Reel of Fortune

by Jana DeLeon

  Ally’s grin stretched from one side of her face to the other. “I’m so happy for you, Fortune. And for all of us. And don’t you ever let me hear you suggest again that we aren’t friends. You’ve been nothing but a great friend to me. You let me live with you when my house caught fire. You protected me from the stalker.”

  She sucked in a breath. “All that jumping out of a dead sleep with your gun…what exactly did you do for the CIA?”

  “I was a field agent. That’s really all I can say.”

  She studied me for a moment. “Have you killed people?”

  “Only the bad guys.”

  “Ha. Here I was worried that I was putting you in danger while I lived with you. Boy, I didn’t know the half of it.”

  “No. But you weren’t supposed to.”

  Her eyes widened. “Does Carter know? Never mind, of course he does. You wouldn’t tell me before you told him. Wait, your breakup? Is that when you told him?”

  “Sort of. Let’s just say I did something that tipped him off to the fact that I wasn’t really a librarian. It was a reflex and it gave me away. As you saw, he was a bit angrier than you are.”

  “Well, he’s a man, and even though I like you a lot, our relationship isn’t exactly the same. Ida Belle and Gertie?”

  “They’ve known for a while. They both have military experience. The same thing happened with them that did with Carter. I stopped off and told Walter before I came here. That’s my whole inner circle.”

  “So are you keeping it secret?”

  “Not really. I can give my former job title, just not details about my work. That’s all classified. And I have no problem with people knowing. In fact, I’m looking forward to that news making the rounds to a couple people. But I’m not going to advertise it in the church bulletin or anything.”

  Ally grinned. “Aunt Celia is going to have a cow.”

  “I really hope so. She deserves to have it come right back on her. Calling me a floozy at every opportunity. Not that I figure it will shut her up for long. She’s too much of a nutbag for that to happen.”

  “Isn’t that the truth? I mean, she’s always been a handful, but I swear the older she gets the further away from normal she moves. So what are you doing now? Did you ship your stuff from DC? Do you need help unpacking? Redecorating?”

  “I have a few boxes coming from my old place but honestly, I like Marge’s taste. It’s solid, tasteful stuff and not frilly at all, so I doubt I’ll change much.”

  Ally nodded. “Her place always fit you, right from the start. It’s one of the things that surprised me because I was expecting a girlie-girl who would want to put a bunch of doilies everywhere.”

  “The real Sandy-Sue would. Trust me. She’s nice enough, but it was all I could do to get through one meal with her.”

  “I can imagine. Well, then what do you need to help with? I feel like I need to be doing something.”

  “Do you have any cookies?”

  “Unless I’m dead, I’ll have cookies.”

  “What about champagne?”

  “I always keep a bottle, just in case of an emergency celebration.” She jumped up from the table. “And this is definitely cause for an emergency celebration. Oh, Fortune. This is going to be great. Just great.”

  I smiled. My life couldn’t have done more of a 180 if I’d tried. But somehow, I knew she was right.

  Chapter Two

  The foghorn blasting through my house sent me launching straight out of bed, clutching my pistol. I looked across the bed and saw Carter standing on the other side, matching my stance.

  “Rise and shine!” Gertie yelled from downstairs.

  We lowered our arms and Carter shook his head. “One day, we’re going to shoot each other.”

  “Well, not today, which means I have plenty of rounds for that foghorn.”

  He grinned. “You know, this is the first time in my life I can say that I don’t mind having a gun pulled on me. You realize if we can’t make this work, we’re both going to die alone and clutching a nine-millimeter.”

  I laughed. He definitely had a point. It took a certain type of personality to handle the way we reacted to certain things. And that reaction time might slow as we aged, but I doubted it was ever going away. Unless we went deaf. Then maybe.

  “I guess this is what I get for not going to see them last night,” I said. “I better get down there before they come up here.”

