Page 36 of Murder on the Upper East Side

As the ceremony drifted into cocktail hour, Hannah found herself inside the drawing room, holding a glass of Italian spring water. A cellist played in the corner, and through the tall windows, the dark sea lapped at the cliffs below. Madison was nowhere to be found, but Alex sat by himself in a vintage salon chair, tapping furiously at his phone.

Hannah slipped into the chair beside him.

‘Having fun yet?’

Alex looked up and quickly shoved his phone into his jacket pocket.

‘Hannah. Hey. And no, this wedding is more steeped in old-world glamour and intense boredom than the last, thank you for asking.’

‘Where’s your plus-one?’ she asked.

Just then, a white-gloved server stopped in front of them with a silver tray filled with aged cheddar gougères piped with white truffle béchamel.

Alex loaded three onto a small china plate. He turned to Hannah. ‘These cheesy poufs might be thebest thing about a DuPont wedding. Don’t be polite.’

She smiled and followed suit. The server gave them an approving wink, then moved on.

‘So?’ she asked around a mouthful of rich, umami goodness. ‘Why are you here solo?’

Alex slouched back in his seat. ‘Of course she didn’t tell you.’

Hannah frowned. ‘Who? Tell me what?’

‘I was supposed to ask your sister.’ He cleared his throat. ‘Kind of like as a date? Butmysister, the wicked witch of Park Avenue, forbade it.’

‘Forbadeit?’ Hannah swallowed down a frustrated yelp. Ami hadbawledwhen Hannah had been invited, and she hadn’t. What the hell was Madison playing at?

Alex shrugged. ‘You heard me.’

She drew in a measured breath. ‘Don’t you guys have parents who could, I don’t know, intervene?’

Alex gave her a pointed stare.Of courseMadison could get away with laying down whatever rules she wanted when it came to her little brother. Sure, the DuPonts could have easily overruled their daughter in the matter of their son’s wedding guest, but that wasn’t the point. Madison knew precisely how to make your life miserable if you crossed her, a lesson Alex had surely learned years ago.

‘So, it was going to be a date, huh? Does my sister know?’

Alex blushed. ‘No.Please don’t say anything.’

She gave him a gentle smile. ‘Scout’s honour.’

‘Anyway, bringing someone else felt like letting Madison win. So, here I am,winning.’ He stood. ‘On that note, I’m off to the bar. Want some bubbly? No one’s checking IDs.’

She shook her head. ‘No thanks.’

When Alex had gone, another server came by with a tray of smoked salmon blinis with dill crème. Hannah took two. She felt bad for Alex, bored at what must be one of a hundred such family affairs he’d attended through the years, but also – why the hell hadn’t Madison wanted him to bring Ami? A wave of defensiveness for her little sister washed over her. Part of Hannah wanted to break her promise to Alex and tell Ami what had gone down, but she knew that was a terrible idea. If it got back to Madison, she’d make them both pay.

Speaking of… She polished off her blinis and looked around. WherewasMadison? She’d been upbeat and full of holiday cheer on the long ride out to Montauk from the city, but the moment they’d arrived, it was as if she didn’t care that Hannah was here at all.

Oh.

Because she’d only brought her to make Elle mad. Hannah’s invitation tonight had been the latest play in whatever game of chess the two queens were currently engaged in. Which, she had to acknowledge, a part of her had known already. But it still hurt to admit it to herself.

Cocktail hour was ending, and the guests filteredfrom the drawing room into the Great Hall for dinner. She rose to follow. Inside her clutch, her phone buzzed.

It’s time for dinner. Smells like… puff pastry and roast beef. Maybe caramelised onions and some overly sweet cherry dessert.

She halted two steps into the Great Hall. The scent of roast beef and hot pastrywaswafting from the kitchen wing. And beneath it, not cherries, but pears.

She looked behind her shoulder, startling an older woman walking behind her.