Authors: Liv Spector

The Rich and the Dead (40 page)

O
NCE THE TRIAL
was over and Dylan Rhodes was behind bars, it took several months for the rhythms of Lila's life to return to some kind of normalcy. The world eventually moved its attention on to other things, but it took Lila longer to pick up the pieces.

She thought a lot about Dylan. She thought a lot about Effie, too. For all their unforgivable sins, they'd both gotten stuck in a nightmare that they couldn't escape. Effie tried to buy her way out of it by hiring a hit man. Dylan tried to murder his way to freedom by ridding the world of a monstrous club. They were villains, but they were also victims. And, in her own flawed way, Effie had been Lila's friend.

But now everything had changed for Lila. Catching the Star Island killer and uncovering the secret of the Janus Society had transformed her into the hero of Miami. Her once quiet, isolated life was now a riot of phone calls, street cheers, high fives, free drinks, and marriage proposals. She found it both exhausting and exhilarating.

It seemed that everyone in her life, from old grade school teachers to her high school prom date, was getting back in touch. Everyone except the one person she wanted to hear from: Teddy Hawkins. The two of them hadn't spoken since they parted on the courthouse steps on the final day of Dylan's trial. The only reason she answered the phone or opened the door was the hope of once again hearing Teddy's voice and seeing his smile.

She and Teddy had shared so much: the pain of loving the wrong person, the joy of a secret adventure, and, ultimately, a profound friendship. She felt that she had seen two different sides of Teddyâwhen he was in love in the past and when he was grieving in the presentâand she understood and related to all of it. After all, no one else knew what Lila had gone through.

So when the knock on her door one steamy summer night turned out to be him, she was delighted.

“Teddy!” she exclaimed, giving him a good once-over. “You look great.” He looked vibrant, clear-eyed, and full of lifeâjust as he had when she met him as Camilla Dayton, that glorious afternoon on Fisher Island.

“As do you, Lady Day,” Teddy said. “Mind if we go for a drive? I have a proposal for you.”

“I'd be delighted.” She followed him down to the street, where Conrad was waiting in the car. They both climbed into the backseat.

“Conrad,” Teddy said. “Shall we?”

The car headed east toward Indian Creek Island.

“So,” Teddy said tentatively, testing the waters. “I see you didn't go back to your job at the police department.”

“That's right,” Lila said. She was surprised at how giddy she was to be back with Teddy and Conrad. Not long ago, she'd thought they were two of the world's most insane men. Now, in a strange way, she considered them family.

“I guess you're no longer interested in the crime-solving racket?”

“It just didn't feel right for me anymore.”

“So, you've got a lot of time on your hands, then?”

“Loads,” Lila said, smiling at Teddy.

“Think you'd be up for another adventure?”

Teddy's car shot across the causeway. Lila looked out the back window at the moon's reflection shining brightly on the tranquil waters of Biscayne Bay.

“What do you have in mind?” she asked, smiling.

For the first time in a long time, she knew she was headed in the right direction.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

LIV SPECTOR was raised on Cape Cod and now lives in Canada. She has worked as an oyster shucker, dancer, farmhand, journalist, and teacher. A graduate of McGill University in Montreal, she received her MFA from Brooklyn College.

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CREDITS

Cover design by Emin Mancheril

Cover photograph by Getty Images

This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

THE RICH AND THE DEAD
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