Better Off Wed (7 page)

“I still don't understand why we're offering condolences for a person we couldn't stand.” Kate sounded exasperated as she drummed her fingers on the steering wheel. If she saw me glaring at her, she pretended not to notice.

“Because it's the polite thing to do, Kate. Anyway, we've got a good reason. Self-preservation.”

“Hey, it's not me they're after.” She paused behind a line of cars waiting to turn left.

“If I get killed, you're out of a job, remember?”

“Good point. But explain to me again how this is going to help us find the killer.”

“I'm willing to bet that one of her husbands killed her. Either Dr. Pierce or her ex-husband, Dr. Harriman. You heard what Alexandra said about Dr. Pierce.” I motioned for Kate to turn before we reached Dupont Circle. “So I figure we should hang around people who know them and keep our ears open.”

“But we're going to the bride's house first.” Kate sounded confused. “You think she had something to do with it?”

“We're just acting concerned. I don't think Elizabeth could disagree with her mother, much less kill her.”

Kate shook her head. “You know what they say about the nice, quiet ones?”

“Not this quiet one. Park anywhere in the next three blocks. Her house is right behind embassy row.”

Kate backed into a parking space and ran one tire up onto the curb. “Maybe she got fed up with her mother controlling her life and flipped out.”

“And ruined her own wedding?”

“You're right. Murdering her mother is plausible, but ruining her own wedding is inconceivable.” Kate stepped out of the car and smoothed down her black wrap dress. “Which house is hers?”

I looked down at the address on the slip of paper and pointed to a red brick townhouse a few doors down. Mrs. Pierce had run the entire wedding operation out of her home in Chevy Chase and I could drive there in my sleep, but I'd never been to the bride's house before.

“Do you think you could have picked a less somber dress, Kate?” I eyed her clingy dress with a plunging front.

“What are you talking about? It has long sleeves and it's black.”

“I'm talking about the neckline. Doesn't exactly scream ‘mourning,' does it?” I'd chosen a black crepe suit that buttoned to my collarbone and had a knee-length skirt. I felt like a nun next to Kate.

“I think it's a good compromise.” Kate walked up to the front door and pressed on the bell.

“What kind of a compromise?”

“I'm sad that I found a dead body, but I'm not all that sad that it was Clara Pierce.” Kate pulled the front of the dress closed a fraction. “It also transitions from day to evening beautifully.”

The front door opened, and Dr. Andrew Donovan stood in the doorway wearing wrinkled chinos and an untucked green Polo shirt. He looked nothing like the dashing groom from the wedding night. I stepped forward and took his hand.

“Annabelle and Kate from Wedding Belles. Your wedding planners.” I hurried my prepared speech. “We just wanted to stop by and check on Elizabeth. How is she?”

“Of course, I remember you.” Dr. Donovan stepped back into the house and opened the door. “Please come in.”

I pushed Kate inside and closed the door behind me. “We don't want to intrude. We're just so worried about her.”

“We grow so attached to our brides.” Kate had such a serious expression on her face that I had to avert my eyes to keep from laughing. Kate didn't grow attached to anyone who didn't have an Adam's apple.

“It's kind of you to come.” The groom showed us into the den. I perched on the edge of a wingback chair, and Kate sat on the burgundy leather couch. “I'm afraid Elizabeth isn't handling her mother's death well. You saw how she went to pieces at the wedding.”

“Is she at home?”

“We've had to sedate her.” Dr. Donovan shook his head. “She's not in any condition to see visitors.”

I tried to sound solemn. “Of course not.”

“We spoke to the police, of course.” The doctor picked at a loose thread on the hem of his shirt. “But there's not much we can tell them. Did the police question you?”

“Yes, but we don't know anything, either,” Kate said. “Aside from finding the body.”

“In all the drama, I'd forgotten that you two found my mother-in-law. That must have been quite a shock.”

“You can say that again.” Kate shuddered, and I shot her a look. Before I could try to smooth over Kate's blunder, my cell phone began ringing to the tune of “Here Comes the Bride.” I fumbled in my bag to find it.

