And some months ago, almost a year ago, I think, he and Annalisa began seeing each other. I know, because I could see it, and because he told me, it was serious between them.
They were happy together, and I was happy for them." "Broad-minded of you." "Oh, for-" She broke off, swallowed whatever angry remark she'd been about to make. Took a calming breath.
"Haven't you ever had someone in your life you loved, then you didn't not in the same way?" "No." Celina gave a kind of sobbing laugh. "Well, people do, Dallas. And still manage to care about each other. Lucas is a good man. He must be devastated." "He is."
She squeezed her eyes shut. "Should I go see him? No, not now, not yet. My being part of this would only make it worse, for everyone. Can we start sooner?" She reached for Mira again. "Couldn't we start right after the physical?" "No. You need this time, particularly now. If you want to help, you need to take this time." Tm going to help." She balled her hands again. "I'm going to see his face. I swear it. When I do…" Her eyes burned as they lifted to Eve's. "When I do, you'll find him. You'll stop him." "I'll stop him."
CHAPTER 16
"She knew the vie?" sympathy rippled over Peabody's face.
"Lucas, Lucas Grande, her ex. Didn't click before. Man, that's got to be rough. Especially rough. Must've been the trigger all along. It's the kind of logic in paranormal elements." "You can't use logic and paranormal in the same sentence." "Sure you can, oh stubbornly grounded one." They were going to check out shoes, Eve thought. That was logical.
"When can I drive the new ride?" "When you learn that a yellow light means haul ass to get through it before it turns red instead of slowing down to a crawl a half a block away." "You force me to point out that you drive offensively rather than defensively." "Damn straight. You drive like one of those prissy ladies at lunch who won't take the last cookie in case somebody else wants it. No, please, please," Eve said in a high, satisfyingly prissy voice, "you go ahead. Hell with that. I want the cookie, I eat the cookie. Now, give me a for instance and stop sulking." "I get thirty seconds of sulk time when my driving abilities have been so brutally and unjustly insulted. Besides, taking the last cookie is rude."
"And you and your prissy lady pals end up letting the waiter chow down on it after he takes the plate back to the kitchen." With a huff, Peabody folded her arms over her chest because she realized that was probably true. And there were many cookies she'd missed due to manners. "For instance what?" "Say you're shacked up with this guy." Her mood lifted instantly. "I am shacked up with a guy," she said, proudly.
"Peabody." "Yeah, yeah, this is a hypothetical." She sulked a little more as Eve plowed through a yellow light. "Is he really cute and sexy, and does he bring me cookies and let me eat the last one to show his love and devotion?" "Whatever. So you and this guy call it off." "Aw. I don't like this part." "Who does?5 "Was it because I ate all those cookies and my ass got fat?" "Peabody!" "Okay, okay. Sir. I'm just trying to understand the motivation.
Like who called it off, and why, and… never mind," she said when she saw Eve bare her teeth.
"You call it off, go your separate ways. You still pals?" "Maybe. Depends. Don't bite through my jugular or anything, because it really does. Did the breakup involve calling each other unflattering names and hurling small, breakable objects, or was it sad, yet reasonable, a mutual decision. See?" Eve didn't see it, but stayed the course. "No, but we'll say, for this case, it was sad, yet reasonable. So later this guy hooks up with another skirt. How would you feel about that?" "Depends again. Am I hooked up with a guy? Is the other woman thinner than me, or better looking, or rich or something? Does she have perkier boobs? These factors play in." "Goddamn it, why does it have to be so complicated?" "Because it is." "No, you're with the guy, then you're not, then he's with somebody else. Simple, straightforward. Are you all chummy?" "Okay, let's see. I was hot for this guy before I moved to New York. We weren't cohabbing, but we were pretty involved. Stuck together, in every sense, for nearly a year.
Then it fizzled. I wasn't wrecked or anything, but I was pretty, well, moony for a while. You get over it, though. We stayed friendly, you could say, and I used to see him around." "Is this going to take much longer? Will I need a hit of Stay-Up to get through the rest?" "You asked. Anyway, he hooked up with this skinny blonde with big tits. IQ of a rabbit, but hey, his choice, right? I felt a little pissy about it, but I got over that, too. Maybe, in some dark recesses of my soul, I wouldn't mind so much if he got a mild case of genital warts, but his dick doesn't have to actually fall off or anything. And if me and McNab ever take a spin out West, I can show him McNab off.
And so there. No big." She waited a beat. "Still awake?" "Barely." "If you're thinking Celina's got some mojo vengeance thing going because of Grande and Sommers, I don't see it. Doesn't work that way anyhow." "What doesn't work that way? You just said depends about six million times." "The psychic angle doesn't work that way. It's not like she could put a spell on some guy, have him go around whacking women and make sure one of them was Sommers. Second, she came to us. If she hadn't, she wouldn't have made a blip on the investigative radar when Sommers got dead. Third, all evidence points to the fact that Sommers went into the park voluntarily and alone. Then there's the profile. Guy's a loner, a woman hater, and a predator." "You're right, all the way down the line. I guess I don't like paranormal logic, which smacks mightily of coincidence." "I think there's another factor working in your head." Eve said nothing for a long moment. "Okay. I don't like the whole setup. Depending on psychic visions or hypnosis.
And I don't like Sanchez depending on me to bolster her up or hold her hand." "No more room at the Dallas Inn for another friend?" "Full up. Maybe if one of you moved off planet or met with a tragic accident I could juggle another one in." "Come on. You like her." "Yeah, so what? Do we have to be pals just because I like her? Does that mean we have to start hanging? Am I supposed to give her the last damn cookie now?" Peabody laughed, patted Eve's arm. "There, there. You'll get through this trial. You had a good time last night." Now Eve wanted to sulk, but she put her energy into scouting for a parking space. "Yeah, yeah. And don't think I don't know how this stuff works. Now we have to have everybody over to our place. Then you're going to have to have us over to yours, and-" "We're already planning on having a housewarming party." "See? See?" She zipped, with a deliberate recklessness she knew would have Peabody's heart stuffed into her throat, up to a second level, curbside. "It never ends. Once you start, you can't get off the friendship ride. You just keep circling around and around and around, with more people trying to cram on. Now I have to buy you a goddamn present just because you're shacked up in a new place."
"We could really use some nice wineglasses." She was laughing as she climbed out of the car. "You know, Dallas, you're pretty lucky in your friends, of which I am one. They're smart and fun and loyal. And diverse. I mean, could Mavis and Mira be any more different? But they both love you. Then the chilly thing happens, and your friends get to be friends." "Yeah, and they go out and make other ones, and I get stuck with somebody like Trina." Self-consciously, she ran a hand over the back of her hair.