Southern Sass and a Battered Bride Page 5

  “I understand. I’ll be careful.” The wind kicked up as we moved with a purpose toward where the staff had gathered. I focused on my surroundings and those within it.

  Whispers were audible but kept low. Confusion and fear were palpable. The seagulls’ calls overhead sounded louder than normal. The salty air stung my exposed skin as it mingled with sweat.

  “Where is she?” Alex bellowed and seemed to appear out of nowhere. Ms. Myers kept attempting to take hold of his arm, but he wouldn’t allow it. He stepped in front of me, inadvertently knocking me off balance, and shot a furious glare where the staff stood.

  I regained my composure as the scene unfolded.

  At first, I thought he was pointing at Betsy and then he hurled, “What did you do to her, Fowler?” Alex’s entire body appeared rigid. He was on the balls of his feet with his fists clenched. Without waiting for a response, he rushed toward Paul.

  Sam moved between Alex and Paul and attempted to defuse the situation. “Hey, man, let’s calm down here, buddy, before you hurt someone.”

  “You stay out of this, Sam.” Alex’s lips peeled back, exposing clenched teeth. He shoved Sam, who fell into the crowd and to the ground, taking a couple of Sunshine employees with him. The remaining staff parted like the Red Sea, allowing Alex to grab Paul and snarl, “I’m giving you one chance to tell me where she is.” He fisted Paul’s shirt in both hands and shook him violently.

  “I . . . I assure you I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Paul said with trepidation, his gaze darting around nervously, but he held his ground as he grasped Alex’s wrists and tried to pry his hands away.

  “This was your event. Yours! It was your idea she be the victim and now she’s missing. What have you done with her?”

  I feared for Paul’s life. The crowd around us grew as they heard that the bride they thought was dead was now missing.

  Folks were shouting, and a couple of Alex’s old football buddies egged him on. “Kick his ass, Alex!”

  “It wasn’t my idea. I suggested one of the bridesmaids.” The wobble in Paul’s tone alluded to his faltering nerve.

  By the time I reached them, Sam was assisting Javier hauling Alex off Paul as Eddie walked around the tent. Eddie told Paul to go and wait with the other guests at the ceremony site. It would give Alex a chance to cool down and Paul a moment to compose himself. Eddie gripped Alex’s shoulder and placed his head closer to his deputy’s, a fatherly gesture. My heart ached.

  His voice was low and gentle when he spoke. “You’ve got to get it together. I know you’re upset. You have my word I’ll do everything within my power to find her.”

  Alex held on to Eddie.

  “Okay, bud? You have to trust me.”

  Relief flooded me when Alex began to nod.

  “Now, I need you to take me to the car she arrived in and point me to whoever has the guest list, your mom perhaps,” Eddie said.

  I wrapped my arms around myself.

  Alex’s chest heaved and he put his hands on the sides of his head, gripping his hair. “You’re right. I’ll get you the guest list Lu—” He cleared his throat. “Lucy has her binder with all the wedding plans in the truck. Since we hadn’t hired a wedding planner, she wanted to keep her notebook close. She rode over here with her maid of honor, Trixie.”

  When Eddie called everyone on the list in for questioning, he’d have to bring them in groups too. There was no way he’d get all those people into his little department at one time.

  As Alex and Eddie walked off, Javy threaded his way through the crowd, preparing them for the process ahead. Groans and complaints flew from the attendees’ lips along with the women assaulting Javy with concerns and questions. I wasn’t sure he’d ever gain control. When he finally did, he spoke with Sam and the two went to retrieve the locker.

  When my shoulders slumped, I let out a deep breath and started back over to where Betsy and the others stood. Alex’s mama intercepted me. She was a hardy woman, with black curly hair, and brown eyes lacking the usual warmth of her son’s. She pointed her sausage-like finger right at my nose. “Don’t you think for one second you’re going to get away with any of this. You couldn’t stand it my boy was happy without you.”

  My mouth dropped open.

  “That girl had it all, beauty and brains. You hated her! It wouldn’t surprise me for one second if you killed her and had your lover over there get rid of the evidence.” She’d nodded toward Javier and Sam as they walked off. Since she couldn’t be referring to my brother, that left Javier.

