by HELEN HARDT
More laughter. Daphne eyed me.
Geez, Murph. You could have left that out. This is my wedding toast, for God’s sake.
“But his skirt-chasing days were over the first day of orientation a few months ago when he locked eyes with Daphne Wade.”
Okay, Murph. You’re forgiven.
“I’ve never seen anyone fall that hard that fast.” He shook his head, smiling. “Brad finally found the woman who brought him to his knees, and Daphne, I never thought it could happen, but you’re the one.”
She smiled.
I’m the luckiest man in the world. Yeah, she comes with baggage. A lot of it. But so do I. Together we’ll conquer it all.
“Though I may never forgive you for taking away my best girl-chasing buddy!”
Laughter again, even from Daphne this time.
“So everyone, please raise your glasses to Brad and Daphne! They deserve all the happiness in the world, and I—” Murph stumbled a little. “Sorry, got a little woozy there. I know I haven’t had that much to drink yet.”
More laughter.
But not from me.
No matter how much he drank, Murph never stumbled. He was a master at hiding his inebriation. What was going on?
“So please raise your glasses—” He stumbled again.
I stood. “Murph, are you—”
“Yeah. Not feeling great,” he said. “Steel, I’m sorry, man.” The flute fell from his grasp and landed with a soft plop on the grass underneath his feet.
His body followed.
Damn! First the bride fainted at the end of the ceremony, and now the best man passed out in a drunken stupor? What the hell kind of wedding was this? My heart raced.
“Brad,” Daphne said frantically. “Is he all right?”
“Of course he’s not all right. He’s shitfaced. At our wedding. For God’s sake, Murph!”
Patty reached him before I did. “Should I do my toast now?” she asked.
“I don’t know. Fuck.” I smacked Murph in the cheek a couple times. “Murph, Murph. Wake up!”
My father came forward as well. “Should we call an ambulance?”
“For what? He’s just toasted.”
“Sozzled,” Ennis said, who had come to join Patty. “Though I didn’t see him drink a lot.”
“He didn’t,” Patty agreed. “He had a beer after the ceremony, no wine with dinner, and he hasn’t taken a sip of champagne yet.”
“Watching him that closely, eh?” Ennis said.
“Ennis, Sean and I are over. I’ve told you that. This is a little bit more important than your jealousy.”
“You’re right, love. I’m sorry.” Then, to me, “I don’t think he’s drunk, mate. Something else is going on.”
I’d been dealing with Larry, so I had no idea how much Murph had drunk. Both Patty and Ennis hadn’t seen him drink a lot. What the hell was going on?
“Could be anything,” my father said. “He might be ill. Or…”
“Or what?”
“He might have been drugged.”
“Who the hell would—”
I looked up and met Theo’s gaze. He was frowning. Then I met Tom’s. His expression was stoic. Icy as usual.
They were getting into pot. Not anything that could take down a grown man after one beer. Besides, what did they have against Murph? They didn’t have any reason to screw up my wedding.
No, this could only be the work of one person—and that person was locked up at Piney Oaks.
I met my father’s gaze.
He shook his head slightly.
Good. It wasn’t Wendy. The good doctor had drugged her as my father commanded.
What was going on, then?
“Murph! Come on!” I tried once again to rouse him.
“Get him inside,” Dad said. “I’ll brew some coffee. Put him under a cold shower. If that doesn’t wake him up, nothing will.”
I grabbed Murph’s dead weight and slung him over my shoulder. “Come on, dude.”
My mother stood. “Please, enjoy your champagne. When Brad gets back, he and Daphne will cut this beautiful cake.”
I carried my friend into the house and to one of the spare bedrooms that wasn’t being used. With my father’s help, we got him stripped down to his boxers and under a cold stream of water.
My heart had been beating double time since he passed out, but when he didn’t come to in the shower, my apprehension turned to icy fear.
Dad pressed his fingers to Murph’s neck. “He still has a pulse. That’s good. We need to get him to an emergency room. Get your truck.”
“Dad, it’s my wedding day.”
“All right. I’ll take him. We can call the squad, but by the time they get here, I’ll have him to the city.”
Murph was my best friend. I should go along.
But I’d just gotten married. Hell, my guests were still here.
We hadn’t cut the damned cake yet.
And Daphne…
My Daphne, who was finally feeling stronger after her fainting spell.
What would this do to her?
“All right, Dad. Thank you. Take good care of him.”
Dad got Murph wrapped in a giant bath towel and picked him up like a baby. My father’s lungs weren’t in great shape, but still he was strong as an ox.
“I’ll call when I have news. Get back to your party.”
Chapter Thirty
Daphne
I gulped down a sob that threatened to come hurtling out of my throat.
Some wedding.
First I fainted.
Then the best man fainted.
Who’d be next?
Was this all foreshadowing of something horrible to come?
I didn’t want to entertain the thought.
Brad returned to the party, the front of his white tux shirt wet. He’d removed his jacket and bow tie, and his shirt was unbuttoned.
Even as fatigued and sick as I felt, he looked yummy to me.
