Chapter Twenty

Lexi Carmichael

Mia fell into step next to me as we headed back to our rooms to clean up before lunch. I looked forward to seeing Slash and hearing about their challenge. We hadn’t been told whether the other team had succeeded or not, so I was anxious to find out.

“Lexi, I’d like to ask you something,” Mia said as we were climbing the stairs. “Do you have a minute?”

I had no desire to chat, but Mia was, by extension, becoming part of my family, so I couldn’t just brush her off. I expected she wanted to try another couple of slang expressions on me, so I stopped when we got to the top of the staircase. “Sure, what’s up?”

“Vittoria didn’t have a bachelorette party, so I’m fixin’ to give her a big surprise.”

Fixin’? Family or not, I sincerely hoped she didn’t think I was going to help plan a bachelorette party, because that wasn’t going to happen. Been there, done that, and didn’t want to ride that crazy train again…ever.

“What did you have in mind, Mia?” I asked carefully.

“I want to play a prank on her.”

“A prank?” Okay, that was a bit surprising. I hadn’t expected that.

“Yes. I’ve already talked to Alessa, and she’s in, too.”

I stared at Mia for a moment, thinking. I wasn’t sure where this fell on my spreadsheet of dealing with in-laws. The risk that the prank might backfire or embarrass me, or other family members, was awfully high. My record with these types of situations was consistently and statistically bad.

I needed time to figure out how to say no gracefully, so I stalled. “Thanks for including me, Mia, but I’ve got a lot going on right now and wouldn’t have the time to plan anything. Can I get back to you on this?”

“Oh, you wouldn’t have to plan anything. It’s already planned. It would be a walk in the forest for you.”

“Do you mean ‘a walk in the park’?”

“Park! Yes, that’s it!” She looked delighted. “You’re the best, Lexi. Anyway, Alessa and I have a plan. We want you to be included because we’re family now.”

I felt trapped. I did not want to be considered anti-fun, but it was hard to stand firm when she played the family card, because that was my vulnerability. Still, I was smart enough not to commit to anything…yet.

“I really appreciate that you guys want to include me. I’ll think about it, okay?”

Mia perked up. “Great. Let either Alessa or me know by tonight if you’re in, and don’t tell anyone. Not even your husband. We want it to be a complete surprise.”

“Okay. I won’t tell anyone.”

When I got to our room, I found Slash at the bathroom sink, washing his hands.

“Hey, you,” I said, giving him a quick peck on the cheek and handing him a hand towel. “How did the challenge go?”

“We solved it,” he said, wiping his hands dry. “We managed to finish within the allotted time, but with less than a minute. Not a comfortable win, but a win, nonetheless. How about you guys?”

“We barely made it, too, and that was with me having to run as fast as I could with the disc to give it to the gamemaster. It reminded me I need to up my workout game.” I turned on the faucet and washed my hands, too, splashing water on my face. “The maze escape room was seriously complicated, and they gave us only two hours. I’m worried about what comes next.”

“Me, too. But good work, cara.”

I wiped my hands and face with the towel and pulled my ponytail tighter at the back of my head. “At least we’re two for two. What was your challenge?”

Slash provided a concise accounting of the events that involved removing a brass ring from a large wooden bull’s nose.

“So, there were two rings,” I said, musing it over. “That was the catch?”

“That was the catch. I should have thought of it earlier, but the knots and the complexity of the puzzle distracted me. That won’t happen next time.”

He reached behind me, releasing my hair from its ponytail. My hair fell loose around my shoulders. He tugged gently on a strand, pulling out a small twig and holding it between his fingers. “What did you guys have to do?”

I told him about the garden maze, the fountains, the stones with the Roman numerals, and how we solved the puzzle of the sundial. All the while, he combed my hair with his fingers, removing an inordinate amount of brush and sap while giving my scalp a light massage. It felt heavenly.

