A/N: Thank you again for all of the wonderful readers and reviewers. I love getting each review. I will be trying to keep a weekly posting schedule, but I will be busier starting tomorrow so the posts may be a bit spread out. As always, let me know what you think of this chapter!
Disclaimer: I own none of JE's characters.
Plum & Prejudice
Chapter 19:
"There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me."
"Stephanie, we need to hurry; otherwise, the good seats will be taken!" Grandma calls as I'm finishing up my business in the upstairs bathroom. She was the one who insisted on changing her outfit before we head out. I wash my hands and walk downstairs to meet Grandma. She's wearing a black wrap dress and modest red heels. She looks more ready for a date than a viewing. Grandma gives me the biggest grin.
"Desmond won't know what hit him," she says as she juts out a hip dangerously. I'm almost worried she will fall.
"Mhmm," I comment, "you ready?" She grins.
"But he might have competition. Myra Liramen is the deceased tonight, and her husband is a looker," Grandma continues as she grabs her purse, and we make our way to the front door.
"Stephanie," my mother calls, stopping us at the door. Her eyes dart to Grandma, and she grabs my arm to pull me around the corner.
"Don't let her get into any trouble," Mom hisses, "she's close to being banned from the parlor." I raise my eyebrows at this. I know Grandma likes to have fun, but I guess living in Newark, I haven't heard about this gossip. I give Mom a cheeky salute, and she mutters a 'why me' before heading into the kitchen. Val hugs us both, and we leave at the same time.
Grandma is surprisingly silent as we head out. I see the RangeMan SUV in my rearview mirror.
"I wouldn't have brought up that article if I had known," Grandma says quietly, breaking the silence. I glance over at her, and she's studying me.
"It's okay. I needed to tell you guys sometime before I'm the headliner in the news," I reply before biting my lip. I'm not ready to be the 'Burg gossip and the front page of the paper.
"I can't believe twenty-five women wrote in about him," I whisper, finally voicing the part that bothers me the most, "and none of them ever filed charges against him?" My voice cracks, and a tear strolls down my cheek. Grandma reaches over and pats my thigh.
"They didn't even give their real names in the editorial," she says, "whatever he did, I'm sure he scared them into silence." Another tear rolls down my cheek—that bastard. I could believe he scared them into not talking. He barely got a hold of me, and it took almost a whole month for me to fully recover physically. I have no idea what support system these other women have. A bolt of guilt hits me for the anger I feel at them not coming forward. I need to save my anger for the real perpetrator, Joseph Fucking Morelli. I wipe away my tears and take a deep breath.
"Well, I plan on making sure he goes away for this," I say with force I didn't expect. A thought occurs to me. Maybe if I could find just a few of those women willing to testify... perhaps it would help. A surge of hope goes through me. I'll have to talk to Uncle Joe's lawyer sometime soon.
"You're so very strong, Stephanie," Grandma tells me, "I'm sorry you have to be, but your family is here for you." I reach over and grab her hand to give it a squeeze.
"Thanks, Grandma," I reply, feeling so very grateful to have such love and support in my life.
"Damn," Grandma mutters as we pull up to Stiva's Funeral Home, "no parking upfront."
"I'll pull up to let you get out, and then I'll find a spot," I reply, annoyed at my parking karma. I can never seem to get prime spots. I usually find ones beside a dumpster with the longest trek to the door.
"I want you to have Betsy to protect you," Grandma tells me before getting out, and I realize she's handing me a handgun. My eyes widen and threaten to pop out of my head.
"Grandma! What are you doing with a gun?" I shriek and realize I shouldn't call attention to it. Did I mention I hate guns? I do. They scare me.
"Don't be ridiculous. It's for protection," she comments, "now take it so I can go schmooze." I feel my eye twitch. My family has that effect on me: headaches and involuntary eye twitching. There's a reason I live in Newark. I take the gun unwittingly, and she hops out of the car. How did she get this gun? Is it even legal? Ack. I place it gingerly in the passenger seat as I go to find a parking spot. I see a slot at the far back of the parlor. The parking spot is next to the building's back exit and the dumpster and close to a back alley. I'm not particularly happy about parking here, but the SUV tailing me reassures me. I look at the offensive gun beside me, and I blow out a breath. I lean over and tuck it under the passenger seat—no need to bring that inside. Knowing my luck, I'd be arrested for not having a permit. I put my purse over my body and grab my mace. I step out of the car and lock it.
