Trickiest Job by Cleo Peitsche

Author:Cleo Peitsche [Peitsche, Cleo]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pouch Productions
Published: 2015-03-12T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8

We sit in the kitchen and sip coffee, and Miss Susan talks about some of the things I’ve missed over the years. Cousins married, household employees retired, neighbors divorced. Layla learning to drive.

“Your grandfather isn’t a natural teacher,” Miss Susan says. She’s careful not to be too critical of him. That much hasn’t changed. “And he refused to pay for lessons, so Jeremiah taught her.”

“Jeremiah? How is he?”

“He retired a year ago,” she says, and that makes me sad. Jeremiah owned the landscaping company that tended to the flowers and lawns. He would often bring captured grasshoppers and caterpillars for Layla and me to look at.

“Your grandfather claims you’re homeless and living on the streets,” she volunteers during a lull.

Startled, I set down the cup. I don’t slam it, but it doesn’t exactly alight delicately on the saucer, either. “Did you… Do you believe him?” I ask.

“No, I didn’t. It’s a sin what that man did to you girls.”

“Girls?” The panic makes my voice sharp, and Miss Susan reaches over and strokes my cheek, just as she did when I was young.

“It wasn’t easy for Layla to lose you,” she says. “But he doesn’t play his games with her. It all seemed to stop the night you disappeared.” She gives me a canny look.

There’s a chime; someone is driving through the front gate.

My heart jumps into my mouth, and I feel suddenly all wrong. Awkward. I’m not ready to see Layla.

“I’ll bring her in,” Miss Susan says, and she leaves.

I fold my hands in my lap, and I try to imagine what I’ll say. Of course I’ll hug her, but what if she doesn’t remember me?

It’s a stupid worry, but I can’t help it.

“You’ll do fine,” Romeo says, and I feel his strength wrapping around me.

“Lindsay!” calls out Miss Susan, and there’s panic in her voice.

I surge to my feet, and my pounding heart races even faster, the individual beats too close together to know where one ends and the next begins.

There’s only one thing that could put that fearful tone into Miss Susan’s voice, and it isn’t Layla.

She rushes in. “Your limo is still out front,” she says. “Mr. Yorker won’t be able to miss it.”

Romeo stands and buttons his suit jacket. “We’ll take care of that,” he says. “Is there somewhere Lindsay can stay while we deal with Mr. Yorker?”

“But I don’t want to see him,” I say. I’m completely panicked.

“You won’t have to,” Hawthorne assures me. “We’ll say we’re here because we’re interested in doing business with him.”

“At his home? That will never fly,” I whisper.

Miss Susan touches my arm. “It could. If you know anything about real estate…” She looks pleadingly at the three men.

“That won’t be a problem,” Romeo says, and Miss Susan sends me into the rear living room.

“I’ll come get you when the coast is clear, and you can make a run for the car,” she says anxiously, a little breathlessly. “I’d better go fill in your friends so they know what to say.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.