Page 409 of The Sinner: James

I’ve spent half a day today playing detective, making phone calls, knocking on doors, and asking people.

Trying to locate Daria.

The address my mother initially gave me goes way back to when Daria was still talking to her.

I found my sister’s former roommate at that address.

The woman couldn’t give me much information about why Daria had moved away.

In her typical manner, she informed her roommate she had found a better place to live, and off she went.

Her roommate confessed it must’ve had to do with a man.

I wasn’t surprised.

But my next stop wasn’t Daria’s home either, although she’d lived there for a while. The man who opened the door to that place gave another piece of helpful information.

Daria and Weston, her then-boyfriend, had lived in that apartment for about six months before he swooped in.

The man gave me my sister’s new address, where he used to forward her mail, and that’s the lead I’m following right now.

“This is it,” the cab driver says, pointing to a modern building entrance.

“Thank you.”

I pay the man the fare before slipping out and heading to the glass doors.

A couple walking a small dog exits the building as I stroll in.

A lavishly lit lobby greets me inside.

I find my way to the elevator, and once inside the car, I press the button for the third floor.

The doors pull open a few moments later.

I exit the elevator, turn left, and search for the number.

Eventually, I find the door, ring the doorbell, and wait.

Footsteps echo inside, followed by a man and a woman dialogue before the door swings open.

A man looks at me.

He has no idea who I am.

“Weston?” I try.

His eyebrows push up.

“Who’s Weston?”

For a moment, I’m under the impression that he talks to me, yet he flicks his head, glancing over his shoulder.

“Who’s Weston, babe?”

Footsteps move across the floor out of my sight before Daria shows up.

Her eyes widen with surprise.

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