  Betsy rushed to my defense. “Aunt Regina, you know Marygene. She couldn’t hurt a fly. You’re just upset.”

  “Ha! And you!” Pure venom spewed from her lips as she narrowed her eyes to slits. “You’ve never been right in the head, just like Viola. I heard about the threat you made. And now that I think about it, you were probably in on it too! Maybe even the ringleader.”

  The guests were edging closer.

  Betsy folded her arms across her chest, her face full of outrage. “You’re insane! I’ve been on my best behavior. Aunt Vi and I even contributed to the rehearsal dinner when you were struggling to pay for it.”

  Regina Myers’s head whipped backward as if Betsy’d slapped her. She took in the growing crowd and her face colored to an unhealthy shade of puce.

  I shot Betsy a What in God’s name are you saying? gape and forced my mouth closed before attempting to defuse the situation. “Let’s just calm down and—”

  “You shut your yap!” Ms. Myers poked me in the shoulder.

  Betsy knocked her finger off and whirled on her aunt. “Don’t you talk to my best friend that way. The family has always been there for you, even after Uncle David died. And you have the nerve to accuse me of this? He’s my cousin. My own flesh and blood! It’s shameful. Meemaw will hear about this.”

  “See! Y’all heard. You’re all my witnesses! She’s threatening me just like she did my poor sweet daughter-in-law.” Regina played to her audience, crowing in theatric fashion. This was getting way out of hand.

  “Betsy, let this go. It is not the time,” I whispered to my friend.

  “I’ve got this.” She waved my concern away and went toe to toe with her aunt. “I ain’t got nothing to do with any of this, and I dare you to prove otherwise. I’ve been the best niece I know how to be. But you make it impossible. You’re a first rate bi—”

  “Betsy!” I grabbed her arm. Why would she antagonize this woman?

  She ignored me.

  Regina continued, incensed. “You watch yourself, you little heifer.”

  “What did you call me?” Betsy jerked her arm away as her eyes flashed with white-hot fury.

  “You heard me! And I can prove it! You told her she didn’t want to mess with you or Marygene because y’all knew how to get rid of a body!”

  Betsy’s face paled.

  Regina poked her in the chest. “That’s right, missy. I’ve got your number. You. Are. Busted.”

  Intakes of breath traveled over the wind. Murmurs and accusations floated around. Betsy appeared a tad shell-shocked. Now, I didn’t believe she’d realized what she was doing when she decided to poke the mama bear in front of us. We were beginning to receive dirty looks, and if Eddie didn’t get back over here soon, Betsy and I were going to have to make a run for it. And running made everyone appear guilty.

  “Regina! For the love of God.” Aunt Vi waddled over, her cheeks flushed and her hands flying. “I understand you’re grieving for your boy, and Lord knows we love him too and hate to see him hurting. None of us know what’s going on here. For all we know, that girl could’ve just got up and walked away on her own. I’ll tolerate a lot, and have over the years, but you start in on Betsy and we’re going to have problems. And when I say we, I mean you are going to have problems.” The stern warning Aunt Vi gave Regina had her sputtering for words and fighting for composure.

  Betsy and I both gaped as Regina backed away sheepishly and stuttered, �
�A . . . Alex needs me,” and hurried off.

  CHAPTER 6

  Three hours later we were told we could leave. Betsy had sent Aunt Vi to take Meemaw home and she would be riding in the company van with me. I finally found Jena Lynn. Eddie had allowed her to sit in her car, with the air, to keep her baby out of the sun and away from all the commotion. She and Zach were on their way home now with my promise I’d handle everything from here.

  Since we were forced to leave all our equipment inside the tent, there wouldn’t be anything in the van except extra equipment we brought for backup purposes. Standing off to the side of the tent opening, I was numb. Normally, I would have been perturbed at the sight of my masterpiece now a disaster. The flowers had wilted, the icing ran down the sides of the cake, and the bride-and-groom topper had fallen off the top tier and somehow wedged itself in the side of the cake. Now it didn’t seem important. Still, I needed to be practical. There wasn’t anything I could do for Alex or Lucy. “Eddie, I don’t want to sound insensitive, but that wedding cake stand cost me a fortune. Are you sure I can’t take that with me?”

