“That’s another world,” Tom said.
“Diamonds are harder than tempered glass,” Conor said.
“Apparently,” Tom said.
Tom and Conor stared at the delicate, glittering lines in the glass, and they knew that someone had wanted to be remembered.
Or to be found.
30
Tuesday, July 6; 8:00 a.m.
Sam walked out of the water after a morning swim. She stood on the wet sand, squeezing salt water out of her long hair, and feeling charged up. The ocean had been flat calm for days, but waves were building offshore, and she felt the energy. She glanced up at the cabanas and saw four of the Old Detectives huddled over a low table. Although she couldn’t hear what they were saying, Anne, Mike, Nola, and Edward were talking animatedly. Sam knew they had taken the wedding mysteries to heart and were doing their best to solve them, to help get Kate and Conor back together.
Sam saw Miranda and Leo walking along the tide line from the point. She felt surprised to see them together. Miranda was dressed in yoga clothes; while Sam was still swimming, she had noticed the beach yoga class offered by the hotel. She had also seen Leo jog past, along the hard sand.
“I thought you left,” Sam said to Miranda.
“I decided not to,” Miranda said. “Bernard and I are over. Besides, there’s so much going on, and I feel I need to be here.”
“I don’t get many chances to run on the beach,” Leo said. “Must be kismet—it was nice to bump into Miranda. We hadn’t met before.”
Miranda ignored that. “Sam, is there any news about Maeve?”
“No,” Sam said. “I checked with Kate first thing this morning, and she hadn’t heard anything.”
“This is just incredible,” Miranda said. “I don’t know Maeve well at all, I just met her, but I hate to think of something happening to her. She seemed so sweet.”
“And she seemed devoted to Kate,” Leo said.
Sam felt jarred by the fact that they had both used the past tense. “Don’t say ‘seemed,’” she said. “She’s coming back.”
“Oh, I didn’t mean it that way,” Miranda said, grabbing Sam’s wrist. “I just meant at the time I first met her—three days ago, at the rehearsal dinner.”
“Same here,” Leo said. “I’m sure she’sstilldevoted to Kate. Ongoing, Sam. I guarantee you she’s okay.”
Sam’s head was spinning. She wanted to ask Leo how he knew that. She knew she was being extra sensitive, that one terrible thing after another was taking a toll. “Sorry,” she said. “I just wish I knew what happened to her.”
“I feel as if I brought bad luck,” Miranda said.
“Hmm, isn’t that a little dramatic?” Leo asked.
“No,” Miranda said. “I helped Belinda get this whole thing started.”
“On purpose?” Sam asked. “You knew she was going to confront Kate with that ring and baby picture?”
“Sam, I didn’t know what she was going to do,” Miranda said. “She was my closest cousin when we were kids. She’s gone through a lot, and I was just so glad when she called me, told me she had this amazing plan.”
“What plan?” Sam asked.
“Crashing the wedding of the boy next door. I knew she used to have a crush on him. She made it sound so lighthearted and fun—like going back in time, being girls again. She was a widow, I’m divorced. Life gets to be so serious—mortgages, health stuff, getting older.”
Sam couldn’t believe what she was hearing. This person actually thought it was fun to have destroyed Kate and Conor’s wedding? Miranda must have read her expression.
“Honestly, it was a stupid prank. She told me she thought Conor would get a kick out of it. It wasn’t until we’d set the whole thing in motion—you know, getting ourselves invited along with Garrett and Bernard—that she told me about Conor being the baby’s father.”
“What did she say?” Sam asked.
