Monster in My Closet

by R. L. Naquin

  No wonder they didn’t bother helping her with anything. I needed something to eat. I was getting cranky.

  Out of my emergency kit, I pulled a hand sewing machine. I wasn’t able to match the thread exactly, but it was close enough. Once Karen was out of her dress, I had it fixed in three minutes.

  I’m so organized.

  Having dealt with the first round of catastrophes, I ran out the door promising to check on Aidan. Gail wasn’t exactly perky, but her eyes were dry and she was making progress toward getting dressed.

  In the hallway, I ran into Andrew. I wanted to stop and hug him, but I had no time.

  “Walk with me,” I said. I checked my texts while we sprinted to the groom’s quarters. Sara was running late but should be there any minute. “For the time being, will you be me? I need you to run down to the reception area and direct traffic. I have a horrible feeling work has stopped while I’m up here. Brad’s alone with two giggly females. Can you crack a whip over them?”

  “That’s my dream job.” He gave my shoulders a squeeze and disappeared into the elevator.

  Aidan and his boys were, of course, hung over and self-medicating with the proverbial hair of the dog. They were obnoxious as hell, and one of them actually grabbed my butt, but they were getting ready.

  On my way out the door, I pointed at the stubble-faced guy in the corner. “Somebody get the ass-man a razor. No grizzly bears in the wedding photos.”

  I trekked to the bride’s room and stuck my head through the door. “Aidan’s fine, Gail. Everybody’s getting ready. No worries. Do you need anything else before I go?”

  She looked much more relaxed than she had a half hour before. “I’m kind of thirsty.”

  I scowled at the women lounging around the room. “Ladies, room service. Get her a drink. Your job today is to get yourselves ready and to wait on her. She should not have to be thirsty. Not with all these people here to take care of her.”

  The women looked startled and stopped chattering. Erin picked up the phone and dialed. Externally, I smiled my brightest smile. Inside, I was rolling my eyes. These women were in their mid-to late-twenties. They were behaving like teenagers. I was going to have to make several more trips up there before the ceremony.

  By the time I reached the parking lot, Sara was pulling herself out from behind the steering wheel. Her skin was pale and papery, her eyes ringed with dark puffiness. But she was dressed nicely, if slightly wrinkled by her standards (not mine), and her hair was tidy. I knew at a glance she would be lagging behind.

  “I’m sorry I’m late,” she said. “My alarm didn’t go off.”

  I almost pointed out that it was well after noon, but it didn’t seem worth the effort. First thing Monday morning, I was taking her to a doctor whether she agreed to it or not. Possibly sooner.

  Normally at a wedding this size, she’d be running as hard as I was. She was far too out of it for that this time. I got her set up folding napkins and passing them over to Brad and his mini-harem.

  “Just keep an eye on them and keep things going, okay?”

  She smiled at me in an absent way and started humming while she folded.

  I snagged Andrew by the arm and pulled him aside.

  “She looks like hell,” he said.

  I nodded. “I’ll take care of her. The sooner we get through today, the sooner I can get her to a doctor.”

  “Zoey, what’s wrong with her? I’ve never seen an aura like that. It looks so thin and brittle.”

  I watched her for a moment, frowning with worry. “She hasn’t been sleeping. Should we take her to the emergency room?”

  Andrew squinted at her. “It doesn’t look like she’s sick, exactly. Just worn out. I think she can make it through the wedding. I’ll keep an eye on her, then we’ll take her in tonight.”

  I nodded, relieved to have him there. Sara was okay for the moment. We just had to get through this afternoon.

  Andrew and I stepped into the chapel for a quick once-over. “Where the hell are the decorations? The extra chairs are here, but the runner and the flowers haven’t been set up.”

  I dashed out the door with Andrew trailing behind me. We located the chapel decorations and pulled Frankie in to help us haul them over and set up. Halfway through, I left them to it, ran back to check on Sara, then tore up to the bride’s room to look in on her.

