by Lisa Olsen
“I should doubt there would be many of them left alive,” Maggie observed quietly, falling silent for a few moments. “Should I be doing that as well? Trying to use Marcus’ money for good?”
“No, you should be doing anything you want with it. Don’t let my issues influence what you do now that you’ve made your peace with it.” We settled into a companionable silence, each lost to our own thoughts. I started to think of the money as something else – freedom. Not that I could spend that much in my lifetime (then again, forever was a very long time), but it gave me options to do whatever I wanted to.
If I wanted to leave all the politics behind and travel the world, I could. If I wanted to give Rob the money to get their business going free and clear, I could without even denting the bulk of it. I could probably fund my own private blood bank and run it as a sort of free clinic for hungry vamps to keep them from feeding on the streets.
“Does this money change where we’re going for our girls’ holiday away?” Maggie ventured a few minutes later, letting me know in which direction her thoughts ran.
All at once I thought that sounded like the best thing since vibranium was discovered. “You know what? I think it does. I think this is the perfect excuse to do something crazy lavish and pamper ourselves. Forget Modesto, forget Las Vegas even, let’s do something super shiny. What do you think? How about a little surf and sand coupled with a healthy amount of consumerism?”
“Hawaii?”
“Hmm, maybe not Hawaii if we’re only going for the weekend, but definitely some place with sand. What about Acapulco or someplace along the Mexican coast? Do they make weekend cruises?” My phone rang and my smile stretched wide when I saw who it was. “It’s Hanna!”
“I’ll go make some inquiries,” Maggie smiled, bowing out.
“Tell me you’re not doing mom’s dirty work for her now?” Hanna said as soon as I picked up the call.
“Psh, no…” I replied, crossing my fingers behind my back despite the fact that there was no way she could see me. Have I mentioned before that I’m a terrible liar?
“Good, ’cause this sisters thing only works if we stick together.”
Never mind the fact that she’d ratted me out and given my address to my parents strictly against my wishes, I wanted to keep things light. “That’s totally not why I called.” And then it hit me, I had the perfect excuse to not only bug her, but find out how she was holding up. “Hey, you never got back to me about where you want to go for our girls’ weekend trip.”
The pause on the line didn’t fill me with confidence, neither did her tone of voice. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea. I need to concentrate on finding another job before I’m out on the street.”
“What? When did you lose your job? Or did you quit?” No wonder she was ducking mom’s calls.
“No, they definitely fired me.”
“But why? Didn’t you get that monster raise a couple of months ago?”
“That was almost a year ago, An. A lot can change in a year.”
She didn’t have to tell me, there wasn’t a single facet of my life that hadn’t changed except for my abiding love for all things Joss Whedon. “Yes, but what happened?”
“It’s not their fault, it’s all on me, believe me. I would’ve fired me too.”
“I can’t believe you’d do something bad enough to get fired for. What did you do, wrap your boss’ desk in aluminum foil?”
“No, they quit paying me when I stopped showing up. They’re funny like that.”
“Why would you stop going? I thought you loved your job.”
“I know, I just… I went through a rough patch there for a while. I’m doing better now.”
She didn’t sound like she was all that better yet. “Well, then this is a perfect time for you to get away. Heck, we can turn this into a real vacation now that you don’t have a job to go back to.”
“I can’t afford to.”
“Don’t you worry about that, this is my treat. And if you need some money to help tide you over with rent and stuff, I’ve got you covered, no problem.”
“I’ll be fine, thanks.”
“I’m just saying, I’d be happy to help you out. It’s the least I can do. I make more money than God at this Elder thing.” Not to mention all the ducats I’d come into, but I didn’t want to bring up Lodinn’s name.
“So do I, genius. God doesn’t make any money,” she retorted dryly.
“Tell that to televangelists.”
Hanna let out a long breath. “Anja, I don’t need your handouts. I have money set aside, I’ll be fine. I just can’t go on indefinitely without finding a new job.”
