Seth (The Casella Cousins Book 2) Page 3

  “I don’t want to talk about that.”

  Instead, they discussed both their jobs, he visited with his aunt then left the house. But instead of driving back to New York he headed to downtown Hidden Cove, parked in the City Hall parking lot and walked inside. He punched a number in his cell phone, before he got to the reception desk. “I’m here,” he said when she answered.

  “Be right down.”

  Soon, Valerie Daniels walked into the lobby, wearing a deep pink summer suit, with a silky white blouse, heels on her feet. She took his hand as if to shake, but instead caressed it. Her skin was silky, all over. “Hello, Mr. Casella.”

  “Mayor.”

  They left city hall at a discreet distance away from each other and got into his car. And headed toward Finn’s cottage.

  * * *

  Seth stood in Julianne’s garage, while she remained in the open doorway of her house. She was right, he was a dog with a bone. “Hi.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Hi. What do you want?”

  “I have a favor to ask.”

  Her brow furrowed beneath hair that was damp. She’d probably worked out. “Is something wrong?”

  “No, why would you ask that?”

  “Because you have a plethora of siblings and cousins who’ll do you favors.” Her tone bordered on exasperation.

  “Nobody’s available to drive me where I have to go.”

  She fidgeted with the door handle, as if she was nervous. Then she stepped out on the top stair. “You want me to take you somewhere?”

  “Yeah, to the Lincoln Circle area on the outskirts of town.”

  “I read in the paper this morning that some of the roads are closed out there.”

  “They are. It’s a difficult place to get to geographically. I don’t want Ali or Mama to get stuck with taking detours and getting caught in closed roads. Or worse, getting lost.”

  The corners of her mouth crinkled. “But you want me to?”

  “Yep. You’re a daredevil driver.” He raked his hand through his hair. “I could go alone but the doc benched me for another week.”

  “I have time, I guess.” She lifted up her arm and sniffed. One thing about Julianne that he loved was that she was so earthy and natural. “I smell from going to the gym. I’ll come get you after I shower.”

  “No, I’m ready now. Let me in, and I’ll wait downstairs.”

  “All right.” Once inside the kitchen, she turned her back to him and called out over her shoulder, “You know where everything is.”

  He did. He’d spent half his life here…

  When they were little, he remembered her mother Celia saying, Of course you can sleep upstairs with Julianne in her tent.

  Celia telling her husband when they were in high school…Hush, Herb. They’re fine down in the basement. If they’re going to do something, they’re together so much they can do it anywhere.

  And later, in college, again her mother smiling at him…You don’t have to knock, Seth. Our casa your casa…

  Everybody thought they were perfect together. And they had been. “Still are,” he said aloud.

  He wandered around the living room. The pictures of him and Julianne that had graced the tables and shelves were gone now, replaced by prints on the wall and photos of her mother and father on a cruise ship, right before Herb Ford died of cancer. Ones of her and her mother in Florida, where Celia Ford moved to live with her sister.

  Also missing were any pictures of Julianne with Jordan, her mysterious beau. He wondered if those were in the bedroom, which led to wondering what guys had been up there. “Fuck!” he said out loud.

  “Who are you swearing at?” she asked when she came down. Dressed in simple white capris and a yellow blouse, her hair brushed back in a ponytail, she looked…wonderful. Pieces of his heart chipped away a little bit more every time he saw her and was reminded of what he’d lost.

  “I was swearing at myself.”

  “Do I dare ask why?”

  “No.” He grinned. “You look cute.”

  “Let’s go,” she responded, ignoring the compliment.

  He followed her out, and got in her bright red mustang. She liked cars and had bought snazzy ones since they broke up. Soon, they were on their way to see a boy/man whose parents and society had forgotten.

  * * *

  “We’re close to the house, Julianne. Sorry it’s taking so long.”

