“He’s been sniffing around the pageant contestants this year too, so an angry parent might’ve killed him.” Ninang June glanced worriedly at Joy.
“He’s been trying to get with Sana to piss off Beth.”
That last tidbit came from Jae.
“How do you know that? And why would it piss off Beth? I thought they had an understanding.” I tried not to let the last word drip with sarcasm, but wasn’t sure how successful I was.
Jae shrugged. “Because she told me. I don’t really know Sana, but Beth seems to have some weird rivalry with her.”
“I did notice the tension between them. But Sana didn’t go for it, did she? She seemed to find Rob as big a creep as I did.”
Ninang Mae leaned forward. “I saw them together not too long ago. I wouldn’t say they looked romantic, but they were pretty chummy. If they weren’t having an affair, he was definitely pushing for one. I know when a man is trying to woo a woman. Plus, I hear he paid her a huge retainer to do group coaching for the women higher-ups in his company.”
“If that’s true, that’s gotta be part of why Beth is so salty about her. She’s not the kind of person who takes kindly to people telling her what to do or acting like they know more than she does.” Jae frowned. “She’s also the type to see other women as competition, so be careful around her, Lila. If she thinks you’re challenging her or getting in her way, she could make life very difficult for you.”
I grimaced. “She sure sounds lovely. Thanks for the heads-up, though.”
Jae shrugged. “I know how it sounds, but she’s really upfront about who she is and what she wants. It’s kind of refreshing, actually.”
I wasn’t sure how, but that was definitely a dig at me.
Amir nodded at what Jae said. “He’s right. Beth Thompson is not exactly a sweetheart, but in all of my dealings with her, she’s been transparent and professional.”
“So that means she’s incapable of murder?”
“I didn’t say that, Lila. Right now, we have very little to work with, so building character profiles on everyone involved seems like the best move forward.” Amir dipped his skewer of fish balls into the spicy, sweet sauce in the center of the table and took a big bite. “Wow, these are great. Did you try a new recipe, Auntie?”
Tita Rosie beamed at him. “I did! Thank you for noticing. What do you think about—”
Lola Flor waved her hand. “Ay, that’s not important. Is this Beth woman a viable suspect? If not, who is?”
“I didn’t think you’d care about the investigation, Lola Flor,” I said. When everything was going down a few months ago, all she cared about was the restaurant. She never joined in the gossiping, clue-finding, or overall investigation.
“I don’t. As long as Bernie doesn’t go to jail, I don’t care what happened to that man. I just don’t like when people go off on tangents. You’re all here to help Bernie.”
“They’re also guests and friends who we’re happy to have over so we can all eat and enjoy each other’s company, Nay. They don’t have to be ‘useful’ to be here.” As if to put her words into action, my aunt started heaping more food onto everyone’s plates.
My grandmother tsked and stood up, taking her empty plate to the kitchen. Everybody ate quietly until we heard her banging around in there, hopefully assembling dessert, and collectively decided it was safe to speak again.
“When’s the next pageant meeting?” Ninang Mae asked.
I groaned. “Tomorrow. A photographer from the Shady Palms News is going to accompany us while we visit the girls at their volunteer sites.”
“Aren’t there over thirty contestants? You’re going to visit all of them in one day?” Jae asked.
“No, we spread it over the week. Made it easier since there were so many, and also because their schedules have them working specific days and times. And there’re only twenty contestants now since quite a few were eliminated after the group interviews.” I swiped the last kwek-kwek from the plate, the thought of all the work ahead of me making me crave the deep-fried, protein-filled comfort. “Still going to be a pain since this means most of my week is dedicated to this. Plus we have the sportswear designer event this week, and there’s also Rob’s memorial, which I think we should all go to.”
The Calendar Crew exchanged glances and nodded as one. “We’ll be in the audience for all the open events, trying to get more information. People love to talk, especially with something as juicy as a murder, so we’ll let you know what we hear.”