Larceny and Lace Read Online Free Page B

again, will you, Nick?”"
    “"Yes, sir,”" Nick said, shaking my father’'s hand.
    Scary when you didn’'t know what kind of danger they were getting into. Nick kissed me once more outside, a ravenous “"I’'ll miss you like hell”" kiss.
     
    I really didn’'t want to let him go—--we were like ships passing in the night—--but I didn’'t have a choice. “"Will you be able to call this time?”" I asked.
    “"I will if I can. I don’'t know yet where we’'re going.”"
    “"And if you did, you wouldn’'t tell me.”"
    He tapped my nose, traced my lips, and walked away.
    I stood in the doorway until his Humvee disappeared, then I turned to the people I loved, standing at the bottom of the stairs, watching me with concern.
    “"I’'m fine,”" I said. “"Alex and Nick will be, too. Let’'s go open the secret room.”" Six For me, elegance is not to pass unnoticed but to get to the very soul of what one is.
    —--CHRISTIAN LACROIX
    My father, carrying the box of NiCads, indicated that we ladies should precede him up the stairs.
    “"Ever the gentleman, Harry,”" Fiona said, going first. She liked getting her kicks by baiting my father with slip-stitched compliments that he could take either way. The day he started giving her as good as he got would be the day he saw Aunt Fiona for the first time.
    “"Dolly thinks I’'ll like what I find,”" I said to break the silence as I reached the second floor. “"She just can’'t remember what it is.”" Everyone there had already seen the hearse, the row of vintage caskets, and the ancient oval metal tub—--once skirted and filled with ice to set beneath caskets at home wakes—--so no one was skeeved by the knowledge of their presence in the shadowy darkness.
    Eve rubbed her hands together. “"Open the damned doors.”"
    “"Wait,”" my father said, putting the box of lights on the floor. “"First we need to see the damned doors. He stood the giant flashlight-type thingies around the room, with two by the secret doors, switching them on as he went, turning the room to near daylight.
    “"Figures,”" Eve said, hands on her hips. “"Leave it to Jaconetti to carry around a box of florescent phallic symbols. I’'m surprised they don’'t flash his name.”"
    “"Eve!”" Aunt Fiona gasped, though she was grinning.
    One of the lights went out immediately.
    “"Any batteries in that box, Dad?”"
    “"Afraid not.”" My father frowned. “"What the devil?”" He stared aghast at the storage room entry and indicated a free-hanging splinter the size of his arm. “"These doors didn’'t look like this earlier.”"
    “"What time earlier?”" I asked.
    “"I left with the construction crew around seven thirty.”"
    “"And I got here a little after eight, so the intruder didn’'t waste any time.”" Eve and I glanced at each other. Fiona caught the glance. My dad didn’'t.
    “"Somebody must have broken in,”" I said.
    Aunt Fiona stared into my eyes. “"Madeira? You don’'t sound too surprised.”" Scrap. “"Okay, somebody did break in. But he’'s gone now, so it’'s all good.”"
    “"He?”" my father asked.
    I huffed. “"Judging by the sound of him thumping down the stairs? Yes, it was probably a man.”" A half-truth. “"Someone with a heavy and robust build. I didn’'t see him. It was too dark.”"
    “"Madeira!”" my father and Fiona snapped, in sync for once. Eve chuckled. “"Our Miss Fix-It chased him away by herself.”" I picked up my baby cat and the butterflies in my middle stopped fluttering.
    “"Chakra helped.”"
    My father frowned. “"Was the outside door open when you got here, because I locked it when I left.”"
    “"Locked. I had to use my key.”"
    Given Dad and Aunt Fiona’'s black looks, it was a good thing I was too old for a spanking. They made me recap every detail.
    By the time I finished, another of Nick’'s lights went out while my Dad walked the perimeter of the room, hands fisted. “"Here,”" he called from the