The Set Piece

by Catherine Lane

  “Really?” The pieces started to come together. “So you followed him?

  “Of course. Wouldn’t you? I mean, he shouldn’t be roaming around the house in the first place, and certainly not taking things. I wanted to find out what he was doing with it.”

  “Did you?”

  “No, I got into the gym before he did and hid in the back to see what he was up to. But when he came in he just dumped his bag on a bench and worked out. I don’t even know if he actually took the picture or not. He could’ve been just scratching his chest or something. I was waiting for a clean exit when you came in and changed everything.”

  “I’m glad I did.” Amy grinned at her.

  “Me, too.” Casey smiled right back. “So basically I got nothing. Your turn.”

  Casey’s eyes opened wider and wider with each new detail as Amy told her about the envelopes arriving at Horowitz’s office, the photoshopped pictures inside, and the fact that the originals all had come from Diego’s home.

  “Wow, that’s better than the first story you told me.” Casey dug around in her messenger bag and pulled out her wallet.

  “What’re you doing?”

  “Paying. We gotta get back to the house to see if he took a picture and if he did, which one he took.”

  Casey flipped open her wallet and dropped some bills on a table. Amy sat back, watching. Her movements were efficient and fluid and possessed a grace that made her a pleasure to watch, and probably deadly on the soccer field. Amy idly began to imagine that grace in other areas as well, like bed. Heat stole into her cheeks.

  “Here, let me contribute.” Amy pulled her own wallet out of her back pocket.

  “No.” Casey placed her hand on Amy’s arm which immediately started tingling under her touch. “You get the next one.”

  The heat quickly spread across her whole face. There was going to be a next one.

  Casey and Amy stood in front of the mantel in the den, their shoulders almost touching. The house was empty, and Amy noticed how their personal space had changed thanks to the morning activities. A very happy change, at that.

  “You see anything different?” Casey asked, bringing her back to the matter at hand. At a first glance, the pictures on the mantel looked like they always did.

  “Hey, wait a second. Where is the one of me and Diego? The one with the mountains?”

  “That was here?”

  Amy tapped a space right in the middle of the wood beam. “It was right here.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah. I saw it yesterday. Look.” She took out her cell phone and showed Casey the picture as it sat on the mantel the day before. “Tammy put it back last night.”

  “I knew it. Rob must have taken it this morning.”

  “Why? Why would he do that? I mean don’t you think it’s odd that he’s going to all this trouble to doctor the photographs?”

  “It wouldn’t be all that much trouble,” Casey said thoughtfully. “He freelances as a graphic artist. That’s his real job.”

  “You’re just telling me this now?”

  “I just thought of it.” Casey shrugged.

  “Okay. So he has the opportunity to take the photos, the ability to change them into whatever he wants, but what’s the motive?” Amy bumped her shoulder into Casey’s to give the question emphasis, but mostly she just wanted to feel Casey’s warmth again.

  “Clearly not money.” Casey bumped her back and left her shoulder resting against hers. “Which is kinda weird, because I don’t think he works full time.”

  “Could it be an attention kind of thing?” Amy blew out a long breath. “We’re really no further along than when we were hiding out in the closet.”

  “So let’s get some proof.”

  “How? We can’t just go up to him and say, hey are you kind of, sort of blackmailing Diego?”

  “No, but we can get him to talk in another way.”

  “How?”

  “We’re going to put some of that easy money you make to good use.”

  “Believe me it hasn’t been that easy with you around to tempt me.”

  Casey rewarded her with a smile that melted her heart. “It went both ways. You just didn’t know it.”

  Twenty minutes later, they stood in an electronics aisle at Best Buy, looking at all sorts of surveillance cameras.

  “Look. You can put this one in a teddy bear. Oh, cool, it actually comes with the teddy bear.” Amy tapped on one box near the end of the row.

  Casey, who had already bypassed the nanny cam section, studied a bigger box a section down from Amy. “I think we need something more like this. It records as well as lets us see what’s going on.”

