Skein of the Crime (16 page)

“You’ll probably find something here, Megan. This is a much bigger shop than those other two,” Kelly said as she followed her friends into the shop. Sniffing a delicate floral scent when she entered, Kelly tried to identify it. “That smells good. Is it a flower?”

“Lilacs,” Jennifer and Lisa chimed together.

The bridal shop foyer widened to a hallway that had two rooms opening on either side, one larger, the other smaller. A middle-aged woman in a pale pink suit rose from behind a mahogany secretary and walked toward them.

“Welcome, ladies,” she said with a warm smile as she approached. “Which one of you is the bride?”

“The one with the dazed expression,” Kelly volunteered, pointing to Megan, who was looking around the shop, eyes wide.

“How wonderful,” the woman said, smiling maternally. “I’m Lucinda. What’s your name, dear?”

“Megan.”

“Well, Megan, I’m delighted you and your friends dropped by. I take it you’re shopping for a bridal gown. We do have other accessories, as well as bridesmaids’ gowns. Take your time browsing. I’m here to answer any questions.” With that, Lucinda returned to her desk in the small room across the hall.

Kelly surveyed the shop’s luxurious interior. The two rooms were decorated with antiques, either real or reproductions. After going through her cousin Martha’s Wyoming ranch house, Kelly had learned a lot about fine furniture and antiques that she never knew before. She did notice, however, that there were only two gowns on display in the larger sitting room. Sofas and chairs and several ornate mirrors were scattered around the room.

“This shop is definitely more posh than the others,” Lisa whispered as she strolled closer to one of the two gowns displayed on pedestals in the corner. “This dress is simpler, Megan. Look at the pretty lace over the shoulders, and the skirt is soft and gathered.

Megan cocked her head, observing the gown. “All that material looks like ruffles, and I don’t like ruffles.”

“Okay, no ruffles, no beads,” Kelly announced as she walked over to the other gown. “Two out of three eliminated. What about this one?” She pointed to the sheath-style gown, which draped beautifully to the floor. Gauzy bits of lace served as straps. The entire shimmering fabric’s surface was covered in embroidered designs. At least Kelly thought it was embroidery. She’d seen enough at the shop to recognize it. “This is simple and elegant, Megan.”

“Oooo, that is gorgeous,” Lisa said as she approached. “This is more your style, right?”

Megan slowly walked closer, surveying the gown as she approached. “I do like that style better. It’s not poufy.”

“With your great figure, it’ll look fantastic on you.” Jennifer stepped closer to the gown and touched the fabric. “Look at all that embroidery work. Beautiful.”

Megan nodded. “Beautiful and expensive. All that embroidery has to be expensive.”

Lisa gave Megan a stern look. “Megan, they’re wedding gowns. They’re supposed to have extra work on them. Either ruffles or embroidery or beads. Stuff like that. Get over it.”

“It looks like you’re going to have to choose a gown with stuff on it, Megan. Unless you get married in a bedsheet.” Kelly joked.

“Don’t give her ideas,” Jennifer warned.

Lucinda strolled over to them. “It sounds like you’ve just started looking.”

“You’re right. We’ve been to two other shops, but I didn’t like any of the gowns on display.” Megan glanced around the room. “We were hoping you’d have more gowns we could see. The other shop didn’t have many, either. Why is that?”

“Like other shops we used to carry several in the salon, but now we can actually show more gowns with digital videos.”

Megan’s eyes lit up. Familiar territory. “Really? What are some of the best websites we can go to?”

“Oh, there are several. All the designers have their gowns on display. But you can see those same gowns here.” She walked over to a cabinet and opened the doors, revealing a large flat screen. “We have all their gowns on video, so our customers can see them without having to jump from website to website on their lunch hours.” She clicked a remote control device and the screen came to life with bright images of brides and grooms and wedding parties, cakes, dancing couples, families together. Then—the image of a wedding gown appeared, with its name and number at the bottom of the screen. The model turned slowly so the back was revealed.

