Chapter One of My Work In Progress by S.C. Wynne

Good morning all!

I apologize for missing my post last week. My only excuse is I was deep in the writing cave and I literally forgot! I'm so sorry and I will do my best to not be such a ninny in the future.

I thought I'd share the first chapter of a new mystery series I'm working on. I like to move around a lot. I have my psychic series, and the new Dr. Maxwell Thornton mysteries and also this series which I tentatively call The Hollywood Detective Mysteries. It keeps it fresh for me and my readers when I allow myself to write different things. You want me happy, right? :D I'm more productive when I'm happy!

Okay, here is the first chapter and blurb of Reality Kills:

Blurb:

Detective Cabot Decker is a man who deals in reality. He’s tough, tenacious and some might even say obsessed with his work. When he’s called to a TV film set because a man has been mauled to death by a tiger, he’s confused about why he’s there. He hunts murderers for a living. He doesn’t babysit uptight Hollywood producers because their pet cat misbehaved.
Lex Barrington deals in reality TV. He’s a rising star in Hollywood, but something horrible is happening on the set of his hit show Don’t Die. Tigers are eating contestants and pythons are mysteriously escaping their cages and trying to strangle people.

Even though the two men butt heads, they also share a strong attraction. And the more Decker hangs around Lex’s world the clearer it becomes that someone wants the Hollywood superstar dead.
Chapter One
My phone always rang when I was juggling a cup of coffee and a bagel with cream cheese. It was like the universe waited for me to leave the damn coffeehouse before pressing send. I clamped my teeth on the paper bag that held my food and clumsily pulled my cell from my pocket.“Decker here,” I growled.“We’ve got a weird one for you, detective.” Lieutenant Bartlett sounded distracted.As I opened the car door, the plastic lid on my coffee popped off and java spilled down the front of my white shirt. “Shit.” I hissed as the hot liquid burned my chest.“Did I get you at a bad time?”“Not at all. I was just taking a bath in my coffee.” I set the half full cup in the holder and tossed the bag onto the passenger seat. I slid behind the wheel and wiped at the big brown stain on my shirt to no avail.“Anyway… you know that new reality show Don’t Die?”“No.” I didn’t watch a lot of TV, reality or otherwise.“Seriously? It’s a huge hit.”“Did you call to rag on me for not watching enough reality TV?” I started the car. “Where do I need to be?”“Zecker Studios down in North Hollywood. One of the contestants on Don’t Die got eaten by a Tiger.”I winced. “What the hell?”“I know.”“Shouldn’t you call Animal Control instead of me?” I pulled onto the street and headed in the direction of the studio. “What am I supposed to do, arrest the tiger?”“Very funny.”“I’m serious. Why am I going there?”“Because Lex Barrington is in charge of the show and he’s a big deal right now.” There were muffled voices in the background. “Look, I have to go. Treat the guy nice.”“Wait. Do not hang up until you tell me why a man being killed by a tiger is a murder investigation,” I grumbled.“Barrington seems to think there’s been foul play.”I tried not to laugh. “Did you seriously just use the term ‘foul play’?”“Decker, get your ass over there and talk to the guy. That’s an order.”“You’ve got it, boss.” I rolled my eyes and hung up. Thankfully it was a Saturday, so the traffic wasn’t as bad as it could have been. I managed to stuff down most of my cinnamon raisin bagel, minus the cream cheese, by the time I reached the front gate at Zecker Studios. I flashed my credentials, and the guard waved me in. There were already several black and whites and a forensic team at the scene. I gulped the last of my coffee and headed into the big building.The first thing that struck me as I entered the hangar was the strong smell of urine and the five hundred pound tiger pacing back and forth in a long steel enclosure. Outside the cage was a body covered with a black tarp. The animal seemed agitated as it chuffed and growled with its giant head hung low.