Laina Turner - Presley Thurman 08 - Vows & Victims

by Laina Turner

  “He’s my brother, but I know he hasn’t always made the best decisions, and Katy has often been the recipient of the fall out of those bad decisions. To answer your question, yes, I do. He really loves Katy.”

  “Hmm. I want to believe that, for Katy’s sake.”

  “I think he’s finally realized how lucky he is to have Katy stand by him, and I don’t think he’ll take the chance of losing that. I think after the whole Helen thing he learned his lesson.”

  “I hope so. I don’t want Katy hurt.”

  “Me, either. She’s good for Chris. Crap!”

  “What?”

  “We were talking and I wasn’t paying attention to the GPS and I just passed the road we needed to turn on. I just need to turn around,” Tobey said. He pulled off to the side of the road, and once he made sure there were no cars coming, made a U–turn to head back in the direction we had just come. Within about a quarter mile, he turned right and then right again into a condominium development.

  “If indeed Rachel and Celeste were escorts, Celeste clearly made more money,” I joked. “This is nice but still not on the level of the mini mansion Celeste was living in.”

  Once again, we slowed down and peered at house, or rather condo, numbers until we found the one we were looking for. We found it and parked.

  Tobey turned to me. “I sure hope we are more successful this time.”

  I agreed with him and for the third time today walked up the front sidewalk to a stranger’s house.

  I barely knocked on the door when it swung open and another cookie cutter beautiful girl stood in front of us. Except that this one was a brunette instead of a blonde.

  “You must be here to talk about Bethany. I was wondering when you would get here.”

  Tobey and I just looked at each other. I was completely taken aback. Why would she be expecting us?

  Rachel laughed. “Celeste called me and I just assumed if you found her, I would also be on your list. Come in.”

  We hesitated.

  “Come in, I promise I’m not luring you into your death or something nefarious,” she teased.

  We both laughed, tension subsiding, and we walked into her house. Very tastefully and beautifully decorated. Classy and not ostentatious.

  “Have a seat.” She motioned to the dining table in the corner of the kitchen. “Can I offer you some coffee or coke or water? I have wine if you’re ready for that.”

  “Coffee would be great,” I said, while Tobey told her he was fine and didn’t need anything.

  “Girl after my own heart. I can drink coffee all day long,” she said, setting a cup in front of me with a small bowl of assorted creamers on the table.

  “Wow, just like a restaurant. I get choices.”

  “I love the flavored creamers and I like to keep a few different flavors on hand depending on what mood I’m in for the day.”

  A few minutes later and we were all seated around the table.

  “I heard about Bethany’s murder and I can say I’m not surprised.”

  “Really?” I said, thinking that was quite a bold statement.

  “She made quite a few enemies.”

  “In real estate?” I asked.

  Rachel rolled her eyes. “Come on. You wouldn’t be here talking to me if you weren’t trying to see if the rumors were true about Bethany running an escort service.”

  I liked this girl. She was blunt and to the point and seemed honest.

  “OK. Then we’ll get right to it, but first, why are you so willing to talk to us? Celeste couldn’t slam the door in our faces fast enough.”

  “Celeste is a bit uptight. Me, I don’t have anything to hide. I’m not ashamed of anything I’ve done, and unlike a lot of people, I didn’t dislike Bethany. Sure, she wasn’t the easiest to get along with, but I certainly didn’t hate her like some. She helped me in a lot of ways and I appreciated it.”

  “Why did people not like her?” I asked.

  “If you asked them, I‘m sure they would come up with many different reasons, but in my opinion, it all comes down to jealousy. She was smart, beautiful, and had an amazing business mind. People were just simply jealous.”

  “If you were running an escort service, then how were the charges dropped?” Tobey asked.

  “They couldn’t prove it and, unfortunately for them, Bethany knew a lot of the secrets of important players in town. She didn’t tell me this, but I would assume she used her knowledge as leverage to get the charges dropped. I’m also assuming that’s why she moved out of Clermont to Alkon.”

