Chapter Thirteen

“That looks great.” Rick leaned over Marcia to give a peck on the top of her head. “Good work.” 

“How many more do we need?” she asked from the small table near the kitchen that doubled as a dining table. 

“I would keep going until you’re tired. These brochures have really increased membership numbers. I’m so lucky to have met someone with so much artistic talent. The ones we had were looking pretty sad until you came along.”

Marcia smiled at him as he made himself more comfortable on her beige worn-out couch. He knew she’d be flattered. Art was her passion. And that worked out very well for him. He reached over to grab the beer bottle on the side table and gulped down some cold brew. A burp erupted out of his mouth.

“Gross,” she complained.

He smiled in her direction, although she had not looked up from her work. 

“I’m happy to do this,” she said. “I hope it pleases the gods and…you, of course.”

Rick made his expression solemn. “Your contribution will not go unnoticed. Your idea to include the number twelve to pay homage to the twelve Gods of Olympus was very clever. I’m sure your hard work will help secure favorability in the eyes of the gods.”

She placed another finished brochure in the growing pile next to her. “Tell me more about how you rose to your position and managed to find so many followers.” 

He watched her tuck a strand of mousy brown hair behind her ear. She wasn’t particularly beautiful, and he certainly wasn’t in love with her. He had bigger things to do. But if she knew all about him, she’d run for sure. “Marcia, everyone wants better fortune but so few are willing to go the extra mile. I’m simply providing a forum for people with similar desires to gather.”

She blinked her large brown eyes. “But how did you know you were the one to do the teachings?”

Rick sighed and rubbed his bald head. Too many questions. 

“My family taught me everything I needed to know.” He took another swig of his beer, enjoying the burn down his throat. “All I did was listen. A little faith and hard work is all you need to convince people of your and their purpose. Everyone wants to belong to something. I simply provided a safe and common ground for them to gather and remember the ancients.”

What she didn’t know was how screwed up his past really was. His family had been involved in crime for as long as he could remember. A dabble in organized crime here, a little bit of fraud there but never on the right side of the law. He’d tried going straight. Heck, he’d become a cop, but his real nature had found its way out. He’d also been inspired by the case of the hospital worker who absconded with recently deceased persons in order to sell the organs. He thought that seemed like a great idea and has been eager to be a copycat. But he wouldn’t tell Marcia about that part. 

“And you’re a detective. I’m such a lucky girl.”

He got up to stand behind her and knead her shoulders. His massive body towered over her. “As long as you stick with me everything will be all right.”

Marcia dropped her head back, enjoying the massage. “I think Lily has become suspicious. She might get in the way of our plans. I’m worried she’ll fire me or catch on.”

His hands stopped kneading. “We know she’s suspicious but that’s all. Has she done more than follow us around to dinner?”

Marcia looked down at the table. Her shoulders tensed up. “The other day she asked about us.”

“Uh-huh.” Rick’s head pounded. The mere mention of Lily sticking her nose in his business changed his mood.

“She seemed to question what I see in you.”

“Of course she did. She’s obsessed with me. The minute I stepped into their place she began to follow me around. She knows nothing though and soon she and hubby will be on their honeymoon, out of our way.”

“That will make it better.” Marcia sighed. “I would love to go on a honeymoon.” She looked up at him with twinkle-eyes. 

He cleared his throat. “Maybe someday. For now, we need to focus on getting as many people to the gathering as we can to keep the funds flowing. For the next gathering, I’m going to charge more. It will be grander. More sacrifices. More fortune for everyone.”

He sat back down on the couch. His heart raced when he got excited. If he was going to charge people more money, he’d have to give them something more to see. “But it means we’ll have to give our followers more. It means we’ll have to acquire more bodies.” He watched for her reaction—not the typical request but if she bit he knew he’d succeeded in convincing her.

“That shouldn’t be a problem.” She didn’t skip a beat. “I’ll do anything to keep our family together. I thought the Reynolds Funeral Home was my family, but the Reynolds always come first in that place. And as long as you can keep Antonio happy with the bribes, we should be able to continue sneaking out of the garage undetected.”

Rick smiled. He knew he was good but not this good. “That’s why we’ve got to keep the fees rolling in. It’s not cheap installing those church-boy decoys to keep suspicion low.”

She looked up from her work. “What decoys?” 

“The boys I hired to hand out bingo night flyers whenever they spot the cops pull up—keeps our recruiters from getting caught.”

“Oh, and you throw the bingo night party, too?”

He shook his head. “If anyone shows up for it they’ll think it got canceled.”

“Got it. That is elaborate.”

“And expensive but I know you will do anything for us which also means keeping Lily off your case. If she keeps on pursuing us our family will be torn apart. And the gods will surely be upset.” 

“Of course. I would never want to upset the gods or you. Lily will never know our secret.”

Rick blew out the air he’d been holding. Without Marcia he couldn’t possibly get everything done the right way. He needed her almost as much as she needed him. He couldn’t believe how lucky he’d been. It had all been too easy.

Soon after arriving at the funeral home he’d identified Marcia as the weakest link among them. He had been like a magnet to her timid nature, and he knew she would be a pawn in his game, but also a very important one. 

Zachary, on the other hand, had not succumbed so easily. A few trips to Old Town Bar had loosened his tongue enough for Rick to learn about the kid’s insecurities. Deep-seated issues regarding his parents’ death bubbled to the surface after two drinks. He talked about the mistakes he’d made in the past and his trouble with the law. Rick knew Zachary was searching for some stability and he would gladly provide it in exchange for his trust. It all seemed almost too easy—except for Lily. He sighed.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Nothing. I was just thinking about how we met and how grateful I am.”

She smiled. “I’m glad you were curious about my casket art that day. Even though I noticed you, I never would’ve started the conversation.”

“It’s not every day one sees a phoenix rising from the ashes painted on someone’s casket.”

She giggled. “That was Mr. Parker. His family said that’s what he would have wanted because he loved the idea of transformation.”

“And it brought us together to do great things.” 

“When will you write the new sermon? I’m almost done with the new brochures for the next meeting.”

“It’s already written.” He pointed to his head. “It’s all in here.”