by Laura DeLuca
“Rebecca, my dear!” Robert exclaimed. Unable to handle her weight, he eased her down to the floor and knelt beside her. “How on earth did you wind up in there? The whole company has been searching for you! Your young man is beside himself, and … and, good God, what are you doing with that knife?”
“Someone l-locked m-me....”
Coming out into the warmer air only intensified her trembling as her body attempted to adjust to the new temperature. Her voice stuttered, making it difficult to speak. When she realized she still held her weapon and it was only a few inches from Robert’s chest, she let it clatter to the ground. Her hands were shaking so convulsively, she feared she might accidently stab him.
Rebecca was still trying to force a few words out of her rebellious mouth when Justyn came running around the corner with Tom and Carmen only a few steps behind. Carmen still wore only her girdle, which would have been funny under just about any other circumstances. At the moment, though, no one found humor in the situation, especially not Rebecca’s anxious fiancé.
“Becca!” Justyn looked absolutely frantic. He fell onto his knees beside Rebecca even though it obviously pained his tender muscles. He took the burden of her extra weight away from poor Robert and all but shoved the old man aside in his haste. “Robert, what happened? Where did you find her? Is she all right?”
“She was inside the walk-in freezer,” Robert explained. “I thought I heard someone calling so I came to explore. When I arrived, it was quiet, but there was a chair propped up against the handle. It caught my attention, and so I—”
“How long was she in there?” Justyn demanded, cutting Robert off.
“It couldn’t have been too long,” Carmen assured him. “It was only about half an hour ago she left the dressing room.”
“Is that long enough for frostbite?” Tom asked.
“She’s really trembling,” Carmen fretted.
Rebecca couldn’t believe it had only been thirty minutes. It felt like so much longer. Everyone was staring at her with wide eyes, and she knew she should be saying something to ease their fears, but her tongue felt thick in her mouth. When she tried to pull herself to her feet, she got a little lightheaded and her legs buckled. If Justyn hadn’t had his arm around her waist, she might have collapsed.
“Becca!” Justyn scooped her up as if she weighed nothing. At first the security and the warmth of his arms were a welcome retreat. His hot skin was like a heater against her icy flesh. She was about to rest her head against his chest and block out the rest of the world when his words snapped her back to reality. “Tom, go get your car and bring it out front,” Justyn ordered. “We’re going to the hospital.”
“Gotcha.”
Tom moved so quickly he was gone before Rebecca had a chance to react. But the last thing she wanted was to be poked and prodded by a bunch of sterile medical professionals. She supposed she was as stubborn as Justyn in that way. She forced herself to talk through her chattering teeth.
“N-no! I d-don’t n-need to go to the h-hospital.”
Justyn studied her as though she were insane. “Becca, this is serious. We have to make sure you and the baby are all right!”
“Baby!” Robert exclaimed. “Oh my! Rebecca, if you’re expecting, perhaps you should listen to Justyn. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
“N-no really,” Rebecca insisted. “I’m f-fine! J-just a little cold. Y-you can put me down now, Justyn. I promise I’m n-not going to faint or anything.” Justyn didn’t listen, but instead set his lips in an obstinate frown. As she studied him, it hit Rebecca all at once that the last thing he should be doing in his condition was lugging an extra 115 pounds around. His shirt hid most of his bruises, but if anyone needed a doctor, it was probably him. “I’m serious, Justyn; you need to put me down right now before you hurt yourself worse than you already are.”
He shook his head, adamant. “Absolutely not! I’m not taking any chances. What if you get dizzy again?”
“I said put me down!” Frustrated with his pigheadedness, Rebecca punched his arm. He flinched, but finally listened. She realized too late she’d hit him in the same exact spot as the crowbar had. Wracked with guilt, Rebecca covered her mouth and gasped while Justyn rubbed his tender shoulder.
