All Dressed in White (Under Suspicion #2)(12)

“You assumed right, Jerry. I was there with Greg, but I’ll be fine.”





12





Huddled in Laurie’s office, the three of them—Laurie, Jerry, and Grace—made a list of all the people they would need to contact before they could officially go into production with Amanda’s case. Grace had never heard of either Amanda or the Runaway Bride, so it took Laurie a few minutes to explain the case and its connection to their surprise visitor that morning.

“Well, that makes more sense now,” Grace said. “Sandra called while you were in your meeting. She said I should tell you that her ex-husband, Walter, is—quote—all in.”

“Excellent,” Laurie said, checking Amanda’s father off the list. “Sandra gave me a list of all of the bridal party members who were at the resort when Amanda went missing. The groom, Jeffrey Hunter, is still a public defender in Brooklyn. He’s now married to Meghan White, Amanda’s best friend, who was also the maid of honor.”

Grace let out an “ooooh” in response to the scandalous news. She liked to think that she could spot the culprit on immediate instinct.

“Don’t go jumping to conclusions; we’re journalists, remember?” Laurie laughed. “On Jeff’s side of the party were two of his best friends from college—Nick Young and Austin Pratt. To Sandra’s knowledge, both of them are in finance, most recently here in New York, so hopefully they’ll be easy to track down. The third groomsman was Amanda’s older brother, Henry. I take it he’s the nonconformist of the family.”

Jerry was scribbling frantically. “And what about Amanda’s bridal party?”

“There’s the maid of honor, Meghan White—”

“The one who stole the groom,” Grace said.

“Is currently married to the groom, yes. Amanda’s sister, Charlotte, the oldest in the family, was also one of the bridesmaids. She’s now the heir apparent to the family company, which is Ladyform, by the way.”


“I love that stuff,” Grace said in a whisper, as if it were a secret. “You put that on, and you look two sizes smaller.”

Now Laurie knew how voluptuous Grace managed to fit inside those tight dresses she favored. “Well, I got the distinct impression that Amanda was the one who was climbing up the corporate ladder before she disappeared. We might want to be on the lookout for some sibling rivalry there. And then, finally, there’s Kate Fulton. Sandra didn’t tell me much about her, except that she already spoke to her, and Kate seemed willing to appear on the show. With the exception of Amanda’s siblings, the others in the bridal party went to school together at Colby College in Maine. Sandra Pierce strongly believes that they would cooperate.”

“I can check Facebook and LinkedIn to see if they’re connected online,” Jerry said. He was an expert at using social networks to gather background material. “I’ll also get contact information for everyone. But that’s just the wedding party. We’re also going to need to call the Grand Victoria. Part of the strength of the case from a television perspective is the location.”

“I’m worried about that,” Laurie told him. “The hotel may not want the publicity of reminding people that Amanda disappeared.”

“Except there was never any indication that there was any fault by the hotel. If anything, I think the case proves that successful people with excellent taste choose it for something as important as a wedding, not to mention all the gorgeous shots of the property that we’ll include in the production.”

“Nice pitch, Jerry. When the time comes, I think I’ll let you handle that phone call. Sandra mentioned a wedding photographer. Unfortunately, she couldn’t remember the person’s name, but the hotel might remember.”

“And of course the groom might, if he decides to sign on.”

“If he signs on?” Laurie said. “Don’t jinx us. He’s Sandra’s number one suspect. He has to sign on.”





13





Sandra gave her daughter one final hug in the building lobby. “I’m so proud of you, love,” she said.

“Mom, I’m going to see you for dinner in a few short hours. Marea, eight o’clock. You know where it is, right?”

“You told me: take Central Park South straight across almost to Columbus Circle. I think I can manage not to get lost. It’s a joy to see you twice in one day.”

Sandra cherished her time with Charlotte. When she lived in Raleigh, she saw Charlotte and Henry equally, two to four times a year, never enough in her view. She made a point to visit Charlotte as least as often once she moved to Seattle, but if anything, the fact that she now saw Henry regularly made her miss Charlotte all the more.

It was sweet of Charlotte to have spent the entire afternoon with her. After a long lunch at La Grenouille, they walked up Fifth Avenue perusing shop windows and then across town until they reached Ladyform’s corporate offices next to Carnegie Hall. There, Charlotte had proudly given her mother a preview of the latest designs.

As Sandra walked back to her room at the Pierre, she pictured Charlotte’s face at lunch when Sandra first brought up Amanda’s name. In retrospect, she thought, I should have told Charlotte yesterday on the phone about my plan to go to the Under Suspicion studio. That way, today could have been purely a fun day.