“He’s a magnificent beast isn’t he?” A woman with a large felt hat approached. “Look at him; it’s like he knows he’s in trouble.”I showed her my badge. “I’m Homicide Detective Cabot Decker.” I studied her as I tucked my ID away. Her hat was crooked, and she had strands of auburn hair hanging messily around her shoulders. “Mind if I ask you who you are?”She grimaced. “Sorry. Lucinda Pinwheel.” She held out her hand. “I’m Benji’s handler.” Up close the deep lines around her eyes and forehead were obvious. She’d looked much younger from a distance with her long hair and slender build. “Benji wouldn’t hurt a fly usually.”I glanced at the covered corpse. “Maybe he was having a bad day.” I moved to the body and lifted the tarp slowly. I held my gag reflex in check as I studied the bloody torn mess in front of me. There were obvious teeth marks around the throat and the head was almost severed from the neck. The smell of blood made my stomach roll, but I kept examining the corpse looking for anything that might be inconsistent with an animal attack.“Hey, Decker.” Officer Eugene approached. “This is some grisly shit.” He looked a little queasy as he spoke.“Yeah.” I dropped the tarp back over the body and pulled out my note pad and pen. “What can you tell me?”He put his hands on his hips. “That some people will do anything for money?” He shook his head. “How desperate would a man have to be to spend the night in a cage with a wild animal? Jesus.”“I didn’t mean I needed you to get philosophical. What do you know about what happened here?”“It’s pretty cut and dried. The guy was in the cage and the tiger went after him.”“Was he alone?”“You mean other than the tiger?”I sighed. “I mean were there any witnesses?”Officer Eugene pursed his lips. “He was alone when it happened. There’s supposed to always be a camera man with the contestants. But apparently the guy assigned to our victim had severe intestinal issues and was on the toilet when the attack occurred.”“I’ll need to talk to the camera man ASAP.”“He’s at the hospital.”I frowned. “Why?”“Dehydration and hysteria. He found the body.”“Got it.”Lucinda shifted uneasily. “I still can’t believe this has happened. It doesn’t make any sense. I’ve worked with Benji’s for ten years and we’ve never once had an incident. He’s never even looked weird at a human before.”“Something triggered him.” I noticed a guy in an expensive suit standing a few feet away. He had his phone glued to his ear, and he emanated an air of confidence that told me he might be in charge. He was tall with broad shoulders and jet black hair, and as he hung up, he lifted his chin and strode toward me, holding out his hand.“I’m Lex Barrington.” His grip was firm and his palms felt smooth against my calloused hands. His cologne was spicy, masculine and probably way out of my budget.“Detective Decker.” The intensity of his gray stare was unsettling. I didn’t get unsettled easily, but he radiated power and confidence like a convection oven. When his gaze dropped to the dark stain on my shirt heat filled my cheeks. “I had a run in with a cup of coffee.”“Looks like the beverage won.” His voice was deep and his gaze enigmatic.Something about him made me feel like Oliver Twist in front of the head master begging for more pudding. “I’m not really familiar with the concept of your show. Could you maybe fill me in? Why was a man inside the cage with a tiger to begin with?”He exhaled roughly. “Dale was one of ten contestants. Each week one of them is randomly assigned an animal and then they either spend the night in the cage or they decline and leave the show.” He flicked his gaze to the corpse. “Dale didn’t decline.”“Why would he do something so crazy?” I scratched my head.“Money. If they spend the whole night, they get lots of money.”“Wow. I think I’d rather be poor and alive.”Lex smirked. “Looks like things are working out for you then, detective.”Smart assI narrowed my gaze. “So why’d the animal attack him?”“Somebody must have provoked Benji.” Lucinda spoke up brusquely.Lex turned to her with a grim look. “I hope you’re not suggesting me or any of my employees did that sort of thing?”She sniffed. “All I know is ratings are everything to you people.”He pulled his dark brows together. “Having one of my contestants eaten by a wild animal isn’t good for ratings.” He slid his gaze to mine. “Besides, ratings are already through the roof.”