The Sassy Belles (16 page)

15

T
he morning sun streamed across my
face as I turned over in bed. Harry was standing to my left, in front of the
large mahogany antique armoire. He was putting his cuff links into his starched,
white European cotton oxford, staring into the mirror as usual. God, he did know
how to dress. He looked absolutely perfect
—s
traight out
of a magazine. He strived for that and expected it from me, too. I knew that as
he got closer to that Senate run later this year, he would need even more
“perfect” out of me. But I wasn’t sure I could play the part of Senate wife. All
the nodding and smiling and keeping quiet. I couldn’t begin to imagine how
un-opinionated I would have to be. I started squirming in my own bed at the
thought. I didn’t even remember crawling into bed with him the night before. I
must have been exhausted after all of my encounters at Meridee’s. I stretched
and moved in bed, getting his attention.

“Mornin’,” he said without taking his eyes off the mirror. He
kept fussing with his cuffs. “What time did you get home last night?”

“I don’t remember. You know Kitty. Talk your ear off all night
long if you let her.”

“Well, I’m glad you had a chance to see her. I know how much
you’ve missed her,” he said with more than a hint of sarcasm.

I kept watching him and trying to gauge my feelings toward him.
Am I feeling guilty, or do I want more with Sonny? What
am I doing?
I turned completely over and buried my head in my down
pillow.

“That bad?” Harry asked.

“Oh, yeah,” I assured him sheepishly. “You know Kitty. She just
wears you out.”

“I know,” he said. “You know, last night Sonny smelled just
like rose petals and it reminded me of that French milled soap you use all the
time. I told him he smelled a little prissy and he just laughed.”

Harry was tying his tie and just kept talking. I was dropping
off a building with the shock of that statement ringing in my morning-groggy
head. I was so ashamed. I turned over and faced the window so he couldn’t see my
face. “Well, I guess some people can be full of surprises.” I was not used to
being a bad girl. Did Harry know something? I wondered. I worried.

He turned and went into the bathroom to finish his hair in the
larger lighted mirror.

“Are you seeing Vivi today?” He changed the subject, thank
God.

“Yes,” I said.

“Okay, well, you need to let her know about the DNA
results.”

“Wanna see her later?” I asked.

“Not necessarily,” he answered. “You can bring her up to speed.
Call you later. I’ll be at the office. Wanda Jo called last night and she needs
me to drop by and sign some papers this morning. She has a delivery to make to
the courthouse on the Spiller case later today. Then I’ve got lunch with Sonny.
Join us?”

“Uhh…” How would I face Sonny? Sitting there between these two
men, it would be written all over my face. “I’ll see if my schedule works out.
Hopefully, I can catch y’all.”

But by then he was already halfway out the bedroom door,
answering his phone as he left. I sat up in bed as I heard the door slam,
reaching for the phone and pushing speed dial 1. I needed Vivi this second.

“Hey, Blake, any word?” She answered on the first ring. She was
clearly anxious for any news.

“Yes, actually. There was no match on the body parts, which
means you were right! That was definitely not Lewis! Tests came back
inconclusive on everything else—the clothes and the lipstick. But, Vivi, you
need to get over here now!” I was talking at the speed of light. “Honey, so much
has happened since I last saw you that I cannot even talk about it on the
phone.”

“Okay, I’m on my way.”

* * *

We were on our third cup of coffee by the time I told
the whole sordid tale of my moments with Sonny, both at Meridee’s and the one
just hours previous at the police station during the storm. I also spilled the
dirt on Meridee’s letters, Kitty’s jet-fueled arrival and departure, and my
unimaginable guilt.

“Good God,” Vivi kept saying, shaking her head, sipping from
her cup, her eyes wider and rounder with each new revelation. There was silence
between us after I finished, and she stared into her coffee mug deep in thought.
I waited, not exactly sure what would come next.

“Do you love Harry?”

