No Place for Marriage

by Jaden Skye

  The tension between the sisters was quickly growing and Olivia felt she had to intervene.

  “Right after the loss of a loved one, it’s easy for everything to get out of perspective,” Olivia said. “But this is the time you need each other.”

  Lana turned on Olivia full force. “Don’t tell us who we do or do not need,” she fumed. “That’s not what you’re here for. You’re here to find our father’s killer. And to find him fast.”

  Olivia was startled by the intense bitterness in Lana’s tone.

  “You’re right,” Olivia answered quickly. “I was just trying to tone things down.”

  “That’s not your job,” Lana repeated as Wayne took a few steps toward both of them.

  “We’d like to talk to you alone, Lana,” he said calmly. “That would be helpful. Is it possible?”

  “Sure, it’s possible.” Lana turned her back to Olivia and faced Wayne. “You want to talk to me alone yourself?”

  “With my partner, Olivia,” Wayne responded.

  “If we have to include her, we do,” Lana shot back. “But I’d rather talk to you alone.”

  Wayne threw Olivia an inquiring glance over Lana’s shoulder, but Olivia shook her head no. She not only needed to be present for the interview with Lana, but thought it would be a good thing that Lana felt shook up by her. The more shook up she was, the more she’d spill.

  “Let’s all go back into the house,” Olivia suggested lightly, “and we’ll continue our discussions in there.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  It was cooler inside, shaded and breezy with large overhead fans turned on. The moment they entered the house Kayle immediately headed to another wing.

  “Where are you going?” Olivia asked, uneasy.

  “I’m going to find either Megan or Bella,” she said. “I’ll leave you two alone with Lana. I’m sure Lana prefers it that way.”

  “I do,” replied Lana cryptically. “For starters, anyway.”

  “Fine,” said Kayle. “We can talk more later on when you’re ready.”

  Kayle left and Lana breathed a sigh of relief. “Kayle’s always been a handful. I just can’t deal with her right now.”

  Olivia was surprised. She’d found Kayle to be straightforward and interesting.

  “How is Kayle a handful?” Olivia asked.

  Lana turned away and looked at Wayne as she replied. “Kayle always has a derogatory comment about everyone she meets. I’ve never heard her say she’s grateful for anything. And Kayle hung onto my father like glue after the divorce, even though he treated my mother like poison. My mother never got over that.”

  “How did your father treat your mother like poison?” Olivia chimed in, even though Lana refused to meet her glance.

  “My father dumped my mother for a woman half her age. Megan was the same age as her daughters and he shamed my mother in front of everybody,” Lana spit out. “She had no idea it was coming either. When my father told her she fell apart, stayed curled up in bed for months crying. I remember those days as if they were yesterday.”

  “That’s rough,” Wayne agreed.

  “All my father said to her then was ‘Get over it, sweetheart. Straighten up! I’m not coming back!’”

  “Did your mother think your father would come back one day?” asked Olivia.

  “Of course she did,” said Lana. “My mother thought he was going through a crazy fling and it would definitely end. It never did though. Not ever.”

  “There had to be trouble in their relationship before that happened?” Olivia inquired.

  Lana spun back around and stared at Olivia. “Yeah, big trouble. My mother got older, that was about it. My dad always liked to have something new and shiny. He wanted the latest version of every toy.”

  “Did your father take good care of your mother financially when they divorced at least?” Wayne asked softly.

  “Sure, he gave her money,” said Lana. “He had to, of course. But my mother was still in love with him. And she was the mother of his daughters. She’d been at his side at all his huge events and parties. Her life had been everything she’d always dreamed of. People looked up to her then. After the marriage ended, people backed away. She barely got a call from anybody. My father took her entire life away.”

  “It all ended just like that,” Olivia echoed.

  “Just like that!” said Lana. “There was no warning at all! One day my mother woke up and my father told her to pack up.”

  “There had to be a warning sign,” Wayne spoke emphatically. “Something had to have happened.”

