Mary Bliss and Erin sat in the front row at Fair Oaks First United Methodist Church. The scene was eerily reminiscent of the last service they’d attended here, Mary Bliss thought.
Mr. Isler was playing soft, soothing organ music. The altar was banked with dozens of floral arrangements, including one large floral blanket covering Eula’s casket. The blanket was made of sprays of white chrysanthemums, red carnations, and dyed black statice that was an exact replica of a playing card—a queen of hearts, to be exact. It had been sent by the surviving members of Eula’s bridge club.
People were filing quietly into the pews. Katharine and Charlie sat to her left, Katharine’s arm thrown protectively over Erin’s shoulder. Erin kept glancing toward the back of the church. They all knew who she was looking for.
Mary Bliss glanced at her watch. The service was scheduled to start in less than five minutes. Old Reverend Strayhairn, Eula’s pastor, had cautioned her that he intended to be prompt today, because he had another appointment down in Griffin, an hour south of Fair Oaks.
“Psst!”
Mary Bliss glanced at Katharine. “What?” she mouthed.
Katharine jerked her head to the right, and Mary Bliss looked in that direction. Randy and Nancye Bowden walked quickly up the right side aisle, holding hands. Josh, wearing an ill-fitting suit, his hair wet-combed, followed behind, along with his two younger brothers, who were pushing each other to get into a pew first.
“Do you believe it?” Katharine whispered loudly.
Erin turned and looked too, smiled and waved at Josh, who waved back.
But Mary Bliss was staring at the figure right behind the newly reunited Bowden family.
He was deeply tanned, wearing a light tan suit, summer sandals, and an open-collared light-yellow sport shirt. The chain around his neck glinted in the morning sunlight, and she could just catch a glimpse of the ring—yes, it was her engagement ring, dangling from the chain.
Erin caught sight of him at approximately the same time. “Daddy!” she squealed. She scooted past Charlie and Katharine and threw herself into Parker’s arms.
Mary Bliss heard a faint buzz rising from the pews.
Parker, blushing, seated himself at the far end of the front pew nearest the aisle, with Erin clinging tight to his arm. At one point he leaned over and shook hands with Charlie. He tried to buss Katharine on the cheek, but she turned away, stony-faced.
The organ music swelled and Reverend Strayhairn walked onto the altar and leaned on the lectern. The microphone crackled and he started to speak, his voice deceptively deep and booming, despite his advanced age.
Mary Bliss heard little of what he said, although she thought it had probably all been scripted by Eula herself. She was aware that Katharine had scooted over to fill the void left by Erin, and that her best friend was clutching her hand tightly. She was aware of Charlie’s concerned glances in her direction, and she had a fuzzy, out-of-focus impression of Eula’s old neighbors and friends, pressed into the pews beside and behind her.
She allowed herself just one more look at Parker. He sat slumped in the pew, eyes straight ahead, watching Reverend Strayhairn, listening intently. His hair was longer than she’d ever seen it, the back curling over the collar of his shirt, and he appeared to be wearing blue contact lenses. If he was aware that his wife was staring at him, he gave no notice. His eyes moved only once, when he seemed to be looking at someone sitting in the pew directly behind theirs.
Mary Bliss felt cold. Her bare arms were covered with goose bumps. She shivered, even heard her teeth chattering. “Hang in there,” Katharine whispered in her ear.
Eventually, Reverend Strayhairn ran out of Bible verses and plaudits for the deceased. The organ music swelled again. A soloist started a mournful version of “How Great Thou Art.” Parker slipped out of his pew and walked to the front of the church, where he took up one of the handles of his mother’s mahogany and bronze casket. He was joined by five dark-suited men whom Mary Bliss did not recognize. She supposed they were employees of the funeral home.
Suddenly, Erin darted out of the pew too. She ran to the front of the church and grasped the same casket handle that Parker was holding. Parker frowned, but slowly the group moved the casket down the aisle, toward the back of the church.
As the organ music wound down, Mary Bliss was aware of another buzz arising from the congregation. People were walking up to her, kissing her on the cheek, offering hasty greetings and hushed expressions of sympathy.
She stood like a statue, enduring the hugs and kisses, the gentle pats on the shoulder. Randy and Nancye Bowden edged toward her. Nancye hung back, but Randy enveloped her in an embrace. “Call me,” he whispered. “I’ve got news.”
After fifteen minutes, Katharine gave her a nudge toward the aisle. “Let’s go,” she said loudly. “I need fresh air.”
The church was nearly empty, but Erin was nowhere in sight. Mary Bliss craned her neck, trying to see over the backs of the departing funeral-goers. “Where’s Erin?” she asked anxiously.
Charlie took her arm. “I saw her get in a car with Parker. She’ll be all right.”
“No,” Mary Bliss said, feeling panicky. “Not with Parker. Where were they going? I don’t want her to go with him.”
“It’s all right,” Katharine said soothingly. “They’re going over to our house. For the luncheon. Charlie talked to Parker this morning. He’ll be at the luncheon. He promised. On Eula’s grave.”
“Are you sure?” Mary Bliss asked, her voice frantic. “Are you sure he won’t take off again? He won’t be arrested? I don’t want him arrested in front of Erin.”
“It’ll be fine,” Charlie assured her. “Parker has hired Mike Payne. He’s one of the best criminal lawyers in town. I know for a fact that Payne has talked to the district attorney’s office. They’re not going to come near Parker until after the funeral is over.”
“How do you know?” Mary Bliss asked. “How do you know Parker won’t run and take Erin with him?” She sprinted down the aisle, toward the back of the church. But Katharine was quicker. She caught up to Mary Bliss and tugged her arm, hard.
“Don’t!” Katharine said, her voice sharp. “Don’t you dare go running after him. Not after what he’s put you through.”
“It’s not him I’m after. It’s Erin. I can’t let her go with him.”
“He’s not going anywhere,” Katharine said. “Didn’t you see those pallbearers? Don’t you get it?”
“No,” Mary Bliss said. “Those men? They work for the funeral home.”
“Actually, they don’t,” Charlie said calmly. “They’re cops.”
“Now will you relax?” Katharine said. “Come on. I’ve got a flask of Bloody Marys waiting out in the limo. We’ll hoist one to the memory of Eula McGowan. The meanest woman who ever drew breath.”
“To Meemaw,” Mary Bliss repeated.