  If I’d had time for my mind to wander, I’d have been daydreaming about the upcoming vacation I hadn’t realized I needed.

  Alma Dickson had given up on her false eyelashes and was now harassing her daughter.

  “This wouldn’t have happened if you had a tighter rein on your fiancé,” she said. “I have two hundred and fifty people waiting to see my daughter get married, and you let him and his no-good friends go out drinking last night.” She paced the floor, shooting eyeball darts at each of the women in the room before returning to her daughter. “I can’t have anything go wrong today.”

  Gail huddled on the bed in a sea of white satin, lace and tulle, her face pink, tears threatening to spill.

  I stood in the doorway, fuming. I’d had enough of this hateful woman.

  My smile was fierce. “Mrs. Dickson, I need to see you in the hallway, please.”

  She waved me off. “In a minute. I’m speaking to my daughter.”

  “Now.”

  The chill in my voice broke through to her, and her head swiveled in my direction.

  “Excuse me?” Her painted eyebrows shot up into her hairline.

  “I need to see you in the hall. Now.” I pushed the door open the rest of the way and stepped aside.

  She was fuming by the time I got her outside the room and closed the door behind us. “You do not speak to me that way,” she said. “You work for me, and I…”

  I raised my hand to stop her. “This is not your day. This is hers. You are not the main event today, Mrs. Dickson, and browbeating the bride is unacceptable behavior from anyone, even you. Making the bride cry on her happy day is something you wouldn’t allow anyone else to do. I don’t know why you think it’s okay for you.”

  I could feel her anger pounding against my defenses like a drummer in a middle school band.

  She sputtered, but didn’t find any words. She probably didn’t have enough experience with people standing up to her to know what an appropriate response might be.

  “Now,” I said. “You hired us to coordinate all this. Everyone has a job to do, and I need you to do what you do best.” I gave her my most professional smile. “I have members of the press downstairs needing direction. Would you be so kind as to answer their questions and show them where they need to be, Councilwoman Dickson?”

  Her entire demeanor changed. Her professional smile matched mine, she straightened the jacket on her pantsuit and stalked to the elevator without another word.

  Frankly, I didn’t care anymore if she dropped a truck full of dead sea bass into my office. Shut us down, I dare you. I’ll run for city council myself and kick your ass to the street, you old bat.

  Forty-five minutes later, I had the bridal party in their places and ready for the ceremony. I’m not sure how I pulled it off.

  Sara should have been helping me herd the wedding party, but I hadn’t seen her since planting her at the reception tables with the napkins. I could only hope she was busy arranging centerpieces and overseeing the catering staff. The groom and his half of the party were at the front of the chapel. I sent the bridesmaids down at regular intervals, Gail and her parents went through the door, and I was free. My shoulders had been up around my ears, but with the bride sailing down the aisle with a smile on her face, I relaxed in tiny increments. Round one was complete.

  “Psst.”

  I jumped. Maybe I was still tenser than I thought. I was alone in the foyer. I had to have been hea
ring things.

  “Psst. Zoey!” The whisper was not my imagination. I made a circle, looking around the empty room. Nobody was there.

  From a dark cloakroom, a familiar, chalk-white hand fluttered at me. “In here!”

  “Maurice?” I went into the cloakroom and flipped on the light.

  Maurice was pressed up against the back wall, his eyes larger than usual, peering over my shoulder in agitation.

  “What the hell are you doing here? How did you get in here?”

  “Technically, it’s a closet.” He said this as if it explained everything.

  “Kind of busy here. What’s wrong?”

  His hands were splayed out and gesturing like an Italian on six cups of espresso. “She’s gone. Nobody’s seen her since this morning. I don’t know what to do, Zoey. I know you’re busy, but she could be hurt or worse, and the longer she’s gone the more scared the kids are, and I’m just not equipped for this kind of problem. I don’t know what to do.”

