Masterson appeared beside him now and although it felt as though everything was moving in slow motion, he realised that only a few seconds had passed as paramedics rushed through and settled at Tasha's side.
Jim allowed his vision to shift to where a very large and intimidating looking SWAT marksman stood over a lifeless body, almost unrecognisable, Mickie.
“She's dead. Appears to be one bullet to the head. It ain't pretty.”
Movement from the paramedics caught his eye again now—or was it—it couldn't be.
“Eh, there’s my handsome fiancé. We sure know how to throw a party, don't we?” came Tasha's voice startling and stunning Jim.
Rushing down to her side, he reached for her and pulled her to him, unconcerned by the blood transferring onto him.
“Fucking hell, Tasha! You really scared me there. Are you okay? The blood, you're covered and there's so much of it.”
“Not mine, I don't think, well, not much,” cried Tasha, trying to get to her feet.
“Whoa, ma'am, let us check you over first,” cried a paramedic.
“Mickie, she shot herself, right in front of me, it covered me, she said I had done this as much as if I'd pulled the trigger.” Tasha cried as she looked up at Jim as more people appeared with a trolley and a body bag like she'd only ever seen in movies. “She said the guilt of her death would eat away at me and you’d end up hating me, always wondering just what I was capable of,” Tasha sobbed uncontrollably as the reality of what those words might mean began to sink in and the shock of the night hit her.
“Baby, let's get you out of here.” Jim scooped Tasha up in his arms before striding towards the doorway. “There's a video camera over there somewhere,” called Jim as he signalled towards the location Juan had described before heading out of the house across to their own home, away from the scene of bloodshed, a dead body and a body bag.
Chapter 11
Five Days Later
“Tash, you look beautiful.” Lucy grinned, looking at Tasha and her reflection in the mirror of the suite Jim had booked her into until they were married, when she would be Natasha Maybury. Her grin widened at the site of her friend looking relaxed, beautiful and happier than she had ever been, as happy as she should always have been and deserved to be. “You are looking really, really soppy though,” teased Lucy, making them both laugh.
“Sorry. I can't believe I’m doing this and after the stuff with Mickie it seems even more unbelievable,” explained Tasha, smiling thoughtfully as she stared at her bruises that Lucy had expertly covered for her with make-up.
“I know and that is also why we are all here with you. After calls from Jim with flights and hotels to check into rather than just the two of you running off without us.”
“Sorry. I just wanted to marry him and after my crash nobody else mattered, and until you all turned up here last night, I really thought it was just Bobby, Abby, me and him on this trip.”
“No. He decided after your crazy party that you should do this with your nearest and dearest, hence The Winters clan along with the Mayburys, and Marc and Marcia who I find a bit scary, and your super-duper bestest friend in the world and wedding dress designer extraordinaire. That’s me, oh and Ryan.”
“He really is very industrious when he sets his mind to it and he’s managed with minimal delays. Now, come on, finish zipping me in or he may not hang around if I'm late,” joked Tasha.
“Oh, Tash, he would wait forever for you, it's quite sickening,” said Lucy seriously, then suddenly began to sniff tearfully.
“What are you doing? You're crying. You are the least crying person I know.” Tasha was actually shocked at her friend’s out of character emotional display.
“It's kind of my thing now, hormones,” revealed Lucy.
“No,” whispered a shocked Tasha.
“Yes. In about six months my baby will be saying hello to Auntie Tasha, and I may have been offered a job out here as a costume advisor come designer for a new TV series set in Victorian England.”
“Congratulations, on the baby and the job,” cried Tasha. Suddenly, suspiciously she asked, “Whose studio? It's Jim's, isn't it? Of course it is.” She shook her head wondering if he had any more surprises in store for her.
“Yeah, but he just sent me an email with who to contact, that was all and Ryan fancies himself as some kind of personal trainer out here, so it's all good. Now, Natasha Winters, let’s get you ready to become Mrs Maybury the last before Gramps arrives to escort us to the chapel.”
The gentle tap on the door had Tasha taking deep breaths as Lucy opened it to reveal Paul and Celia followed by Dan, Pippa, Lizzie, Abby and Lexi, the three girls dressed in identical vintage style, calf length dresses in a very deep shade of purple that suited all of their complexions and colourings while Lucy, as maid of honour wore the same dress but in a softer shade of lilac. It was actually an idea of Kayla's to make the senior female attendant identifiable and Tasha was glad that she had, but it had been Lucy's idea to have the dark dresses with sashes in the same shade of lilac as her dress while her sash was the same dark purple of the other girl's gowns.
“Wow!” Dan pushed to the front to kiss his sister. “You are really, really beautiful, Tash, more than beautiful.” He floundered suddenly.
“Thank you.” Tasha gazed up at her brother and smiled, not at the sweet boy he’d always be to her but the young man he was becoming to the rest of the world.
“Jim is a very lucky man indeed, and not just because of how bloody gorgeous you look.” There was a strange hitch to Paul’s voice and along with his glazed eyes it suggested he might cry.
