Heads You Lose - Lisa Lutz [75]
“What?”
“We have the same father.”
“No.”
“I even have DNA documentation to prove we were related.”
“Huh,” was Lacey’s response. She supposed it was good news, but then realized that it was another case of the stars lining up to make Brandy Chester her sister-in-law, one way or another. The thought of it sent a wave of nausea through her.
“Is that all, Lacey? Because this bleach is starting to burn.”
“No. One more thing,” Lacey replied. “What business do you have with Big Marv? I saw him slip you some money outside of We Care Gardens.”
Brandy sighed and said, “Excuse me.” She walked back to the bathroom and washed off her mustache bleach. She returned to the living room with her upper lip shaded an irritated pink. Lacey desperately wanted to take a photo for Paul, but refrained.
“Paul told me about his meeting with Jay. Those brothers have been after Shady Acres for years, which means it’s worth something. There’s something special in that land.”
“Like what?” Lacey asked.
“It could be a number of things. For starters, there are these rare earth elements with high-tech applications, like magnets, batteries, and bombs. Dozens of them with names you probably haven’t heard of, like yttrium, tantalum, and niobium. They haven’t been mined in the U.S. since 1959, but there could be a resurgence. Hell, that land could even have uranium. There hasn’t been a boom since the fifties, but the value is coming back. Or it could be as simple as oil or gold. This was Gold Rush territory, after all. It’s not like they found it all.”
“So why did you tell Big Marv?”
“So he’d bid against his brother and drive up the price. Don’t you want out of this town, Lacey?”
“Until these murders started, it was all I ever thought about.”
“Between Hart’s insurance settlement and what you could get for that land, you could set up house in a new city, sock some money in longterm, tax-free investments, get a boob job, and still have money to spare,” Brandy said.
“So you’re looking out for me now?”
“No. I’m looking out for Paul. But the money gets split fifty-fifty.” Brandy looked at her watch. “Anything else? My hair is about to fry.”
“That’s all for now.”
Brandy walked Lacey to the door. “Do me a favor,” she said. “Don’t tell Paul.”
“About Big Marv?”
“No,” Brandy replied, rolling her eyes. “About the bleach.”
“Your secret is safe with me,” Lacey replied.
Paul’s car was parked in the driveway when Lacey returned home. She found him in the basement sweeping up the last debris from the hermie plants.
“Where are they?” Lacey asked.
“Darryl helped me take them out to Tulac. We had a burn day.36 Then I checked on a few grow sites and harvested what I could.”
“Where’s Sook hiding?”
“Betty said she’d take him for a few days. Then Deena, then maybe Darryl, then maybe back to us for a few days. We’re hoping Yolanda cools off and lets him back in. We just got to give her some time. Maybe when the money turns up—”
“Why didn’t you tell me about Brandy?” Lacey asked.
“Tell you what?”
“That she’s Hart’s sister.”
“Half sister.”
“Still.”
“I would have gotten around to it eventually.”
“When?” Lacey pressed.
“We haven’t been in the same place at the same time.”
“They have these things now called telephones. It’s news, Paul. I deserved to know.”
“Communication isn’t our strong suit these days,” Paul replied.
“Was it ever?” Lacey asked.
Paul just shrugged.
On cue, the telephone rang. In unison both siblings said, “I’ll get it.” But Lacey beat him up the stairs and found the phone on the fireplace mantle.
“Hello?”
“This must be Miss Hansen,” said an eerily familiar male voice.
“Maybe. Who is this?”
“Harry Lakes, Esk.”
“Right. Terry’s cousin.”
“May he rest in peace,” said Harry.
“Funny how your names rhyme,” Lacey said, not actually thinking it was funny. “Terry Jakes. Harry Lakes. What are the odds of that?”
“I’m the older one. Terry was rhymed after me.”
“Good to know,” Lacey replied.
“Your brother around?” Lakes asked.
Lacey passed the phone to Paul.
“This is Paul.”
“Harry Lakes, Esk,