Lacey Luzzi Box Set

by Gina LaManna

  “Fine, dear. How are you?”

  I looked out at the lake in the distance, the quiet, empty field before me. My adrenaline rush from realizing I’d pocket-dialed Anthony three times in a row had diminished, and I was finally feeling calm once more. “I’m good. It’s beautiful here.”

  “Yes, of course it is. So, any progress with the men?” Nora’s voice sounded higher-pitched than normal.

  “Which men?”

  “Lacey, you know very well which men I mean.”

  “If you’re talking about the three strangers you sprung on me, then yes, I do know them.”

  “So?” Nora’s airy tone was belied by curiosity.

  “I told you, they’re not my type. I’m not looking, Nora, you can’t force these things.”

  “But dear, you haven’t been looking. When’s the last time you went out on a date?” At my silence, she continued. “The nice Russian – Andrey, I think? Well, I haven’t seen him around. Neither have I seen Michael. Those are the only two dates you’ve brought over that I can remember. And that was a while ago.”

  I didn’t bother to tell her that Andrey had, unfortunately, become a victim of the Russian mob, or that Michael had been taken away in the trunk of Anthony’s car and dealt with – in a way I would never ask about.

  “Lacey, you’re almost thirty.”

  “Yes, and I’ve been focusing on my career lately. If you haven’t forgotten, I’m working for your husband. I want to do a good job.”

  “You’ve been doing a wonderful job! But there’s more to life than being a workaholic.”

  “I’m hardly a workaholic. I’m on vacation right now.”

  “Exactly. You’re on vacation, so you don’t have work to focus on. Why not go out with one of the men? There are three of them to choose from!”

  I expelled a long sigh. “This was supposed to be a girls’ weekend. It would be unfair to Meg.”

  “You gals can double date. There’s one for you, and two for Meg. I know she’s a feisty one.” Nora’s laugh tinkled over the phone, but it sounded forced.

  “Why are you so set on me going out with one of these men, Auntie Nora?” I said, unable to keep my tone level. “They’re not my type. I’m not interested right now, I’ve got enough on my plate. Are you telling me that you’ll love me less if I don’t get married before I’m thirty?”

  “No, dear, of course not!”

  “Then why the sudden pressure?”

  “I just want you to feel comfortable talking with me about these things,” she said. “I know your mother is...maybe you’re feeling like you don’t have anyone to talk to about romance, and that sort of thing.”

  I softened. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sound annoyed. But I have friends, good ones. Meg and Clay.”

  I hesitated. I didn’t include Anthony on purpose, and a small twinge of guilt pricked at my gut for keeping secrets from my grandmother. Maybe Anthony had been right in that keeping our relationship hidden was a bad idea; all it’d seemed to do was bite me in the rear end and cause problems.

  “Well, I just want to make sure you’re leading a fulfilling life, and I know if I hadn’t met Carlos, I wouldn’t be nearly as happy as I am today.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with being alone.” Even though I wasn’t single any longer, I didn’t like the suggestion that a woman needed a man to be complete. I was just as whole a person before I’d started dating Anthony, and getting into a relationship hadn’t made me any less of a person.

  “No, but I just think—”

  “I’ll find the right person when the right time comes,” I said.

  “Well, will you tell me about it?” she asked pointedly.

  “When the time is right, yes.”

  “What does that mean, Lacey? Are you going to go off and elope on me? Show up one day at the house with a husband and a family? I want to be a part of your life.”

  “You are a part of my life. An important part. But I’m also an adult, and I lead my own life. I was twenty-six before I even met you, or even knew you and the rest of the family existed.”

  “Which is why I’d hate to see you keeping secrets from me.”

  “Why are you so convinced I’m keeping secrets?” Again the guilt poked at me, but I was conflicted. I was nearly thirty, and it was – should be – up to me who I date, when I date, and which sort of friends I keep close to me.

