Page 34 of Dust to Dust

Since I still hadn’t learned much, I asked, “Was he on vacation this week?”

“His sister-in-law was kidnapped,” Mabry replied, which caused Lenora to hiss her name.

The glittery eyeshadow palette in my hand fell to the floor. “Excuse me?”

Mabry bent over to grab the palette. As she handed it to me, she replied, “Yeah, it happened the day of your audition.”

At her words, my mind went back to Kellan interrupting us. “That’s horrible!”

“Thankfully, they found her quickly, and she’s recovering now,” Mabry said.

“I can’t even begin to imagine how life-altering it would be to be kidnapped.”

“From what I hear, she was used to it,” Lenora quipped.

“What?” I questioned to which Mabry quickly replied, “Nothing.”

After shooting Lenora a look in the mirror, Mabry said, “Mrs. Kavanaugh is recovering at home now.”

“So, Mr. Kavanaugh has been absent helping his brother with her recovery?” I questioned as I slid the pink eyeshadow over one of my lids.

Lenora snickered beside me. “What?”

With a grin, Mabry draped her arm over my shoulder. Her dark eyes danced with amusement. “Sometimes I forget how fresh and naive you are.”

Jerking my chin up, I replied, “Then be a good Mother Hen and educate me, so I can stop feeling like such an outsider.”

She scoffed. “Girl, I’m not old enough to be your mother.”

“My auntie?”

Lenora laughed. “You better watch it before you get your ass kicked, Newbie.”

I widened my eyes. “But I was only joking. I swear, I wouldn’t dare insult you.”

Mabry playfully smacked Lenora. “She’s just teasing. While I’d prefer being your slightly older sister, I’ll take auntie.”

At my exhale of relief, Lenora said, “Go on and educate the girl, Sis.”

“Why can’t you?” Mabry countered.

“Oh no. I wouldn’t touch that with a ten-foot pole.”

A shiver ghosted down my spine. “Okay, you can stop teasing me because you’re seriously starting to scare me.”

The amusement on Mabry’s face faded. After glancing over her shoulder to scan the dressing room, she whispered, “This knowledge is powerful. Where there is power, there is danger.”

“You mean, it’s dangerous for you just to talk about this?” When she nodded, fear overcame me. Shaking my head, I replied, “Then I don’t want to know.”

“It’s probably better than you don’t,” Lenora replied.

I was grateful I’d already finished lining my eyes since my fingers were trembling. When Mabry’s hand came to my shoulder, I jumped. After I jerked my gaze to hers, she gave me a reassuring smile. “Just keep your head down, do your job, and you won’t have any problems.”

“I will.”

At that moment, Paula stuck her head in the dressing room. “Isla, you’re up.”

Although I remained physically and emotionally shaky from the conversation, I plastered a smile to my face. “Coming.”

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