Page 15 of Chubs

“Aren’t you supposed to be with her?”

“Yeah, but he stinks, so I came outside.”

“You shouldn’t have left your mom,” I tell him in a stern voice. “What if she needs help? You should stay with her to help and protect her if she needs it. And you should never talk to strangers when she’s not there.”

I watch as he fidgets and thinks over my words.

“I better go check on her,” he states before breaking into a trot toward the restrooms.

Starting the car, I drive slowly through the parking lot so I can keep the boy in sight. When he enters the building, I pull off to the side and wait. A few minutes pass before a young woman exits the building, carrying a diaper bag over her shoulder, an infant seat in one hand, and the other hand gripping that of the young boy. He smiles and waves when he spots me, but the mom doesn’t notice. Once they’re all safely in their car and pulling out, I park and use the facilities before hitting the road again. The boy reminded me of Craig and Luke, and a pain hits my chest at all I’m going to miss out on.

At the end of another long day of driving, I stop at a convenience store. Wearing my sunglasses and avoiding eye contact, I buy food, drinks, and a burner cellphone. I drive for another few hours before finding a run-down, off-the-beaten-path hotel. Gathering my things, I rent a room and make my way to it.

I take a shower, eat, and then pull out the phone. Once I have it powered up, I make a call. When I hear the voice on the other end, time freezes. It takes me a few seconds to speak, knowing the bomb that’s about to get dropped.

“Brother,” I say in a low gravelly tone due to the emotion gripping my body.

“What? Who is this?” my younger brother,Alessandro,barks after a short pause.

“It’s me. Are you alone, and can you talk?” I ask quickly, worrying he might hang up on me, thinking this is a prank call.

I wait, not saying anything further, and the silence drags on. Finally, he answers.

“No. I’ll call when I can.”

The call ends abruptly, and I breathe deeply for a few minutes. I haven’t heard that voice in many years, and I wasn’t well enough prepared for how it would affect me. I can only imagine how he must be feeling about hearing mine as well. It’s not often a dead man calls his brother several years after he died.

Chapter 8

Lucy

With effort, I get a lock on my emotions and put a bland look on my face. I follow Mom and Lisa while we explore Washington, D.C., dine out, and shop. I ignore the concerned looks from my family and go through the motions. Other than Lisa, Mom, and Dad, no one would ever guess that I’m completely dead inside. I smile when it’s appropriate and feign interest in things I could give two shits about. The only emotion I actually feel is anger, and I refuse to let it show.

On our last night in D.C., we are attending a formal dinner party given in honor of my dad and his colleagues. I’ve been dreading it the whole trip, and Dad has insisted several times I don’t have to attend, but I’m going anyway. I had promised to before we left Denver, and I’m not backing out now.

I put the finishing touches on my makeup and stand just as Lisa enters my room.

“Holy shit! You look fabulous!” Lisa shouts.

I give Lisa a small curtsy that makes her laugh before returning the compliment.

“You look fabulous too.”

“Let’s go kick some D.C. ass,” she declares before sliding her arm through mine and pulling me toward the door.

Stepping into the elevator, I ignore the two well-dressed men standing at the back. I especially ignore the once-over they give us. When the door slides shut, one of them speaks.

“Which floor, ladies?”

I don’t answer but reach over and hit the button for the lobby.

“Going somewhere special?” a different deep voice asks.

I, again, don’t answer or look over my shoulder, but Lisa does.

“To a dinner,” she answers politely.

“And after this dinner, what then? Interested in meeting in the lobby for a drink, maybe?” the voice questions.

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