Hollywood Murder (2 page)

I sat there for probably a full minute, stunned by what he’d told me. I’d hear rumors about the secret society operating in Hollywood for years, influencing both the stars and the studios, but assumed it was one of those urban legends that had little basis in reality. The Revelation was rumored to hold ultra-exclusive parties, providing sex hook-ups for their members. According to what I’d heard, participation also involved initiation rites and secret passwords. The Revelation allegedly used violence against anyone who crossed them. 

“Tell me what you know about Kellen’s involvement.”

Russell took a moment to collect his thoughts. When he spoke, he kept his voice low again, like someone might overhear our conversation even though we were alone. “From what I know, Kellen became involved in the secret society when he was in college. He was recruited by their leadership council. The organization seeks to control others and spread their message. Money and the media are used in that process, and, even at a young age, Kellen was very good at both endeavors.”

“What exactly is their message?”

“They believe in a form of enlightenment and that those involved in their group will eventually take over and change society. From what I know, they not only operate in Hollywood, but have members throughout the country. It’s all very clandestine.”

“You make it sound like they have a lot of power.”

“Money talks and the Revelation couldn’t operate without money—a lot of money. From what I know, they form investment corporations that provide the financial backing for the movies that support their hidden agenda. Those movies are full of subliminal messages meant for the members of their group. Everything they do is secret and hidden from the general public, but it’s pervasive.” He took a breath and shook his head. “And my son is involved in it all.”

Russell was describing an organization that was all about power and control. If the secret society did, in fact, exist, it meant there was an underworld of deception, sex and money that influenced everything that went on in Hollywood. I’d heard rumors that the Revelation went back to the beginnings of Hollywood. If Russell’s son had been involved in the organization back in the 1980s, it could mean that the murders of Jean Winslow and my love-dad had been part of a much larger agenda. It might even be that they’d learned about the secret society and were killed because they’d threatened to expose those involved.

“Who, along with your son, is part of this group?”

“There have been rumors there are politicians, producers, stars, and even cops involved, but I can’t say for sure. I do know that my son’s wealth and influence gives him the ability to make or break anyone in the industry. It also gives him the power to eliminate his enemies.”

“As in Donald Regis?” When he didn’t respond, I said, “Do you think Regis could have been involved in their organization and crossed your son?”

Russell shrugged. “Perhaps, but I don’t know. I’ve purposely stayed out of things for my own good.”

“And the death of Jean Winslow and my father? Could the Revelation have been behind their murders?”

He didn’t look at me. “Same answer.”

I studied Russell for a moment. I had a feeling that he knew a lot more about the secret society and his son’s involvement, but he was deathly afraid to say anything. If Kellen Malone was truly the monster his father had made him out to be, it meant that he would stop at nothing to keep his organization a secret. That meant possibly killing my love-dad and his own father if it suited his purposes.

“You told me earlier that the last time you talked to your son he threatened to kill you if you ever told anyone you were his father. What exactly happened between you two?”

Russell’s watery eyes met mine. His voice was subdued. I had the feeling I was looking at a man who had been broken by the events surrounding the estrangement from his son. “Something happened to…to my partner. He was an up and coming star many years ago. I had my suspicions that my son and the Revelation were behind everything. I confronted Kellen about it. He denied being involved and disowned me. That’s when he threatened my life if I ever brought up what happened again or told anyone that he was my son.”

“Your partner…was he killed?”

Tears were on Russell’s cheeks. He nodded. “I can’t prove it, but I believe the Revelation had a hitman who was behind his death and possibly the others that we’ve talked about.”

“Who are you talking about?”

“Ryan Cooper.”

I got home late that afternoon and went next door to pick up Bernie from Natalie and Mo. I stopped at their front door and heard Nana’s all-too-familiar high-pitched warble. While my friends are what I call tact-deficient, Nana has never heard of the term. She made a habit of blurting out any errant thought she had, usually at my expense.

