by CeeCee James
Chapter 11
Scott lay on the bed with his arm flung over his face. I wanted to shake him, force the story out of him. Relax. He’s been through a lot. Both his brother and girlfriend are in a pretty precarious situation. Give him a chance to breathe.
“I saw you yesterday,” I said. “How come you ran from me?”
“I was scared. I didn’t know who was after William, or if they still are.” He sat up. “And this is one time I’m not too thrilled to look exactly like him.”
I nodded. I could understand that. “What were you doing here today?”
He glanced around the room. “I wanted to check to see if I’d missed anything. I looked yesterday, but just real quick because I was afraid someone would come back. Sure enough, you caught me …” Again, the young, sheepish look.
“How’d you get the key?” I pointed at the card in his hand. “By the way, that wouldn’t have worked anymore. We reprogrammed the locks.”
“Oh.” He turned it in his hand before tossing it on the table next to the bed. “I snuck into his hospital room and grabbed his bag of clothes. That’s how I found the necklace.”
“That’s right, I saw you at the elevator.”
“Yeah,” he blushed. “You did?”
“And … Natalie?”
He pressed his lips together and glanced down. When he made eye contact with me again, his eyelids were red-rimmed. He blinked hard. “Yeah, uh, I’ve snuck in to see her a time or two. It wasn’t easy. Her cousin’s been there almost non-stop.” His fist clenched in his lap. “This is killing me.”
“So, you sent the flowers to her then, huh?”
Scott looked confused. “I never sent her any flowers.”
“You didn’t?” Who the heck did, then? My brow furrowed in confusion. “Why don’t you show yourself?”
“Because it may be safer for all involved if the bad guy thinks he got who he wanted. I don’t know what will happen if he knows I’m still out here.”
“So, wait, is someone after you? Or William?”
Scott shrugged. “I really don’t know who for sure. But I don’t want to take any chances.”
“Why would someone come after you?”
“I don’t know.” Then his voice went deeper and had a bite to it. “But I’m going to find out.” The anger seemed to fuel his excitement. “And look, I did find a clue.”
He pulled out a scrap of paper from his front pocket. “This was in William’s jeans at the hospital. It’s a receipt dated the day before he was found.”
He handed it to me.
I read the small print. “This is from Cafe Blanca, that sandwich shop downtown. I love that place.”
Scott nodded. “I know where it is. Natalie and I went there once for lunch.”
“Well,” I glanced at my watch. “I’ve missed dinner, and I’m starving. You hungry?” I could tell by the gauntness of his cheeks, he may have forgotten a few meals. “Let’s grab a bite and see if anyone there remembers seeing him.”
The corner of his lip turned up in a small smile. “Thank you for helping me.”
I patted his arm. “Don't thank me yet.”
We headed to the elevator and punched the down button. Two kids joined us in the car, both in their swimsuits. They giggled at each other, showing off gap- toothed grins, and darted out ahead when the doors opened.
“Reminds me of my brother and me,” Scott said as we walked through the lobby. “We used to do everything together. Including getting into lots of trouble.” He grinned, his eyes sparkling with nostalgia.
“What happened?” I asked, fishing out my car keys. We pushed through the revolving door, and he continued.
“I grew up, and he learned new ways to get into trouble.” He jammed his hands into his pockets. We walked through the parking lot in silence, while I tried to think of what to say.
I unlocked my car, and we both climbed in. “Did he use drugs?”
He frowned and shook his head. “No, not that I know of. But he was a wheeler-dealer sort of guy. He was always involved in some scam or another, and then he got heavily into gambling. That’s why I wonder how he got that necklace.”
“You think he might have stolen it?”
“I don’t know how he got it.”
“You mentioned your family had a bad name. What was it?”
He gave me a sarcastic smile. “You can’t tell? We’re descendants of Clementine Livingstone.” When he saw my puzzled expression, he continued. “Sister of Luciana Livingstone.”
There’s an old-fashioned saying, you could knock me over with a feather. And I can tell you there’s truth to that. I blinked, mouth open, and reversed the car out of the stall. Shut your mouth, Maisie.
Just shy of ten minutes later, I parked outside of Cafe Blanca. We both got out and entered the little establishment.
Despite it being dinner hour, the restaurant only had a few patrons. As we stood inside the door, a gray-haired waitress came over to us. She was smiling until she saw Scott. Her mouth turned downward, and she froze.
“You again!” She pointed her finger.
“What?” Scott looked at me, confusion apparent on his face. “Wait. No, you're probably thinking of my twin brother.”
“You were in here the other night. You and some meathead. Talking about rolling a place to pay off some gambling debt.”
Scott quickly looked at me. “It wasn’t me, I swear.”
“And you’re messing with me! I think you should leave.” The waitress put a hand on her hip.
“Wait,” I said, taking a step forward between them. “This might be hard to believe, but this man here is a twin. We’re trying to track down the whereabouts of his brother, who’s really sick right now. I’m actually really glad you remembered his face. Can you tell us what they were talking about or anything about the man he was with?”