“Oh my God! I’m so sorry, Justyn.” Suddenly the tables were turned, and she fussed over him. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. But you were being a big jerk, as usual, and not listening to a word I said, and I—”
“You still love to insult me after all these years. Even when all I’m trying to do is take care of you.” Justyn gave her a sarcastic smile, but then turned more serious. He put his arm around her waist again. “Seriously, Becca. Are you sure you’re all right? Do you still feel lightheaded? Do your toes hurt?”
“My toes?” Rebecca almost laughed.
“Fingers and toes are normally the first parts of your body to feel the effect of frostbite,” Robert interjected. “But I don’t think Rebecca was in there long enough for there to be any long-term damage. Now, someone should really go let poor Fernie know our leading lady has been safely recovered before his heart gives out on him. He isn’t good under this kind of pressure.”
“I’ll go,” Carmen offered, then muttered under her breath, “Maybe he can get me out of this damn girdle.”
Justyn cocked his head as he watched her walk away. “That will definitely give Fernando a heart attack.”
That time Rebecca actually did laugh. She knew if Justyn was able to make jokes, he must have calmed down a little as well. Robert’s reassurances settled his nerves more than Rebecca’s, though he still refused to take his arm away from her waist. At least he allowed her to stand on her own two feet.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Justyn asked for what felt like the hundredth time. He gave her arms a brisk rub to try to get her circulation flowing. “How did you even get in there?”
“Really, Justyn, I’m fine. I even stopped shivering. See?” She smiled to show her teeth had stopped chattering. “We can talk about how it happened later. Right now, I need a really, really hot shower to thaw me out the rest of the way. A little company couldn’t hurt either.”
Justyn’s cheeks turned scarlet, at least the parts not covered in cuts and scratches. Robert cleared his throat to remind them they weren’t entirely alone.
“Since it appears all is well, I’ll leave you two young lovers to await your ride.” Robert bent to pick something up. “Oh, here you go, dear; I think you must have dropped this in all the excitement.”
Robert handed Rebecca a piece of white linen embellished with lace before disappearing down the corridor. Curious, she lifted it up to examine it and saw the letter F had been painstakingly embroidered into the cloth. She recognized the familiar material. She saw it used often enough by her nervous boss. Suddenly, her hands started to tremble again because of its ominous meaning.
“What is it?” Justyn peered over her shoulder. “It looks like a handkerchief. It’s not yours, is it?”
“It … it’s Fernando’s handkerchief,” Rebecca told him. “But how could it have wound up here outside the door unless … unless he was the one who locked me in the freezer!”
Chapter Twenty-Four
“It’s your birthday, Becca.” Carmen rolled her eyes in the rearview mirror. “You can take the day off from playing detective.”
“Really,” Tom agreed. “Besides, you’re being paranoid. Fernando owns the building. Just ‘cause you found his snot rag lying on the ground doesn’t mean he was the one who locked you in the fridge. His crap is everywhere in there. Be grateful you didn’t find his monogrammed underpants.”
Rebecca slumped back against her seat. No one was taking her seriously about the handkerchief. They all thought she was being her typical, delusional self. The fact that more than once her suspicions had been justified didn’t seem to make any difference. Rebecca didn’t let their attitudes get her down. She was excited about finding her first clue. It made her feel like sh
e was accomplishing something. She only wished someone else shared her enthusiasm.
“I’m just glad you weren’t hurt.” Justyn squeezed her hand. “You really need to let this go, Becca. It’s my lawyer’s job to figure this out, not yours. I would never be able to forgive myself if something happened to you because of me.”
“You’re the only one who’s gotten hurt,” Rebecca reminded him. She laid a gentle hand against his mangled face. He shrugged to try to make light of it, but she knew he was hurting worse than he let on. “You can’t expect me to sit around and wait for someone to attack you again.”
“Ah-hem,” Tom gestured to the lingering bruise on his cheek, “I took a few for the team too, you know.”
“I wish we could quit this job.” Justyn sighed and rubbed his neck. “I’m sick of Hyde.”
Rebecca shook her head. “You know we can’t do that. Even if we didn’t need the money, this job counts as our internship, and there isn’t enough time to find something else. We won’t be able to graduate without a letter of recommendation from Fernando.”
