With And Without Cookies
Vex
So close. I’m so close to Dahlia’s house I can see it. But instead of spending the evening with her, I’m going to see Max… well, his mother, but still irksome.
Next time Dyce messages me, I’m going to ignore her.
“Aren’t you cheerful today.” Max opens the door.
“Max.” Don’t punch the smirk off his face. You’re here asking for a favor.
“Mom is in the backyard.”
“Dad.” Hope runs down the stairs.
“We have company.” Max’s body gets tight.
“Hi.” Hope waves.
It’s been years since I last saw her. She’s no longer a baby.
“Go to your room, Hope.”
“But Dad—” Her eyes go wide.
“Go to your room now and don’t come down until our guest leaves.”
“But Dad—”
“Now.”
She turns on her heel and marches up the steps.
“Well now, wasn’t that a warm welcome.”
“Did you really think I want my daughter to hang around with you?”
No. “I’m crushed.”
“You’re a murderer.”
What else is new? “Like there is a man in this house that hasn’t murdered someone.”
“It’s not the same. Can you even keep track of your body count anymore?”
I stopped trying years ago. Though their faces I remember. “Does it matter when they aren’t worth counting?”
“Not really. Mom’s expecting you.” Max walks to the backyard without another word.
Why am I even here? Dahlia doesn’t need to make friends with Imogene. Imogene needs to get out of Payne’s life.
But he’s my friend. Life would be so much easier if I lived like a hermit in the woods with my books… and food delivery.
Though for some reason, I don’t mind cooking for Dahlia.
Talon and Temperance are cuddled up at a wrought-iron table in their spacious garden. When you head the Vincenti Family, it only makes sense that you live in a mansion. But billionaires like Max don’t. They usually isolate themselves from the world. This is too normal for a mafia don and his son a tech billionaire.
“Don Vincenti, Mrs. Vincenti.”
“Vex, have a seat.” Talon doesn’t bother getting up from his chair.
To be fair, if I had Dahlia wrapped up in my arms like he has Temperance, I wouldn’t want to move either.
“Would you like a cookie?” Temperance lifts up a half-full plate. “They’re a pecan caramel butter cookie. ”
“A neighbor made them for me.” Max smirks.
Who cares if some desperate woman is throwing herself at him? “No, thank you.” Sometime between now and my next meeting, I should grab a quick bite to eat.
“Suit yourself, but you’re missing out.” Max takes one.
Don’t punch him while you’re asking for a favor in his home. Don Vincenti wouldn’t appreciate that.
Temperance sets the plate down on the table. “Imogene called me earlier.”
Finally, we’re getting down to business. But why did Imogene call and not Payne?
“Her case is very complex.”
Ya think?
“But I do believe she would benefit from some female companionship. Someone around her own age that she could talk to and lean on for support upon occasion.”
Dahlia needs peace and beauty, not evil and pain.
“Vex, I’m not going to beat around the bush. Everyone here knows what happened to Imogene, and what almost happened to Dahlia. In my professional opinion, Dahlia would be the perfect person to fill that role.”
“And what about Dahlia? I’m not going to sacrifice her to help someone else.” That’s not an option.
The doctor, who doesn’t seem to be on my side, leans forward. “You sacrifice your soul all the time to help others, but you can’t see another person wanting to do it.”
My soul shriveled and died too many years ago to matter. I’m a monster. “We aren’t talking about me. Dahlia is a good person.”
“She is. And good people step up to help others.”
“But—”
Temperance holds a hand up. “Before you dig your heels in and refuse to even consider it like some men I know—” Her eyes move between her husband and son. “—ask yourself if Dahlia might need a friend who understands what she’s going through?”
The long, poignant pause irritates me even more than Max’s smirk. What if she’s right? What if Dahlia needs a friend? “How would I tell?” That question hurts down to my bones. I should be the one to give her everything she needs.
