One of Us Is Dead(39)

Shannon adjusted her feet. “Well, what did she say exactly?”

“She said she was scared. That Dean had never been physical with her before the night of the gala, but he had been verbally abusive, and she was afraid of him one day taking it too far.”

“This might be out of line, but it’s more likely that Olivia would be handing out the beatings, not Dean,” Shannon said with a laugh.

I let out a huff of annoyance and tapped my foot on the floor repeatedly. I drank my whole glass of lemonade and then poured myself another.

“Now, now, ladies. Olivia’s our friend. If she’s in trouble, we should be there for her,” Jenny said.

“Like she was there for me when my husband left me for her?” Shannon pointed at me. I took another large gulp of lemonade.

“Let’s not get hung up on the past,” Karen said.

“The past? What do you mean, the past? The fucking past is standing right there,” Shannon pointed at me again.

There was no way I was going to get through to them. Shannon was clearly mad about something. Karen was a bit more understanding.

“You know what? If you ask me, Olivia could use a good beating.” Shannon cackled. Jenny, Keisha, Karen, and I held our breath at her comment and just stared.

“Anyway, I really think we should try to be supportive and encouraging of Olivia.” I took a seat in a salon chair, crossing one leg over another. They all looked at each other, waiting for someone to speak up. I bounced my foot up and down, hoping they would get on board. I knew Olivia was no ray of sunshine, but women needed to stick together. Perhaps Olivia’s behavior was a result of her toxic relationship with Dean. I didn’t know her well enough to know otherwise, but I tried to see the good in people. There had to be good in Olivia.

“I don’t think Olivia needs any encouraging.” Shannon raised an eyebrow.

Jenny waved a hand at Shannon, dismissing her comment. “I’ll give Olivia a call today and make sure she comes to Manis and Mimosas tomorrow morning.”

“That’s great, Jenny.” I smiled.

“I’ll try to be nice,” Shannon added, but it was unconvincing.

I nodded at her.

“I’ll make sure she feels welcome,” Karen said.

“And I’ll make sure you’re all tipsy enough to tolerate her tomorrow,” Keisha said with a laugh.





31

Jenny present


Splashing some water on my face, I glance at myself in the mirror of a sterile bathroom. Although I’m looking at my reflection, all I can see is through it. I quickly apply some lip balm to my dry lips and pull my hair from its ponytail, running my hands through it to give it some life. I don’t know how I got dragged into all of this. I should have kept my distance from these women. I should have stuck to my role as the help, rather than becoming a confidant or a friend. What was I thinking?

Inside the interrogation room, I take a seat again. It’s mere seconds later that Detective Sanford enters the room. He shuts the door behind him and sits across from me.

He drops his notepad on the table and scans over his notes. “Now where were we?” Sanford taps his pen on the paper, “Oh, yes. That’s right. Olivia and Dean. Tell me more about that.” He looks at me, the corners of his eyes slightly wrinkling.

“There were definitely marital problems between them,” I say.

“Did Olivia tell you that?”

“She told all of us that.”

He scribbles down some more notes. “The day Crystal came into the salon and explained what Olivia told her about Dean. It seemed like all the women were getting along again, or at least were planning to.”

“That’s right.” I nod. My lips form a straight line.

“Then what happened?” He taps his pen on the table.

“The husbands happened.”





32

Jenny


Keisha and I were prepping for our monthly Manis and Mimosas event, setting out fresh fruit and baked goods and putting champagne and orange juice on ice. I had resorted to biting my nails early that morning and fidgeting with everything in sight—including adjusting and straightening up my station at least seven times. After the breakin, I felt uneasy. The salon didn’t feel like it was mine anymore. I felt violated. Sure, the building was still standing and Glow was back to its pristine condition, but it just felt like everything had been taken from me. Keisha rubbed my shoulder as she passed by, her way of ensuring I was okay. I knew she worried about me because I wouldn’t talk to her about what happened. I wanted to forget it. Although I pretended like it wasn’t on my mind, it was. Sometimes, I’d flash right back to that moment when I was gasping for my last breath. My life felt like a nightmare, only I was awake for it.

“How do you think it’ll go today?” Keisha asked.

I pulled my fingers from my mouth. “I think it’ll go well, or at least I hope it does.”

Mary, the salon assistant, popped in with a fresh carafe of coffee from a local café and set it on the table. I’m not sure why we even provided it. No one ever drank the coffee anyway. It was all about the mimosas. We kept a few contract manicurists on for events like this. Mary escorted them in, and they began to set up their stations. They mostly kept to themselves, but they did great work. Several bottles of nail polish slid from one of the manicurist’s kits onto the floor with a crash. My body jumped and my shoulders tightened. I felt like I was always on edge now. The manicurist apologized and cleaned them up.