Unbreakable 2, The Mystery of Lilly (Cypress Grove Series)

by Nichols, Amie

  Lucy has everything out on the table and we all sit.

  "Lucy, this is amazing." Carley compliments her taking a bite of the beef.

  "So, Lucy, are you the 'cook'?" Sidney says to her condescendingly using air quotations. God, do I hate the way she is. She is somewhat "Jane like." This gets me going, of course, because Lucy is flushed and embarrassed by the statement.

  "No she is not the 'cook'; she is a magnificent computer genius and smart as hell. 'Cooking' is just a hobby and she was nice enough to prepare this delicious meal for Luke's birthday." I blurt out without even thinking, I turn to Lucy seeing that Jacob is red with anger also.

  "Oh, pardon me." Sidney snots with a roll of her eyes, turning her gaze to Sarah. Sarah giggles at her. I can tell this is going to be a long night. No one is going to be in my house, at my table, disrespecting my friends.

  "Okay, you work for Lilly then?" Sidney directs her question to Lucy.

  "Yes, I take care of all of her accounts," Lucy says quietly. I know that Lucy is one tough cookie, but for some reason Sidney is making her go into some sort of shell. She is the kind of girl that I could see picking on someone like Lucy in school.

  "What does something like that entail?" Sarah chimes in joining Sidney in the interrogation of poor Lucy.

  "I make sure all of her properties are taken care of and monies are going where they are supposed to. Stuff like that."

  "I bet that is quite the job. How many properties do you own, Lilly?" Sidney now turns her attention to me. Shit, I wish I knew, but I don't.

  "A few," is all I say. It's none of her goddamn business anyway. Sarah starts laughing, almost choking on whatever she had just put in her mouth.

  "A few, a few, huh? It seems you have been buying houses left and right lately. I think it is more than a few." Sarah takes a drink of her wine looking at me over her glass.

  "Sarah, that's enough." Carley speaks up, surprised as I am at the way she is acting. Not sure what I did to piss her off, but what the hell. I turn to Luke who is looking rather pissed at his sister.

  "Oh, I'm sorry. Are we not allowed to speak to Lilly?" Sarah says innocently turning to her mother.

  "Sarah!" Now Jeffrey is reprimanding his daughter.

  "Please, you can ask me anything, but I would like to ask you something first." I sit up in my chair putting my elbows on the table. "Did I do something to make you mad at me? I must say you are being a little passive aggressive." I blurt out.

  "You mean besides almost getting my brother killed and calling him a coward when he was having trouble dealing. How about beating up my father when poor little Lilly couldn't handle Luke leaving her for two seconds?" She spews out all of her hatred.

  "Sarah, what the fuck?" Luke shouts at his sister, slamming his hand down on the table. I put my hand on his, as I now know what is fueling Sarah.

  "I'm sorry, no one more than me knows what Luke has done for me. I have made some mistakes, I'm not perfect. Your brother is no coward, and I have apologized to him and your father," I tell Sarah, she is sticking up for her family. What Sidney is doing I have no idea, but I will deal with her later.

  "So why do you still have a live in security guard? Do you not think my brother can protect you? Or is it all for attention?" She spits, okay so not just protecting her family.

  "What the hell?" I stand abruptly knocking over my chair as I do. I hear a couple gasps around the table. "What are you really pissed about, Sarah? This all started when Luke gave me that ring. Would you rather your brother be with Sidney? Is that why she is here?" I yell, Luke standing beside me now. Everyone is up now, tempers are flaring. Everything is escalating and fast. Lee is trying to get Sarah out of the room telling her to calm down. Luke is shooting daggers at his sister while Carley looks mortified.

  "I think Luke would be better off with me!" Sidney yells, what a stupid girl.

  "You fuck off and get out of my house!" I shout at her, before she has a chance to say anything else.

  "As a matter of fact, I do think he would be better off with Sidney. Luke's a provider, a protector, not your little boy toy!" Sarah yells as she is fighting off Lee.

  "Oh my God!" Carley screeches sitting down fanning herself. Jeffrey tends to his wife who looks as if she is about ready to faint.

