My Heroes Have Always Been Hitmen (Humorous Romantic Shorts) (Greatest Hits Mysteries) (10 page)

To say I was horrified was an understatement. This repulsive man needed to die. There was simply no way around it. I couldn
't kill him before the wedding. In fact, I probably should wait a few days just to make sure everything was legal for Wini. Aberdeen Bombay was back in action. I just needed to bide my time.

Sperry led us through the buffet. I had to take more food than I would normally eat because of my earlier statement on being weak with hunger. After parking me and Auntie on a bench, my target left to find his bride-to-be.

"Could you be more ridiculous?" I asked Auntie.

She glared at me
. "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean." She speared an olive with her fork and chewed on it thoughtfully. "I wondered if you were
ever
going to snap out of it. I
literally
had to do everything."

I did not hit her. A lady never hits her chaperone. Instead I dropped a spider on her plate and watched as she screamed. She really screamed like a girl. Isn
't it funny how an assassin—a trained killer—can be terrified of spiders? I'd bet she wished she'd never told me that.

I waited for Auntie to regain her composure. Assassins are very patient people as a rule.

"Well
that
was uncalled for!" Auntie said with a deadly look.

"
We have to get back on track," I said, ignoring her. "What are we going to do about Vic?"

"
I'd been thinking about that while you were looking for a spider" Auntie said. "I think we need to allow Winifred her wedding day and night. Killing her fiancé before that would just be
mean
." She wiggled her eyebrows at me, so I knew that putting a spider on her plate was mean too.

I nodded.
"Yes, I agree. If we wait a couple of days, Wini will be a very wealthy widow. She might as well get something out of that."

Auntie looked at me.
"Don't you think she'll be upset?"

I did. Maybe not as upset as she
'd be if she was truly in love with Carter. More like I-broke-a-nail upset. "Yes. But that gives us time to figure something out."

A young slave
girl came up to us to tell us we needed to gather for a special announcement on the front lawn. Auntie and I handed the girl our plates and made our way to the front of the house.

On the marble front porch, framed by huge, marble pillars, Winifred stood next to
Sperry, beaming like a blushing bride. Her father, my uncle Daniel, held a glass of champagne aloft.

"
My dear friends!" he shouted. "Today I have a very special announcement! My darling daughter, Winifred, is betrothed to my dear cousin's boy, Mr. Carter Livingstone Sperry!"

A roar went up from the audience
, and I turned to Auntie. "Everyone seems very fond of using his middle name, don't they?"

Auntie leaned in and whispered,
"This is your territory, my dear. I
always
thought the way you people throw names about was weird."

Uncle Daniel continued,
"And as a special surprise! The lovely couple is going to get married right here! In one hour!"

The p
arty goers cheered as Winifred and Sperry were spirited away by the family.

The same slave girl who took my plate earlier appeared at my elbow.
"Miss Abby," she said quietly. "Miss Winifred would like you to help her get ready."

Auntie frowned.
"What about
me
? Can't I go
too
?"

I shook my head
. "You have a job to do, Auntie India." I leaned closer and whispered into her ear. "I need you to try to find out what anyone here knows about our vic."

Without waiting for a response, I took off in the direction of the porch and entered the house. Wini
's room was at the top of the stairs on the right. Her mother, Aunt Josephine, opened the door to let me in and hugged me warmly.

"
Isn't this exciting Abby?" She squeezed me extra hard before letting me go. Aunt Josephine was a petite woman who could crush a horse if she had a mind too. She managed to squeeze me tighter than my corset did.

"
And so unexpected! I had no idea!" I proclaimed with faux happiness.

Josephine nodded
. "I know, it does seem rather sudden. But when Carter made his intentions known we thought, 'why wait'?"

I pressed my aunt
. "I didn't even know Wini and Mr. Sperry were that well acquainted!"

"
Oh, they barely know each other!" Josephine giggled. "But they will have plenty of time to get to know each other later." She then pulled an exaggerated pout. "I will miss my little girl though. He's taking her off to California in a few days! I'm simply devastated."

I patted Aunt Josephine on the hand and mumbled some condolences. If they were so happy Wini was getting married, why were they upset that she was leaving
?

"
There you are!" Wini pushed her mother aside and hugged me. "I need you to help me get ready! You are my maid of honor, after all."

Under any other circumstances, I would love to hear this news.
My head would be spinning helping with wedding plans, getting a new dress to wear, and anticipating the parties that would happen from now until the wedding. But today was different when you consider I had to off the groom before he took his bride away.

Aunt Josephine and I helped the house slaves strip Wini down to her corset and begin to build her foundation clothing. A lovely, white lace gown dripped from a hanger
—presumably Wini's wedding dress. I had so many questions to ask my cousin, but how to manage that?

"
Wini," I said as I helped with her fifth petticoat. "Were you surprised to hear of Mr. Sperry's proposal?"

Aunt Josephine shot me a look, but then went back to fussing with
a veil she was sewing onto a garland of magnolia blossoms.

Wini nodded absently.
"I was, in fact. I didn't even know that Carter remembered me! But it's so exciting, isn't it Abby? Imagine me! A married woman!" Winifred actually pirouetted across the floor, landing in her mother's arms in a rain of giggles. They were a very close family. Winifred was an only child. Of course they'd be upset to see her go.