“In that case, we better hope your suspicions about him are wrong,” Justyn told her. “Besides, I really have a hard time seeing Fernando in the role of the villain. Darlene has known him since college.”
“I knew Debbie from kindergarten,” Rebecca reminded him. “Sometimes you don’t know who you can trust. Like they say in the play, we all hide behind a façade. Sort of like the tough guy façade you’re trying to pull off right now.”
“Ha, ha. Very clever analogy.” Justyn raised an eyebrow. “But you are right about one thing. Someone at Tamilio’s is out to get us. We need to stick together from now on. No one goes anywhere alone.”
Tom gave a sarcastic huff. “Now we’re back to the buddy system like we’re in grade school.”
“Oh my God! Enough of this whining!” Carmen insisted. She swerved to fly past a car that was actually obeying the traffic laws. “We should be celebrating here! The baby of the group has finally turned twenty-one! We can officially party legally!”
“Ummm … speak for yourself. Alcohol is still off limits for me.” Rebecca pointed to her abdomen. “At least for the next seven months.”
“I can think of a few exciting ways to celebrate that have nothing to do with drinking.” Justyn gave her a conspiratorial smile. “How about we head to Atlantic City after the show? Try the slots? Maybe shoot some craps?”
“Oh yeah!” Tom whooped. “Lord Justyn is leading us to a life of debauchery.”
They laughed when Tom broke into his best English brogue and replaced Dr. Jekyll’s name with Justyn’s. It was John’s line as they entered the house of ill repute to watch Lucy dance for the first time. Despite the fact Justyn claimed to hate the musical, the joke was the only prompt he needed to break into song. Suddenly he was belting out the ditty from the bar scene, exchanging the slums of Victorian London with the ghettos of Atlantic City. Both Tom and Rebecca couldn’t help but join in. Soon the vehicle was filled with a three-part harmony.
“In Atlantic City you know your chances just ain’t good.
It’s the devil’s domain. There is no brotherhood.
Few will survive, and it’s a very sad plight.
Depravity and greed—there is no end in sight.”
“Seriously?” Carmen complained. “Do you three always have to sing show tunes everywhere we go? If we do make it to Atlantic City, you’re gonna scare the hookers and the homeless people.”
Rebecca laughed. It felt good to relax and have a good time for a change. It was the first time since she’d escaped from the deep freeze that she’d stopped obsessing over the handkerchief. As much as she hated to relinquish her small victory, she knew the others were right. It wasn’t proof of Fernando’s guilt. Their boss had been nothing but generous. He was even hosting their reception, and here she was, trying to pin him as a drug lord. It was much more likely one of the other guys in the kitchen were in cahoots with Albert. Still, Rebecca had no intention of giving up. She only wished she could find some solid evidence that would set Justyn free. She wasn’t about to put her faith in the justice system, especially when her old schoolmate, Nino, was the only one on their side.
Thinking of Nino reminded Rebecca that she had to call him and give him an update. With no proof and no witnesses, they hadn’t involved the police in the incident with the freezer, but she should still tell Nino what she’d overheard. Maybe the name Andy would mean something to him. Maybe it was someone who was already on the police watch list.
“We’re here,” Carmen announced. “Geez, Becca, if you’re already falling asleep, how do you expect to make it to A.C. tonight?”
The sound of Carmen’s voice instantly snapped Rebecca out of her reverie. She had gotten so lost in her thoughts she hadn’t even noticed Carmen had pulled into the parking lot. Rebecca glanced at her watch and realized they were a little early—almost too early. The kitchen staff was probably already prepping things for dinner, but there was no sign of Fernando’s car when they walked onto Beach Drive.
“It’s only five,” Rebecca observed. “What are we going to do until the show starts?”
Justyn winked. “I’m sure we can think of something. Perhaps a walk along the beach?”
Tom and Carmen had already run ahead to the boardwalk and were skipping down the path that led to the pebbled sand. It made Rebecca suspicious. “You planned this, didn’t you?”