My mouth opened wide for a quick answer, but no words came. I
was shocked, but not at the question. I couldn’t believe my lack of an answer
and how confused the question had made me feel. I wanted to say,
Of course I do,
but all I managed was a weak nod of my
head. Another “Good God,” from Vivi, and I knew I was all too transparent.

“What? I mean, yeah…yes. Of course I do!” I said. “I do!” But I
was a little too defensive. “Oh, Vivi, I don’t know what happened with Sonny. I
just… It felt…familiar…safe, you know?”

“Why the hell do you need safe, honey? Somethin’ else goin’
on?”

“Well, don’t we have enough going on here?” I shot back
sarcastically.

“But you’re the legal diva here. Aren’t you used to a lot going
on?”

I peeked over the steam rising from my cup and met her
eyes.

“It’s just that…Sonny made me feel like it all wasn’t real.
This, all of this—from Lewis, to the baby, to all those letters, even Dallas and
her stirring the pot. It was all just too much and I went for something that was
safe, predictable…an escape.”

“Honey, I’m real experienced in this area. And the choice to
kiss Sonny Bartholomew was not what I’d call safe,” Vivi reprimanded me. She
took another sip and then without looking up from her cup, she spoke four words
that stopped my heart.

“Do you want more?”

Once my heart stopped, it rose in my throat and choked me. I
decided not to answer. I had no answer. I didn’t know the answer. So I sat. I
could hear my own breath. A deafening silence fell over my kitchen. Seconds
swept slowly by on the French country wall clock. My eyes fixed on it while I
felt Vivi’s eyes burning a hole through my face.

“Well?” Vivi was both asking and accusing simultaneously. A
true talent and one only my best friend could get away with.

“Oh, Blake. I knew you had never really gotten him out of your
system. What are you gonna do?”

I felt a tear, but it never spilled. “I love Harry. You know
that, right?”

“Are you trying to convince me or you?”

The tear fell. “Sonny and I have a history, Vivi. It’s
something else. I don’t know. It’s unfinished.”

“Is he still married?”

Silence.

“If he is or if he isn’t, it makes no difference,” she
continued. “He’s always loved you. Always wanted to devour you. I’ve seen the
way he looks at you. He’s never stopped looking at you like that. He can’t even
stand near you without getting a serious woody!”

I stopped the tears and laughed. It was ridiculous of Vivi to
bring it up, but it was true and it made me smile. He was always ready to take
me the second he saw me. It was one of the things I loved about him. He made me
feel so desirable. So beautiful and feminine. That chemistry had been there
since we first laid eyes on each other back in the ninth grade.

I decided that Vivi should know the whole story, so I told her
about my plans to talk to Harry about a separation on our anniversary.

“Oh, my God, I had no idea you were so unhappy. Why didn’t you
tell me?” she asked.

“I don’t know, I guess I feel more comfortable in the role of
the strong shoulder, you know? I’m never good at sharing my own problems.”

“It makes me feel good to help you, too, sometimes,” she said.
“Listen, it’s obvious that this kiss with Sonny is not the cause of your
problems with Harry—it’s a result of them. So don’t feel guilty. I think if
there’s trouble with Harry, Harry surely knows it, too. This is something the
two of you are gonna have to face sooner or later, because you can be damn sure
Sonny isn’t going anywhere.”

Vivi stood up and grabbed her brown Coach bag. “Don’t think too
much about it. Let it go for today. I’m off to the baby doc. Can you imagine?”
She kissed me on the cheek. “I just know Lewis would be happy.” She paused and
smiled to herself. “He loves me, you know?” She took a deep breath. “Find my
man, Blake. I know he’s not dead. He’d never want to miss all this.” She arched
her auburn eyebrows and winked, patting her slowly changing belly.

I watched her head to the porch and I heard the back door slam
and her car leave my driveway. As the sounds of her car became more and more
distant, I felt my namesake creep in.

“I’ll just think about this
tomorrow.”
It was the Scarlett O’Hara way.
“Tomorrow is another day,”
and today was about finding Lewis.

