I'm Kona Love You Forever (Islands of Aloha Mystery Series Book 6) by JoAnn Bassett Page B
Authors: JoAnn Bassett
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sleeves. The overall effect was like looking at a gigantic shave ice.
“I’m not. My name’s Pali Moon. I’m the wedding planner Lili and David hired to do their wedding. I brought Lili here from the airport.”
“Oh, sorry. You looked like one of them,” she said. “I’m Shayna, David’s oldest sister,” She took my hand and squeezed it; then held it for a few moments longer. I’m not used to holding hands with strange women but I guess it was the order of the day because as I glanced around there was a lot of hand-holding going on.
“Lili flew over from Maui when she heard. I guess David was devastated by the news.”
We both looked over at Lili who was swooning in the arms of her fiancé. David’s expression was blank, as if posing for a mug shot.
“ Typical,” said Shayna. “Everyone’s worried about David. It’s like the rest of us don’t even exist. And my mom? Don’t even get me started on that.”
I’ d dealt with sudden death before, but never a suicide. From what I’d heard, friends and family members react differently when someone makes the choice to end their life. People aren’t just saddened by the news, they’re angry. As if offing yourself was the ultimate rude gesture. “ How could she do this to us?” hung in the air like a bad odor, even if no one had the guts to say it.
Sh ayna shot me a tight smile. “And speaking of David. It’ll be interesting to see what he and the diva decide about their wedding. Seems wrong to me to go ahead with a wedding right after you bury your mother, but knowing David, he’ll do it anyway. ”
“ I wouldn’t count on that,” I said. “There’s already been a snag. David and Lili probably wouldn’t be able to get married this month even if this hadn’t happened.”
“Oh , really?” she said. I could feel her eyes on me, hoping I’d divulge whatever it was that might keep her baby brother from getting married, but I knew better than to go down that road. Client confidentiality and all that.
We both stared at David and Lili, clinging to each other like the final scene in a Greek tragedy. What is it that compels people to rubber-neck car wrecks and replay YouTube videos of near-fatal misses? I wanted to take the high road and avert my eyes from their anguish, but it was nearly impossible to look away.
***
After the police left, Shayna invited me into Malia’s kitchen to talk. I was pretty sure she was hoping to soften me up so I’d blab about the “snag,” but I was on guard. I had my own reasons to want to see where David had grown up.
The interior of the house was a disaster. Some of it was probably due to the dozen or so emergency services people who’d shown up. They’d had to drag the gurney through the house since the garage was too narrow. But the sticky floor, unwashed dishes piled on the counters, and reeking cat box had been there long before any paramedics had been called.
“ Sit wherever you can,” Shayna said. “My mom’s a pig.”
I did a double-take and she said, “ My bad. I guess I should’ve said, ‘My mom was a pig’.”
Sh ayna pulled a kitchen chair away from the table and pushed a sleeping cat onto the floor. I had to relocate a foot-tall stack of People magazines before I could sit down.
“Jeez, look at that ,” Shayna said, picking up one of the magazines. “She’s got gossip rags dating back to the days of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes; maybe even Nicole Kidman. I swear the woman never tossed anything. You ever watch those ‘hoarder’ shows on TV? My mom could’ve been on there. But she was too bitchy. The TV people want nice freaks, not crabby ones.”
I said nothing.
“You probably think I’m horrible. But believe me, I have a million reasons. She treated us girls like lepo , like dirt. As far as she and my dad were concerned, David was the master and we were the slaves. It was always ‘Go help David’ or ‘You can’t have that because I need to get something for David.’
“I’m not. My name’s Pali Moon. I’m the wedding planner Lili and David hired to do their wedding. I brought Lili here from the airport.”
“Oh, sorry. You looked like one of them,” she said. “I’m Shayna, David’s oldest sister,” She took my hand and squeezed it; then held it for a few moments longer. I’m not used to holding hands with strange women but I guess it was the order of the day because as I glanced around there was a lot of hand-holding going on.
“Lili flew over from Maui when she heard. I guess David was devastated by the news.”
We both looked over at Lili who was swooning in the arms of her fiancé. David’s expression was blank, as if posing for a mug shot.
“ Typical,” said Shayna. “Everyone’s worried about David. It’s like the rest of us don’t even exist. And my mom? Don’t even get me started on that.”
I’ d dealt with sudden death before, but never a suicide. From what I’d heard, friends and family members react differently when someone makes the choice to end their life. People aren’t just saddened by the news, they’re angry. As if offing yourself was the ultimate rude gesture. “ How could she do this to us?” hung in the air like a bad odor, even if no one had the guts to say it.
Sh ayna shot me a tight smile. “And speaking of David. It’ll be interesting to see what he and the diva decide about their wedding. Seems wrong to me to go ahead with a wedding right after you bury your mother, but knowing David, he’ll do it anyway. ”
“ I wouldn’t count on that,” I said. “There’s already been a snag. David and Lili probably wouldn’t be able to get married this month even if this hadn’t happened.”
“Oh , really?” she said. I could feel her eyes on me, hoping I’d divulge whatever it was that might keep her baby brother from getting married, but I knew better than to go down that road. Client confidentiality and all that.
We both stared at David and Lili, clinging to each other like the final scene in a Greek tragedy. What is it that compels people to rubber-neck car wrecks and replay YouTube videos of near-fatal misses? I wanted to take the high road and avert my eyes from their anguish, but it was nearly impossible to look away.
***
After the police left, Shayna invited me into Malia’s kitchen to talk. I was pretty sure she was hoping to soften me up so I’d blab about the “snag,” but I was on guard. I had my own reasons to want to see where David had grown up.
The interior of the house was a disaster. Some of it was probably due to the dozen or so emergency services people who’d shown up. They’d had to drag the gurney through the house since the garage was too narrow. But the sticky floor, unwashed dishes piled on the counters, and reeking cat box had been there long before any paramedics had been called.
“ Sit wherever you can,” Shayna said. “My mom’s a pig.”
I did a double-take and she said, “ My bad. I guess I should’ve said, ‘My mom was a pig’.”
Sh ayna pulled a kitchen chair away from the table and pushed a sleeping cat onto the floor. I had to relocate a foot-tall stack of People magazines before I could sit down.
“Jeez, look at that ,” Shayna said, picking up one of the magazines. “She’s got gossip rags dating back to the days of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes; maybe even Nicole Kidman. I swear the woman never tossed anything. You ever watch those ‘hoarder’ shows on TV? My mom could’ve been on there. But she was too bitchy. The TV people want nice freaks, not crabby ones.”
I said nothing.
“You probably think I’m horrible. But believe me, I have a million reasons. She treated us girls like lepo , like dirt. As far as she and my dad were concerned, David was the master and we were the slaves. It was always ‘Go help David’ or ‘You can’t have that because I need to get something for David.’
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