Number ONe

Number One

“Jack was an interesting character, wasn’t he?” Chris spoke quietly and gave a smirk as he turned to Peter. “There’s a lot of people here for his funeral, but I’ll bet all of them think the same.” Chris motioned to the filled church and the casket at the front as they stood in the back, waiting for the service to begin.

“I guess you could say that. But what do you mean by ‘character,’ really?” Peter smiled at Chris. “Someone could take that word in a lot of different ways.”

“I know you liked him a lot, Chris. But you have to admit that he was a problem.” Chris turned to greet Alice, who had joined them. “What do you think, Alice? Was Jack a character?”

Alice smiled gently. “Jack was my brother, but I agree. He was certainly unique.”

“What do you mean, ‘unique?’ That could be taken as a criticism.” Leslie joined them, just as Alice spoke. “I found he was a lovely man. Just a tad ‘handsy’ with some of the women in the office. But I learned to deal with Jack.” Leslie’s tight black dress emphasized her curvaceous figure, and she smiled as Chris and Peter ran their eyes along it. “Guess our affair had become common knowledge.”

Peter gently raised his hand to Leslie’s back. “Yes, everyone at the office knew about it. Neither of you made any secret of it.”

“I certainly knew of it.”

Peter turned in shock as Jack’s widow joined them. “Amelia. I didn’t know you knew about it.” He dropped his hand from Leslie’s back.

Amelia looked Leslie up and down with disgust. “What a dress to wear to a funeral. If we didn’t know better, we might think you were hunting for a new man.” Amelia’s smile barely curved her lips. “Leslie and Chris made sure I knew about the affair.” She looked at Leslie with unconcealed scorn as she took Alice’s hand. They turned, walked to the front of the church, and took their seats.

“Come sit with me.” Chris took Leslie’s hand and led her to a seat at the back of the church.

“I’m so glad Leslie didn’t try to sit up front with the family.” Alice took out a handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes, trying not to smear her eyeliner. “It would have caused a scene. Jack was an alley cat, but he was good to work for. I’ll miss his leadership in these difficult times.”

“Me, too. Chris hated being the number two at the firm. Guess now he’s number one.” Peter looked over where Chris and Leslie sat. “Guess we won’t have the same rigorous ethics as we had with Jack.”

Alice pursed her lips. “We all know that Leslie’s been cheating on Jack with Chris.”

“Yes, I guess Jack was the only one who didn’t know.” Peter smiled. “Or did he? I think he was more clever than we took him for.” He took her hand and led her to the front of the church, where they sat two rows behind Amelia.

Alice craned her neck to see around the packed church. “Do you see how many people are staring at Leslie and Chris? Wonder if everyone here knows about the affair.”

“I doubt if anyone outside the office and the family knows. Even though Jack and Leslie made no secret of their affair within the office, I noticed that they didn’t let the clients or other outsiders know. That seems deliberate. I wonder why, Amelia didn’t divorce him, if she knew about it.” Peter sighed. “I always thought of Jack as fair and decent. As the number three in the office, I saw a lot of what he did for others behind the scenes. I respected him, despite the affair.”

Alice nodded. “As the chief accountant, I did too. He always made sure that all of the employees got a fair share of the profits, unlike most CEOs. It’s hard to reconcile his personal behaviors with his public ones.”

As the service began, everyone in the church quietened. Into the hush, a clear soprano rang out, singing the first hymn. Everyone was asked to join in the second hymn, and then Pastor John rose from his chair in front of the choir and began to speak at the pulpit. “Brothers and sisters, family and friends of Jack, our departed brother, please rise and let us pray for those of us left behind.” A rustle sounded as everyone stood and bowed their heads. After the prayer, the pastor gave a brief talk, praising Jack and his good works for the church and community.

Alice stifled a small giggle with her hand as the pastor spoke Jack’s praises, then leaned to whisper to Peter. “I guess Pastor John didn’t know Jack as well as he thought he did.”

“Shh.” Peter raised a warning hand. “Someone might hear you. It’s awfully quiet in here right now, and churches often echo because of the high ceilings.”

Pastor John lifted his hand in benediction toward Jack’s widow and family. “And we need to support the family as they continue through life without their beloved Jack.”

Just as the pastor tried to comfort the family, Peter noticed a commotion in the back of the church. Chris was trying to prevent Leslie from standing up. He pulled on her arm and then tried to put his arms around her so she couldn’t stand, but she shrugged out of his grasp.

“I have something to say.” Leslie’s loud, harsh voice echoed. As everyone turned to see her, she preened and pointed to the pastor. “Jack wasn’t the mister goody-two-shoes that you said he was.” She sighed and then tried to continue, but Pastor John had raised his hand to start the choir on their final hymn.

As the organ drowned out what Leslie was trying to say, she stomped out of the pew and walked down to the pulpit, Chris following. As she reached the pulpit, Pastor John and Chris took her arms and forcibly marched her into another room off the sanctuary. An associate pastor rose and asked that the congregation allow the family to leave first, following the casket.

As Peter and Alice followed the family, they looked at each other in dismay.

“That was quite a scene.” Peter frowned. “I guess Leslie’s days at the firm might be over.”

“I think she just wanted to act the ‘grief-stricken mistress.’ Shameful.” Alice shook her head. “I thought she had more class than that.”

As they continued out of the church, Peter looked at Alice and gestured toward the police, standing at the back of the room watching. “I guess we know two people that might be in the running as the murderer. Chris because he wanted to be number one at the firm, and Leslie because she wanted to be number one in his life.”