Skeletons in the Mist (The McCall Twins) Read Online Free Page A

her ringing cell phone. She knew it was Myles calling. She’d explained to him two days earlier that she was going out of town for a while. She hadn’t told him where. After all, no one she was acquainted with now knew anything about her past, including the fact that she had two half-brothers she hadn’t seen in ten years. She’d told Myles she’d grown up in Tacoma and that her parents had both died. Part of that lie was actually the truth. Her parents were both dead.
    “I’m here,” she answered, after connecting the call. She squinted against the late afternoon sun.
    “The question is
where
are you?” Myles asked, slightly miffed. “And why won’t you tell me aboutthe
why
?”
    Myles was a good friend. In all the years she’d been running around, she’d never been sorry to leave an acquaintance behind. Hell, she’d never gotten close to anyone enough to call them a real friend before. But Myles was a friend and a good one. Lying to him or keeping things from him bothered her. All the same, she put her poker face on. “It’s a long story. If you can take care of the apartment, I’ll be back. I just have to sort through some stuff.”
    “What kind of stuff?”
    “I told you the other night. Personal stuff.”
    “You don’t have any family. How personal can it be? Are you in some kind of trouble?” Myles raised his voice. “Because if you are, maybe I can help.”
    “Calm down, Myles. You’re being dramatic.”
    “Well, ever since that cop called, you’ve been like this. I know you lost your job and that had to hurt, but—”
    “Myles, I’m fine. I just have something I need to take care of. You know I’m fine or I wouldn’t becalling you.”
    “I don’t know anything of the sort,” Myles said matter-of-factly. “I thought we were closer than this.”
    She felt a pang of regret. “You’re my best friend. I swear if I need you, I’ll let you know.”
    “Are you running from your finances? Because if you are, I can loan you some money.”
    “I can handle my bills.” It was a lie, but the current state of her finances was the least of her worries right now. “Look, I have to go. I’ll be in touch, okay? Just grab my mail for me and keep an eye on the place if you can. The rent’s paid through the end of the month. I dropped the check off a few days ago.”
    Myles started to argue but she disconnected before he had the chance to say much. She shoved her phone back into her pocket and picked her bag up. The phone rang again, but she ignored it, intent only on hailing a cab.
    The commute to Cavern Creek from Spokane was only about a thirty minute ride this time of day. In spite of the fact that she hadn’t been on this routefor over ten years, it felt like it had only been a day. The winding highway was a two-laner, surrounded by wheat fields as far as the eye could see. She remembered riding this road as a child and thinking the wheat swaying in the wind reminded her of dancing ballerinas, the way it swayed back and forth with a kind of grace.
    She didn’t find the fields very peaceful anymore. They signified a road that lead to a past she had long ago left behind. A past she wasn’t sure she could deal with at all, least of all under this type of circumstance.
    The cab driver kept up some casual banter, asking where she was from and how long she was staying. She avoided his questions, saying only that she was visiting friends.
    By the time they reached the edge of town, his endless prattle was unnerving her as much as the passing scenery. She recognized the main street of town, its architecture still exactly the same as it had been ten years ago.
    She ordered the cabbie to pull the car over and quickly climbed out, grimacing at the familiar smelland feel of her hometown. It was almost as if time had stood still.
    She paid the cab driver, wincing as the stash in her wallet shrank considerably. She was going to be in financial ruin very quickly, that was for sure. Her last paycheck