The groom stood and managed a weak smile. “Do you mind if I go check on Elizabeth for a moment? I don't like to leave her alone for too long.” Dr. Donovan backed out of the room.

I retrieved my phone, and Kate stuck a finger down her throat. She hated my personalized ring.

“Wedding Belles, this is Annabelle.”

“Hi, Annabelle. It's Kimberly Kinkaid.” The bride for this Saturday. I always gave brides my cell phone number the week of the wedding and not a moment sooner.

“Hi, Kimberly. Is everything okay?”

“Well, I know this number is for important calls, but I need your help with something.” Her voice sounded even more tentative than usual.

I braced myself for a bridal breakdown. “That's what I'm here for.”

“I've been thinking about the rose petals outside during the ceremony.”

“The ones that the florist is going to scatter down the aisle?”

“Right,” she barreled on. “What if the wind blows?”

“What do you mean?” I tried not to sound impatient.

“I don't want them blowing out of the aisle. I want them in a straight line.”

“Well, there's not much we can do if the wind blows them around, Kimberly.”

“Can you pin them down to the ground?”

Was she serious? “You want me to pin the rose petals in place?” I heard Kate stifle a laugh, but I couldn't look at her for fear I would burst into laughter.

“Or maybe there's a special adhesive to glue them to the grass?” It was official. She had lost her mind.

I needed to get off the phone before Dr. Donovan came back and heard me debating ways to adhere flower petals to grass. I kept my voice steady, despite Kate's muffled cackling behind me. “Why don't I check on that special adhesive and give you a call back?”

I flipped my phone off and dropped it in my bag. “Nice, Kate. We're paying condolences and you're laughing your head off.”

“I couldn't help it.” Kate stood up and walked around the room. “I'm sure Dr. Donovan didn't hear me and even if he did, I'll bet he wouldn't care.”

My jaw dropped. “You don't think he'd care that
you're laughing while his new bride is practically in a coma?”

“I just mean that he has so much on his mind that he wouldn't notice. I didn't catch him peeking down my dress once.”

“I wasn't aware that cleavage is a test of how distraught someone is.”

Kate faced the wall, studying a row of framed diplomas. “It's one of them.”

I held up a hand. “Spare me the others.”

“Check out this guy's credentials.” Kate whistled. “No wonder Mrs. Pierce adored him so much. Princeton undergrad. Harvard Med.”

I walked up next to Kate. “She wouldn't have accepted anything less. Both her husbands went to Ivy League schools, too.”

“Talk about being label-conscious. At least he seems like a nice guy.”

“Yeah. With all these fancy diplomas, you'd think he'd be a pompous jerk.”

“He's a bit dull for my taste, but nice enough, I suppose. It's true when people say you can't judge a book by what it covers.”

I think she enjoyed watching me cringe. “Close enough.”

“Let's get out of here, Annie. This visit has been a total waste, if we're supposed to be looking for clues.” Kate tugged her dress together in the front. “What's our next stop?”

“Mrs. Pierce's house. It should be the perfect opportunity to talk to Dr. Pierce.”

“So after that all we have to worry about is finding the ex-husband?”

“Right.” I sat back down and leaned my head against the chair. “Dr. Harriman. I remember him from the ceremony, but only vaguely.”

“I might be able to assist you in that regard.” Just then, a tall man with dark, silvering hair stepped into the room. “I'm Dr. Harriman.”

“Now that you've found me, how can I be of service?” Dr. Harriman took a few long strides into the room and sat down in the bottle-green armchair across from me. “Are you friends of Elizabeth?”

I let myself breathe again, and I could see Kate relax as she sat down next to me. He must not have overheard much of our conversation.

“Actually, Dr. Harriman, we're your daughter's wedding planners.” I managed a smile in his direction. “We wanted to offer our condolences to the family.”

“That's thoughtful of you.” He pulled a cigar out of the pocket of his tweed jacket and rolled it back and forth between his thumb and index finger. “My exwife's death has been a terrible shock to us all.”

“I can only imagine, sir.” I shook my head along with him. Right. He probably couldn't wait for us to leave so he could light up his cigar and celebrate.

