Killer Cupid (The Redemption Series: Book 1) (35 page)

***

The guests were seated at their tables, and the wedding party was introduced. Jimmy, accompanied by the world famous entertainer Aubrey Rose, received a wild round of applause from his buddies. More catcalls greeted the entrance of Alain and Glori. Paulo, admonished constantly to fix his tie, missed his cue while Cisco grabbed him to tie it. Flustered, he and Ellen finally came through the door. Raphael escorted me, and Cisco and Cat were next. Then Eduardo entered the room with Cindy on his arm.

At last the orchestra leader announced, “Mr. and Mrs. David Lambrecht will have their first dance as husband and wife – the Emperor Waltz.”

As the couple entered the hall and approached the dance floor, Marion looked like she’d faint. “Oh George!
The Emperor Waltz
? I hope Debbie has some idea how to do the waltz!” She wrung her hands. George stood frozen, his hands glued in front of him.

I could see David whispering to his wife as they approached the floor. Her timid expression vanished as he swept her into the dance. The crowd applauded, her parents and in-laws sighed with relief, her friends stood amazed. Debbie beamed up at her husband while gracefully following him in an elegant waltz. He had instructed the orchestra to play an abbreviated version, so as not to exhaust his bride. The dance complete, Debbie was energized. He picked her up in his arms to kiss her. Their parents and wedding party arrived on the dance floor.

Eduardo offered a toast for the happy couple. “I’m not the greatest when it comes to inspirational words, like
some
members of this family.” The audience laughed as he nodded to Cat and Paulo. “But, when I think of David and Debbie, I keep thinking of fate, and how one coincidental meeting changed lives. Saved lives. I know Debbie saved my best friend’s life, and I will always be indebted to her for that. And I think David gives her a reason to live every day. Just like she’s given him a reason to live. I know you two were meant to be together. Yeah, I guess Cat and Paulo really said it best with the song they dedicated to David and Debbie. It was Divine Intervention!” The guests applauded as he lifted his glass and said, “I wish for you both, the joy that you have today, now and always.”

The afternoon passed quickly. The dance floor remained crowded. With Eduardo and Raphael instigating, everyone was on their feet. Cindy, Glori and their friends were out of breath from laughter and exertion, as they practiced their ballroom dancing.

Camellia’s numerous warnings to Paulo to keep his tie and jacket neat were fruitless. By midafternoon most of the guests had removed jackets, ties, and shoes. Tony Cooke had been the first to follow Paulo’s disheveled example, he cavorted wildly about the floor with Cat’s cousin, Elizabeth.

David sat at the head table taking it all in, as he monitored yet another small meal Debbie was served. Eduardo and I stopped in front of the table.

“Looks like everyone’s favorite pilot has really hit it off with Elizabeth,” Eduardo said.

“Yes.” David coughed. “And who invited him anyway?”

“You invited him.” Eduardo laughed.

“No, you invited him.” David insisted.

“So what are you gonna do? Break his arm cuz he’s comin’ on to her?”

“That’s a good idea.” David looked as though he was truly considering the possibility.

“Aw! Don’t worry about it pal! It’s not like he’s gonna follow her back to Bermuda.”

“I know.”

David left his new wife in the care of his best man and me. Arriving on the dance floor, he inserted himself between Tony and Elizabeth. Displeased with his friend, Tony went to get a drink.

David guided Elizabeth smoothly to the Blue Danube, and we laughed as we watched him lecture her. Undoubtedly, he explained “Mr. Cookie” was a helicopter pilot who was after only one thing. By the end of the Blue Danube, Elizabeth looked a bit crestfallen. His work complete, David kissed her cheek and returned to Debbie.

The two of them, Eduardo and David, were worse than “Sister Mary Manager,” the control freak they always complained about.

David

He only wanted to be alone with his wife. His wife. The day was finally here – no one would keep them apart again. She must be exhausted. He was.

She was engrossed in conversation with her bridesmaids and a woman he did not remember from the receiving line. Eduardo stood to the side, and made a strange face.

“David!” Debbie was breathless again, and his gut ached for her. A few more hours, and he could rest with her in his arms. Clasping her from behind, he planted a kiss on her cheek, then looked up into hard, but familiar, blue eyes. Everett!

“David. This is Tamara Everett. She just got here.”

“Nice to meet you.” He smiled and reached for her outstretched hand. He saw Eduardo roll his eyes.

Debbie twisted in his arms and looked up at him. “Tamara and her mother came today. They didn’t think they would make it, David. It’s very hard for them to celebrate lately, you know.”

“Oh. I’m terribly sorry.” He nodded straight-faced.

“Yes, David. Daddy says her dad was the best senator California ever had!”

He watched Eduardo bite his lip. His bride sprung from his arms, and he noticed the light bulb going off in her head. His stomach tightened.

She grabbed Tamara’s hand. “Let’s go see General Pearson. Maybe he’ll be able to have David work on your case. I know he can find the man that did it!”