  “Hold on, deep breath. Who’s missing? Molly?”

  “Yes, Molly, who else would I be talking about?” He sounded exasperated. “She went out this morning saying she had errands to run and she’d be back in a little while. That was seven hours ago. I’ve looked everywhere.”

  “Who’s watching the kids?”

  “Iris is keeping an eye on them. I told him not to let them out of his sight, in case, you know, their dad tries to come for them, too.”

  “You think he has Molly?”

  “Where else could she be?”

  For a moment, I worried that Sebastian had planted the idea of his appearance at this wedding as a decoy so he could get to Molly. But no. I had to trust the Demon Handbook that my house was outside his territory. Sausalito was as far as he could go. Molly might be dealing with her jerk of a husband, but she was safe from the incubus.

  This was so not part of my plan for the day. “I can’t leave here right now, Maurice. I’m worried, too, but I have to see this through first. I’ll come home as soon as I can, but it’s going to be several hours. Keep looking for her. She can’t be far. Tell Aggie. Maybe she’s got a way to track her.”

  Maurice looked disappointed, as if he thought I could fix this. I’d grown to depend on him so much, I hadn’t realized how much he depended on me, as well.

  I felt terrible. Guilt seemed to be my most often-used emotion these days. “Listen,” I said, “keep the kids inside. Get everyone searching. We’ll find her, and she will be fine. I need a few more hours, and I’ll come home and help.”

  Maurice looked doubtful. “She’s part of our family, Zo.”

  “I know she is.” I wanted to cry. I was as worried as he was, but I couldn’t show it or we’d both fall apart. “We’ll find her.”

  “What are you doing in the coat closet?” Andrew’s appearance made both of us jump. “Hey, Maurice. What’s up?”

  The closet monster looked cornered, as if he were fighting off a panic attack. “Molly’s missing.”

  “Well, shit,” Andrew said. He looked from Maurice to me, his face serious. “Sara’s missing, too.”

  I groaned and smacked my forehead with my palm. It hurt. Deep breaths, Zoey. You can handle this. Delegate. Breathe and delegate.

  “Maurice, you have to find Molly. I’m sorry I can’t help right now. And I swear, it’s killing me. But I have to find Sara and see this reception through till it’s running on its own steam. I’m trusting you to handle this. You can do it. You’re the one with all the resources. If she’s in trouble, you’re the one who can get her out of it.”

  Maurice nodded his head, his face solemn. “I’ve got it, Zoey.”

  I was looking right at him, but my eyes refused to focus. It was the oddest sensation. He was there, and then he wasn’t. I was staring at shadows and blemishes on the wall that looked like him. It was as if his presence had been in my imagination, a trick of the light. If I hadn’t talked to him, I might have believed he’d never existed.

  “Weird,” Andrew said, reaching forward and patting the wall.

  “Wish I had that skill right now,” I said. “Where did you see Sara last?”

  “Last I saw her, she was lighting candles.”

  “You let her play with fire?”

  “I didn’t ‘let’ her do anything. She was wandering around humming and fussing with things. I figured it was best to leave her be so she didn’t get into any trouble.”

  We sprinted to the reception area. Frankie and Adrianne were standing aside chatting while the caterers busied themselves with their setup. To my surprise, Brad was working hard, moving chairs around and adjusting place settings. Sara was nowhere. The girls didn’t remember seeing her in the last half hour. Andrew and I split up to cover more ground.

  In the parking lot, I found her car still locked and empty. I felt like an idiot poking my head around bushes, inside closets, under tables. I dialed her number. There was no response.

  No one I talked to had seen her recently. I checked at the front desk to see if Sara had checked herself into a room for a nap. Nope.

  I was in the hotel lobby and decided to check the parking lot one more time. I spun around toward the door and smacked into a man walking in.

  Riley grabbed me to keep me upright.

  My heart leaped at seeing him again. And then it sank. His beautiful gray eyes were filled with sadness.