“We’re not going on vacation indefinitely, only for a few days. Come on, Hanna, it sounds like you need this. I’m thinking Mexico for some fun in the sun for you daywalkers and long strolls in the moonlight for us night people.”
“I don’t know, this isn’t really my thing.”
“It’s more your thing than it is mine, you love the beach. Remember Spring Break? Dad just about frothed at the mouth when you accidentally sent him those pictures of you doing that handstand kegger thing.”
“That was a very long time ago, my kegstand days are over.”
“Relaxing in the sun then. Plus, shopping, I know you can’t say no to that.”
The pause was longer this time as Hanna hesitated. “I think I’ll sit this one out.”
I knew that pause meant she was conflicted though, and I intended to exploit it. “Too bad, you’re coming,” I insisted. “I’ll have Maggie make all the arrangements. You don’t even have to pack, I’ll take care of everything. I’ll be there an hour after sunset tomorrow night to pick you up. And you know I’m stronger than you, so I’ll throw you over my shoulder if I have to.”
“Ugh, fine. But don’t expect me to have any fun.”
I didn’t bother to suppress my squeal of victory. “Don’t worry, Bridget will be having enough fun for all of us.”
“Swell, can’t wait,” she deadpanned.
“Me neither, I’ll see you tomorrow tonight.”
The next hour I spent going over arrangements with Maggie and making sure Bridget was good to go the next night. Maggie started to get more and more excited as we settled on a destination and she actually booked the reservations. The conversation I had with Gunnar and Lee was less enthusiastic, but they understood about it being a girls only weekend (with the exception of Rob). And with the bonuses I gave them, they were keen on taking their own vacations.
I worried that Rob wouldn’t be up for traveling so soon, but he woke up about halfway through the night and assured me he’d be fine as long as he could sleep on the flight. He did seem much better and I took him at his word, not wanting to borrow trouble. If he spent most of the trip asleep while his body readjusted his time clock, that was fine with me, it was supposed to be a girls’ vacation anyway. I didn’t anticipate any serious danger on the trip, and I could handle any local violence with one hand tied behind my back.
Right before dawn, Maggie came to me with a particularly extravagant addition to the itinerary, and I gave my wholehearted agreement. If I was going to kidnap my sister and force her to cut loose and have some fun, I might as well go whole hog. Plus, I couldn’t wait to see Bridget’s response when she stepped on board.
Maybe there could be some joy gotten from Lodinn’s money after all?
Chapter Twenty-Six
We decided to catch a flight to L.A. out of San Jose so we could drive down and pick up Hanna first. It was still very close to sunset when we left the house and I bundled Rob up in the backseat of the sedan where he slept like the dead. I was worried I’d have to argue with Hanna before I got her to leave the house, but she was waiting with her rolly carry-on when we got there, her dog Skittles all squared away at Dr. Dave’s Doggie Daycare.
It seemed like it took longer to prep and take off for the flight to Los Angeles than the flight time itself, and Bridget was waiting for us
on the tarmac when we touched down. Her schlumpy overalls were gone, dressed in a stylish red dress and a big floppy hat and sunglasses, despite the fact that it was well after sunset now. I supposed it didn’t stick out all that much in L.A. and she did look great, but she sure hadn’t taken me at my word when I’d told her to pack lightly. She had more luggage than the rest of us put together.
Bridget took one look at Rob slumped in one of the seats on the plane and her face scrunched up in disappointment. “Hey, I thought this was supposed to be a girls only type of deal? No fair unless we all get to borrow him or share.”
“Sorry ladies, there’ll be no sharing on this holiday,” Rob said without cracking his eyes open. And here I’d thought he was fast asleep?
“I’m sorry, but you know what it’s like. I was lucky to leave Gunnar and Lee at home as it was,” I apologized. “But I’m sure you’ll be fine when you hear where we’re going.”
“Cabo San Lucas, I know already.”
I swung an accusatory glance at Maggie. “You told her!”
“Sorry, I didn’t realize it was a secret,” Maggie’s head ducked lower. “She called and asked today whether she should bring a bikini or snow pants.”