The Cast of Characters in The Redemption Series

The Secret Agents:

General John Pearson

Colonel Jerry Lee “JL” Johnson

Agent David Lambrecht, aka Cupid, aka David Henning

Agent Eduardo Clemente, aka Eduardo Soares

Agent Jimmy Hollinger

Agent Alain Dusseault

Agent Gilbert

Pilot Tony “Cookie” Cooke

Staff

Agent Washington and his security force

Betty, the General’s secretary

Dr. Earle

Ellen, the candy striper

Drug Traffickers, criminals and associates:

Senator Joe Everett

Albert Santoro

Dr. Bill Payne

Darla Wilde, aka Darla Winston

Sylvie Mason

“Z” the assassin

Juan Rodriguez

Alfonso Pizarro

The Beverly Hills Families:

The Aldridge Family

George & Marion

Debbie

Grammy (deceased)

The Bainbridge Family

Bud & Dottie

Cindy (Cin)

Doug

Rod & Julie

Geoff & Susan

Glori Coulson
—
“adopted” at age 14

The Coulsons

Don & Jenny

Glori

Friends

Tamara Everett

Kendra Cole

Becky

The Salzburg Families

The Lambrecht Family

Frederick & Maria

David

Paul Daniel (Danny) (deceased)

Cat (Catherine) Connors (cousin “adopted” at age 5)

The Clemente Family

Francisco & Camellia

Cisco

Eduardo

Paulo

Dr. Nita (Anita) Lopez-Garcia (Eduardo’s fiancée)

The Dominguez Family

Papa Roberto (grandfather) & Rosa (deceased)

Roberto & Sofia

Raphael

Music Industry

Aubrey Rose, pop icon, international superstar

Joe Harris, manager

Doug Bainbridge, producer

Robby Wilson, musician

Kurt Schneider, musician

Debbie’s Doctor

Dr. Gallagher

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Read an Excerpt from Book 2 in The Redemption Series:

Fame, Fortune & Secrets

Debbie

The news broke the day after David and I returned to Los Angeles from our honeymoon in Austria. One of David’s girlfriends turned up dead, and the other disappeared. Since David was a secret agent, this was terrible news.

Early that morning, David had dropped me off to spend the day with my best friend Cindy Bainbridge. I knew he always worried about me, and the Bainbridge mansion had the very best security. Plus I had so much to discuss with Cindy. I brought the album from our trip so I could show her everything. And I presented her with a painting I’d done of our new home near Salzburg. She loved it almost as much as I did, and promised me she’d visit us there.

Cindy gave me a big hug, and we settled down to tea and muffins on the patio, the album at the ready.

But Glori ran over with a tabloid paper yelling, “Turn on the TV!” Then she tossed the newspaper onto the table. “Quick!”

The tone in her voice brought me back to the time in the hospital when she yelled at Cindy to turn on the TV because our family friend, Senator Everett, and all his bodyguards were murdered and thrown into the ocean. That was last December 26
th
, the day I first met David.

We’d been through a lot in the last six months, but as I scanned the paper I knew this could really be trouble.

There was a picture of David on the front page, dressed in his uniform. The other picture showed a pretty woman with large breasts and a low-cut outfit. It said she was a performer at a gentleman’s club. The headlines were disturbing.

Secret Agent Drug Dealer Sex Scandal: “We lived in luxury on government money … He kept us both as love slaves!” – Stripper Sylvie Mason tells her own true story!

Before Glori could turn on the TV, or I could read any more, Agent Washington, the man in charge of security, appeared in the doorway.

“Mrs. Lambrecht, General Pearson’s secretary called. The General wants you to come with me now. If you like, Miss Bainbridge and/or Miss Coulson can accompany you.” He swept the newspaper from in front of me, as I remembered, yes, I’m Mrs. Lambrecht now. And it thrilled me all over again.

Cindy and Glori did not look thrilled.

“Let me change. I’ll be just a minute.” Cindy patted my arm and looked at Glori.

“I’m comin’ too.” Glori nodded. She’d never miss an opportunity to get involved in a juicy story.

Cindy reached down to hug me. “It’s going to be okay, honey.”

But I think she said that to convince herself.

Glori studied my face, her hard green eyes boring into mine. Then she smiled her movie star smile at Cindy. “Yup, Cin. Denial is a river in Egypt.”

David

After he’d greeted his friends and colleagues in the conference room, David took a seat at the table. It had been almost a month since he’d seen them, and they quizzed him about his honeymoon.

General Pearson walked through the door and ended the conversation. As the four men stood, he addressed David. “Lambrecht, I need to speak with you privately. In my office.” He left as his secretary deposited four large folders on the table. David followed the General to his office.

Pearson stood at his large, sunny window, overlooking the base. A newspaper was tucked under his arm. “David. Have a seat please.”

He sat. What now?

“Sylvie Mason is dead, David. I’m sorry.”

“What?” Shock and sadness overtook him.

“Yes, it was a heroin overdose. She killed herself.”

He shook his head. “I’m so sorry to hear that. I can’t believe she killed herself – not intentionally.”

“I’m afraid there’s more to it.” Pearson unrolled the paper and laid it on the desk facing him. “She told her story to the Weekly World Gossip, and then last night, before the story came out, she overdosed on heroin. Of course, now it’s all over the news. My phone’s been ringing off the hook all morning. The media kept showing those photos of you and Clemente the night you caught up with Santoro. She must have seen them.” He rubbed his face and returned to the window.