'Til Death Do Us Part - Part 11

Shirley Sue stepped out of the truck and onto the gravel which lined the road in front of Patty's apartment. Excluding their truck, there were half a dozen cars parked along the road and another five in the driveway. Shadowy figures moved past the brightly lit windows and muffled voices could be heard permeating the walls.

Shirley Sue grabbed a neatly wrapped box from the back seat. “I feel a little awkward giving her this now, but...” she trailed off.

“It's the thought that counts,” Buck said, forcing a smile.

Shirley Sue wrapped her arm around Buck's as they walked up the driveway to the door of the apartment. She listened to the soft crunching sound of the gravel as their footsteps fell in unison. She and Buck mounted the small set of stairs and then she knocked on the door. After a minute of silence, she was preparing to knock once again, but the door creaked open and a short young woman with dark hair motioned for them to enter.

She passed through the doorway and looked around the room. At the far end of the room, Patty sat at a table near a trashcan overflowing with tissues. She was surrounded by a swarm of guests. Shirley Sue noticed a tall man with dark curly locks and hazel eyes standing next to Patty. What was Ben doing here? He had been heartbroken after Patty broke off their five year long relationship to be with Jack.

Ben stood with a hand on Patty's back. He handed her a tissue and she looked up and smiled at him. She said something to him, but her voice was drowned out by the conversations taking place around the room.

Shirley Sue felt as though her legs were moving through a lake of water as she approached her old friends. Ben straightened up after handing Patty another tissue. His brow was creased and his eyes darted around the room. After a few seconds, his eyes latched onto Shirley Sue.

“Shirley Sue, Buck glad you could make it,” he said as he strode toward them. He lowered his voice. “I'm sure you've heard, but Jack is dead.”

“Hey Ben,” Shirley Sue and Buck greeted.

“We heard the news a little earlier,” Buck said. “I'm surprised to see you here. I know how hard it was on you when Patty left you fer Jack.”

Shirley Sue elbowed Buck and he expelled gutteral umph from his lungs. She looked over at him and glared. Buck's face turned a deep shade of red and he began to stammer out an apology, “I'm sorry, I was just-”

“No, it's fine,” Ben interrupted. “I didn't know she was getting married in a few days. I was up visitin' my cousin Rob, a police officer in town. He got a call about the murder while we were out fer breakfast early this mornin'. I was shocked when I found out who it was. Poor Patty, it would have been bad enough to find out 'bout his philanderin' round town, but it was a shame she found out about it this way.” Ben fixed his gaze at the ground.

“Philandering?” Shirley Sue asked.

“Ya,” Ben said, looking at Shirley Sue. “It was pretty clear from the crime scene that he was mugged by either a prostitute or a scorned lover... Anyway, I need to find Patty's mom. I'll let you get on over to Patty. I'm sure she wants to see you.”

Shirley Sue and Buck made their way over to Patty and offered their condolences. After several failed attempts at striking up conversing with Patty, the two of them gave up and wandered into the crowd of visitors. In between exchanging greetings with the few familiar faces, they listened to the conversations. Several of the visitors made comments about how he got what was coming to him, but no one said anything to make Shirley Sue wonder whether they had a hand in Jack's death.

She took a seat next to Buck, who had stationed himself at a table with an assortment of snacks. She had a clear view of Patty and Ben from her vantage and she kept an eye on them. Throughout the evening, she noticed that Ben hardly left Patty's side, and when he did, she clammed up and became unresponsive to anyone else in the room. Shirley Sue had a hard time believing Ben. How could he have not known his high school sweetheart she was getting married in a few days? Who was his cousin in town? Come to think of it, he had a striking resemblance to Officer Brady.