  “That’s right, something happened.” Lana faced Wayne again. “One night, out of the blue, at a party he hosted, Megan appeared. Without a second’s hesitation, she walked right up to him, put her hands on his shoulders, and said, ‘You’re mine.’ It happened in a flash. My mother told me the story many times. And a friend of my mother’s was there when it happened. She saw it all in front of her eyes.”

  There was something missing in the story, Olivia felt. It didn’t make sense.

  “My mother’s friend said Megan was young, sexy, beautiful, and my dad was transfixed. He couldn’t take his eyes off her and she wouldn’t take her hands off him. He was spellbound.”

  “Then what happened?” Olivia wanted more.

  “In a short time my parents’ marriage was over. Very soon after that he married Megan. Not only that, she insisted they have a big, flashy wedding. It was the talk of the town. Every time there was an article about it, or someone mentioned it, my mother crumbled again.”

  “That had to be very hard on you, too,” Olivia commented.

  “Hard is putting it mildly,” said Lana. “And it was much harder on me than on Kayle, who took it for what it was worth. She just shrugged and said, these things happen. In lots of ways Kayle is like my dad. But her attitude hurt my mom a lot. And, to top it off, she kept going to visit my dad and Megan regularly.”

  “Was he good to Kayle when she went to visit?” Wayne was fascinated.

  “Not really,” Lana replied. “My dad and Megan put up with her for a little while, then they told her they were busy. It didn’t matter, Kayle kept coming back to see them time after time. It was almost out of spite, if you asked me.”

  “She wanted something from him,” said Olivia.

  “Kayle told me she refused to lose her father,” Lana answered. “She said she wouldn’t let Megan push her out.”

  “What’s your mother’s life like now?” Wayne changed the topic.

  Lana suddenly perked up, “Well, believe it or not, my mother’s finally remarried! It actually happened about six months ago. No one could believe it either. A couple of years ago she suddenly had enough. She started working out and dating. My mom’s a really pretty woman and lots of guys were interested. Finally, she met Clay. They’ve been married now for about six months.”

  “That’s recent,” Wayne noted.

  “It’s not only recent, it’s odd too,” Lana continued. “Clay’s also much younger than my mom! I think she did it to get back at my father if you really want to know. Clay’s young, good-looking, a hot commodity. He teaches scuba diving, is a sculptor, and never made much money. And my mother’s loaded. So, figure it out.”

  Olivia shivered. Lana’s comment didn’t make her feel good about this new marriage.

  “Your mom will be even more loaded now that your father has died, won’t she?” Olivia asked.

  Lana made a sour face. “My father doesn’t owe my mother anything financially now. What he does with the rest of his money is totally up to him. Of course everyone expects that Megan will get the lion’s share of the estate. But you never know, my father can be funny. He likes to play games. How do we know he wasn’t also getting tired of Megan and decided to leave his money to someone else?”

  “Like who?” asked Wayne abruptly.

  “Like us, his daughters,” Lana quipped. “That’s what I’m hoping, anyway. I’m hoping he came to his senses and decide
d to do right by his family after all these years.”

  “Why would he do that now?” Wayne was curious.

  “You never know,” said Lana. “My father was really disturbed when he found out that my mother was marrying such a younger man. He made all kinds of comments about it and even asked her not to. He said it made her look foolish. Naturally, my mom just laughed in his face.”

  “Could your father have had buyer’s remorse?” Wayne questioned. “Did he want his original family back?”

  “Doubtful,” Lana answered. “Having her original family back was my mother’s dream though, for a long time. And she tried to make it happen over and over. She’d dress up and go speak to my dad, try to make him come to his senses. But there was no hope. Megan had him firmly in her grip.”

  “Your mother must have felt very rejected,” Olivia replied.

  “Of course! She was, and she never got used to it,” Lana exploded. “We were all very happy when she found Clay.”

  “Your father became less important to her then?” asked Wayne.

  “Maybe?” said Lana. “I’m not positive. And I’m also not positive what my dad’s life with Megan has really been like recently. Bella’s told me a bunch of stories.”

