Prologue
We all came to watch her die.
We were distorted silhouettes against a moonlit sky like goblins or ghosts who came out at night, when the moon was full and welcomed wicked things to earth.
We surrounded her in a large circle, and she fluttered her eyelashes like an injured butterfly wagging its broken wings in a last attempt to fly. And similar to the insect falling to its demise, she lay on the wet ground in the midst of a garden, dying among growing things—carrots and cabbage, grass and fertile earth.
Stars glittered in the night. The moon glowed. A breeze kissed her flesh for the last time. It was beautiful in a way that was immorally wrong.
And then her expression froze into a picture, one discarded among forgotten things, except no one would ever forget her.
“I'll make sure they remember.” I took a strand of her hair.
Everyone nodded in silent agreement, and then one by one disappeared into the castle’s dark shadows where night met blackened air and creepy things whispered the most haunting words into the wind.
Chapter 1
Elle
There had to be a corpse in the body bag. The sun shined in my eyes as I peeked out of the taxicab’s back window for a better look. The driver backed into the entrance of the huge castle’s grounds and parked next to the ambulance, which improved my view. Is that a dead person on the gurney? Although the bag was zipped all the way up, the black material bulged in places where I assumed the head and feet would be, giving me the impression that it was full.
Who died?
The cabbie shut the vehicle off. “Whoa. I wonder what’s going on around here.”
“I’m wondering, too,” I said. “Doesn’t that look like a body bag?”
“Sure does. But you never know with these rich people. The more money, the more secrets. Plus this family is Cuban rich. Trust me. I’m Cuban myself. When we get rich, things get crazy.”
A fat EMT wearing headphones pushed the gurney into the ambulance, slammed the door closed, and bobbed his head to his own rhythm while he walked to the front. No police were around, which seemed odd.
“Regardless, I wouldn’t worry about any danger at this place.” The driver hopped out, rushed to my side, and opened the door. “This is the famous Castillo Castle. Surprisingly, I’ve never heard of any funny business going on around here. I’m always dropping artists and musicians off in the front, but you’re my first model.”
“Well, I’m not a supermodel or anything like that. I don’t do fashion shows or magazine covers. I just model for artists.”
“Hey, a pretty lady is a pretty lady. Just take the compliment.”
“Thank you.” I handed him my cab fare and slung my bag onto my shoulder. “And thanks again for that very interesting historical tour of Miami.”
Laughing, he tucked the bills into his pocket. “Well, it was a long drive from the airport to here, so I try to entertain my passengers whenever I can. Besides, it’s not that many times I have such a beautiful woman in my cab, especially one who knows every line from the movie Scarface.”
“Hey, that’s no real talent. I’ve just seen Scarface at least ten times like any full-blooded American.”
The emergency vehicle sped off, rustling the gravel on the road and taking the secret of the dead body off with it. I turned back to the opened gates with the name Castillo written in cursive.
God, I hope this is a good idea. An ambulance leaving the site can’t be a great sign for my first day of work.
“Can I get a picture with you to show my buddies?” He took out his cell phone and pressed on the screen a few times. “Okay. I’d love some of you in front of the gates.”
I held in my impatience. I’d already been nervous about moving to a city without knowing anybody and starting this new job that could ruin or heighten my already established career. The last thing I craved was a photo shoot for a cab driver in front of my new employer’s residence.
I straightened out my yellow sun dress and tried to make the wrinkled material less rumpled by my legs. “I’ll do one or two, but then I really have to go.”
“Okay. I understand. Then can I get them with your hair down? I’ll even give you your money back for the cab fare.”
It was always the hair with most people. I had a simple, slim frame, pale skin, and a reasonably cute face, but my hair was always my best quality. The taxi ride from the airport cost close to a hundred dollars, money that I needed to hold on to.
I drew in my sigh so I wouldn’t seem annoyed. “No problem.”
“You’re in Miami now. It’s no problemo.”
“No problemo.”