Passage to Queen Mesentia (3 page)

She was crazy, was the only way he could describe it to his brother, Colt, after he’d asked why Wade needed to crash on his couch for a couple of days. Sure he might have said a couple of things to set her off, but she was freaking out and wouldn’t even let him touch her. He was mad at first; what the hell?  He thought maybe she would want to lean on him a little bit. He had begun to wonder if her coldness was caused by something other than grief.

It had hit him that morning while examining the diamond engagement ring that had become like his keys, wallet, or loose change since he moved out of their apartment; something he emptied out of his pockets at night and put back in the morning.

He snapped the little box shut after Colt walked into the living room and asked if he was going to work. Born with wrenches in their hands and grease in their diapers, they both worked at Kit’s Auto Shop. Their dad would have been proud. Wade had always thought he would be running his father’s shop after high school where he received both a diploma and an automotive certification. But his father had died before he had graduated, leaving a pile of bills instead of a thriving business, and Wade hadn’t been ready for the responsibility of bringing it back from the dead.

 “I don’t know,” Wade had said. “I was thinking about trying to catch Lilly before she goes to work today.”

“Don’t make a scene in front of her classroom.”

“I wouldn’t do that. I just need to talk to her and find out what’s really going on.”

“Wade, when she’s ready.” Colt sat on the arm of the couch—Wade’s makeshift bed. “Give her some time. I really think you should go on to work and try and get everything off your mind for a while.”

Wade shook his head and then blurted, “Lilly blames me. You know, for her parents.” There. He’d said it out-loud.

“What? No. It was a horrible thing that happened to her parents, but you didn’t do it.”

“Well, she blames me all the same.” Wade stood up and shoved the ring box into his pocket.

“Why would you say that?”

“Because the more I think about it and think about that night, and the things Lilly had said during our last fight, the more I wonder if things would have been different if I wouldn’t have stopped for that friggin cigarette!”

“Is that what she said?”

“Not exactly, but she did say something about my bad habits and how irresponsible I am. How sometimes my irresponsibly affects others.” He started hastily buttoning his shirt. “I can’t help replaying that night in my head. I mean, maybe I could have prevented it if I—”

“Wade, I’m glad you didn’t get there on time. You and Lilly would’ve been dead, right beside her parents. So, if you ask me, that friggin cigarette saved y’alls’ lives.”

Wade had ended up missing Lilly that morning before work. After work, when he was pulling into the parking lot of the apartments, she was leaving. He debated, for a second, what to do and had decided to follow her. He needed to talk to her to find out if she did blame him so that he could do whatever he needed to do to fix it. 

And that had turned out dandy. He didn’t get answers or get them back together. He had caused the opposite—she had
officially
broken up with him. He was beginning to think he was the crazy one, especially now that he had followed her again, like some stalker. But all that talk about some strange guy, her being in danger, and murder had him all nervous. He’d just wanted to make sure she made it home safe. He had no idea she would be stopping at her parents’ house.

Lilly had said the man she’d met wanted her to find something her parents had brought back from Egypt. He couldn’t believe she would put herself in danger like this. Of course, it did involve her parents. They had been pretty high up on her list when they were alive, and now that they were dead, they were first and only. It had taken him five years to make her realize she was her own person, a grown woman, who could make her own decisions. Somehow their deaths had brought the
old
Lilly back from the dead. Nevertheless, he knew in his heart that she hadn’t meant what she’d said earlier. She was just real upset at the moment and as soon as she came back to her senses, he would be there. In the meantime, he had to protect her from herself as well as anyone else who tried to hurt her.

When a car pulled up the circular drive, coming from the opposite direction Wade had parked, he threw the apple in the seat beside the other core. He sat up a bit to see around Lilly’s car, and gave a low whistle. “2005 Jaguar XKR.” Even in the dark he recognized the oblong mesh grille and hidden bumper of the sleek, straight-lined beauty.

“Crap!” he said after realizing he’d missed seeing who stepped out of the car. He searched the area until he saw a tall, dark figure almost to the front door. Definitely a man.

