Fakers (24 page)

She went into the kitchen and made her and
Stevie a salad for lunch. As she worked, she hummed along to a song
in her head. The ocean outside her new bay windows distracted her
too, so that she repeatedly had to remind herself of what she was
doing. By the time Stevie came downstairs, Kyra almost had her
salad polished off.

“Well,” Stevie said. Kyra looked up to where
her friend stood in the doorway of the kitchen. “They said I can
come tomorrow.”

Kyra’s mouth fell open. “Holy cow! That’s,
like, tomorrow.”

“No shit.” Stevie made a face.

“What did you tell them?”

“That I’d be there.” Stevie shrugged.

Kyra jumped up and crossed the kitchen to
hug her friend. “Stevie, that’s great!”

“No, it would be great if you were coming,”
she corrected.

Kyra gritted her teeth, but her smile stayed
in place. “I promise that I’ll call someone. Now you need to
pack.”

Her face turned slightly green as she bit
her lip. “All the alcohol is over there,” she whispered, her eyes
filling with tears.

“Oh.” Kyra’s mouth hung open slightly for a
second before she recovered. “Right, well, I could go over there
and pack for you?”

“Is this something I should want to do? Like
go over and pour all that shit out? Shouldn’t I have this big
moment where I break all the bottles and throw them around?”

Kyra hugged Stevie again. “I think that’s
only in the movies,” she said into Stevie’s hair.

“Good. ‘Cause I don’t think I’m strong
enough for that.”

She squeezed her eyes closed. “Stevie,
you’re the strongest person I know,” she whispered. Before she
could get more emotional, she stepped away. “What if I go over
there and get rid of it. Then you can come over and we can pack
together?”

Stevie thought for a second before she
bobbed her head. “I can do that, I think.”

“Okay, good. I made lunch. You can eat, and
I’ll call you when I’m done.”

“Here’s your phone. There’s a key to the
back door under the blue flower pot.”

“Thanks,” she said, taking her phone back
from Stevie. “Call you soon.”

“Can’t wait,” Stevie said dryly as Kyra went
out the back door.

Nearly an hour later, she discovered there
were a lot of bottles to pour out. Stevie practically had a full
bar of stocked liquor. After that, she tended to all the beer in
the refrigerator and the wine cooler, which was filled to the brim.
At the last second, she decided to check Stevie’s bedroom.

She found a bottle of whiskey under the bed
and a flask in Stevie’s makeup bag. She dumped them in the bathroom
sink, watching as the amber liquid gurgled down the drain. Turning
away, she tossed the containers into the trash and tied it up to
join the other bags downstairs.

Before she called Stevie, she walked the
trash out to the front drive. As she closed the garbage lid, Mrs.
Walker and her ugly, yapping dog walked toward Kyra. She waved as
they went past in the effort to be friendly, but she didn’t miss
the disapproving purse of Mrs. Walker’s lips or the shake of her
head.

Kyra flipped the woman off even though Mrs.
Walker’s back was turned. She dialed Stevie’s number. Her friend
picked up on the first ring.

“So, what’s the current trend in rehab these
days?” Kyra asked.

twenty-three

T
he next morning as
Kyra hefted a particularly large suitcase into her Jeep, she heard
a honk. Hale parked along the curb, and before he’d had time to
turn off the truck, Cade sprung out, grinning like an excited
puppy. Stevie’s expression darkened.

“Please tell me you didn’t plan a surprise
going-away party,” Stevie said, glowering at Cade when he waved to
her. “I don’t think I can handle it.”

Kyra laughed. “No, I didn’t.”

“Hey, Stevie!” Cade said. He pulled her into
a big bear hug, which Stevie reluctantly returned. “We wanted to
ride with you, if that is okay?”

“Hey,” Hale said, coming up beside Kyra. His
shoulder brushed against hers, sending a shiver down her spine. She
smiled up at him.

“Hey,” she echoed.

“Fine.” Stevie pointed to the last of her
luggage. “You can load those in the Jeep.”

“All of these?” Cade asked, his eyebrows
rising as he surveyed the rather large pile.

“Well, yeah.” Stevie opened the passenger
door and hopped in. “Always be prepared, or whatever.”

Kyra, Hale, and Cade finished loading the
Jeep before they all got inside. It was still pretty early in the
morning, but they all had a sheen of sweat on their foreheads. Kyra
cranked up the air conditioning before she pulled onto the
street.