Finally, I finished up by telling him how my mother accidentally flashed Oscar in the maze before screaming and scaring us all to death.

“Your mother took her sweater off in the maze?” Slash repeated, his hands stilling against my scalp. “In front of Oscar?”

“Yes, to get rid of the lizard. That’s when Oscar came around the corner of the hedge and scared the crap out of her. Probably scared the crap out of the lizard, too, because it hightailed it out of there. He looked pretty mortified.”

“The lizard or Oscar?”

“I presume both, but I’m talking about Oscar. You should have seen his face. It was a color of scarlet I’d never seen. Kind of alarming, actually. But don’t worry, Mom assured him since her boobs were covered by her bra, it was no biggie.”

Slash turned around and went to sit on the bed. I joined him so we were perched side by side, our thighs touching. “I’m worried by your lack of a humorous response. You don’t think my mom talking about her boobs in front of your stepfather is going to be a problem for our family dynamics, do you?”

“Of course, not,” he said. “Oscar is a grown man. Your mother is a grown woman. It was an innocent mishap.” He paused and then looked at me. “What did your dad do?”

“Dad? He didn’t do anything.”

“That’s good, at least.”

“Why would you say that?” It took me a minute to get there. “Wait. Don’t be ridiculous. My dad is not going to blame you for the lizard.”

He gave me a pointed look that indicated I hadn’t convinced him. “Okay, now I’m feeling like I need to start a family disaster spreadsheet. We already have a pretty good start on it if you include the shooting the first time you had dinner with my parents, the scare at our engagement party, crazy Santa at the airport, throwing up with Oscar, and now my mom flashing your stepdad. I’m sure I’m forgetting several others.”

“You are.” He put his hand over mine. “But no spreadsheet. Everything’s fine with our families.”

He sounded confident, but it didn’t quite extinguish that small, niggling doubt that things on the family front weren’t going as smoothly as I’d hoped. “Well, I guess I should look on the bright side. We have two escape puzzles completed. I wish I knew how many more we have to go. I just hope we’re as successful as before.”

Slash rested his forearms on his thighs as he leaned forward. “I suspect the puzzles will get increasingly difficult. We have to be sure to carefully review the instructions to each room or location, because they may offer the most valuable clues.”

“I agree. Also, one thing I also observed is a focus on mathematics—numbers and patterns. That seems to hold for both challenges and will likely play a continued role in the puzzles.”

“Undoubtedly. What did you think of the capability of your team?”

“I was pleasantly surprised,” I said. “Everyone is quite clever and adept, including my mother. She was amazing. In fact, she was the one who found the hidden code on the statue that led to us solving the puzzle.”

“I’ve also been pleasantly surprised. Stefan’s girlfriend, Alessa, is quite intelligent and resourceful. We’re lucky to have such talented families, aren’t we?”

“We are.” I put my head on his shoulder, slipping my hand through his. I’d had more than my fill of people this morning, and I wished we could stay here and skip lunch. But I could hear Slash’s stomach growling, so I sucked it up and stood.

“Time to eat,” I said as cheerfully as I could.

He gave me a look like he knew what I was thinking, but hunger won out and he didn’t argue. We exited the room hand in hand, heading down the marble staircase until we reached the dining room. I was relieved to discover we could sit where we wanted for lunch, so I followed Slash, who headed toward an empty seat next to Father Armando.

“Congratulations on solving the first two challenges,” the priest said as we sat down. “I knew you’d do it.”

“Two down and several more to go,” I cautioned him.

“Of course. But I have no doubt you’ll succeed. Keep up the good work.”

Juliette sat next me, and Oscar joined her. The table quickly filled up, and conversation inevitably turned toward the challenges of the morning and who had done what to figure out the puzzles. The conversation seemed animated and easy. If the point of the escape rooms was to get to know everyone better, it was certainly working.

