nodded, as if she knew what I was going to say. “I’ve already got my bag packed. I wouldn’t mind a trip to Miami.”
Chapter Nine
I left my mother’s house with a bag of cookies and Aunt Scarlet, so things weren’t quite as bad as they could’ve been. I figured I could go over the file on the plane. I didn’t care what was in it, so long as it led to Vince and this whole thing could be put behind us. I was starting to get an icky feeling in my gut that had nothing to do with morning sickness.
When I pulled up to Kate’s right at noon, she was out the door and as punctual as ever. She had her matching and sturdy carry-on and computer bag, and she was wearing a pair of jeans with the cuffs rolled, white sneakers, and a light sweater the color of marigolds. That was Kate’s idea of Miami chic.
Kate lived in the “historic” part of Whiskey Bayou, where the houses were a century old and there was land between neighbors. Where the mossy oaks provided shade and were sturdy enough to hang swings from the branches.
Kate opened the side door of the van to toss her luggage in, and came face to face with Scarlet. She froze and then looked at me. I gave her a thin smile and shrugged.
“Hi, Scarlet,” Kate said. “I wasn’t expecting to see you.”
“I like to keep people on their toes,” she said. “And I never pass up a trip to Miami. As long as we stay a hundred feet or more away from the Copacabana Lounge, I’m in good shape.”
“It’s always good to know your boundaries,” Kate said without batting an eye. “Do you want to sit in the front?”
“No, I like it back here. If I lie on my back I can feel the vibrations from the road. Not much wakes my lady parts up nowadays.”
“Well, have fun,” Kate said. She shut the side door and then got in front with me.
“What time is our flight?” Kate asked.
“There’s one at two thirty and another at four,” I said. “I wasn’t a hundred percent sure what our timeline would be like, so I figured we could buy the tickets when we got there.”
“I forgot you travel like a barbarian,” Kate said. “I don’t do lines, and the less people I have to be around the better.”
“I like an aisle seat,” Scarlet said. “I don’t like crawling over people when I have to go to the bathroom. Makes me feel like I’m giving lap dances, and I gave that up years ago. It’s hard on the back.”
“I’ll get Lucy to make the arrangements,” Kate said. “We’ve got plenty of time to make the two thirty. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can get in touch with Vince’s mystery woman. And you know what that means?”
I looked at her, confused. “The sooner we can have dinner and go to bed?” I asked.
Scarlet snorted from the back seat. “That baby has made you a real dud. This is Miami, girl. And you’re not a Holmes in Miami until you have a restraining order against you at a club. I’ve had at least one since 1976. They even got my picture up by the door at the Copacabana.”
“It’s Miami,” Kate said. “We can eat and dance, and then eat some more. And then we can order dessert from room service at midnight. And we can watch the moon over the water from our balcony.”
“I don’t think we have a balcony,” I said. “I just grabbed something quick and easy near the airport.”
“You should probably cancel those,” Kate said. “Lucy made us reservations at the Four Seasons. If you do Miami, you have to do it in style.”
“I feel like I’m taking a much different trip than the two of you,” I said.
I circled around the airport what felt like half a dozen times before Kate finally suggested that I go with valet parking and the agency would cover the cost just so she and Scarlet didn’t have to walk a hundred miles.
“Wait a second,” I said once we got out of the van and the valet attendant handed us our luggage.
The man was dressed in a valet uniform of brown pants and a matching shirt. He was moving so quickly he didn’t seem to need a jacket. He paused where he was and raised his brows.
“Aunt Scarlet,” I said. “You know you can’t take any weapons with you.”