  “That’s huge.” Amy joined her. “You don’t think Rob will see it.”

  “Only this part,” Casey pointed to a small white camera with a black eye, “sits in the room somewhere. We could easily hide it by the TV. With all the devices Diego has there, Rob won’t notice at all. I mean it almost looks like the connect thingy from the Xbox.”

  “I guess so.”

  “This”—she pointed to something that looked like the bastard baby of a CPU and a DVR—“records everything. We could sit up in your apartment and watch. Or come in later and review the tape.”

  “Wow. Okay let’s get it.”

  “It’s a lot of money. And I’m not really in a position to help you.” Casey pursed her lips and glanced back down at the price tag. Amy followed her gaze and nearly choked at the total of the big black numbers. Good causes didn’t come cheap.

  “Don’t worry. I’ll save the receipt and submit it to Knight as a work expense.”

  Casey loosened up. “Okay. Serves him right. Let’s get it.”

  When they pulled into the driveway, Tammy’s car was still absent.

  “Where do you think she is?” Amy asked.

  “I don’t know. She’s never around when Diego’s out of town. Let’s not look a gift horse in the mouth.”

  They carried the box between them into the house and straight up into Amy’s apartment. Casey did all the heavy lifting as Amy directed her to the coffee table.

  “Whew.” Casey shook out her fingers and started to unpack all the components. Amy opened the fridge and said a little thank you that she had gone shopping the day before. The shelves were full of fresh vegetables and gourmet cheeses, all the treats that she neither had the time or money to try before Diego.

  “You hungry?” she asked, breaking the silence in the room.

  “I am, actually.”

  “I can make sandwiches.”

  “Sounds great.”

  Amy grabbed a sharp cheddar cheese, tomatoes, bypassed the red onions, and held her hand over the two packets of meat.

  “Ham or chicken?”

  “Ham.”

  Amy pursed her lips; she would have put money on the chicken.

  “Cheese?” Now she was completely in the dark.

  “Please.”

  “Mayo, mustard, or butter.”

  “Mustard. Who puts butter on a sandwich?”

  “They do in England. Cheese, tomato, and butter. It’s actually good. I’ll give you a bite of mine.”

  Amy let all the ingredients tumble onto the counter. Now she could watch Casey assemble the surveillance cameras as she put together the sandwiches. Amy marveled that they had so easily fallen into set roles.

  Casey sat on the couch taking up the space around her like she owned it. She methodically unpacked the whole box and organized the components on the coffee table to mirror the picture in the instructions that were spread open on her lap. They worked in comfortable silence until Amy joined her, handing over the ham sandwich on a paper plate. The bread was lightly toasted, and Casey bit into it with a satisfying crunch.

  “Oh my God. This is really good.” S
he cleared a place on the coffee table for them both.

  “I like to cook,” Amy said shyly. “When I have a reason to.”

  “Count me reason number one.” Casey took another large bite. She tweaked the camera set-up and connected it to her iPhone showing Amy the picture as it recorded.

  “I think we’re ready. Now we just need to go downstairs and set the camera up in the den.”

  Easier said than done. Tammy had returned and was doing something loud and noisy in the kitchen. They huddled in the hallway their faces almost touching.

  “We can’t both go in there,” Casey whispered. “I’m hardly ever in the house when I work here. I stay in my office as much as I can. Tammy sees me as competition for Diego’s attention.”

  “Yeah—me too.”

  Casey stifled a laugh. “If she only knew.” Her hand brushed against Amy’s forearm. Amy pressed into the touch. It had only been a couple of hours since their bathroom kiss and Amy already missed the contact. She reluctantly pulled away.

  “You go to the office. I’ll set it up. I’ve already told Tammy a stupid lie about making a photo collage for Diego.” She took the small recording device from Casey. “You can see the whole room through your phone, right?”

