“It’s all right,” Katy soothed “Let the past go.”
“How can I let it go? Thanks to my grandson, I am going to be forced to relive every minute of that awful day.”
Eden and her mother took charge of the wedding preparations right from the start. After a few useless attempts to regain control of the situation, Katy surrendered. She soon found herself swept up into a frenzy of activity that included everything from addressing invitations to choosing a menu for the reception.
Liz gave her a book to read on the subject of the intricacies of the male brain.
“Every woman should read it before she gets married,” Liz said.
“I need a book on the intricacies of the Gilchrist male brain, not just any old male brain,” Katy complained.
“You already understand Gilchrists better than anyone else on the face of the earth,” Liz assured her.
A few days after she had tried to comfort Justine in the conservatory Katy walked into her office and found Eden and Maureen hovering over Liz. Both Gilchrists were issuing orders in typical rapid-fire style. Liz, looking distinctly harried, was dutifully taking notes.
“We’ll hold the wedding in Seattle, of course. That way it will be convenient for members of Gilchrist management and staff to attend. And Justine has a host of business acquaintances in the city that must be invited,” Maureen said.
Eden nodded “Yes, definitely Seattle. It also makes sense to hold the reception there. We’ll use one of the restaurants.”
“The Pacific Rim has banquet facilities,” Maureen reminded her. “Make a note, Liz, to talk to the manager and chef there.”
“Yes, Mrs. Gilchrist.” Liz shot a beseeching glance at Katy.
“Good morning everyone,” Katy said brightly, trying to break into the barrage of instructions.
Eden glanced over her shoulder, brows drawing together in concentration. “Oh, there you are, Katy. We’re going to shop for a gown today. I’ve told Liz you’ll be out of the office every day this week until we find the right one.”
“I was just about to suggest they put you in black rather than the traditional white,” Liz murmured “So appropriate to a Gilchrist wedding, don’t you think?”
In standard Gilchrist style, Maureen took the remark seriously. She eyed Katy critically. “No, I don’t think black would suit Katy.”
“Mother’s right,” Eden said. “I have nothing against the idea of going against tradition, of course, but black just isn’t Katy’s color.”
Luke materialized in the doorway. “Whoever tries to put Katy in black will answer to me.”
Liz sighed. “It was just a thought.”
Katy grinned. “Don’t worry. The groom will be wearing black.”
Two days before the wedding Matt wandered into the living room, where Katy was poring over a new cookbook. She was examining an interesting recipe for a pasta salad featuring a pesto flavored with sun-dried tomatoes.
“You’re sure you want to go through with this?” he asked quietly.
Katy did not look up from the list of ingredients she was studying. “I think it will work out very nicely for the Pesto Presto lineup. The sun-dried tomato flavor will add variety to the menu.”
“Earth to Katy. I am not talking about a new recipe for Pesto Presto. I’m talking about your wedding. You really love the guy?”
Katy looked up and saw the concern in Matt’s eyes. “Yes, Matt. I really love him.”
Matt hesitated. “You don’t think there’s any chance Justine’s right, do you? He wouldn’t stand you up, would he?”
“No.”
Matt looked relieved. “I don’t think he would either. He’s okay, you know?”
“I know.”
“I like him. Even if he is a Gilchrist.”
Katy smiled. “I’m glad.”
“He said he’ll take care of you. It’s kind of a relief to know that he’ll be around here after I leave for college. I was worrying about you being all alone. I knew you’d be busy with Pesto Presto and everything, but still...”
Katy put down the cookbook and got to her feet. She wrapped her arms around Matt and hugged him close. “I’m going to miss you very much, Matt.”
“It’s just college,” he reminded her gruffly. “It’s not like I’m going halfway around the world or anything.”
Katy’s eyes misted. “Yes, it is. And that’s the way it should be. I want you to promise me you’ll enjoy every minute of it.”
* * *
Luke was up at dawn on the day of his wedding. He automatically glanced out the kitchen window as he made coffee. Katy’s cottage was eerily quiet. Eden and Maureen had dragged her and her brother off to Seattle last night.
Hayden had driven Justine and Mrs. Igorson into the city also. They were all ensconced in a hotel that was convenient to the church and to the Pacific Rim.
Luke had stayed behind with Zeke. He was planning to leave for Seattle around eight. That would give him plenty of time to dress at Darren’s apartment and drive to the church for the eleven o’clock service.
By noon Katy would be his. Luke felt a rush of satisfaction that filled him with a simmering energy. Nothing had ever felt so right in his life.
At seven-thirty Luke was too restless to hang around the cottage any longer. He tossed his black formal clothes into the backseat of the Jaguar and turned to Zeke.
“Come on, pal. You get one more run on the beach, and then I’m on my way. Matt will be here this evening to feed you.”
Zeke picked up his dish and dashed ahead to the cliff path. He bounded eagerly down to the beach, leaving Luke to follow.
A few minutes later Luke came to a halt at the water’s edge. A deep sense of uneasiness descended on him, wiping away the anticipation that had been flowing through his veins. He glanced down the beach and saw Zeke at the far end nosing around a tide pool.
Something was wrong.
