Читать книгу Full Service Blonde - Megan Edwards - Страница 12

Chapter 4

On our way back from the Sekhmet Temple, Victoria told me that she was expected back at the Beavertail Ranch on Thursday, and she wouldn’t be off again until New Year’s Eve.

“Once you check in for work, you don’t leave the ranch until your next break,” she said. “I wanted to be off for Christmas, but nobody wants to work on Christmas. So we had a lottery, and I had to settle for taking New Year’s off.”

I don’t know what my face was saying, but it made Victoria smile. “I think of it as working on a cruise ship. If I were a massage therapist on the Emerald Princess, wouldn’t this all sound perfectly normal?”

Victoria didn’t seem to expect an answer, so I didn’t say anything.

“I started working at the Beavertail after Richard’s accident,” she continued. “When we first started talking about it, it was just a joke. But I don’t have a college degree, and I’m over forty. Makes it tough in this town. I couldn’t find a job worth doing that paid more than eight bucks an hour.”

“What about your beauty business?”

“It’s funny how things worked out. Four years ago, Richard brought home a good paycheck. American Beauty bought us a few extras, like dinner at Andre’s or a trip to Tahoe. A good little housewife hobby—that’s all it was. I sold lipsticks to girls I met at the gym or the beauty salon.

“Then came the midnight call from University Medical Center. Richard was working late on a crane at the Fashion Show Mall. A metal beam fell on his arm, and it almost had to be amputated. He’ll never have total use of his left hand again, and he still needs more surgeries on his elbow.”

“May I ask you something?” I said.

“Anything you want.”

“What does your son think?”

Victoria didn’t say anything for a minute or two.

“Up until a few days ago, Jason thought I worked as a massage therapist on a cruise ship.”

“And now?”

“I had to tell him. I couldn’t let him find out on TV or from kids at school.” She paused, and when she looked at me, her eyes were glistening with unshed tears. “The toughest part wasn’t telling him, though. The toughest part was admitting I lied in the first place.” She paused and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “That poor kid. And I can’t even be home with him for Christmas.”

“Do you have plans for New Year’s?” I asked.

“I have plans for a better new year,” Victoria said. “Everything will be better once American Beauty coughs up a good settlement.”

Back at the Silverado, I pulled in next to Victoria’s blue Taurus.

“We have a lot more talking to do, Copper,” she said. “We can do it by phone, or you’d be more than welcome to come out to Pahrump.”

As curious as I was about the Beavertail, I decided to go with the telephone idea. Victoria said she’d call me around ten on Sunday morning, when she’d be “off shift.” I drove home, debating the whole way about whether I’d tell David Nussbaum about the box behind my seat.

:: :: ::

Thursday, December 15

Wednesday disappeared in a hectic blur of holiday updates, but Thursday started off quietly. Not long after I arrived at work, Chris Farr asked me if I wanted to write a movie review. The regular reviewer’s father had come down with meningitis in Colorado. It wasn’t a sure thing, because the reviewer had an intern. But if the intern was too busy, I would get to go to an advance screening of an independent flick called Toto Too at the Village Square. The Village Square is one of the few theaters in Las Vegas that shows stuff besides the latest blockbusters. I had never heard of Toto Too, but a review with my byline would make a nice addition to my portfolio.

Everything settled down into the usual routine after that, but a triple latte had given me an energy boost. I was alert enough to realize I had better read Victoria’s files before Daniel flew in from Costa Rica and my parents arrived from Connecticut.

Christmas hadn’t started out as a family reunion. My original plan was to go to Costa Rica for a week, but Daniel had never been to Las Vegas, and we decided that New Year’s on the Strip was too good to pass up. Then Sierra asked my parents to come for Thanksgiving, but they’d already decided to spend it in Rhode Island with my mother’s sister. So now everybody would end up here on December 23rd—God, it was only a week away. Thinking about Daniel brought a warm glow to my belly. Thinking about Mom and Dad turned the glow into a knot.

Just before I left for the day, David Nussbaum stopped by my cube.

“I’m glad I caught you,” he said. “I’ve been swamped all day, but I wanted to ask you how things went Tuesday night.”

“I liked the Sekhmet Temple,” I said, still unsure whether I should tell him about Victoria’s box of documents. “Everyone was really friendly.” I paused. “I like Victoria, too. I think she deserves a lot of respect for what she’s doing.”

“Maybe,” David said. “Or maybe she just likes all the attention.”

“There’s a lot more to her than that,” I said. “I’ll keep you posted. I’m talking with her again on Sunday.”

David raised his eyebrows.

“I’m only taking your advice, David,” I said. “Remember how you told me that the best way to move up is to sell a good freelance piece?”

“Just be careful. Victoria’s got an agenda.”

So do I, I thought, but all I did was nod.