A Bad Day for Sunshine (Sunshine Vicram #1)(110)

“Right?” They giggled again and were still giggling when a nurse named Jessie, if his nametag was to be believed, came in with sodas and sandwiches.

He offered them a smile. “A little bird told me that you both like Orange Crush.”

They looked at each other.

“You like it, too?” Auri asked, surprised.

“It’s my favorite.” She popped the top on her can and looked at Auri. “It’s like we were meant to be.”

“I agree.”

“These are ham and cheese, but I can get something else if you’d like.”

“No,” Sybil said, “these are great. Thank you.”

“Enjoy.”

When he left, they naturally had to talk about how cute he was.

“Nursing is an excellent profession to go into,” Sybil said. She took a bite, then added, “He should go back and become a physician’s assistant. They make even more money.”

Auri took a huge swig of the orange stuff. “I thought about going into medicine.”

“You changed your mind?”

“Yeah. I think I’m too much like my mom. I think I need to go into law enforcement.”

“Really?” Sybil said, shifting to face her better. “That’s fascinating. I don’t think I could do something like that.”

“Why? You’re good with puzzles. That’s half the battle.”

“Yeah, but I’m not good with people.”

“You’re good with me.”

Sybil beamed at her. “I am, aren’t I?” She took another bite, then said, “Okay, really, one more time.”

Auri gave in and, after a moment, had her friend sighing in puppy love bliss. Then she sobered. “I’m so sorry about everything that happened to you.”

Sybil shrugged and ducked, trying to play it off as no big deal when it was anything but. It had haunted the poor thing her entire life, and now it was almost over. This deep fear she’d been waiting for. Auri couldn’t imagine how she felt, and she didn’t pretend to.

“Do you feel better about it now? Will the dreams stop?”

“I don’t know. It’s not my birthday until tomorrow. I think I’ll feel better the day after.”

Auri nodded in understanding and smiled sleepily when Sybil’s lids started drifting closed.

“I’m so glad you’re here, Auri.”

“Me, too, Sybil.”

“Oh, I just remembered something,” she said, her voice getting farther and farther away. “He told me he did everything for my mom. The man who took me. He said she needed to know what it felt like.”

“What?” Alarm rushed through Auri. She had to tell her mother immediately. And she would have, too, if she could just . . . wake . . . up.


Sun checked in on the team processing the well house before grabbing Quincy from the station for a coffee and a sandwich at Caffeine-Wah. She’d decided to send Deputy Salazar to watch over Sybil and, if possible, talk to her about what happened. Salazar was a natural; she just didn’t know it yet. She had a way of putting people at ease.

Unfortunately, there was a flip side to that. Because of her sweet disposition, people often underestimated the young deputy. Hopefully that would change over time.

Zee met them at the coffee shop, and Richard and Ricky instantly fell in love with the stunning beauty. But that was okay. Zee instantly fell in love with their eyeliner, and Sun realized she might have a way to get the lowdown on the secret sanctum sanctorum of the baristas’ makeup routine sitting right under her nose. Or at her left elbow.

“How is he?” Sun asked Quincy when they sat down with their food.

He stopped chewing and spoke through a mouthful of Monte Cristo. “Hell. No.”

She gaped at him. Her best friend. Her most trusted confidante. “Why ‘hell no’? I’m the sheriff checking up on a detainee in my care.”

He swallowed. “Nope. You’ll have to go talk to him. I refuse to be a go-between.”

“But he won’t talk to me. Possibly ever again. And he did actually confess to a murder.”

“Yeah, to keep his sister out of jail,” Zee said.

“Please, she had nothing to do with it.” Sun took a bite, then said, “We’re missing something, guys.”

“Mayo. I forgot to ask.” He grabbed a packet of mayo and sat back down.

“No. Something much more vital. I feel like our suspect is so close I could touch him.”

“Like in a carnal way?”

Fine. When Quincy joked about something so serious, it usually meant he was so frustrated he didn’t know what else to do. She was right there with him.

Marshal Deleon walked into the shop in all his slick glory. “I knew I’d find you guys here. What’s good?”

A soft gasp came from behind the counter at the insolence of the implication that there was something on the menu that wasn’t good.

Sun fought a grin. “Everything here is good.”

“Fantastic.” He went up to order while Quincy and Zee wiggled their eyebrows at her.

“Stop it,” she whispered, pretending to be appalled. “You look ridiculous. And he’s probably married.”

“He’s not,” Quincy said. “I checked.” When both gazes landed on him in surprise, he said, “For Sun. I could tell he liked her.”