Luke looked up at the cliff and saw nothing. There was no one around. No reason to be concerned. Everyone was safely in Seattle. He had talked to Katy just last night.
But Luke could not shake the feeling of impending doom. If Katy were here, he thought, she would laugh and tell him he was simply falling prey to another Gilchrist mood.
This feeling of wrongness was more than just a mood, Luke realized. He had a sudden, urgent need to talk to Katy.
Determined to call her at the hotel before he started the drive to Seattle, Luke whistled for Zeke.
Zeke reluctantly picked up his dish and started trotting toward him from the far end of the beach. Luke did not wait. Zeke knew his way back to the cottage.
Luke climbed the cliff path, the sense of urgency stronger now. He started to walk toward the cottage and then broke into a loping run.
The man in the stocking mask was waiting just inside the front door of the cottage. He had a gun in his fist.
“Close the door,” the man said in a rough, rasping voice. “I don’t want to have to deal with the dog.”
Luke ignored the gun as he slowly closed the door. He kept his gaze on the man’s eyes. “What’s this all about?”
“Relax, Gilchrist. You might as well sit down. We’re both going to be here for a while.”
“Is there a point to this?”
“The point is that you’re going to miss your wedding.”
“Why?” Luke asked softly.
“Isn’t it obvious? When you fail to show up at the church this morning your family is going to assume the worst. They’ll figure you’ve finally had your revenge. Justine will never forgive you. The others will never trust you again. No one’s going to give you a second chance. With any luck Gilchrist, Inc. will go down the tubes without you at the helm.”
“What about Katy?” Luke asked. “Or don’t you care about her feelings in all this, Atwood?”
The intru
der went still for a moment. Then, with a shrug, he reached up and jerked off the stocking mask. “It doesn’t matter if you know who I am,” Atwood said. “You’ll never be able to prove a thing. I’ll see to it that there’s no evidence I was here today. Who would believe you were kept away from your wedding by me?”
“I’ll find you, Atwood. And when I do I’ll crush you.”
Atwood smiled wearily. “Maybe. Then again, maybe not. I’ve made arrangements. I’m going to disappear this afternoon. When I reappear it will be with a new name in a new city a long, long way from Seattle.”
“It won’t be the first time, will it? You’ve had practice using other identities, haven’t you? Milo Nyle, for example.”
Atwood’s brows rose in mocking admiration. “Not bad. How did you figure that out?”
“It fit. You’re out to punish Gilchrists, you’re a born salesman, and you know your way around the investment business. Once I got to thinking about it I realized that con job you pulled on Darren had your fingerprints all over it. So did that deal you cooked up with Fraser Stanfield.”
“I realized you were on to Stanfield when you fired him.” Atwood’s eyes slitted. “You’re the one who cued Darren that he was being conned, aren’t you?”
“Katy asked me to help him out of a jam,” Luke said, watching Atwood intently, “so I did.”
“Katy always was too soft for her own good. You probably won’t believe it, but the truth is, I felt sorry for her back at the beginning.”
“But what the hell, you had your plans, didn’t you, Atwood? You were roaring ahead with your schemes to destroy Gilchrist, and Katy was just another road kill on the highway that led toward your goal.
“I needed her as a way into the family circle,” Atwood admitted. “I used her, but not nearly as badly as you did.”
“What the hell’s that supposed to mean?”
Atwood smiled coldly. “At least I didn’t drag her into an affair and then abandon her at the altar the way you’re going to.”
“Katy knows I wouldn’t use her to punish Justine and the others.”
“I doubt it. She’s a woman. Any woman who’s been left at the altar would be a fool to trust the man who abandoned her there. But it doesn’t really matter what Katy thinks. The only thing that counts is what Justine believes. She’ll never trust you with control of Gilchrist again. And without you the company will die.”
“You’re very sure of that.”
“I know you Gilchrists. I know how you think.” Atwood motioned with the gun. “Into the living room. We’re going to sit down. I don’t feel like spending the next couple of hours standing here in the hall.”
There was a scratching sound at the front door. Zeke whined urgently.
“If that dog gets inside, I’ll kill him,” Atwood said. “Give me too much trouble and I might just put a bullet in you, too. It wouldn’t bother me to cripple a Gilchrist.”
Luke walked down the hall ahead of Atwood. The clock on the mantel read eight. By now he should have been in the car on his way to Seattle. He still had time, Luke reminded himself.
Not much, however.
Eden was fastening the tiny row of pearl buttons on the back of Katy’s wedding dress when the door of the church anteroom opened without any warning. Darren stuck his head inside. He looked dark and dashing in his black tux and black bow tie. He also looked upset.
“You’re not supposed to be in here.” Liz waved him out of the room. “Go on, get out of here. It’s bad luck or something.”
“It’s bad luck for the groom,” Katy murmured. “And since when is a semiprofessional shrink worried about luck anyway?”
“You can’t be too careful,” Liz sniffed.
Eden glowered at Darren. “Go take care of Luke.”
“That’s just it. I can’t,” Darren said. “Luke isn’t here.”
“What on earth?” Maureen put down the bouquet she had been fussing with and stared at him. “Where is he?”
