“That is what I’m trying to tell you. The dinner was partially paid for. You will be receiving a bill for the remaining portion, including the food that was not served,” the woman in black said calmly.

  “Are you kidding me? Who negotiated this stupid contract?” Anastasia’s voice rose several decibels, and she stomped her foot. “Fine. Whatever. Send it to the reunion committee. I can’t be bothered with that now.” Anastasia stepped closer toward the woman. With barely an inch or two of space between them, Anastasia glared down at the other woman, who didn’t flinch.

  “Who do I send it to?, is what I’m asking,” the woman said in a lower tone.

  “Send it to the school. They’ll get it to the proper folks. Or send it wherever you sent the others.” Anastasia waved her hand like she was shooing the woman away.

  The exasperated woman threw her hands up and walked off. I feel for her. Nobody wants such a difficult client. Thankfully, I got paid in advance. I hope Annie did too.

  Before Cassidy could plan her next move, Kelly stormed down the hallway, carrying her shiny pink shoes.

  “Hey,” yelled Anastasia. “That rude woman said the dinner bill wasn’t paid. What’s that about? I’m not responsible for any of this!” Her volume increased with each sentence. “And you all can bet I’m not getting saddled with the bill.”

  Kelly shrugged and kept walking. “You wanted to be in charge. Deal with it. It’s your job. Figure it out,” she giggled.

  “Oh, you aren’t running out now!” Anastasia bellowed.

  “Whatever.” Kelly teetered in her bare feet and leaned on the nearest wall to steady herself. Then she resumed her trek down the long hallway.

  “I’m not finished talking to you,” Anastasia yelled, stomping after Kelly.

  “Well, I’m done talking to you.” Kelly stopped and turned quickly, causing her to sway even more. “I have nothing more to say. I’m done with all this.” After a couple of seconds, she waved her free hand around. “And I’m sick of you bossing everyone around. Who do you think you are? Britt would have hated this, and you know it. This whole thing has been one big flop.”

  “Quit dissing Britt. You know she worked so hard to make all this happen. She had a vision.” Anastasia’s voice rose several octaves. “And you, what are you staring at?” Anastasia pointed a bony finger at Cassidy. “This is probably all your fault.”

  Surprised at the sudden verbal attack, Cassidy stepped back, not quite sure how to respond.

  “She would have hated all this,” Kelly repeated. “Joyce was right, Anastasia: you’ve ruined everything. And leave Cassidy out of this. This is all your fault. As usual!”

  Anastasia let out a growl that sounded like a wounded animal, and she lunged toward Kelly, knocking her to the carpet and landing atop her, the two becoming a tumbleweed of arms and legs on the royal blue carpet.

  The two women wrestled around in the foyer for several minutes. Cassidy watched in horror, not sure if she should wade into the middle of it. Anastasia got in a couple of good scratches before Kelly pulled her hand back and whacked her on the forehead with the heel of her shoe.

  The brassy blonde groaned and bobbled for a moment. Before round two could start, the woman in the dark suit and two men rushed in to separate the women. “Enough,” the woman barked. “Take them to the library and the office and let them cool down.” She grabbed Kelly under the arms and pulled her away from Anastasia, who kept swinging her arms in the air.

  It took both men to pin Anastasia’s arms down and drag her to a standing position. She jerked away from them. “I don’t need you to touch me. This is ridiculous. Get away from me!”

  “This way, please,” the taller man said, pointing to the library.

  “It’s all her fault,” Kelly yelled as she was escorted to the office.

  “She started it,” Anastasia yelled. “She attacked me. I can’t believe how lax your security is around here. You’ll be hearing from my lawyer!” One of the men grabbed her elbow and guided her across the foyer. “Let go of me. Don’t touch me. I can walk on my own,” she yelled.

  Cassidy took that as her cue to hurry out the front door. She rushed to her Wrangler without looking back. Pausing to catch her breath, she rummaged through her purse and the glove compartment, looking for something to write on. Finding an old envelope, she spent a few minutes by the light of the dashboard jotting notes about what she had heard this evening. Maybe some of the pieces are starting to fit together. At least there appear to be some stronger motives now for the murders.

