“I guess we’ll never know,” Deborah said. “It’s not like we can blackmail her.”
“No, that was a stupid idea.” Ruby was coming around again. “It was the only thing we could grab onto then, but making up evidence got us into trouble.”
“We’re not completely helpless. We simply need a good plan to draw out Eleanor Millhouse. A plan that will make her show who she really is,” Claudine said. She signaled the waiter. “Another pot of tea, please.” She turned to the Boosters again. “We’ll need it. This plan must be flawless. We can’t afford to mess it up.”
“No more mean things, though,” Deborah said.
“No. We need to set it up so that it’s her own greed that gets her into trouble,” Claudine said. “It’s our job to lay out the noose. She can hang herself. And we’re going to have to work fast.”
Ruby checked the tea room’s gilt clock. “I have a meeting at five, but I’m listening.”
* * *
Ruby sat alone in Eleanor Millhouse’s office at the Shangri-La. The desk was perfectly clear, except for a gold pen in a holder and a white orchid. No personal photos, not even a telephone. And everything was white. White furniture, white walls, white marble floor. You could lose your way to the door from snow blindness.
Speaking of snow, it was cold in here. She smoothed her scarf to cover more of her neck. No wonder Eleanor’s skin looked so good. It was perfectly preserved in this refrigerator. How come you couldn’t get a good hot flash when you needed one?
The door opened behind her, and Eleanor’s heels clicked across the marble floor, a sound to which Ruby was getting accustomed.
“Nice office,” Ruby said.
“I don’t use it much. Just for spa business.” The orchid bobbed on her desk when she sat. “You’ve looked at my offer?”
“Yes.” Despite the cold, Ruby’s hands were clammy.
“Then we’ve come to an understanding.” Eleanor’s gaze was steel-taut. She didn’t need to say that she knew what the Boosters were up to, and that they’d been fools to think they’d outwit her. Just like the alpha dog, she didn’t need to snarl or pick a fight. The pack knew who was boss.
Ruby swallowed. “Yes. I’ll take the job.”
24
Eleanor nodded. “So, what’s the real reason you want the firehouse?” She folded her arms over her chest and leaned back.
Ruby relaxed. Claudine had been right. Eleanor believed the whole world thought her way. “I don’t know if I should tell you.”
“Ruby.” How strange to hear her name from Eleanor’s lips. “If we’re working together, we must have an understanding. No secrets.”
Ruby’s gaze wandered the room’s antiseptic furnishings, the hard floor, the orchid. Maybe it wasn’t the breeze that rattled the orchid, but the poor flower was shivering. “Okay. Radium.”
Eleanor raised an eyebrow.
“There’s a huge radium deposit directly below the firehouse. It’s worth millions.”
“Radium,” Eleanor repeated. “You expect me to believe that.”
Ruby filled her lungs with frigid air. “You asked, I told you. It doesn’t matter if you believe me, because we have the mining rights. For radium. At $25,000 a gram.” Deborah had suggested the radium angle, said it was used in watches.
A faint hum told her the air conditioning was kicking in. The orchid bobbed again from its cachepot. Ruby kept her expression neutral.
At last, Eleanor nodded. A strangely incongruous smile widened her lips. “I knew it. I knew it wasn’t those orphans.” Her laughter sounded raw, unpracticed.
“The county would never have sold us the land if they knew about it. We had to make up something. Who would be heartless enough to deny a family homeless shelter?” Ruby hoped her smile didn’t come off as sarcastic.
“How do you know about the radium?”
“Grandpa Granzer is a freak about firehouses, as you know. He’d heard stories. So we hired a scientist to run some tests.”
“You and Deborah Granzer did this?” Good. Eleanor still didn’t know about Claudine. “Why? Deborah has plenty of money of her own. It’s an odd project for you to take up.”
“She and her husband have a pretty tight pre-nuptial agreement, and things weren’t looking good between them.” She glanced up for Eleanor’s response and saw no change in expression. “As for me, well, you saw my house. Who can’t use a little extra cash? I haven’t had a vacation in years.” A hot beach in Hawaii sounded good about now. She resisted the urge to stick her hands under her arms for warmth. “Our first step was to get the land. We’d worry about mining it later.”
