The Bride Takes a Powder

by Jane Leopold Quinn

  Local Teachers Cheating on Tests

  The story described a cheating scandal with teachers and administrators changing or adding answers on standardized tests. Naturally enough she didn't recognize any of the names except one. Michael Banning. Mr. Do-good? She'd believed she was a good judge of character and a natural skeptic, which was good for a lawyer. But she'd just had her life upended by a faithless scumbag fiancé. Could Mike have fooled her too?

  She wasn't a criminal lawyer, but even in corporate work she counted on her instincts to determine truth or not. Obviously her instincts had failed her with Garrett. He'd have undoubtedly motioned for a waiter or maître d' to remove a drunken bully. But Banning handled it. Chivalrously. Then made sure she got home safely. She cracked a smile. For some reason, that thought made her feel nurtured. Yes, you need to apologize to him.

  Glancing at the clock over the kitchen sink, she noticed it was time for the doctor's appointment. The office was about two and a half blocks from the McMillan House, close enough to walk although there didn't seem to be any taxis in town anyway. Swallowing down her nerves, she swore if she even let another man near her, condoms would be the major piece of sexual equipment. Damn Garrett to hell and back.

  Thirty minutes later, she'd talked to the doctor, had blood drawn, and was on her way. The results wouldn't be available for three days, and the doctor recommended putting the problem out of her mind until she knew the outcome for sure. Oh great. I have the weekend to stew.

  Chapter Three

  Norah strolled down Marion Parkway toward the center of town. The almost constant rain had stopped. Lifting her face, she blinked at the sparkling flashes of sun filtering through the leafy canopy above. Venerable long-enduring trees planted on both sides of the street and in the center divider created a sheltering vault of green overhead.

  In the crisp spring breeze, she felt a measure of unexpected peace. Maybe she could or should take the fresh, beautiful glow of the world around her at this moment as an omen she'd be okay after all this. Standing motionless in the middle of the sidewalk, could she enjoy not doing anything? Just being? It would be a new experience for her.

  But she'd never not had complete control over herself and her surroundings. Her future with Garrett had been part of that control. At least that had been her plan. Anxiety clutched at her stomach. She'd escaped a disastrous marriage and prayed she'd also escaped the repercussions of Garrett's actions and would have a clean bill of health.

  The man—the person? She didn't miss him. Not one little bit. At that thought, she put a little skip in her step and headed on toward the town center—toward the coffee house and its connected bookstore. How long had it been since she'd had free time enough to read a novel? The most she did these days was leaf through a magazine at the beauty salon while her highlights set. She'd always had to keep up with the latest cases and continuing education courses. Now the bookstore was drawing her inside. She'd never wanted to read a novel more than she did right that minute.

  Inside Java Joe's Books, Etc. she smiled at the sight of large rectangular tables piled with current releases and others with older books—fiction, non-fiction, biographies. There was a moment of concern that there were too many choices, but she let that worry float away. She had all the time in the world to relax and read. Good Lord, could that be true? Everything had been prepared and organized and arranged at the office. All her cases were being handled by others. All her clients knew she'd be out of the office but would be in touch occasionally. No trials were scheduled. Aware she hadn't called her secretary, she decided to do it later this evening after hours so she could leave a voice mail. She didn't want to talk to anyone. But for now, she truly had nothing to do.

  Except read a book and drink a cup of coffee.

  She bought several books with interesting sounding blurbs, a large coffee, and then strolled across the street to the park at Courthouse Square. Benches lined the walkways, not too close together, making it easy to talk to people but also allowing privacy. A maintenance worker was in the process of drying off the benches with rags so not a spot of rain water remained. She quickly appropriated a seat and watched the surprising number of passersby on their way to lunch or out for a walk to enjoy the respite from the rain. Sipping her coffee, she wondered if she looked as silly as she felt—smiling at nothing as she was. Sunlight peeking through the tree limbs warmed her face. Bird songs and chattering, rushing squirrels charmed her. She realized she'd left her cell phone in her apartment but didn't miss it one bit. The last thing she wanted was to hear that ringtone and see Garrett's texts. Her parents knew she was okay, and they were the only ones who mattered.