“I’m happy for you and all, but I need to figure out why I need to be here.” I tried not to sound heartless, but I still wasn’t sure why an animal attack was my problem.Lex glanced at Lucinda. “Would you mind if I spoke to Detective Decker alone?”She shrugged. “No problem.” She pressed her big hat firmly on her head and wandered over to the cage where her tiger still paced.He turned to me and the pulse at the base of his throat beat swiftly. “The premise of Don’t Die is people take a huge risk and if they pull it off, they get a lot of money. The risk is exaggerated.”“Obviously not.”He winced. “What I mean is we take great care in picking animals that are gentle and have never been involved in anything violent.” He swallowed. “We take precautions like making sure the creatures are well fed and exercised.”“I’m no expert in animal attacks, but it was pretty clear from the body the animal didn’t just maul the victim. He… he ate parts of him too.”Lex blanched. “But why would he? We feed the cats constantly to keep them satiated.”“Obviously this cat wanted seconds.”He gripped my arm which surprised me. “Listen, I don’t want to be dramatic, but as I told your Lieutenant; something seems off lately.”The feel of his fingers on my arm was oddly distracting. I ignored the fluttering in my gut and said, “Off how?”“I don’t know. Things keep happening.”“Elaborate, please,” I said gruffly.“One of the Burmese Pythons got out of its cage last week and almost strangled a camera tech. The snake’s cage is a double lock type of thing. How would he get out?”“Okay. But my pet iguana got out when I was ten. Shit happens.”He twisted his lips. “I want to believe this is an accident. I really do. But I have a bad feeling.”I chuffed. “Well, just because you have indigestion I can’t open an investigation for murder. This could easily just be a tragic animal attack.”His mouth tensed. “I understand you don’t want to waste your time. I don’t want to waste your time either. That’s why I hesitate to even mention the letter I got a week ago.”“What kind of letter?” I perked up.“You have to understand I get mail from kooks all the time.”I leaned in. “What did the letter say?”He crossed his arms. “That we needed to stop using animals for greedy profit or there would be consequences.”“Where’s the letter?” I sounded breathless. A mysterious threatening letter was something I could sink my teeth into.He closed his eyes and clamped his jaw.“Tell me you still have the letter.” Even I could hear my frustration.“I’m afraid not.” When he opened his eyes, he looked embarrassed. “People say shit that they don’t mean to a man in my position all the time. If I paid attention to every threatening phone call and letter, I’d never get anything done.”“Damn.” I exhaled roughly. “Do me a favor; if you get another note, hang on to it.”“I will.”I looked around. “So you had a camera man with him but he was in the bathroom. Are there other cameras too?”He nodded. “Yes. We have eight cameras always rolling.”“That’s great.” I straightened. “I need to see that footage.”“Of course.” His brow wrinkled as he held my gaze. He was close enough I could see the dark ring around his slate colored eyes and how thick and long his lashes were. “One thing keeps bothering me…”“What?”“Why didn’t Dale go to his shelter?”I cocked my head. “His what?”He sighed. “The rules of the show are you spend twenty-four hours in the enclosure with the wild animal assigned to you. You must be in the area with the animal for at least twelve of those hours. But if you ever feel unsafe, each person has a protected cubicle that they can retreat to.” He tugged me toward the enclosure where the tiger was. “See behind that screen? There’s a safe room if they actually think their life is in danger.”I squinted through the steel mesh. “I’d have been in there in a flash.”There was a deep line in his smooth forehead. “That’s what I’m saying. The second he felt threatened he should have retreated back to his safe spot.”“But he didn’t?”He glanced toward the corpse. “Apparently not.” He seemed to shake himself mentally. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m being paranoid and this really is just a horrible accident.”I looked at the tiger panting across from us. “You say you feed the animals well, but I have to be honest Benji looks a little gaunt.”