“Sit down and relax and watch.” Lucinda gestured to the upholstered chairs. “If you see something you like, then make a note of the number. Don’t worry if you miss it the first time. The video replays automatically.”

“Oooo, look at that one,” Lisa pointed to the gown on the screen. Strapless with a simple fitted bodice, the full skirt flared out gracefully to the floor.

“Pretty, but I recognize the designer’s name,” Jennifer remarked.

“I think that means expensive,” Kelly said to Megan.

Yards of shiny material appeared next, cascading down the back of a strapless gown and extending onto the floor.

“What’s that fabric?” Kelly asked.

“Looks like taffeta,” Lisa decreed.

“Boy, that’s a long train,” Jennifer commented.

“Cathedral. The longest,” Megan said. “Next?”

Another strapless gown appeared, figure-hugging to the knees where it flared to the floor.

“Pretty.”

“Yep, but it’s covered in ruffles.”

“They’re small ruffles.”

“Ruffles are ruffles,” Megan intoned.

A simpler strapless style was next, which hugged the figure to below the waist where the skirt gradually fell fuller and fuller with a stylish drape in the center.

“Oooo, that’s nice.”

“Classic.”

“No beads and no ruffles,” Kelly offered.

Megan still shook her head. “Yeah, but look at that train in the back. Semi-cathedral or cathedral.”

“What?” Kelly stared at her. “They’ve got classifications?”

“Yep. I’ve been studying.”

“What do you expect? It’s Megan,” Lisa said as Jennifer laughed softly.

Another gown appeared with straps and V-neckline. The dress hugged the model’s body tighter than the others until it poufed out at the knees to the floor.

“Vampy,” Jennifer said. “Even Marty would be speechless.”

“Riiiight,” Megan joked while her friends laughed.

Another strapless gown, its long train gathered with lacy trim.

“Long train with imitation ruffles,” Kelly announced.

A slinky satin gown covered in Chantilly lace came next.

“Do you have anything against lace?” Lisa asked skeptically.

“No, but it’s so low I’d fall out of it.”

A celebration of ruffles appeared next and laughter was the only commentary.

The screen flashed again showing another V-necked gown, but this skirt flared gracefully to the floor, a layer of white tulle draped over the underlying fabric. The model wore a large white-brimmed hat, which curved over her face.

“Well, ah declare. If it isn’t Miz Scahlett,” Kelly said to Jennifer with a grin.

“In the flesh.”

“Like I could pull
that
off,” Megan said with a snort.

“Now, y’all hush. I’ve just come in from Charleston, and I’m simply exhausted,” Jennifer said in a magnolia-dipped accent. “Have a julep sent to my room, please. I must rest before all the festivities.”

Soft laughter flowed around the room as several more gowns appeared only to be greeted with cries of “Beads!” or “Ruffles!” or “Froufrou!”

Then a simple unadorned white gown flashed on the screen. Spaghetti straps, soft tulle draping to the floor.

“
Voilà!
” Lisa cried, pointing to the screen. “You want simple? There’s simple. It could be a prom dress it’s so plain.”

Megan peered at the image. “That’s a lot of tulle.”

Lisa closed her eyes and groaned as Kelly laughed.

Another strapless dress appeared, the slender skirt cascading to the floor in soft gathers.

“What about that one?” Jennifer gestured. “It’s simple and there’s no tulle.”

Megan squinted at the screen. “It’s got ruffles.”

“Those aren’t ruffles, they’re
gathers
!” Lisa spouted, clearly out of patience.

Megan shook her head. “Ruffles, gathers. Same difference.”

“
Arrrrghhh!
” Lisa cried.

Jennifer joined Kelly in laughing this time. Kelly sneaked a peek at Lucinda who was smiling broadly, obviously overhearing Megan’s saga of the gowns.

“Look, it’s back to the beginning again,” Jennifer observed as the first gown reappeared on the screen.

“Megan, you’re impossible,” Lisa decreed, shaking her head. “You
will
have to get married in a bedsheet. You don’t like anything!”

