by Joan Rylen
Vivian tried to stand. It took her a second. “Are they? ARE they?”
“We’ll pretend like they are,” Kate said, linking arms with her.
Wendy rolled back from the table. “After this meal, I don’t mind being carted around.”
Lucy grabbed the handles on the wheelchair. “I’ll push your ass to the fire.” She stopped and put on the brake. “Actually, I can sit on your lap and let’s have a Ridge person push us.”
“I bet they would!” Vivian laughed and looked around for assistance.
“Uh, no!” Wendy shoved Lucy’s butt away. “I’m injured here!”
Lucy sighed and unlocked the brake. “Fine, I’ll push. But someone else is pushing you back to the room later.”
They made their way to the fire pit, which they had to themselves.
“Mud season rocks,” Vivian said, collapsing into a chair.
Everyone agreed.
The fire was perfect. Peaceful. Warm. Safe.
Vivian had just closed her eyes when she heard a familiar voice.
“I knew I’d find you here.”
56
VIVIAN couldn’t believe it. Rodney, her masseur from Playa Del Carmen, was standing beside her.
“Oh my gosh, what are you doing here?” She jumped up and hugged his neck.
He squeezed her back, holding on to her with his tall, lanky frame. He whispered in her ear, “I’m sorry you’ve had such an awful time. Trey told me what happened.” He squeezed her again, then let go and said to the group, “Trey emailed me. He told me that some crazy Texas gals had checked in who had been referred by yours truly. I knew exactly who he was talking about.”
“You came all the way from Mexico?” Kate asked.
“My sister got married this past weekend, so I was in town, but I couldn’t go back to Mexico without a visit to my old stomping grounds.”
“I’m so glad you’re here,” Vivian said. “Join us!”
“I plan to,” he said. “But first…” He held up a couple of liquor bottles. “Rodney Specials all around!”
They girls cheered as he mixed, swirled, shook and poured five of his infamous Mexico concoctions, complete with the “kiss” of grenadine. He delicately handed each of them a martini glass, then held his high.
“To friends reunited, wrongs that are righted. May the rest of your vacation be fantabulous!”
They clinked glasses and sipped their lovely beige drinks.
“Mmmmm, just like I remember,” Kate said, licking her lips. “You’ve got to teach me how to make these things.”
“Sure thing, honey. The secret’s in the shake.” Rodney sat in the chair next to Vivian and put his legs up on the stone ledge. “I hear that things haven’t been exactly perfect during your stay.”
“You can say that again,” Wendy said. “But it’s over now, thank god.”
“So what’d you hear about our crazy vacation?” Lucy asked.
Rodney swirled his drink. “I heard that Vivian was being stalked by her ex but that he’s been shackled, like all of us at Shorty’s party!”
“You were the only one who got shackled,” Vivian said. “We got lucky!”
“It’s all coming back to me. Of course, give me a few more of these and I’ll forget again.”
“Did you hook up with the trainer guy you saw at the party?”
Rodney shook his head. “Not long term. He was too immature for me.” He pondered that for a moment, then put his drink on the ledge. “So guess what?”
“What?” they asked.
“I have an even bigger surprise for you than me!”
“You’re full of surprises!” Vivian laughed.
“First thing tomorrow morning, I’ve lined it up for you all to have massages, and I promise, no weirdo stalkers will crash your comfort.”
“Rodney, you’re the best!” Lucy yelled, standing and giving him a hug.
“Really, Rodney,” Vivian said, holding her glass high. “You’re our Rodney Special!”
They reminisced about Mexico, Al and Adrienne, the big party bust and Jon.
“Lucy still talks to Pierre,” Vivian said.
“He was the bald guy, right?” Rodney asked.
“Yep,” Kate said. “We thought he looked like Mr. Clean.”
“He was a hunk,” Rodney said, then looked around the group. “Who’s ready for another?”
They all lifted their glasses, and Rodney started mixing and shaking.
Vivian looked up to see someone walking toward them. Her skin prickled and her heart pounded for a beat until she recognized the man.
