Show Time by Suzanne Trauth Read Free Book Online

dropped Lola off at the Etonville Little Theatre and cruised down the block to find parking. My regular spot in front of the Windjammer was occupied so I pulled into a metered space and searched my car—the ashtray, around the seats, in the upholstery—for money. The town meter maids were known to be crafty and appear out of nowhere. The result was a thirty-dollar ticket.
    â€œHi, Dodie.”
    I was stuck between the steering wheel and the console, one arm flung over my head into the passenger seat, the other wedged under the driver’s seat. I looked up into Abby’s eyes. “Hi, Abby. How’s it going?”
    â€œYou need help?”
    â€œJust looking for some spare change for the meter.”
    â€œHere.” She dug into her pocket and withdrew a fistful of coins. “Take what you need.”
    â€œThanks.” I disengaged myself from park.
    â€œDo you think Walter will post the cast list soon?” She checked her watch.
    â€œI think so.” I squinted into the glaze of sun that formed a halo around Abby’s dishwater-blond hair. “You know there are a lot of good parts in Romeo and Juliet besides Romeo and Juliet.” I wanted to let her down easy. “Like the Ladies-in-Waiting.”
    Abby tossed her head and sniffed. “I would never stoop to being one of them,” she said haughtily.
    â€œBut you want to be in the show, right?”
    She hesitated only a fraction of a second. “I have seniority at the Etonville Little Theatre.”
    Whatever that meant. She waved good-bye and flounced off.
    I caught up with Lola outside the theater. She clicked off her cell. “I have ten messages from ELT actors,” she said warily.
    â€œUh-oh.”
    In the lobby, we could hear yelling. Alarmed, Lola opened the door of the house and we went inside. Walter was toe-to-toe with a forty-year-old guy a head shorter and twenty pounds lighter.
    Penny chewed gum and tapped her clipboard.
    â€œA Servant!” the man shouted.
    â€œAlso a Watchman, a Guard, and a Citizen of Verona,” Penny added, all business.
    â€œAre you kidding me?” He backed up too quickly, lost his balance, and tripped over the leg of a table, knocking over a chair and landing smack on his backside. Lola rushed in and offered her hand, which he rejected. Irregular breathing was all that was left of the argument.
    â€œI’m outta here,” he said and limped off stage and through the house.
    â€œWalter, are you okay?” Lola asked sympathetically.
    â€œI guess the cast list has been posted?” I said as innocently as possible. Penny nodded.
    Walter gathered a handful of papers together haphazardly, stuck them in a file, and tugged on his beard. “If anyone asks for me, I am gone for the day.”
    â€œBut, Walter, we need to discuss the budget—” Lola said.
    He icily raised a hand to curtail her reminder and stalked off the stage. She followed after him.
    I righted the chair the Servant had toppled over. I picked up the cast list. Sure enough, the little blond was Juliet and the tall, dark kid I remembered from auditions was Romeo.
    â€œPeople have been emailing and calling—” Penny said.
    â€œYou too?”
    â€œâ€”and then Leonard showed up . . .”
    â€œLet me guess.... He wanted to be Romeo?”
    â€œThey all want to be Romeo or Juliet. I’ve never seen ELT casting like this before. Some of the regulars are fine with a contemporary play but Shakespeare? No way. And they just can’t accept it.” Penny paused. “Well, that’s show biz,” she said with authority.
    I wondered how Abby would take the news. I was praying she and Jim didn’t decide to spend the evening at the Windjammer. I was fed up with histrionics—both onstage and off.
    â€œPenny, tell Lola to call me if she needs a ride home.”
    * * *
    As I helped Gillian set up the dining room for the dinner service, and reminded her