“Cabo?” Hanna’s eyes widened with interest. “There’s a pretty decent mall there, or at least there used to be.”
“It’s even better now,” I promised, pulling up the website for the Puerto Paraiso Mall by the marina while I still had internet from the airport. “Check it out. We’ll shop ’til we drop and spend a few luxury nights being pampered at the Esperanza resort.”
Bridget and Hanna huddled around my laptop oohing and ahhing over the luxury resort. It was fairly spectacular. Maggie and I had already looked our fill while making the arrangements the night before, but I couldn’t help studying the site with them again.
“This looks pretty sweet. I wonder if this hot rock massage comes with a happy ending? Get it?” Bridget giggled. “’Cause you know, when they remove the stones I’m like getting my rocks off?”
We were going to end up getting thrown out of the hotel, I could just feel it. “Anyway,” I said, not even bothering to respond to the lame joke, “I haven’t told you the best part. After we’ve gotten tired of Cabo, we’re taking a lazy cruise to Puerto Vallarta on our own private yacht.” I clicked on the bookmarked website with a flourish, turning the laptop toward them.
“You bought The Love Boat?” Hanna goggled at the screen.
“Whaa…?” I turned it back to me, frowning over the ginormous cruise ship on the home page. “No, that’s the wrong boat. This one.” I clicked on the link for the right one. “This is the boat we’ll be taking.”
“You bought a yacht?” Bridget gasped in almost the same tone Hanna had.
“No, I chartered a yacht. But who knows, if I like it, I could always buy one,” I shrugged and Bridget’s brows rose a mile.
“Damn, maybe I should throw Felix over and make you my Sugar Mama instead?”
“None of that,” Rob warned, his eyes still closed, but there was a hint of a smile on his lips.
Hanna pulled up the deck plans for the yacht, and a small debate ensued over who got what room. Finally, we decided to flip for it. I didn’t care if Rob and I had the biggest, fanciest room, and I wanted to be fair. Hanna ended up with the Master, and Rob and I the second largest, leaving Bridget and Maggie with the two smallest rooms below decks.
“Who cares though, you’re going to be spending most of your time out here,” I pointed out, clicking on the pictures of the sunken hot tub set into the deck.
“How much is all of this costing?” Hanna asked, frown lines appearing between her brows as she clicked on the tab for reservations and all it gave her was a form to fill out with her contact information.
“Don’t even worry about it, I’ve got it all covered,” I assured her. The Captain started to taxi down the runway then, and I tucked away my laptop until after take off.
Once we were up in the air, Bridget kicked off her shoes and went for a split of champagne, drinking right from the bottle. “What’s the dealio with the cabana boys you booked us for the crew? Are they super hot?” She waggled her brows at me, but I was at a loss.
“I… have no idea what the crew looks like. It wasn’t on their website.”
“What kind of a girls’ weekend is this?” she pouted, flouncing into her chair.
“Um, the kind where we hang out as girls together? Besides, don’t you think Felix would mind if you shacked up with a cabana boy?”
“He wouldn’t care, he’s too busy these days,” she muttered, looking out the window.
“Come on, we can have fun without guys on this trip! Who needs them? No offense,” I added to Rob quickly.
“None taken,” he smirked, opening his eyes long enough to wink at me before they slid shut again.
Bridget’s head tilted to one side as she gave us all a speculative look. “Ladies time, huh? Your sister is kinda hot. Couple up or all together?” she joked. At least I’m pretty sure she was joking.
“You’re really not my type,” Hanna laughed and Bridget flipped her hair dramatically.
“Girl, I’m everybody’s type,” she declared.
Maggie frowned. “You’re not mine.”
A light hearted argument ensued as to which of us was the most attractive to other girls. I smiled to see Hanna joking along and participating in the conversation, my heart feeling lighter than it had in a long time.
