Chapter 44
By the time Luna finished talking, I realized that she was right. Normally, I was a stickler for keeping secrets, but not in a case like this.
The secret involved Jake and his dad's girlfriend. From what Luna had just told me, I couldn't help but agree with her that everyone – Joel and Jake, in particular – would be better off once the truth came out.
Still, I had to ask, "If you feel so strongly about it, why haven'tyoutold him?"
"Joel?" she said. "I would. But I can't seem to find the chance. And besides, it's not something you just blurt out. You've got to ease into it, you know?"
I saw what she meant. The whole thing sounded like a total train-wreck. And to think, the train had jumped the track over a decade ago, and no one had ever bothered to set it straight.
"Plus," Luna added, "I don't see Joel that much, and with him and Jake getting along so terribly all the time, it's like I’m walking on eggshells." She gave me a shaky smile. "But the wedding's coming up, and it would be really nice if they weren't fighting anymore."
Obviously, she meant her wedding to Jake. And yet, I couldn’t help but feel that familiar pang in my heart. Not too long ago, I'd been thinking of my own wedding. And it wasn't even the wedding itself that I was looking forward to. It was the prospect of having Joel forever.
Now, I had no idea where we stood. Still, I promised Luna that if I had the chance, I'd try to set things straight. After all, it was the least I could do after everything she'd done for me.
As we returned to the kitchen, I said, "So, do you know where they were going?"
"Who?" she asked.
"Jake and Bishop. They practically dragged Joel away. They had to catch a flight or something?"
"Oh. That." She gave me an apologetic smile. "Sorry, but it's a secret."
I had to laugh. "Wait a minute. That's not fair."
"What do you mean?"
"You just askedmeto 'blab' a secret. And now, you haveanotherthat you won't tell me?"
She smiled. "Yup."
"But youdoknow where they went?"
She nodded.
I made a sound of frustration. "And you're not gonna say?"
"I would," she said, "but it's better if you hear it from Joel."
"But Joel hasn't told me either."
She gave a breezy wave of her hands. "Oh, but he will."
"When?"
"Probably when he gets back."
"Can you at least give me a hint?"
"No way," she said. "The last 'hint' I gave? Got me in a world of trouble."
Well, there was that.
As it turned out, we were out of time, anyway. Outside, I heard a vehicle pulling up to the house. A moment later, I opened the front door to see Luna's brothers getting out of their truck.
Already, I was dreading giving them the bad news – that their safe had been stolen right off my counter-top. But when I led them to the scene of the crime and explained what happened, they did something that caught me totally off-guard.
