and her husband, and the best man.” Skye paused. “But, as we just discussed, the twins aren’t actually here at this moment.”
“There are twelve cabins.” Wally counted on his fingers. “Taking into account Belle’s and the three being used for storage and work space, that leaves one cottage empty. Is the bride or groom in it?”
“No.” Skye explained, “Riley’s at her mom’s house, and Nick, his parents, Jay and Natasha, and his six-year-old half brother, Luca Jay, who’s the ring bearer, are staying at the Ritz-Carlton in Chicago. The California guests are arriving by private jet on Saturday. They’ll be driven to Scumble River that afternoon, then will spend the night at the Ritz-Carlton and fly home the next day.”
“So is number twelve unoccupied?”
“Yes. It’s being held for the makeup artist and hairstylist to share when they fly in from L.A. Thursday evening.”
“Okay.” Wally looked down at his notes. “Let’s start with the people currently at the motor court.”
“Who do you want me to cover?”
“You take the women and I’ll take the men. That’s three each.”
“Okay.” Skye moved to go, then turned back. “I almost forgot. Except for Iris Yee, they all probably have hangovers and haven’t had their morning coffee yet. I promised them as soon as we finish questioning them they can go get some.” She gave him a little smile. “So they’re probably just a tiny bit on edge.”
“You’re evil.” Wally grinned at her. “I like that in a woman.”
Skye winked, then headed to cabin nine. She knocked and said, “It’s me again, Skye.” She had explained on her earlier visit that she was the police department’s psychological consultant.
“Come in.” Tabitha flung open the door. “Did you bring coffee?”
“Sorry.” Skye edged past her and sat in the only chair, forcing Tabitha to sit on the bed, which put her at a slight disadvantage.
“What do you want to talk about?” Tabitha’s bearing was regal and her face impassive.
“How well do you know Belle Canfield?”
“I don’t, except as a wedding planner. Is she the one the ambulance came for?”
Skye ignored Tabitha’s question. “When did Riley hire her?”
“Mmm . . . Maybe six or eight months ago. Did Belle get mugged or something?”
“I was under the impression that a wedding like Riley’s would take a year to a year and a half to put together. I mean, I know Riley only formally announced her engagement here in Scumble River last November, but I assumed she had already put things in motion several months before her visit home.”
“And you’d be right,” Tabitha confirmed. “Riley’s first choice quit, so she went with Belle, since she had done Paige’s wedding.”
“But Belle told me she’s the premiere Hollywood wedding coordinator. Why wasn’t she Riley’s first choice?” Skye was careful to keep to the present tense so Tabitha wouldn’t guess Belle was dead.
“I don’t get involved in the drama, but my guess would be that at first Riley was trying to outdo Paige, hiring a planner even higher up on the food chain than Belle.” Tabitha shrugged. “Riley’s a bit of a hungry tiger.”
“Uh?”
“A person who wants attention so bad, they’re starving for it.”
“Oh.” Skye could think of quite a few hungry tigers, but to be fair they were mostly teenagers who would eventually grow into gentler creatures. “How did Riley come to hire Belle at the last minute?”
“Belle isn’t as famous as she pretends. Plus, Nick pulled some strings and offered her double her usual rate.” Tabitha’s eyes twinkled. “Money talks, you know.”
“I’ve heard that, but money and I are not usually on speaking terms.” Skye smiled. “That is, until I started working this wedding.”
“You too, huh?” Tabitha snickered. “Yes, Nick is the Money Whisperer, that’s for sure.”
Skye nodded, noticing that Tabitha’s lilting Caribbean accent varied depending on her
“There are twelve cabins.” Wally counted on his fingers. “Taking into account Belle’s and the three being used for storage and work space, that leaves one cottage empty. Is the bride or groom in it?”
“No.” Skye explained, “Riley’s at her mom’s house, and Nick, his parents, Jay and Natasha, and his six-year-old half brother, Luca Jay, who’s the ring bearer, are staying at the Ritz-Carlton in Chicago. The California guests are arriving by private jet on Saturday. They’ll be driven to Scumble River that afternoon, then will spend the night at the Ritz-Carlton and fly home the next day.”
“So is number twelve unoccupied?”
“Yes. It’s being held for the makeup artist and hairstylist to share when they fly in from L.A. Thursday evening.”
“Okay.” Wally looked down at his notes. “Let’s start with the people currently at the motor court.”
“Who do you want me to cover?”
“You take the women and I’ll take the men. That’s three each.”
“Okay.” Skye moved to go, then turned back. “I almost forgot. Except for Iris Yee, they all probably have hangovers and haven’t had their morning coffee yet. I promised them as soon as we finish questioning them they can go get some.” She gave him a little smile. “So they’re probably just a tiny bit on edge.”
“You’re evil.” Wally grinned at her. “I like that in a woman.”
Skye winked, then headed to cabin nine. She knocked and said, “It’s me again, Skye.” She had explained on her earlier visit that she was the police department’s psychological consultant.
“Come in.” Tabitha flung open the door. “Did you bring coffee?”
“Sorry.” Skye edged past her and sat in the only chair, forcing Tabitha to sit on the bed, which put her at a slight disadvantage.
“What do you want to talk about?” Tabitha’s bearing was regal and her face impassive.
“How well do you know Belle Canfield?”
“I don’t, except as a wedding planner. Is she the one the ambulance came for?”
Skye ignored Tabitha’s question. “When did Riley hire her?”
“Mmm . . . Maybe six or eight months ago. Did Belle get mugged or something?”
“I was under the impression that a wedding like Riley’s would take a year to a year and a half to put together. I mean, I know Riley only formally announced her engagement here in Scumble River last November, but I assumed she had already put things in motion several months before her visit home.”
“And you’d be right,” Tabitha confirmed. “Riley’s first choice quit, so she went with Belle, since she had done Paige’s wedding.”
“But Belle told me she’s the premiere Hollywood wedding coordinator. Why wasn’t she Riley’s first choice?” Skye was careful to keep to the present tense so Tabitha wouldn’t guess Belle was dead.
“I don’t get involved in the drama, but my guess would be that at first Riley was trying to outdo Paige, hiring a planner even higher up on the food chain than Belle.” Tabitha shrugged. “Riley’s a bit of a hungry tiger.”
“Uh?”
“A person who wants attention so bad, they’re starving for it.”
“Oh.” Skye could think of quite a few hungry tigers, but to be fair they were mostly teenagers who would eventually grow into gentler creatures. “How did Riley come to hire Belle at the last minute?”
“Belle isn’t as famous as she pretends. Plus, Nick pulled some strings and offered her double her usual rate.” Tabitha’s eyes twinkled. “Money talks, you know.”
“I’ve heard that, but money and I are not usually on speaking terms.” Skye smiled. “That is, until I started working this wedding.”
“You too, huh?” Tabitha snickered. “Yes, Nick is the Money Whisperer, that’s for sure.”
Skye nodded, noticing that Tabitha’s lilting Caribbean accent varied depending on her
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