  This phone call was the exact reason I’d wanted to keep mine and Anthony’s “status” quiet for a few weeks. We were so new, our relationship a tiny sapling so fragile that a gentle wind could break its tender branches. But, in Nora’s case – she was no gentle breeze. She was more like a forceful lawnmower plowing right through our little sapling of a relationship.

  It wasn’t only for my sake that I wanted this, either. What about Anthony? The last thing I wanted was for Nora to continuously pester him about babies and weddings.

  I just wanted time...time to get to know him. To whisper into the late hours of the night exchanging secrets about our pasts. To discover where he’d come from, and where he wanted to go. But until I was sure we were sturdy together, I wanted to keep us locked in a greenhouse to grow and flourish in safety.

  “You’re a huge part of my life,” I said again. “But you also have to understand that if I want to elope, that’s my choice. If I want to be single for my entire life, that’s also my choice. If I want—”

  “No, Lacey. You don’t want to be single your whole life.”

  “It’s my life, Nora!”

  “But I know better, dear. I’m older. I’ve experienced the joys of young love, but I’ve also experienced how satisfying it is to be in a relationship for decades. There’s no way you can know that at your age.”

  “But I need to figure it out for myself. No matter how much you preach to me, it won’t help me to understand.”

  “I’m not preaching, Lacey. I’m helping you.”

  I took a shuddering breath. “Are you? Because it feels like you’re forcing me into something I don’t want.”

  “How do you know what you want? You’re too young to know.”

  “Too young to know what I want but so old my eggs are drying up?” I shook my head, though she couldn’t see it. “You can’t have it both ways, Nora.”

  “Listen to me, Lacey. Just go out with one of—”

  “I am not going out with them. Nora, I’ve got to go,” I said. I didn’t know how much longer I could keep my cool.

  “You’re going to hang up on me?” Nora’s voice took on a hurt, almost sharp tone I’d rarely heard her use before.

  “I’m not hanging up. I just...I need some time to cool down. Forcing me to do anything isn’t going to work. I’m sorry, that’s just not how I’m wired.”

  “You have to listen, Lacey. I have your best interests at heart.”

  “You might mean well, but I still have to make my own mistakes, as much as it might hurt to watch,” I said. “And I am not going out with any of those men.”

  There was silence on the line, and I couldn’t bring myself to press the hang-up button. I couldn’t do it; she was still my grandmother, no matter how much she meddled in my relationships. I’d missed her for the majority of my life so far, and I’d try my darndest to keep her close for the rest of it.

  “There’s nothing you want to tell me?” Nora asked, her voice disappointed. “Why won’t you try, Lacey? You say you’re open to it, and then you turn everyone down.”

  I hated to lie. I hated myself for lying. But this was a new side of Nora, one that made me wary of disclosing my relationship details so soon. I just couldn’t. I wouldn’t take the risk of family coming between Anthony and me. This was something we needed to discuss together, as a couple.

  “No.” I stared at the grass. “I don’t have any more to say on the subject.”

  “Goodbye, Lacey.”

  “Goodbye.”

  When the line went dead, my stomach plummeted. I hadn’t felt this terrible about
myself in a long time. Letting out a guttural groan that bordered on a growl, I leaned back against the cool steel of the floor and closed my eyes. I don’t know how long I lay there, my insides twisted up in knots, as I contemplated the pros and cons of calling Nora back and apologizing. I should, if for no other reason than to keep in her good graces and remain close to my grandparents. That was worth something, right?

  Plus, if I upset Nora enough, I could lose my job working for the Family, just when I’d started to gain some traction. If I failed at being a mobsterista, I was in trouble. Going back to stripping wasn’t really an option, not the way I’d gone out with a real bang – to my head – and polishing up my resume would prove to be difficult, considering the last five years.

  But there was the small nugget of stubbornness inside me, the little voice that said I hadn’t done anything wrong, except to raise my voice. And omit the fact that I had a boyfriend. But honestly, if I didn’t want to date an Italian man with one continuous eyebrow, shouldn’t that be my decision?

  I clicked into my contact list and pulled up Nora’s number. My thumb hovered over the green Call button, until finally I closed my eyes and pressed it. When I opened my eyes a moment later, however, I saw something more troubling than the green light signaling that Nora had picked up the phone.

