Death Returns, page 15
part #3 of Death Card Series
“Wow, that’s interesting.”
“I’ve already talked to Brian and he said that he’d take it up with the mystery man. Brian thinks he’ll be all in, meaning he’ll hire us … especially since those two are likely up to no good, most likely still involved in human trafficking. That’s something the mystery man strongly opposes.”
“What about the contractor and our construction site? Did the chief give approval for them to get back to work?”
“He said they’d be finished by late tomorrow, so call the contractor to come in the day after tomorrow.”
“That’s great!”
“Rosie, there’s something else I want to talk to you about. Actually, both Brian and I want to know your thoughts on it.”
“Me? What is it?”
“It’s about our opening another office here in Las Vegas. It’d become our West Coast office. We’ll be coast to coast then, what do you think?”
I let out a small whoop. “That would be wonderful!”
He chuckled. He grabbed my hand and led me to the kitchen table. “Let’s sit for a minute. We have a few more things to discuss. Do you understand that if Brian and I do this, even though I’ll be based in Las Vegas, it means long hours on my part to put this thing together and to get it up and running?”
“What are you really saying, Mike?”
“Brian called me because he needs me to help him out on an assignment back in Boston. With this new expansion, we’ll both be looking to hire another person for the Boston office and now one for Las Vegas. Until that happens, it’s going to be a rough few months. Are you up for it?”
“It’s going to be a good way to test our relationship, that’s for sure …”
“You’ve got that right,” he readily agreed.
I looked Mike in the eye. “This is such a crazy time to begin to build our relationship, isn’t it? We now have a little girl involved, as well as her other family members to consider. It seems so daunting knowing your time is going to be split between your being away on business and building the business here in Las Vegas.” Lost in worry, I said, “Do you realize that we don’t even know each other that well? I’ve never met your family and you haven’t shared that much with me …”
Mike interrupted me. “I know I love you, Rosie. Isn’t that enough?”
I studied him. “I love you, too. However, I’m not sure that’s enough to build a strong lasting relationship. I think it takes more than that.” I held my hand up. “No, I’m not asking for a commitment from you right now. It’s too soon for one, anyway. If you’re truly interested in growing our relationship, you need to share more of yourself and your past with me.”
“I can do that,” he stated as he reached for my hand.
I looked deep into his eyes. “You have shown Isabella and me great kindness, and I adore you for that. The least I can do is help you get your business up and running. I’ll just have to trust that, together, we can work out the rest.”
Mike’s eyes softened. He was touched and lifted my hand to his lips. “My queen and her princesses …”
I leaned forward so we could kiss. When we finally parted, I looked at the clock. “Gotta run. Isabella’s test time is up.”
CHAPTER 7
The next day, I called the Wilson Charter School for an appointment. They’d sent me an email saying they’d received Isabella’s completed questionnaire and suggested she come in for a visit. Isabella was excited to see her new school, and I couldn’t blame her. I’d gathered from what she’d said that the school she’d attended in Mexico was pretty rundown. She said there weren’t enough books to go around, and they had to share them with one or two other students.
When we pulled into the Wilson Charter School, Isabella was awestruck. “Mama, is this it? Is this where I’ll be going to school?”
“Yes, Isabella, it is.”
“It’s so pretty!”
“Wait until you see inside…”
“Hurry, Mama. Let’s go inside.”
We sat in the waiting room, and a short while later, Dorothy came to where we were seated. She smiled at Isabella. “So this is where you’d like to attend school, is it, Isabella?”
“Yes, please,” she responded in an awed voice.
“I think we are very lucky to have you here then. Let’s go into my office so we can discuss details, shall we?” She held out her hand to Isabella who eagerly grasped it. I smiled as I watched them walk together, Isabella with an extra little step.
Dorothy explained that she and Alicia had reviewed Isabella’s questionnaire and thought it wise for me to hire a tutor for the next few months. “It’s obvious Isabella is a quick learner. It was very evident in her ability to answer many of the questions in English.”
Isabella turned and looked at me knowingly. “Do you have anyone in mind?”
“As a matter of fact, I do. She’s a friend of mine and Alicia’s—a retired school teacher, fluent in many languages. With her help, I think Isabella can be at the top of the 5th-grade level by the end of the year. Rather than throw her into the 6th grade, we’d rather see her excel in the lower level. She’ll still have much to catch up on as it is.”
“That sounds wonderful. What do you think, Isabella?”
“Am I going to be too old for the 5th grade?” she asked, worried.
“In this school, our classes don’t go by age. However, in your group, there are two other girls from Afghanistan who are older than you are. Many of the children in our school come from different countries around the world, which makes it interesting, don’t you think so, Isabella?” Dorothy asked.
“I guess.”
Dorothy looked at me and winked. “Well then, here is the name and contact information for Ruth Rutledge. I think you’ll both like her. If you hire her, she’ll bring all the books and paperwork necessary. Any questions, Isabella?”
“When does school start?” she asked, excited.
