by Daria White
“Not sure what that was about.” Her mother gestured to her and Jordan. “Go have some fun.”
Jordan walked with Bianca hand-in-hand to the dance floor. He avoided eye contact with the bride and groom. Bianca rested one hand on his shoulder, while the other clasped his hand. Her eyes glanced over his shoulder. She spotted a man dressed in black. Tall, clean shaven, and tanned.
Bianca recognized him as the limo driver who’d dropped them off at the venue after they’d finished their hair appointments at the hair salon. Nicole had told him he was more than welcome to attend the reception and serve himself a plate. That was Nicole. She never missed an opportunity to help a stranger, even if it was in a small way.
“Want to tell me why Priscilla looked at you that way?” she asked him.
He shrugged. “Who knows? I can’t please everyone.” He eyed her dress. “You look amazing. I can’t believe you have a teenage daughter.”
Bianca smiled. Jordan obviously didn’t care about Priscilla’s opinion, so she dropped the subject. “Don’t tell me about it. I feel old.”
“You’re not old. You look great for a woman of—”
She squeezed his shoulder. “Don’t you dare say my age!”
Jordan laughed, but then his eyes diverted to Nicole and Chad.
“Are you all right?” Bianca asked.
“Why wouldn’t I be?” He shrugged.
“I remember someone having a huge crush on Nicole back in college before she…”
Jordan sighed. “Yeah, but she turned me down. She didn’t feel the same way.” He paused as his gazed focused on Nicole and Chad. “You think she’s happy?”
Bianca moved with Jordan as the music changed. Brad Paisley’s “She’s Everything” boomed through the speakers. “I think so.”
“I hope so.”
Bianca opened her mouth, only to have the DJ make an announcement.
“All right, single ladies, come to the dance floor. The bride’s going to toss the bouquet!”
Jordan gestured at Bianca. “You going?”
“I’d rather not.”
He wiggled his thick eyebrows. “Don’t think you’ll catch it?”
Bianca pinched his shoulder.
“Violent, but you’re cute when you’re angry.” He winked at her.
Bianca’s eyes narrowed at him. “Only to make you happy, my friend.”
Jordan laughed as Bianca joined the other single women on the dance floor. She stood in the back of the group just as Nicole walked in front of them with her bouquet.
“Here we go! One. Two. Three!” Nicole tossed the bouquet behind her back.
Bianca watched as if it moved in slow motion. While others reached up, almost elbowing each other out of the way, Bianca only faced her palms upward. To her surprise, the bouquet landed in her hands. Her eyes bugged. All eyes faced her.
Nicole clapped and hurried to her side. “Awesome!”
Bianca gave a humorless laugh. “You did this on purpose.”
Nicole giggled. “No, but if anyone deserves a happy ending next, it’s you.”
Bianca pointed at her, but her grin gave her away. Heading back to her seat, Bianca saw that her mother was gone. She placed the bouquet on the table as her eyes searched the crowd. Then she spotted her mother coming from the hallway.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
“Priscilla wasn’t feeling well. I walked with her to the ladies’ room. She has her pills with her so she said she’d be fine.” Her mother resumed sitting in her seat. “This wedding may be too much for her.”
“Is it really her heart?”
“I think it’s the excitement and Chad is her only child. Now he’s married and starting a new life.”
“Did you feel that way when I got married? That I was leaving you behind in a way?”
“I was happy for you,” her mother said. “I think most parents are, but time goes by so fast. One moment your kids are babies and the next, they’re graduating and off to college.”
Bianca winced. “Don’t remind me, please.”
“See what I mean?” her mother continued. “Alyssa is not too far behind.”
“And now there’s a boy.”
Her mother grinned. “I see. How’s that going?”
Bianca’s eyes widened slightly. “No ‘she’s too young to be dating’? Isn’t that what you said to me at her age?”
Her mother waved off her question. “I’m the grandmother, so I can spoil her. I was only strict with you and Melanie.”
“Traitor.”
