Shaved

by Gina LaManna

  “Lacey, a moment?” he murmured. “Alone.”

  I handed Bella off to Anthony and eased back into the seat. “Is this about the salt?”

  Carlos slipped his credit card back into his wallet. “It’s done,” he said simply.

  “What is—”

  He waved a hand. “That’s all.”

  I sat in stunned silence for a few more minutes, contemplating the meaning behind my grandfather’s confirmation. “So...”

  “Carry on your vacation as usual,” Carlos said into my stuttered mumblings. “The wedding can proceed as planned.”

  “That’s it? Everything is just...over?”

  Carlos gave a brief nod, then polished off the last of his sugar-riddled espresso.

  “How’d you do it?” I asked, standing. “What did you do? Or say?”

  “Enough,” Carlos said. “When you asked me not to open the trunk, did I open it?”

  “No,” I said. “But—”

  “Did I even ask what you were keeping in there?”

  “Well, no.”

  Carlos smiled. “I’m glad we understand one another.”

  I blinked. “It’s really over?”

  “Goodnight, Lacey.”

  The conversation with my grandfather was so short that the rest of the group had barely made it out of the restaurant by the time we finished. I caught up with Anthony, Meg, and Clay, while Nora and Carlos headed upstairs to bed.

  The four adults opted for a nightcap by the fire—the last night that Meg would be an unwed woman. I held a sleeping Bella curled against my chest and sipped a decaf coffee with lots of added decorations. Meg and Clay shared a bottle of wine to celebrate his safe return. Anthony mostly kept his eyes closed and once in a while sipped the amber liquid from his glass.

  Meg, Clay, and I laughed and talked, reminiscing over the past few years. Recounting the progression of Meg and Clay’s relationship, in wonder at how it’d evolved from a mere curiosity to a blinding crush to deep and true love. We watched as the fire grew dim, and eventually burned to embers. The staff came around and kicked us out when the hours slipped well past midnight.

  Clay and Anthony went upstairs first. Anthony took Bella to bed, and Clay slipped away to the complimentary room he’d received for the night before his big day. Since Carlos claimed to have taken care of the threat from Coco, we felt comfortable to stay in our own rooms—much to Anthony’s relief. Having Meg and Clay around was fun and all, but there was such a thing as too much family.

  “You’re getting married tomorrow,” I told Meg as we parted ways in the hallway outside of her door. “How do you feel?”

  “I feel great,” she said, but the smile on her face faltered. “Say, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I don’t want to bug you. I bug you a lot. Or rather, I bug Anthony,” Meg amended. “And I know you probably miss him and want to be close to Bella. But I was wondering how you’d feel about staying with me tonight?”

  “Another sleepover?”

  “I guess,” Meg said. “I mean, I know it’s dumb. And it sounds even dumber out loud than it does in my head, but... I just thought... it might be the last time we get to squish into one bed like we did when we were little girls. You know, we’ll be old and married and stuff after tomorrow. I am just... I don’t want things to change between us.”

  “It won’t,” I said. “I promise. And I’d be honored to squish in bed with you.”

  “I mean, it’s a king-sized bed,” Meg said, “so the squishing part really is optional. I’ve been focusing on not hogging the whole thing. You know, Clay doesn’t really appreciate it when I sleep-kick him at night.”

  I laughed. “Let me say goodnight to Anthony and change into pajamas, and I’ll be right down.”

  Meg smiled and gave a jerky sort of nod. She looked ready to cry, which had me wondering if something was wrong, something deeper than anything she’d told me so far. I sensed a vulnerability and uncertainty in her that made me think Meg was finally showing the true colors she so often kept hidden.

  “Hey,” I said softly, when I found Anthony, “I was hoping to talk to you.”

  “About?”

  “There’s something I need to do tonight for Meg. I think I need to be with her.”

  Anthony nodded. “I figured you might say that.”

  “She seems—I don’t know. Lonely, or something. I can’t bear to see her like that. Not the night before what’s supposed to be the best day of her life.”

