by Donna Doyle
“Just hold tight for a moment, please. And leave Michelle be. She needs a little time.”
10
The Truth Comes Out
Truthfully, Molly needed time to make all the necessary arrangements, but she had a feeling that Michelle wouldn’t mind a few moments of peace. Things were about to get ugly, considering all the guests that were bracing to be disappointed.
Downstairs, Molly found Dora and whispered her directions. Dora took off up the stairs to manage the wedding party.
In the dining room, Molly discovered Sheriff Barnes eyeing the buffet that Henry and Harriet had set up. Everyone else was in the sunroom, and it was good that she found him alone. “I’m afraid we’re going to need some crowd control,” she said quietly as his eyes sparkled over a tray of ham.
“Oh?”
“The wedding is off. I’ll go announce it, but I’ll need you to help in getting everyone out of here in an organized manner.”
Barnes tugged the brim of his hat. “Yes, ma’am. Happy to be of service, but why did you bring Digby and me here?”
“Soon enough, Sheriff, soon enough.” Molly said.
When she entered the sunroom, the crowd looked expectantly at the open doors, hoping for a glimpse of the bride. They were disappointed to see Molly and turned back toward the front. That suited Molly just fine, because it gave her a moment to tap on Deputy Digby’s shoulder. “I’m about to tell everyone that the wedding is off,” she whispered. “I’ve already informed the sheriff, but I need you to do a special favor for me.”
Digby looked confused, but he looked at her eagerly. “What’s that?”
“You see that woman up there in the fifth row near the aisle? With the dark hair and the purple dress? Don’t let her leave.”
“On what grounds?”
“Just tell her she’s part of an investigation and that she’s needed for questioning. I believe Gloria is here as well. Please ask her to stay as a favor to me. She’ll understand.”
The deputy’s eyes went wide, but he nodded.
Pastor Julian, known affectionately as Papa Julian by many in Calmhaven, was waiting patiently at the altar when Molly scuttled to the front of the room and whispered to him. His eyes widened for a moment, but he waved her to the microphone. Molly tapped on it twice and gave a nervous smile. “Ladies and gentlemen, I regret to inform you that the wedding is off.” The ripple of astonishment she had expected made its way up and down the rows. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions, but right now it’s best if we give the bride and groom some space. Please be patient with each other as you exit. Thank you.”
Now began the difficult part of getting almost everyone out of the building. Some guests took their gifts back off the table, while others left them for either Michelle or Brian to claim. A few folks complained about wasting their time or asked what would happen to all the catered food, but Molly just smiled and shooed them out the door. None of it was any of their business, and it would all come out eventually.
Sheriff Barnes had nobly stepped into his role, standing in the middle of the room directing the traffic. “Let’s stay single file, folks. Just keep moving. If everyone could please turn right as you exit the parking lot, that will keep traffic to a minimum.” He murmured into the radio clipped to his shoulder for another officer to come out and handle the street.
When they had all gone, Molly tapped the sheriff on the shoulder. “Could you step into the sunroom? I’ll be gathering a few people in there, and I think you might be interested in what they have to say.”
Barnes opened his mouth, looking like he was going to argue, but he nodded and moved into the next room.
As she climbed the stairs again, Molly realized that this wedding was giving her more of a workout than she had anticipated. She hoped she wouldn’t have to come back up here until the next wedding.
Brian leaned against the wall in the hallway, still in his tux and looking sad, confused and furious all at the same time. Michelle stood meekly in the doorway, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt. The remainder of the wedding party stood nervously around them, alternately shouting and whispering. Dora stood at the edge of the crowd with the big gift bag hanging from her hands. Molly clapped her hands with authority. “Bridesmaids, groomsmen, you’re dismissed. Michelle, Brian, and Renee, I need you downstairs.”
They followed her. Molly had a feeling it was out of curiosity more than obedience. That was fine, because she knew the truth was about to come out. She assembled them in the sunroom in the chairs that had only a few minutes ago held their guests. The gathering now included herself and Dora, Michelle, Brian, Renee, Gloria, Victoria, Sheriff JJ Barnes, and Deputy Digby.
