Chapter 1
Wedding bells. These two words together are perhaps the most joyful words for any young couple in any part of the world. They signify love, happiness and hope for a brighter future ahead. The same could be said for Amanda and Keith, the most promising couple in all of Daleville. The townsfolk loved this local couple for all the love and joy they spread. They were also very jealous of them for the very same reason. The human brain is a peculiar thing, really. On one hand, it admires something enough to put it on a pedestal. On the other, jealousy makes it want to find even the slightest flaw and publicise it for the world to see. To prove to the world that perfect, in fact, does not exist.
Amanda and Keith, however, had flawlessly handled all the obstacles that life could present them with. Until they opted to be wed in the Sister Mary’s Chapel on Gladison Street.
The chapel had not been used for years. Decades, even. It was rumoured that the last time the chapel doors were even open to the public was in 1976. It had been for a wedding. One that ended in the massacre of the attendees and nearly half the townsfolk.
But old legends like such seemed trivial to the couple. “It’s just an old story that parents tell their children so they don’t wander so far into town,” Amanda said when her father had shown his concern. She was warned that it was a bad omen, but Amanda was adamant, and what Amanda did, Keith agreed. After all, is that not the ultimate secret to a happy married life?
Thus, the day of the wedding was upon us. The chapel windows that had once been boarded with metal plates were now bare and allowed passage to the brightest sunlight the day had to offer. Its stained glass polished and the rays of light winked as I moved between rows and rows of guests. Apparently, not one patron wanted to be amiss from the event.
It was baffling how the workers had managed to make the centuries-old gold chandelier look as vibrant as ever. Almost like it had been moulded into the finest gold mere hours ago. The couple had definitely managed to chase away the haunted ambience of the building. Not one person here would believe its gory history was true. Not after this transformation.
I must have been a few paces from the bridal suite beneath the chapel stairs when I heard an all too familiar shriek, followed by the crash of what was likely a ceramic vase. An old and historical ceramic vase.
“Sally!” came the shrieking sound from behind the large oak door. Part of me wanted to stand there and admire the carvings on the door. They were peculiar, to say the least. I could make out a nun and a pair of hands, praying and-
“Sally! Where are you?”
I sighed and pushed the door open. I was prepared for the worst by now considering how harrowing my maid of honour duties had been this past week, from planning bridal showers at a historical retreat to bachelorette parties at the old haunted cabin near the Rivera. To say that my best friend was a history nut would be an understatement. And wrong. She was a history nut who was only interested in the ghastly and supernatural aspects of history. One of the reasons why she had opted for Sister Mary’s Chapel in the first place. Just being here made the hair on my arms stand up to attention. Even if the entire interior had been changed in a matter of weeks.
Like I said, i was prepared for the worst. I was wrong. There, in the middle of the bridal suite, lay a shattered vase. There were flowers crumpled on the floor in every corner of the room and a red liquid stained the cream white loveseat at the far end of the room.
It took me a minute to register the smell of red wine reaching my nostrils before I assumed the worst. I heaved a small sigh of relief and looked back at the bride to be only to have a deep sense of panic set right back in.
Her make-up had been smudged. Red lipstick smeared over her lips to her cheek like she had run her hand over her mouth. Black twin lines of mascara ran down to her jaw and big fat tears lined her eyes, ready to follow the ones that had just made their escape. She had most likely taken out one of her blue contact lenses because one of her eyes was her natural brown while the other was blue. Oh and her hair.
She looked the epitome of distraught and for the life of me, I wished i could take away her pain because no matter what she put me through, she was still that little girl who had given me half her lunch box and told me our identical blonde hair was beautiful when everyone else made fun of me. Sometimes, i can hear their cruel comments, but it is quickly replaced with a beautiful memory.
“Sal-” she sobbed and threw her arms around me.
“Amanda, what’s wrong?” I rubbed her back in slow circles.