Dr. Harriman pocketed the cigar again. “Of course
it's hardest on Elizabeth. She's been hysterical since they found Clara at the reception. I came over to be here with her and help her cope with the tragedy.”

“Of course.” I pulled my skirt down over my knees. I hoped Kate would get my hint and do the same thing. “Unfortunately, we're the people who found Mrs. Pierce.”

He shifted his eyes from me to Kate. “Yes. I remember seeing you with the police.”

“You were one of the doctors called to the scene of the crime, right?” Kate's eyes darted to me. Surprising that she remembered anyone being around except the cute police officers.

Dr. Harriman looked at his hands and nodded. “I couldn't help her, though. She was dead by the time she hit the floor.”

“So the fall caused her death, then?” I tried to make my question sound casual.

He glanced up at me. “What else could it have been?”

Kate gave a loud, hacking cough, and Dr. Harriman stood up to hand her his handkerchief. Kate's dress gaped open as she reached forward, and I motioned for her to close it as the doctor turned to sit back down. She ignored me.

“We've taken up enough of your time, Dr. Harriman.” I stood up and Kate followed, handing the handkerchief back unused. “Please give our condolences to Elizabeth.”

“I'll be sure to tell her you stopped by when she wakes up.” He led us to the foyer and shook our hands, then closed the door behind us.

“Don't say anything until we get in the car.” I spoke
with a grin fixed on my face, in case anyone watching us could read lips.

“I don't think he can hear us.” Kate crossed the street and unlocked the car. I waited until we got inside and closed the doors.

“Okay, now we can talk.” I fastened my seat belt snugly as Kate rolled the car off the curb. We tapped the bumper of the SUV in front of us. “What do you think of our suspect being the examining doctor?”

“I think you almost blew it. We're not supposed to know that she may have been poisoned, remember?”

“I know. But why do you think he didn't mention the rash or the possibility that the fall wasn't what killed her?”

“Because he's not supposed to discuss it with anyone, I'd imagine.”

“I guess you're right.” I put my sunglasses on top of my head to hold back my hair. “Unless he wanted to play down the poisoning angle because he's the one who poisoned her.”

Kate weaved her way through traffic as we headed toward Chevy Chase. “I'll play along. Let's say he poisoned her. How did he do it?”

I threw out a guess. “Maybe he injected her at the crime scene and pretended to be trying to save her life.”

“Why poison her when, at least as far as we could tell, she was already dead? Anyway, how could he have pulled out a needle with all those cops around, not to mention the other doctors?”

“Okay, so he injected her earlier in the night.” I pressed my foot instinctively against the floor of the car as we approached a yellow light.

“So he just goes up to his ex-wife, jabs her with a needle, and they both go along their merry little ways?” Kate sped up and we burned the red light. “That doesn't sound like the Clara Pierce I knew and loathed.”

“So the theory has a few holes.” I looked out my window as we passed the National Cathedral. Tour buses were lined up three deep in front, and Kate honked as one tried to merge in front of us. Kate hated when cars tried to get in front of her.

“Listen, Annabelle, I can tell you that Dr. Harriman wasn't as upset as his son-in-law.”

“What do you mean? The cleavage test?”

Kate nodded. “He peeked.”

“Well for God's sake, Kate, you have to make an effort not to look. I don't even know if I passed your cleavage test.”

“I'm guessing that he didn't like his ex-wife, but Dr. Harriman doesn't seem like a sinister murderer to me.”

I recognized that tone of voice. “You think he's attractive, don't you?” My mouth fell open as I watched Kate begin to blush. “I can't believe it. You've got a crush on one of our suspects.”

“I do not.” Kate's voice cracked. “I just think he's polite and distinguished.”

“God help me. I've got Mata Hari as a sidekick.”

My cell phone began singing, and I retrieved it from the side pocket of my purse. Richard's number popped up on the display and I flipped it open.

“Tell me you're having better luck than we are, Richard.”

“Didn't you get my message?” He sounded exasperated. “I spent half the morning at the Phillips Collec
tion and didn't get anywhere with that dreadful woman in charge of events. I'm almost grateful she took me off her list of approved caterers.”

