Wedding Cake and Woes Read online

  Julia’s eyes finally landed on Barker’s back. He was looking straight ahead at the altar, his hands clasped behind him. Casper noticed Julia and patted Barker on the shoulder with his free hand; his other clutched the cane he needed to support his prosthetic leg.

  Barker spun around, a broad smile captivating her attention. She returned it, and the world melted away. It didn’t matter that the cake wasn’t perfect, or that the cars hadn’t arrived, or that the flowers were the wrong colour, or that it was raining; this was why she was here. This man. This moment.

  When Julia reached the end of the aisle, her father let go and stepped to the side to join Katie. She felt like she was floating in a dream state behind her hazy veil as Barker’s gaze pulled her in to join him. Once she was in position, he lifted her veil, freeing her to take him in unobstructed.

  “You look amazing,” he whispered, his smile beaming from ear-to-ear. “Nervous?”

  “Not anymore,” she said, looking deep into his eyes.

  They held hands and turned to Father David, who smiled down at them from a raised platform. Thunder rumbled outside. As Julia had requested, the choir began to sing ‘All Things Bright and Beautiful’, mirroring the song the very same choir had sung for her mother and father on their special day over forty years ago.

  The choirmaster, Gloria Gray, stepped forward to take the lead vocals of the hymn. Somewhere in her late sixties, Gloria was a tall and wide woman with a commanding presence. Short grey curls sprouted from her head in all directions, and even though her round face was soft and pale, her gaze carried the authority of a woman in charge. She had been Julia’s music teacher at St. Peter’s Primary School, and she had always caused an irrational fear deep within Julia. Even as a child, Julia hadn’t sensed any warmth within the woman.

  Despite this, Julia was glad to have Gloria singing at her wedding. She was the longest-serving member of the choir; more than once, she had told Julia she had been part of the choir that had sung at Julia’s parents’ wedding all those years ago.

  Julia glanced up at the cavernous ceiling. Was her mother up there looking down on them? Thunder signalled again. She wasn’t sure she believed in heaven, but she was happy to believe in it today.

  Hand in hand, Julia and Barker watched the choir sing. Dot and Alfie provided backing vocals, but Gloria seemed to be the only member actually singing. It felt less like a choral performance and more like a singer with her back-up. Her vocals bellowed into every corner of the church without the aid of a microphone.

  “You’re not wearing your wedding suit,” Julia whispered to Barker when she noticed that he was wearing a dark blue, pinstriped business jacket.

  “It’s a long story,” he whispered back. “I’ll explain later. I’ve had a string of bad luck this morning.”

  “I’m glad it wasn’t just me then.”

  “You too?” He squeezed her hand. “The universe can do whatever it wants. Nothing is going to stop us marrying today.”

  The choir reached the climax of the song, but to Julia’s surprise, Gloria fluffed the final high note. She choked and began to cough, much to the horror of the rest of the choir. Amy Clark abruptly stopped playing the organ, sending the church into silence. Gloria looked around, her eyes wide. She appeared as though she was about to apologise, but a short, impish woman with wiry grey hair pulled her back. Gloria shrugged the other woman off and sat with a huff.

  The awkward silence that followed was interrupted when Gloria struggled back more coughing. She reached under the bench for a water bottle, which she took a deep swig from. Barker glanced at Julia, but all she could offer was a shrug.

  “Wasn’t that lovely?” Father David offered an unsure smile as he stepped forward. “Thank you to the Peridale Harmonics Choir for another divine performance.”

  He cleared his throat and tugged at his dog collar before opening his order of service. His lips parted, but before he could start, Gloria’s coughing cut him off.

  “Dearly beloved,” Father David bellowed over the noise, “we are gathered here today in the sight of God to witness the union of Barker Fergus Brown and Julia Maria South in holy—”

  Gloria spluttered as she drank more water, before breaking into an even louder coughing fit. All eyes turned to her, including Father David’s. Other members of the choir looked away, obviously embarrassed. Dot rolled her eyes, and it seemed only the impish lady Julia didn’t know cared about comforting Gloria.

