To Have and to Heist(50)
“Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds,” I said, desperate for a distraction from the throbbing between my legs.
“Oppenheimer?”
“That’s what most people think, but it’s actually from the Hindu sacred text the Bhagavad Gita. It’s a conversation between a great warrior prince called Arjuna and his charioteer Lord Krishna, an incarnation of Vishnu.”
“Am I the great warrior prince in this story?” He stared at the ceiling, hands clenched at his sides, teeth gritted. I was pretty sure it wasn’t because he hoped he was the prince.
“Do you need absolution for doing your duty even if it goes against your personal moral code?”
“Yes.” One word. Heavy with emotion. It hung there between us, a tiny beacon to the darkness inside him.
“Then you can be Arjuna.” I edged over to him, lay my head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around me, his fingers settling into the curve of my waist. I sighed and snuggled closer.
“I think I’d make a good warrior prince,” he said. “I’m strong, brave, loyal, and I can ride a horse. I’d look good in armor, and I already steal from the rich and give to the people.”
“You’re confusing warrior princes with Robin Hood,” I pointed out. “But Robin Hood did have a band of Merry Men and an evil foe, the Sheriff of Nottingham.” I lifted my head to look at him. “Do you have an evil foe?”
His body tensed beneath me, his hand curling into a fist on my waist. “Yes.”
“He also had a lover, Maid Marian,” I said, trying to lighten the mood.
“That’s you.” He relaxed, muscles softening, hand back to stroking, lips pressing a soft kiss to my forehead.
“Maid Marian wasn’t denied a good time when Robin Hood came to lie with her in Sherwood Forest,” I pointed out, still hoping for a miracle.
“Maid Marian didn’t get so drunk, she passed out on the floor,” he retorted. “What kind of noble hero takes advantage of a woman whose ability to consent is dubious at best?”
“I know what I want.” I buried my face into his chest. His shirt was soft, his body warm, his arm heavy against my back.
“I want to give it to you, sweetheart. But not like this.”
He stroked my back, my hair, my cheek. My tension eased and I relaxed into his embrace. “Give me a minute.” I closed my eyes. “I just need a quick nap.”
When I opened them again, he was gone.
Fourteen
Thanks to a friend of a friend, Emma showed up at Rose’s house the next morning in an unmarked white van.
“Why are all the windows blacked out?” Cristian didn’t look like a man who had been jumping on tables and rolling on the grass a mere twelve hours ago. He was perfectly groomed, immaculately dressed, and he didn’t even look like he was suffering the kind of hangover that was making my head pound like it was caught in a middle school drum. His T-shirt cause for the day was Save the Animals and his tan shirt had a cute pawprint on the chest.
“Privacy.” Emma pushed the door aside, showing off the interior as if it were a prize in a game show. “The seats can be removed to carry heavy goods.”
“Or bodies,” I offered. “If we wanted to get into the serial killer business, this is exactly the kind of van they use.”
“Also preferred by kidnappers and sexual predators,” Cristian said. “Maybe we should write Free Candy on the side in red paint before we set off to destroy the environment with this gas-guzzling beast.”
Rose poked her head into the van. “It reminds me of a road trip I took across the country with my Christian youth group in ’65 to protest the Vietnam War. I was high on LSD for three straight weeks. We robbed a few banks, set fire to a school, destroyed a few monuments, and I think I slept with the pastor. It was quite the trip.”
Anil climbed inside, his nose wrinkling. “What’s that smell? Is it sauerkraut?”
“That’s the smell a dead body makes after three days,” Rose said. “It starts to bloat and blood-containing foam leaks from the nose and mouth. That could account for the dark stain on the floor.”
My tender stomach recoiled, and I dry heaved over the bushes. “Please tell me that isn’t blood.”
Emma gave an exasperated sigh. “I’m 56 percent sure its food based. The friend who lent it to me did do some time in prison, but it was for assault and arson. No murder—at least not back then. He hasn’t used it for months because he’s driving an ice cream truck now.”
“I can’t tell if Emma is joking,” Anil said.
“Just do what I do when anyone tells a crazy story.” Cristian put an arm around Anil’s shoulders. “Pretend it isn’t real.”
Chloe arrived before I finished cleaning the stain off the carpet. She was wearing a big pair of sunglasses even though it was a cloudy day. I hadn’t seen those glasses in years, but I knew what they meant.
“Babe.” I grabbed her arm and led her over to the garage, where there was no risk we’d be overheard. “What happened?”
“Kyle didn’t pay his child support again,” she said. “It’s been three months and DCSS isn’t doing anything because he’s smart enough to keep the amount owing below the threshold that would make it a misdemeanor. I couldn’t make my rent again this month and my landlord is threatening to evict us so I went to see Kyle this morning.”