Celeste Files: Unlocked (7 page)

“What’s that?” he asked, grazing his lips along hers.

“I predict we’re going to stop with the chitchat and practice our baby-making skills. Twice.”

“Twice?” He smiled against her mouth, and his breath quickened. “That’s a prophecy I can live with,” he said, then kissed her.

As he deepened the kiss and began to make love to her, her thoughts remained on John and the pleasure he brought her. But once they were both sated and she was curled against his body, the guilt returned. She couldn’t tell him about Maxine or Kelly’s mom, or that her earlier conversation with Ian confirmed that Maxine was the real deal. While she didn’t want to lie to her husband, she also didn’t want him reliving what had happened to her in the past, or stressing over what could possibly happen in the future. Once she had a better understanding of what she was capable of and how she could control her gift, she would tell him the truth. For now, for his peace of mind and hers, she’d keep him in the dark and pray that what her mind had unlocked wouldn’t ruin their marriage.

Or, this time, kill her.

Chapter 5

CELESTE CARRIED OLIVIA to Kelly’s front door. This morning’s weather was a repeat of yesterday’s and, according to the local meteorologist, the weekend should result in more of the same. If only she didn’t have the responsibility of the bakery, she would stay home wearing her lounge pants and sweatshirt, curl up under a blanket and watch mindless movies. But she had more than the bakery to worry about, or running Olivia to the daycare. She had another appointment with Maxine.

Her stomach fluttered with nervous energy as she knocked on Kelly’s townhouse door. Maxine had suggested she bring an item back to her North Astor home that Celeste could use for another reading, but she had no idea how she would accomplish something like that without Kelly questioning her. She’d considered keeping the blanket, yet didn’t think that was right. Especially if Kelly called the daycare looking for it.

The door swung open, and her friend greeted her with a weary smile. “Morning. Thanks for helping out today.” Kelly’s brown eyes were swollen, underscored with dark circles and held a sadness Celeste could relate to. It had been over five years since her mom had passed, but the loss still hurt.

“I’m so sorry,” Celeste said, and, still holding Olivia, half-hugged Kelly. “How are you holding up?”

Kelly ran a hand over her dark-brown hair, which had been pulled back into a sloppy ponytail. “Okay.” She let out a sigh, and motioned for Celeste to come inside. “I just don’t get it,” she continued. “My mom planned to meet her girlfriends for lunch today after her morning doctor’s appointment. Tomorrow evening, she and Ann were supposed to go to the theater.”

Ann
. Celeste had a quick memory of the woman’s name, along with the threat to her life. “Who’s Ann?” she asked.

“My mom’s best friend. She’s a nurse and is—was—staying with my mom to help her.” Kelly tugged at the cuffs of her baggy sweatshirt and hugged herself. “Ann was the one who found her. She’s beside herself.”

“We all are.” Kelly’s sister, Lea, entered the room carrying a little girl. Dressed in a stylish cream-colored sweater dress, dark-brown leggings and tall brown boots, Lea looked as if she were going out for dinner and drinks rather than making funeral arrangements. “Hello, Celeste,” Lea said, tucking her straight brown hair, cut in a severe yet sexy bob, behind her ear. “Thank you for taking the girls to the daycare.”

“Oh, Celeste, I’m sorry.” Kelly hugged herself tighter. “I forgot to ask if you would mind taking Lea’s daughter, too. Her daycare had to shut down due to a flu outbreak.”

Daycare? She must have been mistaken about Lea’s au pair. “Not a problem,” Celeste said, then, facing Lea, offered her condolences.

Lea’s chin trembled slightly and her eyes misted with tears. She blinked several times, then cleared her throat. “Thank you. Whatever our mother’s reasons for taking the coward’s way will—”

“Lea,” Kelly gasped. “How could you say such a thing?”

Lea’s jaw tightened. “I won’t apologize for feeling bitter and angry.” She set her daughter down when the little girl began pulling on Lea’s earrings. “My last conversation with Mom was…never mind. I don’t want to talk about it.”

Kelly’s husband, Dale, entered the room carrying their daughter, Avery. “We better get going. I’d like to make it back into the office by lunch.” He glanced to his wife, his gaze drifting over the clothes she wore. “As it is, we’re going to lose money this week.”