  Women passing by wore slacks, even shorts and sandals or athletic shoes. She didn't want to be noticed as an outsider dressed in designer jeans and heels. Garrett and his brother had been on TV news. Her name had probably not been mentioned so no one here would know who she was. Still, she was dressed for the big city, and that didn't seem appropriate here in Birchwood Falls.

  Relaxed and half asleep, she began to feel the stirrings of hunger. Depositing the coffee cup into the waste bin—Lord, even those were cute, painted to look like wild animals—she headed across the park toward the grocery store. Today she had a better idea of her living arrangements and what she'd need day to day.

  Roaming the produce aisle, she spotted a gorgeous woman with hair pulled up in a ponytail, a fuchsia streak in her dark bangs, and a good-sized pregnant belly. The woman hummed as she inspected the tomatoes, then she turned to cantaloupes and early strawberries.

  They both reached for a container of the fruit at the same time and bumped hands. "Sorry." Norah pulled her hand back.

  The woman turned to her. "Hi."

  That was it. Just a hi but spoken with a luminous smile. Norah couldn't stop an answering smile and murmured, "Hi." She was usually in a hurry in the grocery store and didn't pay attention to other people.

  The woman plucked a box of strawberries off the display and handed them to Norah. "These look good. What are you going to have with them?"

  "Um, I hadn't thought about that. What do you do with them?"

  The woman gave her a cat-eating-the-canary smile. "We dip them in a little sour cream or melted chocolate."

  "Sounds wonderful."

  "My husband likes them too." And rubbing her tummy, the woman added, "But my baby likes them better."

  "Congratulations. When are you due?" The woman was so pretty with her dark hair and hazel eyes.

  Still smiling, she replied, "I still have three months to go. I don't recognize you. Are you new to B Falls?"

  "Yes, I'm just visiting."

  "Visiting someone?"

  "No um, I'm really just passing through. I don't know how long I'll stay." Norah pretended interest in the blueberries.

  "Welcome, then." She offered her hand. "I'm Phoebe Barnes Rahn."

  "Hi Phoebe. I'm Norah Ballard."

  "Where are you from?"

  "Chicago. I arrived on the train yesterday."

  "What part of Chicago? I worked there for a few months in the River North area."

  "I work downtown and live along the lakefront."

  "Nice." Phoebe nodded. "I lived there in the winter so didn't get to see it in the summer."

  "What brought you here?"

  Phoebe laughed, a light tinkling sound. "It's a long story, but the basics are that my husband and I met here, he's from B Falls, and he lured me back. I'm really happy I made the move though. It was the furthest thing from my life plans. So you never know."

  "No, you don't." Damn truer words were never spoken.

  "Say, if you're looking for some entertainment and if you're still in town, why don't you come over to Marietty's tomorrow night. It's a jazz club at the resort. The Wilcox Resort. My husband owns the club and I sing."

  "You sing? Is that what you were doing in Chicago?"

  "Yeah, I'm a jazz and blues singer."

  "And you have your own club? Your husban
d's club?"

  Phoebe nodded again, beaming an even bigger smile. "As I said, it's a long story, but it all worked out for us. The last thing I wanted was to live in this little burg. I wanted to be singing in New York or Hollywood."

  "And now?"

  "This is the place to be," Phoebe announced.

  Norah chuckled. "As long as you're sure."

  "So, come over to Marietty's about eight. Are you staying at the resort?"

  "No. The McMillan House."

  "Okay, then go right down First Street, cross over to the resort and the club is this side of the river. I'll have my friends save you a seat."

  "That's really nice of you." Norah smiled her thanks.

  "Just ask for Mike Banning."

  "Did you say Banning? Mike Banning?"

  "Yes. And if you happened to see that article in the paper this morning, he had nothing to do with the cheating at school."

  "Really?"

  "Yup. He's my husband's best friend from all the way back in high school. If Marc believes in him, I do too." She nodded her head emphatically. "I don't know what's going on in that school, but Mike isn't a part of it."