  “—in holy matrimony,” Father David continued, “which is an honourable estate, that is not to be entered into unadvisedly or—”

  Gloria’s coughing interrupted him once again. Father David sighed and snapped the order of service shut before turning to the choir.

  “Maybe you should excuse yourself, Gloria?” he whispered. “Get some fresh air?”

  Gloria nodded and stood up, but more coughing made her stumble back and fall onto Dot and Alfie. They let out identical yelps as the weight of the heavy woman crashed down on them. A gasp echoed around the church, followed by disapproving chatter.

  “She doesn’t look good,” Julia whispered to Barker as Gloria regained her balance. “Her face is turning purple.”

  Gloria walked along the row, coughing the whole way. She staggered down a step and looked out at the congregation with pleading eyes. Sweat rolled down her flushed face. Julia clutched Barker’s hand as other members of the choir exited to surround her. A handful of guests stood up, but nobody seemed to know what to do. A collective cry boomed through the room when Gloria dropped to her knees.

  “Somebody help her!” the impish woman cried desperately. “She can’t breathe!”

  Father David hurried over and rested his hand on Gloria’s back before looking up helplessly and crying, “Is there a doctor in attendance?”

  There was a moment of desperate silence as the guests looked amongst themselves, waiting for a medical professional to come forward; none did.

  “I’m a nurse,” Sue called as she passed her flowers to Roxy. “Let me take a look.”

  But Sue didn’t reach Gloria in time to do anything. Gloria slouched forward and clutched Father David’s white robes, coughing one last time before dropping to the ground on her front with a silencing thud. Everyone gulped, including Julia and Barker, when they saw the tiny red splatters of blood on the vicar’s robes.

  Sue dropped down and dug two fingers into Gloria’s fleshy neck as Father David and the rest of the choir backed away. Sue stared at Julia, her expression grave.

  “I think she’s dead.”

  4

  The sun seemed to set extra early that night. Julia and Barker stood in their kitchen as the light disappeared around them. Still in their wedding outfits, they had been staring mutely at the wedding cake leaning against the counter for the past hour. Julia was too in shock to attempt to remove the dress on her own.

  The house phone rang on the kitchen wall for the thirteenth time since they had returned to the cottage. They had ignored it each time, but Julia couldn’t stand to listen to it ring anymore. She left Barker’s side and snatched the phone line out of the wall before immediately retreating to his side. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in.

  “The cake is missing a tier,” Barker finally said, breaking the silence that had been bubbling since they had left the police station.

  “The fridge broke and ruined the original one,” she explained, her voice numb. “We made this one this morning. Quickly.”

  Julia reached out and dug her fingers into the middle tier. She pulled out a fistful of the cake and took a large bite. It was the first thing she had eaten all day.

  “Double chocolate fudge cake,” Julia explained after swallowing her first mouthful. “You might as well help yourself. No point wasting good cake.”

  Barker looked unsure, but she gave him an encouraging nod. He broke off a chunk of the cake, and they resumed their position leaning against the counter and staring into space while they ate.

&n
bsp; “It’s delicious,” Barker said between bites.

  “I wanted to surprise you with your favourite.” Julia glanced at the clock. “Our reception would have been starting in ten minutes. We’d have been cutting the cake as husband and wife in a couple of hours.”

  She sighed and finished her cake. When she was done, she licked her fingers instead of washing them; she didn’t have the energy for manners.

  “That poor woman,” Barker said quietly. “I can’t believe she just keeled over and died like that.”

  Julia couldn’t shake the image of Gloria lying dead on the church floor. She had remained there for an hour thanks to flooding rerouting the ambulance. Sue had spent a good chunk of that hour diligently trying to revive her with CPR. Father David had finally pulled Sue away, telling her it was in God’s hands now.

  “Do you believe in omens?” she asked.

  “I don’t know.”

