Monday morning.
Julie looked at her watch. 'Listen, do you think we could sneak away early? I'd like some extra time to get ready for the party.'
'Why don't you go ahead. I'd like to get a head start on this memo. I can just walk to Mrs. Fairmont's.' I didn't want to get into a big discussion with Julie about it, but I really didn't plan on attending the party.
The door opened, and I looked up to see Vince entering the library. Julie greeted him first.
'Tell me everything that happened in court today. Tami made it sound so vanilla that I know she's holding out on me. She is absolutely the worst liar on the planet.'
Vince looked at me.
'I didn't lie,' I answered.
'But I didn't get the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth,' Julie responded.
'I don't have time now,' Vince replied. 'I broke away from a meeting for a couple of minutes. Maybe we can talk tonight at Mr. Carpenter's house.'
'That won't work. I'll be with Joel at the party, and he's not within the attorney/client relationship.'
'We'll get alone for a few minutes and make him jealous,' Vince answered.
'Where did that come from?' Julie asked. 'But it's a great idea.'
Vince looked at me. 'Would you like me to pick you up?'
'I'm not sure that I'm going to make-'
'You'll be there,' Julie interrupted. 'I'm sure there will be fancy flavors of water for the nondrinkers in the crowd. You might even have time to witness to Ned before he tosses down too many martinis. If anyone needs to repent, he's it.'
'I wish you would go, Tami,' Vince added. 'I'd really like to talk to you about something.'
'If I go, it's only a few blocks from Mrs. Fairmont's house. I can walk.'
'Pick her up at seven thirty,' Julie cut in. 'Cinderella never walks to the ball; she always arrives in a coach.'
Vince held out his hands, palms up.
'Okay,' I replied with a smile. 'I'll see you at seven thirty. Do you know where I'm staying?'
'Of course he does,' Julie answered. 'He's been stalking you since day one.'
'I know the house,' Vince said.
After Vince left, Julie turned to me. 'What are you going to wear? This is a dressy occasion.'
'Maybe the blue suit I wore the first day of work.'
Julie rolled her eyes. 'I'm not saying you need to buy a strapless cocktail dress, but please don't wear something frumpy. I'd offer to go shopping with you, but that would destroy our friendship.'
After a moment of rare silence, Julie asked, 'So, is Vince the front-runner?'
'I'm not sure if either he or Zach is a runner.'
Shaking her head, Julie expelled an exaggerated sigh.
I WENT UPSTAIRS to see Gerry Patrick and knocked on the door frame.
'Come in,' she said, looking up from her desk.
'I need to buy a dress for the party tonight at Mr. Carpenter's house. Any suggestions?'
'Waiting till the last minute, aren't you?'
'Yes ma'am.'
The office manager tapped her pen against a legal pad, then began writing. She tore out the sheet and handed it to me.
'Use the firm car. You can just bring it back on Monday. Tell Marie I sent you. She knows how to make modest Jewish girls look classy; she can do the same for you.'
An hour later, I left the shop with a beautiful pale green dress that, while not hugging my figure too closely, didn't deny the fact that I was a woman. Mama wasn't there to judge it. I was on my own.
CHRISTINE BARTLETT'S CAR was parked along the curb when I arrived at Mrs. Fairmont's house.
Flip didn't greet me in the foyer. With Mrs. Bartlett present, I suspected the little dog had been banished to the basement. I found the two women in the kitchen. Mrs. Bartlett had fixed a late-afternoon pot of coffee. Mrs. Fairmont was sipping from a cup as I entered.
'It's decaf,' Mrs. Fairmont said. 'Guaranteed not to give me a brain freeze.'
'Mother and I have had a great afternoon,' Mrs. Bartlett chimed in. 'It's been like old times. We went to a cute place for a mid-afternoon snack but wanted home-brewed coffee. Did you have a nice day at work?'
I smiled. 'That wouldn't be the word I'd use to sum it up, but all's well that ends well.'
'That's somewhere in the Bible, isn't it?' Mrs. Bartlett asked.
'No ma'am. It's John Heywood. He lived in England a generation before Shakespeare.'
'Did your mother teach you that at home?' Mrs. Bartlett asked, her eyes slightly buggy.
'Yes ma'am, and a lot more.'
'Amazing.'
I poured a drink of water and leaned against the counter. 'Have either of you heard of the Lisa Prescott Foundation?' I asked.
'Of course,' Mrs. Bartlett replied. 'It made a big gift toward the new pediatric wing of the hospital a few years ago. I think it only supports projects that will benefit children. Mother, who runs that foundation?'
'Sam Braddock and Floyd Carpenter's son are involved,' Mrs. Fairmont answered. 'Which makes sense given the family connections. Was it mentioned in the newspaper articles you found in the box downstairs?'
'No ma'am, but I wish it had been.'
Mrs. Bartlett stepped closer and lowered her voice. 'What else have you found out about Lisa? Mother says you promised to fill her in on the details of a new investigation into her death as soon as possible.'
'I'm not the person who can answer that question. My role in the case is over without anything to report.'
'Drat,' Mrs. Bartlett said. 'It's not often I have a chance for a scoop guaranteed to be ahead of everyone else in the city. The whole mystery came up Monday at my bridge club, and I promised to get back to everyone.'
'Tell them about the foundation,' I suggested.
'That's old news, but I'll come up with something.' Mrs. Bartlett placed her coffee cup on the kitchen counter. 'Mother is going to eat dinner with Ken and me tomorrow evening. Will you join us?'
It was a nice gesture and made me feel less like the hired help. 'Thank you, but this has been a long week, and I'm going to rest up this weekend. I'll stay here and take care of Flip. Is he downstairs now?'
'Yes,' Mrs. Fairmont answered, giving her daughter a resentful look. 'We'll set him free when Christine leaves.'
A few minutes later as Mrs. Fairmont walked out on the front porch to bid her daughter good-bye, I liberated Flip. He rewarded me with a backward somersault that I rated ten out of a possible ten.
I DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING to Mrs. Fairmont about the party at supper, but when she saw me come upstairs wearing the dress, she immediately insisted I wear a necklace.
'And it will look better if you put your hair up,' she added. 'How long will it take you to do that?'
'Five minutes.'
I returned with my hair caught up behind my head.
'No,' she said after making me turn around several times. 'I was wrong. Leave it down until your wedding.'
I brushed out my hair. At seven thirty the doorbell chimed, and Flip raced into the foyer. I picked up the dog and opened the door.
'This is Flip,' I said. 'Can he join us?'
Vince stared at me.
'Come in and meet Mrs. Fairmont,' I said after an awkward pause.
Mrs. Fairmont and Vince chatted about Charleston for a few minutes. Vince held the door open for me as I got into the car.
'We'll be there in a couple of minutes, so I have to talk fast,' Vince said as he pulled away from the curb. 'I totally messed up the Moses Jones case and led you astray. I meant well, but that's no excuse. Will you forgive me?'
'What?'
