"This is Chloe Morris, Leva Anand, and Danni Baird," Cameran introduced the group. "I assume Etty is running late.."

"Uh...she-she is," Chloe answered, giving her headful of red curls a shake. "She said she had something to do first."

"As I said, I've been brought in to try and figure out what happened to Hallie, so I need to ask you some questions," Tessa picked up.

"But...I thought they said Nate...did it?" Danni said, her nearly white brows drawing together. "They just didn't have the evidence to prove it?"

"Naming Mr. Rutherford without enough evidence was something the original detective on this case decided to do. I'm starting over on my own, so right now I have no firm suspects."

"So, its possible that Nate didn't have anything to do with what happened to Hallie?" Leva asked, more than a little hopeful at the prospect.

"Its possible," she stated. "But, I haven't drawn any conclu--"

"I knew it! I knew Nate couldn't have done that to Hallie!" was Chloe's adamant declaration, spoken with both a measure of relief and fervent glee.

"How can you be so certain, Ms. Morris?" she asked the girl, whose freckled cheeks were flushed with feeling. "I've been informed that Nathan Rutherford could become violent towards the women in his life, especially if he was drinking."

All three young women seemed unfazed by the statement, which she found a bit disturbing.

"There's a difference between getting violent and getting stupid wasted, Detective Stark," Leva opined in a patient sort of way. "Nate can get rowdy after a heavy night, but aren't most guys like that?"

"Did Nate ever get rowdy with either of you?" she questioned.

"Not me personally," Danni shrugged. "But, I guess we've all seen him get a little handsy. He doesn't mean anything by it, though."

Cameran let out a disgusted snort. "He doesn't mean anything by it! Danni! Nate hits women! He's blacks eyes and busts lips! I mean, he's hit Chloe before! How can you act like that's okay!"

"Cameran, shhh!" Trista scolded. "This isn't the place! There are people--"

"Fuck these people!" Cameran spat. "My sister is dead! I don't give a shit if these assholes overhear!"

"Its okay, Cam. Really," Trista tried to soothe. "Try not to get upset. It doesn't help anything."

Cameran was suddenly knocking back her bourbon, thunking the empty glass onto the table, and getting to her feet. "I need something to drink."

"We have wine," Chloe said, motioning to the array of bottles before them.

"I'd rather have vodka," Cameran mumbled. "Ya'll answer the detectives questions or when I get back, you'll have to answer to me. And tell Etty the same thing, if she ever shows up! Either she cooperates or I'll strangle her scrawny ass!"

With that, Cameran exited the seating area and Trista went after her, leaving Tessa alone with the three rather stunned girls.

After a brief silence, Chloe let out a hard breath and reached for one of the bottles. "Now I need a drink."

"So, ladies, Cameran put forth a good question," she said, re-starting the conversation...and hoping that the possibility of having to set-to with Cameran Whitmore would loosen some tongues and make her job easier. "If Nathan Rutherford is in the habit of getting rowdy and giving women black eyes and busted lips, how can you defend him? Especially if he's gotten physical with you, Ms. Morris."

It was Leva who answered. "Nate usually doesn't take it that far. Maybe a couple of times, but..." she shrugged nonchalantly, reaching for a bottle and glass of her own.

"But...boys will be boys?" Tessa finished for her.

"I guess," was Leva's riposte as she poured a glass of deeply colored, nearly black liquid from a slender black bottle.

"Ms. Morris? Is that you're opinion, as well?" she asked.

The red haired young lady shrugged, appearing unaffected. Or perhaps...unwilling to speak out against Nathan Rutherford.

Feeling slightly befuddled, and more than slightly nauseated, she pulled her work cell from her bag and took a second to bring up the pictures of Nathan and Etty Montrose caught in the midst of their heated encounter. She turned the phone to face the three women and allowed them to look at first one photo and then the second, watching as their expressions remained fairly...neutral.

"Ugh. I remember those pictures from The Buzz," Danni said, annoyed. "I hate that site."