  I’d intended to pay Ida Belle and Gertie a visit after talking to Ally, but once Ally broke out the champagne, she started asking questions about the real me and we talked for hours. I’d given them a call on the way to my house, letting them know that I’d broken the news to Walter and Ally and everyone was cool. Then I’d begged off from the promised visit because Carter was off work and on his way to my house when I called. They assured me that we’d have plenty of time later on. I suppose 7:00 a.m. the next morning fell into the “later on” category.

  Carter glanced at his watch. “I need to head out myself. I’ve got two burglary cases to handle.”

  “Here in Sinful?”

  He pulled his shirt over his head and gave me the don’t-even-ask look. I put my hands in the air.

  “I’m not trying to get in police business. Just wondered if we needed to be more careful about locking doors and such. Gertie is horribly lazy about it.”

  “Honestly, I think it’s the same person—a teenager—and he’s known to the victims. I think it falls under personal as well as covetous, so you’re probably in the clear.”

  “Good. I am really hoping I can take some time off from the crazy.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “You want time off from crazy and you moved here?”

  “Okay. I’d like time off from killing people. Is that better?”

  “I’m seriously hoping you’re retired completely from killing people. I’ve manufactured more bogus paperwork since I met you than I did in high school.”

  “Well, at least you don’t have to do that anymore. If I kill someone now, you can put my real name on the record.”

  He gave me a slightly pained look. “How about we just avoid your name on police paperwork altogether?”

  “I’ll do my best.”

  He didn’t look convinced. “So, what are your plans for the day?”

  “Five minutes ago, I would have told you I didn’t have any. But I guess I’ll know once I get downstairs.”

  “Probably better if I don’t know.” He gave me a quick kiss. “I’ll call you later.”

  He headed downstairs and I could hear Gertie catcalling.

  “Hurry up, you floozy!” Ida Belle yelled. “We don’t have all day.”

  I threw on yoga pants and a tank, shoved my pistol into my waistband, grabbed my tennis shoes, and headed downstairs. I had no idea what Ida Belle and Gertie had in mind for today, but no matter what, their plans usually required running shoes and a gun.

  They were both standing at the bottom of the stairs, grinning like they’d won the lottery. I felt a rush of warmth pass through me when I realized that I was the lottery, at least as far as they were concerned. It was so totally cool but still somewhat foreign to me. I kept having to remind myself that this was real. That for the first time in my life, I was going to be a normal person with friends and a boyfriend.

  Gertie tackled me as soon as I got to the bottom of the steps and squeezed me so tightly my ribs hurt. Ida Belle didn’t show as much enthusiasm as Gertie, but I saw that her eyes were a little misty before she reached in for her hug.

  “We would have come up with the horn,” Gertie said, “but Ida Belle said you might not be decent. I told her that was the whole point, especially as Carter’s truck was out front.”

  Ida Belle shook her head. “If you saw Carter in his skivvies, you’d probably turn into a pillar of salt.”

  Gertie sighed. “Boy, what a way to go, though.”

  “Anyway,” Ida Belle said, “we’re glad you’re back.”

  “W
e worried the whole time you were gone that you’d change your mind,” Gertie said. “That the CIA would tempt you with something so interesting you wouldn’t be able to tell them no.”

  “You know, they didn’t even try,” I said. “I would like to say I’m disappointed, but Director Morrow was so surprised by my change in direction that he decided it must be true. My imagination simply isn’t that good.”

  “I suppose it was a bit of a stretch from your previous life,” Gertie said.

  “Only because he has no idea what goes on down here,” Ida Belle said.

  “Isn’t that the truth?” I said. “So I’m almost afraid to ask, but what’s with the early-morning wake-up call?”

  “Today is the fishing rodeo,” Gertie said. “And you have to come with us.”

  I stared. I’d been an official resident for less than a day and I was already confused. “Does one ride the fish or is this a roping sort of thing?”

  They both laughed.

  “A fishing rodeo is a fishing tournament,” Ida Belle said.

  “Then why is it called a rodeo?” I asked.

  They both shrugged.

  “Come on,” I said. “You mean there’s no cool story like there was this one guy that was so drunk he thought he was riding a horse, but he jumped on a bull shark instead?”