Their conversations on the way to The Lodge
were light and superficial. Cade told jokes for Stevie, but she
rarely laughed. All in all, it was a tense drive. Kyra kept cutting
her eyes to Stevie, who mostly passed the time staring out her
window.

Their trip took them back to the mainland.
The trees were dense here, and the salty smell to the air was gone.
Kyra slowed as she looked for the entrance, but it wasn’t hard to
miss.

A large wooden sign distinguished the drive.
She put on her blinker, even though she hadn’t passed a car for
miles, and turned in. Along either side of the road were huge,
sweeping Bradford pears. There must have been nearly a hundred of
them, because the drive was two miles long. Finally it split, and
she followed a sign pointing toward the main house.

The house itself emerged from the woods. It
was massive and sprawling, but still managed to look inviting, with
bright landscaping and large windows. She pulled around the
circular drive and parked in front of the steps leading to the main
entrance. Everyone in the car craned their necks to look up at the
house, which was made of rich red logs. It was a mix of modern and
rustic that Kyra thought suited the place perfectly.

As they got out, the front door opened and a
man in a crisp white uniform hurried down the stairs. “Miss
Stevie?” he asked, looking between Stevie and Kyra.

“That would be me,” Stevie said.

“Ah! Welcome to The Lodge, Miss Stevie. My
name is David. May I take your bags?” David asked.

Cade laughed. “David, you will need about
three more of you if you want to take her bags. She came
prepared
.”

David smiled politely, as if he’d seen this
all before. “I understand.”

“I will help,” Cade offered, flicking a
quick look to Stevie. She didn’t notice as she turned to Kyra.

Hale sighed and hefted up two bags. “Fine.
Guess I’ll help too.”

“If I don’t make it out of here alive, I
want you to have my condom collection.” Stevie sniffed, pulling
Kyra into a dramatic hug when the guys were out of earshot. “And
use a few on Hale Cooper, then dump him.”

“What?” Kyra asked, laughing
uncertainly.

“You heard me,” Stevie said, the seriousness
etching onto her face when she looked at Kyra. The cuts on her face
still looked fresh and painful in the bright sunlight. “I’ve dated
my share of guys like Hale. He doesn’t understand girls like us,
and when he leaves, he’ll break your heart.”

“He understands.” Of course, she hadn’t told
him about her cuts, so he didn’t know everything.

Stevie let go of Kyra with a shrug, her
expression revealing that she knew exactly what Kyra was thinking.
“I’m just saying be careful.”

Hale and Cade walked back down the stairs.
This time, David came back with a trolley, which he rolled down the
handicap ramp and to the Jeep. Kyra ignored them and focused on
Stevie. “I’ll be fine. Focus on you, okay? Get better and come
home.”

Stevie swung her gigantic purse over her
shoulder. “Sure thing,” she said too casually to make Kyra
comfortable. “Ready, David?”

David strained to get the cart rolling
again. “Yes, ma’am.”

Stevie strutted away with Cade dogging at
her heels. He talked to her the whole way into the building, where
Stevie must have given in, because she finally stopped and hugged
him. Through the glass doors, Kyra saw her friend rolling her eyes.
That didn’t stop her from planting a big kiss on Cade’s
still-talking mouth.

“She’ll be okay,” Hale said, tucking a piece
of Kyra’s hair out of her face.

“She has to be,” she said quietly as Cade
came bounding back down the stairs with a sloppy grin on his face.
“Ready?” she asked the guys.

Everyone climbed back into the Jeep without
saying much except Cade, who made a few comments about how the
place looked nice inside. Kyra didn’t respond. The car rolled down
the drive, with the house growing smaller with each slow turn of
the wheel. She watched the trees slowly shroud her view from the
side mirror. For some reason, she felt like she was abandoning
Stevie.

Her heart sank, and she gripped the wheel
tighter. She had to force herself to keep her foot on the gas.
Stevie needed this, and she wouldn’t be gone forever. But Kyra
still wanted to cry.

“What if we stop and see Mom on the way
home?” Hale asked, surprising Kyra out of her thoughts. She glanced
over at him.

“Sure,” Cade said. “We can pick up some
groceries for her on our way in.”

“Is that fine with you?”

