Karma's a Killer by Tracy Weber Page A

clothes.”
    â€œWhy were you so interested in talking to those two?”
    I paused before replying. Her question was reasonable; I just didn’t know how to answer it.
    â€œI have a funny feeling about them.”
    â€œWhat do you mean?
    â€œI can’t say why, exactly, but Dharma seems familiar. Like maybe I’ve seen her on the news or something. And Eduardo was acting strange, too. Why would someone so adamantly opposed to animal ownership make nice with a pet store employee?” I poured a glass of water from the studio’s water cooler, took a long drink, and shared the rest with my thirsty schefflera tree. “According to Tiffany, they took off in a hurry right before Michael and I got there.”
    â€œDo you think they saw you coming?”
    â€œMaybe, but why would they care? Neither of us knows them.” I absently chewed on my thumbnail. “Something just feels off. And get this: I read the propaganda Eduardo left with Tiffany. HEAT is a vegan animal rights group based out of Sacramento.”
    Alicia’s eyes widened. “Sacramento? Why would a group from California protest an animal shelter in Seattle?”
    â€œBeats me. I would have grilled him about it, but Tiffany was so starstruck by his deep baby browns that she didn’t think to ask.” I shook my head. “That girl is so gullible. Now she’s decided to go vegan. I swear she falls for anything that walks upright and has an extra appendage, if you know what I mean.”
    Alicia smirked. “Come on, Kate, go easy on her. She’s young. Besides, I seem to remember a certain yoga teacher who spent the night with a local pet store owner—on their very first date, no less.”
    I ignored Alicia’s teasing. Her words were true, but my situation was entirely different. I’d fallen for Michael well before that first date, whether I’d been willing to admit it to myself or not. Tiffany, on the other hand, had a long history of questionable taste in men.
    â€œDharma took some of my flyers, but that’s not surprising. After all, that’s why I put them on the table.” I shrugged. “Honestly, if I hadn’t known that those two were protesters, I wouldn’t have thought twice about their behavior. The way Tiffany describes it, they were just browsing.”
    â€œYou know, Kate, you might be reading too much into their actions. Contrary to your recent experiences, not everyone who acts out of the ordinary winds up being a criminal. Maybe this Dharma person likes yoga.”
    â€œAnd her friend?”
    Alicia shrugged. “I know neither of us is fond of Tiffany, but she is pretty cute, in a singles-bar-trash sort of way. Men like that.” She took off her jacket and hat. When she turned back around, she wore a big smile. “Notice anything different about me?”
    My mouth dropped open. “Wow, Alicia, your new haircut looks gorgeous!”
    Next to Rene, Alicia was the most attractive woman I knew. She somehow managed to make T-shirts seem elegant, and when she smiled, it radiated through the entire room. Still, I couldn’t quite get over how her new hairstyle transformed her. The chin-length cut fell in wisps around her face, and the new blonde highlights complemented the honey tones of her skin. She looked young, happy, confident, and, most importantly, healthy.
    Alicia shook her head vigorously and smiled as every strand fell back into place. “Thanks. My stylist convinced me to cut off the chemo curls. Between the new cut and the return of my eyelashes, I feel like a new woman.”
    Alicia was a survivor of stage IV malignant melanoma. When she was diagnosed, her doctors didn’t expect her to last more than a few months, but they underestimated her ability to fight. Twelve months after her last treatment and a few weeks past her thirty-fourth birthday, she was still in remission.
    We moved into the yoga room. Alicia grabbed a blue