16

B
y noon I was dressed with full
makeup and ready for anything. Tight black pencil skirt and crisp white blouse,
cherry-red lips and, of course, my pearls. I got to the office for a quick half
hour meeting with the Myrnas. This whole mess was intensifying every day. They
were pushing for us to get out of their way and let the bulldozers roll. No way
was that going to happen. They had called first thing that morning and demanded
a face-to-face meeting with me, wanting to know what I had found out about the
real estate deal. I told them I had asked for the final bid to be sent to me and
that put the whole thing on hold for now. I told them I should have the
information very soon and we would call them to set up the next meeting. But
they insisted they had to come by the office to hear that message in person. I
spent the next thirty minutes with old man Myrna and his son going over the same
damn details we’d discussed at our last meeting. I have to admit that Southern
men have a knack for wearing you down with plain old perseverance. But it was
not going to work this time. They were not going to wear me down. The historical
society was counting on me and I would not let them down.

“Those folks drive me nuts, Blake,” Wanda Jo said after the
Myrnas had finally shut the front door. “I swear, I really don’t know how you
put up with them. You are so patient.”

“Not really, I just needed them to leave,” I said as I
straightened my skirt. “I don’t have the new property bid yet. My lord, we just
requested it this morning and they come barging in here. I swear, bulldozing is
their middle name.”

“Me, I got no patience anymore. Everyone gets on my nerves
equally,” said Wanda Jo. We both laughed at her genuine honesty.

“Okay, Wanda Jo, I’m outta here for now. I’m meeting Sonny and
Harry at the University Club for lunch,” I said, grabbing my black patent Chanel
bag and keys.

“Well, that oughta be entertaining,” she said, full of
scarcasm. “You know that boy still has the hots for you, Blake. Everybody knows
it.”

“Can I bring you anything?” I offered, smiling and hoping that
she couldn’t see right through me.

“Are you asking me to give up my plans for some KFC and
The Price is Right?
My lunch breaks are serious
me
time, honey. You go on to your fancy club and think
of me sittin’ here with my chicken. Only the best for the help.” She laughed as
she talked, walking to the back of the office where the TV was.

I stepped out into the warm sun and got into my car. I kept
thinking about where Kitty was on this whole Meridee thing, so I decided to give
her a call.

“Hey, darlin’,” she answered.

“Hey,” I said, “have you talked to Meridee yet?”

“Nope. She’s still on that damn gambling boat off Biloxi. We’ll
have our answers soon, so don’t you give it another thought.”

“Mother, I want to say thanks.”

“For what, baby?”

“Well…just for being there last night.”

“You know that mamas just do what mamas gotta do. Love you.” I
sat there holding the phone under my chin. “Love you, too, Mama,” I said in the
silence. And I did. I was just beginning to realize how much.

* * *

I was feeling a little more courageous after talking to
my girls…Vivi and Kitty. Today, they were two of the three strongest women I
knew. Meridee, of course, was the third. I’d have to face Sonny and Harry sooner
or later, since we were all working on a case together. I had to get my head on
straight. It wasn’t ninth grade anymore. I called Harry as I was driving.

“Hey, honey, where are my boys?” I froze, stunned.
I cannot believe I just said that!
They were already
waiting for me at the University Club, Harry said, so I told him I’d be there
soon and then hung up as quickly as possible.

The club was truly one of the most beautiful spots in town. I
had my bridesmaids’ luncheon there. It was one of those old columned homes with
the wide porches all the way around, shaded by 200-year-old giant magnolias. Men
and women in black serving attire and white gloves waited the tables and kept
the sweet tea flowing. The club’s specialty? The very best Southern cooking
anywhere: fried chicken, of course, along with mashed potatoes and black-eyed
peas, corn bread, turnip greens with a chunk of fat back, fried okra and corn on
the cob. It made my mouth water just to think of it. Then there was the dessert
tray filled with the most delectable, scrumptious Southern confections. Peach
cobbler, lemon meringue pie, chess squares and, my personal favorite, red velvet
cake. I drove up to the circular drive, parked and handed the keys to the valet,
then ran up the front porch steps. A salt-and-pepper-haired gentleman greeted me
with a smile.

