The Rosaries (Crossroads Series) (26 page)

Maybe because you never gave a rat’s ass about what’s important to me, “Daddy.”

“I’m sorry, Dad. Life has been crazy these past two weeks, and I still have to catch up with phone calls.”

“Shame on you, Darling. Anyway, I’m calling to let you know that I’m planning to go to your show.”

Natalie almost slammed on the brakes in the middle of the highway.  “Dad, you do know the show is in England, right?”

“Of course, Honey. Your mother and I are thinking of going. It will give us the opportunity to get away for a little while, and maybe work through some of the rough spots we’ve encountered.”

Natalie sighed and dropped the bomb. “Dad, some of the paintings in the show are not mine…they are Aunt Catherine’s. Are you sure it would be healthy for you and Mom to try healing your marriage there?”

“I never thought she would bring those paintings out of her closet, Natalie. She never wanted anyone to know.”

Oh my God! Dad knew?

“I suppose she changed her mind at some point, because she left precise instructions with her attorney to let me know she was Marcie Walker.”

“Natalie…I contribute money to the Marcie Walker Foundation every year. Nobody needs to know Marcie Walker and Catherine were the same person.”

“I’m sorry dad, but it’s time for Aunt Catherine’s light to shine.”

Phillip swallowed loudly and said goodbye. Catherine made several mistakes in her life, but this one was probably one of the gravest – exposing her secret identity to the world meant the end of his marriage. Maybe that had been Catherine’s plan of revenge all along.

By going to London he was going to kill two birds with one stone. Getting the rosary was, of course, his main goal, but this trip was necessary to get his life back on the right track. He had made many mistakes - and really never meant to hurt anyone - but unfortunately circumstances sometimes have a will of their own. Going on the trip was certainly a good idea; he just had to make sure all his ducks were aligned. Victory was indeed very near.

Chapter Sixteen

Olivia’s wedding was set for tomorrow evening. When she first woke up in their hotel room in London, it took Melody a few minutes to even remember where she was. She stared at the pretty papered wall – a creamy background and a pattern of gold and sage curls – and listened for sounds coming from the street. Compared to her farm in Clayton,
London
sounded like a zoo. She got up and went to the window to take a look – several buildings were directly across from the hotel, and the street right below was congested with traffic.

She looked at her watch and gasped. It was almost twelve! She hadn’t slept this late in years. Mario was still asleep but started stirring after she got out of bed, so she headed to the small coffee pot she had spotted inside a shelf the day before, and turned it on. As soon as the coffee started dripping, Mario woke up.

“Good morning Sunshine.”

Melody smiled when she heard his voice. “Good morning! Did you sleep well?”

Mario lifted himself on his elbow and used the free hand to rub his eyes. “Boy, talk about jet-lag. What time is it?”

“It’s past noon. We slept through breakfast, unfortunately. I suppose we’ll have to find something to eat when we leave the hotel.”

“Sounds good to me, even if I could sleep all day; I’m too tired to even move.”

“Me too, but I guess we’ll have to get up if we want to see the city a little.”

“Yes Ma’am. Any special plans for today?”

“Absolutely. We are meeting Paul and Olivia for the rehearsal dinner - Graham’s family is going to be there; I also told Olivia that we would probably go out on the town with her and Graham after dinner, if you feel up to it.”

“Oh God, that’s a full day!” Mario pretended to cry and fell back against the fluffy white pillows.

“Come on, you lazy thing…get up!’

She threw a small cushion at him, before going to fix a cup of coffee for both.

They were dressed and out of the room within the hour, still on time to wander around a bit and get some lunch. Their hotel was on the second block of St. James’s Street, only around the corner from the Spencer House on James’s Place, so they decided to take a walk and see the place before tonight’s rehearsal. They ran into Paul, who was doing his own share of sightseeing.

“Paul! So, what do you think of London?”

Paul touched the side of his fishing hat, resting his index and middle finger on the hook threaded through the visor. “Well…It’s about as crazy as
New Orleans
here, and people drive on the wrong side of the road.”

Melody laughed – in a distant flash she remembered thinking exactly the same thing about driving on the left side of the road, when she came to
London
with her parents as a child.

“I remember my parents took me to a really neat little pub on Kings Road once. We took one of the red buses and rode on the top. Would you guys like to go with me to see if the pub is still there?”

Both Mario and Paul looked at her sideways.

“We will need to meet Graham’s parents at five” Paul said, “what if we get lost?”

“With Melody as a navigator we have no chance of getting lost, Paul. She
googled
the map of this place for hours back at home; I’m sure she could take us anywhere in town and know exactly where she is at all times.” Mario replied.

“You guys are probably right, though,” she allowed, “we don’t have much time before we have to go back and get ready for the rehearsal. Let’s just get some lunch around here. Then we can maybe walk a bit around Piccadilly or go see Knightsbridge.”

“It sounds like a good plan, Melody. Lead and we’ll follow.”

They ate lunch and walked along St. James’s Place, then went back to the hotel to get ready. So far, although they were still exhausted from the trip, their stay in London had been
great, and Melody was thrilled to be here and partake of her cousin’s joy. She hugged Mario while they walked up the stairs to their room. “I’m really happy to be here, Mario; after Olivia’s wedding tomorrow, we will finally be able to enjoy a little rest and relaxation.”