"Do any of you know what might be happening in these pictures?" she asked. "Because it looks like Nathan is getting pretty...rowdy...with this young woman."

Chloe, taking a sip of her white wine, pulled a face. "That's just Etty and Nathan being...Etty and Nathan. Its what they do."

"Yeah. They fight, they make up, they break up...and then they do it all over again," Danni stated. "Poor Nathan can't seem to shake Etty. She's like a bad rash sometimes."

"Worse. At least a rash will eventually go away," Chloe put in. "Etty is a stage five clinger. She's practically his shadow, following him around, showing up wherever he goes. I've told her that it just looks pathetic, but she doesn't seem to care."

"I was told that Etty Montrose can be like a feral cat where Nathan Rutherford is concerned. Is that true?" she wondered, placing her phone back in her bag. "Does she try to intimidate girls that Nathan gets involved with? Maybe hair pulling, eye poking...threats?"

"That's Etty," sighed Leva, taking a delicate taste of the dark liquid. "She tries to scare away the competition when she thinks Nate's getting too serious. Sometimes, it pisses Nate off. That was probably what was happening in those pictures."

Tessa, taking copious notes, asked the only question that was logical. "So, did Etty have a reaction to the fact that Nathan asked Hallie Whitmore to marry him?"

All three women went still, their thoughts clearly churning as they worked out the answer to her question.

Danni cleared her throat, uncomfortable now. "Shouldn't you be asking Etty about that?"

"I'm asking you," Tessa quantified.

Leva suddenly huffed out a breath. "Look, Etty wasn't thrilled, but she wouldn't have pulled any of her nonsense on Hallie. They were friends. We're all friends."

"Are you sure about that?" she pressed, gauging their reactions closely.

"She-she wouldn't have...killed...Hallie," Chloe said unevenly. "I mean...Nate and Hallie were getting married, but that wouldn't have stopped them from...living their lives."

"That's right!" Danni affirmed eagerly. "We all knew the deal with Hallie's trust fund and that stupid marriage clause. It wasn't like Nate and Hallie were madly in love. Nate would have probably had Etty in his bed before the wedding reception was even over."

How charming. "Do any of you remember the day that Hallie was found? The day of Etty's birthday party at The Razor?" she shifted topics.

"Of course. How could we ever forget that day?" Leva intoned somberly, taking another drink.

"Where were you girls between six and seven that evening?" she asked, though she knew it was probably a futile question.  Friends backed up friends, even if one of those friends was lying.

All three faces registered a mild amount of shock. "We...we were at my apartment, getting ready for the party," Danni replied.

"Was Hallie there? Or Etty?"

There was a moment of silence before Leva spoke. "No. Etty wasn't around much that day because she was busy with party stuff, so she got ready on her own. And we really didn't see Hallie much that day, either. I assumed she was hanging out at her place, trying to figure out what to wear or something."

"Did ya'll know that Hallie would be going to Nathan Rutherford's house before the party?  "Did Etty know?" she slid that in.

The three women suddenly looked very...deer in the headlights. "Well I-I...we all knew she was going to pick up Nate so they could come...together."

So, Hallie Whitmore's plans were common knowledge. And if the girl would stop on a deserted stretch of highway for anyone, other than her fiancé or lover, it would be for one of her girlfriends.

"What time did you girls arrive at Razor?"

"I don't exactly remember," answered Leva, cautious now.

"I think we were there by about eight thirty," Danni supplied the answer. "Etty didn't want us to arrive fashionably late like we normally do because we only had Razor booked for a couple of hours."

"I'm assuming you saw Etty that night? Was she there when you arrived? Was she acting any differently than she normally acted?" she continued.

"There were a lot of people there, so we didn't really get to see Etty very much. She was mingling," answered Danni.

"You know," Chloe began, something in her demeanor shifting, "we did get there a little bit late, but..."

"But...what?" Tessa urged when the girl paused.

Chloe looked at her two friends, blanching slightly and then biting her lips closed, clearly reluctant to speak any further.

"Chloe, if you noticed anything that struck you that night, I need to know. I understand that you're all friends, but if you're withholding information in the middle of a murder investigation, you could be in serious trouble," she said, sounding as stern as she dared.