“Welcome, miss. Do you have a reservation?”

“I’m meeting Mr. Bartholomew and Mr. Heart for lunch. I’m not
sure which name the reservation is under.”

“Right this way, miss.” He gestured toward the beautifully
appointed dining room.

The University Club was originally an old plantation house. A
sweeping staircase commanded the front hall along with a cloakroom, a powder
room and two parlors. Toward the back, behind the stairs, was a grand dining
room full of original fireplaces trimmed with gorgeous moldings.

I heard the sounds of crystal glasses clinking and silver
tapping against bone china as I made my way down the spectacular grand
hallway.

I followed my host behind the grand staircase to the dining
room and spotted Harry and Sonny at a table by a window. Both stood as I
approached. Harry touched me first. Arm extended, he reached around my waist,
pulling me into him for a quick squeeze and a kiss on my cheek. I was staring
straight at Sonny. My face felt hot. Sonny stretched his hand out, so I leaned
over and he pecked my other cheek.
Uh-oh,
I thought.
Somebody’s gonna see that look on my face. Oh, dear
God. Come down from holy heaven and punish me now. I am a bad girl. I am
having bad thoughts.

I needed to pull it together. “Hey, you two. What have I
missed?”

“Unfortunately, not much.” Harry replaced his napkin in his lap
as he sat back down. He spoke in his usual professional tone, not making eye
contact with anyone.

“Yeah,” Sonny agreed. “Without more information, we’re gonna be
back to square one here before long.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, adjusting myself in my chair.
“Yes, iced tea would be great, please,” I said to the waitress who’d appeared by
the table. “Un-sweet, extra lemon.”

“The test results on those body parts showed they belong to a
man by the name of Walter Aaron. Bonita is on the case. There was a barge
accident about a week ago up the Warrior, north of here, and he fell off. I
think he suffered a little slicin’ and dicin’ under the boat because of the
propellers, which is why he turned up in the state he did. They’d been lookin’
for his body ever since the accident. Bonita is investigating it because
allegations are that he was
helped
off. What we know
for sure is that it isn’t Lewis.” The conversation and the iced tea flowed, as
though nothing—but everything—was somehow different.

Sonny looked at me, then glanced at Harry as he finished his
last bite of corn bread. “Hell, Blake. We gotta keep digging.”

“I’m working on a few leads,” I announced. “I’ll let you know
when I figure anything out.”

“What? You got something new?” Harry said, looking at me as if
he should know this. As though he couldn’t believe I’d made progress without
him.

I ignored him. “Can’t we run the DNA on the cigarette butts
with another lab? Maybe in Birmingham? There’s got to be the chance that we just
missed something,” I suggested.

“I thought of that, too,” Harry said, quick to insert himself
into the plans. “Might as well. We have nothing else at the moment.”

“How’s that Find Lewis campaign going?” I asked Sonny. “I hope
Dallas is sending everything she hears to you. Are there any leads coming with
any credibility?” I asked.

“We did get a bunch of crazy calls sighting Lewis from here to
Texas, but one call this morning caught my attention,” he answered. “I asked
Bonita to follow up and get back to me. She’s working on it right now.”

“Really?” asked Harry as he straightened his cuffs to hit the
cuff links. “What is it? Where was it?” He never looked at us. His eyes were
darting around the room to see if anyone noticed
him.

“That first call that came in the morning after the
disappearance, the one that said they saw him at the Birmingham bank…that same
bit of info has come in over and over. Seems like several people saw him at that
same bank. I thought we should check it out,” Sonny explained.

