“I don’t know and I really don’t want to try it

at least not now. Let’s keep the door closed and count ourselves lucky.”

“But

how about the skunk? What if it’s stuck? And scared?”

Hannah turned to smile at her sister. Michelle was a true animal lover. “When we’re through here, you go out the back way and prop open the door. I’ll hold my nose, open the bathroom door, and run outside.”

“And we’ll leave the back door open so it can get out?”

“Absolutely. We can have someone come over here to check later, after the smell dissipates.”

“That sounds like a plan. You know, now that I know for sure that the smell is skunk, it doesn’t bother me quite so much.” Michelle stopped and started to frown. “I wonder why Frances didn’t mention it.”

“Mention what?”

“The skunk smell. I guess she didn’t come in to clean this morning, now that Dean is dead.”

“Are you talking about the Frances I know?”

“That’s right, Frances Newman. She cleaned up in here every morning before Dean came in.”

“But

Frances told me that she was the script girl. And when I asked her what she did she said she was in charge of continuity on the set, and noting little differences between the takes so the editor would know which one the director liked best, and

”

“That’s all true,” Michelle interrupted, “but they don’t call them script girls anymore. The real title, the one on the credits, is Continuity Coordinator.”

“Then why did Frances tell me she was a script girl?”

“Because that’s what it was called when she started in the biz, and she still thinks of herself that way.”

“How about cleaning Dean’s Winnebago? That isn’t part of her job description, is it?”

“No. It was an extra job Frances took on when Dean asked if anyone wanted to make a little money on the side. He paid her twenty-five dollars a day to make sure his trailer looked good when he came in every morning. She said it never took her more than an hour and Dean paid her in cash.”

Hannah thought about that for a moment. “I should probably talk to Frances. She might know more about Dean’s life than anyone else in the company.”

“I’m sure she does. From what I understand, she’s been cleaning for him since they started filming two months ago.”

Hannah had an unwelcome thought. “There wasn’t anything personal going on between Frances and Dean, was there?”

“I don’t think so. And even if there was, Frances couldn’t have killed him. I saw her take up her position by the door, and the only time she left it was when Dean called her over to give her a note. She didn’t go anywhere near the desk, Hannah. I know that for a fact.”