Merry Jones - Elle Harrison 02 - Elective Procedures Read Online Free Page B

all. Claudia had come to me repeatedly, for many procedures. Over the years, yes, we became close.”
    “I’m sorry.” My voice sounded far away. “I couldn’t save her.”
    He focused on me in silence. His eyes were moist. “How insensitive of me. You’ve been through a terrible ordeal. And hereI am, intruding, pressing you for information.” He stood and stepped over to me. Put his hand on my shoulder. Looked into my eyes. “Thank you, Elle. You risked your life to save Claudia. I, like all who cared about her, am in your debt.”
    He removed his hand, talked briefly with Jen and, when he left a few minutes later, I was still on the sofa under the blanket. My shoulder still felt the warmth of his hand.

    Finally, it was just the four of us. Friends since childhood. Well, not Susan—Susan was older. When we were kids, she hadn’t been our friend; she’d been our babysitter, our role model. Now, the only one of us with children, she still slipped into the role of mother hen as it suited her. And when room service delivered breakfast, it suited her.
    “Sit here, Elle. Jen, pass out the mimosas. Becky, don’t remove the covers yet. The eggs will get cold.”
    Obediently, I took my seat, slightly sickened by the smell of eggs, feeling distant from the bustle of a meal being served. But Jen handed me my mimosa and raised hers in a toast. “To my BFs effing F!”
    We drank.
    “To Jen for hosting us.” I lifted my glass.
    “And to Elle for being so brave,” Becky added.
    “And for not falling.” Susan didn’t smile.
    Again, I felt empty air beneath me. I drank my mimosa. Thought about teetering over a six-story drop—or was it tottering? My gut flipped, either way. I felt untethered and ungrounded, as if I might fall at any moment. I held onto the arms of my chair.
    “Elle? Be honest. I won’t go if you need me.”
    Go? Becky waited for my answer. Jen watched us, stuffing a wad of eggs Benedict into her mouth.
    “You didn’t hear me, did you? You’re doing your Elle thing, aren’t you?”
    What had I missed this time?
    “Chichi invited me to the Salsa Festival today.” Chichi and his partner, Luis, led the hotel’s recreational activities. “I told him I’d go, but I won’t if you need me. Jen has her preop tests.”
    “No. Go. I’m fine.” Becky had met Chichi within an hour of our arrival. “I’ll hang out with Susan.”
    “You mean it? Because, honestly, Chichi would understand.”
    They’d spent one day together, and already Becky talked about him as if they were a couple. Was Chichi his real name?
    Becky licked egg yolk off her lip. “Remember Madam Therese?” she asked. “Funny. So far, everything she predicted has come true. We traveled to a place near the water. I met a man I wouldn’t expect to fall for.”
    “And I’m surrounded by a dark cloud of death.”
    “Wait,” Susan poured another mimosa. “What?”
    “The fortune-teller we went to. We told you about her.”
    “Oh, I remember,” Jen nodded. “The night we ate at Gnocchi.”
    “She said Elle and I would travel and that I’d fall in love.”
    “And that my aura is stained with blood.”
    Susan shook her head. “That’s bullshit.”
    Becky swallowed. “No, really. She said dead people were attracted to Elle. And look, our first day here, Elle meets a dead person.”
    “It was just a con,” Susan insisted. “A lucky guess. Anybody with half a brain can see that Elle is depressed.”
    Really? I was depressed? Anybody could see it? “But she knew about Charlie,” I said. “She knew my husband had died. She said the dead are drawn to my aura—”
    “Please, stop. Don’t tell me you buy that crap.” Susan chewed.
    “Did she actually mention Charlie by name?” Jen asked.
    “Of course, she didn’t.” Susan didn’t give me a chance to answer. “She probably asked if someone had died, am I right?”
    She was.
    “Pretty safe way to pull you in. Everybody knows somebody who’s died. So she says that