Page 72 of Death is Familiar

“My apologies, of course, my language needs some tuning. But what I wanted to say, was that Lawrence—” Marlon paused. “I’m sorry did you say was?” The man didn’t give me time to respond before he clasped his hands together and wrung them. “Oh, my dears, I am so sorry for your loss. You know the first time I met him he came to open this here box and⁠—”

“Can we get on with it?” Mads rubbed his fingers repetitively over his sandy brow.

“—Someone collapsed.” Marlon snapped his fingers. “And just like that he knew what to do. Even the paramedics said he did a bang-up job. And when it was all over, he didn’t expect anything, no, he just went on with opening his box. And I remember thinking, you know, it’s true what they say, not all heroes wear capes.”

Well, after his ventures with calling Lawrence ‘the dark fellow’, this conversation was going a lot better than I expected. Marlon had gone out of his way to remember Lawrence as the person he was, making a difference, and that made me smile.

“That was really touching. He was a good guy, but Delilah and I have business that involves this key.” Mads held it up. “Unlocking that box.”

Marlon held my gaze, paying no attention to Mads. I got the sense he was hanging around, sharing stories, because he thought I was being coerced. And while that was true, to a point, I could handle myself. I made my bed, and I was prepared to lie in it.

“Are you ready to proceed, Ms. James? Once I insert the key and confirm the match, your guest and I will wait outside, while you conclude your business with the box.”

Mads eyes darted between me and Marlon. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that my unpleasant companion thought I put Marlon up to it. That I had manipulated the situation to get myself alone with the safety deposit box.

And while I wouldn’t have put it past me, I had gone into this knowing that Mads was eager to get his hands on half of the cash. Then, and only then, was it possible for him to stop using his cult-infiltrating tactics to insert himself into my life.

But Mads would only give up on that if he was certain he got what he was due. Which meant I couldn’t have him guessing how much cash was left in that box or whether or not I gave him half. He’d need to see that he got his fifty-percent so that there were no more unexpected apartment break-ins. Or accidental roofying.

“It’s fine, he’s with me,” I offered, even though Mads was giving off bad-guy-energy, and I wasn’t the only one who noticed. “We’ll open the box together.”

Marlon pursed his lips. “As you wish.”

We slid the keys into place, and pulled the safety deposit box out of the wall. Once the lidded metal box was placed on the provided table, our bank provisioned supervisor left with the simple note to holler when we were ready to lock up the box.

For whatever reason, people at this bank really enjoyed their yelling.

“You ready for this, Delilah?” For all his eagerness, Mads took a moment to slow down, to check-in.

Was I?

An inconvenient wave of nausea rolled through me. Like I hadn’t already damn-near eaten an entire candy store. Or maybe it was because I damn-near ate an entire candy store. Either way, I popped a piece of gum in my mouth and nodded, which was just about the only confirmation I could muster without the risk of my stomach turning over.

Breathing deep, I pressed the pads of my fingers to the lid. Opening this box needed to be like ripping off a band-aid. Fast, so that I could get the pain over with.

Without allowing myself any more fanfare, I slid open the top.

Oh. My. God.

My nausea all but forgotten, I spun to face Mads. “Did you know this was in here?”

Mads double blinked. “I knew he had cash left, but,” he took a step closer, “I didn’t think it would be this much.”

The safety deposit box was brimming with cash. Stacks and stacks of what appeared to be hundred-dollar bills. There had to be hundreds of thousands of dollars in there. And sitting right on top was a piece of cardstock. With my name on it.

With a shaking hand, not daring to touch any of the cash for fear it might be an illusion, I plucked the card and flipped it over.

144442454344121132151143

Another cipher. Grand. Just what I needed when in a state of shock.

Good thing I’d memorized the Polybius square Lawrence used to code his previous letter. My mind made the necessary substitutions.

The message was bad news.

I TRUSTED MADS.

Past tense.