Grim Reaper 01 - Embrace the Grim Reaper

waited, blinking as if in slo-mo, her eyes focused on the curtain for any sudden movement. But then his feet scuffed the floor. He stepped away.
    “Come on, Tommy boy,” Taffy said. Casey heard what must’ve been a slap to Thomas’ shoulder. “Get me out of this musty hole. I’m gonna be sneezing all the way back to L’ville. Bone!”
    A few moments more, and Casey heard Bone jumping lightly from the stage. Casey eased down so her head was on the floor, and peeked out the crack under the curtain. The three men were making their way back up the aisle, toward the double doors. When they reached them, Taffy opened the door, gesturing grandly for Thomas to precede him. He stepped in front of Bone, following Thomas. Bone hesitated in the doorway, and turned to look back at the stage. Casey froze, narrowing her eyes so the blue light wouldn’t reflect on them.
    Bone pivoted slowly on his heel, taking in every inch of the stage.
    And then he turned around, and left.

Chapter Twenty-two
    Casey waited fifteen minutes, and then five more, before easing out from behind the curtain, staying in the shadow of the wings. She walked quickly to the back exit and pushed the bar, heaving a sigh of relief when the door opened. She scooted out the door and peered around the corner of the building. No one there. Feeling conspicuous in the daylight, she walked normally toward the front of the theater. She sensed no one waiting, and found herself to be correct. Looking up and down the street she didn’t see Thomas’ car or any others that looked out of place.
    Grabbing her bike, she left, pedaling hard. It was difficult to concentrate on riding the rest of the way back to The Nesting Place, what with watching out for the men, and Eric’s paternity resurfacing in her mind.
    She found Lillian and Rosemary finishing their lunch. She looked at them, trying to get her mind around the domestic vision of food and conversation with the image of Thomas and the men still resonating in her mind.
    “Hungry, dear?” Rosemary asked.
    Casey held up her bag. “Already ate. Can I put my leftovers in your fridge?”
    “Of course,” Lillian said. “Wherever there’s room. Just move things around how you need to.”
    Casey found a spot on the bottom shelf, beside a bag bursting with Romaine lettuce. She closed the door and stood there for a moment, thinking.
    “If Karl Willems is Eric’s father,” she said, “then why is Eric’s last name VanDiepenbos?”
    Rosemary’s mouth dropped open, and Lillian’s napkin fluttered to the floor. Casey went over to retrieve it. Lillian took it back, but averted her eyes.
    “I think you’d better have a seat, darling,” Rosemary said.
    Casey pulled out the third chair and sat.
    Rosemary cleared her throat. “When Eric was twelve, he and his mother left his father.”
    “Right. He told me that. Or at least that his parents got divorced.”
    “Did he also tell you he swore never to speak to his father again?”
    “Um. No.”
    “Well, as his mother didn’t really want to talk to her ex-husband anymore, either, she really couldn’t find fault with it. And when she took back her maiden name, well, Eric took it, too.”
    “So VanDiepenbos was his mother’s name?”
    “Exactly. He’s always been closer to her than to his father, but even with that…” She shrugged.
    Casey understood. “Even with that, he left town. To get away from his father.”
    “Sure, partly. Also partly to go to college. But he stayed away long after that. Some because there’s really not much theater here in Clymer—” she gave a little snort “—but also because he just needed to get away from the stress of being Karl Willems’ son. Even if you’d never know it from watching.”
    Casey was trying to digest all of this when Lillian abruptly stood up and left the room.
    Casey sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to spoil your lunch.”
    “No, no.” Rosemary patted her arm. “You did no such thing. And then,” she continued, “Karl remarried about a year ago. Eric thought it was best if he came back to make sure his mother was still being taken care of, and just stayed on when everything began happening with HomeMaker. Thoughtful of him, but unnecessary, really.”
    Lillian returned with a piece of paper. “I think it’s about time you filled out our paperwork, Casey.” She laid the form on the table.
    Casey’s face went hot. “I’m really sorry. If I said something—”
    Lillian put a pen down