Page 10 of Dead and a Best Friend
Penelope hurried from the taxi and rushed forward. "Talla, what are you doing here?" She cast her gaze over her shoulder. I saw a flicker of fear in her eyes before she turned away andwent to her front door. Her hands trembled, and it took her three attempts to get the key in the lock. If I had any doubts before about whether Pen was okay, I was sure something was very wrong. She needed help. With that thought, I was yanked inside Pen's house, and the door slammed shut behind me.
I was so surprised that I could only stare at my friend.
"You shouldn't be here," she hissed as she peeked out the window.
I snapped out of it. "Penelope Bailey, you better tell me what the heck is going on with you right now!" I hollered. "I've had enough of worrying about you."
Penelope stared at me in shock at my outburst.
"Spit it out before I get Jessop down here."
Her eyes widened, and she rushed toward me, dragging me into the closet. It was dark and musty inside, and I could hear Pen's frantic whispering. "I can explain. You just need to trust me," she pleaded. "Jessop can't find out about this. Nor can Carlisle. Promise me, Talla."
"Why are we in a dark closet?"
"Talla, focus! Promise me."
My heart bounced in my chest. I feared what she was going to say, but I promised her anyway. "Pen, you can tell me anything. You should know this. I love you."
Her hands reached out and gripped my arms tightly. "I'm pregnant."
I faltered for a moment, unsure of how to react, because that certainly wasn't what I expected her to say. My brain struggled to come up with words. Finally, I managed to stammer, "Are you sure?"
"Yes," she whispered. "There's something else, though." She stayed silent.
"Pen, the suspense is killing me! Just tell me!"
"I found a lot of money, spent a good chunk of it, and now Aiden wants it back," she said so quickly that I hoped I'd heard her wrong. But I hadn't.
"Okay," I started. “First, tell me why we’re in a closet.”
"Because I think my house is bugged. I mean, how would anyone know I spent the money I found?"
I briefly closed my eyes. “Pen, why didn’t you come to me, Oliver, or even Jessop? You could have told us that you found it." I paused. "Where did you find it?"
"Under Aiden's side of the bed. There was a loose floorboard. It wouldn't lie flat, so I pulled it up, and there were bags of cash. I also found 50K in the wheel rim of my spare tire.”
"And you spent it instead of telling the sheriff."
"Oh, Tallulah, I'm in so much trouble."
"In more ways than one," I muttered.
"That's not helping," she snapped. "I'm sorry. I'm so stupid. When I found it, I knew it had to be Aiden's because it wasn't mine. I was angry and upset about everything he’d done, so I decided to get back at him by spending his—what I assumed to be—illegal earnings.” She paused for breath. "But it turns out it didn't belong to him. He was holding onto it for someone else, and now they want it back. I don't have it.”
"Oh, hell in a handbasket!"
"I don't feel too good, Talla.”
"Let's get out of this stuffy closet." I took her hand and smacked my face against the closet door at the image that flashed into my head: Penelope lying on a bed of white sheets with a death stare and skin as cold as ice. Shot in the head.
The closet door flew open, and I stumbled out, releasing Penelope's hand. I whipped my hand up to cover my mouth and raced to the bathroom, where I vomited into the toilet. By the time I finished, I felt pale and sweaty, and I winced as I used the sink basin to pull myself to my feet. I was too nauseous to look inthe mirror. I splashed cold water on my face before dipping my mouth under the faucet to rinse it out. Ew, yuck! That was awful.
With wobbly legs, I made my way back to the front room, where I found Pen slumped on the sofa. Without looking at me, she whispered, "You saw me dead." It was a statement, not a question.
My head started to hurt as I moved and sat down beside my friend. I wanted to reassure her, but my fear was consuming me. That's why I blurted out, "I saw Detective Riley dead. You know, one of the visiting detectives. I need your help to solve his murder before it happens." I burst out laughing. It was kind of manic laughter. Then, I felt tears running down my face. Seconds later, I was bawling my eyes out into my hands.
What was happening to me?