It made me wonder why they agreed to it. There were plenty of eligible bachelors here in
Richmond and all over the Commonwealth of Virginia. Bachelors who'd stay close by so Wini would always be in her parents' lives. But they agreed to Sperry's out-of-the-blue proposal. Well, maybe they were just happy to see Winifred married. Or maybe her enthusiasm made them happy. Or maybe they were one of those families that liked intermarrying each other. I really didn't care about that. I had a job to do.

"
And don't forget, Wini," Aunt Josephine said. "You must carry my mother's handkerchief. For luck."

Wini hugged her mother with tears in her eyes.
"Of course I will!"

As I watched them, I started to get a little teary. Wini
's departure would be a difficulty for Aunt Josephine and Uncle Daniel. Of course I was planning to kill her husband before he could take her out of town, but still, they had to be sad.

"
I'm so happy you could be here, Abby." Josephine squeezed my hand. "I wish your father were here." Then she bounced out of the room, mumbling something about finding her blue parasol for the bride.

Now I was sad. Aunt Josephine and my father were also orphaned young. My grandparents had left each of them wealthy enough to get along in comfort, and Josephine married very well. Uncle Daniel had the largest tobacco plantation in the Commonwealth. And when they died, it would all go to Wini.
Her dowry would be enormous.

Wait a minute…

There was a sharp knock on the door. I answered to find Auntie India standing there, her face flushed with activity. Did she run up those stairs? In that dress?

"
Wini," I called to my friend who was having her corset tightened. "Could you excuse me for a moment?" I took advantage of her breathless state to slip out of the room. I pulled Auntie into a small sitting area off the main corridor.

"
I
have
to tell you something!" Auntie said.

"
I have to tell
you
something!" I replied.

"
Sperry is after her money!" We both said simultaneously. This was followed by us frowning simultaneously. It was like looking into a mirror image of myself who was also a man.

Auntie held up one finger to cut me off.
"Me first. Sperry's prospects are not what he says they are. He's broke and needs money to keep his gold mine going."

I nodded,
"Everything was rushed. Wini had no idea he wanted to propose, and he wanted to get married right away! Wini's an only child. When she dies, all of her parents' money will go to Sperry!"

We stared at each other for a moment before saying in perfect unison,
"He's going to kill Wini!"

When two Bombays come to the same conclusion at the same time, it
's bound to be true. Sperry needed Wini's family money. But loans from Uncle Daniel wouldn't last forever. He needed more than that. He might not kill Wini immediately or even in the next few months. But he would kill her.

"
I really wish I'd read that file," I mumbled.

"
So we have to take him out," Auntie said.

I nodded.
"Only now, we have to do it before the wedding."

"
Or Winifred will inherit Sperry's debts too," Auntie finished. I hadn't even thought of that.

"
You have to go in there and stall Winifred. I'll go finish my assignment," I said.

Auntie shook her head.
"No,
you
go in and stall, and
I'll
finish your assignment."

"
Not a chance," I said to her. "I'm supposed to be the maid of honor. My disappearance will hold things up a bit. You have to find a way to distract the bride."

"
Damn it." Auntie bit her lip. "I hate it when you're right." With a sigh, she went to Wini's door. She stood there for a moment and then looked at me and nodded. After a quick knock, she went in.

Now, where would Sperry be? He wouldn
't have to do much to get ready. I'd have to find him quickly and get the job done. I'd also have to dispose of him. Yes, that was it! Make it look like Sperry had run off—jilted Wini at the altar! It was cruel but far better than having Winifred married to this monster.

But where would I find him? I searched the house but couldn
't find anyone who knew where the groom had gotten to. Very carefully, I slipped into the kitchen and out the back door. Soon, Wini would launch a search party to find her missing maid of honor, so I couldn't take the chance of anyone seeing me.

Have you ever tried to hide while wear
ing a hoop skirt? You cannot press flat against a wall, and climbing, running, or even walking fast is impossible—especially with the addition of a corset.

Carter Livingstone Sperry was nowhere to be found. Nearly everyone in attendance had moved to the front of the house after being told the wedding would take place on the porch.
I managed to skirt the perimeter of trees, which shredded my dress. Surveillance was not easy when you were a well-dressed woman in the South.

Branches tore at my hair and scratched my face. By the time I emerged from the trees behind the house, I looked every inch a disaster.

Instead of facing the other revelers in this state, I located a small path that would eventually lead to the tobacco barn where I could straighten my appearance and think. No one would be there at this time—the slaves were all working at the party, preparing food, setting up tables and chairs, and serving.

The barn door was slightly ajar, causing me to pause outside. Bombays are a suspi
cious people—something learned from entering one too many buildings where the door had been left open, I suppose. After waiting outside a few moments, and hearing no sound from within, I decided to go in.

The
spicy scent of dried tobacco leaves hung oppressively in the hot, dusky air. I started to work on repairing my hair. I couldn't remain here long if I didn't want to smell like tobacco. It took longer than usual, because my damn corset made it difficult for me to raise my arms and breathe at the same time.

Once my hair was in some semblance of order, I started to clean up my face with a handkerchief. How had I gotten so dirty? The dress was beyond repair in some places. There was nothing to be done about that. I tried to rearrange the
fabric to cover the worst tears, but people would notice. I'd have to come up with an answer for that.

"
Ahem…" A deep voice to my left caused me to jump. I landed in a defensive stance and realized with a start that I didn't have my hat, which meant I didn't have my hatpin. Both were sitting on Wini's bed…where I was supposed to be. Damn.