“That was great,” she said.
Jason turned to her with a smile and began trying to smooth down her hair. She hadn’t worn her hat that morning. She could only imagine what her mane looked like after her tumble down the mountain and subsequent fast ride through the snow.
He picked a stick out of her bird’s nest and tossed it away. “This summer we’ll borrow some jet skis. I know a guy.”
“Okay, but could we not call them skis? I don’t ever want to ski on anything again. I’ve had enough.”
“Whatever you say,” Jason said. He stood, helped her off the machine, and turned toward the resort.
Sven was waiting to greet them inside. He crushed Lacy in a bear hug that lifted her toes off the ground. When he turned to Jason, Jason took a step back. Sven held out his hand and they shook. Lacy couldn’t be sure, but she thought she saw Jason grimace when Sven crushed his hand in his oversized paw.
“Joan, Rick, I can’t thank you guyth enough. If not for you, I’m almotht thertain I would be in a jail thell by now. You believed in me, Joan. You never gave up. Thith ith the betht day of my life. Here, have thome couponth for free thmoothieth.” He handed them two coupons for free kale smoothies.
“Thanks,” Lacy said. She folded the coupons and tucked them in her pocket.
“I hope you come back, Joan. You’ve been a thtar pupil. Look at you.” He lifted her shirt slightly from inside the snowsuit and pinched her waist. “Miraculouth. I can almotht thee your abth now.”
“I wish you’d stop looking,” Jason said, and Sven dropped her shirt.
“Well, you guyth take care. Really, thankth again for everything.”
“No need for thanks,” Lacy said. She patted his arm. It was like petting her mom’s granite countertop.
“You were right,” Jason said.
“About what this time?” Lacy asked.
“Telling him to call me Rick. That way I was sort of detached from every conversation. But if I’d had to hear him call me ‘Jaython,’ I might have channeled my inner fifteen year old and lost it.”
Tosh’s sisters showed up almost as soon as Sven disappeared. “Steele!” Belle called and picked Lacy up in a hug that was almost as bruising as Sven’s.
“Are you leaving?” Lacy asked when she finally got her breath back.
“I told you she was the smart one,” Bede said, tapping her suitcase.
“We already checked out, just saying our goodbyes.” They turned to Jason and—Lacy was glad to note—shook his hand instead of offering hugs. And as with Sven, he winced a little in each grasp.
“Just so you know, we took it easy on little Riley after our talk. We came to the conclusion that we were being a bit tough on her, seeing as how she’s a new mom and all. But she won’t always have that baby as a buffer. And when she starts sleeping again…”
“She’s fair game,” Betsy added and popped her knuckles for effect.
“Sounds good,” Lacy said. When Riley was fully herself and not overloaded with hormones and sleep deprivation, she could handle her own against anything the Underwood ladies tossed her way.
Belle gave a little wave and they walked away in unison.
“They’re like an Olympic rowing team without a boat,” Jason said. He shook out his hand. Lacy took it and gave his knuckles a gentle kiss.
“Poor hand,” she said.
“Pity works on you. Good to know,” he said.
“You already knew that. Remember when I nursed you after you got shot? It was how we got together.”
“Right, it wasn’t the endless months of me pursuing you. Instead it was getting knocked flat on my back for a few days,” he said.
“Speaking of your job, Detective Green offered you one?” she asked.
“He did. And a pay raise and promotion. He promised me my sergeant stripes.”
“You said no,” she said.
“I’m sort of attached to the job I have now. There are a few unwritten perks and incentives,” he said and leaned in to kiss her.
“Oh, good, I hoped I’d find you making out in the middle of the lobby,” Lacy’s mother said.
“Frannie,” Jason said and came to attention like he had been touched with a live wire. “I almost forgot. I have to make a call. No one check out until I get back.” He hurried away, Lacy and Frannie staring after him.
“He’s a bit dictatorial sometimes,” Frannie said.
“You know how it is, Mom. The Steele women need a firm hand now and then. Keeps us on our toes. Otherwise we might try and take over the world,” Lacy said.
