| |
WINSTON LOOKED AT THE empty space where the stack of wedding invitations had been. The clutter finally disappeared last month. One week left now until the big date.
Grinning, he recalled every detail of the expensive invites. The front of each ivory envelope bore the name of a friend or relative, done in painstaking calligraphy, thanks to his neighbor Heather on Magnolia Lane. Grateful that Winston had solved the murder of the neighborhood watch captain, she’d donated her artistic skill.
He’d also hired her in an official capacity to plan the wedding dinner. A full traditional ten-course banquet at an exquisite Chinese restaurant in Cupertino. Nothing but the best for his sweet bride-to-be.
Winston and Kristy had finally finished all the preparations after a marathon of planning. Who knew there would be so many choices to make? From floral centerpieces to music to entrees. Thankfully, ever since her youth, Kristy had possessed a solid vision of what she wanted. In fact, she’d shown him the scrapbook of magazine clippings tucked into her hope chest.
Why she hadn’t been snapped up earlier remained a mystery to Winston, even with his enormous sleuthing skills. Maybe because she’d been too busy taking care of her younger brothers when their parents died? Or since she’d focused so much dedication to the elderly in her nursing career?
The phone rang, breaking into his thoughts. When he answered the call, he heard a flustered voice saying, “Mr. Wong?”
“That’s me.”
“I think our intern made a mistake that I just caught.”
“Er, who is this?”
The voice introduced herself as staff from the Winchester Mystery House. Winston and Kristy had booked their wedding outside the mansion, on its beautifully paved grounds, figuring their guests would get a kick out of the unique venue.
Winston said, “Yes, we’re very much looking forward to having our wedding there.”
“Unfortunately, sir, the intern double-booked.”
Was this a courtesy call? Winston cleared his throat and used a kind tone. “No matter. Tell the boy we appreciate his gesture, but he doesn’t need to send his apologies. He can just kindly explain the mix-up to the other people.”
A sigh floated down the line. “Actually, the other party booked first.”
“Wait, what? But we have a contract.”
“Do you really? Because I can’t locate it in our computer system. What we actually have is a scribbled note in our intern’s handwriting.”
Winston couldn’t believe it. He checked for the paperwork in his filing cabinet. Then he consulted his email. “I can’t find it. But he definitely told me face-to-face.”
“A verbal agreement? I’m afraid, Mr. Wong, we have documentation from a year ago reserving the same date.” She took a deep breath, and her voice trembled when she dropped the other groom’s name, a Hollywood A-lister. “Not that it matters. We treat everyone the same.”
Yeah, right.
She continued speaking. “How about a different day?”
He gritted his teeth. “I can’t. We already sent out the invites and everything. People will be flying in. They’ve bought tickets, booked hotels.”
“We’re really sorry. To make amends, I can send you a discounted admission for your next visit.”
Winston couldn’t speak. He slammed his fist against his desk. His wedding venue was cancelled and all he got in return was a coupon?
The woman on the phone took his silence as assent. “I’m glad we settled things. Thank you for your understanding.”
She hung up, and Winston stared at his phone. What had just happened? If only he could reboot the whole conversation. He had been the one responsible for the venue. Just the other day, he’d reassured Kristy that things were settled on his end. He shook his head to clear it.
How could he fix this? Turning to his trusty computer, he googled “wedding + Winchester mystery.” He found an interesting hit on the screen. It wasn’t an old cobweb site, but a recently created webpage. It featured a location with amazing scenery in the expansive backyard of somebody’s mansion. It even had its own replica of the house, called the “Mystery Shack.”
Winston dialed the number and got a live person right away. Wait a minute. He recognized that voice. “Alex?”
“Winston? Why are you calling the new business line?”
He took a deep breath. “It’s about the wedding. I need your help.”
“Shoot, Winston. What’s a best man for?”