  “Hello?” my grandmother answered. “Lacey, is that you? How did my phone know it was you? It said your name on my screen. First and last name...who is this?”

  “I’ll have to call you back.” I hung up, trying to keep my heart calm.

  I’d caught a glimpse of movement near the edge of the woods. There was a chance I was worrying for nothing; it could be a grazing deer, a loose dog, or just the rustle of dense underbrush. But my gut told me none of those were correct. My spine tingled, goosebumps pricked my skin, and the feeling of being watched slid slowly down my back, as if someone had cracked an egg on my head.

  Pulling myself into a sitting position, I pretended to browse my phone, ignoring Nora’s call back. As soon as I pressed End to hang up on Nora’s repeated return phone calls, I put the phone to my ear, pretending I’d answered, and spoke louder than necessary.

  “Hello? Anthony? Is that you...boyfriend?” If there was someone watching me, I wanted them to be well aware that I had a boyfriend, and that he was nearby.

  “Yes, I’m just in the park by the water tower, walking home now. I’ll be home in five minutes and see you then.” I paused, as if waiting for a response. My voice carried throughout the park, thanks to the stillness in the air and my height on the tower.

  “If I don’t come home,” I said, for added emphasis, “come find me at the park, or—”

  Before I could finish talking, my phone rang. Which totally ruined the illusion that I’d been on a legitimate phone call in the first place, and instead made me look like a crazy person talking to myself. I cursed myself for not setting the phone to silent, lamenting Nora’s need to return my call six times. She didn’t understand that I could see her missed calls, and that calling me more often didn’t mean I would magically be available to talk.

  Making my way to the stairs, I hesitated at the top. Having thought I’d be going for a leisurely afternoon stroll, I hadn’t brought a single thing I could use as a weapon. I had my phone, some loose shorts that Meg had declared wildly out of style, and my guns. The bicep kind, not the real kind. Meaning...I had only mashed potatoes, since arm strength wasn’t particularly my forte.

  The longer I waited at the top, the longer I gave my invisible friend time to build a plan, if he hadn’t already, to trap me. If that’s what he (or they) were trying to do. But with all the suspicious events happening around here as of late, I was willing to guess that it wasn’t a friendly neighbor hanging out in the shadows and bringing me a “Welcome to the Neighborhood” cake.

  Taking a deep breath, I hurdled myself down the stairs, taking the clanking old steps just as fast as my legs would carry me. I patted myself on the back for foregoing swimsuit attire as Meg had suggested, else I would’ve been bouncing all over the place. I kept my arms out in front, just in case someone had hidden in the staircase. What I’d do with my arms, I wasn’t sure, but they felt more useful waving around instead of flopping aimlessly at my sides.

  Bursting onto firm, grassy ground, I could hardly believe I’d made it all the way down in one piece. An alternate scenario crossed my mind and froze my blood: what if I’d fallen asleep up there and someone had pushed me off?

  I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding, keeping my pace snappy as I marched across the park. Halfway through, the feeling of being watched intensified, and I couldn’t help glancing back over my shoulder as I eased into a jog.

  Another shuffle in the branches on the other side of the swing set.

  My fears became justified when I saw the hand resting on the trunk of the tree, the rest of the body hidden in the shadows. I was too far away, too terrified to notice anything special about the hand, except that it was human. I’d never prided myself on having a keen eye for detail, and this was no exception.

  But I did know that someone was waiting, watching. Whether someone had followed me here or stumbled across me unknowingly, that didn’t change the end result: the figure didn’t want to be seen.

  Chapter 20

  “GIRL, YOU ARE SWEATING like...I dunno. I was gonna say a pig, but I’m not all that convinced pigs sweat,” Meg said, stretching as she sat up in her hammock. Her eyes bright and refreshed, she eyed my significantly less refreshed figure.

