Page 3 of Accidental Murder
“Did you hear me?” Ashley pressed. “The woman said I won’t live to see another Sunday. So listen to this. I left her office, stepped off the curb, and a guy in a Honda almost ran me over. I’ve never been so scared. I was shaking in my ankle boots. I could have died!”
“But you didn’t,” Kayla murmured.
“Almost.”
Kayla didn’t want to think about death. Didn’t want to focus onwhat if. She wished her sister would stop rattling on about the iridologist’s prediction. Why had Ashley gone to the woman in the first place? She didn’t believe in tarot cards or any of that garbage.
A passing truck bleated its horn. At the same time Kayla’s cell phone hummed menacingly in her pocket. Without glancing at the readout screen, she sent the call to voicemail.
“Kayla, yoo-hoo,” Ashley sang. “Anybody home? The woman said?—”
“I heard you and I don’t believe you. You’re making the whole thing up. Including almost getting hit by a car.” Kayla zipped her parka to the neck. December in San Francisco could be bitterly cold. “Do you believe her, Peter?”
“Sure. Why not?” Peter was a handsome artist with more on his mind than appearance.Relaxedwas the word Kayla woulduse to describe him. Shaggy dark hair. Rumpled clothes that always looked like they’d come straight from the dryer.
“I’m telling the truth.” Ashley grabbed hold of Peter’s arm and made him face her. “This woman studied the dot on my eye. Look.” She pivoted to Kayla and jutted her chin forward like their mother used to. “See it?”
The glow of Christmas lights cut through the fog and strobed Ashley’s face. The view gave Kayla the creeps. She wanted to say,Drop it, but Ashley, older by two minutes, would never let anything go. Ever.
A strident blare of trombones pierced the air. Suddenly, a knot of elves with band instruments charged through the crosswalk, making a beeline toward Ashley.
Kayla pulled her sister out of harm’s way. “Watch it, you guys!”
“That’s twice I almost died,” Ashley said. “In one day.”
Kayla muttered under her breath, “It wasn’t twice.”
“Chill, Kayla,” Peter teased. “You know Ash is kidding.”
Yeah, Kayla did. So, why was she so tense? Because she was tired. She’d met with six clients and needed sleep. And she still hadn’t connected with Sara.
“Look at Kayla’s eyes, Peter,” Ashley directed. “Kayla doesn’t have the dot.”
Peter cut a look at Kayla. She shied away. She didn’t want to be subjected to his scrutiny. Sure, she and her twin had the same face, but there the similarity ended. Ashley, who had drawn international attention in every magazine on the planet, wore makeup to perfection. Kayla wore none. Ashley sported a short haircut feathered around her face. Kayla preferred her long hair in a ponytail—no fuss, no muss.
Ashley pressed on. “The woman said in her spooky Hungarian accent, ‘Darling, you won’t see another Sunday.’C’mon, admit it. That’s eerie, don’t you think? I mean, it’s Monday. Do I only have six days left to live?”
“Maybe she meant you’d never see anothersundae,” Peter joked and poked Kayla’s arm.
“Yeah, Ash,” Kayla said, doing her best to join in the fun. “No more gooey chocolate sauce for you. After all, you’re almost thirty. Gotta watch your weight.”
Ashley stuck out her tongue. Kayla shuddered, remembering Sara had done the same thing the last time Kayla had suggested she find a less dangerous career.
CHAPTER THREE
Fitzleanedagainst the laboratory door and watched Lee, a young Asian technician, as he moved from patient to patient. Checked vital signs. Adjusted wires attached to the patients’ shaved heads.
Taking a long pull on his cigarette, Fitz inhaled and exhaled. A thin trail of smoke drifted in front of his face. Someday he would give up the habit. Not any time soon. He didn’t allow himself more than six smokes a day. He wasn’t addicted, but quitting could wait. He glanced at his watch. How many hours until this particular phase of the project was completed? One? Ten? There would be no sailing down the coast to Carmel this weekend. Good thing his sailboat was a patient mistress.
Lee tugged on the Velcro straps that secured one patient to the bed and proceeded to the next patient.
“Everything okay?” Fitz asked.
“Yes, Sir.”
Fitz smiled. His brother would be pleased by how he was rallying people to his cause. Hisbrother’scause.
“I detect impulsivity.” Lee reviewed the data tape spitting from a monitor on the right. “Agitation is up.”