“What’s this about an investigation?” Barnes demanded.
“Why, it’s the investigation into the destruction of Michele’s wedding dress,” Molly explained.
This was turning out to be the strangest wedding-that-never-happened he had ever attended. But then, whenever Miss Molly Grey was involved things often got a little strange. In this instance, Sheriff Barnes was as curious to see what Molly had to say as everyone else.
“We really don’t have to talk about that right now,” Michelle said, her face propped on her hand. “I’m sure everyone just wants to go home.”
“I think it’s a very pertinent discussion, actually,” Molly countered. “That’s what got us all here in the first place.”
“That’s right,” Barnes agreed. Then his eyes narrowed.
Molly didn’t want to be the center of attention. This was supposed to be Michelle’s day. But that obviously wasn’t happening now, and everyone was waiting on her to tell them what was going on. “Michelle’s original dress was destroyed sometime on Tuesday night. We know from the fact that it was the only dress in the shop to suffer such damage that someone wanted to sabotage this wedding.”
“Do you mean to say you know who it was?” Gloria asked excitedly.
Molly looked across the gathered congregation.
“I believe so, and almost everyone in this room is a suspect.”
There were a few gasps, but Barnes just nodded.
“First, we have Gloria.” Molly pointed at the dressmaker. “You could have ruined the dress on the pretense of selling Michelle a new one and making more money.”
“But I didn’t!” the woman protested instantly. “I didn’t charge her a thing for the new gown or even the alterations, and I stayed up all night doing them.”
“Exactly,” Molly agreed with a smile. “And that’s how I know it wasn’t you.”
Gloria breathed a sigh of relief.
“Which leads us to Brian.” Continued Molly.
“Now, wait a minute!”
“Just listen!” she admonished. “If you were having second thoughts about the wedding, then it would be a fitting way to stop it. You were nervous enough earlier this afternoon that you had to go down to the kitchen and get a piece of bread to settle your stomach.”
“I was just afraid I would mess up my vows,” Brian said quietly.
“Yes,” Molly said with a nod. “You were nervous, as any groom would be. But you did say that you wondered if the wedding would ever really happen. Don’t pretend that you didn’t share some of Michelle’s concerns.”
“Well, yes, but it’s only normal to be anxious. Isn’t it?” Brian glanced around for reassurance from the others gathered in the room. Some nodded, others shook their heads.
“But you didn’t destroy the dress, Brian.” Molly said, much to the shaking groom’s relief.
“My next suspect, and one that is far more likely, is Renee.”
“Hey!” The maid of honor rose to her feet and looked like she was about to sprint for the door. Digby took a step sideways to block the way just in case Renee made a break for it.
“You made numerous snide remarks about the wedding and what a waste of money it was, among other things. You wanted to make it seem as though you didn’t care, but the truth was that you did – you cared a g
reat deal more than you would like anyone else to know. You were jealous!”
“Oh, Renee! Is that true?” Michelle had washed and dried her face, but tears threatened to spill over her lashes once again.
Renee shifted uncomfortably then slumped back into her seat.
Not wanting to torture her any further, Molly answered for her. “Yes, but not just because of the wedding. It’s much more personal than that, isn’t it, Renee. Your crush on Brian made his marriage to your best friend almost unbearable!”
Brian looked far more alarmed now than when he had been accused of ruining the dress himself. His face flushed, and his eyes darted from his former fiancé to her best friend and back again. Michelle sat with her mouth open, and Renee buried her face in her hands.
“Renee! How could you?” Brian exclaimed.
“Just a moment, Brian.” Molly waved her hand to silence him. “Renee is a true friend, and she wouldn’t ruin Michelle’s wedding just for her own sake. I’ll let the three of you hash that out later, but for the moment we need to move on. Our next suspect is Victoria Watson, owner of Dressed to Thrill in Greenacres.”
