Pippa bit back a chuckle and walked up the sidewalk and inside, pausing after shutting the door. For the first time in five years, she didn’t lock it. Liliana would need to come inside. It was time to start living a somewhat normal life. She’d need to with Mal.
Liliana knocked about fifteen minutes later, and Pippa called out for her to come in. Just like a sane person.
She finished setting some of the cookies on a plate and brought them into the living room, where Liliana was waiting by the front door. “Would you like to sit?”
Liliana’s dark brows crinkled. “Um, okay.” She moved to the chair by the fireplace, her tools clanking together. “Most people don’t offer me cookies.” But when Pippa set the plate down, she took one, her eyelids fluttering as she ate. “These are fantastic.”
“Thanks.” Pippa felt like a dork, but she sat. “So. How bad is the car?” She had some savings, but not nearly enough for another car.
Liliana finished chewing, her gaze seeking. “Well, not great. How’syourboyfriend situation?”
A warning ticked through Pippa. “Um, good. Why?”
Liliana took a deep breath. “I couldn’t see anything wrong under the hood, so I investigated a little more, checked out the owner’s manual, and found the ignition fuse under the dash. Or rather, where the fuse should be.”
Pippa clasped her hands together, relief overtaking her. “Oh. Good. It’s just a burned-out fuse.” Those had to be easy to find, right?
“No.” Liliana shook her head. “There was no fuse. It was gone. Completely.”
Pippa straightened. That didn’t make sense. “Did it just fall out? Did you find it?”
Liliana’s frown deepened, and she leaned forward, putting her hand on Pippa’s knee. “You’re not getting this. Somebody took the ignition fuse out of your car. On purpose. So it wouldn’t run.”
Pippa shook her head, panic coating her throat. “No. That’s not possible.”
“Okay. Deep breaths, Sister.” Liliana leaned back. “Who has had access to your car?”
“Just me. And my, um, boyfriend.” Pippa’s throat hurt like she’d swallowed glass.
Liliana pressed her lips together. “Men are assholes. Why in the hell would he take your fuse? It’s not like you can’t call an Uber or taxi, even way out here.”
Pippa tried to make sense of these facts. “Mal’s friend was here yesterday, and he said he knew about cars. He looked at mine. Should he have discovered the problem?”
Liliana slowly nodded. “Yeah. If he was really looking, he would’ve found it. I did.” She shook her head. “Dicks always stick together. If your jerk boyfriend lied, so did his buddy.”
“Well, ah—” Pippa couldn’t breathe. She stood, and the room tilted crazily around her. How did this make sense? Wait a minute. Why would Mal do such a thing? If not him, then who? There hadn’t been anybody else around. What if the family had found her and just wanted her to stay in place? So they’d messed with her car.
That was crazy.
The family wouldn’t have just taken a fuse. They would’ve taken her. She swallowed several times, really wanting to throw up. “Can you fix it?”
Liliana stood, her dark eyes concerned. “Let me go check in my van. I’m sure there are fuses in there somewhere that’ll work. We’ll get you taken care of.” She swiped another cookie. “Are you in danger? I mean, do you want me to call the cops?”
“No,” Pippa burst out. Then she calmed herself. “No, but thank you. My boyfriend, or rather ex-boyfriend, is just a little possessive. But this is the last straw.”
“You go, girl.” Liliana waved the cookie. “None of them are a damn bit good, I’m tellin’ ya. A girl is better off with a cat for daytime companionship and a good vibrator for the night. Neither one will break your heart.” She headed for the door, munching away. “I’ll be back in a few.”
“Thank you.” Pippa forced herself to walk normally to the bedroom. She’d already partially packed, so she drew those suitcases out of the closet before heading to the office. Her records fit easily in a large bag, and her laptop packed up nicely. She’d have to leave the printer because it was so big.
A quick glance showed that nobody would know she’d moved on if they didn’t open any drawers. Good.
Survival mode came back surprisingly easy.
“Pippa?” Liliana called from the other room.
“Coming.” Pippa took her purse and walked into the other room, her head hurting almost as bad as her chest. “Did you fix it?”
“Yep. No problem.” Liliana rocked back on her boots. “I’m really sorry, by the way. It sucks.”