“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” a scratch-faced Shick said as he joined them.
Only one eye looked back at Vivian, but she pretended not to notice. “Agent Shick, this is Rodney, our friend from Mexico.”
Rodney stepped forward, seemingly quite happy to meet Shick, and they shook hands.
Kate and Wendy said hello and also ignored the scratches and one eye.
“What’s up with the eye patch?” Lucy asked, then gave him a hug. “Thank you, by the way.”
“That fucker clawed me like a rabid wolverine,” Shick answered, touching the patch. “It’s not permanent. Doc says I have to wear it for two to three weeks.”
“It’s pretty sexy if you ask me.” Lucy gave him a high-five.
“I concur,” Rodney said, taking a seat while holding up his drink so it didn’t spill.
“I’m just glad you didn’t lose your eye,” Vivian said. “Those scratches look pretty bad.”
Shick traced a deep cut that started somewhere under the eye patch and ended at his earlobe. “I turned my head just in time. A split second slower…”
Vivian shuddered and decided it was time to change the subject. “Way to take Craig down.”
“The bear spray helped,” Shick said and laughed. “I may have to start carrying that.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Wendy said, shoving his shoulder.
“Seriously,” he said “it really was instrumental in bringing him down. You probably saved your friends’ lives.”
“I have no doubt,” Vivian said, going over to Wendy and hugging her shoulders. “Thank god somebody in this group is Captain Safety. She keeps us supplied in bandages and bear spray.”
Wendy rolled closer to the fire pit and propped her bad ankle up on the ledge. “I know my role in this outfit. Somebody’s gotta keep y’all healthy. Or at least drugged.”
“And you do a greatastic job of that,” Kate slurred, then plopped down. “Oh oh. I think I’m a little messedrunk.”
“You never get drunk,” Vivian said. “It’s about time!”
Kate smirked and leaned her head back in her chair.
“I’m not drunk,” Vivian said. “But I’d like to be. Rodney, pour me up another, will ya?”
He’d already mixed and shaken, so he topped her off. Wendy and Lucy also got refills.
Shick sat on the ledge in front of Vivian. “Craig won’t be able to bother you for a very long time. He has been transported to a maximum security facility in Denver and charged with attempted murder, premeditated murder, burglary, multiple counts of assault to a federal officer, violating a restraining order and international wire fraud.”
Vivian stopped rocking in her chair. “Well, hell. That’s enough. How could I have misjudged his character so much? He’s an evil person.”
Shick nodded his head. “In fact, there’s more. I understand the man that died at your hotel in Aspen may have been Craig’s partner in the credit card skimming operation.”
“Please don’t tell me…” Vivian said.
Shick sighed. “We don’t know for sure yet, but we suspect Craig was involved in his death.”
“Holy shit!” Wendy yelled. “We’ve been the bait for a murderer!”
“We didn’t know,” Shick said. “We just confirmed the identity of the partner a few hours ago.”
Vivian snapped in the air. “Rodney, help here! This is too much to
take!”
Rodney filled her glass.
Shick leaned forward, touching her knee. “Vivian, Craig was very good at deception.”
Vivian started rocking again. “That doesn’t make me feel any better, but thanks.”
Everyone was quiet for a minute.
Rodney stood and took the floor, waving his drink around. “So Shick, you’re telling us…Craig was a credit card skimming schemer, buddy off the balcony bumper, sail away with me stalker and all around asshole?”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
Rodney lifted his glass. “Well, here’s to his happy ending. Giving and receiving them. In jail.”
Everyone lifted their glass high and cheersed to that.
“How’s Wade?” Wendy asked Shick. “Any updates on his condition?”
“The doc was able to remove the bullet from Nelson’s thigh. It didn’t hit anything major, but he lost a lot of blood.”
She cringed. “What hospital is he in? Can I see him before I leave tomorrow?”
“I’m not at liberty to disclose that, sorry.”
Wendy nodded, then stared off into the fire.
