Model Menace 2 by Carolyn Keene Page A

you think he could really be behind this?”
    I sighed. “I don’t want to,” I admitted, “but it’s hard not to see him as the most likely suspect right now. If he’s working with Akinyi, the two of them have had opportunity, and now they have a motive.” I paused. “And that would explain her terrible mood this whole time—if she thought her best friend was marrying the guy who’d ruined her flame’s life.”
    My friends and I looked at each other, each of us clearly upset by this theory.
    “But they’re the best man and maid of honor,” Bess said finally, voicing what each of us was probably thinking. “How could they do that to their friends?”
    I yawned and rubbed my eyes. “I’m not sure they did,” I admitted, “and I hope they didn’t. But still—let’s keep a careful eye on the two of them tomorrow.”

LIGHT OF MY LIFE
     
    “I think we should do a dramatic eye,” Bess suggested, holding up an example from one of her fashion magazines, as all of the bridesmaids bustled around getting ready in Syd’s hotel suite. “I’m thinking a smokey eye, in plum. That will really make your brown eyes pop.”
    “Oh, oh, I disagree,” Deb Camden suddenly broke in, sweeping over to us out of nowhere. She took a look at the subject with a frown. “Did you see those pictures of Charlize Theron at the Oscars in Us Weekly ? She did a subtle eye and a pop of color on the cheeks and lips. And she looked, you know—” She giggled. “She looked like Charlize Theron, which means fabulous !”
    Bess turned to Deb, not looking very happy to have her expert advice questioned. “Charlize Theron has hazel eyes,” she pointed out. “I really think a dramatic eye is the way to go.”
    George, who was the subject of their debate, looked over at me, her eyes pleading. I knew this was like the seventh level of purgatory for her. Before I could think of something to say to call off the makeup vultures, though, George piped up: “How about no makeup at all, huh? How about that?”
    Bess and Deb both gasped, backing up a little as though George might be dangerous.
    “You must be kidding, right?” Deb cried.
    “Of course she is,” Bess replied, shooting George a warning glance. “George knows that this is a wedding , and at a wedding, you wear makeup.” Before anyone could protest further, she stepped in and attacked George’s eyelid with a makeup brush dipped in deep plum eyeshadow. “Don’t worry, George. I’ll make you look like a model.”
    “Just what I wanted,” George muttered sarcastically as Akinyi walked over, looking gorgeous in her rose-colored maid of honor gown.
    “What’s that?” Akinyi asked with a rare smile. “You aren’t talking smack about models over here, are you? Syd and I may look skinny, but we’re fierce! We could take you on.”
    George smiled, or did the best she could, as Bess held down her eyelid and attacked with a black eyeliner pencil. “Of course not, Akinyi,” she replied. “Hey, you’re in a good mood today.”
    At first, Akinyi looked a little surprised by George’s observation, but her surprise quickly melted away. “I am,” she agreed. “Listen, I know I’ve been a little crabby these last few days. I guess it’s just been hard for me, with the breakup, and watching my best friend go through all this scary stuff with the wedding attacks.” She paused. “I guess now that the wedding is really happening and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, I can really be happy for Syd. I mean, she’s marrying the man of her dreams. This is a happy day!”
    We all smiled, and I tried not to let my surprise at Akinyi’s little speech show on my face. I hadn’t forgotten that at the present time, Akinyi and Jamal looked like the most likely suspects to have caused all the strife she was talking about. But at the same time, I was hoping like crazy that she was being sincere now, and they really weren’t behind it.
    But—who else could have done it? Who