Deception (Absent Shadows Trilogy Book 3) Read Free Page B

was, Anita. I so wish you’d been able to be there. Lili looked so beautiful.’
    ‘I know. I’m kicking myself that I didn’t just get on the plane and go. Not that my boss would’ve been impressed, given the lack of notice,’ she glared at me as she said this bit, then turned back to Debs, ‘but the photos you took were stunning.’
    Debs took another sip of her coffee, then put the cup down and continued. ‘Now, what was I about to say? Oh, yes … when we were planning your wedding. It was about Crystal. You know, I thought she looked so familiar. But there was so much to do and so little time, and I had a lot on my mind that week. But afterwards … in fact, it might have even been when we were in Paris actually … it dawned on me where I’d seen her before. It was St. Luke’s Hospital—when I used to volunteer in the gift shop. She was one of the ladies that came in to sit with the elderly. She came into the gift shop quite regularly to purchase a birthday card or small gift for one of the ladies. I remembered her because she was so exotic looking—with her long dark hair and her lovely silk saris. And I particularly remember that she always had this sweet fragrance about her. I think that’s what triggered the memory. It’s an unusual fragrance; not one I’ve come across since. I couldn’t have told you her name mind you, not in a million years, but I knew that I remembered her.’
    I was sure I couldn’t recall Crystal saying anything about recognising Debs. ‘Yes, I know what you mean about her fragrance—it is beautiful, isn’t it? And she did tell me about visiting the elderly. But I didn’t know you volunteered in a gift shop. Was that before I got to Australia? I don’t remember you talking about it.’
    ‘Well, no, you wouldn’t, because you see, that was well over fifty years ago. Crystal wouldn’t have recognised me after all these years, assuming she even took any notice of me at the time. But I was certain that I recognised her, Lili, because you see, she hasn’t changed. Not one bit.’
    For once, Debs was silent. She just looked at me, waiting for me to explain. Of course, I had every intention of telling her everything. There was no point not to, now . But I hadn’t expected this revelation, so it put me out of sync for just a moment.
    ‘We were about to tell you everything, Debs, really we were,’ I said, looking over at Mom. She giggled, and that was all it took to make me laugh, and then there we were, the three of us laughing our heads off.
    ~~***~~
    Not having to hide anything from Debs was unbelievably liberating. Little comments dropped here and there didn’t matter. Of course we still had to be careful whenever Raye was around, as she didn’t know anything about vampires or dhampirs, and Mom felt there wasn’t any reason to tell her just yet.
    But I could talk openly with Mom and Debs. And since Ian was her third husband, Debs was pretty blasé about the separation and did her best to make me feel like it really was no big deal.
    ‘It’ll do you both some good to be apart, Lili. It’ll test your relationship, if nothing else. I’m sure time is different for Sam. A few years will probably be nothing for him, so don’t fret about that. If it’s meant to work out, it will. But in the meantime, you need to do something for yourself. You need to go back to school, or get a job.’
    ‘I don’t need the money.’
    ‘Oh shush, life isn’t just about money. You need to keep your brain active. All this running is great for you physically, but you need to exercise that big muscle in your head too’
    ‘Yeah, I know … I mean, I have thought about it, but going to school would mean I’d have to find somewhere for Ceylona.’ I frowned, just thinking of the logistics.
    ‘You don’t have to go back full-time. Just take a few courses. You know how many courses I’ve done over the years? Just pick something up at one of the TAFEs—or what do you call them here,