Chapter 5

Alex made it through the funeral without crying. She felt relieved that the speeches were brief and the songs few. The thick, dense, summer air suffocated the neurotic energy that encircled her brain - that and the ten milligrams of Valium she had taken daily since Thursday. The Tylenol she had with coffee earlier had agitated her panging stomach. The family had the body cremated in Singapore then had it flown to Richmond and had his ashes placed in the casket. They would have preferred his body embalmed and a proper burial, but with the horrific killing and the language in the police report an open casket would have been impossible and cremation seemed the better option.

Melinda drove Alex from the church to the burial grounds. They shared a Diet Coke and listened to Count Basie’s greatest hits. Not a word was uttered and nothing needed to be said. She felt safe with Melinda, as if they had shared their deepest secrets without uttering a word. They arrived at Mount Vernon Graveyard singingWhat a Wonderful World aloud.

Alex and Melinda walked across the grounds to join the fifty or so mourners who had gathered to witness the burial. Baskets of red, white, yellow and pink roses; gardenias; daisies; peach lilies, and purple-blue hydrangeas lined a roped-off area where Lee would be put to rest. Near the casket in front of the standing, exquisite flower arrangements were six smaller arrangements of carnations. In the late summer heat, Alex could smell only the carnations. It was the same smell she had smelled at her Mom’s funeral. She hated it; to her, it was the smell of death.

Lawrence and Meg Mitchell emerged from a dark sedan. Alex had met them a few months back when they had visited Richmond. She had spoken with them before the funeral at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, cordially, sharing hugs and nervous pleasantries. They were upset and saddened by their sudden loss, but neither appeared in shock or humiliated by the circumstances. She hoped, for his parents’ sake, they had been spared the disgusting details. The morning following Lee’s death, Palmer sent out a memo stating that he thought it best for Lee’s family that all hearsay cease, which Alex appreciated.

She watched the pallbearers place the casket atop the grave site, her steps slowed and she met Melinda’s soft, tired eyes.“I’m not sure I can handle this.”

“You’ll get through it. You made it through the funeral; you’ll get through the burial. You’re strong, Alex.”

Palmer came up behind them and took Alex’s elbow. She forced a pleasant,“Thanks.” He appeared removed and insensitive. Maybe that was how he had always been, but since the blinders had been lifted she could see clearly.

The Mitchell’ s joined their daughter and grandchildren on the black fold-out metal chairs positioned directly in front of the casket. Meg Mitchell’ drawn mouth muttered,“please,” suggesting to Alex to fill an empty seat on the row behind them. Melinda nudged Alex,“take the seat.” Pushed and prodded like a first grader forced to go to school, Alex stepped back. She did not feel the same grief they did and did not feel comfortable with a seat down front, a place reserved for a true mourner. Puzzled, confused and angry at Lee for him put