FicWad

Her high heels clicked their way down the polished mahogany hallway. She breathed in the smell of wood and a slight fragrance of perfume, evidence of the many women who had been here before her. Up to the curving, beautiful stairway she walked, heels clattering. She put one hand on the sleek, carved banister and felt the polished wood under her fingertips, cool and smooth, deep browns and golds. She slowly walked up the staircase to the second floor, still mahogany wood but a little softer now, softer colors and sleek coffee brown and gold trim along the top of the wall. She walked down the creamy tiled hallway to the large frosted glass doors that read Claire's Bridal over posing mannequins in lacy wedding dresses and white veils.
She entered the shop, pulling the gold handle of the door shut behind her, and was overwhelmed by a beautiful wedding fantasy of colors, ribbons and silky material. She smiled in anticipation, excited by her upcoming wedding.
She still almost couldn't believe she was being married to Ray. It was so cliché, but he was truly the man of her dreams. He was caring, thoughtful and hardworking, and she knew he was planning a wonderful honeymoon surprise for her. She still smiled as she walked up to the front desk and inquired with the trim, black-suited saleswoman about her dress and veil fittings.
Ray paced around the house, occasionally checking his watch and putting it down to pace some more. He loved Lydia, but was anxious himself about the wedding in a few short weeks. He checked his watch again, but stopped himself. Let Lydia have her fun at the bridal shop. He could rely on her not to be late to the meeting with the caterer, which was in two hours. But Ray didn't need to worry about the meeting. There was another, more pressing worry presenting itself of which he was not even aware.
Lydia let herself be escorted around the shop, still overwhelmed by all the elegance. She and the saleswoman paused in front of a beautiful dress that had a silky bodice that blossomed into a full lace skirt.
"That one," Lydia pointed. "May I try it on?"
The saleswoman checked the size and escorted Lydia into a dressing room where she held the dress up to her slim frame, imagining how it would look as she walked down the aisle. She smiled.
Ray kept pacing. Around and around the living room he went. Suddenly, he heard a small creak like the sound of a door opening. He looked around the room. Nothing was there. He kept pacing, but was more aware of every noise, every slight sound. Again! He looked more closely at all the windows and the main house door, which was in a small hallway that led to the living room. Again, nothing. In a few minutes he heard a small thump. Now Ray knew that he was not imagining things.
Lydia came out of the dressing room.
"I love it, but it doesn't really fit well," she said. "Let's keep looking."
"Of course," said the saleswoman, and they kept walking, the woman pointing out size, quality and material, and Lydia nodding.
Ray whirled around towards the thump. It sounded like it was coming from the front hall. He edged his way towards the door and peered around the frame. He saw a shadowy figure hidden behind the beautiful drapes of the front window. Ray crept back into the safety of the living room, breathing heavily. If he wasn't mistaken, the sunlight had glinted on the barrel of a gun.
Lydia stopped before a gorgeous dress covered in tiny diamonds and seed pearls. She gasped and snatched it off the rack. It was her size too! She rushed to the dressing room and slipped the beautiful dress on. It fit every curve and billowed in all the right places. She rubbed the silky material against her face and sighed in pleasure, imagining walking down the aisle in this! Lydia walked out of the dressing room and twirled. The saleswoman murmured in agreement that the young woman looked beautiful. Lydia grinned.
"I want this dress," she said.
Ray crouched under his desk, a brass fireplace poker clenched in his sweating hands. He saw the gunman peek around the corner before entering the room, dressed all in black with a ski mask pulled over his face. The man held his gun in front of him and began to peer into all the corners of the room. Ray slipped out from under the desk and swung the poker at the masked man.
The pretty saleswoman took down a box from a shelf.
"I have just the veil for you," she said. "It matches the dress!" She opened the box and took out a beautiful veil with a matching train, covered in tiny glinting diamonds that caught the light streaming in through a window. She set it on Lydia's head and spun the woman around to see a mirror.
The poker missed and hit the floor with a sickening thunk. The man whirled around and his eyes narrowed, spying his prey. He fired a shot at Ray, but the other man ducked and dived at the gunman. They wrestled on the floor for control of the gun.
"Oh!" Lydia gasped, seeing her reflection. "It's so beautiful!" She admired the way her red-gold hair looked with the diamonds, light being thrown onto both. She posed in the mirror, for the first time looking at herself and seeing a bride.
The man grabbed the gun just as Ray's fist collided with his stomach. He doubled over in pain and reeled against Ray's desk. Ray rushed to grab the gun but slipped on the tile and fell against the window. The man recovered and aimed the gun at a quaking Ray.
"You thought you had me," he said triumphantly, "but you were wrong!" He fired the gun. Ray almost screamed, but couldn't. He lay gasping on the floor. The man fired another shot and Ray lay dead. The murdered laughed, then ran out of the room, leaving the body of Ray lying in a pool of his own blood.
Lydia turned to the saleswoman and grasped her hands, face glowing. "I can't wait for my wedding!"