The waitress settled back, but her eyes were still narrowed. She was not going to be easy to win over. “Your brother—if that’s the case—was discussing a place they had rolled. You know, robbed?” Her patience seemed like it was running thin.
I nodded, hoping to make her feel validated. “Wow. That’s horrible. I totally get it. Do you remember what the place was called?”
“No. Something about a safe.”
“Why didn't you call the cops?” Scott was already typing something into his phone as I continued to press her for more information. Sometimes I wish I did have a badge. Maybe people would speak up more.
“I'm not getting on the wrong side of that goon. Sorry about your brother, but that's all I know. Now, if you'll excuse me.”
She spun on her heel and marched back to the kitchen.
“Hello? I was actually hungry.” I muttered to myself. Turning to Scott, I suggested, “Let’s go get tacos.” Third dinner plan of the night. My stomach was not happy with me.
“All right. And I’ll look up places that might have been robbed recently. If I find one, you wanna go see it?”
“Sure.” Nancy Drew, eat your heart out.
Chapter 12
At the taco stand, I left Scott searching out news stories while I went to get food. After a swap of money, the cashier passed over a paper bag filled with spicy goodness and drinks. I headed over to one of the picnic tables.
Scott saw me through the windshield and came out. He continued to stare at his phone, typing and sweeping, as he walked up.
“Any news?” I asked, pulling out a wrapped taco.
He shook his head, looking discouraged. “Nothing about any jewelry stores.”
I bit into the taco and salsa trickled down my hand. I shook it off into the grass, then rummaged through the bag for a napkin. Joy suddenly filled me, and I took a second to really feel the moment. My heavens, was there anything better than sitting in the dusk of evening, watching the pink dance against the horizon as the first stars came out?
“What are you thinking about?” he asked.
“I was thinking about how much of my li
fe I’m spending trying to plan for the next thing I have to do. I really want to take a minute and just be present.” I closed my eyes and took a deep breath in, and let it out. “I’m thinking life isn’t perfect, but, this moment, right now can be pretty darn good if I let it.”
He studied me with eyes filled with youth. I recognized that expression, the same one I’d once given to someone much older than me, back when I was in my early twenties, and life seemed like an unending currency I’d never exhaust.
“Anyway,” I said, bringing the conversation back to the matters at hand. “Eat your taco. And don’t lose hope. Maybe we can look up some reports on police crime blotters?”
He shrugged and lunged into the bag, making me smile. I didn’t have to ask him twice.
“So, you’ve been with Natalie two years?” I asked.
“Just about. Our anniversary is coming up.” He slowly nodded as he stared out at the horizon.
I took another bite and chewed, wondering if he’d continue. My silent tactic seemed to work because, after a moment, he began again.
“We went to school together, but our social circles didn’t click.” He smirked. “We first talked when I was in college. At the library. Seems like a goofy place, huh?” Creases grew around his dark eyes as he squinted in self-deprecation.
“No, not at all. I think that sounds nice.”
“Well, we were there for two different reasons. Mine was because I was searching several old magazines that I hadn’t been able to find online.”
“And did you find them?”
He grinned. “Yeah. Was able to search through them, but they didn’t help my grades none.” His gaze darted to the bag, and I pushed it toward him. “Thanks,” he murmured, grabbing another one. I took another draw on my drink.
“So, you two have been together ever since?”
He nodded.
“Any plans on getting married?”
“Yeah. But she hadn’t even told her family we were dating until recently.”
“Because they hate your family name?”
He nodded again. “Yeah, the Fairbanks’ and the Clarkes’ have a long history of feuding. Both families are original townspeople.”
“Ah. But why would they come after the Clarkes? Luciana was a townsperson too, and wealthy.”
“Luciana’s family name never recovered from the stain of Tom Bones, at least for the Fairbanks’. And that included anyone related to her. They think our family is below them.”
“Below them? What did they think this is, the nineteen hundreds again?” I was shocked that in this day and age, old feuds of this type could still exist.
“Those Fairbanks’ aren’t right in the head, most of them.” He cracked his knuckles. “Luciana’s a legend that lives on, that’s for sure. There are some in my family who swear they’ve seen her ghost. My grandma, for one.”
“Really?”
He crumpled the empty wrapper and tossed it into the air. “Just old family stories, I guess.” He tossed and caught the paper ball a few more times, before hurling it into the can outside the taco stand.
I was impressed when he made the shot. Lettuce lay scattered on the table, and I picked it up. As I balled my own garbage and stuffed it into my empty drink container, I mused, “You ever see her?”
Scott raised his eyebrow. “In the shadows of the night, who knows what I’m seeing.”
The hair rose on the back of my neck. A ‘No’ would have worked for me. I tried to act nonchalant as I chucked my trash and we returned to the car to head back to the hotel. I was exhausted after the long day, but Scott mentioned he wanted to see his brother again.
“I’m getting tired of hiding,” he said.
I shifted the car into drive, and we sped down the road. “I know you are.”
He rubbed his temples like his head hurt. “I just want to see Natalie. I want to figure out what’s going on and why my brother was targeted, and how Natalie got involved.”
“Was she friends with your brother?”