Everyone laughed, including Lisa as they jointly imagined Megan in her bedsheet at the church.

“Megan just hasn’t found the perfect dress yet, right, Megan?” Lucinda said as she approached them.

“That’s right,” Megan said with an imperial sniff. “It’s out there. I know it.”

“You’re right, Megan. And I have a feeling you’ll find it, too. What’s your time frame?”

“Time frame?” Megan looked at her blankly.

“When’s the wedding?” Lucinda’s smile widened.

“Ohhhh, we haven’t nailed it down exactly.” Megan gestured with her hand. “Sometime between the end of September and the middle of October next year.”

“Well, you still have time yet. Six months out is as close as you can delay. Some of these bridal vendors need at least six months to deliver a gown.”

“Okay, Megan. You’ve got your marching orders,” Lisa said sternly. “A decision in six months. Or you really will be showing up in that bedsheet because there won’t be any gowns available.”

“Ohhhh, Megan won’t have to resort to a bedsheet,” Jennifer said with a wicked smile. “We’ll just grab her before the ceremony and wrap her in yards of tulle and lace—”

“And ruffles,” Kelly added. “Lots and lots of ruffles.”

“That salmon salad was delicious,” Jennifer said, polishing off the last tidbit of spinach on her plate.

“Wow, you went through that fast,” Lisa said, poking through the arugula and sprouts for a garbanzo bean.

“I was starving. I don’t know about you guys, but all that shopping wore me out. I feel like Miz Scarlett for real.”

“How could it tire you out?” Kelly asked, forking the lone asparagus on her plate. “We were either in the car or in the shops.”

“It was the stress,” Jennifer said solemnly. “Ruffles, beads, trains too long, take off the tulle. Exhausting.”

Kelly sipped her coffee as laughter bounced around the table again. She and her friends had stopped for lunch at a favorite café in Boulder, only an hour from Fort Connor.

“I can’t help if I’m picky, guys.” Megan shrugged. “I want what I want.”

“That’s okay, Megan.” Jennifer held up her glass of iced tea. “You deserve to have your wedding exactly as you want. We’ll be your forward guard. We’ll run interference whenever you need it.”

“One for all and all for one,” Kelly declared as they all held up their glasses and cups. Just then, her cell phone rang. “Excuse me a sec.” She dug out the data phone and flipped it open. Patty’s name and number flashed on the screen. “Hey, what’s up?”

“Hi, Kelly. I simply wanted to tell you what I found out at last night’s party.”

Last night was Friday night, Big Time Party Night on college campuses. Kelly stepped away from the table for privacy. “Oh, yeah. Did you hear anything interesting?”

“As a matter of fact, I did. I checked what you told me yesterday and learned that Holly really was cheating on Tommy. I talked with several of our old friends from high school, and they confirmed it. This guy’s name is Eddie something, and he is from Greeley. Apparently he and his buddies show up in Fort Connor every weekend to party, like you heard.”

“So Rachel was telling the truth.”

“Oh, yeah. And you’ll never guess what else.”

“Okay, you’ve got me. What else?”

“One of the guys said this Eddie sells pills regularly. Apparently he’s got quite a little business going on.”

Kelly’s mind started racing. Maybe Eddie was the driver of the dark car that picked up Holly the night of the party. If he regularly sold pills, then he
must
have been the one to give Holly the opiate narcotics that killed her.

“Whoa, Patty, that’s important information. I’m gonna tell Burt on Monday. Did you check with any others? Did anyone see Eddie selling pills at the party?”

“According to one of the guys, this Eddie is pretty careful when he comes into Fort Connor. He doesn’t usually sell at parties because he doesn’t want to take the chance he’ll get on the cops’ radar screen here. But he makes contacts and meets people, then sells to them later on.”

“Clever.”

“Yeah, it is,” Patty continued. “You know, Kelly, I’m beginning to think Eddie was the one who picked up Holly that night and gave her the pills.”