“He has your number, you’ll likely hear from him.” Wendy perked up at that. “In fact, all of you might be hearing from someone involved in the investigation and prosecution of Craig. We have evidence of his crimes and audio of today’s events, but you still may be needed to testify against him.”
Vivian didn’t know how she felt about that. She didn’t want to see Craig again, ever. Maybe they’d let her do a deposition.
“I’ll be happy to go to court and tell the judge what a good-for-nothin’ scumbag Craig is,” Lucy said, waving around her Rodney Special. She then switched gears. “How’s Finck?”
Shick smiled at Lucy’s righteousness and said, “Finck got really lucky. The shot through his shoulder was just that, but his knee will need some reconstruction. He’ll be out for a while.”
“Bummer,” Lucy said.
“It could have been worse,” Shick said. “Nobody died.”
“Thank goodness for that,” Wendy said.
“What about Smith?” Vivian asked.
“He took all the credit,” Shick smirked, then continued. “He’s the one who got the bastard booked and settled away, dammit. The rest of us were being patched up.”
“We really appreciate all y’all did to help Vivian, and we give all of you credit.” Lucy held up the last of her drink.
“Yes, we do,” Vivian said, lifting her Rodney Special. “To the FBI and everyone else who helped capture Craig.”
Everyone cheersed except for Kate, who had passed out in her chair, soaking up the warmth of the fire pit.
“Looks like it’s time for bed,” Wendy said, handing Rodney her glass. “Sleeping Beauty here may need her own wheelchair to make it upstairs.”
They said goodnight to Agent Shick and gave Rodney big hugs goodbye.
“Thanks in advance for tomorrow,” Vivian said.
“Honey, you deserve every minute of relaxation, celebration, master—”
“Okay, okay, I get it. Thank you Rodney! You’re a gem!” Vivian and Lucy heaved Kate up from her chair, and with Wendy rolling behind, they went up to bed.
57
Day 7
VIVIAN’S head hurt. And the light…dear god, the light was beaming directly at her eyeballs through the crack in the curtain. She groaned and rolled over.
“Morning, glory,” Lucy said quietly as she put a fresh glass of water and two ibuprofen on the nightstand. “Wendy brought these over.”
Vivian opened one eye and looked at the white, chalky pills. She wanted to take them, but her arms, which didn’t hurt, were warm and comfy under the covers, and the thought of taking them out was too much. “Uhhhhhhhh.”
“Oh come on now,” Lucy said. “You can do it.”
Vivian’s pounding head took precedence over the warm covers and she reached for the pills.
“That’s a good girl,” Lucy said as she closed the curtain so no light shone through. “Now we have about an hour and a half before we need to leave for the spa. Lie back and take a happy nappy.”
“Okay,” Vivian muttered and closed her eyes. She was snoring before Lucy had left the room.
***
“Feeling better?” Lucy asked, pulling open the curtain just a bit.
Vivian stretched her arms above her head. “Oh my gosh, yes.”
“Good. We have to be in the spa in 10 minutes, so brush your teeth, throw that hair back into something semi-tame and let’s go.”
“Where’ve you been?” Vivian asked, looking at Lucy’s workout outfit.
“I did the circuit downstairs.”
Vivian threw the covers off and tried to stand. She swayed a little.
“Then Wendy and I grabbed a small breakfast. I had oatmeal.”
The thought of oatmeal was not appealing. Vivian walked to the bathroom and closed the door. She looked at herself in the mirror.
Wow, I’ve got a lot of gray, she thought, running her fingers through her hair. She’d had a few strands before her first daughter was born, but now they were running rampant. She pulled the magnification mirror away from the wall and turned it on, looking at her skin.
Screw a massage, I need a facial. I think I’m getting a new wrinkle. She pushed at the skin next to her nose, right under her left eye. I’ve got to stop sleeping on that side of my face.
Lucy knocked on the door. “Two minutes!”
“Okay, okay,” Vivian said and pushed the mirror back to the wall. She brushed her teeth and washed her face with a washcloth, careful not to scrub too hard. Then she looked through Lucy’s array of products. She plucked out an expensive-looking facial moisturizer and slathered it on. Damn, this is good stuff.
