Page 75 of Thief of Night
Suzie put her hands on her hips and fixed him with a mock-scolding expression. “You weren’t very nice to her either.”
“I wasn’t good at being a person then,” he told her, the double meaning only obvious to Charlie.
Luckily, the elevator finally arrived. Red stuck his foot in, stopping the doors from closing.
“Have Charlie give you my number,” Suzie told him. “I’d love to catch up.”
Moving took the rest of the afternoon. Sweaty and covered in dust, they collapsed onto any furniture handy. Aron lolled on a beanbag that Posey had kept in her room and argued with Katelynn about whether the molding was Second Empire, Neoclassical, or something else.
José was telling Malhar the story of how he and Paul met, all three of them on the couch. Paul’s eyes were closed.
Pizza was ordered. Beer was acquired. Vodka and lemonade were put into a vase when no pitcher could be found. Plates were removed from a box labeledPLAAAAAATES. Lucipurrr was removed from her cat carrier. She stalked around the place, tail high as a flag.
I don’t understand what we’re doing in a building like this one.Charlie sent the thought to Red.
A few ideas presented themselves, none of which she liked. Was this a gambit by one of his family—offer the place to Posey, and then hold it over Charlie to control him? Would they wind up on the street through some elaborate bait and switch, forcing her to go crawling to Fiona or Adeline for help?
Not that she would. She’d rather sleep on the floor of her mother’s long-stay hotel than accept charity from Adeline. Hell, she’d rather break into the abandoned mill building and sleep where the dead drifter had.
Perhaps you should consider asking your sister. His tone was gentle, as though breaking bad news.
What could Posey have done?
He didn’t answer, leaving her to fill in his silence with her fears.
Charlie walked over to the chair that Posey occupied.
How many times had Charlie been secretive, assuring Posey that it didn’t matter where the money came from? Brushing off questions? If Poseyhadmade some kind of sketchy deal, she was only showing Charlie love in the exact way that Charlie had taught her to show it. That didn’t make Charlie feel better; if anything it made her feel worse.
“This place is great,” Charlie made herself say. “I really love it.”
Posey’s smile was brilliant. “It is, right?”
“Andyou’regreat,” Charlie told her.
A small frown started between her brows. “What’s up?”
“Nothing. Just happy.” Charlie wasn’t good at trusting people, but Posey deserved her trust anyway.
She made herself walk away without asking more questions.
As she stood at the window, looking down on the glittering lights of Northampton, someone touched her elbow and she turned.
Red held two plastic cups of spiked lemonade. He offered one to her.
Charlie accepted hers, taking a grateful swig. The drink tasted bitter and sweet at the same time.
“I was wondering if you had a moment to talk?” he asked. “Outside.”
“Sure,” she told him. “Is something wrong?”
He shook his head. The apartment was full of people, though. Deon had commandeered José to help mount the television on the wall and they were doing a lot of measuring and muttering. Malhar was messing around with the portable Bluetooth speaker, trying to agree on a song with Posey.
No one noticed as Charlie and Red slipped out of the apartment, down the stairs, and out into the cold night. The lights of Northampton were bright, but the hum of people was far from the leaf-lined parking lot.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“Once, you told me that you would cut me free from you if that’s what I wanted,” he said, his voice low. “Will you do that now?”