  The driving distance didn’t matter. The slow traffic was tolerable. But being with Seth in such close quarters played havoc with her nerve endings. His scent, too familiar, filled her head and his shoulders nearly touched hers in the confines of the front seat. Still, she said, calmly, “No worries. Can you share with me where we’re going? You just said you had to do something for work.”

  “Yeah, I can tell you. There’s a young man who needs help in getting foster care for two of his former neighbors. The kids spent all their time at his house for almost two years, then they were put in a foster home when their parents overdosed. John turned twenty-one and wants those kids back.”

  “They weren’t adopted?”

  “Both have a bad case of asthma and need supervision and medicine for attacks.”

  “People don’t know how serious asthma can be.” She shook her head. “I have a student with it. Since music includes breathing, the parents thought I could help with his condition.”

  “Are you helping him?”

  “I think I am. He’s a sweetie.”

  “Good for you, Jules.”

  He glanced down at his phone. “The house is right up here. I hope it passes the standards OCFS has in place.”

  “Me, too.”

  She swerved over to the curb in front of 5523 Lincoln Street. The house loomed before them, up three stories, gray, shingled and sturdy. She was sorry to say, “The paint’s peeling a bit.”

  “That won’t count much.” A sidewalk separated the house from the street. “Thankfully the walkway and stoop are in good shape. So many of these older houses have cracked concrete, which would work against future fostering because they’d be dangerous to kids.”

  “Shall I wait out here?” she asked.

  “This is a pretty safe neighborhood, but I’ll be at least an hour, and I don’t want you alone.”

  She’d warned the man thousand times since they were teens not to make decisions for her. “Seth…”

  “Sorry. You decide. But I’d prefer you come in with me.”

  “All right. I will.”

  “And if you see things that are…I don’t know, iffy, keep it in mind to tell me later.”

  Seconds after he used the heavy knocker, the door opened. Before him stood a young man, dressed in khaki shorts and a collared shirt, dark hair combed back, and wary eyes. He greeted them. “Hey, I’m Johnny. Seth, right?”

  “Yeah and this is a coworker, Julianne.”

  After Julianne said hello, the boy stepped aside. Both walked into a large foyer, with hardwood flooring, worn some, but not hazardous. Johnny jammed his hands into his pockets. “So, how do we do this?”

  “I’d like to ask you the standard questions used at Legal Aid before we take a case, then talk to your grandmother, then take a tour of your house.”

  “Does everything have to be…perfect? Sometimes, Grandma isn’t very neat.”

  “No, of course not.”

  Julianne didn’t know if she was supposed to speak, but that didn’t stop her. “My grandma wasn’t either, Johnny. It’s common among the elderly.”

  They sat in the dining room at a big scarred oak table. Seth asked the standard queries: Did the household income qualify for Legal Aid and fostering? Who would take care of the kids when Johnny worked at his job on the docks? And more.

  “I think that’s enough for me. You passed.” Seth stood. “Let’s go talk to Grandma.”

  Johnny pumped his fist. “Yes!”

  They walked through an older but neat kitchen, to where a door led to a screened-in back porch. “Grand
ma, these are the people I told you about.”

  Grandma smiled up at them from where she sat in a recliner. The application said she was sixty-seven and spry enough to watch the kids. Her purple shirt complemented her white hair and alert eyes.

  “Hello, I’m Dorothy Cordello.”

  Seth introduced himself and Jules, and when they took chairs, Dorothy came to the edge of hers. “Would you like some lemonade?”

  “Thank you,” Seth said.

  “I’d love some.”

  The older woman started to get up.

  “No, please—” Julianne began.

  Johnny intervened. “Let her get up. She’s supposed to move, every hour.”

  Dorothy stood easily, went into the kitchen and returned with lemonade for everybody. She was steady and sure on her feet. They chatted with her, and found she was totally onboard with Johnny’s foster care. She spoke briefly about her son and daughter who’d kicked Johnny out. Her eyes clouded and her words were critical. “How they could do that to my boy is beyond me. And they told me he’d run away. I had no idea he was in a group home. When I found out, I brought him here.” She gave Johnny a squeeze on his arm and smiled at him.

