Boo Who (47 page)

It was as if her soul had left the very center of her body and was now clinging to the outer edges, wanting to escape the prison that had kept it tied to this earth.

If ever there was a time to believe in heaven, this was it. And she did. She always had. She believed everything the Bible said. For heaven’s sake, she could nearly quote every part of it.

But she also knew she’d fallen short of what it had asked of her.

All because of secrets. Lies. Pride. Yes, pride. The center of it all.

She’d done all she could now. She’d given the key away. They knew where to find the secrets. She prayed she’d be gone from this earth when they did.

“Safely keep and restore you,” she mumbled. It came from the recesses of her mind, far away, like a distant country.

“Miss Peeple?”

She heard her name called, but she couldn’t open her eyes. It echoed through her mind as if spoken through a tunnel.

“Miss Peeple?”

Again.
Lord? Is that you?

“Miss Peeple? It’s Reverend Peck.”

She couldn’t open her eyes. Her mind would not allow her to come out of her dizzy sleep. But she wished she could. She wanted to hold his hand, tell him she was sorry she’d missed church. But her lifeless body only sank further into the bed.

“Safely keep and restore you,” she heard him say. “Yes, my dear. The Lord Jesus will safely keep and restore you. Do not be afraid. He stands waiting for you, my child.”

But something kept her soul nailed to this earth, and what it was she did not know.

CHAPTER 36

A
INSLEY SAW
A
LFRED
rushing down the stairs and into the reception area, heading straight toward her. She was standing behind the wedding cake where a director named Dolph was shining lights on her and setting up cameras. “Don’t squint your eyes!” he’d instructed, but how could she not with all the lights?

“Okay, darling, the wedding upstairs is about to begin! We’re going to do some of the first part of the script now, and then the real heavy stuff starts when everyone gets down here.”

Her stomach flip-flopped, but she ignored the fear. “Darling, this is child’s play.” She deepened her voice too.

Alfred’s face froze in a stunned expression, but then he smiled. “I like it. Good. That’s good. My goodness, woman, you wrecked the whole career of the most famous novelist alive, simply with your charm.”

She flashed a grin and winked at him.

“That’s my girl! Hold your head high, have confidence that you are the perfect person for this, and make love to the cameras.”

She frowned. “Excuse me?”

“It’s just a term,” he said sheepishly. “A bad one.”

“I’ll say.” She eyed him. “I can’t imagine Martha putting up with that sort of language.”

“Sorry. Anyway, just do your best.”

“I am the best, Alfred,” she said, facing the camera directly in front of her. Dolph was standing next to it, giving her hand signals she didn’t understand. But Alfred moved out of the way, and within a few seconds Dolph pointed at her, and a red light glowed on top of the camera.

She looked at Dolph and said, “Can you stop smacking your gum?” Dolph’s eyes widened and he nodded a little, handing his gum to the man next to him. Alfred’s mouth was wide with awe.

Smiling, she pushed her shoulders back, commanded her hands to stop shaking and said, “Good evening. And welcome to
The Ainsley Parker Show.
Tonight I will be demonstrating how to create the most divine wedding reception you will ever see. And with some easy tips and extra planning, you can have the reception of your dreams too. Just remember, this isn’t your mother’s kitchen.”

“Cut!” the director yelled.

She stared at him.

He added, “Perfection.”

Alfred watched from behind the cameras as his protégée prepared to charm the world. It was just a matter of time. Arms folded in front of him, he laughed to himself. Once, just a few short weeks ago actually, he’d thought his life was over. He was to the point of questioning his very existence. The one man he’d relied on had failed. And in failing, had wrecked the career of a very successful editor. It did amaze him how quickly everything one builds up can come tumbling down. A lifetime of building. A second of destroying. But now, he was back on top, with the lady who was soon to be crowned Queen of Croissants, or something like that. He was going to have to come up with a more catchy title if he was going to base his whole life’s happiness on her success.

He caught her eye and gave her a reassuring nod. It was like a new Ainsley had arrived. She barked orders. She stared down incompetent people. My goodness, she was fabulous! Dolph said, “Okay, we’re going to do the wedding cake part now.” And Dolph, a normally edgy person, seemed to be trying to be overly polite, apparently afraid of what might happen if he wasn’t.

Ainsley smiled confidently and waited for Dolph’s finger to point at her. As soon as it did, she said, “Welcome back. At any wedding reception,
you’ll always find the wedding cake, which is a true reflection of the bride and grooms personality. These days, you’ll find all sorts of different cakes at weddings, some of them sophisticated, some charming, and some just downright crazy!”

Alfred smiled at her whimsy. That was going to win hearts.