  When your best friend has gone missing and the Grim Reaper shows up, it doesn’t much matter how long his eyelashes are.

  Sara was in serious trouble.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  I had to take a breath and assess the situation. The bridal party was due to come out of the chapel and head for the reception area any second, with no one from my office there to direct them. Molly was missing, possibly bleeding somewhere at the hands of her abusive husband. Sara was on her last legs, now missing and maybe dying in a back room somewhere. I was afraid my new squeeze had come to collect her soul.

  That about summed it up, and my brain was shutting down.

  Riley was holding me up by the elbows while I stood in place, trying to sort it all out. I needed a minute, that was all. Sure. If I could have a moment to reorganize, I could get back into action.

  I didn’t have a minute.

  Brad came barreling into the lobby like Paul Revere announcing the arrival of the British. In this case, it was the bridal party and guests he was heralding.

  “Zoey, I don’t know what to do. They’re flooding out of the chapel and milling around. I’ve never done this part before. I’m lifting and carrying, not hosting and directing.”

  Ah, but what I’ve always wanted to do is direct! Shut up, Zoey.

  As if a light switch had been thrown, I snapped out of my dazed confusion. “It’s like herding cattle. Tell the wedding party I had an emergency and direct everyone to the reception area. As long as they think someone is in charge, they should be fine.”

  He flicked his eyes to Riley and back to me. “Zoey, what are you doing out here? You have to come do this. I’m not capable.”

  “Brad, trust me. You’re capable. I need you to do this for me. Schmoozing is your thing. Sara’s sick and I have to find her.”

  Brad did not look happy. Truthfully, he looked a little shaken up. If I’d had time to ponder it, I might have enjoyed his lack of self-confidence. It was a rare sight.

  “Please, Brad,” I said. I knew my voice sounded desperate. “You wanted to prove to me you were reliable. I’m relying on you now. I’m trusting you with my business and my reputation. Please tell me I can count on you.”

  He straightened his shoulders and his face firmed with resolve. He nodded once, looked at Riley with narrowed eyes, then trotted off.

  I was so going to owe him after this.

 
I returned my attention to Riley. His fingers were digging into the flesh in my arms—or maybe that was my imagination, since I was distracted by the physical contact between us.

  “Where is she?” I said.

  He didn’t answer me right away. I could see he was worried, but I could also see the resolve on his face. “I can’t interfere, Zoey.”

  I jerked away from his grasp. “So don’t. But you got a text with my best friend’s name and location, correct? You’re here to make a pickup.”

  His head moved up and down once.

  “Then go find her. I’ll follow. But you are not taking her, I guarantee that.”

  His hand rose to touch my face and I took a step back. “You have to stay here,” he said.

  “No.”

  “You can’t follow me. I can’t have you there.”

  “The hell you can’t. I’m the only one who has a chance of saving her, and you can’t stop me.” I was yelling now, right in the middle of a posh hotel lobby. People were beginning to stare.

  Riley grabbed my shoulders before I could step out of reach again. His face was inches from mine. “You are staying here.”

  I twisted free. “No. I’m not.”

  He reached for me again and I pulled away. His exasperation was palpable, even with my walls sealed up tight. “Dammit, Zoey, stay out of the way. Sara’s wasn’t the only name in the text.”

  I felt the blood drain from my face. “He’s really here then.”

  “I don’t have those details.”

  “Take me there. Now.” I know I sounded bossy, but I felt more like a death-row inmate about to take the long walk. “I’m not arguing, and I’m not asking, Riley. Let’s get this over with.”

  Riley’s face sank, his head drooping in defeat. He took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. “I hate this job,” he said. He reached out and stroked my cheek, then turned away.

  I followed him to the reception area. I could see the guests outside talking, locating tables, admiring the breathtaking view of the Golden Gate Bridge below. I loved that view. Shame I might never see it again.