2 Sisters Detective Agency(53)

“I’m not trying to win anything against you, Baby,” I said. “We’re on the same team here.”

“Whatever.”

“‘Whatever,’” I mimicked, sighing.

I watched the waves crashing in, white foam appearing and then dissolving into the blackness.

“Here’s the thing,” I said. “I’m not going anywhere. You can push me and push me and push me, but I’m not going to go away. Dad’s gone out of our lives for good, and I’m here to stay. And those are two realities you have to deal with.”

Baby didn’t respond. She sucked hard on the vape.

“Have you even cried about him dying yet?”

“No,” she said. She turned away, but I saw her lip tremble. “I’d rather cry about you being here.”

I didn’t take offense. Baby wouldn’t meet my eyes.

“Have you cried about him dying yet?” she asked.

“I haven’t,” I admitted. “But look, I didn’t know the guy like you did.”

She chewed her nails.

“Losing him is harder for you than it is for me. You didn’t have a proper mom,” I said. “My mom was great. Is great. After Dad left, she married a guy named Tony. Total opposite of Dad. You probably feel like you’re on your own in the world. But you’re not. You’ve got me. I’m not the enemy.”

Baby didn’t respond.

“Do you want a hug?” I asked.

She seemed to consider it. I was betting anger, confusion, and tears were sparkling in her eyes. “I don’t want to hug you. You’re all wet. And I don’t know you. We haven’t even figured out who you’re supposed to be in my life. You’re here trying to be, like, my sister right now. But one minute you’re trying to be cool and then you’re telling me not to listen to the Hanley twins about my age. It’s like you don’t know if you’re my friend or, like, my boss.”

“It’s going to be fine, Baby. All of it. When we get back to Colorado, you—”

“When I what?” Her head whipped around to look at me. “Colorado?”

“Well, yeah,” I said. “We’ll have to go back there. You can’t stay here by yourself, and I have a job. I have a condo. I have friends, and—”

“I have a job! I have friends!” Baby yowled. Her eyes were huge. “Don’t they matter at all?”

“They do,” I reasoned. “But I mean, you’re young. You’ll make new friends. Your life is not as—”

“Not as important as yours.” She nodded.

“No, that’s not—”

“I’m not going to Colorado,” Baby said. “If you try to take me there, I’ll run away and you’ll never find me.”

A punch of terror directly to my chest. Baby had already run off on me twice. I knew her threat was real.

“Hey, hey, Bell!” someone called. I turned and saw two gangly boys with long black hair jogging across the beach toward us, their silhouettes almost alien in their angularity against the lights of the house.

“Are you Bell E Flopp?”

“I guess so,” I said. “No selfies, guys.”

“Some dudes are going through your stuff back at the house,” one of the kids said.

“It’s okay. Everybody’s going through my stuff.” I sighed. “Everything important is tucked away. Don’t worry.”

“No, we mean, like, badass guys.” The boy nearest me swept his hair behind his ears and out of the wind. “Like gangsters. They’re old. Like, forty maybe? And they’re really looking for something. They’re breaking stuff and throwing things around. They pushed some girl down the stairs.”

“Have they got flowers on their shirts?” I asked.

“Yeah. And real bad tattoos.” The boy nodded.

Baby and I looked at each other. For once, we were instantly on the same team. She rose, and we ran toward the house.





Chapter 70



Penny, Sean, and Ashton were crouched behind one car with Vera behind another. Bullets skittered off the curb and the sandstone wall nearby. Vera figured the shooter had to be in the trees on a nearby hillside.

“We’re gonna die here,” Sean said. Penny was moaning beside him.

Vera thought about running, leaving the three of them for the gunman. It was a strategic move. He would likely try to keep the others pinned, keep the bigger target in hand rather than pursue her. But she couldn’t be sure of that. Was it time to be loyal to her crew or risk going out on her own? She held her breath, crouched, and sprang forward, leaping the gap between the two cars to join the rest of the Midnight Crew. Sparks flew as a volley of shots popped into the bumpers of the cars beside her.

“Penny, you need to shut up,” Vera said. “You sound like a dying cat.” She took out her phone and turned on its flashlight, examined her friend’s ankle.

“It’s shrapnel,” Vera concluded.

“I’ve been shot,” Penny whined. “He shot me. He shot me!”

“I said, it’s shrapnel,” Vera said. “Stop losing your fucking mind.”

“How would you know that? Are you a fucking gun expert?” Sean asked.