  “Tell us,” Wayne said, eagerly.

  “No, they’re just stories,” Lana insisted. “I’m not getting pulled in. Go to Bella and get her to tell you herself.”

  “All right,” Wayne agreed. “Olivia and I will go right now.”

  Olivia thought it was a good suggestion and was about to get up to go speak to Bella again when the front door suddenly burst open. An attractive, middle-aged blonde woman, dressed in a crimson summer dress, burst in. She had a small suitcase with her and seemed to be on the edge of tears.

  “Mom!” Lana burst out.

  “I got here quicker than I thought,” the woman exclaimed, rushing over to Lana.

  “So glad you did,” replied Lana before turning to Olivia and Wayne. “This is my mother, Alice,” she said.

  Alice pivoted toward Olivia and Wayne. “Who are you?” she spoke feverishly.

  “They’re the private investigators that Megan hired,” Lana quickly filled in.

  Alice ran her hands through her thick, wavy hair. “Tyron hasn’t even been gone for two days and the place is already crawling with cops looking to dig up the dirt on him. Well, get ready, there’s plenty of dirt!”

  “Megan hired them instantly,” Lana went on, “and she also hired Cameron Fern.”

  “I heard about Cameron,” Alice replied, “but not the detectives. The detectives make sense, but not a barracuda lawyer like her. What’s the point?”

  “Sounds like Megan expects trouble.” Wayne entered the conversation.

  Alice smiled at him. “Megan lives off trouble,” she whispered. “She can’t get enough of it. I have no idea what else she has up her sleeve. No one does. She’s full of tricks. Be careful.”

  “Sounds like you hate her,” Olivia suddenly joined in.

  Alice trembled for a moment. “Do I hate her?” She echoed the word. “I did for a long time, of course. I don’t hate her as much these days. She’s been with my husband a long time, though, and I’m sure by now she’s gotten plenty of his flack. Tyron’s very rich and he uses his money to manipulate everybody. I’m sure he did it with Megan, too. It couldn’t have been all wine and roses for her, living with my husband all those years.”

  “Tyron has been Megan’s husband for quite a while,” Olivia reminded Alice.

  “In a manner of speaking,” Alice scoffed. “But I’d definitely say the first wife is the real wife! After all, I’m the one who had his children! I’m the one who raised them, not her. I didn’t come on board later for the good times to play!”

  “It’s Tyron you hate then?” Wayne took up the questioning.

  “Hate’s not the right word,” Alice objected. “Tyron’s the one I felt worried about. He’s been trapped in Megan’s clutches for too long. I knew it would end badly one day. It had to.”

  “End like this? Through his death?” asked Wayne.

  “Why not?” Alice swirled toward him. She was exceptionally attractive and fiery for a woman her age, thought Olivia. “If you’re asking if I thought Tyron’s life would end with him being murdered, I would say no,” Alice went on. “I thought his disease would eventually get him. He got sick a few years into his marriage. I always wondered about that, too.”

  “You thought Megan had something to do with it?” Olivia confronted Alice directly.

  “Anything’s possible, isn’t it?” asked Alice. “I even mentioned it to Tyron, but he scoffed at the idea. Then I realized it was divine justice and that he got exactly what he deserved.” Alice paused. “There’s always divine justice. Do you believe it?” She addressed the question to Olivia.

  “I do,” Olivia replied, wanting to go back to the main point of the conversation. “You thought Megan wanted him dead and was killing Tyron slowly?”

  Alice looked at Olivia with fire in her eyes. “Why not? She would stand to receive plenty of money when he died, wouldn’t she?”

  “Are you suggesting Megan was killing Tyron slowly?” Olivia wanted to be sure of what she was hearing.

  “You have no proof of anything like that though, do you?” Wayne added.

  “No, not proof,” Alice spoke harshly. “But over the past years when I went to visit Tyron I noticed him becoming more and more dizzy. Was Megan was poisoning him, I wondered, or was a tumor growing inside his brain?”

