can’t tell fantasy from reality.”
“That settles it!” Pappas exclaimed. “From now on this set is closed to anyone not directly involved in the show.” Yelling across the studio, Pappas repeated his order for everyone to hear. “That means no guests, no agents, no mothers, fathers, sisters, or brothers. I want this set sealed tighter than a pharaoh’s tomb!
“Now, we’ll take a couple-hour break and then back to work. If you need anything, I’ll be in my office.”
After Pappas walked away, Nancy turned toward Mattie.
“Thank goodness he gave us a break,” she told Nancy. “I’ve got to go rest.” Rubbing her eyes, she added, “See you later. And thanks again for saving Rick’s life.” Flashing Nancy a grateful smile, Mattie walked off the set.
Since the set was closed to guests, Nancy and Bess had to leave. Nancy began to make her way back toward Rick’s dressing room to collect Bess. But she soon realized she must have gone through the wrong door or made a wrong turn somewhere. One long corridor led to another, and for a moment Nancy didn’t know which way to turn. Then the sound of a door slowly opening caught her attention. Instinctively knowing that she shouldn’t be there, Nancy moved back into a recessed doorway and waited silently.
Nancy could just see Lillian Weiss nervously looking both ways before stepping into the hall. Once the door was closed behind her, Lillian seemed to relax. Nancy’s heart was in her throat as she realized Lillian was heading straight for her. Nancy opened the door behind her and slammed it, making it sound as if she had just come through that door. She stepped out into the corridor.
“Well, well,” Lillian said, greeting Nancy with a snarl. “Is our fair rescuer lost and helpless?”