“So you investigated, found out you could extract the radium somehow.”
“Definitely. We hired a scientist to measure the radium vein and estimate how much it would cost to mine it.”
“What about mining it? Do you have estimates?”
“That’s the best part. The extraction is targeted. The university is working up a new technique with lasers.” Shoot, she’d better watch herself.
“And buyers? Have you worked out the market angle?”
“No problem. There’s an international market.”
“There’s no reason for you to lie to me.”
“Oh, no.” Ruby shook her head a few times for emphasis. “You wouldn’t lie to me.”
“Of course not. You’re doing me a great favor. You’ll be rewarded.” She nailed Ruby again with her stare. “If what you say is the truth.”
“Oh, it is.” Ruby bit her lip. “But.…”
“But what?”
“There’s one complication. As I said, the Booster Club as a corporation owns the mining rights. It isn’t up to just me.”
“They aren’t worth much to you if you can’t use them.”
“True. The radium has been undisturbed for years. It’s not like anyone has to mine it immediately.” Ruby wrinkled her brow in what she hoped was a hard-thinking expression. “Maybe, though.…”
“Maybe though what?”
“We could have a partnership. I might be able to convince the other members that having you on board is a benefit.”
Eleanor smiled again. “Of course. My thoughts exactly. But there’s one thing.”
Ruby drew a breath. “What?”
“I need to meet this scientist. Today.”
“Today? I don’t know. I mean, it’s already past office hours.” At last. A hot flash. Ruby fanned herself with her employment agreement. “I could call. See about something over the next few days.”
“Then first thing tomorrow. I’ll need to see your mining agreement and the results of the study. I can’t go ahead on your word alone. I’m sure you understand.”
Lord, this hot flash was a whopper. Without changing expression, Eleanor pulled a crisp handkerchief from her top drawer and handed it to her. Ruby mopped her brow. “The change.”
“I’m several years away from your condition—”
A hot flash would never dare spark in her icy gut, Ruby thought.
“—but we sell a proprietary blend of Himalayan goat hormones you might find beneficial. They’re dear to import, but since we’re colleagues, I can offer it to you at a discount. I hear they’re quite effective. Of course, you won’t advertise that the Shangri-La sells them. The F.D.A. isn’t familiar with this blend.”
“Thank you.” Lord, that woman knew how to bag her quarry.
Eleanor leaned forward. “I know we’ll work well together, but you understand why I don’t completely trust you yet. Certain recent events prove your resourcefulness but perhaps not your integrity.”
The room’s frigid air began to seep into her skin once again, transforming into a clammy dampness. “Yes. I understand. I’ll set up a meeting with Dr. Heilig and his team for first thing tomorrow.”
* * *
Ruby burst into the Villa Saint Nicholas. “Everyone! Emergency.”
Most of the Villa’s residents were in the cafeteria toying with the night’s servin
g of tuna casserole, except Hugo, who’d inhaled his plate and was reaching for Gilda’s. Joanie sat on the floor brushing Tinkerbell, and Lucy and Scotty were playing cards. Only Hank and Grady were missing. Ruby darted to the TV room, grabbed the remote control from Grady’s side, and urged him into the cafeteria.
“What’s going on?” André asked.
“Where’s Hank?” Ruby said.
“He took dinner on a tray upstairs.”
“We need him down here.” Ruby tossed her tote bag on a table. “We have a situation. I called Deb and Claudine, and they’re on their way.”
Gilda cackled. “So, it’s a go. The old biddy bit on it.”
“Calm down,” Warren said. Tinkerbell rose and wagged at his arrival. He gave her a beef bone, and she settled again at Joanie’s side, the bone clasped in her teeth.
“You can make some fresh coffee,” Ruby said. “We’re going to be up for a while. We need a lab, some scientists, mineral rights paperwork, and a scientific report on radium.”
Hank’s voice came from behind her. His wheelchair clicked over the threshold. “When?”