“In three weeks. You’ll be here before you know it.”
We left happy to have things settled. I’d send in a check to the school once I got home. We’d just gotten into the car when my cell phone rang. I looked at the name and was mortified—Mimi calling from New Jersey. I’d forgotten to call her. I was beginning to get a taste of what it might mean to be so involved with a family that I’d let this, and perhaps other things, slip by.
“Hello, Mimi, I’m so sorry not to have called you before this. I certainly had every intention of doing so. Have you talked to Romano?”
“Yes, that’s why I’m calling you. I’m going to catch a plane and be there tomorrow afternoon. I understand from Romano that Mike was going to contact the new chief of police to see what could be done to get the contractor back to work at the site. Did he have any luck?”
“Yes, he did. I’ve already called the contractor, and he’ll bring his equipment to the site tomorrow night and be back on the job the following day.”
“Good. How is everything else with you? I understand there’s a little girl in your life now—one of the four little girls you saved. Is that right?”
“Yes, it is. I can’t wait for you to meet her.”
“I’m looking forward to it. Shall we plan to meet for dinner?”
“Why don’t you come to my house for dinner? I’ll invite Romano and Randy, and we’ll make it a party.”
“Dinner at your house would be lovely. What can I bring?”
“Your self is more than enough, Mimi.” As soon as the words left my mouth, I realized I sounded rude.
“My father thinks I’m more than enough to handle too,” she laughed. “And no worries, I know what you meant.”
“I’m looking forward to seeing you, Mimi.”
“Thanks for everything you’re doing to help with this project. I’m looking forward to seeing you and meeting your little girl.”
“See you soon, Mimi,”
Once home, I gave Isabella permission to use her phone to call her sister-friends. Before we left Santa Fe, I’d purchased cell phones for her, Angela, and Nica with strict orders for them to follow. They were forbidden to make calls without permission and they were to use WhatsApp so I wouldn’t have exorbitant phone costs.
I was checking my freezer to see what I could prepare for our dinner party when Mike came into the kitchen. “What are you doing?”
“Planning a dinner party for tomorrow night.”
“Seriously?” he asked, brows raised.
He looked so disbelieving, I laughed. “Mimi is coming to town and I invited her to dinner. I think it’d be nice to have Romano and Randy too. What do you think?”
“Sure. That’d be nice,” he smiled.
As I snuggled next to Mike that night, I was reminded of how easy it’d been to have him join Isabella and me in our everyday living. It had given each of us a false sense of being a proper family. Proper family? I admonished myself. That was far from the truth. Nothing was established. Not Isabella becoming my foster child, and if I were honest, not Mike’s and my relationship either. And what about all the other things still unsettled. Isabella’s tutor, therapy appointments, a housekeeper to be hired, my mysterious upcoming trip to Utah, and a skeleton to identify. What else?
I smelled red roses and knew Gram had sent me a message. What did she always say? “The only way to eat an elephant is to take one bite at a time.” With that happy thought, I rolled over. I felt Mike’s arm tighten around my waist and he pulled me closer to him. I immediately relaxed and soon was asleep.
CHAPTER 8
I woke up excited about having a dinner party. I hadn’t formally entertained in a long time. After my grandmother died, I always spent the major holidays with one of my sister-friends, mostly Karen and Susannah in Boston. Nancy and her boyfriend often joined us there as well. Sweet Pea and I spent many of the lesser holidays alone. Now that Mike and Isabella were in my life, I was ready to entertain and show them off to my new friends. “Isabella?”
“Yes, Mama?”
“We’ve got work to do. We’re having a dinner party!”
She came running into the kitchen. “Who’s coming?”
“Do you remember Romano, the chef from the Purple Passion Lounge?”
“Yes, he’s the one who gave us cookies and hid us in the refrigerator.”
“He sure did. He saved your life by doing that. His partner Randy is coming, and so is Mimi, the lady who is responsible for building the agency’s new office and the restaurant for Romano. You haven’t met either Randy or Mimi yet, but we’re going to celebrate Romano’s and Randy’s marriage.”
“Ohh,” she said pondering that information.
I’d forgotten how much fun it was to fuss over setting the table with all my best china and antique water and wine glasses. I folded and shaped cloth napkins into a flower and placed them in the center of the entrée plate at each place. It looked festive and the aroma of baking brownies made it more so.
“Everything is so pretty,” Isabella said as she picked up a wine glass to peer at it. “This is heavy.”
“Want to see something fun? Here, let me show you.” I held the glass by the stem and flicked my finger against the glass to produce a pinging sound.
Isabella’s eyes got big and she began to laugh. “Do it again, Mama.”
Mike heard us. “What are you two up to now?”
I showed him what I’d done, and he picked up another wine glass and made his own noise. That made Isabella laugh even harder. We looked at each other and grinned. It was a moment I’d remember forever.
Later, Isabella came to my bedroom. “Mama, what’ll I wear?”
“How about the outfit you got in Santa Fe? The pants with the matching top?”