  Olivia looked at Wayne. “The medical examiner’s report will answer all those questions,” Olivia responded professionally.

  “If Tyron was growing more and more dizzy then it’s even possible he just fell out of his wheelchair down the steps and onto the sand. Isn’t it?” Wayne suggested.

  Alice shook her head back and forth violently. “No, impossible,” she insisted. “There’s no question but that someone pushed him down the stairs onto the sand. It was something I was afraid of for years.” She went over then and sat down on a small settee and put her head in her hands. “Oh my God, he’s gone, he’s gone,” she began moaning. “I’m never going to see him again.”

  Lana rushed over to her mother. “It’s all right, Mom, it will all work out.”

  “But he’s gone,” Alice continued, “and that horrible monster Megan is now going to get every penny he’s worth.”

  “We’re not sure of that yet,” Lana breathed forcefully. “Nothing’s certain.”

  Olivia also wanted to comfort Alice, but wasn’t sure how to. “You’re remarried now, though, aren’t you?” she finally asked, stepping closer.

  Alice stopped moaning abruptly and looked up at her. “Yes, I am, so what?”

  “I mean it’s not as if you’re all alone now,” Olivia replied.

  “Of course I’m alone.” Alice looked forlorn. “I’ve been alone since the day Tyron threw me away, discarded me! Wiped me out! You never get over something like that. And how dare you bring in my marriage at a time like this? I had a right to get remarried.”

  “Of course you did.” Olivia didn’t want any misunderstandings. “But now you’re not alone.”

  “There are different levels of being alone,” Alice answered heatedly. “Of course, Clay keeps me company, why shouldn’t he? But he doesn’t replace Tyron. And it doesn’t mean Tyron and I aren’t still connected. After all, I’m the mother of Tyron’s children. Clay is recent, and he’s younger than me. There are things we share and lots we don’t. It’s completely different.”

  “No one is suggesting you don’t have a history with Tyron,” Olivia replied. “No one is suggesting there isn’t a reason to grieve for him.”

  Alice was suddenly filled with fury. “There’s a divine justice in this universe,” she repeated.

  “Of course there is,” Olivia agreed. “But what does that have to do with you and Tyron?”

  Just as Alice was about to reply, Wayne’s cell phone rang loudly,
interrupting them.

  Wayne immediately picked up. “Yes, yes, I see,” Wayne answered quickly. “Well, that’s good news. I’m glad you called. Olivia and I will come to the station immediately.”

  “What’s up?” Alice, unsettled, walked over to him.

  “The police have the surveillance video now and have gone over it. They want us to come right over and take a look,” Wayne replied.

  “It sounds important,” Alice exclaimed, nervously. “It sounds as if they found something.” Alice’s words tumbled over one another. “Did they see someone else in the house at the time?”

  “That’s the question, isn’t it?” Olivia chimed in. “And very soon we’ll have the answer.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Olivia was relieved to be out of the house and on the way to the police station with Wayne. The day had grown warmer and her head was spinning after talking to Alice and her daughters.

  “Quite a family!” Olivia commented as their taxi drove to their destination.

  “Quicksilver, all of them,” Wayne replied, “including Megan and Bella. You see one thing one minute, something else the next.”

  “We definitely need more time with both Megan and Bella,” Olivia noted. “I’m actually surprised that Megan wasn’t downstairs, milling around, waiting to talk to us.”

  “We’ll get all the time we need,” Wayne replied. “This family meeting that’s about to take place is going to be jarring. They’ll probably all be at each other’s throats. Megan must be preparing for it.”

  “I can see why she hired such a tough lawyer,” Olivia commented. “Without doubt Tyron’s estate will be contested.”

  “It’s pretty ugly to think a person’s life comes down to this,” said Wayne.

  The thought of it saddened Olivia, as well.

  “But it’s one thing if Tyron died of natural causes,” Wayne continued, “and something else entirely if he was murdered.” The taxi stopped in front of the police station and Wayne leaned over to pay the fare.