  “Junior Petrie did that last year,” Gertie said, “but we were already calling it the fishing rodeo.”

  I grinned. That was one of the things I loved most about Sinful. When most people would be yelling “just joking” after a statement like that, I knew it was the God’s honest truth.

  “So no riding or roping fish,” I said. “Then what’s involved?”

  “Basically,” Ida Belle said, “you pay an entry fee, fish all day, and the person who catches the biggest fish—or has the best method of cheating—wins.”

  “Wins what, exactly?” I’d been in Sinful long enough to know some things you didn’t leave open-ended.

  “First prize is an offshore fishing trip,” Ida Belle said. “Second prize is a new rod and reel. Third prize is a case of beer.”

  “We’re gunning for third place,” Gertie said.

  “I approve of this plan,” I said. “What do I need to bring?”

  I wasn’t much of a fisherman but worst case, I could work on my tan and finish up the Tom Clancy book I’d started in DC.

  “You don’t need to bring anything,” Gertie said. “Ida Belle and I already stopped to pay the entry fees, and Francine’s Café furnishes lunches. We’ve got three bags of yummy goodness that Ally put together. I’ve got a cooler of drinks in Ida Belle’s SUV and my tackle. But we were sort of hoping we could use your boat.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “You want to use our aquatic getaway vehicle for stinky fish?”

  “I promise I’ll scrub every inch of it,” Gertie said. “You’ll never know there was a fish in it when I’m done.”

  It really was the best option. Gertie managed to keep both her and Ida Belle’s boats broken, usually by a spectacular accident that I always wished I’d captured on film. On the other hand, since we were taking my boat this time, maybe I should be careful what I wished for.

  “Okay, but I’m holding you to the cleaning thing,” I said. “What do I wear?”

  “What you have on is fine,” Ida Belle said. “You’ll want to grab a hat and some sunglasses, though. It’s pretty hot.”

  “Okay, but we have to eat breakfast first,” I said. “I’ll starve to death before lunch.”

  Gertie pointed to a box on my coffee table. “Raspberry Danish. I figured those and some protein shakes would cover all the essentials.”

  “And coffee,” Ida Belle said. “I put coffee on when we got here.”

  “Then why are we standing in my living room?” I asked.

  I grabbed the box of heavenly sugar and headed for the kitchen. I snagged protein shakes out of the fridge, Ida Belle poured coffee, and Gertie pulled out paper plates and served up the Danish. When I sat down at the table with the two of them, I couldn’t help smiling. This was it. This was my life. Today, tomorrow, the next day.

  “You look like the cat who swallowed the canary,” Ida Belle said.

  “I was just thinking how cool it is that today, I’m sitting here as me. The real me. And I don’t ever have to leave.”

  Gertie shook her head. “You have to leave in about a half hour if you’re going with us. But I get what you’re saying.” She grinned at me.

  “I think it’s still all sinking in,” I said.

  Ida Belle nodded. “I imagine it’s going to take a while before this seems normal. You were in hiding for several months and it was never a permanent thing. When Gertie and I came back from Vietnam, it was a culture shock, and this was our hometown. But the lives we’d been living in the service were so vastly different. I can’t imagine what your mind is trying to assimilate.”

  “It’s definitely a big leap,” I said. “But a good one. I think I’m going to be happy here.”

  Gertie winked at me. “Looked like Carter is going to be happy here as well.”

  “Carter was already happy here,” I said.

  “He thought he was,” Gertie said. “But then he met you and realized everything he’d been missing.”

  “Oh, he’s been missing things all right,” Ida Belle told her. “Murder, explosions, arms dealers, lying on official paperwork…he’s really been living the good life this summer. And I haven’t even gotten into the list of trouble you’ve caused.”

  “If you started on Celia, you’d be here for all of eternity,” Gertie said. “I’m just saying I don’t think Carter knew that his life was lacking until he met Fortune.”

  Ida Belle smiled. “I don’t think any of us knew that. Now let’s get the boat loaded and win us some beer!”