  "Is your husband a teacher there too?"

  "He's a police officer now."

  "A law officer and a nightclub owner? That's an odd combination."

  Chuckling, Phoebe said, "Not in this town."

  "Okay. Thanks for the welcome. I'm looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night." Norah waved and moved on to the dairy aisle to look for sour cream. Back in her apartment and after putting the groceries away, she sampled the strawberries and sour cream. Delish. Then grabbing one of the paperbacks she'd bought, she sauntered down the stairs to the sheltering porch. She settled on the swing softened by cushions and leaned back into the myriad colorful throw pillows. Curling a leg beneath her, she pushed off with her other foot, and rocked. The rhythmic creaking of iron chains and pattering of rain on the roof melted away the tension of the past days, and her eyes closed. Just rest them a minute…

  ***

  Her eyes popped open at the ear-piercing blast of a semi's air horn. Blinking to clear her vision and glancing at her watch, she realized she'd slept for forty-five minutes. The low hum from passing cars on the highway had lulled her to sleep until that one loud honk. Good Lord! What a slug. Pushing to her feet, she ambled to the edge of the porch, and braced both hands on the smooth white wooden railing. Her eyes closed as she sniffed fresh clean country air and the delicate sweet scents of early spring flowers. A gigantic bush of yellow blooms sat in a sunny corner of the yard near the front sidewalk. White flowers shaped like bells drooping from arching stems flowed along the base of the porch. She'd ask Jan the names of the flowers.

  Her gaze lifted to the back of Ollie's bar which she could see easily from her vantage point. It was after three, and school would likely be out. She wondered what was going on with Mike Banning. The mood at school would be pretty tense now that the news of the cheating scandal was out.

  Her instinct about the man was that he wasn't a cheater. She could agree with Phoebe on that. He seemed like a great guy—nice, protective, and polite.

  This scandal is none of your business. And that was what crossed her mind even as she pushed through Ollie's front door. As her eyes adjusted to the dark, she spotted him sitting in the back next to the juke box. His arms rested on the table, his gaze focusing on his hands, folded as if in prayer.

  "May I sit down?"

  His eyes lifted first, then his head, and he frowned in confusion for a moment.

  "I was here last night? That big lummox was bothering me?" she reminded, trying to make him smile.

  "Sure, I know who you are. I was just surprised to see you again."

  "May I?" She gestured to a chair.

  "Of course." He stood up, still not smiling. "Would you like something to drink?"

  She shook her head. "No, but go ahead if you want."

  Going behind the bar, he drew a half stein of beer and brought it back to the table.

  "I'm sorry I was rude last night. You were only being polite and protecting me from that guy."

  One dark eyebrow lifted. "Axel Davis. He is a lummox, that's for sure." Changing the subject, he said, "We went to the same school, didn't we?"

  "Yes, I know. I didn't recognize you at first until you said your name." She brushed back strands of hair tickling her forehead. Damned humidity. "You've changed."

  He finally laughed. "That's a mild way of putting it. I looked pretty nerdy back in those days."

  "I won't comment on that." She tried to suppress a giggle. What was she doing? She wasn't the giggling type.

  "You, on the other hand, haven't changed a bit," he remarked. "Except you're even prettier."

  "Stop it." She waved away the compliment but couldn't hold back a grin.

  "Didn't you go to law school?" He took a sip of beer.

  "Yes. I've been practicing now for a few years."

  "What brings you here?"

  "I'm not sure what my plans are," she said repressively. "I came on the train. It was a spur of the moment decision." Confused, bitter, and at odds with her life, she certainly wasn't going to talk about it with him. He had enough problems of his own.

  "Well, B Falls is a nice town, at least usually."

  "Don't you have to see to customers?" People had come in, and no one was working the bar. Besides, she didn't want him asking too many questions.

  "Oh crap, yeah. Mom's in the kitchen. I'd better handle things." He started to walk away then turned back. "Will you stick around for a while more so we can catch up?"

