An Echo in the Mafia (Echo Reid, Reid Family Book #1)

Part 7

Echo glanced at the clock. 2:30 pm.

It was no wonder she was hungry. She listened to the growl in her stomach and let out a soft chuckle. She was used to having a big breakfast but this morning she'd found she wasn't quite so hungry. Actually, that wasn't quite true. The problem that morning, and the last couple of mornings, was that she was just too tired to eat. All she could do was focus on her coffee and trying not to look too tired around her parents. They would immediately think she was sick... or worse. They would think she was depressed and send her to another therapist to try to work through another issue. Echo had already been diagnosed with several different mental health issues, she didn't need another one. Besides, depression wasn't the problem here. The problem was those crazy dreams.

She stretched her arms out and let out an exaggerated yawn. She'd been working for hours and for the moment, she was sick of reading and re-reading this instruction manual. She was already several days ahead of schedule and she was more than certain it would be ready at least a week early.

She clicked save a few times- one, two, three- then closed her laptop before tapping her nails on the desk. Small, innocent little compulsive things she did. Technically, she was NOT OCD. At least that was what the therapist and counselors her parents had spent so much money on throughout her life said. Echo just had a few security issues and needed to do some things as a way to cope with feeling that way. It was pretty much the most polite way of saying she was paranoid.

She looked out her window thinking it looked like rain and wondering if her sisters would come home early today. She knew Maru and Lena usually stayed behind in the city a while after classes, and Romy and Vera were usually done about 5pm. But when the weather looked bad, they had a tendency to come home early... which drove Echo crazy.

As she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the glass, she had a sudden vision of the man in the elevator, the one with the scar... No. No. Stop that. She shook her head, focusing instead on how full the house would feel tonight. Even a house as large as theirs felt dwarfed when the five of them were home.

It wasn't that she didn't like her sisters, it was just that she liked the quiet. Then she sighed, hearing the loud rumbling of her stomach again and thinking that she should go search for food. She wasn't going to enjoy the quiet if she was distracted by the racket in her gut, now was she?

Then it started, the soft pitter-patter of the rain as it gently hit the ground. Echo made it to the kitchen and stared out the doors that led onto the south terrace. The porch on this side was covered and if she wanted to, she could easily sit out and have her lunch there. Undisturbed and unseen, it might not be such a terrible idea. Echo loved the smell of the rain. She slowly piled some fruit over her plate along with a sandwich and a bottle of water.

Her sisters were not too fond of this side of the house. The gardens were much more plain, the sun didn't hit as much and the view of the back of the city was much more prominent. Her parents complained about it all the time. They'd be less likely to come looking for her here and so she could enjoy her lunch in peace. The only reason they ever came back here was to enjoy the pool. This terrace had the most direct view but even then, her sisters still preferred to sit by the pool house that sat at the bottom of the hill.

Echo sat back in her chair and put her arms around her head, trying to block out the images that were inevitably coming in.

"GOD ECHO." She said to herself with a grown. "What's wrong with you?"

She put her hands over her eyes and sighed, remembering the same dream that had been waking her up in the middle of the night and making it practically impossible to fall back asleep. She knew the man in the elevator was... imposing, intriguing... frightening... It had certainly left mark on her. After all, Echo didn't get out much but this was ridiculous. How could one elevator ride make that much of an impression on her? So much that she'd been replaying the entire experience every night when she finally fell asleep. It was those eyes... those dark eyes that stared at her, that seemed to condemn her...