I wanted to tell her I was fine, but we both knew that wasn’t true. My independent streak hadn’t served me well thispast year. I did need her—and the rest of my community, small though it might be.
“Can you do hair too?” I asked, running a hand through the strands as I slid my scrunchie out of the ponytail.
Katie’s face softened as if she was relieved to have me ask. “I think a high-set updo would be just the thing.” She rushed inside, sat me in front of her, and got to work quickly, using a hodge-podge of supplies that Aunt DeeDee had given me and that Lacy had left behind, as well as bobby pins and rhinestone clips she’d brought with her.
“What did you think of the Jewels and Gems party on the first night?” Katie asked as she combed a coconut-scented oil through my hair.
“I didn’t stay for long.”
“I understand. The soiree was rather anticlimactic with everything else that day,” she said, pinning pieces of my hair to my head before she plugged in a straightener. “I came down with Mrs. Finch for a few minutes at the very end but, honestly, I was exhausted. That night, I slept like the dead.” She put a hand over her mouth. “I guess I shouldn’t use phrases like that in our current situation.” The product in my hair steamed as she worked. “Can I ask you something? About Savilla?”
“Sure,” I told her.
“Did you see her with anyone in particular that night?”
“No, but she mentioned wanting me to meet Dr. Bellingham.” I didn’t add that I went to my aunt’s office to find out information instead. The way Katie’s hand fluttered nervously made me realize she was concerned for her former charge. “Why do you ask?”
“It’s just… before Savilla left for the party, I thought I heard her tell her stepmother that she was planning to spend time with Dr. Bellingham afterward. I wanted to step in, to tell her tostay away from him, but when Mrs. Finch didn’t say anything, I didn’t feel it was my place.”
I could sense her question of whether or not she’d made the right call by staying silent.
“Why do you think Savilla wanted to meet with him?” I asked.
Katie unpinned a strand of hair, straightened it, and then picked up the curling iron. “I’m not sure, but that’s what concerns me.” She bit her lip, thinking as she wound my hair around the hot iron. “Savilla’s father met Jim—Dr. Bellingham—in New York at an art gallery back in the nineties. Despite the age difference, the two of them hit it off, bonded over shared interests in investments, that kind of thing. Mr. Finch took him under his wing, taught him about shrewd business skills, helped him set up a successful practice, invited him into the pageant world to meet potential clients with plenty of money to spend. I can’t help but assume Savilla heard or saw something that led her to believe Dr. Bellingham might know the whereabouts of her father, but I’d much prefer for her to let the police do their job and for her to stay out of the whole thing.”
The two of us sat with that information for a few minutes until I noticed that Katie had done wonders with my hair. Her own cheeks were flushed and her lips set in a line, a similar expression to that of my aunt when she’d told me tostay away from that man.
I turned in my chair to face her, thinking about the idea of Savilla and Dr. Bellingham spending time together on the very night that Mr. Finch died.
“Anyway, probably just a middle-aged woman’s fears. I was young and beautiful once, so I know how it can be.” Katie tried to relax her shoulders and push aside her concerns as she finished her work.
I caught her hand as she tamed a final strand of hair. “Savilla’s lucky to have you.” I wasn’t able to express in words how much she reminded me of Aunt DeeDee in that moment. I also couldn’t bring myself to tell her that Savilla, along with Dr. Bellingham, had ascended to the top of my list of suspects.
She didn’t say anything more as she began applying foundation and powders and all the things I needed to enhance my features that evening.
When I looked at myself in the mirror a few minutes later, I was astonished.
“You look like you came from the set ofDownton Abbey,” Katie breathed, obviously impressed with her work.
I was reminded of how Momma always said that I had nice eyes. I could see, especially with Ms. Gilman’s magic, that the green in them did pop. I knew nothing about contouring or lightening, but Katie did, and my skin appeared almost porcelain. My hair had been its own beast, fluffy and windblown from the ride, but she’d wrangled it into a sort of high bun with tendrils falling around my face. Within a half-hour, she’d turned me into a new woman.
“Oh dear, I best be getting into my outfit for the evening,” Katie said as a text came through and she lifted her phone so I could see it. “That’s Savilla. She wants me to stop by her room for a quick chat.”
“Maybe you can tell her that you’re worried about her?”
“Maybe.” Katie took a deep breath. “Do you think you can manage the gown on your own?”
My outfits were labeled by event, so all I had to do was take the silver dress from the hanger and wiggle into it. Delicate lace ran across the bodice, and seed pearls dripped along the waist and down the skirt. Of course, it wasn’t what I would have chosen to wear—that would’ve been my jeans and a red plaidbutton down—but if it simultaneously made me blend in and catch the other two judges’ attention, that was key.
“I’ve got this,” I told her.
Katie gave me one last pat on the shoulder and then saw herself out. “Good luck tonight.” She leaned forward conspiratorially. “Don’t tell anyone, but I’m rooting for you—and your aunt.”
My heart warmed at the mention of someone besides me and Lacy being on Aunt DeeDee’s side. “Thanks… for everything.”
She gave a half-smile and shut the door behind her.
I turned to the dress. “Looks like it’s just you and me,” I said as I took it from the hanger.
