Blood in the Marsh Read Online Free PDF Page B

know much about him except that his name is Nick Zampella—I mean Austin, and he’s a magician.”
    Leopold’s eyes darkened for a moment. “A magician, you say?”
    “Yes. Chelsey and I saw him perform last night and he’s really good.”
    “Zampella?” Lexi frowned.
    “That’s his stage name. His real name is Austin.”
    “Austin? Hmmm, that name isn’t familiar. Where’s he from?”
    Lyra was saved from answering by the ring of the doorbell. Excusing herself, she opened the door. Nick was standing outside, dressed in a pair of faded jeans and a black T-shirt that fit snugly to his body.
    “Hi,” she smiled nervously. “Would you like to come in?”
    He smiled and stepped inside. “I had no idea you lived in a place like this.”
    “It’s not my house,” Lyra explained as she led him into the den. “It’s my stepmother.”
    Leopold stood up and regarded Nick seriously, as Lyra led him into the den. “Nick, I’d like you to meet my stepmother, Alexandra Seville and this is her…friend, Leopold Desyatov. Lexi, Leopold, this is Nick Austin.”
    Lexi rose and slithered seductively over to Nick, extending her well-manicured hand. “Nick, how delightful to meet you. Lyra neglected to mention how extraordinarily handsome you are. Please, have a seat. Can I get you a drink?”
    Nick gave her a hard look then smiled quickly. “It’s nice to meet you.” He turned to Leopold and extended his hand. “And you, Count Desyatov.”
    Leopold smiled somewhat coldly. “A pleasure, Mr. Austin.”
    “So what are you having to drink, darling?” Lexi took Nick’s arm and pressed against his side.
    Lyra stepped forward. “We don’t have time for a drink, Lexi. I’ll see you later.”
    Nick pulled away from Lexi. “It was nice to meet you both.”
    He and Lyra started for the door but stopped as Lexi called out, “Oh, Lyra, darling. Leo and I will be out for the evening and I’m not sure what time we’ll be back.”
    “Okay.” Lyra nodded and opened the door.
    She and Nick stepped outside and he looked at her. “That was your mother?”
    “Adoptive mother.” She could not help but chuckle at the expression on his face. “Yes, but don’t spread it around. Lexi doesn’t like anyone to know she’s old enough to be my mother. In fact, she keeps reducing the age she was when I was born every year. In another couple of years she will have been only seven or eight when she adopted me.”
    “You were adopted?”
    “Yes.”
    “Do you mind me asking about it?”
    “No. My real parents died when I was only a year old, in a plane crash. Lexi is—was—my mother’s sister.”
    “Oh, so you don’t have any brothers or sisters?”
    “No, it’s just me and Lexi.” Lyra didn’t want to delve deeper into her family history.
    Nick seemed to sense her feelings and changed the subject. “Where would you like to go? I’m not really all that familiar with the island so if there’s something in particular you’d like to do, we can go wherever you like.”
    “It doesn’t really matter to me. How about you?”
    He shrugged as he started the Jeep. “I don’t know. Maybe you can show me around. I haven’t had much time to explore yet.”
    “Okay. Why don’t we head over to the old church? That’s as good a place as any to start.”
    “Which way?”
    Lyra gave him directions and they pulled off. Both of them were quiet for a few moments then Nick looked over at her. “Why is your stepmother so concerned with her age?”
    “I guess she’s still trying to cling to her image, and having a grown daughter interferes.”
    “Image?”
    She looked at him in surprise. She was so accustomed to everyone knowing who Lexi was, it hadn’t occurred to her that Nick wouldn’t recognize her.
    “She was an actress during the Seventies and Eighties.”
    “Oh yeah, now I remember. I’ve seen her in some old movies. She was really beautiful.”
    “And she fully intends on maintaining that image, no matter what the