  “I’m afraid not. Everything will need to stay put until it can be processed.”

  He was right. I knew that. And the more I mulled this whole situation over, the more I wanted to scream and let out some frustration, followed by interrogating every single guest myself. “This is lunacy. It doesn’t make sense. I mean, if Lucy were dead, she couldn’t get up and walk away. And no one took her. You checked all the vehicles.”

  Eddie scratched his head. “No one took her that we’re aware of. I’ll admit this is a puzzler. Someone knows where she is. All I have to do is find out who.” He made it sound so simple. Neither one of us believed it would be. He opened his mouth and closed it a few times. Since our pow-wow a year ago regarding Mama and my uncanny ability to discover victims, he’d avoided the subject. Now he appeared to be struggling with how to phrase his question. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. His back was damp. “Do you have, um, any feelings or whatever it is you get?”

  “I don’t know for definite if the girl is dead or alive. If I could help, believe me, I would. Alex is crushed and confused. His mama is completely out of control.” I still couldn’t understand the woman’s logic. I rubbed my brow. “She knows us. Has known us all our lives.”

  He gave me a quick squeeze. “She’s upset. I wouldn’t worry about her rants. We’ll figure it out. I’ve got to stay here until forensics finishes. You and Betsy go on. Tomorrow is going to be a long day.”

  My mind spun as Betsy and I walked toward my work vehicle. Alex’s face when he found Lucy, the bomb he’d dropped about her being pregnant, and his mama’s accusations. The mere idea that she could even suspect us in any of this broke my heart. Then there was Lucy. What happened to her? Could this all be some elaborate stunt? Could Mama be wrong and Lucy had died? Teddy believed he’d been unable to get a pulse. And as Betsy pointed out, her lips were a blueish color. Was there something more sinister going on, as Javier suspected? I rubbed my aching forehead.

  “Can you believe this?” Betsy ranted beside me. “Someone is trying to set me up! Aunt Regina is falling for it too. Any idiot that knows me understands that if I’d killed her, no one would have found her body. I’d have her chopped up into tiny pieces—”

  “Betsy, hush!” I glanced around to make sure we were alone. “No one is trying to set you up. Your aunt isn’t thinking clearly.”

  “I just hate this.” Betsy stamped her feet. “Hate it, hate it, hate it.”

  The sound of loud footfalls came against the asphalt behind us. Betsy groaned and I cast a glance over my shoulder.

  Paul ran up behind us, surprising me since I thought he’d already left. “My God. This is going to be bad for business. Christopher is flipping his lid.”

  Betsy folded her arms. “Business? How can you possibly think about your job at a time like this? Some of us have real concerns.”

  I scowled in her direction. The last thing we needed was to instigate another confrontation.

  Paul raised his thin brows. “I’m sorry. My words were tactless. Forgive me. I just assumed you’d both be concerned about the financial consequences. It might be bad for the Peach too.”

  “That was tactless. Where we come from, family is everything and he’s my cousin, for heaven’s sake!” Betsy leaned forward and enunciated slowly. “My cousin.” She snorted. “Leave the thinking to those of us who have a bra—”

  “Betsy!” I understood how upset she was, but that gave her no cause to be so hateful.

  “No, Marygene, it’s okay. I understand and apologize.” Paul looked abashed.

  It certainly wasn’t okay. I pursed my lips at Betsy before attempting to smooth things over. “We’re just shaken up. Betsy didn’t mean anything by that. She’s trying to sort things out while dealing with hurt feelings.” We stood next to the van in the nearly empty parking lot.

  Paul concentrated on his shoelaces. “I get it. All that was pretty unnerving.”

  “That’s putting it mildly, but I understand your meaning.” I rested my back against the van. “I don’t know what to think.”

  “Yeah, me either.” Paul lifted his gaze to meet mine.

  Betsy threw unapproving glances our way. “I know what to think. Lucy crossed the line, and someone punched her ticket. They were just too stupid to do it right. And now they’re trying to frame his family.” Betsy took a step forward and stared suspiciously at Paul. “It’s always the quiet ones. They keep all the frustration deep inside, then one day, they explode. Bam!” Betsy threw her arms in time with her bam.

