I towel-dry an ear and answer. “Hello?”
“Hello, this is Officer Maria Cortez from the Los Angeles Police Department. Can I confirm who I’m speaking to?”
I straighten and hastily pull on my robe with my free hand. “Yes, of course. Mia Eliot.”
“That’s great. Okay, Ms. Eliot, so I’m just following up on the report you made last night. Would now be a good time to talk?”
I look about the deserted pool terrace, its cabana curtains fluttering gently in the breeze, and pull my robe tighter around me. “Yes, now would be fine, thank you.” I sink down onto one of the deep cushioned loungers and try to stay calm.
The officer continues, friendly but professional. “Okay, so, the good news is we can confirm that Ms. Emily Bryant is now in possession of her wallet, her car keys, and her car so no further actions will be taken in regard to the report made by yourself.”
She is silent for a moment. I wait for more details but none come.
Is that it?
“So she was there then? Emily?”
There’s a pause before the officer responds. “I’m sorry, ma’am?”
“Sorry, I just…I was wondering if the officers who went to her apartment spoke to Emily herself. If she was there. If it was definitely her.” I realize I sound fully mad but I’m not sure Officer Cortez knows the fundamental aspects of the whole Emily situation.
“Ma’am. I can only tell you what’s written here in the report. Emily Bryant was present at the location; she was in possession of her wallet and her vehicle. The officers at the scene were satisfied and there were no grounds for further investigation.”
“Right.” I know I shouldn’t push it but I can’t help myself. “So the officers checked her ID?”
“Ma’am, is there a problem here? Is there something I should know?”
“No, I just wanted to make sure it was definitely Emily they spoke to. I know it sounds strange but I’m slightly concerned it might not have been.”
“Well, yes, they would have checked and confirmed her ID on the scene. So if the woman they ID’d is not Emily, then we’d be talking about a much bigger crime here than auto theft. Do you have any reason to believe the woman we spoke to is not who she says she is, Ms. Eliot?”
I shiver in the breeze, my wet hair icy cold now, my forearms goosebumped as I try to figure out what crime impersonating someone is, exactly. Is it fraud? Whatever it is I’m not sure being the only witness in a criminal investigation would be a great career move for me this week. But if I push this that’s what I’ll be.
“No, no. I’m sure if they checked, it’s all fine. Thank you for letting me know. Oh, and what happens to the report now?”
“It’s been closed. It’s in the system but as far as anyone’s concerned it’s gone.”
“Okay. Great, thank you, Officer Cortez.”
“You’re welcome. Have a great day.” The line goes dead.
* * *
—
Back in the apartment I hop in the shower, letting my cold skin warm under the water. I can let this go now. I have enough on my plate without adding in a police investigation. Emily is fine. They assured me Emily is fine. Order is restored.
I towel off and head into the pristine marble kitchen to make breakfast. Halfway into the room I stop dead in my tracks. My laptop sits open on the kitchen counter. I stare at its blank screen. I didn’t leave it there last night, did I? I left it charging next to the sofa as I usually do. The charging cable lies abandoned on the thick carpet. Did I forget to plug it in last night? A little shiver runs through me as I remember my missing script yesterday morning. Another thing seemingly moved in the night. I had meant to ask Lucy yesterday if the cleaners might have been up to the apartment. If they came up while I was out, they easily could have mistaken the script for rubbish underneath all that crumpled packaging. They could have thrown it out. I’d meant to ask Lucy but after the meeting at Universal and seeing Souki the whole incident had gone from my mind.