Free Hollywood Murder by M. Z. Kelly Page B

writer for the studios. I think we have a lot in common.”
    Robin was gay, having come out about five years ago. He’d had several relationships since then, none that seemed to last. My brother was a compassionate, kind soul, and I only wanted the best for him.
    “I hope he’s the one,” I said after he’d told me that Adam worked for one of the Hollywood studios.
    “We’ll see.” I watched as he trimmed several inches off my hair. I was about to warn him to go slow when he asked, “How are things with Noah?”
    “Really good. We’re getting together again over the weekend.”
    “It sounds serious.”
    “I think he’s the gift that my love-dad was talking about.”
    Several months back, I’d had a conversation with my love-dad, after my former partner Ted Grady had committed suicide. Since my dad was dead, I’d been convinced that meeting was the result of a complete mental breakdown I’d suffered after Ted’s death. Now I wasn’t so sure. In addition to filling in some of gaps about his relationship with both my adoptive and biological mothers, he’d given me insight into the nature of loss. He’d said that when we suffer a loss, there’s also a gift that’s left behind. I had come to believe that Noah was the gift that he’d been talking about.
    My thoughts surfaced as Robin asked, “Anything new with the search for your bio-dad?”
    I took a few minutes, filling him in on the letters my mother had written to me, my meeting with Collin Russell, and what he’d said about Kellen Malone. “According to Russell, his son is involved in the Revelation. The group supposedly communicates by putting messages in the movies they back. It’s all very clandestine and a bit weird.”
    Robin didn’t respond to what I’d said. I started to ask him why he was so quiet, when I noticed my hair. “Enough,” I said. “I’m going to look like a boy if it’s any shorter.”
    He stopped working for a moment and said, “Okay, let me just even out the ends.”
    He continued working on my hair, but didn’t comment on what I’d said earlier. I finally asked, “Have you ever heard of the Revelation?”
    He looked at me in the mirror. “This is strange.”
    When he didn’t go on I asked, “What’s strange?”
    “Adam, the guy I’ve been seeing. He mentioned something the other day.”
    “What did he say?”
    “Just that he’s been working on a script—I think it’s for some kind of crime show—and said somebody with the studio wanted him to insert a couple of lines of dialog. He said he agreed to do it because the changes were minor and he didn’t really have any other choice, but he thought it was kind of strange.”
    “Did he say what the lines were about?”
    Robin went back to my hair. “He said they were references to locations and dates. He thought it might be some kind of message about an upcoming meeting. The whole thing left him feeling a little confused.”
    “Who at the studio was behind the changes to the script?”
    He shook his head. “I’m not really sure. I could arrange for you to talk to him, if you’d like.”
    I met his eyes in the mirror, nodding. “Let me see about my schedule. I’ll let you know.”
    My attention went back to my hair as he took out his blow-dryer. Ten minutes later, I had a sassy, short hairdo that fell just below my ears. It seemed to frame my face much better.
    “Well?” Robin said, turning off the hairdryer.
    “It’s going to take some getting used to, but I think I like it.”
    He put his hands on his hips. “That doesn’t exactly sound like a ringing endorsement.”
    I stood up and hugged him. “I love it. Did anybody ever tell you that you’re the best?”
    “Just a sister of mine who’s also the best.”
    I paid him and was on my way out when I thought about his new boyfriend. “I’ll let you know about getting together with Adam. I’ll see if Noah is free. Maybe the four of us can go out for drinks.”
    ***
    Bernie and I got home just