Justyn shrugged, and then flinched because his shoulder was still sore from the fight. “I needed to have a suitable setting to give you your birthday gifts. Somehow the backseat of Carmen’s car didn’t seem to fit the occasion.”
Rebecca allowed Justyn to take her hand and escort her to a secluded bench that faced the breaking waves. Most of the tourists had deserted the beach in order to prepare for dinner and a night on the town. There were more squawking seagulls than people dotting the shoreline, making it easy to hear the gentle patter of the surf. In the distance, she spotted Carmen bending to pick up a seashell. The whole scene reminded Rebecca of her first date with Justyn, when they had sat on a bench on the boardwalk in Atlantic City and stared at the water. The only thing missing was the rainbow in the sky.
“So, are you ready to open your gifts?”
When Rebecca turned back to Justyn, he had set two small packages on the bench. Each one was wrapped in shiny black paper with a blood-red ribbon around it. She was always impressed with his wrapping abilities, but she still pursed her lips in disapproval.
“Justyn, you shouldn’t have done this,” she rebuked gently. “I thought we agreed to skip my birthday and save the money for rent.”
Justyn snorted. “You agreed to that. I never said anything about it one way or the other. Besides, it isn’t much. Just a few tokens of my affection for you.” He lifted her fingers and brushed them with his lips. “My lady.”
Rebecca’s heartbeat quickened at the simple touch. Justyn’s tender caress still sent an electric current running through her body, the same way it had when they met in the gymnasium of their high school. Back then, all the other kids had teased him and called him “vampire”. When he made her swoon against her will, Rebecca had briefly considered he might really be one of those mythical creatures, but he was something altogether more enchanting than an immortal. She smiled at the old memories and how far they’d come.
“Well? Aren’t you going to open them?”
Justyn gave her a gentle nudge, and she realized for a moment she had lapsed back into being a lovesick teenager. “Okay, which one first?”
“This one.”
“All right.” Justyn handed her a rectangle-shaped package no bookworm could mistake. It was definitely a novel of some kind. She smiled and slipped her fingers under the tape so she wouldn’t damage the paper.
Justyn shook his head. “Who taught you how to open a gift? You’re supposed to tear into it with a little enthusiasm.”
Rebecca smirked. “Oh, I’m enthusiastic all right
. I’m…” The words died on her lips when she saw the familiar scene on the cover. There was a man in a mask swishing around his cape to cover his deformed face. Beneath the image, large block letters declared: The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. The paper was yellowed with age, but there were no creases in the binding. “Oh my God, Justyn, is this…”
“It’s the seventy-fifth anniversary addition,” Justyn proclaimed proudly. “I really wanted to get you a first edition, but apparently those a lot harder to come by. The only one I could find was way out of my budget…but someday we’ll add that to your collection as well.”
Rebecca shook her head and hugged the novel to her chest. “I don’t need the first edition. This is perfect. You know how much I love Gaston’s phantom.”
“Erik is the one who brought us together.”
Rebecca nodded, again remembering the day in the gym when they had argued over whom was the bigger phantom fan. Justyn won by default when he recited one of her favorite monologues completely from memory and stunned her to silence.
“This is absolutely amazing.” Rebecca ran her fingers along the shiny cover. “Thank you so much, Justyn. You know me so well.”
“Don’t thank me. The only reason I was able to part with it is because I know we’ll be living together, and technically once we’re married, what’s yours is mine.”
“Jerk!” She smacked his chest with the hardback. When the action made him cringe, Rebecca covered her mouth and gasped because once again, she had forgotten about his bruises. “Oh God, I am so terrible. Did I hurt you?”
When she started to fuss over him, he gave her his signature cocky smile. “Still love to insult me,” he teased. “And apparently abuse me as well.”
“Well, you deserved it.” She crossed her arms, but her voice softened when she studied his pale complexion and the deep circles under his eyes. “Are you feeling all right? Really.”