Her mother winked at her.
“Well, I want to meet the boy before she goes out with him.”
Her mother bobbed her head. “Now you remind me of your father. That’s exactly what he said when you told us about your crush on Malcom. He wanted to hire a private investigator.”
Bianca’s mouth fell open. “He didn’t.”
“I stopped him,” her mother said. “After I told him I would keep an eye on you two.”
“I still can’t believe you followed us on our first date.” Bianca ran a finger over her eyebrow.
“It was either him or me.” Her mother paused as her fingers drifted to her now bare ring finger. “Sometimes I can still hear him laughing. Even in my dreams, I can see his face. Hear his voice. To think we almost made forty years.”
Bianca touched her mother’s hand. “I miss him.” There’d been terrible beyond health circumstances. If only his heart had been stronger, but it took him away from the family too soon.
Her mother patted her hand. “Me too.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, the bride and groom are heading out!” the DJ announced through his microphone.
Bianca grabbed her small purse and the small drawstring bag that was filled with birdseed. She smiled, knowing her friend didn’t want the birds to choke on rice. She followed along with her mother as they tossed the birdseed at the couple. The limo waited for them, but Chad kissed Nicole one more time before opening the door. The crowd cheered only louder.
Bianca managed one last glance at Jordan, but he slipped away from the crowd. She didn’t blame him for not staying, but since he was Nicole’s best friend, Bianca knew he would show his support. He’d do anything for Nicole.
Tossing more birdseed, family and friends cheered and whistled at the newlywed couple. Bianca’s chest swelled. Her friend’s bouquet was tucked underneath her arm. Would she get married again? Bianca would think about that later. Right now, she wanted to get out of her five-inch pumps. They’d served their purpose, but she was grateful that she had flats in her car.
Chad opened the door for his new wife, only to hear Nicole’s high-pitched scream. Bianca’s instincts kicked in and she scurried to her friend’s side. Nicole’s face paled. Looking inside the limousine, Bianca spotted someone sitting across from where they stood.
She didn’t hesitate to walk to the other side. Bianca gasped at the sight. Her eyes bugged. It was Martin, and judging by the blood soaking his collared shirt, he was dead.
Chapter 6
Bianca sat next to her mother on a nearby bench. Police sirens had replaced the cheers and whistles for the newlywed couple. The paramedics now added to the crowd. Bianca had exchanged her heels for her flats, but the police had closed off the area and no one could leave until they received statements. Clouds blocked portions of the evening sky, but at least it didn’t rain. It had been one of Nicole’s biggest concerns, but the day had been sunny.
“They can’t keep us here all night.” Her mother huffed. “Who would do such a thing? We just saw Martin earlier.”
“You said you saw him at the bar?” Bianca asked.
Her mother nodded. “He got another drink and stepped outside. I thought perhaps he was getting some air.”
“That’s more than what he bargained for.” Who would kill Martin? Bianca bit at her bottom lip. Aside from his argument with Richard the other night, there’d been no apparent threat. Not that she could think of.
>
Then she recalled hearing his heated conversation with Chad, but the groom had been inside with Nicole on the dance floor. Between greeting and thanking family members, had he slipped away without Bianca seeing? Hearing sobs, she spotted Priscilla crying on her son’s shoulder. Bianca’s heart broke for the woman. Speaking of heart, she hoped this didn’t make things worse for Priscilla’s condition. Losing Martin. How would the woman survive? She loved him, despite his questionable behavior.
Bianca caught a glimpse of Nicole. She rubbed at her covered arms since Chad had given her his jacket. Bianca patted her mother’s arm. “I’ll be back.”
She slipped through the crowd toward her friend. “How are you holding up?”
Nicole shook her head slightly. “I just can’t believe it.” She folded her arms over her chest.
“Me, neither.” Bianca’s eyes wondered over the crowd just as a familiar face grabbed her attention. Lamar? Dressed in a dark suit, he spoke to one officer.
“He’s new?” Nicole wondered.
“Yeah, he is.”
