2 Lady Luck Runs Out by Shannon Esposito

detoured into the grass and slid into the back row of the chairs. A few people sat quietly in the front row, a few were peppered throughout the other seats and a tall man in a black suit stood beside a table with a china urn resting on top of it. He was engaged in conversation with another man in a black cowboy hat.
    "Not many people here," Mallory whispered. "That lady up front with the black feather in her hair looks like a cat person."
    "Yeah." I frowned. It was kind of sad Rose didn't have more friends. That would make it more difficult to find out who might have wanted to cause her harm, too. "Maybe we should sit closer so we can chat with her. Come on."
    I slid out of the seat and moved down the center aisle, between the chairs. I was almost at the row behind the feather lady when the tall man beside the table suddenly turned his head and met my eyes. A chill ran down my spine and I stopped in my tracks. Mallory ran into my back.
    "Hey! What'd you stop for?" she complained. Then I felt her peer over my shoulder. "Oh."
    The man's eyes were large black almonds and I could feel his stare like a physical force holding me. He touched the cowboy's arm and then moved toward us without breaking eye contact. Within a few smooth steps, he stood in front of me holding out his hand. I took it and held his gaze, trying to act nonchalant even though my insides were humming. I could feel Mallory pressing up against my back.
    His hand was dry and warm. No, more than warm, exuding heat. The crisp black suit jacket seemed to barely contain his chest and arms as they bulged against it. The muscles in his thick neck and chiseled jaw were taut. An aura of power rolled off of him in waves, making me a bit dizzy with fear. It was like coming face to face with an unpredictable, wild animal.
    "Zach Faraday." His full lips curved into a smile, though it didn't reach those dark eyes. "And you are?"
    "Nobody." I cleared my throat, pulling my hand from his. He reluctantly let go. "I mean, nobody important. Um, Darwin Winters." Good heavens, get your thoughts together Darwin. "This is my sister, Mallory." It didn't go unnoticed by me that my usually chatty, nosey sister was staying silent.
    He nodded at Mallory. "How did you know my mother?"
    My mouth opened and closed a few times. "Oh... Rose is... was your mother?"
    "Yes."
    "Well, we didn't know her personally. We found her cat, Lady Luck." I held up the carrier and peeked in. Lucky was staring at Zach with wide eyes and ears flattened down on her head. A hiss escaped her. I quickly lowered the carrier again. "We thought maybe Rose had a relative that would like to adopt her. I'm sure your mother would have preferred Lucky to be with someone she knew."
    Zach smiled slightly. "Well, unfortunately, I'm her only surviving relative and," he glanced down at the carrier, "I'm allergic to cats. But, a few of the ladies she played bridge with are here. You could talk to them about adopting Lucky."
    Why did Lucky dislike Rose's son so much? "Oh, okay. We'll do that after the service, thanks." I wanted to move, wanted to be released from his presence but I felt like I needed permission. "I'm very sorry for your loss," I added.
    "Thank you." He nodded, turned as if to go, then stopped and turned back to me. Leaning in close to my ear, he chuckled deeply. "I know what you are." With that, he made his way back to the podium and placed his hands on the urn, his head bowed.
    I forced my jelly legs to carry me into a chair and plopped down with Lucky's carrier on my lap. Mallory slid next to me and grabbed my arm.
            "What in hell's bells was that? What did he say to you?"
    I could tell from her breathlessness that she was as shaken as I was. "He said I know what you are." I watched Mallory's freckles pop out as her face paled. She stared at me, emotions churning in her green eyes—confusion, fear, then anger.
     "Impossible. And anyway, so what if he does?" She turned her gaze on him as he