  “I can. And I can also text you if we need to change something.”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  Amy watched Casey sneak out a side door. Only when she was completely across the flagstones, did Amy move into the den. Even though she had never touched an Xbox, she had watched Simon play all the time when they lived together. She placed the recorder camera in the TV cabinet among the rest of Diego’s boy toys. A clatter of pots and pans from the kitchen caused her to work quickly. She stepped back, looked into the camera and gave it a thumbs up mouthing an okay to Casey

  Her phone beeped almost immediately with a text. A little to the left.

  Amy made the adjustment and waited. Perfect.

  She blew a kiss into the camera and wandered into the kitchen just to make sure that Tammy didn’t suspect anything. Tammy was measuring out careful amounts of flour and sugar into the mixing bowl. She turned when Amy entered and for once was not wearing her habitual scowl.

  “The game’s over,” she said, happily. “Diego scored the only goal. The Atoms are at the top of their division.”

  “Isn’t that great?” Amy said, a little ashamed that she had completely lost track of the kickoff time. “So you’re baking him a cake?”

  “A sugar-free carrot cake. His favorite.”

  “He’ll love it.” Amy turned to go and her phone pinged with a new text. What are you doing?

  Her thumbs moved over the screen. Taming the beast. “That’s Diego.” Amy looked up from her phone lying easily. “He’s says hi.”

  “He does?” Tammy looked at Amy wistfully.

  “Yes, he’s asks about you all the time. I should’ve told you. He’d be lost without you, you know.”

  It was that easy. Tammy melted into a pool of devotion. Her face suddenly looked ten years younger as she gave Amy her first genuine smile.

  “Oh, I almost forgot. These came for you earlier.” She picked up two tickets on the counter and handed them to Amy. “Who are the Plastic Zippers?”

  “My friend’s band. They’re playing tomorrow. Diego and I are going.”

  “Don’t keep him out too late; he’s in training, you know.”

  “Yes, Tammy.”

  Amy sat on her couch reading. She and Casey had a rendezvous and she kept glancing over at the soccer ball clock on the wall for what seemed like the umpteenth time. Only three minutes had passed since she had last looked. Casey had texted at four o’clock to say that she would ditch her car, then get a ride back to the house. That was three hours ago. Where is she ditching her car? Two cities over? There had been enough time for Amy to take a shower, fluff her hair at least a dozen times, and read almost all of a thin paperback.

  Finally, there came a noise at the door. Amy leaped up sending the book flying. When she opened the door Dulce pranced inside and headed straight for the sofa. She pawed the cushions and then plopped down with a happy groan.

  “An adorable girl, but not the one I was waiting for.” Amy went to swing the door shut only to see Casey standing further down the hall, trying to suppress a smile. She held a pizza box and a six-pack of beer.

  “You think I’m adorable?”

  “You’ve got to stop eavesdropping in hallways.” She tried to sound severe, but her goofy smile gave her away.

  “But this is something I actually want to hear.”

  Amy pulled her into the room and shut the door. “Did Tammy see you?”

  “No. I waited until she and Tom disappeared to their apartment.”

  “Is that what took you so long?” Amy asked.

  “Well, I didn’t want to come back empty-handed, but mostly I had to wait for my brother to get off work to drive me back over here.” She moved to the kitchenette. Amy realized that she had taken some time with her appearance. Gone were the black T-shirt and the soccer shorts. Instead, she was wearing a cute button-up tank top that showed off the muscles in her arms. Her cotton shorts were high-cut, highlighting legs that went on forever.

  “We’re going to have to heat this up.” She offered up the pizza box.

  Amy was quick to get it into the oven and then onto plates. They chatted easily while they ate.

  “I love artichoke hearts.” Amy crunched on the last slice. “Where did you get this?” Dulce sat at their feet, hoping for crumbs.

  “In Tarzana. There’s this place—”

  “No wait. Don’t tell me. It’s better for my waistline not to know.”