“Tomorrow morning.”
“No problem,” Hank said. “Eddie did some topnotch counterfeiting in the early sixties. Mostly I.D. paperwork, but you duped some deeds, didn’t you?”
“Plus a couple death certificates and a cat license,” Eddie said. He set aside his copy of Popular Mechanics. “I don’t have my materials anymore, though.”
“I got a nice printer,” Grady said. “If you’ve got the eye for detail.”
The Rizzio kids had ceased all activity. “Kids, you go up to André’s room and work on your homework,” Ruby said.
“Why?” Scotty said. “I’m learning a lot right here.”
“That’s the problem,” Ruby said.
“I’ll take them up,” Gilda said. “Come on, kids. Just be thankful all these nice people care so much for you. Come on, you too, Hugo.”
Hugo refused to budge. He’d set down his fork even though half a piece of cheesecake was left at Gilda’s seat. “I’m eighteen.” At Gilda’s stern look, he added, “Well, practically. I’m an adult. Why can’t I be part of this?”
“Don’t you have some homework to finish?” Bobby said.
“What?” he said. “You’re all crooks, or at least you used to be. Mom was, too. I know that.”
Gilda sat down again, Joanie, Lucy, and Scotty at her side. “We don’t know what she wanted for you, honey.”
“You should have choices, son,” Father Vincent said. “Go to college, see what you want to do. You have mechanical gifts. You might want to be an engineer.”
“Or an actor,” André said.
“Or a pickpocket or a cyberhacker,” Hugo said.
“Stop it right there,” Hank said. “Maybe this life looks swanky to you. Maybe you see our camaraderie, our fancy French food, and you think you want a part of that.”
“I take issue with the food,” Bobby said.
“What you don’t know is about those of us who got kicked out of our families or who couldn’t make homes because we couldn’t talk about our work in public,” Hank said. “Or who ended up in prison, like Gilda’s husband.”
“He’s still in jail?” Lucy asked.
“Nah, got out during the Nixon administration. Hit by a bus not long after.” She crossed herself. “Rest in peace.”
“Your mother didn’t make it,” Bobby said. “I think her fall broke her spirit more than anything else.”
A sniffle escaped Joanie. She clutched Tinkerbell’s neck.
“I would have done it differently, myself,” Ruby said. The others seemed to have forgotten she was there. “Hiding the life from my husband is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.”
“Maybe he’d understand,” Lucy said.
“Outsiders don’t get it,” Hank said.
“Come on, honey,” Gilda said. “We’re going upstairs.”
“No. I want to stay here and be part of it,” Hugo said.
“That’s a great attitude, Hugo, but you can help best by keeping your brother and sisters out of harm’s way,” Claudine said. Ruby hadn’t heard her come in. She was standing behind Hank in the cafeteria’s doorway.
Hugo slumped behind her, his siblings following. “Okay. I don’t want to go, but okay.”
At the sound of the elevator door closing, Claudine stepped into the room. “Now. Tell me what needs to get done.”
25
Deborah arrived at the university before the others. Thanks to Louie, she wasn’t sleeping anyway. It was only the thought of this morning’s project that kept her from trolling for watches.
From the chemistry lab’s front steps, she watched the campus bustle. Some students rode bicycles, others toted backpacks and mugs of coffee as they kicked up leaves along the sidewalk. College life had been so fun. She’d been in a sorority—just a townie, she lived with her parents and worked weekends at the dry cleaning shop—and life had been full of possibilities. She was sure she’d be a teacher and start her own family. Her mom had asked her about kids just last week. Deborah looked down at her flat stomach, imagining the swell of a baby.
Now she was on her way to divorce. At some point Louie would come home, and she’d be kicked out. She’d be lucky to wring a few cents from the divorce, even with the photos from the hotel. Plus, where would she buy her groceries?
The Rizzio kids were her only spot of hope right now. Although, even if Eleanor followed through and they did save the firehouse, Grandpa Granzer wasn’t likely to write a million dollar check to his ex-grandaughter-in-law. She’d brought this up at the Villa last night, but Claudine only said they’d cross that bridge when they came to it. There were a lot of bridges between now and peace of mind.