  I grabbed sunglasses and a ball cap and fetched the cooler of drinks from Ida Belle’s SUV. Ida Belle hauled the cooler for fish and Gertie carried the fishing tackle—one small box and rod for Ida Belle and a suspiciously large duffel bag and three rods for Gertie—then we tossed in the sack lunches and we were ready to roll. As usual, Ida Belle was piloting the boat. I’d taken some flak about never driving my own boat from Walter, but when I pointed out that Ida Belle knew the bayous like her own backyard and sometimes there was gunfire exchange and I was the best call on that one, he’d relented. He’d looked slightly frightened, especially when I got to the gunfire exchange part, but he couldn’t argue with my logic.

  Gertie positioned her specially made cushion in the bottom of the boat in front of the bench, I climbed into the passenger’s seat and grabbed the armrests as if my life depended on it—and it might—and we were off.

  I figured Ida Belle and Gertie had already discussed the best place to land the big one, so I just concentrated on my death grip and enjoyed the ride. The boat shot up the bayou from behind my house and as soon as we hit the lake, Ida Belle made a hard right turn and set off at breakneck speed close to the bank. I glanced down to see Gertie with her legs braced against the ice chest and both hands clutching the handles I’d installed on the front of the bench. But the memory foam cushion was doing its job. She was still upright and not rolling around the bottom of the boat, cursing at Ida Belle.

  When we were halfway down the side of the lake, Ida Belle cut the throttle and it was all I could do to keep from pitching forward onto Gertie. I kept threatening to get a racing harness, and despite the fact that I’d be mocked for all eternity, I was getting more and more serious about it. Being mocked and in one piece was better than being mocked in a hospital bed.

  “You’re not there yet,” Gertie said.

  “I know,” Ida Belle said. “I figured I better cut the speed and slowly cruise up to the spot we picked.”

  “You’re sneaking up on the fish?” I asked. “Is that a thing?”

  “Not so much sneaking as not announcing our presence,” Ida Belle said.

  “I’m pretty sure that turn you made at the end o
f the bayou announced our presence all the way to Florida,” I said.

  Gertie waved a hand in dismissal. “The fish only care about other fish. This place is usually packed with algae that the little fish eat, so the big fish come here for a buffet. The boat engine will only make them leave for a second, then they’ll be right back.”

  “Cool,” I said. “Hey, I probably should have asked this before I got in the boat, but do you guys expect me to fish?”

  They both laughed and Ida Belle shook her head.

  “I only paid the entry fee for you so I could get you a lunch,” Ida Belle said.

  It was really nice to hang out with practical people. Ida Belle cut the engine entirely and motioned for me to throw out the anchor. I got the boat secured and Gertie and Ida Belle baited up their lines. Then I dug my book out of my backpack and got back on my perch to read.

  “Don’t even bother to get into that book,” Gertie said, and she cast her line. “At least, not until you’ve told us how your homecoming is going.”

  “Agreed,” Ida Belle said. “Inquiring minds and all.”

  “And I meant all of your homecomings—not just Walter and Ally,” Gertie said, and winked.

  Ida Belle shook her head and sighed. “You need to read a romance novel or something. Stop pestering the woman to tell you all the X-rated parts of her life.”

  “Why?” Gertie asked. “She hasn’t signed an NDA for those, as far as I know. Not like her CIA work.”

  “Maybe you and Carter should draw one up,” Ida Belle said. “Might get her to pipe down.”

  I grinned. “Carter and I are good. That’s all I’m saying, and you are welcome to invent whatever your heart desires. We haven’t had any big discussions since the takedown, and I don’t anticipate any soon. We’re just trying to feel our way around regular living without all the secrets hanging over our heads.”

  “Not to mention the terrorist hell-bent on killing you,” Gertie said.

  “Yes,” I agreed. “That was a bit of a buzzkill. Anyway, I saw Walter yesterday afternoon at the store. I figured I’d start with him since he already knew I wasn’t Sandy-Sue and had probably already formed a good opinion of what I really did, so I took the easy way out for my first confession.”