Page 4 of Sweet Revenge

CrestwoodHighSchoolhad been better than she’d hoped for.Therest of the summer had gone quickly with all the unpacking and decorating she and her parents had done at their new house.It’dtaken a few weeks to settle into the new school and find a clique she fit into, but through it all, even with thousands of miles separating them, her cousin had been there for her.They’doften texted,Facetimed, and called, celebrating, commiserating, and supporting each other through different life events.Thatwas whySadiewas now helpingAlliesort through her deceased aunt’s possessions.

EmilyThurmanhad been her father’s sister, whileSadiewas related toAllieon her mother’s side, but the older woman had treated them both with the same amount of love as they grew up.She’dbeen widowed at a young age and never remarried or had any children of her own, but everyone close toEmilyhad been family to her, whether they were blood-related or not.Sadiehad cried as hard asAlliewhen she’d heard the elderly woman had passed away two months ago.WithAlliebeing the closest heir, most of the estate had been left to her uponEmily’sdeath.Therest had been bequeathed to several charities.

“Iwas a dork.Youbelonged inTeenMagazine.”

Sadierolled her eyes. “Youwerenota dork—just a late bloomer.Imean, look at you now—you’re fucking gorgeous.Hell, most of the people atAuntEm’swake and funeral, who weren’t family, had no clue who you were.”

Itwas true.Duringthe months following the move toDenver,Alliehad shot up and out, adding five inches to her height and two cup sizes to her breasts.Herbaby fat had finally shifted to where it enhanced her figure.Suddenly, she had cleavage, a narrower waist, and curvy hips.Inother words, she’d become voluptuous.Thechubbiness had left her face, showing off cheekbones and smooth, nearly flawless skin that more than one of her friends had said they’d kill for over the years.Thebraces had come off, and her parents allowed her to ditch the glasses at sixteen and arranged for her to get contacts.Andnow, she didn’t even need those since havingLASIKsurgery a few years ago.

Allof those changes had contributed to her gaining self-confidence, especially when the boys started to notice and flirt with her, but she’d still been a bit introverted for the rest of her high school years.Whileshe’d made more friends inColoradothan inNewYork, it hadn’t been until she attended college that her personality had truly emerged.Thankfully, her sorority sisters and a few mentors had helped draw her out of her shell.Aftershe’d pledged toChiOmegaatRidgelandUniversity, she’d blossomed.

Duringher third year of college, a friend had convincedAllieto dye her hair a rich auburn with beautiful highlights, adding to her transformation from blahAllondrato chicAllie.Hermother andSadiesaid the coloring lit up her face, and she loved it enough to keep it that way ever since.Shewas a completely different woman than the teenager she’d been, and sometimes, it seemed like her younger self had existed in another dimension.Oneshe never wanted to visit again.

DuringAuntEmily’swake, many people she’d known had asked who she was since she’d been standing in a receiving line with the family.Onceshe said her name, most had gaped momentarily before regaining their composure and offering her their condolences for her loss.Itwould’ve been comical if it hadn’t been such a solemn occasion.

Bringingher attention back to the task at hand,Allieglanced around the living room.Shestill had so much to do and no idea where to begin.ThankgoodnessSadiewas more organized when it came to household stuff.Allie’soffice was tidy and efficient.Herapartment?Notso much.

Sadiehanded her a piece of paper. “Okay, here’s your list.Callthe charity to pick up the pieces of furniture that are still in good condition, but you don’t want to keep.Thenarrange for a dumpster to be delivered byFriday.Iput the name and number of the company thatPete’sfriend owns.Don’tforget to tellRichyou’re related to us—he’ll give you a good deal.Then, grab everything on the shopping list while running your other errands.PeteandIwill be here with the kids first thing onSaturdaymorning to help go through all the cabinets, drawers, closets, basement, and the garage.”

Allietook the list from her cousin, mentally adding a few other chores to it.Astack of death certificates in her aunt’s name had to be mailed to creditors, her health insurance carrier, theSocialSecurityAgencyadministration, and theDepartmentofMotorVehicles.Emily’slife insurer had already been notified since that money had been used for the funeral, with the remaining amount mailed toAlliein the form of a check.Otherdeath certificates needed to be delivered to the utility companies, the town’s tax office,AuntEmily’sbank, her financial planner, and her insurance agent for the house and the car still sitting in the driveway.Sellingthe five-year-oldBuickwas one more thing on an extensive checklist of thingsAlliehad to do.