“I suppose that’s true,” Frannie said with a sad sort of smile that slipped completely when her husband joined them.
“Hi, honey. Did you have a good last morning?” Clint asked his daughter.
“It was okay,” Lacy said. There was no need to tell them about her ordeal and make them worry. With her parents, she found that the less they knew, the better. “Hey, I have these coupons. Why don’t you guys grab a smoothie before we leave? It might give you a chance to talk.”
“Sweetheart, I’m afraid our issues can’t be solved over a smoothie. They go much deeper than that,” Frannie said.
Hot tears pricked the backs of Lacy’s eyes. She blinked them away. “I thought it would be nice was all. Never mind.”
“No, we’ll take them,” Clint said. He took the coupons from Lacy. “Come on, Frannie.” Her father could be dictatorial too, on occasion. Frannie followed grudgingly behind him, plenty of cool space between them.
“That’s done,” Jason said as he returned to her side.
Lacy turned to face him and couldn’t blink back the tears this time. A few leaked out, hot and fast. She dashed them away, hoping he wouldn’t notice. No such luck.
“Baby, what’s wrong?”
“I miss my parents being together, and how stupid is that? I’m not a kid anymore. It shouldn’t matter.”
He pulled her close. She rested her head on his chest. “It will always matter because they’ll always be your parents.”
“I wish I could fix it,” she said.
“So do I,” he said. The difference was that he was actually going to try. Heaven help them all if he didn’t succeed.
Chapter 21
“What is this meeting about?” Riley asked. Jason had summoned everyone to an emergency and mandatory family meeting. Riley was miffed because it interfered with her baby schedule. At first she planned to skip, but Tosh was making her go.
“I have no idea,” Lacy said. She was so intent on arranging her suitcase that she failed to notice the look that passed between Riley and Kimber.
“I think I know,” Kimber said. “Da-dum-de-dum.”
“Why are you humming the graduation song?” Lacy asked.
“Don’t play dumb. You know what it is,” Kimber said, and she tapped her ring finger.
“No way. Jason would never call a family meeting to propose. Besides, it’s too soon for that.”
“Too soon, too schmoon. When it’s right, it’s right. Look at me and Tosh,” Riley said. She held baby Lucy with one arm and tossed items in her bag with the other.
Lacy was looking at them, and she had no desire to rush into marriage and parenthood like they had. She was wise enough not to say it out loud, though.
“I agree it’s too soon, but Boy is in love,” Kimber said. “The only question is what your answer will be.”
“You guys, Jason is not proposing. He knows I would hate having it done in front of everyone. No big screens or crowd participation for me, no hidden film crews or flashmob of singers. When the time comes, I want something simple and private.”
“Prepare to be disappointed,” Kimber said.
Kimber was teasing her; Lacy knew, and yet she couldn’t calm the queasy flutters in her stomach as she headed toward the prearranged meeting room. What if Jason were proposing today? It was too soon, too much, too public. Would she say no? Of course she couldn’t say no, it was Jason. But she didn’t wan
t it to be today in some resort in a room full of her family. It wouldn’t be, though, she was sure of it. Almost.
Jason held the door for her and smiled as she eased by. He winked at her and her heart kicked hard against her ribcage. Then again, he always had that effect on her, so it was hard to say if it was heightened nerves. She stepped into the room and stopped short. Her grandparents were there. Uh-oh.
“What are you guys doing here?” she asked.
“Jason asked us to come,” her grandmother said, and she sounded almost as nervous as Lacy now felt.
“Oh,” Lacy said. She sank down hard into a chair and sat on her hands. They were shaking a little. Not today, not today, not today, she silently prayed.
Her parents filed in, followed by Michael and Kimber.
After everyone arrived, Jason entered the room and locked the door.
“Thank you all for coming,” he began.
“Did we have a choice?” Riley asked.
He ignored her. “I wanted to talk to you today because something has been going on in this family for a long time. Tosh, Michael, Mr. Middleton, and I are newcomers here, but it didn’t take long for me to realize that the Steeles are great at keeping secrets. I think it’s past time those secrets found the light.”