  “I think I do after today.” Julia wiped the crumbs from her face with the back of her hand. “Someone or something out there didn’t want us to get married. They threw everything in our way to stop us. The fridge broke and ruined the wedding cake, my flowers weren’t the ones I ordered, the wedding cars were stuck in a flood.”

  “And my suit.” Barker looked down at his pinstriped jacket. “I burned a hole in mine with the iron. Evelyn knocked on every door in the B&B until she found a guest who owned a suit. This was all they had.”

  “Maybe we should have listened.” Julia rubbed between her eyes. “The signs were there.”

  “It was just bad luck.”

  “Bad luck is missing a bus. Today was something biblical. I’m surprised my dress didn’t burst into flames to really hammer the message home.”

  Barker’s forehead creased as he offered Julia a sympathetic smile. She felt like she was on the verge of tears, but she didn’t have the energy to produce any, so she laughed. She laughed until Barker started laughing. They held each other and laughed away their pain in the middle of the kitchen, only breaking away when a key rattled in the front door.

  “Mum?” Jessie’s voice bellowed down the hallway. “Barker?”

  Soaked from the rain, Jessie ran into the kitchen. She immediately slapped the light switch, blinding Julia and Barker in the process.

  “I’ve been waiting at the station for you!” Jessie whacked her clutch bag down on the counter. “I was worried sick! I thought you’d run away.”

  “That doesn’t sound like such a bad idea right now.” Julia pulled off her veil and began to pluck the masses of pins Sue had used out of her hair. “We didn’t mean to worry you. We needed some alone time to come to terms with not becoming husband and wife.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Jessie offered as she scratched the back of her neck. “I have no idea what to say. Why don’t I help you get out of that dress?”

  Julia nodded. She looked down at her once perfect dress. The hem was muddy and frayed from the rain, and chocolate crumbs spattered the bodice. It reminded her of the blood splatters on Father David’s white robes. She wanted her earlier euphoria to return, but she doubted this—or any other—dress would arouse such a feeling in her again.

  In the bathroom, Jessie unlaced the corset and helped Julia wriggle out of the garment. Leaving Julia in her underwear, Jessie whisked the dress away and returned with a set of fluffy pink pyjamas. Without asking if she wanted one, Jessie pulled the shower curtain across the bathtub and turned on the hot water. She kissed Julia on the cheek before slipping out.

  Julia stared at herself in the mirror. Her perfect makeup had run and faded, and her intricate hair hung awkwardly around her face. After stripping off her underwear, she climbed into the shower. She stood directly under the water and let its sizzling heat wash away the day.

  Instead of this being the happiest day of her life, she felt only numb.

  Time ground to a halt and each second felt like an hour passing. She stood under the water, hugging her body and shivering despite the heat for what felt like a lifetime. She remained unmoving until the hot water ran cold, and, even then, she didn’t immediately move. It wasn’t until a voice in the back of her mind said, “what are you doing, Julia?” that she cut off the water and climbed out.

  As she dried off, voices drifted under the door. At first, she assumed Jessie and Barker were chatting, but she quickly realised the noise was coming from more than two sources. With her wet hair pulled back into a ponytail, she climbed into her pyjamas and finally left the bathroom. She was surprised to see her entire family filling the sitting room.

  “Here she is!” Dot jumped up, a glass of champagne in her hand, still wearing her outfit and hat from earlier. “I was about to come and check that you hadn’t drowned in there.”

  “What’s all this?” Julia asked, hugging her body, feeling exposed in front of her full house.

  “It seemed a shame to waste all the food from the reception,” Sue said, holding up a paper plate. “It was all made, so we decided to bring it up here to keep you company.”

  “Or take your mind off things,” her father jumped in.

  “You shouldn’t be alone at a time like this,” Katie added, bouncing Vinnie up and down on her knee. “You need your family here with you.”

  “And don’t worry about this being in bad taste,” Dot mumbled through a mouthful of a sandwich. “I know we shouldn’t speak ill of the dead, but Gloria was a piece of work. Very few tears will be shed over her tonight.”