  21

  LATE SATURDAY EVENING

  Cassidy sped home and hardly remembered any of the drive. Thoughts of all the bizarre connections between the reunion folks kept popping into her head. When her head started to throb, she decided to take Elvis for a long walk. Maybe it would help burn off some of the nervous energy that she could feel building inside her.

  The pair walked the perimeter of the old farmhouse under the floodlights and out to the edge of the wooded area near the garden. The grotto looked spooky in the shadows, so she guided the chihuahua toward the rose bushes. “One more day of this, Elvis. I was hoping the police would have made an arrest by now, but it didn’t turn out like that. I guess not everything is like it is on TV.”

  The little dog turned his head and marched toward the koi pond. Cassidy switched on the flashlight app on her phone and trotted after him. “All your fish friends are asleep. We can check on them tomorrow.”

  Still interested in the pond, Elvis inched closer to the landscaping, outlined with rocks.

  A twig snapped somewhere in the distance, and Cassidy froze. The little dog continued his exploration. Cassidy strained to listen for other noises.

  Chalking it up to the wind or woodland creatures, she tugged gently on Elvis’s leash. “Come on. It’s been a long night. We’ll visit the fish again tomorrow when the sun’s out.” And it’s not so eerie out here.

  Reluctant to follow, Elvis stubbornly continued his sniff fest around the flowerbeds.

  In an attempt to maintain her patience, she counted to ten and mentally worked through her to-do list for the next day while her four-legged pal enjoyed his adventure.

  Another snap and the sound of footsteps echoed across the garden. Elvis whipped his head up, growling—now on full alert.

  “I heard that too,” Cassidy whispered, scooping him up and running toward her apartment. She didn’t stop until she’d slammed the door shut behind her and made sure the deadbolt was in place.

  Rushing upstairs, she stared out the window, looking for the slightest hint of movement. When her legs started to get restless, she moved on to the bedroom window for another view of the woods. “There’s nothing out there, Elvis. It must have been a bird or some other kind of animal.”

  He turned his head and jumped up onto the end of her bed. Too amped up to turn in, she hurried to the dining room and booted up her laptop. Maybe the cameras caught something.

  Two peach teas later and nothing on any of the camera feeds, Cassidy pulled out her notes and spreadsheet. After another hour or so, she rose and stretched. She had added all the tidbits from this evening and rearranged her suspect wall. Something had set Anastasia off tonight, and it had turned into a storm when she went after Kelly. This animosity has been building for years, and I think the reunion pushed them over the edge.

  Cassidy plopped back down in her chair and stared at the wall until her eyes were bleary. What am I missing? It’s like that feeling that it’s on the tip of my tongue. It’s got to be right here.

  Shaking off the grumpy mood, she padded into the kitchen and put some popcorn in the microwave. Snacks couldn’t hurt. At this point, I’ll take any help I can get. I’m usually pretty good at figuring out puzzles and people. This one has me stumped.

  At the sound of the microwave beep, Elvis trucked into the kitchen to see what was going on with the smell of buttery goodness wafting through the apartment.

  “I gotcha covered, buddy.” Elvis yipped and followed her to the dining-room table. She tossed him a puffy white sample as she slid into her chair.

  “Okay, we know Darcy was killed first. Then Britt. Darcy was carrying on an affair with Britt’s husband. Britt enjoyed being the center of attention. Everything she did advanced that cause. And there were a lot of folks from Britt’s past who were not fans. She is the hub for all these points,” Cassidy said, ticking the items off on her fingers. “Then there’s Kelly. She’s been friends with Britt for years. And Anastasia. At times, she’s Britt’s biggest fan, but then she dissolves into burning anger in less than a few seconds. And we haven’t even mentioned who bonked Austin on the head. That’s a tough one. He’s a tall guy. If the attacker were one person, he or she would need a way to haul Austin out of the barn. I can’t imagine someone dragging a limp bartender—especially someone his size—all the way to the garden. It’s not feasible. Austin remembers being in the barn, but not anywhere else. So I’m going with ‘he was attacked in the barn.’”

  She hopped up and moved a couple of the sticky notes around on the wall and added an Austin column. “Well, Elvis, we know it wasn’t Britt or Darcy. Sadly, that’s about all we know for sure.”

