Page 28 of Vistaria Has Fallen
“Thank you for dinner,” Calli said, as the enormous weariness wrapped about her once more.
“No problem. Thanks for your company,” he said. “Calli, did Escobedo say something to you? Something that upset you?”
“Why?” she asked.
“You’ve been silent ever since. What happened?”
“He was polite.”
“He invariably is polite,” he agreed. “That doesn’t mean what he’s saying doesn’t mean anything.”
“He said nothing of significance. The view, the fiesta, Vistaria’s wonderful future with thediscovery of silver.”
“All politically correct.” It sounded like Peter sneered. It was too dark to check.
One of the black taxis common around Vistaria pulled up in front of them. The back door opened. Minnie nearly fell out of the back seat, laughing. With her hand on the door she righted herself and stood up, pushing her clingy jersey dress down from around her hips to hang properly. It didn’tseem to bother her that she was spot-lit by Peter’s headlights. A long trouser-encased leg pushed out of the taxi beside her, then Duardo uncurled himself from the back seat. He kept his head bent down, talking to the driver, waving his hand for emphasis.
“That’s Minnie, isn’t it?” Peter said.
“Yes.”
Minnie turned to face Duardo, both of them standing in the angle between the open door andthe side of the taxi. Duardo caught her face in his hands and kissed her hard and passionately as her arms curled around his neck. He grasped her thigh, drawing her leg up against his hip. The dress rode up her leg, revealing most of her thigh and the start of her bare buttock. At the same time his lips moved down her throat to the top of her breasts, revealed by the scoop neck of the dress. The handon her leg slid around the curve of thigh to cup her buttock, his sunburned, olive fingers a sharp contrast to her pale white flesh.
Peter made a hissing sound between his teeth. “Jesus, Minnie,” he murmured. “Who is that guy, anyway?” he demanded.
“He’s okay,” Calli said. “He’s a nice guy.”
“I bet.”
The pair kissed again, lingering. Calli didn’t want to get out of Peter’s car and alert themto witnesses. She cleared her throat, unsure what to do except wait out their passionate goodbye.
The taxi driver was not so patient. He tooted his horn.
Minnie pulled her mouth from Duardo’s and appeared to chuckle. Duardo spoke, gave her another quick kiss and let her go. She stepped back as he climbed back into the taxi. She waved as it pulled away.
Calli got out of the car and shut thedoor. Minnie turned to smile at her as Peter drove past. Calli didn’t wave.
“You look like you’ve been eating lemons,” Minnie said.
“I’m very tired,” Calli confessed.
“You’re also damn early and you don’t look like you had a good time.”
“I didn’t,” she confessed. “It was wretched.”
“Ah. Then Peter’s the jerk I always thought him to be.” Minnie shrugged and turned toward the apartment.
“Youhad a good time, though, I can tell.”
“Mmm.”
“Where did you go?”
Minnie laughed. “We planned to go to a night club with the others, only we never got there. We found a little bistro and then afterwards, well...” She gave a gusty sigh and ran her hand through her hair.
“I assume the goodbye kiss we saw was a mild rendition of the rest of the evening,” Calli said.
“Oh, yeah.” Minnie laughedas she unlocked the front door and pushed it aside. “I gotta get some sleep. I’m exhausted.”
* * * * *
Calli’s prediction about her own sleep proved correct. It was restless, shot through with dreams either erotic or downright disturbing—charged with a sense of impending doom. In the lucid moments of wakefulness between nightmares, she told herself her subconscious understood the danger of entertainingeven in her imagination any relationship with Nicolás Escobedo.
Close to dawn, exhausted, she dropped into a dreamless, heavy sleep. When she woke only slightly refreshed, her exhaustion cemented her intention to avoid any more contact with the man.
Then she saw the white lily lying on the untouched pillow beside hers and her blood turned to ice water.
It hadn’t been there when she had goneto bed.