Catharine Bramkamp - Real Estate Diva 04 - Trash Out (40 page)

Patrick
studied me
very seriously.
“Do you think Carrie will bolt?
If I tell her, will she bolt?
”

“Are you kidding me?  You saved her from her horrible parents
, you are kind, handsome, her total package.
Trust me when I tell you she will never leave, let alone bolt.
She will take care
of
you,
she will stand by your side
. She
will
personify
every bad country western song in
circulation
. She is
completely
in love with you.”

He sagged
in relief
at my words.  “Thank y
ou. 
I sometimes fight so hard to
get an
answer
,
I forget to ask the question.
I didn’t want to
ask her the wrong question.”

And he certainly didn’t want to hear the wrong answer.

“I don’t blame you. Now, what are you doing to find your sister?”

“We have notices out, but it’s hard to
be both
effective and avoid triggering
a wave of unwanted publicity.” He suddenly gr
inned.  “Frankly, I don’t think
of
our family
as
all that important, or even that interesting
. But
with twenty four hour news
cycle
s
,
anything will do, and Kimberly is
photogenic
and can sound pretty coherent
during a
five minute interview.”

“I kn
o
w local politicians like that
,
” I mused
.
  “But it all unravel
s during the sixth
minute.”

He nodded.  “The big guy who has been following you is a body guard for hire.  He’s there to protect Carrie.
I told her it was to guard against her parents.
”

“
But not really
.”

“
No,”
he
gazed at the crowd
.  “
And it’s
not over until we find her.”

I did not ask the obvious question, had Kimberly killed Cassandra?
Because no one knew.
No one had the answers.
I took my leave of Patrick and
delivered the muffins to the
ravenous
bride, who swallowed them down
in seconds,
then entertained herself with a minute
-
by
-
minute count down.
Out loud.  If the Furies weren’t already frayed around the edges, Carrie’s count – one through sixty, threatened to unravel them completely.

The count was thirteen minutes, thirty seconds.  I
hovered in the door of the tasting room and watched the guests assemble, first a trickle,
then
wave after wave
of people
filled the tiny wood chairs
fac
ing
the gazebo
. Three waiters circulated with sparkling wine to ease the wait.

I watched my grandmother Prue limp a bit as she made her way to her seat, Emily, Ben’s grandmother spied her and marched over to help.  The two greeted each other like long lost sisters.  I didn’t know if that was a good thing or not.  Emily knew a great deal about Ben’s past, Pure knew everything about mine.  But I couldn’t break them up. I’d just have to warn Ben later.

“Put out my fire anytime.”  Ben
snuck up behind me and
growled in my ear.  “
Have you
lost weight
?
”

“You say that to all the girls you try to bed
,
” I countered.

“Maybe, but you have.  You look good
.
”  He
quickly
amended
,
“You always look good.”

“That was too little, too late
,
” I teased lightly.

“She’s here.”

My stomach clenched. 
“Who is here?”

“That Beth person
, maybe she’s consoling Peter
. He
is not in good shape you know
.”

“I think he really loved her.”

“Maybe he did, this time.”

At five minutes and counting, we arranged ourselves behind the warehouse, ready to turn the corner at the signal.  I was right in front of Carrie and there was no one behind her. 
The sounds of the strings were muted
,
we waited in relative silence
.  Kathleen and Claire glanced back at Carrie, as did I.  This time I did not blame their jumpiness.  I finally couldn’t stand it and reached back for Carrie’s hand.

“It will be okay.” She squeezed my hand just as the ensemble struck up
Handel’s
Water Music.  Kathleen stepped around the
corner,
I pulled Carrie along, not wanting to leave her to chance, or a crazy new sister
-
in
-
law.

Claire rounded the corner,
then
it was my turn.  I released Carrie’s hand and walked down the
aisle
,
straining to hear any suspicious noise over the music. 
Patrick and his ushers dressed in their own tailored tuxes
lined up under the gazebo. Enormous
bright hibiscus flowers flown in from Oahu added to the riot of flowers covering the canopy. The brilliant red contrasted against the black tuxes and the flawless blue October sky.  The Furies, sharp and dangerous
,
gripped their bouquets like lifelines. They surveyed the crowd, their eyes darting. Two wedding photographers, dressed in black, crouched in the aisle and snapped away.

Prue waved but I ignored her.  I also avoided looking at my mother and father, knowing they were visualizing my next trip down an aisle as a bride.  I did not know if I had that kind of strength.
I reached the gazebo and turned to wait for the bride.  The music paused,
then
the three piece
string ensemble
broke into
Cannon in D Major.
 

