The Wedding Project 💍

'And So It Goes' (Part Two)

He felt the tension in the room rise. And he was not the only one. Marie Wallace downed her glass of cognac in one swift move and placed it on the table again. Reginald, as the always caring host, stepped forward and took the glass to refill it. But Harris' attention rested with the best man - who in this moment leaned back with his arms crossed. "That is circumstantial evidence at best, detective, and you know it. Anyone could have put those in the bin. It's not like I'm the only person who uses this corridor."

"True," Harris admitted. "Though you might wanna explain what you were actually doing before the body was discovered. Because your whereabouts at the time of the murder are not exactly clear."

"I was in my room," Creed answered calmly. "I forgot my notes for the speech, and I had to clean up my shirt as I spilled some booze on it."

"Will that explain what happened to your handkerchief?" Harris pointed at the breast pocket of Creed's suit which was empty. "The white handkerchief? Which has been absent since the murder?"

"I left it in my room." The calmness of the best man had suffered a little by now. His forehead was gleaming from sweat. He could have used this handkerchief by now.

"In your room?" Harris inquired. "Or as a gag in Anna Gilmour's mouth?"

His train of thought was slightly interrupted by an electronic clicking sound, as Gordon took a photo with his phone. Damn, he could at least turn this sound off, he thought, trying to get back on track. Luckily he didn't have to. Callum picked up on it pretty quick.

"No!" he uttered breathlessly. "Tell me you didn't do this!"

"I did not!" Creed defended himself. "Why would I kill the wife of my best friend?"

"You told me that this wedding would be the biggest mistake of my life," Callum confronted him. "You told me that I would throw my life away for some business venture. That I would only marry her for her family's money."

"And you convinced me otherwise," Creed returned coldly, only to be shot back by the groom:

"You were jealous because I was happy with Anna."

Another brief moment of silence. Nobody else got involved in this discussion. They just listened and waited for the outcome. Creed and Callum stared each other down, almost as if there was a duel taking place between them. It was Creed who then caved in.

"Yes," he admitted. "I was." He looked down on his feet, not daring to look Callum in the eyes anymore. "I never thought I would feel this way - all my life I was convinced that money is everything I need to be happy. That I live the best life possible. Until I saw you and Anna." He looked up again. "But I swear to you, I didn't kill her. I wouldn't do this to my best friend."

"Not even if it meant preventing me from making a mistake?" Callum scoffed. "Because you always think you know better than anyone else."

"Well..." Harris decided it was the right moment to interrupt. "This can be settled quite easily. Mr Creed, would you please hand over your glass to Mr St. Claire here?" He gave Reginald a sign, and the concierge stepped forward. With a puzzled look on his face, Ocean Creed did as he was told. Reginald took the glass from his hand. Now everyone saw that the concierge was wearing gloves of his own.

"This will only take a minute," Gordon declared from his place as he received the glass from Reginald and dusted it with powder. Another click from the phone as he took a photo. Another few seconds during which nobody in the room even dared to breathe loudly. Another few moments of absolute silence in which Harris attentively examined everyone's face. Again, his suspicions were confirmed.