  "Luke and I kissed!" Sidney wails as if everyone had forgotten about her. I glance over at Emma, Jimmy, Lucy and Jacob watching the show and start laughing hysterically. The looks on their faces do me in.

  "I thought I told you to get out of my house. I know about the fucking kiss, you idiot!" I'm still laughing as I address the stunned Sidney. She looks at Luke who just shakes his head in amazement at her pathetic attempt.

  "You're so busy running around trying to find out all these secrets. I can't believe that after everything my father has done for you, you still make him work like a second class citizen. You have millions of dollars, why don't you let him retire and hire someone else? He's done more than a lifetime ' s worth of work for you." Sarah has a vein popping out in the middle of her forehead she is so mad. I start laughing harder. She has no clue that her father now has millions also. He works for me because he wants to. I decide quickly that it is not my place to tell Sarah about my financial contribution to Jeffrey's retirement fund. I'll let Jeffrey take care of that one.

  "Sarah, you have no idea what you are talking about!" Jeffrey yells at his daughter. "Lilly doesn't make me work, and she has given me more than enough to retire on." Sarah shoots a look at her dad then closes her mouth as if she is about to say something but doesn't.

  "Thanks for the wonderful birthday dinner, Sis. Maybe you should get all your facts straight next time before you blow up at my fiancée," Luke grates, leaning down to pick up my overturned chair.

  Lee is escorting Sarah and Sidney out of the room. Sarah comes back in the dining room to glance at her parents and then to Luke. Everyone has disappointment on their faces at Sarah's behavior. She goes to say something, but decides against it, leaving the room without another word. Jeffrey throws his napkin on the table and goes to the bar in the corner. He pours a shot of whiskey downing it then lifts the bottle to everyone to see if there are any takers. Jimmy, Jacob, Luke, and Emma all raise their hands. He grabs the bottle and a handful of shot glasses rejoining us at the table. There is no talking. Everyone is silent as the boys and Emma take a few shots.

  Luke puts his arm around my neck, pulling me to him he kisses my temple. "I'm sorry, baby. I don't know what is going on with her lately," he whispers against the side of my face. I put my hand up to his arm and motion for Jeffrey to pour me a shot as well. What the hell, it's been one heck of a night.

  It doesn't take long for most of us to be drunk laughing at the night's events. Emma does a great impression of Sidney, which has everyone laughing hysterically. Even Carley is amused after she had excused herself to call Sarah. She explained her behavior as being under a lot of stress. Sidney has also been in her head telling her things. Right now I don't care. I have everyone I care about in the room with me, except for Miss Finnegan. She will be away longer than anticipated. Other than her, all of the people that matter to me are right here laughing and having a good time.

  Chapter 27

  I'm awakened the next morning around 9:00 to a clash of thunder. The room is still dark from the storm. My back is pressed up to Luke, and after another low rumble of thunder, I hear Luke moan in pain. Rolling over, I see him lying on his back with is forearm draped over his eyes. "Damn my father and his whiskey pouring," Luke's raspy voice whispers. I'm not even sure how many bottles they polished off last night. Jeffrey was so drunk that it took Carley, Lucy, and me to get him in the car. Not sure if Carley got him in the house when they got home. I heard her say he might be sleeping in the garage.

  Jacob, Jimmy, and Emma were just as drunk as Luke and his father. It was hysterical watching them. I only had two shots, but that was more than enough to make me giddy. Jimmy and Emma spent the night, neither of them in any shap
e to drive. I can just about imagine that they are all feeling the same way.

  "Head pounding, I need coffee and aspirin," Luke moans not moving.

  "Okay, I'll be right back." I kiss his chest lightly before I get up. Throwing on some yoga pants and an oversized t-shirt, I head for the kitchen.

  "Good morning," I'm greeted by Lucy who is making some coffee. Emma is at the counter looking surprisingly well.

  "How are you feeling?" I ask Emma, knowing she put away just as many shots as the boys.

  "Fine actually, can't say the same for Jimmy. He's such a girl, in there moaning about his head," she says rolling her eyes.

  "Yeah, Jacob is the same way," Lucy says pouring a cup of coffee and grabbing the aspirin bottle from the cupboard.

