Vendetta

Severn House Publishers

Chapter One

"Darling, relax. We have two full cords of wood. I carried several loads in earlier this afternoon. Oil was delivered three days ago. We are not going to freeze. Don't you remember, dear, we had special heaters installed in the war room in early September?"

"You're right, I forgot I am just so overwhelmed that I am finally.... Never mind, it's all I've been talking about today. Your ears must be sore by now. The girls are late, aren't they?"

"No, Myra, the girls are not late. We said seven and it's only six-thirty. Please try and relax. Do you think they will like my dinner? I thought about doing something fancy and elegant but decided, that, with the weather, the girls might like some comfort food. And I know how you like my pot roast."

"It smells wonderful, Charles. The potato pancakes are my favorite. We have both sour cream and apple sauce, right?"

Charles wagged his wooden spoon in the air. "I have it all under control, right down to the wine, salad and dessert-and no, I did not forget Murphy."

"Oh, Charles, whatever would I do without you? Never mind, I don't even want to think about that. They're almost late."

"Almost doesn't count, my dear." Charles pointed to the security monitor positioned over the back door. "I think they're here now. I see Kathryn's rig in the lead. I think they wait at the end of the road so they can all arrive at the same time."

"I think so, too. One car is missing, Charles. The girls will want to know all about Julia." Myra started to fret again. "It's not going to be the same without her. The empty chair is going to ... Oh, Charles, I feel like crying."

"There's no time to cry, Myra. I hear Murphy barking. I think that means he's glad to be back. Open the door, welcome our guests. We'll talk about Julia later."

There were squeals of delight, backslapping, high-fives and hugs galore as the five women and Murphy raced into the kitchen. The jabbering was so high-pitched that Murphy went into the huge family room to lie by the fireplace.

"Oh, I missed you all," Isabelle said happily.

Alexis dumped her red bag by the door and ran to Myra. She hugged her so hard, Myra squealed for mercy. Yoko, always subdued, clapped everyone on the back and then hugged them all. Kathryn ran around the counter to the kitchen window to see if Julia's plant was still there. It was.

"Oh God. Oh God, it has two new leaves! Hey, everyone, Julia's plant has two new leaves! We have to move it, Myra. It's too cold on the windowsill. See how the leaves are limp. Where can I put it? Yoko, you're the plant expert, what should we do?"

The women crowded around to stare at the plant Julia had left behind when she went to Switzerland, hoping to find a cure for her deadly disease. Myra looked stricken, as though she had somehow personally failed their missing sister.

Yoko picked up the plant, stuck her finger in the soil and then touched the leaves. "Some light, a little warmer area and it will be fine," she said.

It was finally decided to place the little plant on a small folding table directly under the kitchen skylight. Everyone sighed with relief.

"Any news about Julia?" Nikki asked as she filched a strip of bacon that was to go into the arugula salad. Charles pretended to swat her with his wooden spoon.

"Julia is doing well," Charles said. "She's gained eight pounds in the last four months. She's tolerating her meds and she misses us all terribly. She's coming home for Thanksgiving, and again for Christmas, but then will go back for another six months. What that means is, she's holding her own and she has not regressed or gotten worse. She's happy. She reads, takes walks, rides her bicycle. Her stamina is better than it's ever been. I spoke to her yesterday. She misses you all and she sends her love. She wants you to give Murphy a big hug for her. The first thing she asked about was the plant. To say she was overjoyed at the two new leaves would be putting it mildly." This last comment was addressed to Kathryn, who was busily wiping tears from the corners of her eyes.

"Everything smells wonderful," Nikki said as she carried candles and napkins into the dining room. "Anything new these past few weeks?" she asked Myra.

"Nothing, dear. Charles and I have just been rattling around out here all by ourselves. No one has called or stopped by. Is there any news on Jack?"

"No. That's why I thought ... I assumed he would.... Damn, I don't know what I thought or assumed. I check his and Mark's new website daily. I have no clue what the two of them are doing. That could be good or it could be bad."

"I can't believe Jack gave up his job as assistant district attorney, and I can't believe his friend would give up his job as a federal agent just like that," Isabelle said.

"Well, he did." Nikki clicked a lighter to light the scented candles. Within seconds the room smelled like blueberries.

"Are we celebrating something special tonight?" Yoko asked.

"Yes. The good news on Julia, your arrival and anything else we want to celebrate," Myra said. "Goodness, how I've missed you all. But before I forget, Charles and I want to invite you all for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's. Please say you will come."

"You bet," Kathryn said.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Alexis said.

"I will be glad to attend," Yoko said. "My husband will spend the day sleeping so he will not miss me."

Isabelle and Nikki smiled and nodded.

"We go out to the woods and chop the tree down," Myra said. "If it snows, we pull the tree on a sled, but if there's no snow we pull it on a wagon. We cut all the evergreens the same day so they'll be fresh. We haven't really celebrated Christmas here at Pinewood for some years now. I think it's time to get back to our traditions."

"Christmas here at Pinewood is a marvel. The house smells heavenly with all the balsam," Nikki said. "The vaulted ceiling allows us to have a twenty-foot high tree and balsam twined around the bannister going all the way to the second floor. Lots of red velvet bows and our own mistletoe. Myra always made it like a fairyland for Barbara and me. One year, Lu Chow, Myra's gardener, played Santa. She thought we wouldn't notice a Chinese Santa. We pretended not to for her sake."

"You knew? You little rascal!" Myra said. Nikki laughed.

They could have been simply a group of young people getting together to play catch-up, or a group of old friends enjoying dinner together.

"I had a date!" Kathryn blurted out, her face rosy pink. She looked around the table at the stunned looks.

"Tell me you didn't wear that flannel shirt and those Frye boots," Alexis said.

"No, I didn't wear them. I got dressed up. Panty hose, makeup, the whole magilla."

"And?" the others chorused as one.

"And nothing. Murphy didn't like him. By the end of the evening the guy was all over me. I had to deck him, at which point he got a little pissy with me. He was so good-looking, he made my eyes water. But I won't be seeing him again. Now, don't ask me any questions because I told you the whole thing."

"I had a date, too,"...