I finally looked up and focused on the rows and rows of guests
, still straining.  Where was Carrie?
 

My gaze caught on a familiar face. 
Was that possible?  I shook my head to clear it.
The second chorus started up.  Patrick
shifted.  I heard Kathleen breath heavily next to me.  There were no sounds save that of the quartet.  I took a deep breath and held it.  Counted to ten.

As if waiting for the perfec
t moment of heightened tension,
Carrie
finally
rounded the corner
.  The music swelled and Carrie, unscathed, perfect, radiant
, calmly
marched down the aisle.
She walked alone, regal and self possessed.
I took my eyes off Carrie
for a second
and
suddenly spotted
the woman again, her long br
aid was distinctive
, her face, now that I knew who she was, familiar.  Carrie must have spotted her across the creek in Claim Jump.  Melissa must have encountered her and received help from a very unlikely source.
I glanced at Carrie who was
staring at me
. I
straightened and
smiled
encouragingly
.
But
I had no idea how to call attention to the girl. Where were the
security
guys?  They
must have changed from biker outfits to tuxes
to blend in with the
well
-
dressed crowd.
Damn it to hell.

I smiled again at Carrie and took the red
hibiscus
bouquet
from her so she could clasp hands with Patrick.

Kimberly appeared at the edge of the group. I was already at the front behind Carrie.  I watched her watch the opening prayer.  She hovered,
and then
ducked into the shadow of the building.
I almost elbowed Kathleen, but I wasn’t suppose
d
to know what was going on.  But the Furies knew. Oh yes, those women had been watching for their sister since the engagement announcement hit the papers.
I tried to keep my expression natural
,
u
ntil I saw the infamous Beth slide into a far back seat.

Patrick and Carrie were having and holding until death. I
struggled to keep
a cheerful expression on my face and an eye on Beth.  She wore a light beige dress, all the better to blend in.  Her hair was dark brown, not
the
rich tone of
the
girl who just disappeared.  Was that who was in the video?  I gripped
both
bouquet
s
so hard
they
shook. 

If Beth was here, did she bring Mark?  
He knew full well I was part of the wedding. It would be just like him to show up and ruin the perfect day. 

Patrick
slipped
a
diamond band that the folks in
the
back could probably see
onto Carrie’s finger
,
and it was done.

“Allison
,
”
Carrie whispered
,
“
l
et go of my bouquet.”

“Sorry.”  I released just as
Lurch remember
ed to announce them as
husband and wife. 

I glanced at the
F
uries.  Kathleen
actually
wiped a tear from her eye.
Claire was scanning the crowd,
not
very sentimental.
But
I understood.  Their sister was very much at large, and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that Carrie was the target.

I
was the last down the
aisle, holding
onto James. I didn’t want to look but I couldn’t resist.  Shit, there he was, next to Beth who wasn’t looking at Mark at all, but scanning the guests searching for someone else.  I did not meet Mark’s eyes, but swept forward. 
 

“I have to go
,
” I
told
James
, as soon as we passed the musicians.

“We have photos, you better hurry.”

Shit.  I glanced longingly at the back of the winery where I was
positive the
answers were lurking.

The wine and sparkling flowed as they say.  People laughed with relief, I would have laughed with relief if I thought I’d never have to see the Furies again.  But it wasn’t over. Ben was talking to Patrick and Carrie.  Good.  I was hot in the damn satin dress
, where was this Kim? 

I dragged myself to the edge of the property for the photos.
I grinned and angled my torso so I looked thinner in the photos.  Where were the s
ecurity guys
?  I finally spotted them as Patrick and Carrie mugged for a couple of “candid” shots.  The security force c
ould
easily
be mistaken for waiters
, with, I hoped, guns
.
I gave
then
a little
wave,
they both
smirked
,
but did not move.
Okay, don’t listen to me.

I left Carrie under the watchful eyes of just about
everyone and dashed back towards the warehouse
where I was certain Kim was hiding
.

I ran into Mark first, who was Beth-less.  “What the hell are you doing here?” I hissed.

“It’s a wedding, girls love weddings, it makes them very sentimental.” He winked.

“Oh please, then where is your date?” 

He glanced around as if he mislaid his
drink
. Who knew that disaster was a bullet dodged?

“She was here a minute ago.”

I never could discern if Beth had been in the early videos for the winery.
Had Beth been stalking Cassandra from the beginning?
Was she stalking Carrie?
  And
had
Kimberly see
n
Cassandra as a threat?  I didn’t have enough information. I felt like Debbie Smith
who
just b
arged
into the situation with little more than
a strong sense of
self-righteous
ness
and a
clip board
.