  Looking back at the wall, she said, “So, was it one or two people? I think two random, unrelated murders would be too much of a coincidence. So scratch that. But, I guess it could be one person. Or, what if Britt was somehow involved initially. Enraged about being betrayed? Then someone, maybe a partner, killed her?”

  Cassidy’s head started to throb again. “I’m missing some pieces.” She laid her head down on her folded arms on the table and stared at the wall.

  When her arms began to tingle, she shifted and opened her eyes. “Elvis, how long have I been asleep? Three a.m.? It’s time for bed. We’re not getting anywhere. Maybe something will come to me later. And I need to think of a way to get what I learned at the reunion dinner to Zac. I think it might be helpful. But I don’t want him to think I’m spreading gossip or things that will cause him to go down a rabbit hole.”

  Not interested in any more talk of murders, Elvis trotted off toward the bedroom. Cassidy followed and brushed her teeth. She changed into an oversized T-shirt and yoga pants and fell into bed. The soft mattress and cozy comforter pulled her to the edge of sleep, but her thoughts kicked in, keeping her awake. She stared at the dark ceiling for what felt like hours. Elvis had no problem drifting off into a deep slumber, punctuated every couple of minutes with a loud snore.

  Images of Britt and her gang flashed across her consciousness like someone quickly clicking through an old View-Master. After tossing and turning for what seemed like forever, Cassidy hopped up and poured herself a glass of milk. I’m looking at this all wrong.

  Elvis scampered in and made himself a snoozing spot under the dining-room table. “Thanks for the company, baby. Okay. When Austin got hurt, I saw a blonde in black on one of the cameras. That could have been Kelly, Anastasia, Joyce, or Meg. What did Austin do or overhear that caused someone to attack him? Or did he do something that someone didn’t like? And then there were the other dramas. Anastasia and Kelly had a knock-down drag-out. Anastasia and Britt had several dustups. Vince was cheating with a gal Britt was trying to impress. And Mac, the first husband, was still living his glory days like he didn’t want anything to change from high school. Is he harboring some deep-seated resentment toward Britt—and life—moving on without him?” Cassidy sighed and stared at the wall.

  Elvis darted to the door and growled. The short hair on the back of his neck stood up, making him seem a half-inch taller. “What did you hear, baby?” He barked a response, and she slid on a pair of tennis shoes by the door, grabbing her giant flashlight and phone. Tiptoeing down the stairs, she listened as a faint knocking got louder.

  She peeked out and spotted the back of Anastasia, who was hunched over. When Cassidy pulled the door open, Anastasia shoved her phone in her pants pocket. “Oh, I’m glad you’re home. And sorry it’s so late, but this is important,” Anastasia said breathlessly. “I need to talk to you.”

  Anastasia planted one hand on her hip. “Kelly needs our help. Come with me,” Anastasia said with a panicked look. Under the patio floodlight, her hair stuck out in all directions, and her makeup looked smudged. Cassidy hesitated, and Anastasia added, “We made up after the golf-course argument. We had some more drinks after everyone left. I couldn’t let her drive home, so I volunteered to drive her. She insisted that we come by your place. She wanted to see where Britt died. She got weepy and ran off into the woods. I can’t find her, and I’m afraid something bad will happen. You’ve got to help me. I don’t need this right now!” Anastasia grabbed Cassidy’s arm and yanked her out onto the patio. “You gotta help me.”

  Cassidy steadied herself. “Where did she go?”

  “That way,” Anastasia pointed off into the distance. “What if she can’t live with the guilt of what she’s done?”

  “What?” Cassidy stopped mid-stride.

  “No time to explain. I think Kelly did all this. We’ve got to help her and talk her out of whatever she’s thinking in her addled state. We can’t have another death.” Anastasia pulled Cassidy in the direction of the barn. “Kelly was always jealous of Britt. She wanted what she had. She wanted to be her, and doing her in finally gave her that chance. I can’t believe Kelly’s the killer. Come on.” This time, Anastasia pushed Cassidy toward the woods.

  Cassidy looked around wildly, wondering if her contract security guard was on the property at this hour. No time to notify anyone. There can’t be a third death related to this reunion. She let out a heavy sigh. “Wait,” Cassidy yelled.