  Anthony just kissed my forehead. “You’re a good friend. A better wife. A wonderful mother. You have a big heart, Lacey. Meg won’t be lonely knowing she has you by her side.”

  I blinked, not sure quite why I was feeling so emotional at something as small as a sleepover. Still, I could understand where Meg was coming from. Both of us had missed out on plenty of ‘normal’ life experiences, and it so often happened that we felt it the most during holidays or celebrations. Times when we should be overjoyed, thrilled, and hopeful were so often overshadowed by the uncertainties and doubts and loneliness.

  I padded down to Meg’s room five minutes later in a set of flannel pajamas. She opened the door with a big grin and pulled me to her chest in a hug. We went silently about our bedtime routines as we’d done so often before in our youths, and then climbed into bed like it was a regular nightly activity. As we lay on opposite sides of the king-sized mattress, she reached out and squeezed my hand.

  “Thanks,” she said, her voice hoarse. “You’re a good friend.”

  I glanced over, saw her cheeks shining with tears. I squeezed her hand back. “Family,” I corrected her. “We’ve always been family.”

  Chapter 22

  Meg had begun organizing her wedding the day after she’d gotten engaged. A destination venue had been the easy choice—in large part due to the lack of family and friends she planned to invite, but also for simplicity’s sake. In addition, Clay had wanted to propose in a tropical location, but he hadn’t been able to whisk Meg away due to my impending due date with Bella, so Hawaii was a natural choice for their ceremony.

  Once Meg and Clay had selected their desired hotel, the rest of the plans had fallen into place. Meg had gone suspiciously silent on all talk involving her wedding. I had offered to take control of the usual suspects for parties: showers, bachelorette soirees, and cake tastings, but she had declined any help. In fact, she hadn’t seemed interested in any of it. She hadn’t even shown me a glimpse of her wedding dress. Not a photo, not a peek at the fabric, nothing.

  Fortunately, the mystery would soon be over. The morning of Meg’s wedding had arrived, bright and sunny and vibrant. I stood in the bathroom, maneuvering Bella onto one hip while my free arm rummaged through a five-year-old makeup kit. Since Bella’s birth, I hadn’t bothered with any beauty products more aggressive than mascara and Chapstick, so I was feeling exceptionally rusty as I tried to decipher between my lip glosses and eyeshadows.

  “You don’t need makeup, honey,” Anthony called. “You’re going to be late. Wasn’t Meg expecting you at nine? You’ve got five minutes before you’re supposed to be downstairs.”

  “That’s sweet of you,” I hollered back. “But it doesn’t help understand what rouge is,” I said reading the label on the tubey-thing. “And toner, and bronzer, and foundation. Have you seen my instructions? Can you YouTube a tutorial for me? My hands are full.”

  Anthony appeared in the doorway to the bathroom. “You look great, and plus, it’s Meg’s day. Relax, go find her.”

  While I’d spent the night in Meg’s room, I’d set my alarm for six to help with Bella’s morning routine. Once Bella was up and fed, I’d returned to Meg’s room to wake her and ship her off to the beauty salon. She’d be getting her hair, nails, and manicure done as part of the wedding package from the hotel spa. My appointment to collect her was at nine, and then finally, finally I would get to see the dress she’d chosen for her wedding.

&nb
sp; We hadn’t heard any more from Kai about his promises for special glittery events, and frankly, I didn’t care. It was better if we stayed far away from him, and Coco, and everything to do with May.

  I sighed as the tip of an eyeliner pencil broke off and left streaks of deep brown down my cheek. Zipping the makeup bag shut, I opted to go with Anthony’s au naturel plan. After all, the day was about Meg, and all eyes should be on her—not on me.

  I just prayed Meg’s dress fit. She’d ordered it from a Chinese website after explaining she hadn’t really understood the letters on the purchase page, which didn’t exactly render confidence in her choice. I sincerely hoped she’d had the foresight to try the dress on before bringing it all the way to Hawaii, but this was Meg, and one could never be sure.

  “So, you’ll take Bella,” I called to Anthony, “while I help Meg get dressed, and then we’ll meet you at the venue?”