  "Well it looks like Emma can drink them all under the table. I need a few of those for Luke as well." I motion to the aspirin bottle in Lucy's hand.

  I bring Luke his coffee and aspirin, sitting on the bed next to him as he tries to sit up enough to take the pills. He does , lying right back down. It's plain to see he is not going to be moving from this position anytime soon.

  "Thanks, flower." He puts his hand on my knee rubbing his thumb in a small circle. "Man it has been a long time since I've felt like this, and all thanks to my father."

  "Yeah, I bet he is not feeling much better than you," I say softly. Luke's eyes are closed, but he is still rubbing my knee with his thumb so I know he's still awake. "Was any of the stuff your sister said last night true?" I ask, not sure if this is the right time to bring up the subject.

  "Uh no, she was being an idiot last night." Luke opens one eye to see me sitting right next to him, chewing on my thumb nail with my legs crossed. "What part is bothering you?" He must see the concern on my face.

  "Do you think you are my boy toy?"

  "In bed yes," he gives me a weak smile. "That's the way I like it. You know I love you all feisty and in control, it turns me on, baby," he says shutting his eyes again.

  "You know that I feel safe with you, right? That Jacob being here has nothing to do with how I feel about your abilities to protect me."

  "Flower," he starts to sit up, but lies right back down. "I know that, of course I do. First off, you got Jacob fired from his job so I know you couldn't fire him even if you wanted to. Secondly, I also know that he is like a brother to you. He's your family just as much as you are family to him. Ignore everything she said last night. Like I said, she was being an idiot. It's not the first time, probably won't be the last."

  "I love you," I whisper, leaning forward to place a gentle kiss on his lips.

  "I love you, too, baby," he tells me very sleepily. I lie next to him for a while. Not able to fall back to sleep, I sneak out of bed. The house is quiet. Even Emma must have gone back to sleep. I look in the office to see no Lucy, so I head for the library. I had a library table put in the middle of the room with reading lamps and big comfy chairs wanting to give it a cozy feeling.

  I roam around the bookcases searching for something to jump out at me. The walls are all books except a third of the bottom which is decorative wood panels. I look down at the floor when I feel something move under my bare feet. There is a loose board that I think is just from the house being old. Leaning down, I push on it. When I do, the panel that is next to it moves. That's when I notice the hinges on the panel. They're the same color as the wood and very hard to see.

  I try to open the panel by putting my fingers under the corners. It moves a little, but it doesn't open. I need something to pry it open with. Leaving the room, I come back with a butter knife from the kitchen. Dropping to my knees in front of the panel, I jam the end of the knife into the small space. It doesn't take much effort to pop the panel open. It swings on its hinges creaking open.

  A cloud of dust billows up from the sudden whoosh of air caused by the door opening. Inside the little cubby hole is an old metal lock box. Pulling it out, I see that it is padlocked shut. Seeing that it opens with a key, I rush to the desk pulling open the drawer where we had put the key we found in the book. It fits perfectly. My heart starts racing as I unlock the box.

  At first glance after opening the metal lid, I see picture after picture of me. Picking up one of the old Polaroid ' s, I notice quickly that it is not me, but someone who looks profoundly like me. I know instantly that the woman in the picture is Samantha. Thumbing through the pictures, I find some with Samantha and a man. In some of them they are embracing. Some are just of them talking. After seeing a couple of the pictures I realize it is a much younger Ted Sumnor.

  These are pictures of them together taken from afar. They seem to not know that they are having their picture taken. I flip through the pictures, most of them the same but in different angles or at different places. Also in the box is a long shriveled black thing. It is hard with bumps. Whatever it is, it looks as if it's really old. I put it back in the box, rubbing my hands on my pants wrinkling my nose. I have a feeling that it is something bad.

  On the lid of the box is a small piece of paper taped to the underside. It reads Dr. Sheldon Piper. It has a phone number and below that is written $50,000. I stare at the piece of paper for a few moments before I take out my cell phone. What the hell, I dial the phone number. I get a message saying the number has been disconnected, but I had to try. I lay all the pictures out on the desk, studying them for I have no idea what, some kind of clue maybe. I can't explain why pictures of Samantha that she didn't know about, would be in Samantha's house.

