Chapter 30 #4
I clutch my chest, willing my heart to settle when I feel something is missing.
Shit. My pin! The microphone rose brooch must have fallen off in Eamon’s room!
My fingers find their way up to my mouth, as I begin to chew on the sides of my nails.
A habit I commonly resorted to in my younger years; when I feel trapped or when others didn’t seem to want to accept me “as is.” Was Andrea able to hear clearly?
Will she know everything that was said between Eamon and I?
Oh no… what if he finds it and knows it has a microphone?
I’m not even sure what he would think. That I’m untrustworthy, a spy?
At that point I realize something even more horrifying.
Worse than Eamon, finding out I had a mic hidden within my flower pin.
I’ve kissed my brother’s lover. I feel automatically queasy, either from not eating or partner sharing with my sibling, I can’t tell.
Right before I’m about to christen the backseat of this taxi over my very own episode from the Jerry Springer show, I find a rogue mint in my bag to settle my stomach.
Seriously, I couldn’t have made this shit up in my wildest dreams.
As soon as I pay the taxi driver, Andrea is bursting through the front of our building with half of her coat on, a sneaker on one foot, and a rain boot on the other.
We notice each other at the same time causing her to run the rest of the way to me. “Oh my god, I thought the worst! When I couldn’t hear you any longer, I realized it must have fallen off you… I got ready as fast as I could!”
I place my hands onto her shoulders trying to soothe her, when I’m not sure I look any less frazzled myself. “You didn’t even know where I was,” I say with a laugh.
“Of course I know,” she proclaims through labored breaths. “There’s a tracker on your phone.”
I point my finger toward her. “I knew it!”
Shortly after our interesting reunion on the street, we find ourselves back at the white board, as a frozen pizza cooks in the oven. I add a heart with a lame-looking spider between Theo and Eamon’s name.
“I didn’t hear anything after he spoke about not harming a hair on your brother’s head. Was there anything else we should add to the board?”
There’s so much I still don’t understand, so I take a moment to reflect.
I first met Mairead at Star Mart. My ex-coworker is Eamon’s unbalanced sister.
How is each new thing I learn connected to something I thought I understood?
What does Mairead know about all this? I decided that I need to see Mairead.
We have tentative plans to visit an escape room.
I wouldn’t be “lying” to Andrea, only withholding a couple pieces of information until a later date.
Hanging out with Mairead, without Andrea thinking we’re in imminent danger, could shed some light on this situation.
This board sure is a poor excuse for mystery solving, although likely still better investigative work than any ‘officer of the law’ in this city.
I catch myself before sharing the last thing Eamon said to me. The first lead I need to follow in regard to my family. This feels too personal and until I look up what “Lombardi” means, I didn’t want to involve my roommate any more than she already was.
She’s been like a sister to me since college. She loves me and my family. “Nothing else to add,” I insist.
Her face speaks volumes, never hiding how she really feels. I can tell she doesn’t believe this is all I know, but she must understand. That’s all I’m going to give her for now.
Peering into Thelma’s tank, I find her nestled within the faux skull.
It’s so strange how she’s been sleeping during the night and out during the day.
She’s nocturnal after all. I whisper against the glass, “Are you feeling, okay?” She remains immobile within her hide.
“I met Louise today, your partner in crime.”
The oven beeps reminding me that the pizza is ready.
We eat at the table, only the sounds of chewing fill the space.
My eyes are going to cross if I stare at that board a moment longer.
After we each polish off our half of the pie, I reveal, “I’m going to go through some boxes of stuff my mom gave me a while back.
Maybe I can find something that gives us an idea of who would want to…
” I stop myself before I think out loud.
Andrea tilts her head while taking the dishes from my hands. “I got this. Go get some sleep. You’re making less sense than the whiteboard.”
I do appreciate the way she can be mothering at times. Once the door to my room closes, I peel myself from what I realize is an extremely inappropriate dress, considering who I learned Eamon was to my brother. I think I may need to burn it.
The chilled floors are only going to become more frigid as autumn morphs into winter. At the top of my closet, I pull down extra blankets for my bed and even use some leftover washi tape, to seal the cracks around my windows that allow our expensive heat to escape.
Tomorrow, I’ll continue my hunt for answers. The day will be busy from the start… including breakfast with my uncle, earlier than normally scheduled, work at The Black Sheep, and then finding time to look up “Lombardi.”