I was a nervous wreck sitting next to Juliette without my teenage table-etiquette model nearby, so my anxiety heightened as the food arrived. I remembered to put my napkin on my lap, but my hands shook when Slash asked me to pass a plate of meats and cheese. I accidentally dumped a third of the plate on the tablecloth while handing it off to him. Slash calmly ate it from the table without missing a beat while chatting with his mother. I loved him so much for that and appreciated that Juliette hadn’t pointed it out, either.

After eating sliced pears drizzled with caramel for dessert, I sat back in my chair, full and needing a serious nap. I thought it a clever strategy for the staff to feed us like this—to keep us lethargic and off our mental game.

Lorenzo arrived and told us we’d have one hour to rest after lunch before reporting back to the dining room to receive our next challenge.

People began chatting, with some filing out of the dining room for downtime before the next challenge. Juliette excused herself from the table and went over to speak with Alessa, while Gio waved Slash over to tell him something. That left Oscar and me alone at our little corner of the table.

“So, Lexi,” Oscar said, leaning forward. “I meant to tell you, I noticed something interesting in the garden today.”

“You mean other than that crazy maze?”

“Exactly. In fact, I was quite surprised to see the island has its own little apiary.”

I looked at him in astonishment. “Beehives? Here?”

“Yes, it’s quite extraordinary. The staff must produce their own honey.”

“That’s…unexpected,” I said cautiously.

“Well, anyway, I thought maybe you’d enjoy getting a closer look at the apiary with me. I’d be delighted to tell you all about the beehives.”

I must have made a horrified expression, because he hastily added, “Of course, only if you’re interested.”

My mind immediately flashed to the rules for the in-law’s spreadsheet that was folded flat in my back jeans pocket. Guideline number one stated I should accept an invitation to do something my parents-in-law extend to me even if it was out of my comfort zone. It would demonstrate my eagerness to familiarize with and integrate into the family.

Unfortunately, bees were so far out of my comfort zone they were in the stratosphere. But Oscar was right. We’d kind of gotten off on the wrong foot, so here was my chance to be the interested and invested daughter-in-law, ready for a seamless integration. I was sure there was a way I could stay a safe distance away while still showing appropriate interest.

What could go wrong?

“Sure, Oscar. I could do that. When did you have in mind?”

“How about right now?” He stood up. “I could use a walk and some fresh air to clear my head after that expansive lunch. We have a bit of time before the next challenge, so why not?”

I searched for some, any plausible explanation why I couldn’t go at this exact moment, but nothing presented itself. My stomach dropping, I managed to respond. “Okay, I guess we could go now.”

My heart started to race at the prospect as I wiped my damp palms on my jeans beneath the table. Oscar gallantly pulled out my chair, and I stood, hoping to catch Slash’s eye, but his back was to me.

Oh, jeez.

“I don’t think we’ll need a jacket,” Oscar said. “It’s warmed up since this morning, and it’s lovely outside. We should have the perfect opportunity to see the hives.”

Lucky for me. Not.

I followed Oscar out of the dining room the same way Brando had led us this morning when taking us to the maze. We walked out on to the veranda and down the stairs to the garden. Oscar was right, it had warmed up enough that I felt comfortable in my long-sleeved T-shirt and jeans.

“Which way?” I asked, shading my eyes, wishing I’d brought my sunglasses.

“Follow me.”

He led me to the right side of the maze and toward a wooded area. He stopped near an opening in the trees and pointed in the distance. “See those white structures? Those are the apiaries. I noticed them in the distance when we came out of the maze.”

I squinted into the trees and saw the structures he was talking about several hundred feet away. Hope rose in my chest. Maybe we could look at the beehives from here.

“How can you tell those are apiaries?” I asked.

He smiled broadly at me. “I just can. Come on. Follow me, and don’t worry. Bees are harmless.”