Lucy always had the best products. Hair stuff, face stuff, skin stuff, you name it. Vivian, on the other hand, was lucky to get out the door with her teeth brushed in the morning, much less hair or makeup done. She’d recently perfected the art of drying her hair with the minivan heater while driving to the hospital. Her wonderful sitter, Miss Margie, was only a few blocks away from her house so she could scrunch in silence. There were just enough lights and traffic along her route that she generally walked in looking decent, which was good because there were lots of cute residents at the hospital.
“Time to go!” Lucy knocked on the door again. “Free massages! We don’t want to be late!”
Vivian pulled her hair back in a clip and slipped on Ridge slippers. “Ready.”
“You’re looking much better than you did earlier this morning,” Lucy said.
“Thanks for taking such good care of me.”
“It was mostly Wendy’s doing.”
“Thank you both, then.”
Wendy and Kate had emerged. Wendy, who was able to walk with a slight limp, looked rather perky. Kate looked green.
“You okay?” Vivian asked Kate.
“I’ll make it.”
“Let’s work together,” Vivian said, linking arms with her.
Kate complied and put her head on Vivian’s shoulder. “I think I drank too much.”
“We all drank too much, thanks to Rodney,” Vivian said, patting her head. “Let’s go get those nasty toxins worked out, c’mon.”
The girls rode the elevator down to the spa. A new girl was at the counter, not Suri, but she greeted them warmly. They went to the locker room and changed into the luxurious robes, then went into the lounge.
After a few minutes of mostly silence, a female masseuse came in, calling for Kate. Then one for Wendy and another for Lucy. Before following her masseuse out the door, Wendy looked back and smiled as the door closed behind her.
Vivian was alone.
She sat in the lounge, a little uncomfortable. She picked up a magazine, then put it back down. It’s because I’m so rarely alone. And because last time I was in here things didn’t go so well. Geez, relax!
She watched the fire and scrunched
down into the softness of her lounger. The soft music playing overhead and the warmth of her blanket forced her eyes closed, but only for a moment. Her masseuse touched her on the shoulder gently, introduced herself, then escorted her to the Blizzard Room. Vivian undressed and slid onto the warm table. These linens feel and smell amazing. She positioned her face into the smushy, round cutout.
The masseuse knocked on the door, then entered.
“Everything good?” she asked.
“Perfect.”
Finally.
Vivian’s massage started with her scalp and ended at her tippy toes. It was magical.
“Take your time getting dressed. I’ll get you some water.” The masseuse closed the door behind her.
“Mmmmmm mmmmm,” was all Vivian could say. After a long moment she slowly peeled herself from the table and wrapped up in the robe. She opened the door and the masseuse pointed to her feet.
“Oops, you forgot your shoes.”
“So I did,” Vivian said lazily. She shuffled to them and stuck her feet in, then trailed behind the masseuse to the ladies lounge where Lucy, Kate and Wendy were waiting.
“How was it?” Kate asked.
“Fantab,” Vivian responded, dropping into a lounger. “I don’t want to leave.”
“Too bad your first massage didn’t go like that.” Wendy stood at the beverage station, dipping a teabag into a steaming to-go cup. “Want one?”
Vivian waved her off. “No thanks.”
Wendy snapped a lid onto her tea and walked toward the door. “Ladies, I hate to say this, but we have a plane to catch. Well, not you, Lucy, but you have to get us there.”
Groans.
“I know, I know, but I speak the truth. Let’s get upstairs and pack it up, pack it in.”
They forced themselves from their loungers and made their way back to the room. Vivian threw clothes into her suitcase as Lucy neatly folded and placed.
“Are those all clean?” Vivian asked.
“No,” Lucy responded.
“Then why are you folding them?”
“You just focus on cramming and stuffing, I’ll handle my own packing.”
Vivian shook her head and threw another sweater into her bag. “You need therapy.”