“Because I’m the one who introduced Suzanne! You would never have hired her if I hadn’t. It’s my fault,” Lincoln said.
“How could you have known she had other motives?” Sam asked.
“I don’tknowit. But looking back to when she first asked me, it was as if she was leading me. She could have easily found out that my dad is tight with Kate’s gallery and that I’m dating Kate’s assistant. It was as if she already knew the wedding details and needed to find a way in.”
“Why?” Sam asked.
“I don’t know. But, looking back, she was so secretive,” Lincoln said. “The fact she knew Belinda and kept it hidden is dark.”
“Very,” Maeve said. She closed her eyes, as if trying to summon a memory. “When I went looking for Kate last night and found her veil sliced to pieces, I was really scared. It was so creepy, it made me think that someone had hurt Kate.”
“You didn’t think Kate might have cut it up herself?” Lincoln asked.
“Of course not!” Maeve said.
“She’s right,” Sam said. “You don’t know Kate at all if you’d think that was possible. Someone else did it.”
“I want to talk to Suzanne,” Maeve said. “Where is she now?”
“I don’t keep track of her, Maeve,” Lincoln said sharply. “We’re not close friends or anything.”
“Maybe she’s still here,” Sam said. “She definitely didn’t leave in her truck, because I saw the police take it away.”
“They must suspect her of something,” he said.
“What does 1740 mean?” Sam asked, picturing the number painted on the side of the blue pickup.
“No idea,” Lincoln said.
“If it’s true that Suzanne knew Belinda,” Sam said to Lincoln, “and if she really did angle to get the job, maybe ruining the wedding was her goal all along.”
“Like they were in it together?” Maeve asked. “Belinda and Suzanne?”
“Could be,” Sam said. “Destroying the veil was vicious. Symbolic. I keep thinking this could be a fairy tale. Belinda showing up the night before the wedding with tales of a secret baby. Then someone—Suzanne—slashing the veil.”
“Cursing the wedding,” Maeve said.
“You left out the part about murder,” Lincoln said. “How someone murdered Belinda.”
The ultimate curse of all, Sam thought.
13
Saturday, July 3; 6:30 p.m.
The plane hit turbulence as they approached the island. Kate had checked radar just before taking off, and it looked as if the closest storm cell was trending northwest, so she wasn’t too worried. But that was certainly a sharp downdraft, and she heard Joe quietly swear in the back seat. She came in straight, the wheels touched the grass strip, and she taxied to a stop.
“Sorry, that was a bumpy landing,” she said.
“It was expert, as usual,” Conor said.
He always praised her flying. She felt his gaze and turned to meet his eyes. She had always loved how startlingly blue they were, but just then, they reminded her of the baby picture Belinda had shown her, and she nearly flinched. Everyone climbed out of the plane, and Conor stood waiting for her. Tom and Joe walked ahead.
“I’m just so glad we’re together right now,” he said. “It’s been terrible without you.”
“For me too,” Kate said. She was overwhelmed with questions that she was afraid to hear the answers to. She was almost glad that they weren’t alone; it would give her more time to be ready for the conversation.
She had flown over this island but had never landed here before. She looked around and saw a red barn—the hangar, she assumed. Therewere a few white houses a short distance away, and she could see the curve of East Cove and a few masts.