“My boss is giving me three days’
paid
bereavement leave.” Kelly glared at her husband. “We’ll be just fine.”

Lea rolled her eyes. “For Christ’s sake, Dale. Don’t be such an insensitive dick. If you need the money that bad, I’ll loan it to you.”

Dale snorted. “You mean you’ll max out another credit card.”

“Screw you,” Lea snapped. “I’ll have you—”

Celeste cleared her throat. “If the girls are ready to go, I’m ready to leave.”

Lea looked to where her daughter played with a doll on the carpet. “I apologize, Celeste. My brother-in-law is a cheap son of a—”

“Enough,” Kelly shouted. “I don’t appreciate you people swearing around the girls or embarrassing me in front of my friend.” She turned to her husband. “We don’t need you to come with us, so go to work.”

“Well, I want to be there when you meet with the attorney. Just because you’re a paralegal doesn’t mean you understand the law.”

God, Celeste couldn’t stand Dale. Kelly was a bright woman and had worked for the same attorney for the past fifteen years. She’d guarantee Kelly knew more about the law than Dale, who worked in the IT department for the Chicago Transit Authority.

Kelly took Avery from her husband. “Just put the car seats in Celeste’s Jeep. I’m going to change Avery’s diaper. I’ll be right back.”

While Kelly left the room, Dale barely looked at Celeste as he took her keys. When she’d first met him she had considered Dale an attractive guy, until he’d opened his mouth. She hadn’t needed to be psychic to sense the ugliness inside him, and couldn’t stand the way he spoke to Kelly and acted as if his wife were stupid. Several times Kelly had suggested they meet for a couples’ night out with her and John. Celeste had managed to talk John into having dinner and drinks with Kelly and Dale this past summer. John had lasted no more than an hour before he’d pulled her aside and told her he wasn’t about to waste a kid-free evening on a pompous prick like Dale.

“Zoe’s diaper bag is by the door,” Lea said, then began bundling her adorable daughter. “It’s the Coach one.”

“Are there any instructions I need to give the daycare?” Celeste asked.

“I have everything they’ll need to know written down and tucked in the diaper bag.” Lea placed a knit hat on Zoe’s head. “Zoe has a delicate palate, so I packed her lunch.”

Dale stepped inside and picked up the diaper bags. “What happened to your over-priced babysitter?” he asked. “Catch her in bed with your husband?”

“I truly hate you,” Lea said, and picked up Zoe.

Dale chuckled as he left the townhouse. Red splotches developed along Lea’s pale cheeks. She looked to Celeste. “My au pair needed to go home to Germany to be with her family. Her father was in a terrible accident. She’s a pretty girl, but my husband would never—”

Celeste held up a hand. “Lea, you don’t need to explain anything to me. I’m not a fan of Dale.”

Lea’s lips tilted in a small smile. “Thank you again for helping us today.”

“I wish I could do more,” Celeste said, glancing around the room and looking for something she might be able to snag before she left. When she saw an angel figurine on the built-in bookshelf adjacent to the fireplace, she remembered Kelly telling her about how she’d received it from her mom on her first Mother’s Day. Guilt gave Celeste a jab. While she might be able to use the figurine to gain another vision, she wasn’t a klepto and couldn’t take a sentimental item from her friend. Which reminded her…

She sat Olivia down on the carpet, then pulled Avery’s blanket from her over-sized purse. Kelly entered the room with her daughter bundled up from head to toe. When she saw the blanket, her eyes widened. “Where did you find that?”

“In Olivia’s diaper bag.”

Tears welled in Kelly’s eyes. “When I found out about Mom, I…” She looked away and buried her face against Avery’s jacket. After a moment, she let out a deep breath, then looked up at her. “I’m so glad it’s safe. My mom made that for Avery and it means so much to me.”

Guilt gave Celeste a harder jab. “I’m sorry, I should have called or texted you that I had it.” But she’d been too busy trying to make sense of the vision the blanket had triggered.

“It’s not a big deal,” Kelly said, as Dale came back into the room.