She studied the dress I was holding in my hand. “I guess …” she said without enthusiasm.
I tried not to smile. I saw where this was headed. She obviously wasn’t happy she didn’t have a dress to wear. “Or, we could make a quick run to Dillard’s?”
Her face brightened. “Oh, Mama, can we?”
Shopping with Isabella was a whole new experience from the last time we’d shopped together at Neiman Marcus. There she’d been a bit shy and had taken more time picking through things. This time, she whirled in and around the store, pulled out one dress and then another, and piled them over her arm. As soon as she finished perusing the racks of clothes her size, we went into the dressing room area. I sat outside the door on a chair provided for viewing. Two dresses stood out and we bought them, both a classic style.
Next, we purchased simple ballet shoes. I didn’t want her to wear any of the high heels that many young girls wore, along with lipstick and makeup meant for someone older. There was enough time for all of that later. Luckily, Isabella wasn’t interested in them either.
After we dressed and waited for our company to arrive, Mike poured an early glass of wine for us. When Isabella came into the kitchen, dressed in her new clothes, I exclaimed. “Isabella, you look beautiful.”
She smiled shyly at both of us. “I know. C’mon Sweet Pea, let’s go into the living room and wait.”
Mike and I looked at each other, thinking the same thought. Mike spoke first. “We have a lot to learn from her, don’t we?”
Isabella became the center of attention as she answered question after question from both Randy and Mimi, who were curious to hear about her new school.
Then, we heard the pop from Mike opening the champagne we’d bought to celebrate Romano and Randy’s marriage. He poured each of us adults enough in a glass to give a simple toast. “Here’s to Romano and Randy. May good health and happiness be yours. Hear, hear!”
When Romano and Randy kissed, Isabella watched them closely. “Do you really love each other?”
“Yes, why do you ask, Isabella?” asked Randy, curious.
“I think it’s nice, is all,” she answered simply.
Randy’s eyes filled. “I think so too.”
Mike poured a little more champagne into everyone’s glass. “Now, it’s time to toast Mimi and all she’s doing for Romano and Rosie. Hear, hear!”
Mimi was touched. She patted the seat next to her for Isabella to join her. She pulled Isabella against her and gave her a hug. “You’re the impetus for all that, little one.”
“What does impetus mean?” Isabella asked.
“The reason for it all,” Mimi answered with a smile.
We had finished our main meal and Isabella excused herself to call her sister-friends in Santa Fe. “Let’s talk about what’s going on at the site. Did you find out anything more from the police, Mimi?” I asked her.
“I spoke with them this afternoon and asked whether they had identified the skeleton. The coroner said the bones are female and because of a broken bone in her neck area, he thought she’d died of strangulation. They warned me if another body or skeleton was found on site, they’d shut down the whole project indefinitely.”
Romano became exasperated. “How can they do that? It’s not our fault a skeleton was found there.”
A thought came to me. “Romano, who was that girl you liked—you know, the one that was like a runaway freight train?”
“Oh, you mean Susan?” he asked, puzzled.
“Yes, that’s the one. What happened to her?”
“All I know is she disappeared while I was away on vacation.” He paused. “I wasn’t surprised, though. Actually, no one was. We all thought she’d end up dead sooner or later.”
“How did she die?”
“I was fairly new at the lounge so when I asked about her, all I was told was she’d died. I think maybe an overdose someone said. There never was a service or anything. I really liked her, though.”
“Hmm,” I muttered.
“I see that look on your face, Rosie, what’s going on?” asked Mike.
“I think that skeleton may be Susan.”
“Why do you say that?” asked Romano.
“Just a feeling I have,” I said, goosebumps traveling along my body, confirming it.
“What was her name?” asked Mike.
“Susan something. I don’t remember her last name,” Romano said.
Mimi looked sad. “Whatever was going on at the Purple Passion Lounge apparently was more than my father realized. Ever since his stroke five years ago, he’s not been on top of things the way he should have been—that’s for sure.”
We were silent. “The only reason I became involved here was to do my father a favor and straighten things out. Nothing more.” Romano and I knew what she’d said was true.
“Romano, who was working at the lounge at the time you were there?” asked Mike.
“You mean who are still left alive, don’t you? Well, let’s see. There is Tony, Johnny, and the bookkeeper. What’s her name, Mimi?”
“You mean, Sylvia?”
“Yeah, that’s the one,” replied Romano.
Sweet Pea came bounding into the room with Isabella close behind. It was getting late, and instead of talking more, Romano, Randy, and Mimi bid us a good night.
We had agreed to meet at 3 o’clock the next afternoon at the site, giving the contractor plenty of time to set up and get back to his excavating.
Mike kissed Isabella goodnight, and I went upstairs to tuck her into bed with Sweet Pea. Then, we worked together to clean up the dishes. As we trudged up the stairs for the night, Mike grabbed me from behind and whispered in my ear. My face grew hot and my body weakened with pleasure as I listened to what he said. I leaned down and pulled him toward me. I murmured, “Yes, please, all over.”
