Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
“You’re not Carmen,” I said, shooting her half a smile.
“I am not. I’m her sister.”
“I see that. Are you twins? Did she steal all the nutrients in the womb?” I teased.
A little laugh escaped her. “No, she’s my older sister. We’re not sure what happened to me. I’m like a runt in a litter. Why are you looking for Carmen?”
“I was hoping to run into her. I’m Rune.”
It was the magic word, apparently.
“Rune!”
She released the dog’s collar so she could work at the locks, then push the door open.
“I heard about you,” she said, stepping back to let me in. Which was entirely too trusting. Unless she, like her sister, was packing.
“Did you? What’d you hear?”
“Well, honestly, not much. Carmen is not the best communicator. But I caught her trying to sneak in after spending the night with you last night.”
So, no, this little sister wasn’t in on the killing scheme. She thought her sister and I were banging. Which meant when she was confronted, she’d tossed my name out for some reason.
Interesting.
More proof to back up my belief that she was a complete amateur.
“Carmie isn’t here,” the sister said. “But she shouldn’t be long. I’m Sofia, by the way.” She stuck out her hand.
I took it carefully, feeling like I might break a bone if I squeezed at all. “Rune.”
“Such an interesting name.”
“I’ve got some interesting parents.” Two former arms dealers. Couldn’t get more interesting than that.
“Sometimes I wish mine had been slightly more interesting in the baby-naming department. Every time I go to an audition, I swear there are ten other Sofias there.”
“Audition. Actress?” I asked.
“That’s me. The new face of Montview car insurance. You should be seeing me on your TV in a few weeks.”
“Good for you. Seems like a big deal.”
“Thanks. We’re happy about it. Well, come in. Have a seat.”
I could tell from the outside that the house was on the small side. I wasn’t wrong. Because it was split into a duplex, it was a narrow, railroad-type setup with the front living room leading back into the dining room, then the kitchen with the back door.
I figured upstairs was just two beds and maybe a bath if they were lucky enough to have one other than the one I assumed was off the back of the living room.
They hadn’t gone minimalistic, though, to try to make it appear larger. They’d leaned more into the already cozy feel of it, adding lots of color and texture on the walls, couch, chair, art, and an overflowing media center full of books, vinyl, and DVDs.
The coffee table was lined with what looked like scripts for, I figured, auditions.
The couch Sofia waved me to was a bright, sunny yellow with a light pink blanket draped over the back and several different patterned pillows.
I took a seat and the big-headed dog sniffed at me, sat, and looked expectantly.
“She needs to be invited up.”
“Up,” I said, patting the space to my side.
The dog wasted no time.
“Did I hear you calling her Hamster?”
“Yep. That’s her name. Hamster.”
“Why?”
“They called her Ham at the shelter. We couldn’t come up with something longer that worked with that. Carmen always jokes that I always wanted a hamster growing up, and now I have one. Do you drink coffee? Tea? Kombucha?”
“Coffee sounds good.”
“Cream? Sugar? Caramel syrup?”
“Just a little cream is good. Thanks.”
“Be right back. Be polite, Hammy,” she warned the dog.
Alone, I let my gaze scan around without the sister watching me, trying to find any clues as to why Carmen would want to murder me.
As personal as the space was, though, there weren’t any pictures around that weren’t of the dog.
“You’re pretty popular around here, huh?” I asked Hamster, who thumped her tail, knowing she was the star in this household. “And why wouldn’t you be?” I asked, rubbing her chest. “What’s up with Carmen, huh?” I whispered to the dog, whose brows raised.
The scent of coffee filled the house as the coffee brewed. “I hope you don’t suffer with fragile masculinity,” Sofia called. “All our mugs are girly.”
“I got a little sister who used to make me and my brother play tea parties well into our teens. Pinkies up.”
That got a little laugh out of Sofia.
“Sweet big brothers are the best.”
“Do you have one?” I asked.
“You and Carmie didn’t do a whole lot of talking, I take it,” she called back. “Nope, it was just us. I think we both would have loved a nice, protective older brother.”
“What’d you need protecting from?”
“The boys at school used to pick me up and carry me around because I was so small.”
“Woulda kicked their asses for that.”
“Exactly. But Carmie was kind of like my big protective brother. She kicked the biggest one in the balls and the rest of them left me alone.”
Kicking the balls of a bully wasn’t exactly criminal activity, but it did show that she thought sometimes violence was necessary. Which made me think she definitely had a personal reason for coming at me.