With perfect timing, she used her hands to guide the camera lens to the tall cake standing beside her. “Now,” she said, “as you can see, this cake is three-tiered, with white icing and delicate gold and silver flowers all around it, appearing to free-fall off the edge of the cake like a waterfall.” She grinned at the camera as though it were a person. She was a natural! “What a fine job our caterers did, don’t you think?”

“Cut!”
Alfred hollered. Everyone turned to him, Dolph waving his hands and shooting him irritated glances.

“What’s wrong?” Dolph asked.

Alfred stepped toward them both. “Ainsley, my dear,” Alfred said with a chuckle, “you can’t refer to caterers or chefs or anything like that. The illusion has to be that you’re doing this all yourself.”

Ainsley frowned. “Alfred, trust me. I am the best. The best. Do you hear me? Don’t question me again.” Her eyes flashed rare confidence. A tense smile was all he could muster.

“Okay, then. I guess you can say that.” He nodded to Dolph and then stepped out of the way. Turning his back, he gathered himself.

What he hadn’t counted on was the small-town values side of Ainsley that apparently he was going to have to wrestle to death. Looking up, he saw Wolfe standing in the doorway. Had he been watching the whole time? By the look on his face, he wasn’t happy, and when he caught Alfred looking at him, his eyes blazed with anger and he turned and left.

Wolfe stood for a moment, taking in the scene before him. The front of the church was thoroughly decorated with beautifully colored flowers of all kinds, and there was also a unity candle to one side. An arch decorated
with white roses, centered on the stage, was where Oliver and Melb would soon stand to become one. He felt his entire body become rigid. What he’d seen downstairs was nothing short of grotesque. The beautiful woman he’d known and loved had become another product of Alfred Tennison. It made him sick. He didn’t even recognize the woman down there, shouting commands, nose in the air.

He turned to find Reverend Peck looking very frazzled. “It hasn’t started yet, has it?” he said, out of breath.

“I don’t think it can start without you, my friend.”

Reverend Peck nodded, zipping up his black robe and running his fingers through his windblown hair. “Right. How do I look?”

“Just fine, sir,” Wolfe said, adjusting his robe slightly. “You’ve got three minutes to spare.”

The reverend seemed to settle a bit. “Okay, good. I’ve been at the hospital with Miss Peeple.”

“Oh? Did she say anything, um … meaningful?”

He shook his head. “Not really. She just kept mumbling, ‘Safely keep and restore you.’ Over and over. I think she’s near death.”

Wolfe sighed. “You better get up there.”

“Right,” he said, and rushed to the front. Wolfe spotted his future father-in-law and went to sit next to him.

“Hi Wolfe,” the sheriff said, greeting him with a firm handshake.

“May I sit here?”

“Of course.” The sheriff scooted over.

“How are you?”

“Well, I’m okay, except I can’t find Thief.”

“Really?”

The sheriff nodded somberly. “He used to leave for a day or so. But he’s been gone for three days now, and I have no idea where he could be. I’m getting really worried.”

“I’m sure he’ll turn up. Now that he’s feeling better, maybe he just needed to roam around.”

The sheriff nodded, though not convincingly. Then he turned to
Wolfe. “I wanted to tell you something else. I’m not sure I should, because sometimes a father should just stay out of his daughter’s business, but I think you need to know this.”

Wolfe’s heart skipped a beat. “Okay.”

“Ainsley is a mess. She’s been trying to do this secret reception, and I’m assuming she’s pulled it off, but what she hasn’t done is …”

“Is what?”

Regret flickered across his face. “She’s hardly done a thing for your wedding, Wolfe.”

Wolfe looked down at his feet. Emotions tickled at his throat.

“And I know Ainsley, and I know she’s going to try to pull all this off next week. I just wanted to warn you, since she might seem a little crazy.”

Wolfe tried to smile.
Crazy
was a bit of an understatement considering the way he’d seen her act down there. “Thanks. Good to know.” He stared up at the reverend, who was getting ready to begin the ceremony. “But she still wants to marry me, right?”

He looked surprised by the question. “Wolfe, of course she does. You must believe that.”

Wolfe nodded, but then had to decide exactly what he believed. Because inside his soul there were many theories vying for the top slot.

The wedding music began, and he settled into his chair. Oliver came out, proud as could be in his tuxedo. He gave quick smiles to those he managed to make eye contact with in the audience, and then he looked down the aisle, waiting for his beautiful bride-to-be.

With a small transition, the music changed to the wedding march, and the back doors opened. There Melb stood, in a beautiful, though very puffy, gown, smiling with the radiance of someone completely loved.

She walked down the aisle with that kind of confidence. And in fact, Wolfe had never seen her look so confident. Her curly hair was pinned up under her headband-veil, and she smiled at everyone she saw, then at Oliver, who had never stopped smiling.

Wolfe tried not to think about the other wedding that might not take place.