“That’s the problem. I don’t know. When he didn’t show up at my apartment an hour ago I figured there had been a miscommunication. I thought maybe he’d driven straight here to the church. But I’ve checked. No one’s seen him. There’s no sign of his car.”
“Did you call his cottage in Dragon Bay?” Eden demanded.
“Yeah. No answer.” Darren looked at Katy. “Christ, you don’t think he’d really do it, do you?”
“Abandon me at the altar?” Katy smiled reassuringly. “No. Don’t worry, Darren, he’ll show. Maybe he ran into traffic on the interstate.”
Darren ran his fingers through his black hair and scowled. “He allowed for traffic problems. Luke always allows for that kind of thing.”
“Oh, my God,” Maureen whispered. “Don’t tell Justine. Not yet, at any rate.”
Eden looked stricken. “What are we going to do?”
“Finish getting me dressed,” Katy said calmly. “I refuse to walk down the aisle with the back of this gown hanging open.” She met Eden’s stark gaze in the mirror. “Relax, Eden. He’ll be here.”
“Oh, my God,” Maureen said again. “He’s going to do it. Justine was right after all. He’s set this whole thing up to punish the family. There’s no telling what he’s been doing to the company. He’s probably made certain it’s on the edge of bankruptcy.”
“He’ll be here,” Katy said again. “Would someone please help me with this dress?”
The three Gilchrists looked at each other, doom and disaster mirrored in their witchy eyes.
“Why do I have the feeling I’m about to diagnose my first case of mass hysteria?” Liz asked.
Zeke stood on the other side of the living room window and stared at Atwood through the glass. His gaze never wavered.
“Does he always carry that stupid dish around in his mouth?” Atwood asked irritably.
“Zeke never goes anywhere without his dish.” Luke sprawled on the sofa and watched his captor.
Atwood had said he wanted to sit down, but he had been prowling the room, gun in hand, for the past thirty minutes. He was restless and clearly nervous. When Zeke had shown up on the other side of the window Atwood had nearly jumped out of his skin. He might have been at ease plotting blackmail or a clever financial trap in which to catch his victims, but schemes requiring guns were apparently new to him.
Atwood glanced at the clock. “Another hour and a half and it will all be over. How long do you think Justine will wait at the church hoping you’ll show?”
“You really hate her, don’t you?”
“I hate your whole frigging family, Gilchrist.”
“Yeah, that figures. I know about your father.” Atwood paused in his pacing and swung around. The gun trembled in his hand. “What do you know about my father?”
“I looked up the records of the deal in which he lost his restaurant. I know he shot himself. You blame my family for his death, don’t you?”
“Damn right.” Atwood’s eyes were filled with a corrosive bitterness. “Justine killed him when she closed down his restaurant. She might as well have pulled the trigger herself. And you know the worst of it?”
“Yes. I know the worst of it. She never even knew what had happened or who had suffered because of that deal,” Luke said softly.
“He tried to get an appointment with her. Tried to talk to her. He couldn’t get past her damn secretary.” Atwood started pacing again. “She wouldn’t even see him.”
“I know.”
“I was only twenty. I couldn’t do anything at the time, but I swore I’d pay you Gilchrists back one day if it took me the rest of my life.”
“You know something, Atwood? You’re not going to believe this, but I understand.”
“Bullshit. You Gilchrists don’t give a damn about anything except what you want. You don’t care who gets in the way or who gets
hurt.”
“You’re not any different, are you?”
Atwood’s face contorted with fury. “I’m nothing like you. Do you hear me?”
“What about Katy? You used her a year ago to get at Eden, and today you’re setting her up so that she’ll get hurt right along with the others.”
“Look, I’m sorry about Katy, okay? I had to use her last year. And it’s a shame she’s going to have to go through what’s happening today. But that’s the way it goes. I had no choice.”
The rationale sounded all too familiar, Luke reflected. “Maybe that’s what Justine would have said fifteen years ago if your father had asked her not to close down his restaurant. No choice. Just good business. You know how it is. These things happen.”
“Stop it,” Atwood snarled. He brought the nose of the gun up with a threatening motion. “You’re all going to pay. One way or another, you’re going to pay.”
“Nothing will bring back your father.”
“I know that, damn you. But at least I’ll know that he was avenged. The only thing Gilchrists care about is money, so that’s how I’m going to hurt you. Financially. It’s sort of a symbolic thing, you know?”
“I see.”
Zeke whined and edged forward.
“Why is that dog watching us like that?” Atwood demanded.
“Who knows?” Luke answered softly.
At that instant Zeke tried to put his nose right up against the glass. His dish banged on the window.
The sound was like a gunshot in the small room. Atwood, already shivering with nerves and rage, whirled toward the window.
Luke came up off the sofa in a single motion. Atwood jerked back toward him, but it was too late. Luke kicked the gun out of his hand. It flew across the room, hit the wall, and skittered on the hardwood floor.
With an anguished yell of frustration and fury Atwood threw himself at Luke.
Luke sidestepped the charge and brought his hand down in a short, slashing chop that sent Atwood to the floor.
It was all over in an instant. Atwood groaned, tried to rise, and collapsed in a defeated heap.