  Casey laughed and threw up her hands. “Okay. But if you change your mind. I’ll take you there.”

  “Like on a date?”

  “Yes. If you want to.”

  “I do.”

  After they cleaned up, Casey turned on her cell phone, and they crowded over the phone to look at a full frame of the den. The recorder had a fish-eye lens which elongated the whole room from the mantel all the way to the bar on the other side.

  “This is really good,” Casey said, as she pointed to both doorways. “We can track him from the moment he walks in to the moment he walks out and everything in between.”

  Their heads touched as they both crammed in to stare at the tiny screen. “I had a lot of fun today,” Amy said, softly.

  “I did too.” Casey laughed from deep in her throat. Amy shivered. She had never heard a laugh so sexy. “And that’s something. Because I was still so mad at you and that stupid stunt you pulled yesterday with the SD card.” Casey bonked her playfully with her hip. “Hey, how long would you have sat rooted on that sofa, anyway?”

  “As long as it took. But I was scraping the bottom of my patience with that soccer catalogue.”

  “Well, it worked. I was furious.”

  “How did you think I felt when you told me that you only worked for Diego?”

  Casey laughed. “The joke’s on me. Little did I know that you worked for him, too. But I’m glad to know that I got to you.”

  “Then and now.” Amy bit her bottom lip nervously.

  Casey responded at once. She touched Amy’s forehead with her own. “Good. I’m glad I get to you.”

  Amy froze, unsure how to navigate what came next. Casey, full of ideas, nuzzled her neck. Her gentle breath played against Amy’s skin as she traced a line to her chin with soft little kisses. A sweet tingling filled Amy’s belly, and she finally relaxed. I could spend the rest of my life doing this.

  Casey nibbled delicately at her lips, coaxing them open. With the tip of her tongue, she teased Amy’s lips open and slid inside. Their tongues met. God, she tastes good. Their kiss deepened. Casey’s hand slid under her shirt and trailed upward until her fingers grazed the sid
e of Amy’s breast. Amy groaned as Casey’s fingers fluttered.

  And then something else fluttered. On her thigh. No, it was more of a vibration.

  “Your phone.” Amy pulled back.

  “What?”

  “Your phone. It’s vibrating.”

  Casey grabbed her phone to throw it off the couch. “It can’t be anything important.” But as she turned the screen towards her she froze. “Oh my God! It’s working.”

  She flashed the phone at Amy. The downstairs den showed on the screen. Someone was moving over by the bar.

  “Is that Rob?” Amy sat up straighter.

  “No.” Casey moved the camera into a close-up. “It’s Tammy.”

  Tammy moved around the bar touching the pictures, rearranging them, until the one of Diego coming out of the pool in his tight, tiny Speedo was front and center.

  “What’s she doing? You don’t think she’s in on this, too?”

  Tammy ran her fingers lovingly over the photo of Diego, then raised it to her lips.

  “Oh, man,” Casey said. A look of horrified amusement covered her face. “She’s into something else entirely.”

  “We shouldn’t watch.” Amy reached for the phone and turned it face down on the coffee table. There was something very sad about Tammy standing in a darkened room kissing the picture of the man she worked for.

  “Maybe it’s the kiss of a mother?” Casey shrugged, but her face didn’t look very hopeful.

  “Maybe.” Amy pushed the phone further away. “Everyone deserves to have a few secrets, right.” She reached out for Casey. She ached to be back in her embrace. Casey resisted.

  “It might be time for me to go.”

  Amy’s eyebrows arched in surprise. “Why?”

  “I don’t think…I’m not entirely sure this is a good idea.”

  “What?” Hurt and confusion flooded Amy. Hadn’t she just risked everything breaking the contract with Knight by telling Casey the truth? And now she was backing off? “You don’t like this? Like us?” There could only be one reason. Casey had taken a taste and that was enough. Maybe it was all about conquest for her. She was an athlete after all.

  Casey snorted. “No, that’s the problem. I like it too much.”