M. a. Simonetti

"Those who are caught are not always the most guilty'. -Aesop. Alana Fox, the gatekeeper to Malibu society, is no stranger to mystery-she's already cracked two of Malibu's toughest cases. Her latest adventure hits close to home when threats to gubernatorial candidate Ken Wheeler are carried out during a gala held at the York Estate. Ken is unharmed but Alana's closest friend, Jorjana York, ends up in the ICU fighting for her life. Did the attack have something to do with Wheeler's shady past? Did it have anything to do with the theft of Alana's vintage Mustang?To avenge her friend and find her missing car, Alana must dive deep into a world of political kingmakers and prolific car thieves.

As the gatekeeper of the Malibu social scene, Alana Fox is used to helping her clients with finding a bridge group, or even a new man.When Hollywood widow Francis Ferguson contacts Alana, however, she's in search of something a bit more complicated-something that will throw Alana in the middle of some decades-old family secrets that continue to cause damage after all these years.With Alana's help, Francis hopes to reconnect with some old girlfriends-really old girlfriends, dating back to glamorous 1940s Hollywood, where she worked as a seamstress before marrying studio tycoon Milton Ferguson. The girls had bonded while stitching hems and taking in waistbands for some of Hollywood's biggest stars but lost contact as they each married and moved on with their lives.Bringing together the group of gal-pals may be tougher than it seems though, especially when a tragic event puts the happy reunion on hold. Soon, Alana finds herself uncovering some shocking secrets-secrets that indicate that Francis's past may have a darker side than she could ever imagine.From scandalous affairs to forged documents, Alana digs deeper and deeper to put the pieces together and close the book on this captivating mystery for good.