“Uh, sure. If you want me to meet her,” Kyra
said. Hale settled back in his seat and let his hand flutter up and
down outside the window, as if he was riding the waves of air.

“She’ll like you,” Hale said before he
reached over and turned up the radio.

Kyra didn’t know if he was trying to
distract her from Stevie or what, but she appreciated it. She
relaxed and settled in for the drive back to the island. Hale took
her hand and held it on the console, which only made the drive even
more pleasant.

He started giving her directions once they
were on the island and had picked up some groceries. They were in
the part of Canaan with the old lighthouse. She saw the top of it
as they crested a hill, and she wondered if Hale had played along
its rocky base when he was a kid.

“Is this where you grew up?” she asked,
turning into a narrow gravel drive.

“Yep. Born and raised,” he said.

A bright yellow cottage with cream shutters
emerged through the thick foliage. Creeping, colorful vines climbed
trellises along the front of the house. Huge bushes and wildflowers
sprung up all over the yard. It looked like a secret garden tucked
away, and she imagined Hale’s mother spending hours outside tending
to her gardens when she’d been healthy.

Kyra parked the Jeep in the drive and got
out while Hale and Cade gathered up the groceries. The dense trees
kept out the sound of the waves, but she sensed the salt in the
thickness of the air. The front door opened and a young lady
appeared.

“Hey, Nancy,” Cade said as he walked up to
the door.

“Nancy is Mom’s live-in nurse,” Hale
mentioned to Kyra as they followed Cade to the door.

“Hi, I’m Kyra.” She offered her hand, but
Nancy pulled her in for a hug.

“Nice to meet you!” Nancy said, releasing
Kyra. She hurried into the house after Cade, leaving the door open
for Kyra and Hale.

“She’s not much for personal space,” Hale
whispered.

Inside the house was painted in bright
colors to reflect the outside’s cheerfulness. Every window was open
to let in fresh air, and any available surface held a vase full of
sweet, blooming flowers, but Kyra still smelled the slight scent of
medicine and stagnant sickness. She couldn’t help but smile when
she walked past a revolving record player playing an old country
song.

Hale turned into the kitchen in front of
Kyra. “Hey, Mom,” he said. “I brought a visitor today.”

Kyra’s smile turned nervous when she entered
the kitchen. Nancy and Cade were already putting away groceries
while a frail woman sat at the kitchen table, arranging freshly
picked flowers. Her sharp green eyes found Kyra instantly, and she
realized that the warmth of the house was a mere reflection of this
woman.

Her hair was gone. The slickness of her
scalp shined from the sunlight coming through the windows behind
her. She looked illuminated from within as she sat in the sun’s
rays. Her long, trembling fingers were delicate as she paused,
holding up lilies that looked as if she’d dipped them in paint.

“Hello, Mrs. Cooper. I’m Kyra.” She crossed
the room and reached for the woman’s hand, but once again, she was
pulled into a weak hug. She smelled the lilies, and like the
delicate petals between them, Kyra tried not the crush the frail
woman.

“It’s nice to meet you, Kyra! What a pretty
name.” Her voice was high-pitched and excited. “Please call me
Annabelle. Have a seat. I’ve just been arranging some of my
flowers.” Hale’s mother motioned to the chair across from her at
the table. Kyra sat and looked over the flowers.

“These are beautiful,” she said, smiling up
at Annabelle.

“Thank you! Nancy picked them this morning.
We like to keep freshly cut flowers in the house.” Annabelle’s eyes
flickered with warmth and amusement, reminding Kyra instantly of
Hale. “Are you new to town, Kyra?”

“Yes, ma’am. I bought a house over on
Gardenia Street. Hale and Cade are redoing it for me.”

“Ah, the Aberdeen house. It has good bones.
My boys will make it into a good home for you.” Her eyes narrowed
again as they searched Kyra’s face. “Are you Florence’s
granddaughter?”

Kyra swallowed, her smile faltering
slightly. “Yes, ma’am.”

“I remember your mother. Lila was a
beautiful young girl. Always smiling. Always laughing.”

“I didn’t really know her,” Kyra said,
struggling to keep her smile in place.

Annabelle nodded as if she knew the story.
“A daughter should always know her mother.” She looked over at Hale
and Cade, who were both leaning on the counter and munching on
fresh-picked grapes. “Of course, I’ve only had boys, so I can’t say
much.”