Free Model Mystery Trilogy 01: Model Crime by Carolyn Keene Page B

okay?”
    “Whatever.” Akinyi, too, was staring anxiously after Sydney. “I’d better go check on her.”
    “Tell her I’ll be right there, as soon as I give a piece of my mind to whoever was in charge of that lei,” Ellie said grimly.
    Her words snapped me back to the reality of the situation. Either River Heights had just been inflicted with a freak plague of biting ants…or the saboteur had struck again.
    “I’m going to try to get a look at that lei,” I whispered to Bess and George.
    Bess nodded, glancing anxiously in the direction of the locker rooms. “Need our help?”
    “Nope. Go check on Syd. I’ll be there in a sec.”
    Bess and George hurried off. Eberhart had stepped forward to intercept Ellie, who was now ranting furiously at him. Just about everyone else was sort of drifting off, seeming uncertain what to do next.
    I made a beeline for the fake beach. The wooden box was still standing open in the sand. Bending down, I saw that it was crawling with ants.
    As I took a step backward, not wanting to risk getting bitten myself, I almost bumped into Donald. “Oh, man,” he exclaimed as he took a peek into the box, looking distressed. “I can’t believe this. Poor Sydney!”
    “I’m sure she’ll be okay,” I said automatically, more interested in looking around for the remains of the lei than in chatting with the PA. “And I’m sure it was just an unfortunate accident.”
    “It was no accident. I’m responsible!”
    I blinked, glancing over at him. He’d straightened his thin shoulders, a grim look on his face.
    “Huh?” I said. “Are you saying you put those ants on the lei?”
    “Of course not!” Donald sounded insulted. “But I shouldn’t have just left it sitting around unattended, where anyone could tamper with it.” He shot a dark glance across the field.
    Following his gaze, I saw Vic just disappearing into a trailer parked at the edge of the field. No one else was nearby, leading me to believe that the PA’s gaze was definitely directed at the groom-to-be. Hmm, interesting…
    Before I could fully process that, I realized that Donald was already gathering up the torn pieces of the white lei. For a second I almost told Donald why I wanted to look it over. But I decided against it. It seemed pretty unlikely that examining the lei would provide any useful clues to how the ants had gotten there.
    “Excuse me,” I said. “I think I’ll go check on Sydney.”
    Leaving Donald muttering self-incriminations under his breath, I headed across the field to the locker room that was serving as a dressing room for Sydney and the other women on the set. I knocked and entered.
    Sydney was sitting on a narrow bench in front of a mirror, dabbing at the corners of her eyes with a tissue. Akinyi, Deb, Candy, Bess, and George were all there too. Apparently Candy had found some bathrobes, because not only was Sydney now wrapped in one, but Candy was, too.
    “Did they figure out where those icky things came from?” Candy demanded as soon as I entered, wrapping her arms around herself. The robe was a little big for her, so only her fingertips stuck out the ends of the sleeves. She shuddered from within the depths of the terry cloth. “I can’t believe this happened. I hate bugs! If those things had been all over me, I would have died!”
    Akinyi was slumped on a bench over by the sinks, still wearing her grass skirt and lei. “Okay, we get it,” she said to Candy. “You’ve told us how much you hate bugs. This is about Syd, not you, remember?”
    “Well, excuse me for having a phobia, Miss Perfect!” Candy huffed.
    “Guys…” Bess began soothingly.
    Deb looked up from her seat beside Sydney. She was still applying cream to Sydney’s arm, pushing back the voluminous sleeve of the robe to do so.
    “Oh, now, I know everyone’s upset and all. But I’m sure it was just one of those things,” she said in her cheerful way. “Everything will be all right.”
    Sydney sniffled. “I’m