  She nodded as he strode to the bar. The crowd wasn't large, and he returned to the table fifteen minutes later. This time he brought two beers and slid one over to her.

  "Thanks, Mike." She sipped and said, "I saw the newspaper this morning."

  Stressed and angry looking, he squeezed the bridge of his nose and rubbed his eyes.

  "It must have been a really hard day at school." She felt for him but kept her voice and expression neutral, in attorney mode.

  "Did you happen to see the guy with the ponytail last night? Stu Pressman's the reporter who broke the story. He came in to give me a heads-up."

  "Yes, I noticed you went from cheerful to upset after talking to him."

  "It sucked. I can't believe my name came up in this—situation. I'm not involved in it in any way. The fact that someone I work with, who I considered a friend, falsely implicated me…" He grimaced, slowly shaking his head.

  Her professional side kicked in, and she watched his face, judging whether he told the truth or not. He'd run his fingers through that thick dark hair, standing it up in places. She smiled at a Superman lock lying on his forehead.

  Glancing up at that moment, he scowled, "It's not funny."

  He looked devastated, defeated. Somehow she felt it wasn't his default expression, and she didn't like seeing it on him. Last night his smile had lit up the place, so broad, his teeth dazzling white, tiny fan lines at the corners of his eyes. She'd seen all that when he'd asked his mom for cookies. Obviously, she'd witnessed happy normality, but the town appeared to have a dark underbelly.

  "I'm sorry. I wasn't laughing at you." Instinctively she knew he wasn't involved in the test cheating scandal, and, faced with a completely honest person, she took a deep breath of relief. She'd begun to doubt integrity existed in any man after her experience with Garrett. Mike talked for a while, rambling on about who he thought falsely involved him and why. She understood betrayal, having been on the receiving end of it. It hurt like hell.

  "I just hope the truth comes out soon. It's destroying the school. The kids are distracted and look at all of us with suspicion. We look at each other with suspicion. Everyone's afraid to talk to one another. The investigation needs to get moving and clear this up fast."

  "Do you have a lawyer?"

  "No! I don't need one. I'm not guilty of anything."

  "Even the innocent need a lawyer t
o protect their rights."

  "Are you volunteering?"

  She didn't want to be involved in this. It wasn't her problem. She had enough of her own to face. "I'm not registered in this state." Stifling a lot of legal advice she could impart, she settled for putting her hand on his arm as comfort, possibly unwanted and unneeded, not to mention likely ineffective. The movement drew his attention, and he lifted his gaze to her. At first his expression appeared blank, then his eyes softened.

  Her heart suddenly fluttered, her cheeks burned, and she pulled her hand back. Don't get drawn in. You have enough going on. "Just be careful and protect yourself. If you need to get a lawyer, do it. This is too important to leave to chance. You need to prove you didn't participate in the cheating. You can't just expect people to believe a negative about you because you think they know you. They know the other teachers involved too. The paper said there'd been parties where the teachers got together, ordered pizza, and changed answers. You have to prove you were somewhere else when the manipulation was going on. Find out when those parties took place and sync those dates and times with your whereabouts. Is that possible?"

  "I could find witnesses that show I was here at the bar. My folks would know."

  "They're too close to you. It would be better if it were non-family members. But, you're getting the picture. Start to figure it out."

  He gave her an unhappy, defeated gaze. "Sounds like lawyerly advice."

  "This is all common sense."

  "You're right. I need to get more information."

  "Okay, that's good then." Don't dig yourself in, Norah. "I'd better go. It looks like it's getting busy again."

  "Thanks for dropping by, Norah. It's good to see you again. And I mean it. B Falls is usually a very nice town." He held the door open for her. "Do you need an umbrella? It's pouring."

  "I've got a little one here." She dug the mini out of her purse and, with that, headed out into the heavy downpour. Racing the block to her house, she took refuge on the big front porch. Good Lord, she'd never seen so much rain. The center of town was on an elevation and the rain flowed along the curbs downward into the Falls River. She could hear the gurgling, racing roar of water through the pounding torrents from above even from across the street where the house stood.