Three days later Marissa dressed in a simple blue dress for Staci’s viewing. Her stomach knotted nervously. She hated funerals and this would be a particularly hard one. It’s not like Staci was old or had been sick with a terrible illness. No, one minute she was perfectly healthy, the next she was dead.
The bell rang and Larry woofed in response. That would be Chloe, her friend who was driving them to the funeral home. Marissa quickly finished poking in the last earring and hurried down to open the door.
Chloe Harris stood on the porch, her caramel color hair swinging smoothly around her shoulders. She was a tiny woman with a dusting of freckles across her slim nose and a smile on her face.
“Hey, girlfriend, are you ready for this?”
“Not really,” Marissa confided to her friend, a reporter for the newspaper. “It still seems unreal.”
“I know what you mean. I’ve never been to a funeral for a person this young.”
“Me, either.” She gave Larry’s head a pat and pulled the door to and locked it. “Thanks for coming with me.”
"No problem. So, how's the situation with you and your first love going?" Chloe climbed in behind the steering wheel of the red Prius as Marissa moaned out loud.
“He’s not my first love, Chloe. Just my first date.” She got in and slammed the door. “And the man is incredible. He’s already managed to get a home inspector and an appraiser lined up. Most people have to wait weeks, but no, not Aaron Mathews. It’s like he puts people under a spell and they just do his bidding.”
“Maybe, if you’re lucky, he’ll enchant you, too, and you can enjoy some of that magic.”
“Bite your tongue! I don’t want anything to do with the man other than to earn his commission.”
“Why not? I’ve seen Aaron Mathews on television and that is one studly man. Good Lord, girl, you’re in a position that most women would kill for. And you’re not getting any younger either, you know.”
“Hey, you’re six months older than me. I don’t see you getting desperate. Of course, we both know you’re holding out for my brother Marcus to get his head out of his ass and notice that you’re in love with him.”
Chloe’s cheeks burnt but she didn’t deny it. She’d only had eyes for Marcus McCall since the first time she’d met him back in high school. Now if she could just get him to see her in another role besides his kid sister’s friend…
The parking lot at the funeral home was filled to overflowing. They finally managed to find a spot in the back corner and made their way across the asphalt to the entrance.
One of the first people Marissa saw when they entered was her brother Marcus. She recognized the bull-like man standing nearby him as his partner. Marcus, just 13 months her senior, was the only one of her brothers who hadn’t joined the family business. Instead, he’d become a police officer and was now a homicide detective.
“Hey, bro. I didn’t expect to see you here with Borland.” She greeted him when he spotted her and made his way through the crowd to her side.
“I’m not here on just a personal basis, sis. Borland and I are working Staci’s case. Sometimes the perp shows up at their victim’s services. You never know.”
Marissa’s eyes grew wide as she stared at her brother. She hadn’t thought of that. She looked around the room nervously. Was one of these ordinary looking people a killer?
Marcus turned to greet Chloe and Borland strolled over in their direction, munching on a cookie he’d grabbed from the lounge. They chatted for a few minutes, Marissa feeling uneasy the whole time. There could be a homicidal maniac right here amongst them.
And then she saw Aaron Mathews walk in.
Aaron and Marcus greeted each other like long lost brothers with back slaps and handshakes. They had played on the football team together in junior high school and Marcus had followed Aaron's career for years. Now it was the old home week and the two men reveled in it.
“Man, it’s good to see you. How long you going to be in town, Aaron?”
Aaron turned and gave her a look. “Marissa hasn’t told you? I’m here for good. In fact, she’s helping me buy a house.”
A grin lit up Marcus’s face. “Fantastic. Hey, we’ll have to get together. Catch a ball game or something.”
“You bet. I’ll bring the beer.”
“I can’t believe you kept this a secret, sis. What’s up with that?”
“Well, I’ve only known for a few days. I haven’t talked to you since then, Marcus.” Marissa felt the color creep up her cheeks. Why should she feel guilty because she hadn’t made a point of letting her brother know Aaron was back in town? In fact, the less she had to think about Aaron Mathews return into her life the better. She turned to Chloe to rescue her. “Chloe, I saw LuAnn Croft come in. I’d really like to talk to her. Want to come?”
Marissa found herself alone next to Staci’s casket for a moment. There had been a long line of mourners waiting when she’d first entered the room but they had gradually thinned out. Now she looked down at Staci’s still face, a lump clogging her throat. Staci had been so confident, so full of energy when she was alive. Now she just looked small and helpless.
“She grew up to be a beautiful woman.”
The male voice right at her elbow startled her out of her reverie. She whirled to face Aaron, her heart picking up pace.
“Yes.” Her voice sounded tight. “And now she’s gone.”
“And gone in a terrible way.”
Marissa couldn’t answer, just nodded and closed her eyes for a moment.
“I’m sorry, Marissa. I know you’ve known her for many years.”
“I have.” She paused for a moment but curiosity won out. “I’ve known Staci since we were little girls playing house. But you haven’t, Aaron. You barely knew her. Why did you bother to come to her viewing?”
He didn’t say anything for a moment, just looked at her solemnly before answering her question with a question.
“Remember the night we went to the middle school dance?”
“I do.”
“You went to the restroom and I stepped outside for a moment. I found Staci there crying. She was embarrassed to be caught, but it was too late by then. She told me she’d just found out her parents were divorcing. She was sad, scared, and vulnerable. All I could do is hug her and hold her, tell her everything would be all right. I felt terrible.”