  “So she did close down operations?” I asked.

  “Yes and no. I mean she withdrew from it when she moved, but it didn’t shut down entirely, if you know what I mean.”

  I did and that helped explain why Celeste had such a nice house, if my assumptions were correct.

  “Who would have wanted her dead? I understand jealousy and all that, but murder is quite a step to take because you’re jealous of someone.”

  “Try the wives.”

  “What?” I said, confused.

  “The wives. After the arrests and so much of this being public, there were a lot of unhappy wives gunning for Bethany. Something I never understood. Why when a guy steps out on his wife is it the other woman’s fault? Women can be dumb sometimes.”

  “But Bethany wasn’t arrested.”

  “No, but everyone knew she was behind things. Again, she had a lot of dirt on people, which is probably what saved her from being arrested. She never confirmed, but I think the police chief was one of her clients. In fact, she had a lot of connections in law enforcement, if you know what I mean. I think she had a client in your sheriff’s office. That guy who murdered that senator. I forget his name.”

  My eyes grew wide. “Dirt? I mean Derek?”

  “That’s it, Derek. I never knew him. I only know Bethany was very surprised by the news he had been arrested for murder. She said he just didn’t really seem the type. I think she kind of liked him, as more than just a client.”

  “Did you hear he escaped from jail?” I said.

  Her eyebrows rose. “No. You don’t think he—”

  “Oh, no,” I interrupted. “She was killed the day before he escaped.”

  “Do you have the names of the wives you think had the biggest grudges against Bethany?” Tobey asked, his notepad out. I was somewhat surprised by his old–fashioned approach, assuming these days it seemed more normal to pull out an iPad or something. Though, as much as I loved my electronics, nothing beat colored pens at times.

  Rachel sat there in thought before speaking. “Two women who probably stand out in my mind as the most vocal are Diane Abbot and Trish Young.”

  Tobey wrote those names and I was glad. I hadn’t thought of bringing anything to write on.

  “I take it they’re wives of men who chose to partake in the services Bethany provided.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Once the business was officially broken up, there were some of us who kept things going.”

  “You aren’t afraid you’ll get caught again?”

  Rachel shrugged. “That’s a chance I’m willing to take. I just want to finish putting myself through school and this way I can do it without having any student loans when I get out.”

  “I take it Celeste puts all her money into her house.”

  Rachel started laughing. “I can see why you might think that, but Celeste is no longer in the business.”

  “Then how …?” I asked.

  “That would be why Diane Abbot is not a fan of Bethany’s. That used to be Diane’s house, and while Diane no longer lives there, her husband does, with Celeste.”

  “Oh.” It now made sense. Especially why Celeste probably would rather not talk to us and relive the past. “So Diane’s husband used Celeste’s services and left his wife for her?” I said, wanting to make sure I had it straight.

  “You’ve got it. Diane made a big stink, came to the real estate office screaming at Bethany
, at Celeste, and really anyone else who would listen that we were filthy dirty whores.”

  I winced. “Ouch, that’s pretty harsh.”

  “She was upset, and we all understood, but again the person she should have been most angry at was her husband, not us. Bethany told us to just let it roll off our backs and not let it get to us.”

  “She would have more reason to hate Celeste, not Bethany though,” said Tobey.

  “You would think. It’s that whole misplaced anger thing. I mean sure she was mad at Celeste. Waited for her outside of work a few times, called her a home wrecker, followed her around town. But it was Bethany who she blamed for bringing this to Clermont and ruining her family.”

  “What about Trish Young? Same story?” I asked.

  “Yes, but not to the same degree. None of the drama of the husband leaving. She completely blamed us for leading her husband astray. She, along with a women’s group formed from one of the local churches, tried to hang out in the parking lot and picket. It was actually quite comical. I think it pissed Bethany off more than anything because it did affect business. The real estate business. People didn’t want to encourage the wrath of the church ladies when there were other real estate companies in town. That was the final straw for Bethany and why she closed up the real estate office.”

