Chapter 35 Chuck Came Back to Life?

Alicia had smacked Madelyn the day before, but just on one side of her face, and it hadn't blown up like this. Madelyn's puffed-up, hog-like mug had to be someone else's doing.

Alicia hit up Lilith and asked, "Lily, what went down with Madelyn's face?"

Lilith cracked up, laughing her head off before she could say, "Last night, she hit a bar, boozed it up till midnight, and on her way back, some rando stopped her, yanked her out of her car, and knocked her lights out, leaving her face a swollen disaster. She even had a bodyguard, but he got KO'd too. I can't help it, let me laugh some more, hahaha."

Alicia let Lilith laugh it out before asking, "Did you call the cops?"

"Yeah, they scoped out the security footage, but the cameras on that part of the road were toast, so they couldn't crack the case."

Alicia breathed easy, thinking, "Whoever roughed up Madelyn, the enemy of my enemy is my homey." She hesitated a sec before asking, "Did you go see her?" What she really wanted to know was if Louis had gone to see Madelyn. This thought snuck in, and she couldn't help it.

Lilith seemed to read her mind and said, "Alicia, chill, my bro didn't go. He had a last-minute crisis yesterday afternoon and had to catch a flight. My dad and I went to see her. Madelyn was bawling like a baby, but she had it coming!"

After shooting the breeze with Lilith for a bit, Alicia hung up. She wrapped up her morning routine and hit the living room. Breakfast was on the table, and Genevieve was off to the hospital. The files Alicia needed for divorce was next to her breakfast, with a note on top.

Alicia picked it up and read: "My dear daughter, happy divorce! The sooner you're free, the better! In a few days, I'll have all my friends help you snag a new guy! Two dates a day, one AM, one PM! That'll show Louis and that old fart Henry!"

Alicia laughed, but it quickly turned bittersweet. After her divorce, she figured it'd be a while before she could warm up to another man.

After grubbing, Alicia tossed her files ID card into her bag, prepping to meet Louis later for the divorce. Out of the blue, her phone buzzed—it was Louis. He sounded wiped as he said, "There was some drama with our overseas branch yesterday afternoon, so I flew over to handle it. We'll hash out the divorce when I'm back."

Alicia felt a flicker of relief, but quickly asked, "How long will you be gone?"

"Could be a week, maybe two."

Alicia hesitated, then said, "We'll wait for you to come back." Just as she was about to hang up, she remembered something and added, "Someone jacked up Madelyn last night, but it wasn't me who set it up."

Louis replied, cool as a cucumber, "I know."

Alicia was a bit taken aback. "You know?"

"Yeah, it's probably the same dude who crushed her left hand last time."

"Who?" asked Alicia.

"Chuck Hanson."

Just hearing those two words stabbed Alicia's heart. Her emotions flared, and she blurted out, "It's not him!" Her usually soft voice was sharp and fragile, so unfamiliar even to her.

After a beat, she softened her tone and said, "No, it's not him. He died in a fire a long time ago. I took you to his grave last time when we visited my grandpa's place, remember?"

Louis just let out a nonchalant "hmph" as his reply. Alicia sensed he still didn't buy her story, and his half-hearted grunt was his way of shutting her up. But she didn't feel like bickering anymore, so she chilled out and said, "Hit me up when you're back home, okay?"

Time flew and the week zoomed by.

A young woman named Haley knocked on Alicia's door, announcing, "Hey, ma'am! I'm Haley Grainger, Leo's sister."

Alicia had gotten the 411 from Leo earlier, so she welcomed Haley in, offering her a seat and a cup of tea.

Haley introduced herself, saying, "I was an archaeology major at Rockmountain University, too, but I only did half a year before jumping ship to study international archaeology. Just graduated this year and now I'm working at the city museum. Heard a ton about you; you were the buzz around campus back then."

Alicia laughed, "I started school early, skipped a grade in elementary, so even though I graduated ahead of time, I might be younger than you. So you don't have to call me 'ma'am'."