The elderly widow had been our landlord at one time, before she married a man named Claude Whipple. Her new husband dropped dead on their wedding day, leaving Nana with about a hundred million dollars and a horde of angry relatives who looked remarkably like ghouls. The last I heard, Claude’s family was contesting the will, but in the meantime, Nana was busy spending every penny she’d inherited.

After saying my hellos and greeting Bernie, Nana wasted no time irritating me. “I heard you’ve been acting like a foolish schoolgirl in heat with your new boyfriend.”

Natalie, who also had little patience when it came to Nana, said, “Kate’s finally found the man of her dreams. There’s nuthin’ wrong with that.”

“Yeah,” Mo chimed in. My heavyset friend was fond of wigs and was sporting a shoulder length chartreuse headpiece. “Long as she’s gettin’ what the doctor ordered, it ain’t nobody’s business.”

“I’ll bet that doggy doctor is hornier than Bernie,” Nana added. “How many times did you do it when you were with him in Hawaii?”

I took a breath and released it slowly. Noah and I had gone to Maui together and had been back less than a week. “Sorry, but I didn’t count.”

“No matter. I hold the
Guinness Book of World Records
for continuous coitus anyway. Me and a guy I once dated did it fifty-seven times in one night.”

Mo regarded Nana with one eye, in that way she had when she disapproved of something. “I knew a lot of working girls when I was a pimp. Some of ’em worked all night, but what you’re suggesting ain’t even possible.”

“Unless you had ’bout twenty guys in the room,” Natalie added.

Nana straightened her lime green blouse. “Believe what you will. It was an extremely vigorous night. I plan to use some of my personal experiences in my upcoming show.”

I shouldn’t have asked, but I’ve always had a problem keeping my big mouth shut. “What kind of show?”

“It’s a talk show I’m working on with the studios called
Bedtime Stories
. I’m going to have guests show up and talk about their sex lives, kind of like Howard Stern.” She regarded me. “Since you were a born again virgin until recently, I could save a spot for you.”

Nana was talking about the fact that, before I met Noah, I’d been on a relationship hiatus, trying to sort out my personal life. Neither she nor my friends understood my decision not to be involved with anyone until I was sure it was the right relationship. “Thanks, but I’ll pass on the show.”

Nana grimaced. “That figures. You’ve probably got nothing worth talking about anyway, unless people want to hear about fake orgasms and the missionary position.”

I bit my tongue, doing my best to ignore her.

Nana stood and said, “I’ve got to be going. My posse is waiting for me.”

“What posse?” Natalie asked.

Nana’s oversized dentures gleamed in the ceiling lights. “My entourage is waiting in my limo. I don’t go anywhere without them. I have a certain image to maintain.”

After she was gone, Mo shook her big head and said, “Nuthin’ like maintaining your image as a crazy old woman in heat.”

“I was thinking ’bout Lindsay today,” Natalie said to me, changing the subject, and, no doubt, happy that Nana was gone. “Is there anything new on her whereabouts?”

I sighed, thinking about my half-sister. Lindsay had been taken in by a group of killers that called themselves The Swarm. What had started out as a kidnapping had turned into Lindsay apparently suffering Stockholm syndrome. She’d willingly become part of the group that had gone underground. I had no idea where she was or what she was planning.

“I haven’t heard a thing,” I said. “I’m worried that she’s going to surface one of these days and do something we’ll all regret.”

“We haven’t given up on finding her,” Mo said, maybe just to try and bolster my spirits. “I got my sources on the streets keeping their eyes open.”

In Mo’s prior life as a pimp, she’d specialized in getting girls off the streets. I knew that she still had a lot of contacts and said, “I appreciate that.”

“So tell us ’bout your meeting with Collin Russell,” Natalie said, moving the conversation in a new direction. “We wanna hear what he knows ’bout that Kellen Malone bloke.”

