Stephen Edger - Till Death Do Us Part

She shook her head dismissively. Of course she would have. Despite Dave’s caution, the police had made a mistake, of that she had no doubt.

A knock on the door was followed by Tara smuggling in Alice’s mum and Ben’s parents. All three looked white as sheets. Ben’s parents, Ray and Hermione, were the first to embrace her.

‘Are you okay?’ Ray asked.

Alice fought back the tears as she nodded. ‘Did you see what happened?’

Ray looked at his wife before shaking his head. ‘We saw the two of you cut the cake, but then we went to the bar to buy drinks. When we returned, neither of you were in sight, nor was anybody dancing. We didn’t know what to think. Then someone mentioned the police and an arrest, and …’

Dressed in the jacket he always wore on special occasions – embossed with his many military awards from years in the services – Ray looked ready to cry, and Alice couldn’t bear to watch. Pulling him towards her, she hugged him warmly.

‘It will be all right,’ Alice assured him, hoping to convince herself.

Alice’s mum remained by the door, watching the scene unfold. ‘What did they arrest him for?’

Alice had hoped that news of the arrest would be enough to pacify them, without going into sordid detail. Admitting that Ben had been arrested on suspicion of murder felt like she was going behind his back and muddying his name. Alice looked to Tara for support, but her friend stared blankly back at her.

‘It’s all just a big mistake,’ Alice said. ‘When they realize they’ve screwed up, he’ll be back here with their grovelling apology.’

‘Do you think we should cancel the party?’ Hermione asked.

All the months of planning that had gone into today, striving to make the day perfect, it would be such a waste to just send the guests home. The last thing Alice wanted to do was plaster on a fake smile and pretend everything was okay, but what choice did she have?

‘The guests are here, there’s a ton of buffet food waiting to be served, and the DJ is paid until midnight,’ Alice said. ‘When Ben returns, I want the party in full swing, so he can see how much we all love him and trust him.’

Ben’s parents nodded, Ray looking calmer now.

‘I’ll go make that speech,’ Tara said, opening the door and leading the parents back out to the lobby.

Alice remained where she was, reaching for the make-up bag, ready to conceal just how terrified she really felt.

Slumped at a table, with only a quiet Tara and her mum for company, Alice’s anxiety had only deepened in the two hours since the police had interrupted the celebration. Her only distraction was the disco ball spinning on the desk by the DJ. Cheesy pop song after cheesy pop song blasted out of the large speakers, and those who were already drunk enough to have forgotten the earlier ruckus were making shapes on the dance floor. Alice had handpicked the list of songs the DJ was allowed to play on the night – classic songs from her time at school, university and since she’d known Ben. Songs that she loved to listen to, each stirring happy memories. Yet as she watched the party carrying on without her, the songs brought nothing but sadness.

It should have been her on the dance floor, with friends and her new husband, but the thought of getting out there and pretending everything was okay was making her head spin as fast as the disco ball.

Ben’s parents had headed up to bed shortly after Tara’s announcement over the speaker system. Ray had said his wife had a headache, but she didn’t blame them for wanting to be away from the furtive glances of those who weren’t dancing – the ones who were still looking over and gossiping. Sitting at the round tables around the edge of the room, Alice could only imagine what they were whispering to each other.

The music was loud enough that Tara hadn’t attempted to offer false platitudes and positive but fruitless statements. Every time a new figure entered the room, Alice would look up in hopeful expectation, desperate to see Ben’s smile and kick things back on course. As yet there was no sign of him though, and despite her dozens of calls to Dave’s mobile, he had yet to respond, save for a single text message to say he and Scott had arrived at the station.

Picking at one of the pearls embroidered into her dress, Alice leaned towards Tara, practically shouting so she would be heard over the music.

‘Where is he? Why haven’t they released him yet?’

Tara looked like she didn’t know how to answer the question. ‘These things take time I guess,’ she called back. ‘It must be a fifteen to twenty minute drive from here to the police station, right? So multiply that by two – there and back – plus another hour to process him and realize their mistake, and you can see how it would add up.’

‘I should have gone there with him. I should have told everyone the party was over and gone to support him. I can’t believe I let Dave talk me into staying.’

‘Ben wouldn’t want you to worry, would he? He knows they’ve got the wrong man – as we know too – and it will be eating him up inside knowing how hurt you’re feeling. It wouldn’t surprise me if he wasn’t already speaking to his solicitor about how to sue the police for ruining the day.’

Alice fixed her with an affectionate look. ‘I don’t know what I would have done without you here. You really are a true friend.’

Tara waved away the praise. ‘It’s like you said, you’ll have to return the favour one day, and when it’s my wedding day going up in flames, you’ll be the one fighting to keep me sane.’ Tara suddenly gasped as she realized what she’d said. ‘Oh, honey, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that your day was going up in flames. I just meant—’

Alice strained a smile. ‘It’s okay, Tara, I know what you meant. I just keep thinking about that moment when they burst in. It was like I was watching a film or something, or like it was happening to someone else.’

‘I’m sure he’ll be back soon enough.’

‘Some of our colleagues are out there though, which means the story will get out at school when the summer holidays are over, which means no matter what happens tonight, there’ll still be gossiping about me even when all of this is over.’

Tara reached for the tumbler of brandy and took a long sip. ‘Only if you let them. The best thing you can do is to go out there, plaster a huge smile on your face, and show them you’re stronger than this. Hell, you can even lie to them and say Ben has been released. Make it a non-story. The longer you mope and keep yourself hidden away, the more people will talk. Let’s show them. Let’s show them that Alice Tandy – sorry, Goodman – is not a bitch you mess with!’

Alice suddenly gasped as a new thought hit her. ‘The honeymoon! Our tickets to Barbados are non-refundable. We’re supposed to be at Gatwick tomorrow night!’

Tara didn’t look concerned. ‘Worst-case scenario, you have travel insurance. Best-case scenario, Ben will be here shortly, and you’ll still make tomorrow’s flights. I don’t think you should worry about that right now. I know you’re looking forward to it, but it might be that you just have to delay the honeymoon until all this has blown over.’

‘I’m not sure travel insurance will cover the costs of the flights and hotels because Ben was arrested.’

‘No? Let me look into that for you. It’s the least I can do. Either way, Ben is loaded, and the cost of the honeymoon was probably a drop in the ocean for him. You’ll just have to go in a month or so.’

‘I’ll be back at school in a month. That’s why we booked the wedding and honeymoon during the summer holidays.’ Alice blinked back tears. ‘I need to know what’s going on. I’m not prepared to just sit back and let someone mess all of this up. Can you tell everyone the party is over? Then you and I will get a taxi to the police station, and we won’t leave until Ben is released.’ Alice sighed in satisfaction, feeling adrenaline coursing through her veins.