  “Yes, for the thirteenth time,” Anthony said, nudging me toward the door. “On one condition.”

  “What’s that?” I asked.

  “Don’t make any plans for sleepovers tonight with anyone except your husband,” he said as a flash of darkness flitted across his eyes. “I want you all to myself.”

  I gave him a fiendish smile and a peck on the cheek before handing over Bella and smooching her on the cheek as well. I was just pulling the door open when I realized that someone was standing on the other side, fist raised waiting to knock, and I blinked in surprise.

  “Lucy,” I said, stepping back, startled. “What are you doing here?”

  “It’s urgent,” May’s sister said. “We need to talk. I’m sorry, you look like you’re rushing off somewhere, but I’m afraid this can’t wait. It’s about Coco.”

  “My best friend is getting married today,” I said. “I’m not worried about Coco anymore. If you want to talk, it’ll have to wait until after the ceremony.”

  “Look, you seem like a nice enough lady, and I appreciate you looking into my sister’s death, which is why I’m here. I overheard my husband on the phone this morning, and I think you might be in danger.”

  I beckoned for Lucy to come inside and heaved a sigh while Anthony stowed Bella in her Pack ‘n Play. “Explain. Quickly, please.”

  “I think my husband is involved with Coco,” she blurted, her teeth gritted as her cheeks turned red with embarrassment. “I’ve suspected it for about eight years.”

  “I thought you said your husband was in real estate.”

  “That’s what I thought. At first. And then suddenly, two years after we were married, his business took off. Boomed. I was shocked to say the least, but I didn’t ask questions and my husband didn’t explain. I liked the lifestyle, I got used to it... and now eight years later, I think we’re in too far to get out.”

  From Bella’s crib, a loudly singing toy clicked off, startling us all with the harsh silence before she began shrieking an unhappy wail. Anthony quickly jumped to attention and rebooted the toy, setting off fits of happy giggles all over again. Sometimes she really was the easiest baby.

  I returned my focus to Lucy. What she had said made sense. Coco had a way of sucking people into his schemes and using them until there was no way for them to untangle themselves from his mess. I was sure there were more just like them. Like May and Samuel and Kai, and now Lucy and her husband.

  “Why are you coming to me now?”

  “I know you don’t have a reason to trust me after what my sister tried to do to you, but I came here to warn you because you did a nice thing looking into her death.” Lucy hesitated, glanced over at Bella. “That, and if someone doesn’t take a stand against Coco, nobody ever will. I shouldn’t have let my husband continue with Coco for so many years without challenging him. But the truth was, I liked the money. The lifestyle. So it was easier to stay oblivious.”

  “Well, I appreciate you coming here,” I said. “Assuming all of this is true, what did you overhear this morning?”

  “I only heard one side of the conversation because my husband was talking on the phone. But I always know when he’s talking to Coco. It’s as if his voice changes, and the way he talks becomes different. It’s almost like he’s trying to seem more mature,” she said with a faint laugh. “Which I know sounds ridiculous.”

  “What did he say?”

  “It first caught my attention when he said something about getting rid of a problem. He followed it up by the name of your hotel.” Her eyes flicked first to me, and then to Anthony. “It obviously rang a bell, seeing as my sister was killed here this week. I think my husband must have thought I was still asleep, because usually he takes his phone calls out in the garage. Anything confidential, that is.”

  “Is that all he said?”

  “No, I’m sorry,” she said, and her face went stony. “It gets worse. After he hung up with Coco, he made another call. It sounded like he was giving another person instructions, talking to his... I don’t know... employee or someone underneath him—however their little game works.” She fluttered her fingers, as if it was something as complex as a kindergarten bully.

  “And?”

  “He told his underling that the target was the bride. Her wedding was at this hotel at one p.m.,” she said softly. “And that he couldn’t miss.”

  I blinked, swallowed, tried to digest the information, but it had already settled as a sour sensation in my stomach. It took me a moment to speak, and when I did, all I could muster was a weak grunt of thanks. “We appreciate the warning. I guess we have no choice but to look into it.”