“You’ve met him? Is he a detective?”
Bianca shrugged. “I’ll guess we’ll find out.”
Lamar finished his conversation and faced where the officer pointed. At Bianca. Her. Lamar’s eyes widened for a moment, but then he walked over to her and Nicole.
“Bianca Wallace,” he said.
“Yes.”
He showed her his badge attached to his pants. “Detective Lamar Sims. We meet again. I’m told that you discovered the body.”
“When Nicole, the bride, screamed, I walked over and saw the body.” Bianca shivered recalling the blank stare in Martin’s hazel eyes. Focusing on Detective Sims, his eye contact stuck with hers for a moment as if taking her in. Bianca glanced at the concrete as her skin tingled. Did he plan to stare?
Then he gestured for her to follow him. Bianca stepped over with him away from the crowd. “Can you tell me exactly what happened?”
Bianca wrung her hands together. “Well… we were saying goodbye to the bride and groom. The groom, Chad, opened the door to the limousine.”
Detective Sims wrote on his notepad. They still used those? “And then?”
“Again when I heard Nicole scream, I walked over to see what had happened. Martin was dead.”
“Did you check his pulse?” he asked.
“No, I didn’t touch him. I just saw… the blood soaking his shirt.” Bianca’s stomach quivered. She cocked her head to the side. “I didn’t see the murder weapon.” Recalling the tear in his shirt, her lips parted. “Is it possible they stabbed him? We would have heard a gun.”
Detective Sims didn’t answer. “Anything else you can remember? Did Martin have any enemies?”
Bianca stared at the concrete. “Well… there was an argument last night at the rehearsal dinner. I don’t think Martin had enemies. He would get riled up after drinking too much, but that’s all I know.”
“Tell me more about the argument.” Detective Sims appeared intrigued.
“The caterer, Richard Long, is his step-brother. I don’t know what they were arguing about, but we heard something break. Richard wanted him to leave. He was pretty upset.” Enough to kill his own family? The notion itself was low.
“Was that the only argument you witnessed between them?”
“There was… a stargazing party at Richard’s house earlier this week. Martin and his wife showed up, but they didn’t stay.”
“Why not?” He cocked his head to the side.
“I don’t believe Richard cared to see them there. I didn’t hear much, so that’s all I know about that.” The last thing she wanted to do was point fingers at Richard or anyone in her hometown.
Detective Sims bobbed his head as he wrote. “Does anything else come to mind?”
Bianca shrugged. “Nothing serious. Whom do you think would kill him?”
“I intend to find out. Thank you.”
He differed from when they’d met in the park. This Lamar didn’t make small talk. He was Detective Sims now. He walked over to talk to more of the wedding guests. Bianca ran a hand down her neck. Who would want Martin dead? Inching over to the limo, she saw that his body no longer was sitting inside, but they had him covered with a white sheet on the ground.
The next thing she knew, the paramedics had placed him in a body bag and on a stretcher. Bianca saw Chad hold his mother as she wept in grief. Bianca then felt her own chest twinge. She walked over to her own mother, who watched the scene with her mouth covered. Bianca draped an arm around her mother’s shoulders. This couldn’t be good for her.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
Her mother bobbed her head. “Just brings back… memories when I received word about your father.”
Bianca rested her chin on her mother’s shoulder. “I need to get you home.”
Her mother shook her head. “We can’t go now. The police haven’t questioned everyone.” She exhaled. “Poor Priscilla.”
Bianca leaned into her mother’s embrace as they watched Priscilla cry over Martin’s body. Chad stayed by her side, while Nicole bowed her head. Bianca walked her mother back to the bench. They held hands as they waited, but then Bianca stood to her feet to pace.
She continued. “I wish there were something we could do.”
“I think it’s best we be there for the family as often as we can,” her mother said.
Bianca shook her head in agreement. “I’ll be back.”
“Where are you going?”
“I need to walk around some, Mom. This is a lot.”