When they exited the gate at the airport in London, Natalie and
Lakeisha
followed the rest of the passengers, hoping they wouldn’t miss Tom at the baggage claim. The queue of people flowed smoothly and hurriedly like toys on an assembly line, only occasionally interrupted by a few staff members pushing wheelchairs. The line came to a halt at a security desk, where people were asked to show their passports and other documentation. The British nationals veered to a much faster line, leaving the visitors to fend for themselves in the slower lane.

After leaving the passport check point, they finally arrived at the baggage claim area, and noticed an older gentleman sitting in one of the chairs near the belt. From the description he had given her by e-mail, Natalie was fairly sure the man was Tom. She and
Lakeisha
headed in his direction, and he stood up immediately.

“Natalie?” The man asked with a soft voice.

“You must be Tom. It’s great to meet you.” Natalie replied. “And this is my friend
Lakeisha
. She is such a great supporter of my work that I insisted she should come with me.”

“Of course; it’s very nice to meet you,
Lakeisha
.”

“Likewise”
Lakeisha
shook Tom’s extended hand.

“It is so good to see you, both. Did you have a good trip?”

“We had a
long
trip, Tom! I didn’t think we were ever
gonna
make it here.”

“Well, let’s get on our way, then. Do you have your luggage?”

Natalie nodded and quickly picked up the two suitcases on the floor by her feet.

They left the airport and went straight to Tom’s house. Although most people usually took the train from London Gatwick Airport into Victoria Station, Tom had decided to pick them up by car.

When they arrived at Tom’s townhouse, both
Lakeisha
and Natalie took in the first few images of the street with wonder-filled eyes. Like children taking their first taste of green beans, they apprehensively but excitedly looked out of the car window to test their initial impression of
the unfamiliar surroundings. The street looked very clean and appeared to be a perfect geometrical design, with white row houses and small decorative trees symmetrically aligned, their layout only interrupted by a quaint neighborhood grocery store. Natalie didn’t know which house was Tom’s but she assumed that it was the one directly across the spot where he had parked the car. Tom took their luggage out of the trunk and led the way toward the three front stairs.

Although she was tired, Natalie appreciated the fine décor of the simple home: a stern cast iron rail matched the glossy black of the front door, and created a strong contrast with the stark white walls of the house. Before walking in and closing the door, Natalie paused on the front step for a moment, feeling as if she was about to cross an invisible portal to a whole new world. Once she turned her attention to the interior of the house, she immediately noticed the white tiled floor and the high ceiling in the small foyer. The walls were painted a soft buttercup yellow and created a lovely contrast with the thick cherry doors past the corridor. The home was clean and not very frivolous, with only a few portraits and paintings hung sparingly as to not overwhelm the space. The furniture was simple and definitely antique, although Natalie could not determine the style or époque. Tom went to the kitchen to set a kettle of water on the stove for tea, and Natalie and
Lakeisha
followed him.

“Let’s have some tea, ladies, and then you can freshen up a bit, if you wish. I prepared the guest room for you; it has double beds.”

Lakeisha
liked Tom – his energy was clean and sincere. Maybe he would become an ally in the days to come.

Paul was restless, and as time ticked away he was getting more agitated by the minute. Deep down he knew his apprehension was not only due to his daughter getting married – there was more, something he couldn’t quite identify, which was bothering him at the core.

Paul had never been the most psychically gifted member of his family – his sister Giselle and his great-niece Melody certainly had him beaten when it came to that – but he did occasionally have premonitions that never failed to manifest; they often came in dreams, but once in a while they surprised him while he was awake, and scared the daylights out of him.

By the time he got back to his hotel room from meeting Melody and Mario, he lay down for a while before the rehearsal dinner, and as soon as he closed his eyes, he saw Melody walking on an unfamiliar street. He saw shadows everywhere, trying to reach out to her, but Melody didn’t see them. She kept walking, until she saw a woman running. The two women looked at one another, and right at that moment one of the shadows separated from the rest and went after Melody! Paul screamed for Melody to run, but she just stood there. One of the streetlights flickered and he heard a clock ticking.

The daydream probably lasted only a few seconds, but Paul came out of feeling as if it had lasted a lifetime. His hands were shaking, and his throat was parched. He thought of the man who walked into his store back in
Louisiana
, and he remembered his words. “Protect Melody, Paul. That is your final task.”

“Natalie, it’s me, Dad. Mother and I will leave tomorrow afternoon, and we’ll be in
London
the day after tomorrow. We will be staying at the Ritz in Piccadilly. I will call you when we get settled in.”

Natalie played the message on her cell phone and rolled her eyes. It was just like her parents to not even ask if they were welcome. “Wow! Talk about being invasive!” She told
Lakeisha
as her friend was preparing for bed.

“Well, Natalie, maybe your parents had a change of heart, like your aunt did.”

Natalie laughed bitterly. “Yeah, it will be a cold day in hell when that happens. My father said that he and my mother are trying to work kinks out of their marriage. I guess he has to do something to win her back, after she found out he cheated on her with Aunt Catherine.”

“What? That’s just messed up, Natalie. Are you kidding?”

“Not at all,
Lakeisha
. I wish I was.”

“People make mistakes, Sugar. We are all only human, all here to learn.”

“Oh, I know…but with my mom’s sister? You have to admit that it is a little rotten, no matter what angle one looks at it from.”

Lakeisha
nodded, and went back to organizing the few belongings she had brought with her into one of the drawers of the antique dresser. “Natalie, where is the rosary?’

“It’s still packed in my suitcase, I believe.”