“Jason, I don’t like this,” Frannie said.
“Normally, Frannie, I would agree with you. I don’t like involving myself in anyone else’s personal business, but these secrets affect Lacy, and that makes it my business. Look what all of this is doing to her.”
Everyone looked at Lacy whose eye began to twitch again under speculation.
“She’s ingested enough kale these last few days to begin the process of photosynthesis,” Jason added.
“Because kale’s high in chlorophyll,” Lacy explained for the benefit of anyone who didn’t get the joke.
“Science humor you have to explain is the best kind,” Michael said.
“The point is that there are some people here who need to speak up about a secret they’ve been keeping,” Jason continued undaunted. “Now seems like as good a time as any. Who would like to go first?” He sat beside Lacy and waited.
The room hummed with silent tension. It was so quiet they could hear the ticking of Mr. Middleton’s watch. Jason stared everyone down. No one would return his glance. Finally Lacy couldn’t take the unbearable hush anymore and spoke.
“I’ll go. When I was seven, I stole Riley’s Halloween candy and ate it. I was afraid of getting in trouble, so I wrote her a note and told her the tooth fairy took her candy and gave it to Satan.”
“What?” Riley exclaimed. “I had to sleep with the light on for a year after that. I was so scared of losing a tooth that when I finally did, I swallowed it so I wouldn’t have to put it under my pillow.”
“Sorry,” Lacy said.
Jason put his hand on her leg. “Baby, I’m delighted you got that off your chest, but I wasn’t talking to you. Anyone else?” He scanned the room again. This time Mr. Middleton spoke.
“Lucinda, I think it’s time.”
“I suppose you’re right,” she said.
“Don’t tell me you eloped because I refuse to accept it,” Frannie said.
“No, nothing like that,” Lucinda said. She took Mr. Middleton’s hand and leaned forward in her seat. “Frannie, there’s something I need to tell you, something I maybe should have told you a long time ago. The truth is that your dad and I couldn’t have kids. So we decided to adopt.”
Frannie looked confused. “Was that before or after you had me?”
“Well, um…” She looked to Mr. Middleton for help.
“Frannie, you’re adopted,” he said.
“I…I’m adopted?” Frannie said. She pressed her hand to her chest.
“There’s a bit more,” Lucinda said gently. “Your biological mother was Barbara Blake, the woman whose fortune Lacy inherited. Your biological father is, well, is Tom.”
No one breathed. Finally Frannie blinked. “You’re my father?” she whispered.
“I’m afraid so,” Mr. Middleton said.
“This explains so much,” Frannie mumbled. “Why no one else in the family for generations had red hair, why I’ve always felt so…” she trailed off and sat staring at the wall in silence.
“I’m sorry you had to find out like this, Frannie,” Jason continued. “But I don’t think we’re done with the secrets, are we?”
Her eyes dropped to the floor. She shook her head obstinately back and forth.
“Frannie,” Clint said.
She shook her head harder. “No. We swore, Clint. We swore we would never tell.”
He left his chair and sat beside his wife, placing an arm gently around her shoulders. “Frannie, these secrets aren’t doing anyone any good. Jason’s right. Look at Lacy. Look at us. We can’t go on like this.”
“I don’t want to say it, I don’t want them to find out,” Frannie whispered.
“Then I’ll say it.” He took a deep breath and looked around the room. “When we were in high school, Frannie became pregnant.” He paused for a reaction. When there was none, he continued. “The only people who knew about it besides us were Frannie’s dad and some kid who used to smoke under the bleachers.”
“Bob from shop class?” Lacy guessed.
“Yes,” her father said, bestowing her with a puzzled expression.
“What happened to the baby, Dad?” Riley prompted.
“Her dad arranged for her to go away to have it. We told everyone she was going to camp. Not even Lucinda knew. Things were scary and intense. We broke up for a while, but got back together after. And then we never talked about it again. It’s weighed like cement between us all these years.” He pulled Frannie close. She wept against him. Lacy sniffled and wiped her eyes.