“Areyou any closer to making a decision about whether to sell the house or move back here?”Sadieasked.

Sheshook her head. “Notreally.Partof me wants to—it would be great to live near you and the rest of the family again.Ispoke to my boss, who saidIcould easily transfer to theAlbanyoffice, but it’s such a big decision.IlikeDenverand have friends there, but...oh, hell,Idon’t know.Momsaid she’d move back here ifIwanted to—not to live with me, though.She’dfind another senior living facility.ButifIwant to stay inDenver, then she will too.Anyway,Ihave four weeks beforeIhave to go back to work.Hopefully,I’llknow by then whatIwant to do.”

Betweenher annual vacation allowance and a lot of unused personal time, she’d been able to take a full month off of work to deal with her aunt’s estate.Thatwas after the week she’d taken to fly in for the memorial services, which her aunt had pre-arranged at some point with a local funeral home and the church she’d attended most of her life.

Sadiewrapped her arms aroundAlliein a comforting hug. “You’llmake the decision when the time is right.I’llsupport you either way.I’dlove to have you and your mother back here, but you have to do what’s best for you.”Releasingher,Sadiegrabbed her purse and keys from the coffee table. “Allright.Ihave to go pick upJayneand take her to soccer practice.Callif you need anything else or think of something we forgot.”

“Iwill.”

“Areyou sure you don’t want to come over for dinner tonight?”

Shewaved her cousin off. “Yeah, but thanks anyway.I’llgrab something at the hotel, then stop at the supermarket and pick up some food on my way here tomorrow.Atleast the refrigerator is clean now.”It’dbeen the first thing they’d worked on whenSadiehad arrived earlier.ThankGodthe electric bills were on auto-pay, so it hadn’t been too disgusting to throw out everything in the freezer and fridge that’d been there for at least two months before scrubbing the interior.

AfterSadieleft,Alliecalled her mother, who picked up on the second ring. “Hi, sweetheart.Iwas just thinking about you.How’sit going?”

“Okay,Iguess.Sadiewas here for a few hours, and we’ve made a battle plan to attack everything that needs to be done.”

“IwishIcould be there to help.”Hermother,Brenda, had tripped and fallen last week, breaking her left wrist.Insteadof taking another trip back east withAllie, she’d stayed home since there would’ve been little she could do one-handed.Allie’sfather,Patrick, had died a few years ago.Sincethen, her mom had sold their house and moved into an apartment in a senior living complex where she had plenty of friends who could assist her.

“We’vegot it covered.Sadieis bringingPete,Jayne, andMattover onSaturday, along with two ofMatt’sfriends.Theboys can helpPetesort through the things in the basement and garage whileSadie,Jayne, andItackle all the closets and stuff.”

Mattand his friends were all thirteen years old, while his younger sister was eleven.Allieplanned to pay the kids for their time and then getSadieandPetea gift certificate to a nice restaurant or something since they would never accept money from her.

“Areyou staying there tonight or at the hotel again?”

“AuntEmbought a new full-size mattress for the spare bedroom at some point—it’s still wrapped in the plastic it was delivered in, so she must’ve recently gotten it.Sheonly had that old blue quilt on it.Thereare linens in the closet, butIdon’t know when she washed them last, soIran them through the laundry earlier.Tomorrow,I’mgoing shopping for a few things, and pillows and a comforter are on my list.I’llsleep at the hotel again tonight since it’s too late to check out, butI’llstay here starting tomorrow.”

She’dflown intoAlbanyyesterday, picked up theSUVshe’d rented, and driven toHolden, where she’d checked into a hotel not far from her aunt’s house.WhileEmilyhad kept her home clean, it’d been two months since anyone had been in it.Alliehad decided to wait until she andSadiecould take a quick inventory of what they needed and give everything a good scrubbing before she moved in for the next few weeks.Inaddition to the kitchen, they’d cleaned both bathrooms earlier.

“Okay.Good.”

Shepaced the living room. “Howare you feeling?How’sthe arm?”

“Better.Ididn’t need the pain pills today.Tylenolwas enough.Margiewill be here in about ten minutes to take me to lunch, so don’t worry about me.”

Aftera little more chitchat, they ended the call.Hermom had such wonderful friends inDenver, which was one of the reasonsAlliewas waffling on whether to move back toHolden.Itwasn’t as ifBrendacouldn’t make new friends—in fact, she still stayed in touch with several from when she’d lived inNewYork.

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