“How is he?” I asked frantically.
“I don’t know. Dad’s taking him to the ER.”
I gulped. “You couldn’t wake him up?”
He shook his head somberly. “No. I couldn’t.”
I said nothing more. What was there to say? Sean was one of Brad’s best friends.
“I’m so sorry for the disruption,” Mazie was saying, standing by the cake. “Brad, Daphne, if you’d like to come on up, I know everyone is anxious to try this gorgeous cake.”
I was hardly anxious. At least the cake didn’t have a smell I had to deal with, like the roast beef had. I couldn’t tell Brad the smell of his family’s beef made me want to toss my cookies.
I joined him next to the cake. Mazie handed me the cake knife. “Go ahead and slice into it, Daphne. Brad, put your hand over hers.”
The photographer clicked in our faces as we sliced a piece of the white cake with raspberry filling.
We fed each other a small bite to thundering applause and then walked back to our seats while the caterers cut and served.
My belly churned—and not just from pregnancy nausea.
Worry consumed me. Patty was right. Sean hadn’t drunk a lot, so something else was going on. But what?
I wandered inside the house after everyone was served. I needed some time alone. I walked past the bustling servers in the kitchen to my guest room.
I was Mrs. Bradford Steel now, and this was my home.
Surreal.
I patted my tummy. I’ll make it through, little dove. I swear to you.
I jerked when someone knocked softly. “Yeah?” I said.
Patty opened the door, followed by Ennis.
“Are you okay, Daph?” she asked.
I nodded. Sort of.
“Sorry, love,” Ennis said. “We’re not convinced.”
“I’m married to the man I love. But I’m so worried.”
“We are too,” Patty said. “I’ve never seen Sean like that.”
“Brad said h
is dad will call when there’s any news. Leave it to me to have a wedding like this.” I sighed.
“What do you mean?” Patty asked.
I’d said too much. Patty and Ennis, though they were my closest friends at school, didn’t know anything about my junior year of high school or about my mother’s suicide attempt. Now wasn’t exactly the optimal time to fill them in. Weddings were supposed to be happy occasions.
Right?
What a mess.
Brad appeared in the doorway then, his face somber.
“Everyone’s leaving,” he said.
“Have you heard anything?” Patty asked.
“No, not yet. Once everyone’s gone, I’m heading to the hospital.”
“I’ll go with you,” I said.
“No, baby. You stay here with my mom and your parents. Get the rest you need. There’s nothing you can do there anyway.”
“There’s nothing you can do there either,” I said. “I want to be there. For you.”
He kissed my forehead. “Please. Do this for me. You’ve already fainted once today.”
“Because I was hungry. I ate my dinner, Brad.”
“I know, but it’ll be dark by the time I get there, and you need your rest. I don’t want you sitting up all night in a hospital waiting room.”
“But I—”
He gently placed two fingers over my lips. “No arguments. Both of our mothers agree with me. You need to stay here and take care of yourself and the baby. I’d stay as well, except Sean—”
“Is your best friend. I get it.” I sighed. “I’m sorry, Brad.”
“About what?”
“About today. About fainting. About Sean.”
“None of that is your fault, baby.” He smiled. “Except maybe the fainting. Don’t go without eating again, okay?”
“I won’t. I promise.” I’d keep that promise, no matter what. The baby inside me was my first priority.
“I guess we should shove off,” Ennis said. “We have a hotel room in town.”
“You can stay here,” Brad said. “We still have a couple spare rooms.”
Patty smiled. “Thank you for the offer, but…we kind of want to be alone.”
“Got it,” Brad said.
I smiled at both of them. Tonight would apparently be the night.
At least someone should get some on my wedding night. I wouldn’t be because my husband would be at the hospital.
Oh, well. I was nauseated anyway, and Brad and I had a lifetime of sleeping together.
A lifetime with our little dove.
After Patty and Ennis left, Brad gave me a searing kiss on the lips.
“I love you, Daphne.”
“I love you too, Brad. Come home to me soon.”
Chapter Thirty-One
Brad
I sat with my father, drinking really bad coffee, in the ICU waiting room.
Yeah, Murph had been transferred to ICU. A blood test showed heroin in his system—heroin!—and even after the doctors had pumped everything out of his stomach, he still hadn’t come to.
Murph’s parents sat at the other end of the waiting room. I’d called them when I got to the hospital. They, of course, were blaming me, and though I hadn’t drugged him, I couldn’t fault their logic.
He’d been at my wedding.
Someone at my wedding had drugged my best man.
At this point, the only person I knew for sure was innocent was Daphne.
My father, sitting beside me, had been a rock, had taken my best friend to the ER when I had other responsibilities, namely to my wife and our guests. Did I think he was behind this? No, I didn’t, but I couldn’t unsee him pulling a gun on an innocent psychiatrist who’d already done him a massive favor.
George Steel was capable of so much more than I ever gave him credit for—and not in a good way.
Why should I be so surprised? This was a man who’d knocked his wife around simply because she couldn’t give him more children.
