A Christmas Peril Read online

  Hedda didn’t spare him a glance. “I’m cancelling Julius Caesar.”

  Charles ran his fingers through his silver hair. “But this season was planned over a year ago. We’ve already sold tickets, and I’ve begun casting! We can’t…”

  She held up her hand, cutting him off. “Now is not the time, Charles.” She turned her attention back to Andrew. “As I was saying, I would like to invite you to audition for the show.”

  My pulse quickened. Before working at the Bleak Street, I’d never heard of Hedda Widderstrom, but from the hints Charles had dropped over the past few months, it was clear that Miss Widderstrom had a great deal of influence in the theater community. She didn’t just know the movers and shakers, she had set them in motion to begin with. Catching Hedda’s eye was like getting the ‘Advance to GO’ card in Monopoly. You might not win the game because of it, but it would certainly put you ahead of everyone else.

  “This is a very unique engagement,” Hedda said. Her violet eyes glittered. “It’s an avant-garde piece.”

  Avant-garde. Uh oh. That’s exactly what Charles had said about County Dracula back when he’d offered me a job. “How experimental?” I asked.

  Her smile widened, giving a glimpse of overly white teeth. “It’s called 16 Voices Talking at the Same Time.”

  I suppressed a groan. “Does it really involve sixteen actors all speaking at the same time?” When Hedda nodded, I grimaced without meaning to. I hadn’t thought anything could be worse than County Dracula. No wonder most people thought modern theater was dead.

  Her sharp eyes pierced me. “My dear, Shakespeare was once considered too experimental because he mixed comedy with tragedy.”

  Comparing Much Ado about Nothing to something called 16 Voices Talking at the Same Time was absurd, but I kept my mouth shut.

  “Who wrote it?” Andrew asked.

  Hedda brightened even more. “Victor Stuyvesant. He’s a close, personal friend of mine, and he’ll be working alongside the director and actors.”

  Not again! The County Dracula playwright had also been a close friend. Surely something in the AEA bylaws prohibited the torture of actors. Andrew and I exchanged worried looks in the mirror.

  Charles’s jaw dropped, and his eyebrows jumped. “Victor Stuyvesant? Of the New York Stuyvesants?” At Hedda’s nod, Charles said, “Any idea why he’s making a surprise visit to Detroit?”

  “He’s here to stage a play, of course.” Hedda continued to smile, but several nervous tugs on the diamond bracelet belied her calm. “And, of course, to attend my little party tomorrow night.”

  Charles’s lips puckered, as if he’d suddenly bit down on something sour. “You’re still going through with that?”

  “I see no need to cancel. Luquin deserves recognition for all he’s done for me.”

  Charles’s hands clenched into fists. From our weeks together, I knew his temper was rising like the mercury in a thermometer. “After all he’s done for you? What about me?”

  Hedda’s eyes blazed. “It isn’t your place to question my decision.” The vehemence behind her words cracked like a whip.

  Charles jerked as if he’d been hit, and he lowered his eyes. “You’re right. I apologize.”

  Hedda nodded stiffly. “Well, Andrew?” she asked, her voice gentle once more. “Are you interested?”

  “Who’s directing?” Andrew asked.

  Hedda waited several seconds longer than necessary before finally saying, “Charles. Of course.”

  A little color returned to Charles’s face, and some of the tension went out of his shoulders. He bowed slightly. “I’d be honored.”

  “In that case, maybe,” Andrew said. “What about you, Cassie? Are you going to audition?”

  Shocked, I stumbled over my reply. “Well, I don’t know…it’s a great opportunity, but I’m awfully busy.” It wasn’t just my fear of auditioning that made my palms sweat. It was Hedda herself. Something about that woman put me on edge.

  Hedda studied me, gauging my reaction, before dismissing me with a shrug. “The auditions are by invitation only.”

  Relief blew through my chest. “Oh, sure, I understand. No problem.”

  Hedda turned back to Andrew. “Well?” When he hesitated, Hedda said, “Why don’t you read the play before you decide.” She took a script from her purse and laid it on Andrew’s table. “Auditions begin next week.”

  Annoyed that Andrew was getting all of the attention, Tabitha sauntered up. She gave Hedda her best ingénue smile. She didn’t carry it off nearly as well as Andrew had. “Hello. I’m Tabitha Purcell.”

  Hedda smiled slightly. “Ah, the beautiful leading lady.”

  Beautiful. My jealous brain clung to that word. Tabby wasn’t a gifted actress, but her looks sold tickets. She was tall where I was short. Her complexion was fair whereas mine was the color of tea. She also had blond hair, a pert nose, and a perfect figure while I had none of those things.

  Tabitha offered her hand, but Hedda left it hanging. Turning to Charles, she said, “Now, where is the other actor I wanted to meet?”

  “This way.” Charles ushered his guest away from us.

  Tabby stood stunned, like she’d been running full tilt and suddenly smacked into a glass wall. I sucked in my cheeks to hide my smile.

  Charles and Hedda passed by the remaining principal cast. When they reached the end of the hallway, only one actor remained. Tabby’s fists clenched in outrage. “Oh. My. God.”

  Darryl had changed from his costume and back into his gangsta wannabe attire: baggy jeans carefully sagged to reveal a stripe of red boxers, and an oversized t-shirt. He was lacing up a pair of fluorescent yellow high tops.

  Darryl! Of all people! The guy’s performances were as wooden and creaky as the Bleak Street’s stage. “Oh, the injustice,” I muttered.