Up until this point, the woman had been sitting in a chair with her arms crossed looking very confused.
And to be honest, Molly had been a little confused about the dressmaker’s role in this until this very morning. The finer details were still unclear to her, but they were about to be brought out into the light. “For those of you who don’t know, Victoria owns Dressed to Thrill in Greenacres.” Molly looked at her. “Michelle had contacted you shortly after the dress was destroyed and after you had sent her a postcard. I thought perhaps you had ruined the gown in order to get her business, but the time frame wasn’t quite right. It was way too close to the wedding. Still, it seems that you’re involved in this, since you personally took your mysterious gift straight to Michelle’s dressing room. It was shortly after that she announced the wedding was off. Would you please show us what was in the bag?”
Victoria shrugged. “Well, okay. If you insist.” She took the bag from Dora and set it on the floor, pulling out a large roll of white canvas with two straps buckled around it. She set it on a nearby table and unrolled it into a long strip of fabric. Inside there were many pockets of various sizes. “It’s a travel bag for art supplies. Michelle told me she had picked up a cheap one online for her trip to Paris, but she was afraid it wouldn’t hold up.” She faced the rest of the small crowd, still looking very lost.
Her countenance, however, was no rival for Brian’s. “Travel bag? Paris? What’s in the world is going on?”
Everyone turned to Michelle, whose shoulders slumped. “I traded our tickets for the honeymoon in on a ticket to Paris. All my life I’ve always wanted to go there and study my art, but the only thing you ever wanted was to stay here in Calmhaven and have children. I knew that if that happened, I would never get my chance. But I couldn’t bring myself to just call the whole thing off because I didn’t want to hurt you, so I thought destroying the dress would put an end to it all. I thought if the dress was destroyed you might at least postpone the wedding. I was desperate!”
“How did you get into my shop?” Gloria asked quietly.
Michelle ducked her head a little lower. “Do you remember when we were done with the final fitting and I asked to use the restroom? I just reached over and unlocked the window on my way. I’m really sorry, and I’ll pay you back for everything. I promise.”
“Well, that about sums it up!” Barnes announced. “The dress you destroyed was your own, so I guess it was yours to do with as you please. But Michelle did break into your business, Gloria, so that’s up to you if you want to press charges for breaking and entering?” He looked to Gloria.
Her eyes widened in horror. “Oh, no. She only destroyed what she had already paid for, and I believe her when she says she’ll pay be back for the new dress. I’m not filing any charges. Calmhaven is a small place and publicity like this is not exactly great.”
“None?” The sheriff almost looked disappointed.
“None,” Gloria affirmed.
“There. I’m glad we got that all worked out. Now let’s get this place cleaned up.” Molly felt terrible about what had happened, but at least everyone knew the truth now.
Molly sent up a silent prayer that everyone gathered would find their own happiness. There would be a lot to unravel in the coming days, but that was not Molly and Dora’s concern. The truth of the dress disaster was out in the open. If only poor Michelle had summoned the courage to be honest with herself and others before this fiasco. Love is a very strange thing, thought Molly. As she began folding up chairs, she noticed Brian glance over his shoulder at Renee.
11
A New Picture
Two weeks later, Molly did her best to work while the sound of constant hammering drowned out her own thoughts. It didn’t make for an easy work environment, but she was happy to put up with it. The sound meant that the roof of the Cozy Bridal Agency was finally being fixed. The rain had stopped for good, and Aaron Taylor had finally worked his way down his list of customers to her.
Misty wasn’t particularly pleased at the noise, and every now and then she opened one eye to glare at the ceiling.
“Sorry again that it took me so long to get this done, Miss Molly,” Aaron said when he was finished. He stood in front of Molly’s desk, wiping his hands on a rag. “I had people all over Calmhaven calling me during the big rain, and I thought it was only fair to do it in order.”
