Lucy left a check on the front counter and picked up a reminder appointment card the receptionist had left for the next week. As usual, she’d be a no-show—until her nightmares become uncontrollable, then she’d beg Dr. Griffin for another session.
Lucy strolled down Royal Street, exchanging pleasant smiles and handshakes. Stopping to give a phony laugh at a store owner’s joke, the same one he’d told her three times. It was her way to get on with the day and show Lucinda her visit with Dr. Griffin gave Lucy her power back. For now, Lucinda would crawl back into the dark hole she lived in, only to surface when Lucy least expected or needed help.
CHAPTER 2
Mostly, Lucy’s life was rolling along. All aspects of the business were good, the legal ones and her business that walked the fine line of the law and often crossed.
Stella James, a vice cop with the New Orleans Police Department, bloomed into a little more than good friends with Lucy, thanks to Mario DeLuca. An introduction a year earlier allowed Lucy to run a scam with assistance from the police, without them ever knowing. It took a bad guy off the street and confirmed to another client that Lucy had voodoo powers.
Stella and Lucy had been out a few times, neither wanted to call it a date. Cocktails at a jazz bar and dinner ended with a walk through Jackson Square. A kiss goodnight and they would go their separate ways.
Stella always made time from her cop duties to meet Lucy after a session with Dr. Griffin. She didn’t know all the details of what took Lucy to treatment, but after Stella had sat with a police therapist for justifiably killing a man while on the job, she could only imagine what it would be like under hypnotist having a psychiatrist rifle you with questions. This day they were to meet on a bench across from St. Louis Cathedral. Stella introduced Lucy to cannolis from Brocato’s bakery, and it quickly became a favorite. Today’s visit was coffee and a cannoli for each. It should get a smile from Lucy—she thought.
Lucy arrived in a huff, took a seat, not saying a word, her usual actions for the first hour after visiting Dr. Griffin. Stella, her rock, shoulder to lean on, all around good friend, took the brunt of the shitstorm that came after a session.
“I’ve got your favorite,” Stella said handing a cannoli and a coffee.
Lucy frowned, motioned for her to place it on the bench. “Thanks—you know this stuff goes right to my hips.”
“That’s me, Lucy,” Stella said. “Beefing you up, all one hundred and ten pounds of you.”
Stella waited, and it came as it had every week. Big tears streamed down Lucy’s face, speaking but not making much sense. Their heads rested on each other’s shoulders. That was Stella’s clue to break out a small box of tissues she carried to Dr. Griffin’s after-party.
“I take it things didn’t go well,” Stella whispered.
“No,” Lucy said, lifting her head. “I can’t remember behind the heat I felt on my face. Same as the time before and the time before that.”
Stella always weighted her words with this topic. “Maybe it’s your brain’s way of telling you, you’re not ready.”
“Ready for what?” Lucy wiped her eyes with a tissue. “Can it be any worse if the doctor pushed forward?”
“Honey, the little I know, it could be a lot worse. That’s why they’re doctors,” Stella said, giving her a kiss on the cheek. “He’ll know when you’re ready. Let’s finish up, and I’ll walk you back to the salon.”
A half box of tissue later, Lucy’s tears were under control, and she knocked back the rest of the coffee and the remainder of the cannoli. Both touched up their lipsticks, sharing a little, gold, compact mirror. With a big puff, Lucy exhaled, taking Stella’s hand. It was Lucy’s way of saying she was ready to put the doctor’s session behind her.
They strolled the uneven concrete up Pirate Alley to Royal Street hand and hand. “You’re just what the doctor ordered,” Lucy said. “Coffee, cannoli, and a shoulder to cry on.”
Stella pulled her closer and gave a kiss on her cheek. “I’m here for you any time and place. You need to let me in. I can help.”
Lucy smiled and gave a squeeze of her hand, but that was as far as it would go. Her life was too complicated. Therapy sessions, Detective Henry “Zack” Nelson chasing her down for the bank job her father pulled, the after-hour business she inherited from Vivien, and the police yet to discover she’d killed Picklehead.
They stopped in front of the salon. Lucy smiled and looked into Stella’s eyes. She could be the one, but Lucy came with too much baggage. “Stella, you couldn’t handle me.”
“Give me a try,” Stella said, pulling her by the hand. Then she went for it and laid into her with a kiss. It was a passionate one—the type lovers do in private. Their mouths slid across the fresh, slippery lipstick. This time Lucy didn’t pull away. The embrace lasted and with every second that passed, Stella watched from the corner of her eye the woman of her dream’s fingers twirling her red hair into a long, tight curl. Her hand gracefully rested on her shoulder and fiddled the hair in place. This was not the shy woman Stella knew, but she was game.
They broke apart. Stella’s big, brown eyes flickered. “Wow.”
“When you want loving, call on Lucinda,” she said, running her tongue over her lips. “I’m your girl.” Then she stepped into the salon as a customer walked out.
Stella’s head was spinning. It made no sense to her. “Call who?”
Get “Revenge”
SPECIAL PREVIEW
TRUE BLUE DETECTIVE
BY
VITO ZUPPARDO
CHAPTER 1
It was the early hours of the morning when the garage doors opened. Doctor Ross pulled out into the driveway, and all that could be seen were
