Chapter 13 All For One
Cassie fumbled with the keys as she tried to hold onto her bags outside the apartment door.
The girls were stacked on the stairs with their bags beside them.
Finally Cassie was able to get the lock open and then push the door in.
Wendy didn’t hesitate, barging past Cassie with her bags while the others climbed the stairs behind her.
“Well, just barge ahead!” Cassie called.
“I told you that I needed to pee!” she exclaimed, dropping her bag down as she turned down the hall for the bathroom.
“Such a whiner!” Katie called. “Doesn’t she ever stop being a Karen?”
“Hahaha!” Carry called. “Yeah, she’s a bit of a prima-donna.”
“You mean play-actor. She always hams everything up,” Cassie complained as she pushed her bag in the door. “So melodramatic about it all the time.” She rolled her eyes. Carry and Katie laughed then followed her into the apartment.
“I’ve got pizza on the way,” Carry confirmed. “You girls performed admirably down there in Houston for the first show.”
“Thanks, boss!” Katie joked.
“Katie,” Carry said with sarcastic complaint. “You don’t need to call me boss. That’s Veronica,” she added with a bit of vitriol in the tone of her voice.
“Woah there, easy tiger,” Cassie urged. “Calm down. None of us knew that Veronica would get so intense on the tour.”
“That’s true,” Wendy called as she came back to the living room. “I’ve been with her the longest, and I’ve never seen her that intense before.”
“Yeah,” Katie piped up, “She did seem rather tense dealing with those photographers. She nearly came unglued on the one suggesting that she choose either to produce perfume or to perform on stage.”
“It’s a good thing James was there to step in and calm things down,” Cassie added.
“Veronica wasn’t going to take that kind of treatment!” Carry stated firmly.
“V really was adamant that they show her some respect for her ambition with Veronique and her abilities to perform on stage and in front of the camera,” Wendy added. “She definitely took command of that situation,” she was saying when she felt a buzz. “Hmm,” she let out quietly.
“What’s hmm about?” Katie queried.
“Text message from V asking if we made it home safely?” Wendy replied while slightly biting her lip.
Cassie and Carry looked at each other for a moment as if to say ‘why wouldn’t she ask one of us,’ like a shared thought unspoken.
“I’ll let her know we made the flight on time and are safe at home,” she said as she pivoted toward the kitchen, her phone in her hand.
She started reading the text again – ‘Status Update!’ – she typed her reply – ‘Security still tight, but interference between the two proceeding, divide is growing.’ As Wendy got near the countertop by the sink she turned around and leaned back against it. ‘Continue as directed!’
“Katie, why don’t you pick a movie and I’ll help Wendy with the drinks. Carry,” she began and looked sharply at her with that knowing glance communicating this is all wrong. “Take a load off. You’ve earned a rest.”
“Thanks, Cas, I need one,” Carry replied then gave her a quick wink with her left eye. Cassie tilted her head to acknowledge the silent communication.
“Margarita’s alright for everyone?” Cassie asked as she headed to the kitchen.
“What about Strawberry Daiquiri’s?” Katie implored.
“Okay, I’ll do that up for you, Katie,” Cassie said and disappeared into the kitchen.
She saw Wendy still leaned back against the countertop texting as she entered.
“Alright, it’s Margarita’s and Daiquiri’s tonight,” she said loudly as she stepped over by Wendy, glancing down to see the number of the text messages.
‘Mom?’ she thought. ‘Going behind my back; I can’t believe this. ’ “So, how’s V?”
Wendy peered over the phone directly as Cassie and whispered, “You know good and well that’s not V.”
“Alright, what does mom want?”
“Just an update.”
“I was going to do that after we got settle back in a bit,” Cassie said slowly.
“Good. You need to follow up on this.” Wendy glanced toward the living room. “My dad’s been actively following us around, keeping tabs on everything.”
“Good,” Cassie said quickly with a sharp look. “We need the extra eyes with all the security that Veronica’s added. It complicates everything we’re trying to do now.”
“Tell me about it. Dad isn’t happy having to tail us around, but at least it gets him out of town while the heat is on.” Wendy looked at Cassie for the first time with concern on her face. “Dad’s a little worried this is going to go sideways on us.”
“We’ll keep our guard up. Come on, let’s get those drinks done,” Cassie encouraged her. “Grab the ice and I’ll get the blender.”
“Sure thing. Are you grabbing the liquor?”
“Of course, what else would I be doing?” Cassie fired back with deep sarcasm
Wendy rolled her eyes dramatically and opened the freezer, dumping ice cubes into the blender pitcher while Cassie reached into the cabinet beside the refrigerator for the liquor bottles.