  “Really? I guess it doesn’t make sense to me that she would care about the real estate side as a business. Once I heard about the escort part, I assumed it was a front,” I said.

  “See,” Rachel said, wagging her finger. “You underestimate her. She loved the business of real estate. The thrill of the close. She always said sleeping with men for money was easy, selling a million–dollar property, now that’s where the challenge was. She knew being young, beautiful and desirable was a short–term thing and real estate was long–term. When people stopped wanting to hire her as their realtor, she lost interest, and I think it’s what made her decide to leave town.”

  “Do both these women still live in town?” I asked.

  “As far as I know. When Dianne’s husband first left, she moved into a place in town. I assume she’s still there, but then again I don’t pay a lot of attention to that so they could have moved.” She smiled. “Here I’ve been babbling and haven’t even asked why are you interested in Bethany’s murder. I’m assuming neither of you were clients.”

  Tobey actually blushed, making me laugh. “Ha! No. Her body was found in my friend Katy’s salon. We just want to find out who would do this to her.”

  “Wow. And your friend didn’t know Bethany?”

  “No. And she’s getting married this weekend to Tobey’s brother and I hate that this is hanging over her head.”

  “That does suck.”

  “We appreciate your willingness to talk to us, Rachel. It’s been helpful,” I said, as we had concluded our conversation and walked our way back to the front door.

  “Glad to be of help. Like I said, I was one of the few who liked Bethany. Don’t hesitate to ask if you have any more questions, Presley, Tobey. What was your last name again?” she asked him.

  “Stone. Tobey Stone.”

  “You’re not related to a Chris Stone by any chance are you?” she asked.

  “Yeah. That’s my brother.”

  “Oh, sorry I asked,” she said with a look on her face that clearly conveyed she was sorry she asked.

  “You know him?” Tobey asked, though I think we both knew the answer to that one.

  “Do you really want me to answer that?”

  “Not really, but yes,” he said with a wry smile.

  “He’s a client. But at least he’s not married, right?” she said trying to be cheerful. Then she noticed both our faces. “Oh, God. He’s the brother marrying your friend. I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking. Usually guys don’t lie about that sort of thing to us. I mean there’s no reason to lie.”

  “He didn’t lie, well technically, and even if he did, it’s certainly not your fault,” Tobey said.

  The three of us just sort of stood there in her doorway in an uncomfortable silence.

  “When was the last time he was a, uh, a client?” I asked.

  She thought for a minute and hesitated like she didn’t want to tell us. “I don’t know exactly. Probably about two or three weeks ago.”

  I had been hoping she was going to say months ago. Not that it would have been OK, but to know Chris was once again cheating on Katy and so recently was not good news.

  “You?” I asked.

  “Oh, no. Bethany. The only reason I know is we had coffee last week and she mentioned a few clients she was still seeing. She was thrilled, however, over opening another real estate office and said she was going to be even more careful this time to not let things interfere with her being the best real estate agent in the state. Her side business was really just the means to an end with her. It was a vehicle to put money away for the future.

  “Thanks again, Rachel,” I said, and we walked to the car. My head was about to explode with information. Some of which I really wished I didn’t have and I was sure Tobey felt the same way. Ignorance could really be bliss.

  Tobey started the engine and looked at me. “Do you want to try and find Diane and Trish?”

  I shook my head. “Not today. I’m not so sure how much more I can take.”

  “Yeah. Me either.”

  We rode in silence for the thirty–minute trip home, and soon Tobey came to my car.

  “We need to tell Katy,” I finally said.

  Tobey sighed. “I know. Don’t do it yet. Give me a chance to talk to Chris.”

  “Tobey.”

