Sisters of Misery Read Online Free Page B

my God! It’s here!!” Rebecca yelled. She held a piece of yellow paper aloft like it was an award, shaking it so hard that the beaded bracelets that crowded her lithe arm rattled like a maraca. “It’s official!”
    The paperwork and lease for the store had arrived. It was really happening. Despite Abigail’s insistence that this would only be a temporary stopover for her sister, that she never stayed in one place for too long, this new development proved otherwise. Rebecca embraced each one of them, whooping with delight. “Look out Hawthorne, the LeClaire girls are here to stay!” she called out with a hearty laugh.
    Everyone stopped talking abruptly when a loud crash sounded from the next room. Maddie ran into the living room to find her mother furiously cleaning up shards of broken glass from a crystal bowl that had fallen from the mantle. Maddie wasn’t sure if it was a deliberate action on Abigail’s part or an accident from the shock that the inevitable was happening, something that Abigail didn’t want to accept: Rebecca and Cordelia weren’t going anywhere.
     
     
    Later that week, Maddie swung through the heavy leaded-glass door of the store, aptly named Rebecca’s Closet, and was met enthusiastically by Rebecca, who was blaring Fleet-wood Mac’s “Rhiannon” from an old tape deck. They had already done an overwhelming amount of work on the store. The floors and woodwork gleamed. Every inch was scrubbed. The walls were freshly painted white with the tiniest hint of lavender, giving it an airy feel.
    “Well, aren’t you a doll for helping us!” she exclaimed, gathering her niece tightly into her arms for a hug. Maddie was overwhelmed by her scent—an exotic, musky mixture of thick perfume and floral oils. It was the sweet smell that flowers exude right before they die. It was a welcome change for Maddie, who was accustomed only to the faint whiff of Chanel No. 5 perfume that her mother had dotted behind her ears and wrists every day for as long as she could remember.
    Maddie shrugged. “It’s no problem, Aunt Rebecca.”
    “No, don’t call me that. Too formal. Just Rebecca,” she said, brushing her long, red hair away from her wide, luminous face. Maddie suddenly understood why people mistook Rebecca and Cordelia for sisters. Rebecca’s youthful, vivacious spirit made her seem much younger than Abigail, despite the fact that Rebecca was the older sister. Her beauty was startling and almost unreal. She was movie star beautiful. Maddie had never known anyone in real life who had such ethereal looks. And even without a stitch of makeup, she had a radiant glow. It made Maddie feel special, yet slightly uncomfortable, to be in her presence. “I’m surprised that my sister is even letting you help us.”
    “She suggested it actually,” Maddie offered weakly, blushing at the awkwardness of their living situation.
    “Hmmm…” Rebecca considered that for a moment; something appeared to be nagging at her. “That’s surprising.”
    Rebecca settled back down onto the worn plank floors, tucking her hair behind her ears as she unpacked a crate. She unwrapped a series of glass bottles, apothecary jars, and vases and then nodded in the direction of the back room.
    “Why don’t you go help Cordelia in the back while I get some work done out here? That way you two can start getting better acquainted,” she suggested. Maddie nodded glumly and headed toward the stock room.
    “I have a feeling you two will get along famously,” Rebecca offered in parting. Maddie tried to manage a weak smile for Rebecca’s sake before continuing into the back room. While she could understand why Rebecca was encouraging a friendship between them, it just wasn’t coming very easily, at least not from Maddie’s perspective.
    Making her way past all of the boxes stacked precariously in the back room, Maddie heard a muffled sound coming from behind a crate. Cordelia was crouched on the floor with her legs curled