Page 6 of Wild Sentinel
"A married woman," I said before she could.
Her eyes narrowed at me. "I don't know what you've heard, but there was nothing going on between Jonathan and me. This cast likes to let their imagination run wild. I can assure you, gentlemen, I am very much in love with my husband." Then she added, "I am very emotional right now because I bonded with Jonathan in the way that actors do. We became close in a platonic way on set. He became my friend, my confidant."
"Of course.”
"It's not unusual for actors to grow close while portraying such intense emotions. I read something about heightened stress creating attachments. It’s like people who survive trauma together. They bond. Like people who survive a plane crash. They’re more likely to get married, even if they weren’t a couple before. Or people who survive a hostage situation. It’s the same thing. You could say that as an actor, we go through trauma every night on stage.”
"How did your husband feel about your… closeness… with Jonathan?”
She stood tall and lifted her nose, slightly offended at the implication. "My husband trusts me. He knows I am faithful. And he also knows how passionate I am about this craft. He gives me the freedom to explore my emotions on stage.”
"Do you have a scene where you kiss Jonathan?”
"Well, yes. I am playing his mistress after all.”
"How does your husband feel about that?”
"It's just acting," she said in a dismissive voice.
"I understand he watched the show last night as well.”
"Yes.”
“It doesn't bother him at all to watch you up there kissing another man?” I kept pressing the issue.
She grew frustrated. "As I told you, it's acting. Nothing more.”
"Did he visit you backstage in the dressing room?”
"Yes, he did," she said with a smile. "He got me a dozen roses. He's romantic like that. He’s done that every night of the show. That's why I love him.”
"So he had access to the prop pistol?”
Her face went long. “No.”
“If he was in the dressing room, he had access,” I said dryly.
Melissa exhaled, growing frustrated. "I know what you're suggesting. That somehow my husband, out of jealousy, loaded the prop gun with real ammunition, hoping Ben would shoot Jonathan."
A guilty shrug tugged my shoulders. "The thought had crossed my mind.”
She dismissed it. "That's not possible. My husband wouldn’t do something like that. He's also not that insecure.”
"You’d be surprised at what people are capable of when jealousy is involved. Why did he come to the show tonight?"
“Because he loves me and wanted to see me perform.”
“How often does he come to the shows?”
“He came opening night, last night, and tonight. As I mentioned, he has flowers delivered every night.”
“Kind of a coincidence, don’t you think?”
“No. I think what happened tonight was a terrible accident that had nothing to do with my husband.” She frowned.
"If your husband didn't swap out the bullets, who did?"
"I'm not a detective. I don't know."
