An hour later Nora stopped a few paces into Blue Eddy’s, her lip curling. “This isn’t my kind of place. Let’s go somewhere else.”
Eddy was already hurrying over, smiling.
“Tough,” I muttered. “It’s my kind of place, and we have a reservation. I’m staying. If you want to walk back to the hotel, feel free.”
“That is so inconsiderate…” Nora began.
“This is my friend Eddy Carlson,” I said firmly as he arrived. “And Eddy, this is my mother, Nora Taylor.”
“Mrs. Taylor.” Eddy gave her his friendly, open smile and a polite half-bow. “What a pleasure to meet you. I can see where Aydan gets her beauty.”
My face went hot.
Nora flushed, too. “Oh, my!” She smiled and leaned confidentially toward Eddy. “Flattery will get you everywhere.”
He gave her a wink. “So I’m told. But it’s not flattery if it’s true.”
“Ooh…” Nora fluttered a coquettish hand. “You’re such a charming liar.”
“Not at all, Mrs. Taylor. May I show you to your table?”
“Oh, yes, please.” She took his proffered elbow. “And please call me Nora.”
“Thank you, Nora. And I hope you’ll call me Eddy.” He ushered her to our table as though escorting a queen to a state dinner.
I followed, trying not to let my jaw dangle. Somehow my down-to-earth friend had transformed into a suave lady-killer.
Good God, he even pulled out Nora’s chair and seated her. When he pulled out my usual chair for me and waited politely behind it, I nearly choked. Somehow I managed to keep a straight face while he seated me, too.
“Now, what can I get you ladies to drink?” he inquired. “Mrs. Taylor, do you have a favourite?”
“Oh…” She batted her eyelashes at him. “It’s just Nora, please! And… I rarely imbibe, but… maybe you have a specialty…?”
“Mixing drinks is my passion,” Eddy confided, his voice dropping meaningfully on the word ‘passion’. “Do you like your drinks sweet or tart? Or… spicy?” He gave her a slow smile.
Oh. My. God.
Eddy. Flirting.
He was devastating.
“Oh…” Nora flushed again. “I’m afraid I don’t dare try anything spicy.” She batted her eyelashes some more. “Can you do something sweet, with a little tart?”
I clamped my hand over my mouth but a snicker exploded in spite of my efforts.
They both turned to me, Nora with a frown and Eddy with a devilish twinkle in his eyes.
“Aydan!” Nora said in a tone of rebuke.
I opened my mouth to apologize but laughter burst out instead. “Sorry,” I gasped. “You just… You asked if he could do something sweet with a little tart. Who’s the little tart?”
Eddy spun to face the bar, his shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter. Fortunately Nora was too busy glaring at me to notice.
“I’m humiliated that any daughter of mine would have such a low mind,” she snapped.
Suddenly I just didn’t give a shit anymore.
“Sucks to be you, then.” I slouched in my chair and stretched out my legs, crossing my ankles. “Eddy, would you bring me a beer, please?”
“Of course.” Somehow he managed a grave expression as he turned back to Nora. “And Mrs. Taylor…” He gave her that deferential half-bow again. “If you will honour me with your trust, I would like to create a special cocktail just for you.”
Good Lord, if he didn’t stop soon I was going to either gag or fall on the floor laughing. Maybe both.
“Oh, that would be lovely.” Nora smiled up at him. “Please excuse Aydan’s rudeness. Obviously her upbringing suffered from my absence.”
Eddy gave her a serious look and leaned in. “Mrs. Taylor, Aydan is a wonderful woman with a great sense of humour. She has nothing to apologize for, and neither do you. I’m sure that when you get to know her better, you’ll be proud of her.”
A lump rose in my throat. “Thanks,” I mumbled.
Nora gazed up at Eddy. “That’s very kind of you,” she said. “Thank you.”
He gave her a nod and a smile and withdrew.
“What a lovely man,” Nora said. “Are you dating him?”
“No.”
“You should. He’s not married; I checked his ring finger.”
“I’m pretty sure he has a girlfriend,” I muttered. “And anyway, I’m seeing somebody else.” Two ‘somebody else’s, but she didn’t need to know that.
“Oh, yes, that ugly man. Artie, was it…?”
“Arnie,” I gritted.
She waved my reply away. “Eddy is much better looking. And I’m sure he’s nicer and more educated, too. And a successful businessman.” She eyed our surroundings as though calculating resale values. “He’s obviously-”
Fortunately my phone rang before I could respond. “’Scuse me,” I snapped. “I have to get this.”
Nora’s nose lifted, but she said nothing as I punched the Talk button.
“Hi, Aydan,” Eddy’s familiar voice said.
As I glanced over, he gave me a wink from behind the bar and casually turned his back, his phone to his ear.
“Are you driving?” he asked. “I could bring you a non-alcoholic beer if you’d like.”
Thank goodness Eddy was watching out for me. Getting drunk out of sheer irritation wouldn’t do anything for my mission or my credibility as an agent.
I let out a breath of gratitude. “That would be great. Thanks.”
