A Wedding To Die For

“My dad wasn’t such a bad guy.”

“I didn’t know him very well, but he sure did step up to the plate the day his brother died. That showed character. So tell me what you liked about him.”

“He was funny and smart. Yeah, he drank too much. But he would have been okay if my mother hadn’t died.”

“And maybe you would have been okay, too?” I asked.

She fell into silence again. We kept walking, with me matching her rapid strides past closed doors, kitchens, and therapy rooms. I shouldn’t have mentioned her mother. She probably wasn’t ready to deal with that right now.

About five minutes later she spoke again. “That shit the doc was saying about needing to be perfect? It must run in the family, because my dad was that way, too.”

“Did he want to be perfect for you?” I asked.

“Nah. For Uncle James. He always looked up to him—the big brother and all that crap. But then Dad had to go and ask for his job back. Uncle James practically laughed in his face.” Her tone had turned bitter.

“You were there?” I asked.

“Oh, I was there, all right. It happened the first night we arrived, and the family went out to dinner. Uncle James humiliated Dad in front of Megan, Aunt Sylvia—hell, everybody. And it got so quiet at that table I had to split. Made my first score in Houston that night. Another shining moment in Courtney’s life.”

“How did Roxanne handle that wonderful dinner moment?” I asked.

“She pretended it never happened. But Dad didn’t. He got even. I was there for that, too. ’Course he didn’t know I was just around the corner listening.”

My heart sped up. Was she about to tell me she saw her father kill his brother? “You heard or saw something?”

She halted. Turned to me. “My father did not murder his brother, if that’s what you think.”

“I was thinking that, but obviously I’m wrong. Set me straight. Help me solve these murders, Courtney.”

She cocked her head, her expression serious, the anger gone from her face. “You hardly ever hear I’m wrong. Everyone wants to be right. Hell, I want to be right. But I was wrong, too. I was so wrong to do what I did.”

This time I made a conscious effort not to prejudge or assume. I just wanted her to keep talking. I touched her emaciated upper arm and gently squeezed. “We all make mistakes. God knows I’ve made plenty in my lifetime.”

“I heard him make the phone call, Abby. I heard every word.”

“What phone call?”

“He called Megan’s birth mother. He knew her. He knew where she was, and he called and he told her that her daughter was getting married in a week.”

So that’s how Laura Montgomery found out about the wedding. “And you feel guilty for eavesdropping? That’s not exactly a crime, Courtney. Did you tell the police?”

She started walking again, and I followed.

“No way. See, I was looking out for myself, and I could have gotten in big trouble. But now, without the big C, it’s sunk in that I blackmailed my own father. Makes me feel like I drank Drano. What do you think of a person who blackmails her own father so she can buy cocaine? What kind of person does something that despicable?”

“A person who isn’t thinking clearly,” I said evenly. “Did you threaten your father, tell him you would talk to your uncle James about Megan’s birth mother?”

She nodded. “Dad so wanted to make Uncle James pay for being an asshole. Wanted to see his face when this woman showed up at the wedding. So he gave me five grand to keep my mouth shut for a week. And every fucking penny went in my arm or up my nose.”

She sounded so disgusted with herself it was almost scary. She obviously needed the protection this place offered. I said, “Kate is a wonderful therapist, and you’re getting the help you need now.”

“Too late. Way too late. And now Roxanne has—” She stopped herself.

“What about Roxanne? Is she feeling as guilty as you do?”

Courtney shook her head vehemently. “I can’t talk about her. I can’t hurt the only person left in the world who loves me.”

“We need to get to the truth,” I said firmly. “For everyone’s sake. Does Roxanne feel as responsible as you do for your father’s death?”

Courtney stopped walking and stared straight ahead, arms limp at her sides.

I came around and stood in front of her. “Do you think Roxanne killed them?”

Courtney closed her eyes and shook her head sadly. “She didn’t know what to do with her anger. She wasn’t like me. I picked the perfect way out. I medicated myself. But Roxy is so... different. She just pretends all the time. Lives in this big fantasy world. And when she found out Dad and Uncle James sent away the guy she loved—and that the jerk went willingly—she got all calm and syrupy. But she had to be pissed off. So pissed off.”

“And you think that’s why she killed them? Over something that happened months ago?”

“I don’t want to believe it, but maybe she had no other way to deal with her anger.”

“So why choose what was supposed to be the happiest day of Megan’s life to settle the score? Don’t you think she cared way too much for Megan to do something like that?”

“Maybe she was jealous of Megan’s happiness?” But Courtney didn’t sound so sure now.

“Then why not kill Megan, or better yet, Travis? Make Megan feel the same loss your sister had felt.”

“That’s ridiculous. She adores Megan.”

“Exactly my point,” I said. “I don’t think she killed anyone. Have you considered the possibility that she was protecting you?”

Courtney’s lids slowly closed and opened. Then I could tell by her eyes that she was putting something together. “She could have had another motive. If she killed them, then I’d have no money for drugs. And the way her mind works, she probably believed that would be a solution to my problem.” She paused, stared into my eyes, then whispered, “Oh my God. What have I done?”

22

Kate stepped in after my talk with Courtney and took her to her room for another therapy session. Even though I had tried to reassure Courtney that no one knew for certain that Roxanne committed murder to protect her sister, Courtney wasn’t convinced and had started talking about how worthless she was.

Meanwhile, I went out to my car and sat there thinking while Kate stayed behind with the once again agitated Courtney. I’d played my role of the concerned friend at the rehearsal and wedding while all the time Courtney and Roxanne knew I had another agenda. And Travis, the one person Megan wanted to protect the most, knew about me, too—and lied to the police. And what about Sylvia? Was she really in the dark when everyone else seemed to know Megan was searching for her mother?

I inserted the key in the ignition, but the questions kept coming. What about Graham? Had he researched my background because he knew why I was hanging around his niece? And who confronted James in the study that day with a Waterford vase in hand? Was it Laura Montgomery? And did she then get rid of Graham so he could never tell Megan the truth? From what I saw of her last night, she was certainly desperate enough to have committed murder.

So many possibilities, and as much as I hated the idea, I had to tell Fielder what I’d learned. I pulled out of the hospital parking lot wondering where I would begin with the story—and if she’d let me finish talking this time.

When I arrived at the Seacliff Police Station a half hour later, the place was back to normal. Guess the reporters got tired of being stonewalled. Henderson didn’t even hear me come in. He wore a headset and was