“They might be subtle signs like trembling hands, momentary unexplained pauses, a hard time sleeping on occasion.”
“Dahlia sleeps well.”
Max raises an eyebrow at me.
One shot. All it would take is one second for me to knock him to the ground.
“But the best way to know would be to ask her what she wants to do.”
Ask Dahlia. No. Absolutely not. “Thank you for your time.” I push up out of the chair. “I need to go.”
“Vex—”
Temperance’s kind voice gives me pause.
“—think about what I said.”
I turn back to her and reluctantly nod.
This day just gets worse and worse.
***
An empty park at night makes for a good spot for a clandestine meeting. The city didn’t bother to properly light the paths, so anything could be lurking in the shadows.
Which shouldn’t give me a burst of excitement and hope, but it does. Thrashing someone might give me a bit of relief from all the pent-up frustration of the day.
Rats that scurry in the dark run from me.
Why would Cormac want to meet here? There’s nothing around but a reception hall full of semi-drunk wedding guests .
That’s another tradition that makes no sense to me. What’s the point of a wedding? You spend a ton of money so other people can eat terrible food and get drunk. If you want to spend your life with someone, just do it.
A couple walks out the door hand in hand. The woman pulls the man in for a long, passionate kiss right there.
See, that’s exactly my point. They could be in the privacy of their home right now, not standing out in the cold.
People make no sense.
“This better be important.” Cormac sits down on the bench next to me. “You pulled me away from my niece’s wedding.”
“My condolences.”
Cormac laughs. “That’s what I told the groom right before I married them.”
“You performed the ceremony?” Cormac was known for getting into trouble back in his youth. Way before he became a cop.
“Sure did. I was almost the best man. But Maddie thought since I was her uncle and his commanding officer, I should run this whole shindig. Having a massive family is tiresome.”
I wouldn’t know.
“So, what is this all about?”
“Do you know a cop named Eamon Plant?” Give me the answer I want.
“What do you want to know about Eamon?”
“Just answer the question.”
“Sure, everyone knows Eamon Plant. Great guy. He’s inside the hall now, having some of the best cake you’ve ever tasted. Want me to get him?”
And that was the worst possible answer. “Is it a cop thing to invite everyone? Or is this guy a close friend?”
Cormac twists his body to face me instead of the street. “Why would you ask that? What did you hear?”
How much do I trust Cormac? “Is it a cop thing? Or is he a friend? ”
“Eamon is everyone’s friend. We aren’t close, but I’ve known him for decades. Eamon is one of the good guys. He’s always there when you need a helping hand. The guy even volunteers to stand guard at a women’s shelter on his nights off.”
Well, that must be convenient for him. This just got trickier. The cops won’t help. They’ll just close ranks and protect one of their own.
Cormac usually does the right thing. Give him a chance. “What do you know about his girlfriends?”
“Ahhh. That’s what this is about. Everyone knows Marlie. She’s crazy. Literally insane. I’m shocked the judge hasn’t locked her up. She’s been stalking Eamon.”
“That’s not what I heard.”
“Of course it isn’t. Marlie sells it well. I believed her in the beginning. Until I saw the damage she did to Eamon’s car. Then she broke into his house and wrote threatening messages on his mirrors. Eamon had to get a restraining order, and even that hasn’t stopped her.”
Dyce is never wrong. Not once has her intuition been off. This guy is dirty. “Thanks for clearing that up for me.” I stand up.
“You don’t ask random questions about people.”
“No, I don’t.” I start to walk away.
“Vex?”
Cormac is going to ask a question he doesn’t want the answer to. “Yes?”
“Eamon works with my family.”
And there it is. “Keep him close.” As the saying goes.
Cormac’ eyes cloud over as he nods.
He better not get in my way.
There’s nothing else to be accomplished until Shock gets me the information I need. Time to see Dahlia… maybe I’ll pick something sweet up to munch on while we watch a movie… in bed.
This day might end well after all.