“You’re very right,” Molly assured him. “And you don’t have to apologize to me. You kept the rest of the rain out with the tarps, and it’s fixed now. I’ve got absolutely nothing to complain about.” She smiled at the young man, wondering when some sweet young girl would catch his heart and come to her for wedding plans. Aaron was one of the good ones, she was sure. She wrote him a check and told him to have a wonderful day.
“Miss Molly, there’s a phone call for you,” Dora interrupted. “I told her I could help her, but she refused. She said she’ll only talk to you.”
“Did you get a name?” Molly raised an eyebrow. It was just the two of them in the office, and they never worked a wedding completely alone.
“No, she wouldn’t tell me that either. And before I forget, this came for you.” Dora stood up and plucked a postcard from the corner of her desk. “I have to admit that I read it, but I didn’t think you would mind.” She smiled and returned to her seat.
The front of the card displayed a glass pyramid situated in front of a palatial building. Molly recognized it instantly as the Louvre even before she noticed the title of the museum in the lower corner. She flipped it over to find foreign stamps and a personal message from Michelle:
Just arrived! Can’t thank you enough for everything you did for me. I couldn’t be happier. I’ll send a painting for your office soon.
-Michelle
It warmed her hear to know that, despite all the drama that had brought it about, the bride had still ended up happy. She couldn’t really blame Michelle for wanting one last chance to follow her dreams. It was just a shame that she had been too afraid to speak up and say what those dreams were before things had gotten out of hand. Still, she had left the day after the wedding was supposed to have been held, her bag of brushes under her arm. Molly did so feel for Brian though. Poor chap, he must be heartbroken.
Dora cleared her throat. “The phone?”
“Oh, yes!” She had completely ignored the gentle beeping that was supposed to be reminding her someone was still on the line. Molly swiftly grabbed it, still holding Michelle’s postcard in her free hand. “This is Molly Grey. Can I help you?”
“Oh, there you are! I was starting to think Dora had just hung up on me. I want to see if you could help me plan a wedding.”
“Weddings are my specialty, dear.”
The voice on the end of the line was bubbly and excitable, but strangely familiar.
“If I can just take a few details, tha
t would be a great place to get started,” Molly said. “Now, what’s your name?”
“Miss Molly! Do you not recognize me? It Renee!”
“Oh my, I do apologize. Renee. It’s lovely to hear from you. Who’s wedding are you helping with this time, dearest? Who’s getting married?”
“I am!” Renee squealed, sounding far more like an enthusiastic little girl than the stern executive she Molly had experienced previously. “Isn’t it wonderful?”
Molly agreed that it was wonderful, but she couldn’t help but be a little confused by it all. A thought did occur that maybe… but no, surely not. “Congratulations, honey. Can I have the groom’s name?”
“Oh, you don’t have to joke with me! Miss Molly, I can’t tell you how grateful I am for what you did. If you hadn’t jumped in and figured out what really happened to Michelle’s dress, I might never have had the chance to be honest about my feelings for Brian again.”
“Again?”
“The two of us were quite the item back in high school. We broke up over something silly, like kids do, but it was such a mistake. When Michelle started dating him, I thought it was no big deal, but I couldn’t stand it! I always made excuses not to go out to dinner with the two of them because I hated seeing them together. Of course, I never would have done anything about it, because I wasn’t going to ruin their relationship.” Renee heaved a big, romantic sigh. “But when you saw everything for what it was and Brian found out I still cared for him, it made him step back and think about what he wanted in life. He loved Michelle, and I know she loved him, too, but they wanted completely different things.”
“And what about you, dear?” Molly couldn’t help but ask. “Do you want the same things as Brian?”
“I really do,” she replied softly, and Molly could just envision her twirling a strand of hair around her finger. “We want to get married and have kids and raise them right here where we grew up. He’s got a great job at the bank, and I’ll only have to leave work long enough for maternity leave. Brian’s mom is thrilled at the idea of having grandkids, and she’ll watch them while we’re at the office. It’s all worked out so perfectly!”