“K-Keith, he-”
My blood turned cold. If she actually said what I was thinking, heaven knew I would hunt that low life to the ends of the earth and skin him alive if I had to. It would be the last thing I ever did.
“He- I can’t find him.”
“What do you mean, you can’t find him? Did he tell you where he went?”
“N-no, I-I-” she stammered, clutching me to her for dear life. I was certain the blush pink bridesmaid dress I was forced to wear was crumpled up like the flowers that surrounded us. “He’s going to leave me at the altar,” she let out another heart-wrenching sob and my intestines twisted in on themselves. “I’m humili-”
“Amanda! Open the door!” I knew for a fact that was not Keith. Let’s just say his nasal voice was hard to miss. Considering she had never locked it, the door swung open and slammed against the wall making me grit my teeth and flinch. “Oh, I didn’t realise it was open,” he rubbed his hand on his neck and gave us a sheepish smile.
“What do you want Jackson?” Amanda waved the tissue she had tightly clutched in her hand. “Can’t you see we’re in the middle of something?”
“If it’s about Keith, you can stop worrying,” he held his hands out in front of him. It seemed like he wanted to pacify Amanda, but I could see her getting angsty by the minute. This would not end well. For Jackson.
“Get on with it.” I crossed my arms over my chest and gave him the most condescending look I could muster. Showing Jackson Sommers any kind of emotion would be unacceptable. A painful death would be preferable. After all, he had been my arch nemesis for the past ten years.
I watched as his blue eyes shifted to me and his lips formed a subtle sneer. Subtle enough that Amanda wouldn't notice but enough for me to tell exactly what he thought of me. A brief moment of conflict flitted over his features as though he was deciding if I was even worth talking to, but one look at Amanda made him reconsider.
“He went up to the roof for a smoke and got trapped up there. I told him this ratty hell hole was a bad idea, but he didn’t listen.”
“Oh, thank God!” Amanda shrieked, but this time it was a sound mixed with relief and joy. I felt the tension visibly leave her as her shoulders relaxed and she slumped in a chair.
I wasn’t satisfied though. “How do you know it’s true?” I narrowed my eyes at him, knowing full well that he had covered for his best friend on more than one occasion.
“He called me a few minutes ago.” Jackson sounded bored as ever to be having this conversation, but I was not done.
“And why didn’t you tell Amanda sooner?”
“What are you, her bodyguard?”
“She’s right, Jack. You should’ve told me sooner, I’ve been a mess.” Amanda was now dabbing away at her eyes in the mirror trying to salvage what she could. She turned to look at me, “Better?”
I nodded meekly, not better at all.
“He got cut off so I was trying to get reception to call him back. This damned place has no cell coverage! Can you believe it? It’s in the smack dab middle of town!” he raised his arms up in frustration. His brown curly hair going all over the place. If he wasn’t in a tuxedo right now, he would look exactly like those street kids behind the school dumpster.
“Did he say where he was?”
“Yeah, near the big bell. Top floor.”
“What?” Amanda shrieked yet again. I could swear no one could best this woman in a shrieking match. I was lucky my ears hadn’t started bleeding.
“He said he needed to clear his head is all.” Jackson shrugged.
“Okay,” she took a deep breath, steadying herself. If I knew Amanda, she was about to suggest something completely insane and naturally, she wanted me to go along with it. Goodie. “I’ll call Nathan.”
“I doubt your little brother would be any help.” Jackson mocked. He was about to break into laughter but one look from the bride had his mouth sealed right up.
“You seriously need to stop making fun of my brother, Jack. It’s not cute being the bully when you’re thirty.”
Now, if I had a camera at that moment in time I would have taken enough pictures of that face to fill up the whole reel. Sadly, I did not. I still hold that moment dear. And in my worst times, all I need to elevate my mood is to rewind right back to this moment. Though, to this day, I wish the events that followed had never taken place. I wish Amanda had never chosen this Chapel as her wedding venue.
