I stepped forward, inspecting the frame and motioning for Charlie to shine a light on the back of the frame until we could see the heavy-duty nails on the wall. Sure enough, at the edges on the back of the frame was evidence that someone had hastily cut the fabric directly from it, leaving bits of canvas behind.
“But why would someone steal something from here?” Lacy asked, as the three of us stood staring at the empty frame.
“Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars,” I murmured, trying to think of any other possible reason she would’ve taken it.
“Wait. What?”
I handed Lacy the pamphlet. “It looked a lot like the painting in this.”
Lacy squinted at the description in the painting. “Snow at Argenteuilby Claude Monet,” she read. “But surely The Rose didn’t have a Monet.”
“I highly doubt it, but we do have art by Anna Perry, winner of the second Rose Palace Pageant. Charlie and I looked her up, and her pieces are worth a decent amount.”
“We could ask Savilla about the painting,” Lacy suggested.
Charlie checked his watch. “Except that it’s 4 a.m.”
“Which is why I’m about to fall onto that fainting couch and sleep for days,” Lacy said, as she fell back onto the settee.
I felt her pain. I was so tired that I could barely think straight.
As I was contemplating what to do next, Anton suddenly rushed into the room, looking over his shoulder as if someone might be hot on his trail.
When Lacy saw him, she burst into tears.
Her reaction jarred me. My friend, who rarely cried, was suddenly sobbing. In fact, I’d only seen her this way two other times in my life: once at Momma’s funeral and once when her high school boyfriend had threatened to end his own life. Tonight was nowhere near that magnitude of emotion, but I supposed this entire weekend was now a loss of sorts.
Lacy had planned her wedding from the time we were six years old, asking her mother to buy her the summer bridal magazine at the grocery checkout each May. She would cut out veils and dresses, rearranging them and drawing herself wearing them. It was her first foray into fashion, and it fueled her love of planning, which had served her well as a grown-up. My heart sank as I realized how much Lacy was losing this weekend, despite my best attempts to help hold things together for her.
As Anton took his bride-to-be in his arms, Charlie darted to the door and looked both ways down the hall, his hand on the holster. When he saw that no one was following Anton, he turned to him. “Who were you running from?”
“I don’t know, but someone was following me when I went back to check on Lacy. I think it was the priest,” Anton answered.
Anton held Lacy close, letting her cry against him.
“I looked him up,” I said. “I have no idea why your mother is saying Todd Anderson is a member of the clergy, as I’m positive he’s not.”
He hung his head for a moment, processing the information. “That makes sense. She wanted him here this weekend, and she needed to make him look legit. My mother would be embarrassed to bring a random man years younger than her to my wedding, but as a church-going lady, she would feel better about a man of the cloth. Plus, if he did the ceremony, we couldn’t ignore him. It would guarantee he’d be part of the wedding in a big way.” Anton raised his eyes to the ceiling, exhaled, and turned to Lacy. “After I left you, I went go find my mother, to make sure nothing shady was going down this weekend, and then Todd—not a priest—showedup to her room just as I was leaving. I’m afraid he overheard us. He didn’t look happy, and I could swear that I heard footsteps following me down the hall. That’s why I raced in here.”
I could see that Anton was relieved to have found us inside the room.
“What did your mom say?” Lacy asked, swiping at any mascara under her eyes as she returned to what mattered even more than the priest stalking Anton. “Isthere something bad happening during our wedding weekend?”
When Anton hesitated, Lacy pulled away, eyes narrowing at him. They were rimmed with sleeplessness and her cheeks appeared sunken in the lamp light. It had been a long night, and it didn’t seem like it would get easier anytime soon.
“Anton,” Lacy said, sniffing back further tears and composing herself as he looked at her, shame in his eyes. “I need to know what’s happening. For me, it may…” she paused to consider her words before taking a deep breath and continuing, “it may affect what happens with us this weekend.”
Anton met her plaintive gaze, concern etched in the lines of his face. “Okay, but first, you’ve got to believe that my family and their business have nothing to do with me. I swear. Getting away from them was a definite perk when I decided to move to Aubergine.”
Lacy’s eyebrows dipped into a concerned V. “I thought you moved here because you wanted to be with me.”
“I did.” Anton sighed heavily. “I’m just saying that leaving them behind was a good thing too.”
Lacy swallowed back her frustration. “I hear you, but you still haven’t answered my question. What is your family planning this weekend?”
When Anton still seemed reluctant to speak, Charlie stepped forward. “Anton, it would be really good if you could tell us what you know.”
Anton closed his eyes for a few seconds before attempting to wipe away the fatigue. Then he liftedhis head and met Lacy’s eyes first.