* * *
Have you ever seen that movie Night of the Comet? It’s a B movie at best, and the zombies are silly by today’s standards (though they scared the bejeezus out of me when I was nine years old), but it has one of the best montages from the eighties in my opinion.
The premise is this – a comet has passed too close to Earth, and everyone who wasn’t in a steel room is turned to dust. Those who were partially exposed, like the genius scientists who left the ventilation system running, are slowly turning into zombies with a taste for nubile young flesh. Two teenage girls are essentially left to their own devices, so where do they go? To the mall! Cue the insane orgy of costume changes and thieving that somehow comes across as more playful than out and out looting when set to Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.
There’s more plot involving said scientists and the search for other survivors including a young Chakotay from Voyager, but it’s pretty much a zombie flick. Ever since I first saw that movie with my sister when I was a little girl, I’d dreamed of a deserted mall where I could have absolutely anything I wanted – less the zombie stock boys.
Not that I wanted to go on a crime spree, but the idea of a shopping trip where you didn’t have to pick and choose had always been a fantasy of mine. No need to think of whether or not it was practical or if you had anything to go with it. Any little thing your heart desired, no matter how foolish or outlandish, or whether it was the absolute wrong color on you – that’s the freedom Lodinn’s money gave us.
Bridget, Maggie, Hanna and I enjoyed the best of everything money could buy, storming the mall until closing and then partying at the Caliente Casino until almost dawn every night. I’m pretty sure the locals thought we were sacrilegious not to haggle, but I was happy to pay them top dollar, wanting to spread the wealth. I’d heard of retail therapy before, and in this case, it absolutely worked.
Bridget, Maggie, and Hanna opened up more, relaxing as their cares faded in the surreal setting. Maggie turned down a marriage proposal by the end of the first night. Bridget… I’m not sure how hard she worked to disguise interest from the opposite sex, but I wasn’t her conscience. Hanna won so much money the first night at craps, she had an entourage whenever she entered the casino.
While the girls explored what the resort’s spa had to offer, I relished my private time with Rob. Okay, so I felt bad that the other girls were without male companionship, but Rob and I really needed that time together to reconnect. During the bulk of the nights he tried to stay out of the way, not interfe
ring with our girls’ weekend except when we needed someone to carry bags or go get the car. In return for treating him as little more than a servant while I was with them, I made it up to him every chance I got. Ducking out to explore a hidden cove together, enjoying a hot soak in our private Jacuzzi, hunting together on the village streets.
True to his word, there was no sign he was taking stims again. Rob slept at least an hour later than I did and collapsed well before the sun rose each morning, but at least he was able to stay awake for the majority of the night. I always made sure he had ample time to feed whenever he woke, so his appetite never got out of control. His mood swings were still unpredictable, and he’d gotten into a spectacular shouting match with Bridget over something stupid like how to work the GPS, but he seemed to catch himself before he went into full meltdown mode most of the time.
Finally, it was time to move on, and with an army of doormen to tote our shopping bags, we left the resort and took a mini caravan to the marina where the yacht awaited us. All sleek lines and modern conveniences, the yacht came complete with a crew of four –none of whom could be considered cabana boys, but Bridget didn’t raise too much fuss.
“Il Tradimento,” Hanna read off the name of the boat when we stepped onto the dock. “That doesn’t sound like Spanish.”
“I think it’s Italian, at least that’s where the website is based,” I replied. “They have a whole fleet of these suckers.” They had to be raking it in too. I was half serious when I’d mentioned buying my own yacht. Even though they cost an arm and two legs, with what I could charge to rent it out, I could have a very profitable side business.
We put out to sea, checking out our berths and the boat’s amenities. It’d been stocked with the finest champagne and gourmet treats, and we had our own private chef to tempt our palates. Most of the foods I didn’t find very appetizing anymore, but his hot chocolate – spiced with cinnamon and a pinch of chili powder – was out of this world. Bridget made a total pig of herself and took to wearing the same pair of track pants (dubbed her piggy pants – as in whoo, I ate enough to choke a horse! I better go put on my piggy pants!) every night after dinner.