  I must have been looking at them for over an hour when I hear sounds of life in the house. I put everything back in the box and head out to find someone to share my discovery with.

  In the kitchen is Jimmy, Emma, and Lucy. Lucy is making what looks to be grilled cheese sandwiches. I notice that it is after 2:00 already. Jacob enters the room looking like death warmed over. He is wearing gray sweats with a tight black shirt. He looks a little green with bags under his eyes.

  "You feeling better?" Lucy turns to Jacob with concern.

  "Little bit." He holds his thumb and forefinger close together.

  "He's been praying to the Porcelain God," Jimmy cracks, who doesn't look a whole lot better than Jacob.

  I place the box on the island making Emma perk up in her chair.

  "What's that?" Her interest instantly piqued.

  "I found it in the library behind one of the wooden panels. It is what the key goes to that we found." I glance at Jacob who is still standing there, and I can tell he is trying with all his might not to be nauseous.

  "What's in it?"

  "Pictures of Samantha, pictures of Samantha and Ted, and a guy's name and phone number," I tell them opening the box. Pulling out the weird black thing, I set it on the counter, "And this."

  "What is that?" Lucy asks picking up the object studying it closely. Emma chokes on her drink of water when she sees it.

  "I've seen those at Bon Dieu's. That's an umbilical cord!" Lucy drops it like it electrocuted her. Jacob runs from the room, we hear him heaving in the bathroom off the kitchen.

  "What the hell!" I walk around the counter opening a drawer and pull out a paper bag and some tongs. Luke walks into the kitchen just as I am picking it up with the tongs to drop it into the bag. Lucy and I instantly wash our hands at the sink, fighting over the soap and water.

  "What's going on?" Luke inquires when I turn around. Thinking about it being an umbilical cord gives me a shiver.

  "Are you feeling nauseous?"

  "Not really, just a headache that won't go away. Why? What was that?" He points to the paper bag.

  "I think, well I am pretty sure, that was a twenty year old umbilical cord," Emma answers.

  "Why in the hell would that be there? Why would anyone ever save that?"

  "In the Voodoo world that is prime stuff. If a mother and child die during birth, the soul is suspended in the umbilical cord. It is the life line between the mother and the baby, after all," Emma spouts.

  "What would one
do with it?" Luke asks, sitting next to Jimmy pulling me down onto his lap.

  "Reincarnation or resurrection!" I remember the spell in the back of the book of souls that had the key taped to it. It was about resurrection and reincarnation. "That's what the spell said." Everyone's eyes are on me.

  "Who was trying to resurrect who though?" Jimmy pipes off. We are all silent, none of us knowing what to say.

  "Who does that particular cord belong to?" Lucy adds. All questions we don't know answers to.

  "Shit, we need to start writing all this stuff down. This is really starting to get confusing," Emma says, pulling the box in front of her taking out the pictures.

  "Damn, Lilly, your mom was hot." Jimmy spouts grabbing one of the pictures. My mom, I feel a sadness when I hear those words. I've never thought about how it would feel to have a mother.

  "You look so much like her. I would think these were pictures of you if I didn't know better," Luke says glancing over at the pile of Polaroid ' s. Wrapping his arm around my waist he pulls me tight against him, as if he can read my mind and can sense my sadness.

  "Lucy, when you have time will you check out this name and phone number? It's disconnected, but I wonder if you can find who this Dr. Piper is."

  "Sure, I'll work on it first thing tomorrow. I'm going to go check to see if my super tough security elite forces man is still alive first." She smirks as she leaves the room.

  Chapter 28

  "You're not going to believe this," Lucy yells at me when I walk by the office the next morning. Going in, I sit in the chair against the wall. "Dr. Sheldon Piper was sentenced to forty years in prison for selling babies on the black market." Lucy reads from her monitor.

  "What?"

  "It seems that the blue eyed, blond haired, good looking Dr. Piper, who was an OBGYN, had a little side business. He found homeless blue eyed, blond haired girls, fixed them up, made them healthy, and then impregnated them only to sell the perfect little babies to rich baron couples. He made a fortune and is said to have fathered at least forty children that he sold to the highest bidder."