“You sent out the notice, right? To everyone?” Deborah recognized Ruby’s voice and stood, wiping the dirt from her seat. Grady and Father Vincent followed her.
“I told you I did,” Grady said. “Now quit harping at me. I got a few ‘out of town’ replies, but everyone else thinks there’s an earthquake inspection today. As long as the university keeps its department email lists updated, we’re fine.”
“Oh, Deb.” Ruby hugged her, enveloping her in fruity perfume. “How was last night?”
“I’m okay.”
“Bastard. Got no chutzpah. A real man would have stayed around to fight for you,” Grady said. “Where’s Deanie? She drags me out here before my morning shows are over, but she doesn’t show up herself.”
“We made good time,” Father Vincent said. His normally frazzled hair was slicked straight, and he pulled a collapsible hand truck with a box on it. “Maybe she doesn’t know traffic patterns like I do.”
“I’m here.” Deborah spun in the direction of Claudine’s low voice. “But just for a minute, then I’m out of the picture. You don’t know me. Got it?” She glanced down the college’s central square. “Side door?”
“Oh. I forgot,” Deborah said.
“Son of a sea biscuit,” Grady said. “Bunch of amateurs.” Despite his gruff tone, Deborah would have sworn he was enjoying himself.
The lab’s front door opened. A bearded man in a white lab coat looked down at them. “May I help you?” he asked in a vaguely European accent.
Claudine pushed past him. “André. Nice work, but you sound more Ukrainian than Austrian. Did you get a meeting room ready?”
“No. I came in when the janitor left. I was waiting for you.”
“According to the building’s floor plans, the lab proper is on the east side toward the rear.” They followed her confident trot through the chemistry building’s halls. “Here.”
“See, all locked up. I told you,” Grady said.
Dark showed behind the door’s frosted window. Claudine glanced up the hall, then took two small tools from her purse. To Deborah, they looked like steel manicure tools. In a second, the door was open, and Claudine was in. Deborah stepped forward, but André held her back. Claudine
returned a moment later and nodded.
“The back lab is open. André should be able to break into the AV cabinet if you need it. Right?”
“I haven’t forgotten everything, Deanie,” he said.
Deborah watched them. Definitely a hit woman, she thought. She was in a hurry to get out, too. Probably off to take out a rival mobster. Deborah would watch the news for a report of a shooting.
“The accent is getting better, but watch your ‘r’s.” With that, she was gone.
If only Deborah had Claudine’s confidence. It was as if Claudine could do anything. She could break into buildings and climb up walls. People listened to her. If she were married, her husband would never leave her.
Ruby put a hand on her arm. “Come on, Deb. This is important. No time for daydreaming. We only have half an hour until Eleanor gets here.”
* * *
The desk phone buzzed. “Eleanor Millhouse is here to see you.”
“Thank you, Marjorie. Send her back,” André said.
To Deborah, no matter what Claudine said, André sounded just like an Austrian scientist. He looked like one, too. It wasn’t just his crisp lab coat, it was as if his whole body had changed. It was André’s eyes and nose, but they might have been stuck on someone else.
She stood when Eleanor entered. André was flipping through some papers on the desk and seemed surprised that Eleanor had come in, even though he’d just told Gilda to let her back.
“Ah, Ms. Millhouse,” André said. “Dr. Heilig.” He extended a hand.
“Thank you for meeting with me on such short notice.” Eleanor released André’s hand and turned to her. “Deborah. Ruby has told me a lot about you.”
Deborah couldn’t even force a smile. Here was the woman who broke up her marriage. She’d been ready to blame it all on Louie, but now that Eleanor stood here, so superior, with that didn’t-I-tell-you look in her eyes, her chest filled with anger. She and the girls had set it up so it only looked like Roger Millhouse was unfaithful. Even if Roger took the bait, Deborah would never have crossed the line with him. Eleanor—or some minion—had gone a lot further than that.
The Booster Club Page 19