“And your mother’s cocktail…” He hesitated. “How alcoholic should it be?”
“Very,” I said fervently.
I could hear the smile in his voice. “One very special drink, coming up!”
Stowing my phone back in my waist pouch, I faced Nora again.
“Good news?” she asked, and I realized I’d been smiling.
“I hope so.” Leaning back in my chair, I gave myself yet another attitude adjustment. Be nice. Suck up.
“So…” I began at the same time as Nora said, “Dani-dear, I’m afraid I owe you an apology.”
I stared at her. “Um… okay…?”
“I’ve just realized that I’ve been terribly critical of you, and I’m sorry.” She attempted a smile, but her lips wobbled. “The last time I saw you, you were only seventeen; and somehow, I… forgot that time doesn’t stand still. In my heart, you’re still seventeen and I’ve only just left you…” She stopped to compose herself, touching a delicate fingertip to the corners of her eyes. “I’ve dreamed of reuniting with you for so long, I built up this rose-tinted fantasy where we fell into each other’s arms and picked up where we’d left off.”
She sighed. “It was foolish of me; and it was even more foolish to take out my disappointment on you.” Reaching toward me, she said, “I’m sorry, Aydan. Can you forgive me?”
My guts clenched. “Of course.” The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. I took her hand. “And I’m sorry I’ve been such a disappointment. I just… don’t trust people very easily.”
“And I’m sure the events of the past week haven’t improved that,” Nora said regretfully. “I am so sorry, Dani-dear. Can we start over?”
“I’d like that.”
We were smiling at each other when Eddy arrived at the table bearing a tray. “Your beer,” he said, placing the mug in front of me. “And…” With a flourish, he placed a tall frosted glass containing pink-tinged liquid in front of Nora. “A unique creation for a unique woman. I hope you’ll enjoy it.”
“Oh, thank you!” Nora sipped, her eyes widening in pleasure. “Oh, my, this is lovely! It tastes like…” She sipped again, closing her eyes. “…cherries and lemonade.” She opened her eyes to gaze up at Eddy with admiration. “You are an artist.”
Eddy smiled. “I’m glad you approve. Now, here’s a menu for you, and today’s special is…”
I tuned him out, studying Nora’s rapt face while she listened to him.
Had her apology been sincere? Or was this just another attempt to manipulate me? Dammit, this would be so much easier if I could just hook her up to the lie detector…
“Aydan?”
Blinking back to the present, I found Eddy eyeing me inquiringly.
“Um, sorry… what did you say?” I asked.
He chuckled. “I asked if you needed a minute with the menu. I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.”
“Oh. No, I’ll have the special. It sounded great.” I gave him a smile, hoping to hide the fact that I hadn’t been listening.
When he hurried off to place our food order, Nora and I regarded each other over our beverages for a moment.
How could I ask her about Sam’s secrets? If she didn’t know anything about the darker side of the VR network, telling her about it would be a massive security breach.
Another reason to be jailed for life. How fucking many did I need?
But this was my last chance. I’d have to give away something to get something.
God, I hope I get something…
I leaned forward, lowering my voice. “Can I ask you about Sam’s other mages?”
Nora took a gulp of her drink, then let out a delicate cough. Eddy must have taken my request for high alcohol content seriously.
Or was she hiding her reaction to my question?
“I’m afraid I don’t know much about them,” she replied, matching my quiet tone. “But I’ll answer your question if I can.”
Thank God. She knew about the other mages. I hadn’t committed treason yet.
Hiding my relief behind a serious expression, I asked, “How much do you know about the way we get into the network?”
She hesitated. Took another drink.
Stalling.
“Is this place… secure?” she asked.
Opening my waist pouch, I activated my bug detector and tipped the pouch in her direction so she could see the green light.
“Ah.” Shoulders easing, she drank again before leaning forward and speaking so quietly I could barely hear her over the music. “I know that you use tiny electronic devices. Sam called them keys. But I don’t know how they work.”
Truth or lie?
“Okay, good,” I said. “So do you know if any of the other mages had a… reaction… to going in and out of the network?”
“What do you mean?”
“I can go in without a problem, but every time I come out I get this hellacious headache that lasts for about five minutes. It feels like my head’s going to explode.”
Nora’s brows snapped together.
“And if I go in and out a lot…” I faltered as her knuckles whitened on her glass. “…um… is something wrong?”
“Go on,” she said in a steely voice. “What happens if you go in and out a lot?”
“Um… the headaches get worse. And last longer. The more I do it, the more they run together until I have a permanent headache.”
Her voice came out in a venomous hiss. “Damn him! He promised he wasn’t hurting you!”
“Um… you mean Sam?” At the vicious jerk of her chin, I added, “Well, he wasn’t hurting me; it’s just the way the system works for me. So did that happen to any of the other women?”
I already knew the answer, but what would she tell me?
Sweet motherly Nora was gone, replaced by a woman who looked perfectly capable of murder. “That… liar! If he wasn’t dead already, I’d kill him!”