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Authors: Brent Peterson
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Sally?” Ethan asked.
The timer bell on the oven rang and Mark got up to retrieve the first batch of scones. “Sally, with the aid of many prescription medications, has been able to remain blithely ignorant of just about anything she chooses. And she chooses not to know what a couple of shits the men in her life are.” He plated three of the pastries and returned with them to the table. The three of them immediately dove into the scones.
“Oh, boys,” Vicki asked, shaking her head and wiping a crumb from her mouth. “What have we gotten ourselves into this weekend?”
Chapter 6
Rosamund Whiting decided not to show the second note to anyone. Instead, she tossed it into the wastebasket by the desk, lit a cigarette with a shaky hand, picked up her tumbler of Scotch, and walked out onto the balcony. She was in unfamiliar, nightmarish territory, and the worst part was that she knew with absolute certainty that it was about to get worse. Oh, dear God , she thought, are there truly unforgivable sins? Throughout the years, so many people had suffered because of her selfishness. And she could see that those initial offenses, which had only been pebbles thrown into the water, had set off tiny ripples that were now becoming angry, crashing waves. Certainly, there were those who thought she deserved to be engulfed by those waves and pummeled against the rocks. But she was a fighter and a damn good swimmer, for that matter. She wasn’t going down without a fight and Friday night was the time and place; it had to be if she were to survive, because time was running out. She thought about Caroline, Sally, and the boy. Was she still right? Caroline was vengeful, but was Tony really that important to her? Roz supposed it was possible. No one would ever have thought that the dowdy, overbearing actress could have attracted someone as handsome and debonair as Tony. The notes and the bouquet seemed out of character for her, but people pushed to the brink did bizarre, irrational things, didn’t they?
Sally? She was one of the most popular women on television. Would a woman with so much to lose risk it all for revenge? Roz doubted it, unless Sally knew about her dealings with Connor, and then all bets were off. A mother would do just about anything to protect her child.
Still, the boy was the most likely suspect. There was something juvenile and crude about the threats that seemed to point to him. There was also the timing; everything started the day after she approached him. That had been her initial thought, and it was the answer that made the most sense. And he had been furious when she left his apartment. He was angry with her, and he had a bad history. Yes, it really did look like the boy.
She’d never been so scared in her life, and she wished there were someone to whom she could turn, but the truth was that she’d created this situation and it was up to her to see it through. Normally she counted on Meg to fix her messes but that couldn’t happen this time. No, Roz had set the stage for this little drama, and now it was time for everyone to play his or her part. Of course it was risky, there was no denying that. She was putting herself in grave danger and she knew what the consequences would be if her plan failed. She had started down a dangerous path, and there was no turning back. She downed her scotch and went back inside to pour another one.
****
The sanctuary of St. Agnes’s church was dark except for the little bit of daylight that found its way through a row of stained-glass windows and the golden glow emanating from a dozen or so flickering candles that had been lit by desperate yet hopeful parishioners. Meg Pierce had lit one of those candles and now, as she knelt and prayed, she felt a peace that had eluded her for days. She had worried so about Juliet. Meg had fiercely loved the girl ever since she and Roz had brought her into the world in that villa in Prague. For many reasons, not the least of which
The timer bell on the oven rang and Mark got up to retrieve the first batch of scones. “Sally, with the aid of many prescription medications, has been able to remain blithely ignorant of just about anything she chooses. And she chooses not to know what a couple of shits the men in her life are.” He plated three of the pastries and returned with them to the table. The three of them immediately dove into the scones.
“Oh, boys,” Vicki asked, shaking her head and wiping a crumb from her mouth. “What have we gotten ourselves into this weekend?”
Chapter 6
Rosamund Whiting decided not to show the second note to anyone. Instead, she tossed it into the wastebasket by the desk, lit a cigarette with a shaky hand, picked up her tumbler of Scotch, and walked out onto the balcony. She was in unfamiliar, nightmarish territory, and the worst part was that she knew with absolute certainty that it was about to get worse. Oh, dear God , she thought, are there truly unforgivable sins? Throughout the years, so many people had suffered because of her selfishness. And she could see that those initial offenses, which had only been pebbles thrown into the water, had set off tiny ripples that were now becoming angry, crashing waves. Certainly, there were those who thought she deserved to be engulfed by those waves and pummeled against the rocks. But she was a fighter and a damn good swimmer, for that matter. She wasn’t going down without a fight and Friday night was the time and place; it had to be if she were to survive, because time was running out. She thought about Caroline, Sally, and the boy. Was she still right? Caroline was vengeful, but was Tony really that important to her? Roz supposed it was possible. No one would ever have thought that the dowdy, overbearing actress could have attracted someone as handsome and debonair as Tony. The notes and the bouquet seemed out of character for her, but people pushed to the brink did bizarre, irrational things, didn’t they?
Sally? She was one of the most popular women on television. Would a woman with so much to lose risk it all for revenge? Roz doubted it, unless Sally knew about her dealings with Connor, and then all bets were off. A mother would do just about anything to protect her child.
Still, the boy was the most likely suspect. There was something juvenile and crude about the threats that seemed to point to him. There was also the timing; everything started the day after she approached him. That had been her initial thought, and it was the answer that made the most sense. And he had been furious when she left his apartment. He was angry with her, and he had a bad history. Yes, it really did look like the boy.
She’d never been so scared in her life, and she wished there were someone to whom she could turn, but the truth was that she’d created this situation and it was up to her to see it through. Normally she counted on Meg to fix her messes but that couldn’t happen this time. No, Roz had set the stage for this little drama, and now it was time for everyone to play his or her part. Of course it was risky, there was no denying that. She was putting herself in grave danger and she knew what the consequences would be if her plan failed. She had started down a dangerous path, and there was no turning back. She downed her scotch and went back inside to pour another one.
****
The sanctuary of St. Agnes’s church was dark except for the little bit of daylight that found its way through a row of stained-glass windows and the golden glow emanating from a dozen or so flickering candles that had been lit by desperate yet hopeful parishioners. Meg Pierce had lit one of those candles and now, as she knelt and prayed, she felt a peace that had eluded her for days. She had worried so about Juliet. Meg had fiercely loved the girl ever since she and Roz had brought her into the world in that villa in Prague. For many reasons, not the least of which
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