AllFreeNovel
Share Us
A man emerged from the back room. He held a phone to his ear. Gray hair and a matching beard covered most of his face and head. His beady black eyes caught sight of them. His mouth turned down. He wore a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants. Either he’d been lounging, or he didn’t care about appearances.
The man hung up the phone and eyed the two newcomers. “Can I help you?”
“We’re looking for the woman who lives here.” Jason’s voice was soft. “Stephanie?”
“She don’t live here no more.” The man’s voice was gruff, but not unkind. Cassie got the impression he lacked people skills. “Moved out last night. Last minute.”
“Do you know why?”
“Didn’t ask.” He looked them up and down. “You interested in renting?”
“No, sorry.” Jason hesitated. “Did she mention where she was going?”
“Like I said, didn’t ask.” He never took his eyes off them. “What’s it to you?”
Cassie took a step forward but made sure she didn’t cross the threshold into the apartment. “We think she might be in trouble.”
Her bet had paid off. The man softened. “What kind of trouble?”
“We’re not sure.” Cassie twisted her fingers together. “We talked to her last night because we’re looking for her sister.”
“Or someone we think is her sister,” Jason corrected. “Apparently she lived in this apartment before Stephanie?”
“She’s been living here for about ten months.” The man gestured around him. “Didn’t have any roommates that I knew of. If she did, I woulda charged more.”
“Have you ever seen a girl with dark hair, tattoos, and piercings come out of here?” she asked.
He shrugged. “Mighta. Stephanie was strange. Got a few complaints about her screamin’ and yellin’, but I told ‘em that’s not my problem. Told ‘em they could talk to her if they wanted her to be quiet. I’m not their parent. Kids these days don’t know how to talk to each other. Always want everyone else to solve their problems for them.”
Cassie gave him a sympathetic nod. “Why do you say she was strange?”
“Don’t know.” He scratched his beard. “Just was.”
Jason gestured to the furniture and the glasses. “And she just packed up and left?”
“More like just left.” He shrugged. “Told me I could sell anything she left behind. Don’t bother me none.”
“We’re really trying to find her,” Cassie implored. “Do you have any information that could help us?”
He eyed the pair of them. “Seems like she don’t want to be found.”
“It’s important.”
“I’m sure it is.” He shrugged again. “But she always paid me in cash. I don’t got no information about her.” He shooed them across the hall. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I got an apartment to rent.”
Cassie and Jason retreated to the elevator, but neither pushed the button for the ground level. They both stared at it like it would give them the answers they sought.
“None of this makes sense.” Jason looked up at her, concern lining his face. “None of it.”
“Charli brought Alan back to this apartment to sleep with him. She got fired and then supposedly died.” Cassie held out a finger for each statement she made. “Charli and Stephanie look too similar not to be related. She helps us by pointing us to Pete’s Bar. Why?”
“She had to give us something,” Jason said. “The bartender would confirm Charli was dead, plus it would give her time to vacate the apartment.”
“Maybe she’s afraid that whatever happened to Charli would happen to her.”
“Now she’s in the wind with no way of tracking her down.”
“Maybe we don’t need to find her.” Cassie gestured to her phone, to the picture she’d taken of the poster at the volunteer center. “We just need to find what she was running from.”