  “Gran!” Sue cried. “Time and place.”

  “I’m only saying!” Dot held up her hands. “It’s the truth! I’ve only been part of the choir for a month, and even I could see that she had made enemies of everyone. I wasn’t far off becoming one of them! Silly woman said I couldn’t keep pitch! Can you believe that? Me? I won Miss Singing Peridale 1953, I’ll have you know! My vocals moved the judges to tears. I could have been a recording artist. They said I had a voice for the radio!”

  “Are you sure they didn’t say ‘face for radio’, mother?” Brian lifted his champagne flute and winked before turning to Julia. “If you want us to go, we’ll get out of your hair.”

  Julia smiled her appreciation, even though all she really wanted to do was climb into bed and pretend the whole sorry day had been nothing more than a bad dream. Still, she was happy to see them. It wasn’t like she hadn’t planned to spend the day with them already.

  “Stay,” Julia assured them, pushing forward a smile. “Enjoy the food.”

  “Grab yourself something.” Dot wafted her hand towards the dining room. “It’s a fabulous spread! These tuna vol-au-vents are to die for!”

  Leaving Dot to think about her poor choice of words, Julia walked into the dining room, where Barker was deep in conversation with his brother, Casper.

  “You must have them!” Barker exclaimed, putting a hand to his forehead. “This is the last thing we need!”

  Casper’s wife, Heather, a short, round woman with neat, roller-set grey curls, ushered Julia into the corner of the room.

  “You poor thing.” Heather pulled Julia down into a tight hug. “My heart breaks for you. You’re so strong. How are you holding yourself together?”

  “Barely.” Julia pulled away with a smile, her focus going straight back to the arguing men. “What’s happened?”

  “The rings seem to have been misplaced.”

  “Misplaced?” Barker roared. “Casper lost them! You have three jobs as a best man! Organise a stag party, give a speech that isn’t too embarrassing, and don’t lose the rings! Since I didn’t want a stag and you got out of the speech, where are the rings?”

  “Don’t take that tone with me!” Casper roared back, his entire weight on his cane. “I told you! They were in my pocket, and now they’re gone. I haven’t reached for them since I put them there! In case you hadn’t noticed, there have been more important things going on!”

  There was an almost thirty-year age gap between Barker and Casper. Their mother had Casper in her late teens,
while she’d been in her forties when Barker was born. She’d have been Dot’s age if she was still alive, but she had died before reaching her eighties. Despite the age gap, Casper was the only one of Barker’s three brothers he was still close to. Casper and Heather had been a couple before Barker was born, and had acted as secondary parents to him throughout his life; something Barker had always appreciated, given he didn’t know who his father was.

  “Don’t get yourself worked up, dear.” Heather reached out a hand. “It’s been a long day.”

  Julia looked down at the engagement ring that hugged her finger. It upset her that the wedding band that should have been above it was now missing, but it felt like the tip of the wedding-related-problems iceberg.

  “I’m sure they’ll show up,” Julia offered, sandwiching herself between the two men. “Casper, did you have the jacket on all day?”

  “Yes!” he cried. “Well, I took it off in the church when we were waiting for the ambulance to turn up, but then I put it right back on when we left.”

  “And did you check to see if the rings were still there?” she asked.

  “Well, no.” Casper frowned. “I was too busy thinking about the dead woman on the floor.”

  “Then they probably slipped out.” Julia smiled at him, hoping to calm him down. “And, if that’s the case, they’ll make their way back to us.”

  “It still technically means he lost them,” Barker muttered under his breath.

  “Not helping, Barker,” Heather called from the corner. “Why don’t we all just relax and eat some of this delicious-looking food? It’s been a long day for all of us. What will we gain from turning on each other? We should be grateful to be alive right now. Now, shake hands, and we’ll revisit the topic when the dust has settled.”

  Casper huffed but held his hand out. Barker pretended not to notice, prompting Julia to slap him on the arm with the back of her hand. He puffed out his chest and pouted, but he shook his brother’s hand, if not a little reluctantly.