“You know,” Wendy muttered while wrestling with a stubborn ice tray, “normal girls our age decompress with scented candles and reality television.”
“We tried that once,” Cassie replied while unscrewing the tequila cap. “Katie nearly started a fight with three women on a baking competition show.”
“Because they were cheating!” Katie shouted immediately from the living room.
“They were making cupcakes,” Carry answered flatly while kicking her shoes off near the couch.
“Competitive cupcakes,” Katie corrected. “With very specific requirements.”
Wendy snorted loudly while Cassie started pouring tequila into the blender. “Honestly, Katie would survive five minutes in prison before taking over and becoming the warden.”
“Damn right,” Katie replied proudly. “I’d own that joint!”
“But you’d make us all your prison guards?” Wendy fired back.
“Do you mean we’d all have to work for Katie?” Cassie mock protested. “No.”
The apartment slowly settled into familiar rhythm around them.
Carry curled into the far end of the couch beneath one of the oversized blankets they’d owned since their Penn Valley days while Katie flipped aimlessly through streaming menus trying to find something everyone would tolerate.
Wendy grabbed the margarita mix from the refrigerator and handed it toward Cassie.
“You know,” Wendy said casually, “this feels good to be back to normal like this.”
Cassie glanced sideways at her while securing the blender lid. “What’s normal these days?”
“All of us back here together again.” Wendy leaned against the counter. “Penn Valley apartment vibes.”
Carry gave a faint laugh from the couch. “Except back then we were broke. Not just broke, FLAT brOKE. We couldn’t even afford Mac-n-cheese.”
“We’re still broke,” Katie corrected immediately.
“No,” Carry replied dryly. “Now we’re professionally broke, except for my investments over at Pimico.”
“That’s called becoming an elitist,” Wendy announced grandly, “like Veronica.”
“That’s called Veronica keeping us too busy to have actual lives,” Katie countered.
Cassie hit the blender. The sudden roar drowned the room for several seconds until she shut it back off again.
“Honestly?” she admitted while pouring margaritas into glasses, “I have really missed this.” The room quieted slightly after that.
Not awkward, just reflective, because they all had missed it. “It’s nice to be home.”
Those two years together attending Penn Valley MCC had forged something between them that went deeper than friendship.
The late rent payments, shared groceries, high utility bills.
Then there was also the breakups, panic attacks over finals, End of Year Exam meltdowns.
Carry working double shifts, not revealing the family trauma that none of them could have understood at the time.
Cassie pretending she was just another college girl instead of mafia royalty.
Wendy sneaking boys into apartment at one in the morning while Katie still worked to be included, since she was forced to live in the dorms. They’d survived together; that’s what truly mattered in the end.
“Drinks ready,” Cassie called and started to hand out the drinks one by one before finally taking her own seat in the oversized recliner beside the couch. Wendy flopped sideways into the loveseat while Katie claimed the floor with a dramatic sigh.
“Alright,” Katie announced while grabbing the remote. “Nobody’s emotionally stable enough for reality TV tonight.”
“Agreed,” Wendy replied instantly.
“Then it’s on to romance movies,” Katie added pointedly while glancing toward Carry.
Carry immediately narrowed her eyes. “Don’t start.”
“I’m not starting anything,” Katie lied.
“Yes you are,” Cassie muttered into her margarita.
“I’m just suggesting While You Were Sleeping.”
“Really, Katie? Are you going there?” Wendy mocked.
Katie pointed toward Carry with the remote. “Okay, seriously. Are we all just pretending Veronica isn’t trying to take Greg from you?”
The room went still. Carry’s expression tightened immediately while Wendy slowly lowered her drink away from her mouth. Cassie said nothing at first, though internally every alarm bell had already started ringing.
“Katie,” Carry warned quietly. “Don’t. Not tonight.”
“No,” Katie pressed. “I’m serious. Because from where I was sitting in Houston, Veronica practically planted a flag on the man.”
Wendy coughed suddenly into her drink trying not to laugh.
“That is not helping,” Carry snapped. She glanced at Cassie. Then her eyes became like balls of fire as she glared first at Wendy then Katie.
“I’m sorry,” Wendy replied immediately, though the corners of her mouth still twitched. “But the visual metaphor was kind of accurate.”
Carry leaned back into the couch cushions with visible frustration, crushing a pillow against her chest. “Veronica isn’t trying to hurt me. You can blame Greg.”
Katie stared at her in disbelief. “Carry. She kissed him directly in front of you.”
“That doesn’t mean—” Carry started.