Her mother nodded and Bianca stepped away for a moment to herself. Her eyes glanced back to see Detective Sims talking to Priscilla and Chad. Getting closer to the street, Bianca hoped she could take her mother home soon. Tapping her foot, her eyes drifted to the ground. She blinked. It couldn’t have been. Were her eyes playing tricks on her? She stepped off the curb.
Was that blood on the concrete? Bianca stooped down to inspect. It was. Had Martin been killed and the killer had dragged him to the limo? Had he been trying to get inside for help but hadn’t made it in time?
Bianca straightened to her feet. Where was the driver? Her head swiveled as she searched, but she only spotted him with another police officer. Had he seen anything? How long had he stayed inside the venue before returning to his post?
Perhaps Detective Sims could talk to him. Bianca stooped to the ground once more. Was there any more blood? Then her eyes stared under the limo. Was something by the tire? She looked both ways, not wanting to disturb the crime scene. She peeked closer, only to grab her phone and use it for better lighting. Her mouth fell open. It couldn’t have been.
“Ma’am, this is an official crime scene. You need to join the others on the sidewalk,” a police officer said.
Bianca didn’t move.
“Ms. Wallace?” Detective Sim’s voice again. “We need you to step away.”
She stood to her feet, shutting off her flashlight.
“Ms. Wallace?” Detective Sims only knelt to see what had made her so intrigued. “Do you recognize this?” He stood to his feet. He held a bracelet in his gloved hands. A charm bracelet that she knew well.
Bianca bobbed her head. “Yes.”
“Whose is it, Ms. Wallace?” Detective Sims asked.
She closed her eyes. Shaking her head. It couldn’t be true.
“Ms. Wallace?”
“Nicole’s.”
“The bride?”
Bianca nodded.
“Ask the bride over, please.” The officer next to him nodded and pushed through the crowd. Detective Sims faced Bianca. “Do you think she had something to do with this?”
“No. She lost this last night. To be honest, I’m not even sure they killed Martin inside the limo.” Bianca motioned for him to follow her. She pointed to the small drops of blood on the ground. “How is there blood here? Besides, Nicole was inside the entire time.”
He cocked his head to the side.
“I’m aware of the blood, Ms. Wallace. What I want to know is are you sure your friend didn’t have anything to do with this? Is it possible she stepped outside for anything?”
“I know her. She’s not a killer.”
“That doesn’t mean I can’t bring her in for questioning.” He stared at the blood on the ground. “If she’s innocent, we’ll soon find out.”
Bianca’s chest heaved as he walked back over to Nicole. As soon as he held up the bracelet, Nicole’s mouth fell open.
Chad stepped forward. “She didn’t do it.”
Priscilla covered her mouth in apparent disbelief.
Detective Sims handed the bracelet to another officer, who placed it inside a plastic bag. “I’ll need you to come the police station, Mrs. Lee, for questioning.”
Bianca stood still as a statue as Nicole and Chad faced each other. He hugged his wife. Bianca’s nails dug into her palm. Her friend was innocent.
Chapter 7
“Thank goodness. It’s good to be home.” Bianca’s mother undid her seatbelt, but she didn’t get out the car right away. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
Bianca didn’t take her hands off the steering wheel. What a night. A wedding. A reception. A dead body. “I can’t believe Nicole is a suspect.”
“Are you sure that was her bracelet?” her mother asked.
Bianca’s hands dropped from the wheel to her lap. “Yes. She lost it again at the rehearsal dinner. Even at the stargazing party, Chad gave it back to her when it came off her wrist then. I tried to help her look for it last night, but I didn’t see it. I wonder if…”
“If what?”
“Did someone… plant it there? They wanted someone to find it.”
“Bianca, don’t let your imagination run away with you.”
It did. She’d pointed the police to her friend for murder. Bianca’s stomach hardened at the thought. Replaying the evening in her mind, did she miss anything? Did Nicole step out from the reception? No. This was all a mistake. Her friend wasn’t guilty and time would prove that. She hoped.