“Car’s loaded.” He set Celeste’s keys on an end table. “Don’t forget to bring the obituary I wrote up last night.”

Lea gave him a cool smile. “I’m afraid you wasted your time. Kelly and I handled
our
mother’s
obituary this morning.”

He gave his wife a dirty look. “Whatever. I’ll meet you at the funeral home. You two can take Lea’s Mercedes. Might as well before it gets repossessed,” he said, then left.

“I don’t know why you stay with him,” Lea said to her sister. “He’s controlling and mean. I can’t stand the way he talks to you.”

“At least my husband comes home.”

Ouch. The loss of a loved one should bring a family closer, not tear them apart. “I need to leave,” Celeste said, wondering—with the way they’d openly argued—if they’d forgotten she was even in the room.

Both women looked at her, stress and exhaustion clear on their faces. “I’m sorry,” Kelly began, “it’s been a rough morning.”

Celeste picked up Olivia and replaced her knit hat. “It’s going to be a rough few days.” When she reached her SUV and opened the rear driver’s side door, she placed Olivia in her seat. Kelly used the car seat in the middle for Avery, then buckled up her niece in the next one.

“I’ll drop the girls off around two.” She closed the car door, then walked to the other side. “Does that give you enough time?”

Kelly tied a scarf around her neck. “Plenty. Thank you again.”

Celeste gave her friend a hug. “I never had the pleasure of meeting your mom. What was her name?” she asked when she pulled away.

“Sandra Welsh.”

“I thought your maiden name was Dyson.”

“It is, but my mom went back to Welsh after her and my dad divorced.”

“I’m wondering if he’ll bother to show up at the funeral,” Lea said.

“Doubtful.” Kelly shook her head. “Even after thirty years of marriage there’s no love lost there. He’s a hateful man.”

“This is one subject that you and I both agree on,” Lea said, then gave her daughter a kiss before closing the door.

After the two women said good-bye to her, Celeste climbed into the SUV, then turned the ignition. As she let the car warm up, she looked over her shoulder at the three little girls crammed together in the backseat. “Okay, kiddos, ready to go?”

When all three of them repeated, “Go, go,” Celeste smiled, then shifted into DRIVE. As she wound her way through the busy streets, and the girls chattered and giggled amongst themselves, she replayed what she’d witnessed inside Kelly’s townhouse. From the moment she’d snapped out of the first trance-like state, she’d known in her heart that whoever murdered Sandra was someone the woman had—at one time—loved. Now that she remembered an important part of the vision, she could rule out Sandra’s friend, Ann. While Sandra might have remembered her friend in her will, Celeste doubted Ann would kill for it. But she couldn’t rule out Lea or Dale, or maybe Lea’s husband.

Whatever was in the safe had to do with money and the child Sandra had been forced to give up for adoption. Lea would obviously receive an inheritance, but Dale and also Lea’s husband would be able to get their hands on the money through their wives. Dale was clearly worried about their finances. What husband would give his wife a hard time about taking a few days off from work to bury her mother? Then there were Dale’s comments about Lea’s maxed-out credit cards and repossessed car. If any of that were true and Lea was hard up for money, could she kill her mother to maintain the charade that all was well in her world? Could her husband?

And how was she going to do a reading without another object?

Celeste pulled up to Kid-doodles Daycare, then called Nina to let her know she was outside and could use help carrying in the three girls. While Nina and another worker took Zoe and Avery, Celeste brought Olivia inside, then went back to the SUV for their diaper bags. She opened the SUV’s back end and stared at Lea’s over-stuffed Coach bag for a second, debating whether she should go through it or not to see if she could find something to use for a reading. She supposed it wouldn’t hurt. The daycare workers would have access to the bag, too, so it wasn’t as if she was nosing around something more private, like Lea’s purse. Plus, she’d return whatever she had taken before dropping the girls back off at Kelly’s.

After talking herself into snooping, she began going through the bag. Other than the necessary baby gear, there was a wooden pen. Unsure if the pen would help with a reading, she slipped it into her pocket anyway, then took the diaper bags into the daycare. Once she made sure the girls were settled inside and Lea’s instructions had been given to Nina, Celeste left.