“He does?” He peered closely at the animal. “Huh. Maybe you’re right.”“Shouldn’t his handler have noticed that?”“You would think so. She’s paid well enough,” he grumbled.“I’m guessing starving a wild animal would definitely change its disposition.”“If the tiger was hungry someone needs to explain how the hell that happened. The show pays through the nose for high quality meat for Benji.”“Who’s actually in charge of feeding the tiger?”“Lucinda.”“Interesting.” I rubbed my chin. “Listen, I’ll take a look at the footage and depending on what I find we may or may not proceed with an investigation. I need something more concrete that Dale might have been murdered, and this wasn’t just a random animal attack.” I glanced over at Lucinda who was cooing to Benji through the cage. “She certainly doesn’t look like a killer.”“No. She doesn’t.” He chuffed. “But in your line of work, how often does the bad guy waltz up to you holding the murder weapon screaming how much he enjoys killing people?”My lips twitched. “Not often.”“There you go.” He stared at Lucinda with a blank expression. “Perhaps beneath Lucinda’s cool exterior lies the heart of a cold blooded maniac.”I lifted one shoulder. “If it was murder, it could be anyone who had access to this space.” I glanced at him. “It could just as easily be you.”He widened his eyes and his lips parted. “I beg your pardon?”It was hard not to laugh at how nonplussed he looked. “It’s not unusual for the real bad guy to try and help.” I used air quotes on the last word.“You think I’m fake helping?” His mouth was a straight, angry line.I pulled a stick of gum from my pocket and pushed it in my mouth. I hadn’t really meant any offense, but he was so touchy it was kind of amusing. “Maybe you’re just tossing out a bunch of red herrings. You know… to throw me off the scent.”He opened his mouth as if he was about to defend his honor and then he snapped his lips shut. He narrowed his eyes. “You’re an absolute riot, Decker.”I laughed outright at his snippy tone. It wouldn’t surprise me if he didn’t like me. Uptight suit types and I didn’t usually get along; even when I didn’t accuse them of being psychopaths. “Ah, come on. Lighten up, Hollywood.”“Right. Because there’s nothing more hilarious than a man being eaten by a tiger.”I grimaced. “I meant no disrespect to the dead. I take every case seriously.” I popped my gum. “I’m a professional.”“I can tell.” His gaze dropped to my stained shirt and then ran over my rumpled coat.His snooty expression annoyed me, but I ignored it. “I’ll need a copy of the surveillance footage including before and after Dale and the cat entered the area, right away. Also give me a list of everyone who has access to this set. That includes the biggest bigshot or the gofer that picks up donuts for the crew. I want everybody on that list.”“Whatever you say.”I glanced over at the tiger who watched us silently. “What’s gonna happen to Benji?”“I’m not sure,” he murmured.“It’d be a shame to put him down. He’s a beautiful animal.” I studied the tiger’s sleek orange and black fur, marveling at how huge he was. I couldn’t imagine anything that would motivate me to spend the night in a cage with a wild animal.“I wish I’d never dreamed up this damn show.” His voice was raspy.“Well, at least you’ve gotten famous off the idea.”He wrinkled his brow and slid his cool gaze to mine. “Do you resent men like me, Decker?”His candor surprised me. “Why would I?”“It’s just a feeling I get off of you.” He started to walk away, and he stopped. “I’m not shallow if that’s what you think.”My face warmed, and I didn’t speak. I wasn’t sure how to respond. If I was honest, I had assumed he was just interested in making a name for himself.“I’m just doing my job same as you.” His smile was tight.I lifted a shoulder. “Who cares what I think?” His jaw hardened and his vulnerability evaporated. “Good point.” He strode away with his head held high.
Hope you enjoyed that little taste! It should be coming in 2018 in the near future. In the mean time, if you want to be kept abreast of my new releases, feel free to join my newsletter here: Sign Me Up
Talk to you soon!S.C.www.sc-wynne.com