“The baby,” Jason pressed. “It had red hair like Lacy, right?”
Clint nodded.
“And he was a boy,” Jason said.
“Yes,” Clint agreed.
Jason glanced helplessly around the room. “Does anyone see where I’m going with this?”
“Was…” Michael cleared his throat and tried again. “Was he adopted by a couple in Minnesota?”
“Yes,” Frannie muttered, drawing back from Clint in surprise. “They sent us a few baby pictures and I never heard from them again.”
“Mom, Michael was adopted in Minnesota. His adoptive parents died in a car accident when he was little,” Lacy said.
“Surely you don’t think…” Frannie said. “I mean, the coincidence would be too much to be believed.” Her eyes traveled to his shock of red hair and lingered.
“Actually, I had Michael’s and Lacy’s DNA on file from previous cases. I sent them to my buddy at the state crime lab for a comparison. They’re a match,” Jason said.
The silence had been deafening before, but it was impenetrable now. No one knew what to say, including Jason. Now that his job as the meeting’s facilitator was over, he felt it better to sit back and shut up.
Lucy gave a faint squeal and everyone jumped.
“Welcome to the family, Michael,” Mr. Middleton said at last, and the horrible tension was broken.
“We’re not going to find out that I’m also secretly a Steele, are we?” Kimber asked, and everyone was grateful for the laugh.
“You’re an honorary Steele, dear,” Lucinda said.
“That’s better anyway because then you don’t have to deal with the drama or food issues,” Riley said. “Can we go now?” she added to Jason.
“You’re dismissed,” Jason said.
Lacy gasped. Her hands flew to her mouth to cover it.
“What? What is it?” Jason asked.
“I just remembered that Michael and I kissed. Gross. This is so much more like Princess Leia than I ever wanted to be.”
“How do you think I feel? I kissed both my sisters,” Michael said.
“What’s the big deal? I’m just glad it stopped at a kiss,” Riley said. “We have
to go. I want to get a head start before Lucy wakes up. Michael, we’ll get together soon to do the brother/sister thing and talk about how horrible Lacy is.”
“My lot in life makes much more sense as the middle child,” Lacy said.
“Are you ready to go?” Jason asked. He could sense that the older adults in the room wanted to talk things out with Michael. He couldn’t tell if Frannie looked relieved or upset, although it was possible she was simply in shock.
“I’m ready,” Lacy said. She stood. “Michael, I’m glad you’re my brother, but you still have to pay me rent for your shop.”
“Do I at least get a discount?” he asked.
“I’ll stop charging you the music occupancy tax.”
“You never charged me that,” he said.
“Well, now I won’t start. You’re welcome.” She gave her family a little wave and Jason followed her from the room.
She was quiet while they checked out and quiet while he loaded the car. Kimber would be riding home with Tosh and Riley while Michael planned to go with the elder Steeles and Mr. Middleton and Mrs. Craig. Jason was glad to finally be alone with Lacy, for all the good it did him. She didn’t say a word as they wended their way down the long driveway. After another twenty minutes of silence, he couldn’t take it anymore.
“Are you okay?”
“It’s a lot to take in,” Lacy said.
“Are you mad at me?”
She turned to look at him and he was pleased to see a perplexed expression on her face. “Mad at you? Why would I be mad at you? My parents are the most together I’ve seen them in ages and I have a new brother. It was a good day.”
“You’re quiet,” he said.
“Truth?” she said.
“Truth.”
“I’m the hungriest I’ve ever been. If I don’t get some real food in my belly in the next ten minutes, I think I actually might perish.”
“Where do you want to go?” there was nothing nearby for miles.
“I know a bakery. Turn right on that road.”
Though they were in the middle of nowhere in a place neither of them had ever been, he didn’t question her. Usually when it came to directions, she was hopeless. But if food was involved, she became the Rain Man of the map world.
Last Resort of Murder (A Lacy Steele Mystery Book 9) Page 15