He jumped out of his truck, leaving the door wide open, and ran down the driveway to the front steps. He flew up the stairs and grabbed the man from behind. In one swift move, the man reversed the situation and Wade found himself against the porch wall.

The front door opened.

“Run!” Wade yelled. “Run!” If this guy had the muscle to treat him like a rag doll, he didn’t want to think about what he could do to Lilly.

Wade automatically shut his eyes when the outside light snapped on.

“Wade? Ben? What’s going on?”

“You know him?” Wade found himself saying this at the same time as his assailant.

Lilly stepped out of the house. “It’s Wade, my... uh—”

“Boyfriend,” Wade said. He stared at Lilly daring her to say different. She didn’t. However, her eyes didn’t meet his.

Wade dusted off his shirt after the man let him go.

“What’s going on?” Lilly asked.

“I was going to ask the same thing,” Wade said. “Who is this guy?”

“This is the gentleman I was talking about,” Lilly said. “The friend of my parents. Are you still following me?”

“No,” he said. “I happened to be driving... It doesn’t matter.”

“Thanks for getting here so quickly,” Lilly said to the stranger.

“You invited him?” Wade rolled his eyes and couldn’t seem to close his mouth.

“Please,” Lilly looked at Wade, “leave.”

He fidgeted, starting to feel like a real fool. But then her safety overshadowed his embarrassment. “You don’t know this guy, Lilly. He could be some sort of pervert. Look at him; he’s as big as Herman Munster.”

She gave a quick smile to the man and said, “I’m sorry. He can be so rude sometimes.”

The man didn’t seem fazed. He smiled and dismissed it all with a slight nod of the head. Wade sensed Lilly’s sudden apprehension as soon as she started biting her thumbnail. He wasn’t sure if it had all been embarrassment or if she finally snapped to the fact that she had been stupid to invite a stranger into the house at night—alone!

Lilly sighed. “We’re letting all the bugs in.  Come in. Both of you, I guess.” After they walked inside, Lilly said, “Ben, you can go right down the hall to the living room. I’ll be right there.”

He nodded and walked down the hall.

“What?” Wade said. “The living room? I never got to go in there. You always told me it was for guests only.” As soon as he had said it, he knew how childish it sounded.

“Please don’t do this,” Lilly pleaded. “This night has been very upsetting to me.”

“So you invited Mister Beauty and the Beast to get you through it?”

“Why did I say you could come in?”

He was about to let her have it again when he noticed how red her nose was and how her eyes were a little swollen and wild. Obviously she had been crying a lot. He cleared his throat and took a deep breath to calm his nerves. “I’m sorry. I’m just worried about you.”

“I know, and that’s why I’m letting you stay… on one condition; no more accusations or adolescent name calling.”

He glimpsed up at the ceiling. He didn’t want to make any promises...

“Wade? Or you can leave.”

“Fine! No more comments about Prince Alarming. That was the last one. Promise.”

Chapter 4

When Lilly and Wade walked into the living room, it seemed as if Ben felt right at home, sitting patiently with his arm draped across the back of the white sofa. Lilly found it ironic that the living room, the source of her childhood willpower torture, had become the only room in the house that she now felt comfortable in. She couldn’t remember her mother ever saying the words, “Don’t go in there,” but it was understood. She had been a good girl and had never stepped foot inside the “museum room.” Now—because she hadn’t developed a homey familiarity with the couch, the rug, the statues, or the framed original art—it all felt alien, which helped her feel disconnected from the sorrow she associated with the rest of the house.

“Lilly,” Wade said but glared at Ben. “What’s going on? Why did you call this guy instead of me?”

“I called Ben because I have information... for
him
.”

She noticed a spark of hope in Ben’s steady eyes as he stared up at her. She dryly smiled at him, not wanting to make him expect too much. “Here,” she said, pulling a piece of paper from her pocket and handing it to him. “I found this.”

Ben unfolded the paper and read it to himself and then asked Lilly, “Did you read it?”

She nodded, feeling a bit flushed, because it had been addressed to him. And not only had she read it, she had memorized the strange, ominous words.

Dearest Ben,

If you are reading this letter, the worst has happened. Our apologies. In fear of this very thing, we have taken great lengths to secure your property. For the safety of all, we cannot tell you where. Only that my words are always as true as the direction of my heart.

