Six Killer Bodies by Stephanie Bond Page B

of
    way.”
    “He’s good to me, and it’s a place to stay for now.”
    Carlotta frowned. “Why can’t you stay at home?”
    “Had a falling out with the folks.”
    Carlotta was stunned. Hannah never talked about her
    parents, and when Carlotta had probed before about her
    family, her friend had clammed up tight. “What over?”
    Hannah gave a dismissive wave. “It’s not important. It’s
    time to get my own place anyway. I should’ve escaped
    that zoo a long time ago.”
    “Zoo?”
    “They’re not in touch with reality. They don’t get me.”
    She surveyed Hannah’s black lipstick, kohl-rimmed eyes,
    multiple piercings, and visible tattoos. “Wel , Hannah, you
    have to admit…”
    Hannah frowned. “What?”
    “Uh, nothing.” She cleared her throat. “So, you’re living
    with Chance?”
    “A toothbrush and a clean pair of thongs at his place does
    not constitute living together. How long are you planning
    to stay at Peter’s?”
    Carlotta bit her lip. “For a little while, until we get the
    townhouse repaired…or until Peter tosses me out.”
    “Right. Fat chance. I’m surprised Richie Rich hasn’t
    shackled you in the wine cel ar to keep you there. Have
    you two tried to have sex again?”
    “No,” she murmured. The first two times she and Peter
    had tried to consummate their reunion, things had
    ended…prematurely. “We’re taking a step back
    and…enjoying each other.”
    “What the hel does that mean?”
    “Wel , tonight we’re going to a movie.”
    Hannah pul ed the van into the Lenox Square parking lot
    and headed toward Neiman Marcus. “Sounds like a barrel
    of fun.”
    “Maybe it’s a little humdrum,” Carlotta admitted. “But
    with everything else going on in my life, humdrum isn’t so
    bad.”
    Hannah slowed for a speed bump, then pul ed up to the
    entrance of Neiman’s. “Keep saying that. Maybe one of us
    wil believe it.”
    Carlotta frowned, then climbed out of the van with a
    wave. She walked into Neiman’s, her mind swirling with all
    the unresolved relationships in her life.
    Herb, the security guard hired to keep an eye on her in
    case Michael Lane showed up, stood next to a rack of
    flowered capris, resigned to another boring day of
    watching her dress women who moved in expensive
    circles.
    Carlotta moved through her shift on automatic pilot,
    waiting on customers with a smile and sales skil s that had
    become second nature to her. But all the while she kept
    picturing Coop as he’d been yesterday, standing in front of
    her, inebriated and disheveled, just before the police had
    shown up and the GBI had slammed him down on her
    counter, placing him under arrest for murder. She’d flailed
    in protest, but Jack had shuffled her away.
    The scene played over and over in her head until she
    clocked out at the end of her shift with a stabbing pain
    behind her eyes. When she removed her purse from her
    locker in the employee break room, she tossed back
    Excedrin. Then, as promised, she called Peter to let him
    know she was finished for the day. His cheerful, calming
    voice was balm to her frayed nerves. He was just leaving
    the office. A few minutes later he picked her up and they
    grabbed a quick bite, then circled back to the mall theater.
    Peter, bless him, must have sensed that she’d had a lousy
    day because he kept the conversation light and bought
    tickets to a low-key English comedy film. She squeezed his
    hand and leaned into his shoulder, grateful for the quiet
    space he gave her.
    Stil , she couldn’t concentrate on the movie. The fact that
    she was keeping her jailhouse visit with Coop from Peter
    made guilt simmer in her chest. Meanwhile, her
    conversation with Coop ran through her head in a
    continuous loop. She picked it apart, trying to read
    between the lines and dissect Coop’s frame of mind. One
    bit of dialogue came back to her.
    Stil living with Peter?
    Staying with him, yes.
    I’m glad you’re safe.
    Carlotta lifted her head and her heart