The Sometime Sister by Katherine Nichols (ebook reader for comics .txt) 📕

me. She was accompanied by an older man in a black tuxedo and an old-fashioned top hat. I expected to see our long-lost daddy beside the bride, but it was Uncle Roy looking stern and sober. He stopped, turned to the woman at his side, and lifted her veil.

I looked away to where Ben stood next to Adelmo. Ben mouthed the words, “It should have been you.”

I bolted for the exit, but my heel caught the hem of my dress, and I plummeted into darkness, awaking with a jolt. Drenched in sweat, I threw off the covers and checked the time. It had only been a little over an hour since I fell asleep. I lay back for a moment, watching the ceiling fan perform its sluggish rotation. Ben’s words echoed. I was furious because it should have been me when Stella and Ben eloped and again when they left for Ecuador. And when my sister died? I felt as if my mother had been thinking those same words: It should have been you.

I threw my legs over the side of the bed, walked to the kitchen, and saw a note taped to the refrigerator.

Harry’s guy had time to see us this afternoon. Should be back in time for dinner—Rest and feel better. Justin.

The walls narrowed around me, and I rushed to the patio to take a deep breath of ocean air. No way would I be able to sit around waiting for the men to return. I remembered Prez might have left a message about contacting Eva, so I hurried to the front desk. A female employee I’d never seen told me I had no calls.

By now it was after two. The sun slipped in and out of the clouds. The air was heavy and hot. Beads of perspiration dotted my forehead, and my sunglasses slid down on my nose. I could see the shoreline from the pathway and remembered Justin’s suggestion I take a walk or go shopping. The idea had annoyed me at the time, but now there really wasn’t anything useful for me to do. It was a good time to walk along the beach and wander around town.

I stopped at the room, stuck a bottle of water in my bag, slathered on some sunscreen, and grabbed a straw hat before setting out. I strolled along the path, marveling at the panoramic view below me. Surfers defied the laws of gravity as they popped out of the sea and catapulted into the air. Striped umbrellas dotted the beach, and groups of children built forts and castles.

By the time I reached the sea, sweat and sunscreen ran in rivulets into my eyes and my clothes were damp. I took off my sandals and walked ankle-deep into the water. A slight breeze offered some relief from the heat. When I stumbled into a shallow drop-off, a wave twice my size knocked me off my feet. I stumbled up and raced to the shore.

Feeling like the loser in a wet t-shirt contest, I ventured into a rocky area and stretched out on a coffin-shaped stone to dry out. A sailboat glided across the sparkling surface. Beyond it, a fishing boat bobbed in the rough water. Peace descended over me for the first time since Stella’s death. I wanted to stay in this exact spot forever, forgetting the ugliness that propelled me into a world where a woman like my sister could be broken and tossed aside.

After my clothes dried enough to lose their transparency, I threaded my way through the rising tide and across the rocks to shallow water, where I knelt to rinse sand off my legs. A heavyset man several yards behind me stopped at the same time I did. When I looked in his direction, he pulled his white baseball cap over his eyes and bent over as if searching for shells.

He is looking for shells, I told myself. Just because the police had tracked me to Eva’s didn’t mean I was being followed today. Mr. Fat Cap was most likely some harmless tourist out for a relaxing walk on the beach. The fact he was now walking toward me was nothing more than a coincidence.

Chapter 26

 

No need to panic. I moved away from the waters’ edge and weaved through the maze of sunbathers on blankets and towels. Comforted by their presence, I reached the pavement, dusted the grit off my feet, and slipped on my sandals. My shadow was nowhere in sight.

Vendors selling everything from fresh oysters to tacos and ice cream lined the street, but I kept walking until I came to a small building with an elaborate thatched roof. Cheap T-shirts and swimsuits hung from racks on the walls. I walked to a carousel of sunglasses and tried on a pair, using the mirror to scan the throng of shoppers. There was still no sign of him. I exhaled and returned to trying on sunglasses. A flash of white caught my attention. Head down next to a row of clam-shaped ashtrays, my friend was back.

I modeled more glasses before grabbing a pair with faux tortoise-shell frames. Then I moved to a rack of cheap sundresses in vibrant jungle colors. I selected an orange one with a parrot perched across the skirt. At the register, I asked the clerk if there was another exit. He motioned to the back, and I ambled out into a narrow passage between the shops. A few feet away, an elderly man in flowered shorts and no shirt smoked a cigarette. He ignored me as I ran past him.

I ducked into the shop a few doors down and found myself face-to-face with Bob Marley, all sunglasses and serenity on a bright red, yellow, and green flag. Below him sat the biggest bong I’d ever seen. A dark-skinned man with dreadlocks beamed at me with a gap-toothed grin. I asked for directions to the ladies room. There I removed my T-shirt and slipped the sundress over my shorts.