Best Regards,

Isabel

“Well?” Wade asked impatiently. “What did it say?” Wade glanced from Ben to Lilly with curiosity. “Is someone going to tell me?”

“It’s not for me—” Lilly started, but then Ben handed the letter to Wade.

After Wade read it, he said, “Leave it up to your parents to be so helpful. What the hell does this mean?”

Lilly shrugged her shoulders. “Ben?”

He shook his head.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be more helpful,” Lilly said. “That’s all I found.”

Wade said, “If you ask me, it sounds like her folks hid it before they even got home. So it is nowhere near here. I suggest you search for your thing… far, far away from here.”

“Lillian.” Ben stood up, holding her eyes captive with his. “I still need your help. I need you to help me understand what your mother was trying to tell me. I need to locate the Pyramidion Statuette, immediately.”

She nodded her head. “I’ll do what I can.”

Wade cleared his throat before he squeezed himself in between Lilly and Ben and spoke directly to Ben. “Look here, pal, I think you’ve already imposed too much on Lilly’s hospitality. This has been really hard on her, going through her folks’ things like that. I’m sure the cops would be more than happy to help you, seeing as you seem to know so much about her parents’ murder.”

“Wade,” Lilly protested, trying to move him by his arm.

He shrugged her off. “Why do you know so much? Maybe we should call the cops right now.”

“That would be a grave mistake,” Ben said.

“What? Are you threatening me?” He turned to Lilly. “This guy is actually threatening me.”

“No, Wade, it’s you,” Lilly said, losing her patience. “You’re out of line.”

“What? How can you say that?”

“I must be going.” Ben stepped around Wade. “I will contact you tomorrow evening.”

“Tomorrow is Saturday,” she said. “I’ll be free all day.”

“I have a previous engagement until the evening,” Ben said, holding out his hand. She took it, thinking it was for a handshake. However, he grabbed her hand and brought it up to his lips.

“Oh, come on,” Wade said.

Ben stared into Lilly’s eyes as he slowly and tenderly pressed his lips against her hand, sending little shivers through her body.

“It’s like I’m not even here,” Wade said.

“Tomorrow evening,” Ben said after he finally released her. She nodded, feeling awkward, and Ben walked toward the front door.

Wade yelled, “Bye.”

After Ben had shut the door behind him, Lilly sat down on the couch.

Wade paced and talked. “We don’t know anything about that guy. You’re way too trusting.”

“No, you’re overreacting, and it’s embarrassing.”

“Oh, I see what this is about.”

Lilly shot Wade a look. “What?”

“I’m not blind.” He stopped in front of her and put his hands in his pockets, but stared at the wall. “I see the way you look at him. What? Do you like this clown or something?”

“Now you’re being ridiculous,” she said but wondered if it were true. Ben did have a presence that made her lose herself. Why
had
she called him tonight and not waited until morning? Had she called him because she wanted to see him again? She didn’t even know him. Only what he had told her. She felt a wave of regret ride up her neck to heat her face.
What was I thinking—inviting a stranger over in the middle of the night?

 “Well, then.” Wade began to fidget and then walk again. “Tell him to take a hike. You already did what he asked. I’m telling you, there’s something not quite right about him.”

No, that can’t be it. I’m not helping him because I’m attracted to him; I’m doing this because my parents trusted him.
“Whatever this statuette is,” she said with newfound conviction, “my parents might have given their lives for it. The note. The note proves that everything Ben said is true.” She knew she was confirming her motivations more to herself than to Wade.

“Maybe, but you didn’t find anything. There’s nothing here. You did all you can do. Let it go.”

“I can’t. You don’t understand. It’s weird, but I feel like this is something I
have
to do.”

Wade nodded thoughtfully. “Okay then. Fine. Let me help. How can I help?”

“I’m sorry, Wade, you have a way of making things worse. I have a lot of things to think about and you storming around like a, a
cowboy
, isn’t helping. I don’t need… I don’t
want
your help or protection. Please give me some room. He’s gone, there’s no danger. Please do me a favor and leave without a fight.”