  “I know, it probably won’t change anything, but he’s my brother. Just give me tonight to talk to him. Maybe this isn’t what it seems.”

  I agreed mainly because I wasn’t in any hurry at all to tell Katy this latest news. In fact, she had texted me twice in the last fifteen minutes, wanting to know what time I would be over tonight and I had yet to respond. I wasn’t looking forward to spending all evening with her, talking about wedding stuff, knowing what I now knew.

  I started to dial Cooper out of habit, then stopped, remembering we might be broken up, and in any case he needed time to think and was busy. He didn’t need to listen to me whine about how Chris was once again treating Katy.

  Thinking about my own depressing personal state of affairs made me wonder why anyone wanted to be in a relationship. It seemed like they were complicated and painful. Katy had issues with Chris, I had issues with my relationship with Cooper. I had just talked to an escort who showed me that married people had relationship issues. I knew things happened and relationships sure weren’t easy, but did things have to be this hard? I really couldn’t stop thinking about Katy. After all she and Chris had been through, she finally thought he had changed and now this. He had been, and still was, visiting prostitutes.

  I couldn’t even understand why he would want to do that when he had someone devoted to him like Katy. Maybe when Tobey talked to him he would say something that would make sense of all this.

  Chapter 11

  Wake up, sleepy head.” I heard Katy’s voice and felt the mattress move as she sat down on the bed next to me.

  “I have coffee,” she singsonged, and the smell of the coffee compelled me to open my eyes.

  “Thank you,” I said, sitting up and taking the cup from her, enjoying the aroma.

  “What are you doing here so early?” I asked, looking at the clock that read seven.

  “Well, after you ditched me last night I went to bed early and woke up at five. I came over here at six thirty knowing your mom would be up, and we enjoyed a cup of coffee together and chatted until we decided it was time for you to get up, too.

  “How nice of you.” I had bailed on Katy last night, claiming to have a bad headache and be tired. I just couldn’t face her knowing what I knew, and this morning it wasn’t any easier, especially seeing how happy she looked.

  “I thought so. Anyways, we need t
o make up for lost time. I brought the centerpiece parts—and my mom—over here, and you are going to get dressed and come downstairs and we are going to finish these centerpieces!”

  I inwardly groaned. It was too early for centerpieces and motherly togetherness and hiding something potentially devastating from my best friend.

  “So get up,” Katy said, standing and walking to the door. “I expect you downstairs in five minutes.”

  I heard her footsteps moving down the stairs and I reached for my phone. Balancing my coffee on my knee, I sent Tobey a text asking if he had talked to Chris.

  He obviously had been awake, or sleeping with his phone, because he texted right back. He hadn’t done it yet. Chris had never responded to him last night.

  Hmm. That was interesting, I thought, getting out of bed and putting on some black leggings and a long T–shirt.

  I made my way downstairs where Katy and our mothers were already sitting at the dining room table, setting up an assembly line of sorts.

  “Doesn’t this look like fun?” I said.

  Katy laughed. “I know it’s not one of the more glamorous parts of the wedding, but we can’t have everything now, can we?”

  I poured more coffee, sat down at my place in the production line, and asked what I was supposed to do. “You realize that I’m the least crafty person here.”

  “Presley, you just need to follow the steps we gave you and it will be fine,” Katy said.

  “Isn’t there something easier I could do? Like put rice in bags or something?”

  “We don’t use rice, it makes birds explode. We use bird seed.”

  “Oh,” I said, having no clue that that was the case.

  The centerpieces were comprised of dried flowers: ivory and mint green with a hint of silver in the leaves. And we were sticking them into triangle–shaped Styrofoam cones in a very specific pattern. There was a finished product for me to look at which was very pretty. I could see why Katy picked that for her centerpiece. I was just very doubtful I would be able to make mine turn out to look as good as Katy’s example.

  Even though crafts weren’t my thing, I found myself having fun. Just hanging out, drinking coffee.