  Paul jumped.

  “Give us a minute, won’t you?” I gritted my teeth at my friend, who always pushed a little too far.

  “Yeah, I’ll give y’all a minute.” She pointed her two fingers at her eyes and then at Paul before jerking open the door and hopping inside.

  The van door slammed shut with a clunk.

  “Sheesh. She’s a piece of work.” He kept his voice even, but his eyes flickered with more anger than I’d ever seen before.

  For a second, I didn’t recognize the guy before me.

  He must have seen my reaction and took a step back. “Sorry. This just has me rattled. She needs to be careful throwing around accusations.”

  “I’ll speak to her.” I kept my tone low, and it didn’t escape either of our notice how guarded I sounded.

  Sweat broke out on Paul’s upper lip as he shifted on his feet. “At least the police were here when it happened. Never in my life have I experienced such a shock. And the poor groom. His ghosted face will haunt me.”

  Betsy tapped on the window, then opened the door. “It’s hot as Hades in here. Hurry.”

  “Sorry.” I dug through my bag and handed her the keys before turning back to Paul. “Didn’t you find it unusual for the bride to choose to be the victim? I mean, Lucy was all about her appearance and this was the biggest day of her life. Didn’t you find that a little odd?”

  He glanced upward, as if thinking it over. “Not really. The batter wasn’t part of the original plan. We added it this morning. She thought it would be clever to lead the guests down the wrong path. Her appearance shouldn’t have been altered. She instructed my staff to make sure the train of her dress draped so people would see the intricate sequin work. She had pictures of models she brought with her during the consultation. They were called ‘death spreads.’ She thought it would be hauntingly beautiful and completely original.”

  Death spreads? “You mean images of people posing as dead? Not real dead people?”

  He nodded. “Models posed as the deceased. She thought it would leave her guests beautifully awestruck. Her words.”

  There wasn’t anything beautiful about that idea to me.

  “Well, I guess we better get going.”

  I nodded absently, still thinking.

  “Do you need a hug?”

  I glanced up. Paul’s expression conveyed
exactly who needed the hug. I leaned in and held on to him for a few seconds. Betsy blew the horn three times in succession.

  “I’ll be right behind you.” Paul gave me a small reassuring smile before jogging to his vehicle, and I went around to the driver’s seat of mine.

  “Nice, Bets. Really nice.” I backed out of the space.

  “Somethin’s off about that dude. I’m telling ya.” Betsy sat staring out the window. “He’s got those beady little killers’ eyes.”

  “Dude?”

  “Yeah, dude. I’m bringing it back.”

  “Let’s not and I think you’re misjudging Paul. He’s just different.” And considering the way he freaked out, I couldn’t see him killing anyone. He wouldn’t have the stomach for it. “You were awfully hard on him.”

  Betsy and I rode up the winding road toward the entrance ramp. In twenty minutes, we’d be back in the town’s center. When I glanced over in her direction, I could clearly see her struggling to keep it together. She kept picking at her cuticles while she bounced her foot, her gaze never leaving the passing palm trees.

  “It’s going to be okay.” I gave her a quick pat on the arm before focusing back on the road. “Talk, it’ll make you feel better.”

  “I don’t need to talk. You know me, I’m a rock. Stuff bounces off me or breaks on impact. That’s the way I get by in life. I’m tough as nails. I’m concerned for you is all. I should probably talk about that.” Betsy, like the rest of us, tried to believe she could withstand anything.

  “Sure. Go ahead.”

  “I bet you feel just awful the body disappeared.”

  I stopped behind a car and waited to merge onto the highway. “I think we all do.”

  “Yeah, but you especially because truthfully, you’re glad Lucy is gone.”

  That caught me by surprise, and I turned in my seat. “Glad?”

  Betsy wouldn’t meet my gaze. “Without a body nobody can test for DNA. You’re glad because your best friend’s DNA could be all over her. All it takes is a single hair, and you know how my hair sheds. Mine sheds almost as bad as Killer’s does.” Her elusive cat, Killer, did shed a lot. In fact, since he made himself so scarce when I was around, it was the only evidence of his existence.