The Wedding Party

Part 13: A Fish

The sun dipped low behind the Manor, casting eerie shadows across the lawn as Helena stood on the terrace, lost in thought. The cool breeze tugged at her hair, and she shivered, pulling her jacket tighter around her. Griffin, the wedding florist, approached with a hesitant step, his eyes reflecting the weight of their previous conversation.

"Helena," he began, his voice cracking slightly. "I am sorry about scaring you in the bathroom earlier but I wanted to ask you something."

"Sure, what's up?" she replied, turning to face him.

"Would you... would you consider letting me live with you in Ottawa?" His question hung in the air, and Helena felt her heart skip a beat. "I still feel the weight of everything that has happened on the mainland, I feel more and more recently like it is dragging me down and I am worried I may not be able to get back up to the surface."

"Griffin, that's... I don't know what to say," she stammered, taken aback by his request. She knew the feeling all to well, like a nightmare you can't wake up from.

He seemed to recognize the gravity of his question and hastened to smooth things over. "You know what? Forget I asked. I shouldn't have put you on the spot like that." He forced a smile and walked away, leaving Helena to ponder his words.

-----

Meanwhile, Preston met with Braeden at the docks, the water lapping gently against the wooden planks beneath them. "We need to talk about Zackary," Preston said, his voice firm. "His behavior is getting out of hand, and it's affecting everyone."

Braeden nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I've noticed that too. But what can we do?"

"Let's invite him to a bonfire party tonight. Maybe if we all spend some time together, things will calm down." Preston hoped that this gesture could diffuse some of the tension among the group.

-----

In the woods, Alanna stumbled through the underbrush, her vision blurring from the alcohol she had consumed earlier. Her focus was solely on finding Ashleigh, but her sense of direction faltered, and she veered off course. Suddenly, her foot snagged on something, and she felt herself being hoisted into the air, trapped in a snare.

-----

Back at the Manor, Preston entered the building, only to be greeted by the sight of blood splattered across the floor. His heart raced as he followed the trail, which led him to the bathroom where a dead fish lay in the bathtub. Panic clawed at his chest, and his mind raced with questions and fear.

-----

Elsewhere in the manor, "Marina, we need to talk about Gavyn," Olive insisted, her voice strained. She had taken Dax's advice and sought out her mother for guidance.

"Olive, darling," Marina replied, her tone soothing. "What is wrong my little Olive pit. I hope Gavyn is keeping his distance, I told him to do so myself. I didn't want him causing any more trouble for you and Preston."

As they spoke, Killian stumbled upon Alanna in the woods, still hanging upside down from the snare and unconscious. He glanced around anxiously, before trying to undo the snare but to no avail. Then he decided to take her map before slipping away undetected, muttering to himself that he will find help.

-----

Helena entered Preston's room just as he was scrubbing at the bloodstained floor. Her expression tightened as she took in the scene. "Preston, what happened?"

"I don't know, someone thought it would be funny to put a dead fish in the tub" he admitted, desperation lacing his voice. "I can make a guess as to who did it, the question is why he is so hellbent of fucking up our wedding"

"Are you talking about Zackary?" Helena asked, furrowing her brow. "I know he is an asshole but would he really do this?"

"Well I am open to suggestions as to who else would this," Preston implored, annoyed that his guests seemed to take off when ever they wanted and now having to deal with this. Helena didn't say another word, she knew that Braeden would know if Zackary was the culprit.

When Helena confronted Braeden about their earlier excursion, he hesitated before revealing the gruesome discovery they had made: a dead raccoon on their truck, the word "LEAVE" scrawled in blood on the windshield. The revelation sent chills down Helena's spine, there was no way Zackary would do that to his own truck, so who wanted the wedding canceled.