"Trouble?" Chloe croaked, going even paler.

"Yes. Its called obstruction. Maybe even accessory after the fact. And I'm pretty sure Senator Whitmore, who helps to appoint criminal court judges, wouldn't just allow you to walk away with a little slap on the wrist for impeding his niece's murder investigation." She hated to throw Richard Whitmore's name around, but...she had to do what she had to do.

"But, its nothing. I'm sure its nothing. Really," the girl insisted, squirming nervously.

"It probably is nothing. But, every detail is important because that detail might actually wind up ruling Etty, or someone else, out as a suspect," she explained.  "And you brought it up, Chloe.  There must be a reason why you did that."

"Is Etty a suspect?" Leva asked, her dark gaze narrowing.

"Right now, every single person in Hallie's life is a suspect," she told the group truthfully, pausing to allow her words to sink in.

Chloe seemed to capitulate, though under duress. "It really was nothing. I-I don't even know why its stuck in my mind. I mean...she was just a little late, I think."

"Etty was late to her birthday party?" Tessa pressed.

"I-I thought she was late because...we were late and when we got there, I went to find the V.I.P. while the girls went to get our drinks and Etty got there at the same time I did. It looked like she'd just walked in because she was carrying her purse."

"And?" prodded Tessa, watching the girl visibly wince.

"And she dumped her purse at the table and left," Chloe replied. "She didn't say hi or even notice me. She was just kind of...spaced out. Probably the only reason I remember it is because she'd made such a big fuss about everybody being on time. And she wasn't even made up. It looked like she'd left her house right after stepping out of the shower, without doing her hair or make up. And if one of us had shown up like that, she would have killed...us..." As her words faltered, she again went pale.

Well, stabbing someone in the jugular several times was a messy business. If Etty Montrose had been the one who'd done the stabbing just before her party, she would have had to clean up afterwards. There'd be no way around it. Which likely would have left no time to get all coiffed and made up, if she wanted to make it to the birthday party at all.

"Does that mean something?" Danni wondered, her voice nearing a whisper. "I'm sure it can't...because...I mean, really...what does not doing her hair and makeup have to do with anything?"

Tessa decided to shift topics once again. "Can you ladies tell me anything about Hallie's family life? Did she have any problems with anyone at home?"

It took the young women a few beats to shake off their thoughts about the birthday party and move on. "I don't think she was having problems. She never mentioned it if she did," Leva replied, still working on her drink.

"She was really hardly ever home. She was usually crashing with us, or lately, Nate," Chloe added, obviously relieved at the change in subjects.

"Was there anyone new in Hallie's life? Perhaps a new friend hanging around? Or maybe someone who might have been paying more attention to Hallie than they should have?" she went on.

All three women shook their heads, but Chloe answered. "No. There's no one new. We have a lot friends, but its the same people we've known forever."

"What about Nathan Rutherford? Did you see him that night at Razor?" she asked, back tracking in an effort to throw the girls off their game a bit.

 All three women simultaneously closed their mouths and lifted their shoulders, clearly signaling they'd rather not say anything that might go against the young man. Though, it did seem they didn't have too much trouble discussing one of their best girlfriends...

"Well, I think I just have one more question," she told them, watching a wave of physical relief roll over each of their faces. "Have you ever heard Hallie mention someone named Angela? Its a name I came across by accident--"

"Angela?" Leva cut in, appearing bemused. "That's so funny."

"Funny? What do you mean?" she urged.

"I mean...its just funny you'd mention Angela," Leva shrugged. "I don't know an actual person by that name, but Hallie was obsessed with this Angela."

Leaning forward, Leva placed her glass on the table and picked up the sleek, black bottle she'd poured from, holding it up for Tessa to inspect. Looking at the bottle, she took in the sight of the black label with gold lettering. Across the top of the label was written a name...StoneHouse Vineyard. And taking up the center of the fancy label was another name, scrawled in fancy, filigree lettering.

Angela's Wish.