  When Charles handed over a script to 16 Voices, Darryl thrust out his chest. Making sure everyone was watching, he said in his loudest onstage voice, “I would consider it an honor to audition for a part, Miss Widderstrom.” I rolled my eyes before deciding it wasn’t worth my energy to be jealous. Other than Andrew, Hedda Widderstrom’s taste in actors appeared to be as terrible as her taste in plays.

  While I locked up the theater and turned off the lights, Andrew finished packing up his things. When I came backstage again, he rubbed his hands together and grinned. “Ready to get that drink?”

  The back hallway was still a mess, but cleanup could wait until Monday. “Let’s do it,” I said. I grabbed my purse and followed Andrew through the back door.

  Charles and Hedda stood in the tiny, employee-only parking lot behind the back of the theater. Charles had smoked halfway through one of his unfiltered Camels, and was already shaking another from the pack. “Because honoring Luquin isn’t fair! You’ve kept me waiting for years!”

  Hedda spoke with quiet intensity. “And you will continue to wait as long as I say…”

  Seeing Andrew and me, Charles cleared his throat. Hedda immediately cut herself off.

  “Good night, Charles,” Andrew said. He turned to Hedda. “It was nice meeting you.”

  “I hope you’ll consider taking a role in 16 Voices,” she said. “You’d be a great inspiration to the playwright.”

  “Maybe. But you should really let Cassie audition, too,” Andrew said. “She’s terrific! You should have seen her in King Lear at the Pinnacle last winter.”

  I gave him a grateful smile. King Lear had been a lucky break. I’d been the understudy for the role of Cordelia and had gotten the part when the actress initially cast had slipped on the ice and broken her ankle. The run had been very short, only two weeks, but my performance had earned me several great reviews.

  Hedda frowned. “I saw that show, but I don’t remember you.”

  “Cassie played Cordelia,” Charles said. “You and Marcella both told me how much you enjoyed her performance.”

  Hedda continued to shake her head. “No, this is not the same young woman.”
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br />   “It is,” Andrew insisted.

  Hedda leaned in close, peering at me like I was a specimen in a jar. I backed away, bumping into Andrew. “Ah, yes,” she said. “I suppose there is a little resemblance, but she’s changed since then.” She treated me to another of her cunning smiles. “You’ve lost your shine, haven’t you my dear?”

  I flushed. I thought I’d been doing a pretty good job of hiding my mental issues, but Hedda’s expression told me that I didn’t fool her at all.

  “Such a pity that her talent has wasted away,” she told Charles.

  I gaped at her. Wasted away? What did she mean wasted away? Seeing my crestfallen expression, Andrew put his arm around my shoulders and guided me out of the parking lot.

  That’s the end of the sample of Stage Fright. You can purchase the book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords.

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  Coming Soon – Stagecraft - Book Two in the Bit Parts series

  After an accidental meeting with a friend, Cassandra Jaber realizes that vampires aren’t the only supernatural beings roaming the Motor City. Witches abound as well. Although there are good witches and bad witches, Cassie’s friend has found himself trapped in the middle. But because Cassie has moved out of the state to take a long-awaited acting job, she’s in no position to help. Luckily, her brooding, sexy vampire hunter is able to lend a hand, and Cassie is able to focus on her career once more. That is, until she finds a bloody package on her doorstep, a reminder that evil witches are not to be trifled with.

  About the Author

  Maybe it's because of my Halloween birthday, but I've always been attracted to scary stories. On the other hand, I love romances as well. Once I discovered that these two genres existed side-by-side in urban fantasy novels, I was in heaven! Urban fantasy is like chocolate and peanut butter: a perfect, to-die-for combination that I can never get enough of.

  I've been writing since childhood, but earned my bachelor's degree in psychology and my master's in English literature. When I'm not writing, I'm a straight-laced English teacher at a two-year college in Detroit. I've been married to Mr. Right for over twenty-five years. I also have three teenaged children: a boy and two girls, all of whom have threatened to never speak to me again if I turn them into characters and put them into my books.

  More urban fantasy by Michelle Scott

  Straight to Hell

  The devil never forgets a deal.

  I, Lilith Straight, was the woman you always wanted to be. I was married to someone better looking than your husband, we lived in that house you always wanted. Within a year, however, all of that changed. My marriage dissolved, my house burned down, and my job hardly paid the bills. So when I was hit by a car and died, I thought my life couldn’t get any worse. Boy, was I wrong.

  Hell was not the place I imagined. It was worse. During my brief stay, I learned some disturbing truths about my family. Most worryingly my ancestor’s deal with the devil promising him every female descendent as a succubus.

  So these were my options: Life on earth as a soul-sucking seductress. Or death and pass the succubus baton to my sweet little daughter. There was no choice. Welcome to hell on earth, Lilith. Mother, teacher, wanton she-demon.

  Straight to Hell is published by Carina UK (the digital imprint of Harlequin), and is available at the Kindle Store.

  The Soulless

  The soulless are always hungry.

  They prey upon society’s outcasts--the lonely, the desperate, the guilty--feeding upon the rage and lust and fear hidden in these human hearts. Once they find a victim, they are able to erase the boundary between impulse and action, turning an angry thought into murderous rage and a simple desire into manic obsession.

  Only one person understands the danger. Evander Calhoun has spent a lifetime protecting his unsuspecting neighbors from these evil spirits, but--after a nearly a century of service--the old man no longer has the strength to continue the fight.

  The Soulless is published by Mundania Press and available at the Kindle Store.