  They spoke of her ability to take care of the kids. She’d been an elementary school teacher and retired at sixty-two.

  Then Johnny took Seth and Julianne on a tour of the house. Some furniture was worn, like the floors, but neat and clean. Three bedrooms upstairs, and yes, Johnny told them, Grandma could climb them easily since her hip surgery. Then they returned to the porch.

  “Do we pass muster?” Dorothy asked.

  “From my vantage point, you passed with flying colors.”

  “My Joseph used to use that phrase.”

  Julianne asked, “How long has he been gone?”

  “Ten years. I was sad for a long time. Having Johnny here has been a godsend.”

  Johnny walked them to the door. “What next?” he asked in the foyer.

  “We make a plan. The first step is to get an interview with OCFS so we can fill out the paperwork for your case. Oh, and I meant to ask, do you still see the kids?”

  “I do, but the Craigs don’t like it. Sometimes they’re left alone, though. A teenage girl there is supposed to babysit. But she hardly keeps track of what they’re doin’.”

  “Huh. I’ll check with my boss and ask her to find out how they’re being treated.”

  “That’d be great.”

  Seth leaned against the open door. “One thing, Johnny, that I didn’t tell you. I had an injury and am still working from home. When we meet again, you’ll have to come to my house. I’ll be well enough by the next week to go to the group home to investigate for myself.”

  Johnny’s dark eyes widened. “I thought I recognized your name. You’re from Legal Aid. You were stabbed one night.”

  “I was. But I’m on the mend. No permanent injury.”

  “That musta been awful, Mr. Casella.”

  “It was.” Seth extended his hand. “I’ll be in touch.”

  “Great. Appreciate this.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  When they got in the car, Julianne turned to him. “Can you really get those kids for him?”

  “I can try. And I think I will.”

  “You do good work, Seth.”

  “You do, too, Jules.”

  Julianne snapped on her seatbelt and started the car. Today was hard for her. She didn’t want to see this Seth. This Seth was the man she’d loved before. Damn, driving him out here was a mistake!

  * * *

  Seth waited until Julianne stopped the car and turned off the engine. “Wait a sec,” he said when she started to get out. I got a text from Mama. She said to ask you for dinner.”

  Unexpectedly, Jules put her forehead down on the wheel, but didn’t respond. After a while, she sat back up and faced him. “I can’t do that.”

  “Why, do you have plans?”

  “No. I can’t be with you any longer. It hurts and we’re getting close again.”

  That was good news. “Hell, Jules, don’t you know what that means?”

  “It means I can’t be with you.” Her voice had raised a notch. “I already knew that.”

  “No, it means we were meant to get back together.”

  “Until you cheat on me with someone else!”

  “I learned my lesson.”

  “Maybe, but I can’t take the risk. The last time, I thought I’d die. We were planning our fucking wedding.”

  Seth went to the dark place inside him when he thought of what he’d actually done to this woman. He drowned in self-deprecation.

  “I don’t mean to hurt you. You have a problem and I’ve been the casualty.” She took in a breath. “If you love me, like you say, you’ll leave me alone.”

  “I’m so sorry I keep pressuring you.”

  “I’ll forgive you for that if you stop.”

  He swallowed hard. “I will.”

  They got out of the car. “Goodbye, Seth. Good luck with Johnny.”

  He walked out of her garage after Julianne rounded the car. She was right. He had to stop hurting her. To do that, he needed to move out of his mother’s place. He was halfway across the lawn, when she came running after him. He turned.

  “Seth, I think somebody’s been in my house.”

  Chapter 3

  * * *

  He grabbed her hands. They were shaking. “Give me details.”

  “I only went into the kitchen. I left a towel hung over the bar of the oven and it’s gone. One drawer was pulled open. A chair at the table was askew.”

  “That’s enough for me. I know how meticulous you are.” He tapped into his phone and waited.

  “Gideon Casella.”