The passenger side window of the SUV rolls down. Manny's smiling face greets me.
"Hey Steph," he calls out, "we're going to loop around the lot once you're inside and find a spot that can see the front door." I give a little salute.
"Sounds good to me," I reply, "should I bring you two some tea and cookies from the viewing?" I lean over a bit and find Hal in the driver's seat. Hal and Manny exchange a glance.
"We wouldn't say no," Hal tells me with a shrug, "just can't let bossman know." I nod and place my finger pointer over my lips. I head into the parlor and see the SUV swing around before the door closes behind me. The refreshment table is busy. I see a sign, and it shows that three of the viewing rooms are occupied tonight. Hmm...busy week for death, I guess. I glance around to see if I spot Grandma Mazur, but she's nowhere in sight. I see some familiar faces here, but no one I'd want to spend more than five minutes talking with tonight.
Finally, it's my turn with the cookies. Mmm… snickerdoodle and chocolate chip. I shove one snickerdoodle in my mouth and wrap an assortment of four in some napkins. Then pour two cups of hot tea. I see some people give me dirty looks, but I just smile. I feel my heart pounding as I make my way outside. My mace is tucked away in my purse since my hands are full. I scan the area as I stand in the safety of the light from the doorway.
Thankfully, I spot the SUV easily. Somehow they got a great parking spot. I shake my head and start that way. Manny gets out and meets me halfway. Manny is tall with medium mocha skin. His black hair is shiny and falls a little over his ears. His brown eyes are sparkling, and he gives me a grin.
"Thanks for the sustenance," he says, "but don't tell Ranger!" I laugh.
"Why? You'd really get in trouble for talking to me?" I question, not understanding. He leans back and laughs. I wait patiently for him to regain his composure to tell me.
"Nah, not talking to you," he says, the grin still on his face, "we're not supposed to have sugar while on duty. He'd take us to the mats for this or at least make us run three miles." I'm shocked. My face must give away my disbelief because his smile grows wider. I tend to agree with Buddy the Elf when it comes to food groups, although instead of candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup, mine is more like cookies, cake, Tasty cakes, and donuts.
"And you work for him willingly?" I ask, both of my eyebrows raising. He laughs again.
"It's not that bad," he replies, "but thanks for the contraband!" I nod. I'm still shaking my head as I walk back inside. I think about snagging a chocolate chip cookie, but I'm distracted by a collective gasp coming from viewing room two. A thud sounds next and then unintelligible yelling. I realize that it's Myra Liramen's room. I get a terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. I start walking towards the viewing area and hear some sobbing.
"Hey! Closed caskets are just unnatural," I hear a familiar voice argue, "how are we supposed to know who's really in there?" I can't hear much else.
"Get your hands off me!" I rush into the room to see Constantine Stiva grabbing my grandma by the arm. He looks murderous. A couple of women dressed in black are crying to themselves, and an older man seems stricken by a partially opened casket. Good grief. My eye twitches some more. I barely left her for fifteen minutes. Sheesh. Constantine sees me and points a finger.
"You! Get this woman out of my funeral parlor," he says with a vein bulging in his forehead, "she is a menace to a peaceful death." Grandma is still wriggling, trying to get out of his clutches. I place a finger on my eye to try and stop the twitching.
"You can't just have a closed casket! It's unnatural," Grandma yells and manages to stomp on his foot accidentally. He lets go and hops around, moaning in pain. Sheesh.
"I'll call the police on you," he threatens as we head to the hallway. A tall older bald black man is taking in the scene. Grandma sees him and shoots him a wink.
"Think you can handle all this, Desmond?" she questions as she juts a hip and motions over her body. It's deja vu from when we left the house, only this time she's a bit more stable on her feet. I can't stop the giggles that bubble up. In all of this ridiculousness, Grandma still has time to flirt.
"Get out of my funeral home!" Stiva finally explodes. Grandma rolls her eyes.