He seemed to regret those actions now.
Did he regret threatening Dr. Pelletier?
Not that I could see.
Still, what would he have to gain by drugging my best friend?
Then there were Theo and Tom. They both knew Murph, had partied with Murph. As far as I knew, they liked Murph. At least they’d never let on they didn’t.
Of course, Larry had all but admitted the two of them were getting into the drug business. Pot, though. Marijuana was a long way from heroin. How would they even know how to get heroin?
My mother… She liked Murph. Would she do such a thing? No.
Daphne’s parents. Of course not. Lucy was recovering from an overdose herself, and neither of them had any sort of motive.
Patty and Ennis? No way.
The few other guests were friends of my parents from Snow Creek. Good people who had no reason to drug a person they didn’t even know.
That left one person.
Larry.
Larry, who had tried to tell me something before we got interrupted in my bedroom.
Larry, who was technically family now that I’d married Daphne, his half sister.
Family wouldn’t do that.
Besides, of the three Future Lawmakers, Larry was the one who actually had a semblance of a conscience. Not a whole conscience, mind you, but at least the semblance of one.
He had something to tell me, and I needed to find out what it was.
Could I call him now? It was the middle of the night. He probably wouldn’t answer. He might not even be home. He could be staying at a hotel.
Damn!
Larry had nothing against Murph that I knew of, but he knew something—something about Theo and Tom.
I had the feeling he wanted out.
And for some reason, he didn’t think he could get out.
Who would want to hurt—
Hurting Murph would hurt me, and the only person who wanted to hurt me was…
But she was locked up and medicated.
Locked doors didn’t stop Wendy. I knew that firsthand. But medication would. First thing in the morning, I’d call Piney Oaks to make sure she was still docile and inside her room.
Better idea, I’d have my father do it. Money talked.
I quickly asked him.
“They have someone at the switchboard twenty-four-seven,” he said. “I already called them. She’s medicated and in her room.”
“Thanks,” I said. “I don’t know why I didn’t think of it first thing.”
“It’s your wedding day, son. You’ve had a few other things on your mind.”
“Yeah. I guess so. I should be with my wife right now.”
“Go if you want. I’ll take care of Sean. He’ll have everything he needs. You have my word.”
“Daphne’s asleep by now,” I said, “and it’s the best thing for her. I’ll stay.”
“As you wish.” Dad rubbed his chin. “You and Daphne are so young to be saddled with all of this.”
“We can handle it.” I prayed my words were true. “I just don’t understand who would want to hurt Murphy.”
“Have you considered that he did it himself?”
“OD’d? Hell, no. Murph doesn’t do drugs. Plus he’s the happiest guy on the planet. At least he was, until Wendy pulled that freaking gun on him.”
“Being held at gunpoint can fuck you up, Brad.”
“Do you think it fucked Dr. Pelletier up?” I couldn’t help asking, albeit quietly.
My comment didn’t faze him. “It may well have, but it was a move I had to make. You weigh all the pros and cons, son, and when the benefit outweighs the cost, you do what you have to do. Besides, we’re not talking about Dr. Pelletier. We’re talking about a college senior with no psychological training who might not know how to deal with such a trauma.”
I considered his words. “I don’t think so. I can’t see Murph doing something like that.”
“We have to consider every angle.”
“I get that, but no. Murph didn’t do this. I’m certain. Even if he’d been thinking about it, he wouldn’t fuck up my wedding.”
“All right. I won’t leave any stone unturned, son. I’ll get to the bottom of this for you.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
My father was such an enigma. I both loved and hated him. Right now, I was thankful for him and his money. I had no doubt he’d figure out what had happened to Murph.
“Shit. There’s a doctor talking to Murph’s parents.” I stood.
“Leave them be. Let them deal with this.”
Perhaps I should have listened to my father, but I was missing my wedding night for their son. I walked over.
“How is he, Doctor?” I asked.
“And you are?”
“Bradford Steel. Sean’s best friend. My father is the one who brought him to the ER.”
“I see.” He looked to Murph’s parents.
“It’s okay,” his father said.
The doctor cleared his throat. “We got the rest of your son’s blood work back. The amount of heroin wasn’t enough for him to overdose. Just enough for him to get dizzy and pass out. The problem is the other thing the screening showed. He has botulinum toxin in his system.”
“Botulism?” his mother said.
“The toxin that causes it, yes.”
“And…?” his mother said.
“And…I’m so sorry to have to say this. We’ve administered antitoxins, but they’re not having any effect. He’s not awake, and his organs are failing. I’ve told the nurses to let you spend his last hours with him in the ICU.”
His father glared at me, and his mother seemed to look past all of us.
It hadn’t registered yet.
Hell, it hadn’t registered with me yet.
“How…? Where would he…?” I wasn’t sure whether the words came from me or someone else.
Someone had thought out every detail. I clenched my hands into fists.
“He most likely ingested it,” the doctor said.
“From the food at your wedding?” Mr. Murphy glared at me once more.
“No! Of course not. No one else is sick.” That I knew of, anyway.