As it turned out, they shared the same birthday, but Alicia was a few hours younger than Haley. Haley had come on behalf of the museum to invite Alicia to help bring a painting back to life. It wasn't until they arrived at the city museum that Alicia discovered the painting in question was a John Vernez portrait. It was the same painting the kidnappers had snatched her up to restore a couple of months ago. Back then, she had only uncovered the canvas, but never got a chance to start the restoration before the jig was up.

Alicia couldn't help but ask, "What took so long for this painting to get prepared for restoration?"

Haley rolled her eyes, "Well, the hot merchandise had to go through all the legal hoops, get handed over to the state, and then be passed along to the museum. Once here, experts had to give it the once-over and do some research, and then restoration pros had to cook up a plan. That whole song and dance took two or three months. We asked you to team up with the other experts this time, partly because it was you who had lifted the canvas of it, and also because it's what Louis wanted."

Alicia got that Leo was looking out for her. No matter how good she was, working solo always seemed a little sketch. The official way felt more legit, and having her on board for this restoration might give her creds a little boost, not that she needed it.

Stepping into the restoration room, Alicia spotted a bunch of specialists, the youngest of whom had to be pushing fifty. Most were sporting gray hair and hailed from all over the country, the cream of the crop in their field.

But despite being the youngest, no one dared to look down on Alicia, thanks to her status as Pierre's granddaughter and her own reputation in the field. Alicia spent the morning hashing out restoration plans with the experts. By lunchtime, she wasn't up for chowing down with a room full of old-timers, so she made her exit.

Outside, Haley was already waiting, grinning as she said, "My colleague asked me to wine and dine you personally." The two, both with archaeology backgrounds and similar ages, found common ground in no time. Of course, the main reason they clicked so fast was Haley's bubbly and outgoing vibe.

As they strolled, Alicia got a text from Leo asking for an update. She texted back while walking. Out of the blue, Haley's eyes went wide, and she gasped, covering her mouth, exclaiming, "Holy smokes, what a hunk! My colleague is heading this way with a total stud. Oh man, he's a knockout!"

She quickly patted her face, fixed her hair, and straightened her clothes, nudging Alicia with her elbow, "Quick, help me out. Is my makeup smudged? How's my hair and outfit?"

Alicia, still glancing at her phone, looked up at Haley and replied, "You're all good."

Haley blushed, "That hot dude is looking over and smiling at me. Do you think he's into me?"

Alicia followed Haley's gaze. The man was a looker, alright. Young, dashing, tall, and built, with cool, pale skin, refined features, and chiseled good looks. Dressed in a sleek suit, he oozed class and an air of importance. However, this dreamboat was also her soon-to-be ex-husband, Louis. Also, it was clear his eyes were on her, not Haley.

Their eyes locked, and Louis gave her a small nod and grin before exchanging a few words with the director and heading their way. Haley froze in her tracks, frantically brushing her clothes. Alicia stopped too, giving her a puzzled look, "Why'd you stop walking?"

Haley's eyes were glued to Louis, too excited to answer Alicia's question. As Louis came closer, Haley quickly stuck out her hand and said energetically, "Hey there, good looking! I'm Haley. My name means 'kite,' like the bird. Nice to meet ya! What should I call you?"

Louis didn't shake her hand, just gave her a cool once-over and said, "I'm here for Alicia."

In a flash, Haley linked her arm through Alicia's, beaming and saying, "She's my bestie. We were born on the same day, same month, same year. So, looking for her is pretty much the same as looking for me."

Alicia couldn't help but chuckle at Haley's quirky charm. Louis, clearly not in the mood to deal with her, raised his hand, put it on Alicia's shoulder, and pulled her close, asking, "Lunch together?"

"Sure," Alicia agreed.

Haley was astonished, asking, "Alicia, you know this guy? What's the deal with you two? Why's he holding you like that?"

Alicia smiled, "We know each other, and we're sorta tight."

Married couples could be both tight and distant. When tight, they were two peas in a pod; when distant, they could be like total strangers, or even worse than that.

Hearing they were tight, Haley figured they were related, and her eyes lit up again. She was about to say something when Louis, fresh out of patience, simply walked away with Alicia in his arms.