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“Tristan, this is an emergency. What’s Will’s number?”
Instantly, his tone changed. “What’s wrong? Are you in trouble? Is Julia okay?”
“We’re fine, but I think—” I paused, not wanting to say the next thing aloud. I took a deep breath and continued. “We’re at Annisa’s apartment, and we found her on the bedroom floor. I’m sure she’s dead. Her place is a wreck, so I think whoever killed her also trashed her apartment. We called for help, but I thought Will might want to come, too.”
“What? Let me talk to my wife,” Tristan demanded. The urgency in his voice underscored his fear.
I handed the phone to Julia. “Hello?” Her voice was dull, and her eyes brimmed with unshed tears.
I couldn’t hear what Tristan was saying, but every once in a while, I heard Julia make agreeing noises. Finally, she opened her mouth and let out a sigh before she said, “Right. I’ll tell Claire that you and Will are on your way.”
Then she hung up the phone and handed it back to me.
I righted another chair and placed it next to Julia’s. Before I sat down on the chair, Leo leaped on the cushion.
“Hey there, little guy. I was going to sit there.” I scooped the cat into my arms and eased down on the plush seat.
“I can’t believe that Annisa’s dead.” I reached out to hold Julia’s hand. “I hope Will’s not right, and she’s not involved with a criminal gang.”
There was something that had been nagging on my mind, and I couldn’t place it until now. I wanted to ask Julia before the police arrived.
“Are you sure that you didn’t know anything about what Annisa was doing?” I found it odd that Julia would be completely oblivious to this.
“I wasn’t going to tell you because I didn’t want to make Annisa look even worse, but now that she’s gone…” She placed a hand over her throat and rubbed her neck.
“Yes,” I prompted gently.
“During our trip to Cozumel, Annisa gave me a Chanel wallet as a present. I was flattered that she spent so much on a gift. However, when we got back, I showed the wallet to my mom, and she told me it wasn’t real.”
“Just like the delivery guy told you about the Louis Vuitton wallet,” I said.
Julia nodded.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” I asked in surprise because Julia usually told me everything.
“I was embarrassed when I found out that the Chanel wallet wasn’t real. At the time, I chalked up the incident as an isolated case. I thought maybe she was trying to show off, and I didn’t think that she would try to give me another gift that was fake,” she said, giving me a wry smile. “When I was told the Louis Vuitton wallet was a fake, I felt foolish that I couldn’t tell the difference.”
I nodded sympathetically. “For what it’s worth, I wouldn’t be able to tell the genuine from the counterfeit either.”
Leo jumped from my lap at the knock on the front door.
“That must be the police,” I said, springing from the chair and rushing to open the door.
Chapter Thirty-Six
When I opened the door, I saw two men instead of the police. The tall guy was wearing a fitted paisley print button-up shirt over a pair of jeans, while the other man, who was shorter, wore a fawn-colored blazer over a black t-shirt and jeans.
“Is Annisa here?” the shorter of the two guys asked. He stood up on his Gucci loafers and peered over my shoulder.
“Yes, but I’m afraid that she can’t come to the door,” I said, trying to block his view. I had no idea who these men were, and I didn’t want them to see what had happened to Annisa’s apartment.
“Julia!” the taller guy cried out when he saw Julia behind me.
“Derrick!” Julia shouted.
“Do you know them?” I turned around to stare at Julia in surprise.
“Yes, this is Derrick,” she said, gesturing to the tall, African American man.
