Page 14 of Sour Layer

Chapter 8

I stood motionless. Questions sat unasked as my mind raced, trying to make sense.

“Come on now, you didn’t fly all this way to stand there acting surprised, did you? That would be disappointing.”

I snapped my mouth closed. “The FBI was looking for you. My sisters and I just wanted to make sure you’re safe.”

“Damn it. Doesn’t anyone talk to each other? I left word that I was leaving.” She threw her legs off the side of the bed. “I’m Clara Bennett.”

She held out her hand to shake mine, and I stepped back.

“I’m Mercy,” I said. “How exactly did you know I was looking for you?”

Her lips twisted into a grin. “I guess you can say I just know things. Like for instance, you have a touch ability since you didn’t shake my hand.” Clara grinned. “That’s one of mine too. But as you can see, I’m fine. Great even. Just didn’t like the future outcome of my work with the FBI, so I left.”

“You look just like my sister who died,” I blurted out, holding Clara’s gaze. She was the striking image of what Talia would have grown up to look like.

“You’re lucky that you have sisters. I only have brothers. Big, pain-in-the-ass brothers who thought they could control my life.”

My brows dipped. “There aren’t many Bennett men in the family that I know of. Uncle Mike from the other family line. He’s a human lie detector and a cop. My cousin John, he’s FBI. I’m surprised you two didn’t cross paths.”

“What makes you think we didn’t?” Clara asked.

I tilted my head. “He and his mother, Abby, were the ones that have been helping us track down your ancestors.”

“John never knew my last name. I kept it from him on purpose. I guess you could say I was testing the waters. He has premonitions in his dreams, right?” she asked with a slow mischievous smile.

Confusion clouded my mind. He still should have known. He should have questioned just because of the resemblance.

“You have a phone?” she asked.

I slipped my phone out and handed it to her, pulling away my fingers so we didn’t accidentally touch. She chuckled and turned on the camera. She turned her back to me and took a selfie that had us both in the picture.

“There, now you’ll have proof that I’m fine and I do exist, so you can leave and make it back to your sister’s wedding. Faith, isn’t it?”

“How do you know about Faith’s wedding?” I took the phone back and shoved it into my pocket.

“I know things. That’s my talent.” She grinned. “I could have made a living as one of those people at the fairs that guesses people’s weights.” She crossed the room and pulled open the door. “I’ll see you around, that is if I stay in town.”

“Wait,” I called out, halting her exit. “How can I find you again, you know, when we have a reunion or just want to get to know you better. My sisters would love to meet you, even if your brothers aren’t interested. We are.”

“I can’t help you with talking my brothers into that, but now that we’ve officially met, I’ll find you. You can count on it.”

“Wait,” I called out again.

Clara sighed and turned back to face me. I grabbed the paper from the desk and a pen, where I wrote down my name, address, and phone number. Tearing it off, I handed it to her. “This is me if you’re ever in the neighborhood.”

Clara folded the paper and shoved it into her pocket. “If you happen to meet my brothers, go easy on them. They’re still under the impression that your branch of the tree and ours is still feuding.”

My mouth parted again as she walked out the door. I should have stopped her. Hell, I should have asked her to coffee and then bombarded her with the questions only now taking shape in my head. She had brothers. She didn’t tell me how many, but at least that was something I could work with. Instead of looking for sisters like most of the Bennett lines, I could now focus on the males. That shouldn’t be too difficult, knowing this town was important to them.

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