He looked out the window, elbow resting on the car door and chin in hand. “She’d seen him in school. William made friends with everyone. He’s super charismatic. He’s the kind of guy who could talk anyone into doing anything.”
“Talk a woman wearing white gloves into eating a ketchup popsicle,” I murmured.
“What?” He glanced at me, confused.
“Nothing. Just a saying my Momma had about people like that. They can make anyone do anything and think it was their idea.”
“Yeah,” Scott nodded. “Exactly. That’s how William is. But, Natalie knew that side of him, too. I think she’d be careful. Especially after …” His voice choked like he’d caught himself saying too much. His mouth quickly shut, and he turned toward the window again. I could tell he wasn’t going to say any more.
I flipped my blinker as we approached the turn to the hotel.
“I hate to say it, but I’m nervous.” He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
“Nervous?” Concern colored my tone.
“Yeah. I want to see Natalie, but I’m afraid of what her family will say.”
“Where are your parents?”
His face fell into an emotionless mask. “Gone,” he said, just like that. Like there was no more to the story.
I studied him again, his hair parted roughly to the side, looking like a disheveled lost puppy. With a sigh, I flipped the blinker to the other direction, this one leading to the hospital.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll come with you,” I said.
His face lit up. “You will?”
“Yeah. Now you owe me one.”
He laughed, his face looking more relaxed than it’d been all evening. “I’m on it. I have a great hotel key you can have.”
I shook my head. “You keep it.”
Chapter 13
As I drove toward the hospital for the second time that day, something else came to mind.
“Scott, do you smoke?”
He shook his head. “No, but my brother does. He smokes the generic ones. I tell him all the time that they just sweep the tobacco off the floor and roll ‘em in wrappers. You get cotton, lint, fingernails, all sorts of stuff in there.”
I wrinkled my nose. “He doesn’t smoke Premier Royals?”
Scott shot me a look. “What? No. Those are like nine dollars a pack.”
“What in the world? I found a half-empty pack of Premier Royal cigarettes in the hotel room. I just assumed they were your brother’s.” I thought of the four butts on the railing. “It was actually the other stubs that were William’s.”
“Huh?” Scott asked.
I flipped the blinker again for the hospital entrance. “I found a butt at the church and a matching pack in the hotel room. I found three different butts out on the patio.”
“So, the same person was at the church that was at the hotel with my brother.”
“Exactly.” I drove up the parking ramp and parked.
“Listen,” he said grabbing my arm on the way to the stairs that led to the main doors. “I just want to let you know that if everything goes well in Natalie’s room, you can leave any time. Don’t feel like you have to stay. I can grab an Uber and pick up my car from the hotel later.”
I nodded. “Sounds good.”
We reached Natalie’s floor, and Scott clenched his fist. He slowly relaxed it, breathing out.
I tapped on Natalie’s door. Ruby opened the door, and her eyes widened slightly at the sight of Scott. She hurried out of the room, quickly shutting the door behind her.
“What in the world?” she breathed.
“Ruby, this is Scott. William’s twin brother.”
“Oh, my gosh!” Her eyes narrowed as she studied him. “You know. I saw you in the halls once or twice, but then I thought this place was starting to make me nuttier than a peanut buster parfait.”
“I seem to I have that effect on people.” He grinned affably.
“Ruby, we think we know wha
t this is about,” I turned to Scott. “Show her.”
He pulled the necklace out of his pocket and handed it to her.
Her brow rose up as she looked at me. “That’s my aunt’s necklace. I swear it is. I remember her showing it to me once.”
“William had this when I found him in the hotel.”
Ruby’s glance ping-ponged between Scott and me. “William stole this? From our family? So, that’s why Aunt Marcie hates him so much?”
Scott frowned. “I don’t know how my brother got it. He isn’t awake for me to ask.”
“What's he doing here?” Aunt Marcie shrieked down the hall from the direction of the elevators. “And why do you have my necklace?”
“Aunt Marcie! Shhh!” Ruby hissed, looking at the nurse’s station.
The woman raced up and snatched the necklace from Ruby. “You will pay for this!” Her voice lowered, but her face was creased with fury as she stared at Scott.
“Hang on a second. I’m Scott! My brother William is the one in the coma.”
“I don't care who you say you are.” She shook the pendant at him. “You stole my necklace!”
“Lady, I didn't have anything to do with it, and I am doing my best to try to figure out what happened.” Scott's cheeks were red, his eyes slitted in anger.
“Aunt Marcie, he really is his brother's twin. Go look down the hall,” Ruby pointed. “His brother is still in bed, still hooked up to everything, and no better than Natalie. If anything, he's worse.”
Aunt Marcie held a trembling finger inches under Scott’s nose. I was in awe at his self-control. “You stay away from my family. And if your brother wakes up, you tell him the same thing. Natalie makes me ashamed of her. She’s always dated scum bags.”
Without another word, she stalked into Natalie's room, unsuccessfully trying to slam a door on a hydraulic closure. It wasn't a very graceful exit.
I felt sick. What kind of mother said that about her daughter who was fighting for her life?
I glanced at Scott, and he was seething. “That family walks around like they’re better than everyone else just because—”