  “I am so sorry that I didn’t do more sooner,” she said, her face crumpling in devastation. “I spent all my life collecting things to put in a big box, and now it’s just me, in my house, with no family aside from my husband who’s having people killed.”

  “Lucy, listen to me. I know you’re upset, but just hang tight for now. Don’t say anything to your husband that might tip him off that you came to warn us,” Anthony said. “If he was willing to kill your sister, and willing to set up a hit on a bride’s wedding day, he doesn’t seem like the type of man to be reasoned with. Work with us, and we can get you help.”

  She gave a brave smile. “We’ll see.”

  “My husband is right,” I said. “We’ll help you—”

  “Thank you,” she said, abruptly ending our offers of assistance. “I need to get going.”

  Anthony and I stood together after Lucy left, silent save for the obnoxious singing of Bella’s toy.

  “Do you believe her?” I asked. “Or was that an act?”

  Anthony’s lips drew into a thin line, and he gave an undecided shake of his head. “I can read people pretty well, but this one...” He gave a shake of his head. “I believe she’s sad her sister was killed, but her emotions are so mixed up it’s hard to say where else she might be lying.”

  “What do we do?”

  “We can’t go through with the ceremony,” Anthony said. “I know how much you want it for Meg, but it’s just too risky. I’ll take her alive and unwed any day, over wed and dead.”

  I considered Anthony’s words for a long moment, but ultimately, I knew he was right. It just wasn’t worth the risk in the event that Lucy was telling the truth.

  “I’ll go tell her,” I said, heaving a sigh. “This sucks, Anthony. I feel like I’ve ruined my best friend’s wedding. She put time and money and effort into planning it, and now look what’s happening.”

  “It’s not your fault,” Anthony said firmly. “Really. Meg and I don’t always see eye to eye, but she deserves to have her perfect wedding, and she shouldn’t settle for having to get married with a threat hanging over her head.”

  “Make sure you tell her that, okay?” I said sullenly. “I think she’ll probably need a boost today, and it’ll mean more coming from you.”

  Anthony pressed a hard kiss to my forehead. “I know how important this is, not only for Meg but for you to be there for her. I’m so sorry.”

  “That’s the way t
he cookie crumbles,” I said. “And this family happens to like cookies more than most.”

  “And,” Anthony said, hooking his finger into the back of my shirt as I started to walk away, “I take back what I said about sleepovers. I have a feeling Meg might need some company tonight, and I’m fine with it.”

  “If I haven’t told you lately,” I said with a small smile, circling back to Anthony. “You really are the best. Now, I’m going to find Meg. I’ll call you and let you know when it’s done and how she took the news.”

  I slowly strolled to Meg’s room, feeling like I was walking to my last supper. A last supper that would noticeably not include wedding cake. Or champagne. Or any of the perks that went along with wedding festivities. Because there simply would be no wedding.

  I shuffled the last few steps to Meg’s room and reluctantly knocked on the door. When she didn’t answer after several minutes, I pulled out the keycard I’d nabbed earlier that morning and let myself inside. A cursory glance around told me she wasn’t there, which in itself, was quite strange. I was running over twenty minutes late to pick her up from the spa, thanks to Lucy’s visit, and Meg wasn’t known for her patience.

  Speaking of a certain lack of patience, I glanced at my phone and saw there were no messages from the bride. On any other occasion, she would have texted seventeen times, called me twice, and broken down my door for being two seconds late. An uncomfortable feeling wormed its way into my gut.

  Was it possible she was still at the spa? I wondered. Her room looked untouched from the morning. I stood, circling the room, playing through the morning’s routine in my head. With a start, I realized that Meg would probably have been hungry after two hours of pampering, and therefore, she might have headed to the cafeteria for a snack.

  I made it down to the breakfast buffet via the stairs since the elevator was taking too long. I jogged through the lines of fresh fruit, coffee selections, and tables of snacks in search of Meg, but I came up empty handed. The saltines were miraculously un-smooshed and the cereal boxes hadn’t been stolen, which had me seriously concerned.