  “Hey, Gid. I know you don’t patrol anymore, but I need a favor.”

  “Anything.”

  “I’m with Julianne.” He told Gideon what happened.

  “No offense, Seth, but that’s not exactly a ransacked house.”

  “Which is why I didn’t call 911. But she didn’t check the rest of the house. And Gid, Julianne’s fastidious and has an almost photographic memory. If she knows those things were different, they’re different.”

  “Who else has a key?”

  “Just a sec. Jules, who else has a key?”

  “Your mom. And my mom, of course, but she’s in Florida. Can I talk to Gideon?”

  He put the phone on speaker. “Hey, Gideon, I know this is below your pay grade, but I also know what condition my kitchen was in when I left. Do you want me to go back and check the other rooms?”

  From next to her, he heard his brother’s bellow, “No! Go to Mama’s. I’ll be there in twenty minutes. I have to cancel some things.”

  “Shit,” Seth said when he disconnected, “I didn’t want Mama to know.”

  Julianne sighed. “I know all of you think Carmella’s fragile. But she’s not even that old. And she’s definitely tough.”

  “Yeah, I guess. Let’s go over there.” He held out his hand. Her expression was horrified. “Oh, sorry. Habit, I guess.”

  They walked across the yard. Before they went into the house, Seth stopped in the garage. “Wait a sec. Doesn’t Jordan have a key?”

  Julianne shook her head. “There is no Jordan.”

  “I don’t understand. You told me you were serious.”

  “So you’d leave me alone.”

  “You made up a boyfriend?”

  “Yes. You can razz me later about that, but I don’t want you to bring him up to Gideon. It’ll embarrass me.”

  “I won’t. I promise.”

  Once inside, they found Carmella at the kitchen table with a dark-haired, dark-eyed boy, who was nearly the spitting image of his father Rafe. Tomaso’s face beamed when he saw Seth. “Uncle Seth. Nana let me make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner.”

  Carmella shrugged. “I couldn’t see the harm. I’m trying to convince him to let me melt them in a frying pan.” She nod
ded to Jules. “Hello, dear.”

  Tommy smiled at her. “Hey, Julianne.”

  Hmm, Seth had never introduced him. “Hey, buddy.” She said to Seth, “We met here before.”

  “Ah.” He squatted down so he was eye level with his nephew. “Why doesn’t Nana make a trial pb&j, and you can decide if you like it?” He glanced at his watch. “We can’t eat for a while, Mama. Gideon’s coming over.”

  “Here? He’s done with work already?”

  They exchanged looks. Seth gave a quick shake of his head.

  She got the message. “Tommy, while I fiddle around out here, why don’t you go turn on that movie your father said you could watch today?”

  “I’ll go with you to help set up.” Julianne took his hand. “What is it, Tom?”

  Seth didn’t hear Tommy answer, and as soon as he was out of earshot, he explained the situation to his mother.

  “Oh, dear. A break-in?”

  “I’m assuming it wasn’t you who went into the house, because you’d have no reason to touch those things. And besides Celia Ford, you’re the only one with another key.”

  “Of course, it wasn’t me. Did she check the rest of the house?”

  “Gid said not to.”

  Julianne came back out just as Gideon walked through the door. “Hey.”

  Seth checked the wall clock. “You’re early.”

  “Yeah, I made calls from the car. I got a bad feeling about Julianne’s house, so I came over right away.”

  His brother’s bad feelings usually were spot on. Even when they were children, he sensed when things were wrong.

  “Thanks, bro.”

  “I’m going in first.” To her he said, “Is there any chance he’s still in there?”

  Her eyes widened like saucers. “I have no idea. If he was, he probably left because we got home.”

  “How far did you go into the house?”

  “The kitchen.”

  He whipped out black plastic gloves and snapped them on. “I’ll be back.” She noticed the gun on his belt. “Don’t worry, this is routine.”

  While he checked the house, Mama made some melted sandwiches, which Tommy loved.