  I climbed up the stairs to the front porch, feeling as soggy as bread that’d soaked overnight in water. The humidity in the air had done a number on me as I’d sprinted home, the fear and adrenaline adding to my already unhealthy amount of perspiration. It was a good thing nobody was around except Meg at the moment, and I could guarantee she’d seen worse.

  “You look like a drowned rat who was dunked in ketchup and then went on the Tilt-a-Whirl. Are you gonna puke? Why is your face so red? It’s hurting my eyes.” Meg yawned. “If napping is that difficult, chickie, you’re doing it wrong. Watch and learn.”

  I watched as Meg flipped back into her hammock, her eyes closing and her mouth opening as the snores resumed. It was as if I had never left. I took the moment to switch my drink with hers; somehow, Meg’s glass had remained icy and cold, while mine felt like bathwater.

  Inhaling huge gulps of the concoction, some of the alcohol went straight to my head, which is partially what I’d intended. I couldn’t seem to relax, to calm myself down after my jaunt home. When I’d seen the hand on the tree trunk, it’d taken me only a few seconds to recognize it as a bad sign and get my behind in gear. I broke into a full on sprint, reaching the small frontage road moments later. It wasn’t a heavily trafficked street, but I ran straight down the middle, desperately hoping a car would pass. Any car would do, but if I were really lucky, it’d be Anthony.

  Not a single motor vehicle had trundled by, so I’d kept my finger hovered over Anthony’s number on my phone. I still didn’t know what sort of errand he was running, and I didn’t particularly want to call four more times if I didn’t have to, petty or not.

  Luckily, the feeling of being watched had dissipated by the time I’d reached the cabin, exhausted and on the verge of heatstroke as I came to the edge of the Luzzi cabin’s driveway. I guessed that the figure from the trees hadn’t bothered to follow me home. Which wasn’t as much a relief as I wanted, because the chances he knew where I was staying were pretty high. The chances he’d been watching me and knew I’d gone to the park, even higher.

  “You know, I’m not really sleeping,” Meg said, sounding a bit cross. “I saw you steal my beverage.”

  “I was in danger of dehydration,” I said, taking another long slurp. “And your special happy potion was the first cure available.”

  “It’s a happy potion, all right. You’re lucky there’s more where it came from. Now, are you gonna tell me where you’ve been or are you
going to just sit there and melt all afternoon?”

  “Is anyone else around?” I peeked over Meg’s shoulder.

  “None of the cars are back, and I didn’t see any surprise visitors show up. Or hear them, at least. My eyes were closed, you know.”

  I quickly explained about visiting the water tower and feeling like someone was watching. I left out the argument with Nora. For some reason, I wanted to keep that private for now. When I got to the part about the hand on the tree trunk, Meg looked skeptical.

  “Could’ve just been someone picking raspberries. Or walking their poodle.”

  “Could be...but my gut says otherwise.”

  “Well, your gut is made out of sugar and Long Island iced teas at the moment, so it might be a bit unreliable.”

  I shook my head. “I can’t just write this off, not with all the other weird things happening. Have you heard from Anthony?”

  Meg shook her head. “I’m waiting for the other three stooges to hunt and gather some real food. No offense girlfriend, but your whole raw bread diet isn’t working for me.”

  It wasn’t working for me either; my stomach rumbled loudly, but we were still a few hours away from dinner time.

  “I’m going to jump in the shower and try and figure out what to do next.”

  “I told you what to do next – relax.” Meg placed her ginormous sunglasses over her face, leaned back, and began swinging so quickly I feared the hammock would flip her right off.

  I lifted my stolen drink from the table and carried it with me inside. I wasn’t having much success relaxing so far, but if anything could help, it would be this concoction. In the shower I let the water run through my salty hair, wash away the fear and sweat from my afternoon race through town, and contemplated my next step.

  I needed to find a name for the body. Or take Meg back to the park and poke around, see if I could find anything about my secret admirer. I wanted to call Clay, but again I couldn’t think of what to tell him without names or photos. Maybe it was worth a shot anyway – calling my cousin to see if he could dig into the police records and check if they’d had any luck identifying said body.