My friends knew all about my mother’s letters, what she’d said about Donald Regis and Kellen Malone, and that Collin Russell had been friends with her at one time. I took a moment, filling them in on our conversation, and telling them that Malone was Russell’s son and he was a member of the Revelation.

“What?” Natalie said. “I thought Russell was gay.”

“He is, but he was married at one time. He and his wife have been divorced for years, but Malone is his son. He also told me that Malone threatened to kill him if he ever told anyone that he’s his father.” I told them how Russell was deathly afraid of his own son. “He also told me that the Revelation had a hitman back in the eighties. His name was Ryan Cooper.”

Mo regarded me with one eye, just as she’d done earlier with Nana. “Let’s take a step back. Did you say Malone is part of the Revelation?” I again confirmed what Russell had told me. Mo’s enormous breasts rose, then deflated. “This is some serious shit.”

“What do you know about the organization?” I asked.

“Just that anybody who crosses ’em ends up dead. We gotta reevaluate how we investigate this case.”

“Not to worry, Mo,” Natalie said. “I got me some new judo moves and took a class on fifty ways to be a ball-buster.”

Mo maintained her serious expression. “This is way bigger than a bunch of balls, baby sis.”

I met Mo’s dark eyes. “You’re genuinely concerned, aren’t you?”

She nodded her head, looking slightly off balance with the chartreuse wig. “If Jean Winslow, your love-daddy, and now Donald Regis were all whacked by Kellen Malone and the Revelation, and they know that we know…” She swallowed. “I think we need us a new strategy, something that will protect our identities.”

“You mean like one of them witness protection programs?” Natalie asked. “I wanna be a redhead named Claudia Le Bleu, and speak in a French accent.”

I looked at Natalie, wondering where she came up with her fantasies. “Sorry, Claudia, but a protection program isn’t an option. But, Mo’s right. I want us all to back off and stay out of things until I decide how to handle this.”

“What you gonna do?” Mo asked.

“I’m not sure, but I need to tell Lieutenant Oz about everything. I don’t know if we have enough for this to rise to a formal investigation, but I need to run it all past him.” My gaze moved between the two of them. “In the meantime, I need your word that you’ll stay out of everything. You can do some research on the group, but that’s it.”

Mo agreed. Natalie said something about us having cold feet, but gave in when Mo also told her that she needed to back off.

I stood up and got Bernie’s leash. “I’ve got a busy day at work tomorrow, so I’m going to call it a night.”

Mo got out of her chair and came over to me. “We heard you’re gonna be on that TV show
Hollywood Detective.
”

I’d almost forgotten about agreeing to do the documentary about how detectives in Hollywood operate. “Leo Kingsley, my new partner, and I agreed to look into a cold case, but I’m not looking forward to having a camera crew and a reporter following us around.”

“Kate’s gonna be a star,” Natalie said. “Maybe you’ll get your own series and become rich and famous.”

“Baby sis and me could be your agents,” Mo said. “Maybe we can negotiate the big bucks for you.”

I snapped Bernie’s leash on his collar. “Thanks, but no thanks. I’ll settle for my quiet little life of poverty and murder.”

Natalie came over to me when we were at the door. “I almost forgot to mention, me and Mo have been doing some security work for that celebrity chef, Marlon Pavarotti. He’s teaching us how to cook and make exotic drinks. Marlon agreed to come by tomorrow night and whip up some of his specialties.”

“You and Bernie are welcome to stop by,” Mo said. “Marlon’s teaching baby sis to make one of his new drinks. It’s called a Dirty Harriett.”

I looked at Natalie. “I’m afraid to ask.”

“I’d tell you what’s in it, but then I’d have to kill you.” She chuckled and punched me on the shoulder. “All I can say is the drink is like great sex. It starts out real smooth, sneaks up on you, and then makes you start begging for more.”

I laughed. “I think I’ll pass on the Harriett, but I’ll try to stop by tomorrow night.”