I had an idea. “Dallas said the call came in after Lewis went
missing. What time was that call made exactly?” I asked. “It takes an hour or so
to get to Birmingham. We could begin to figure out if these calls are credible
simply by knowing the time they claim to have seen him. It needed to be at least
an hour after the Lewis and Vivi ‘meeting,’” I said to Sonny.

“Exactly what Bonita is working on right this minute.”

Harry saw a judge he knew across the restaurant who was fixin’
to give him a big endorsement. He excused himself and headed over to her table,
making his way around the dining room the long way so as to shake as many hands
as possible. He was smiling and back-slapping; you’d never know we just came up
with the first plausible lead in his brother’s disappearance. When Harry was out
of earshot, Sonny spoke.

“You okay?” he said.

“Yes, actually,” I said, “doing great. You?”

“I had a hard time sleepin’ last night, but uh, other than
that…” He smiled at me. “Blake, seriously, I was thinking… You know, things look
pretty good for Harry and this run for office. Have you thought about what it
will really be like if he wins?”

That was a stunning question. I felt a wave of shock and
breathlessness bolt through me. Yes, I had been thinking about it, but when
Sonny said it, out in the open, and it was hanging in the air between us, it
choked me.

“Well, yes,” I said, my voice trembling as I spoke. “I have…” I
stopped midsentence and swallowed hard. “I guess I haven’t really thought about
it in such a way as I…” I trailed off again. I couldn’t get the words out. I
knew what he was asking. Did I realize that if Harry wins, I would be moving to
Washington, D.C.? I would be leaving Tuscaloosa, my family, my practice. I
couldn’t even imagine. Then, I suddenly realized, I would also be leaving
Vivi…and Sonny. I felt tears coming and swallowed hard. I cleared my throat and
took a sip of tea.

“I didn’t mean to upset you, Blake. I’m sorry. I was just
thinkin’, ya know? I mean after last night and…” Sonny was so sincere. He was
leaning across the table wanting to grab my hands. He touched my wrist lightly,
then retreated. We were trying to be discreet. This was one time I was glad
Harry was soaking up all the energy in the room.

“No, Sonny. You’re right. It’s all coming up soon and it
is
something I need to think about. I know it’s out
there but I never really imagined it like it was real.” I smiled a fake smile
and looked away at Harry laughing and talking. At that second, I couldn’t
imagine moving to D.C. with Harry. I knew my life was in Tuscaloosa and I had
some major decisions to make.
Good thing I have nothing
else going on in my life right now, so I can give this my full
attention,
I thought.

“Maybe he won’t win.” That broke the tension. We both laughed.
Harry returned from his little impromptu campaign stump and sat back down.

“Judge Shamblin will be publicly endorsing me at our next
fundraiser. That is a big one. Her backing is superimportant to the
strategy.” Judge Jane Shamblin was one of the Shamblin judges, a long line of
judges for several generations. They were filthy rich and had a ton of political
power. She and Harry had a mutually respectful relationship. Both of them sat on
the zoning board for the city and I knew he needed her backing. A person with
that much power and influence could mean the election. Harry took a sip of tea,
proud of himself for all the lunchtime stumping. His cell phone rang and he put
one finger in the air as if to stop us from speaking and slid right back out of
his chair. It was Dan the man. “Yes, I got it, just now, uh-huh, she says by the
next fundraiser…” He was talking as he stepped out on the side door to the
sunroom. I looked at Sonny. He smiled a dry smile. He knew I didn’t want to
leave Tuscaloosa, but he was gentleman enough to let me make my own
decisions.

“Blake, if you do wind up moving, just know there’s a cop here
that’s really missin’ ya.”

Sonny melted me. His curled-up smile and glistening brown eyes
had me. I smiled as the waitress appeared again and filled my glass.

Lunch ended with cobblers for the boys and red velvet cake for
me. Then the three of us left the University Club, the valet going for our cars
and me standing there stuck between Harry and Sonny. My past on one side, my
present on the other and my future…well, maybe that was me, alone in the
middle.