The Wedding Project 💍

'Down Under' (Part Three)

The young lady's name was Laura Vanders, as she introduced herself to the detectives and Eddie. She was meant to be the maid of honour for the wedding, but through backstabbing and intrigue against her, her former friend Susan had beaten her to it, taking their spot. But Laura felt that there was more to Susan's agenda than just taking the honourable place. When Susan snuck away to the basement, Laura followed her to confront her. One moment of carelessness later she had woken up behind the crates, all trussed up. "Thank you so much for freeing me!" she repeated to Eddie over and over again, breathless from gratitude. "I was afraid I would die down there."

The detectives proceeded to ask her a lot of additional questions, but that was not Eddie's concern anymore. He was glad to get out of there. At first he had been convinced that those little kids had gone too far with their games, or that the young man he had caught with the mop had been responsible for the young woman's captivity. This is way too much crazy stuff going on up here, he thought to himself. I should lock myself in the basement for the rest of the day, let the crazy people live it out and then go away. I'm no part of this.

Charles was waiting for him at the elevators, looking very stern, even for a tall black dude. He had his arms crossed in front of him. "Eddie," he called upon the janitor, without any pleasantries. "We need to talk."

"Charles, I didn't even touch those kids!" Eddie started defending himself, knowing all too well what the security chief had on his mind. "They were playing around in the basement where they are not supposed to be. I just asked them what they were doing, and..."

"What kids?" Charles frowned and looked at him puzzled. "Actually, I wanted a word about the security cameras on the third floor."

Eddie stared at him, both relieved and confused, his mouth opening and closing without one word coming over his lips. "Oh?" he finally uttered. Never mind then, he added in his mind.

"I told you to wait until the guests have gone. But I need you to dismantle the cameras and inspect them now. Please, it is urgent."

There was something in his voice... Eddie couldn't remember seeing Charles in that state of nervousness. He took a closer look at the dark face and had to lean back a little to actually look at it. "What's the urgency? I mean, the case is closed, isn't it? The woman has been found."

"What are you talking about?" With the eyebrows raised and the face taking up the form of infinite confusion, Charles looked like a big question mark to Eddie.

Eddie shrugged. "I mean... that's what those detectives are here for, isn't it?"

Uncomfortable silence filled the space between them. Charles looked down at Eddie as if he was looking at a madman.

"Ed... they are investigating a murder."

Eddie suddenly felt a cold breeze going down his spine. "You're shitting me!" he accused the security chief.

"Please watch your language!" Charles reminded him, his Haitian accent taking a bit away from the reprimand. "And no, I am serious. Shortly after the wedding someone found the bride in her room. Dead."

Oh my God! Eddie stared blankly into the void. The questions those detectives had asked him suddenly made sense. The splatter of blood they had found... the fingerprints... He didn't do it, he knew that. He had given his own fingerprints in the hopes that they weren't a match. But what if some of the prints were still his - he didn't wipe the surfaces around the hidden compartments, because why would he? Had he been to the bridal suite lately, through the hidden tunnels? Had they found anything tying him to this murder?

Deep in his thoughts it took him a moment to realise that Charles was still waiting for an answer. "Oh... uhm... yeah. Right! Alright, I'm... I'm on it." Damn, he was so nervous all of a sudden. From the corner of his eye he tried to decipher the expression on Charles' face. Was he suspecting him?

Better not to dwell on it, he decided and took the stairs to the third floor. He reached the janitor's closet in no time and opened it without hesitation.

An intense and unpleasant smell hit him right in the nostrils.

Something is wrong. Something is terribly wrong!

The smell left a somewhat burning sensation, driving tears into his eyes. It was an extreme mixture of chloride, acid and other chemicals. Something that he would only expose himself to while wearing a protective mask. Yet he recognized it instantly - especially when he saw the source of that smell. The big orange plastic bottle, covered from top to bottom in labels declaring "Danger!", "Poison" and "Do not touch!", was not standing in the usual place. One of the labels near the bottom was crumbling, a tiny drop of liquid emerging from the middle of the bottle had run down and over it, dissolving it in its path. There was still liquid coming from this tiny hole, and it had hit the metal shelf the bottle was standing on. The chemical reactions of the liquid had given the metal an ugly black colouring where it touched it.

Eddie used his left sleeve to cover his mouth and shield himself at least a little from the poisonous fumes. Even breathing it was unhealthy. No person in their right mind should even touch this bottle. But someone had. And not only this. He came a bit closer, in the hopes that his eyes would survive the fumes.

The hole near the bottom of the bottle looked like someone had poked it with a needle...