  “What is wrong with you?” Anastasia hissed. “We’ve got to find her. We’ve got to get a move on. Quit stalling.”

  “Does she have a weapon?” Cassidy whispered.

  “I don’t think so. Just those wicked stilettos she had on earlier. We’ve got to hurry before she does something we’ll regret.” Anastasia gave Cassidy another push that was more forceful than last time. “This way.” Anastasia led her toward the grotto. Then she changed her path and headed across the garden to the side of the barn. “I think she was heading this way. She kept whining that she had to go back to where we found Britt. Shhhhh! She may have found a way in.”

  Anastasia stopped suddenly near the corner of the barn. Cassidy took advantage of the pause and fired off a group text to the Pearly Girls. Hopefully one of them—probably Roxie—was still awake. The only sound Cassidy could hear was Anastasia’s heavy breathing. Pushing her luck, Cassidy fired off a text to Zac about what was going on. Hopefully, someone will get her message and send help. I have to find out what is going on.

  Anastasia’s husky voice jarred Cassidy from her thoughts. “I think I see her. Be quiet and follow me. There’s no telling what kind of state she’s in. Or what she’ll try. We already know she can be violent. And she’s been on another drinking binge since last night.”

  Conflicting thoughts banged around in Cassidy’s head and crashed into each other. What did Anastasia say? Her description of Kelly sounded nothing like what she knew about the other woman. A jolt of fear rocketed through Cassidy. Kelly didn’t act the way Anastasia described her. She’s not the one harboring a grudge for all these years. In an instant, all kinds of things about Anastasia flashed through her head as though she were watching some rapid-fire slideshow. The puzzle pieces snapped into place, and Cassidy shuddered as she glanced over at Anastasia. Cassidy felt a wave of calmness wash over her. I need to find Kelly and get her away from this woman.

  As if Anastasia could read her thoughts, she turned and grabbed Cassidy’s upper arm. Her acrylic talons pressed little dents into her skin. “We’ve got to help her. Now get a move on.” She tightened her grip and led Cassidy around to the barn’s back door. The outside light shed a tiny yellow glow in the darkness of the early morning.

  “Kelly, open this door,” Anastasia yelled, pounding on the door with her fist. “Now! We’re here to help you. We know you’re inside. I can hear you yelling. Open this door. Now! You have a husband and kids. Think of your family and friends. Whatever you’ve done, we can fix it.” Anastasia continued to slam her hand on the door.

  She stopped moving for a moment, and her hair, even wilder than before, stuck out like she had received an electric shock. “I think she said go away. I can barely hear her now,” Anastasia said. “Kelly, we’re not leaving. Open this door, or we’ll bust it down. Come on. We can straighten all this out. Don’t be afraid.” She paused again. “Do you have your keys?”

  “No. I can run back and get them,” Cassidy said.

  “No time,” Anastasia said breathlessly. “We’ve gotta find a way in. There’s a window. Let’s see if it’s unlocked.”

  Cassidy pulled out her phone, quickly dialed 911, and slid it back into her pocket, hoping her shirt would muffle the dispatcher’s voice. When she heard, “911, what’s your emergency?” Cassidy said loudly, “Anastasia, we’ve got to get help here now before Kelly hurts herself. The barn door is locked. Let me go get the keys. It can’t take that much time.”

  “I told you there is no time. Kelly is drunk and depressed. There is no telling what she will do. She’s dangerous, and we don’t have much time. We have to find her now!” Anastasia yelled.

  Ignoring the dispatcher’s questions, Cassidy tried to figure out ways to let the dispatcher know where they were without tipping off Anastasia, who stopped and fumbled with something in her pocket.

  22

  WAY TOO EARLY ON SUNDAY MORNING

  “I’ve got this. I know how to get in,” Anastasia said with a laugh that sounded more like a cackle. “I learned how to do this years ago when I forgot my keys and had to get back in the house before my mom found out I was out past curfew. And it was usually Britt’s fault.” She slid a credit card in the crack by the lock and wiggled it. “Darn. It was easier at home.” She pulled it out and tried again, this time leaning into the door. “It’s still not working. You must have newer locks.” Letting out a loud grunt, she banged on the door with both fists and let out a string of curses.