"You're such a party pooper." She struts over to Desmond, gets on her tippy toes, grabs his shoulders, and pulls him down to plant a wet one. I feel my mouth drop open. I have to blink a few times to make sure I see this correctly. He doesn't pull away; instead, he pulls her closer. Yuck. I turn away even though it's burned into my retinas. At least Grandma's living the life she wants.
I'm about to turn back to get her when a loud boom interrupts. It sounds like it came from outside towards the back of the building.
"What the heck was that?" Grandma asks, lipstick all over her face as she still clutches her beau for the night. Stiva is still livid.
"Probably just the boiler turning on for the heat," he comments, "I believe you were making an exit Mrs. Mazur." If that's the boiler, then Grandma didn't make any commotion here tonight. I find it highly unlikely it would be that loud.
Before I can drag Grandma out, the fire alarm starts blaring. The noise is loud as the siren is combined with people shouting. I'm startled when a hand touches my shoulder. I turn quickly to see Manny with his gun drawn.
"What's going on?" I shout over the commotion. He tilts his head toward the exit but doesn't respond. A stampede of people emerges from the viewing rooms in a panic. Shit. Manny gently moves me towards the wall as I'm craning my neck to scan the crowd for Grandma. The smell of smoke is getting intense. Manny tries to pull me towards the exit.
"My grandma!" I yell, hoping she isn't getting into any other trouble. I finally see her companion's head, and following that, I see the tight gray curls next to his chest. I point, hoping Manny will understand. They get close enough as we get jostled by panicking people exiting the building. Satisfied that they are close behind, I let Manny lead us out of the building.
Once outside, I can hear sirens in the distance and what sounds like gunshots going off. Grandma is clutching Desmond's hand and grinning like she won the lotto. My ears are ringing a bit, but I turn to Manny, who is in bodyguard mode, as he scans the area and keeps us close to the black SUV and away from the crowd. Well, hopefully, whatever is going on will keep the gossip off of Grandma's casket escapades. My mom wasn't joking when she told me to keep an eye on her. Hopefully, I won't get an earful from her when I drop her home.
"What happened?" I ask Manny when I feel sure I can hear properly. He glances down at me, lips pressed into a thin line. His face is a stark contrast to the grinning man he'd been only thirty minutes ago. His eyes move to scan the lot again.
"Someone bombed your car," he tells me with a grimace, "the explosion was big enough that it somehow caught the building on fire." I can feel the blood drain out of my face as I get a horrible feeling. My mouth drops open, and I'm sure I resemble a fish.
"Who?" I ask right as a fancy black car squeals into the lot and stops next to us. The front door flies open, and Ranger quickly moves out. I'm surprised he showed up. He's beside us in an instant, and he's scanning me. Manny drops back and says something I can't hear. Ranger's face is blank, and his dark eyes are moving quickly over me. I'd be embarrassed to see him here if I wasn't so rattled about someone blowing up my car. I feel the tingle in my neck. My body seems to respond to Ranger's presence. Finally, satisfied by whatever he sees, his expression softens.
"Babe," is all he utters. It seems like he's about to reach out, but he stops himself.
"Are you okay?" he asks as he puts his hands on his hips. His brown eyes aren't leaving mine. He looks so concerned for me. I feel my heartbeat a bit faster. He is gorgeous. I realize I'm standing there without a word. I swallow and nod my head. A loud whoosh catches our attention, and the rest of the funeral home seems to go up in flames.
Startled by the noise and the flames, I find myself pressed close to Ranger. His arm wraps easily around my back, and his hand settles on my waist. I'm suddenly burning up, but not due to the flames engulfing the building. My skin hums at the contact. I feel shy as I peek up to glance at Ranger through my lashes. I gasp as my eyes meet his. His eyes are a pool of milk chocolate, and I see the golden flecks. I can't read his expression.
"Ooh, it's that hunk, Ranger," Grandma comments, jolting me back to reality. I step away and feel my face flush entirely.
"Sorry, I was startled by the fire," I explain weakly as a swirl of emotions rises in my chest. I'm surprised by Ranger's attention and kindness to me despite everything that transpired between us. I see the corner of his mouth tilt up just a hair.
"No problem, Babe," he replies before his eyes move to assess the scene. I take a deep breath to try and calm my beating heart. I'm suddenly much less interested in the bomb and more in the mysterious man by my side.