“So you couldn't find any connection to Mrs. Pierce?”

“Not a thing,” Richard said over a lot of background noise. He must have been at the police station. “How's your detective work going?”

“Not bad if Kate would stop eliminating suspects because they're too attractive to be murderers.”

“Too bad we don't have any solid female leads,” Richard responded. “At least that would cut down on the chances of her dating the killer.”

“What's he saying about me?” Kate grabbed for the phone.

“Just that he finds it highly unlikely you'd base a decision on physical attributes alone,” I said with a straight face.

“Of course she wouldn't use just physical qualities, Annabelle. Don't forget money. That's at least number two on her list.”

I tried not to break into a grin. “You're right, Richard.”

“What's he saying now?” Kate sounded suspicious.

“That I was off-base when I implied you judge people by only one criterion.”

“Good,” Kate threw her chin out. “Tell Richard I'm sorry I assumed he was teasing me.”

I tried to keep a straight face. “Did you hear that, Richard?”

“Each delicious word of it.”

“Yes, I know you're sorry about all the times you teased Kate.”

“Hey, that's not what I said,” Richard protested.

“It's about time he apologized for all the cracks he makes about my social life,” Kate insisted.

“He feels awful.” I mouthed the words to Kate while I listened to Richard's complaints getting louder in my ear.

“That's fine, Annabelle.” Richard sighed deeply. “Mock me. Make light of your dear friend who's stuck in this godforsaken police department with nothing to drink but vending-machine coffee.”

“I'm not mocking you.” Fabulous. He'd become a martyr in the span of two hours.

“I think the police are looking at me funny, too.”

“Why?” I asked. “What are you wearing?”

“Nothing flashy. Just my silver paisley jacket with matching flat-front pants.”

Just what I would have chosen for a visit to the police station.

“I'm sure when they finally give me back my equipment and let me reopen my business there'll be a few jobs for me.” Richard sucked in his breath. “Perhaps I can specialize in catering for pet funerals.”

“Don't be ridiculous.” I grabbed the dashboard as Kate made a sharp left into a residential neighborhood.

“You think I'm overreacting to being a prime suspect in a murder case? I feel light-headed, Annabelle. My whole career is flashing before my eyes.”

“Put your head between your knees.”

“I can't. These pants are too tight.”

“Can you lie down?”

“Have you ever seen the floor at a police station?” Richard's voice rose an octave.

“Why don't you go to the bathroom and splash your
face with water?” I closed my eyes so I wouldn't have to see Kate roll through one stop sign after another.

“The bathroom is even worse than the floor. I'm not setting foot in there without a can of scrubbing bubbles and a pair of rubber gloves.”

“I've got to go, Richard.” I opened my eyes as the car slowed down, then jerked to a stop. “We're at Mrs. Pierce's house.”

“Okay, I'm going to go see if I have some handi-wipes in my car.” With the prospect of something to fuss over, Richard already sounded better. “Call me later.”

I dropped the phone in my purse and let out a long breath.

“I take it things with the police aren't going well.” Kate parked the car across from the Pierce home, with the passenger side halfway in a ditch. The massive stone house already had cars lined up bumper-to-bumper in its circular driveway.

“You know Richard. When is he ever not on his deathbed?” I opened my car door and almost rolled out onto the grass.

“I hope this doesn't take too long. I need to find a site for the Bailey wedding by tomorrow.” Kate extended a leg out of the car and paused. “Do you hear music?”

“It sounds like a party.” I nodded toward the house. “I think it's coming from inside.”

We watched a woman in a short Pucci dress and stiletto heels step out of a convertible she'd parked in the middle of the street. A valet in a blue jacket appeared as if by magic and took her car keys from her. We followed from a distance as she walked to the
marble-columned entrance of the house. The front door flew open and high-pitched laughter spilled outside as the woman exchanged air kisses with someone and disappeared inside the house. My eyes widened.

“They've got valet?”

“Now this is more like it.” Kate adjusted the neckline of her dress to display ample cleavage. “I knew I picked out the perfect dress this morning.”