Easy for him to say. He apparently didn’t mind swarms of insects flying around his head and landing on his body. I shuddered just imagining them crawling on me. Intellectually, I liked bees. I knew they were good for the environment and the planet and an integral part of our ecosystem. I just wanted to appreciate them from a healthy distance, which apparently wasn’t going to happen today.

As we got closer to the hives, it became easy to spot the bees flying between the structures and the trees. Several white boxes were stacked on top of each other vertically. Some of the boxes had viewing windows, so the beekeeper could see what was going on in the hive. There was no way I was getting close to the viewing window with all the bees flying around. Still, I had to give it to Oscar—there was something mesmerizing about watching the bees buzz about.

“A good apiary is one that is secluded, has access to plenty of flora, and has direct sunlight,” he said. “It must be close to water and have good air circulation, as honeybees need to keep dry. Natural ventilation and airflow are key to harvesting a lot of excellent honey.”

I had to admit the science of it interested me, and the fact that Oscar cared about bees and the environment made me like him more. If only it were that easy to rationalize my fear of bees away. No matter how hard I tried to convince myself bees were harmless, my legs trembled, and my hands started to shake. Thankfully, Oscar was so focused on the hives he didn’t notice.

We continued to approach the hive, getting much closer than I was comfortable with, stopping thirty or so feet away. My eyes were like advanced military radars trying to simultaneously track each buzzing object. Oscar must have noticed my increased breathing and tried to be reassuring.

“Don’t be afraid, although I know that just saying it doesn’t make it easier. These European honeybees do not sting unless they are threatened. They’re just like the ones that I maintain back in England. Here, let me show you.” He walked up to one of the hives where there was a small ball of bees on the outside and gently scooped them up into one of his hands. He turned toward me and offered them to me. I froze in place, completely terrified, unable to move.

I watched in a mixture of horror and amazement as the bees swarmed his hand, crawling all over it. Clearly, they didn’t perceive him as a threat, and he was not being stung. It truly shocked me. He brought the bees up close to his face so that he could watch their movement even more closely. His expression was so calm and enraptured I forgot my fears momentarily. How could he be so at peace with such small yet dangerous creatures?

He turned to me and smiled. “I’m going to show you something bloody fascinating, Lexi. Do you trust me?”

Um, how was I supposed to answer that? There wasn’t explicit guidance in the in-law’s guidance on this particular circumstance, but I felt confident the advice would indicate that the proper response was for me to say that I trusted him. He was family, after all.

“Um…yes?” I hated that it was more of a question than a statement, but we are who we are. “You aren’t going to put one on me, right?”

“Of course not. Not without your permission. Now, close your eyes for at least a minute, and I’ll tell you when to open them. When you do, you’ll see how friendly these gentle creatures are.”

I closed my eyes, my heart thumping so hard I feared I might have a heart attack. Subconsciously, I started counting the beats, trying to estimate my heart rate to determine if I was at risk of tachycardia. I’d conducted some serious online research about the risks of an excessive heart rate after my encounter with Guido, the giant dog who had followed me into a bathroom several months ago. I remembered vividly that a sustained heart rate of over 210 for a person my age could be very dangerous.

It always took me about thirty seconds to calculate the square root of eleven to seven decimal places, and I’d used that occasionally to measure time accurately in my head. I began simultaneously counting my pulse throbbing in my temples as I began solving the square root. I was sure that I was going to find my pulse was over 250. I was stunned to find that it was only 175, a level commonly reached by fit people involved in heavy exercise.

I heard some grunting sounds from the direction of the hives. I was tempted to open my eyes, but I had promised to trust Oscar to keep them closed for a minute, so I waited until my internal clock assured me that at least a minute had gone by.

When I opened my eyes, Oscar staggered toward me, grunting, and waving his arms in front of him. Only the outline of his face and head were visible, as everything above his shoulders was buried under a thick coating of bees.

For a moment, I could only stare at him in complete horror. Then, although I admit it wasn’t one of my better responses to a crisis, I screamed at the top of my lungs.