Chapter 31
“Who was at the door?” Andrea asked, coming down the hall from her room. She’d had to call her work and tell them she wasn’t coming in tonight. Burt hadn’t been happy with her calling off last minute, but she couldn’t leave her sister alone on her first night.
She still wasn’t convinced her sister was the innocent victim she was playing at, so she’d rather keep an eye on her than come home at two in the morning and find her things were missing or that the person after Holly had showed up.
Now that she thought about it, and after seeing her sister, Andrea wondered now if the men from last night hadn’t been propositioning her while mistaking her for Holly.
When they’d said they had a job for her, she thought they’d mistaken her for some kind of stripper or hooker.
But now she was thinking they were trying to hire her for a job.
“A man who thought I was you.” Holly chuckled as she flopped down on the couch and fanned herself. “He’s a good kisser, by the way. Why didn’t you tell me you were seeing a man?”
There was only one person who would show up and kiss her—well, her sister—who thought she was Andrea. Michael. “It’s none of your business, and what do you mean he’s a good kisser?”
“Like I said, he thought I was you.”
“And what happened?” She was irritated at her sister for kissing him, and she was irritated at him for kissing her sister even if that was illogical because no one knew Holly existed.
“I answered the door, and he shoved his tongue down my throat. That’s when he pulled back and realized I wasn’t you.
Funny, not many notice the difference,” Holly mused as if that were an afterthought.
It wasn’t like they had practiced at pretending to be the other.
They were too different; anyone could see through it.
Apparently Michael could too. Maybe she wasn’t so irritated with him.
“Did he say anything when he realized?” If Michael knew she had a twin, all the questions would come. Questions she couldn’t answer.
“He said I wasn’t you. I told him he was wrong since the whole cover thing. I didn’t want to invite him in though, and then he said he had to leave. How long have you been dating tall, light, and handsome?” Holly teased, her eyebrows wagging up and down.
“I don’t know if I’d call it dating, but we’ve been seeing each other for a few days.
He moved in two weeks ago,” Andrea said, coming into the room and sitting on the couch next to Holly.
“Wouldn’t leave me alone until I agreed to a date.
” She chuckled. She’d never had a man pursue her like that before.
“And now he just shows up at night to kiss you and leaves gifts?”
“What gifts?” He had never left her a gift before. Holly pointed to the bag next to the front door she’d overlooked. Andrea stood up to check it out. “He lives right across the street, so it’s not like he has far to go.”
Holly sat up suddenly, looking serious. “Where did he come from?”
“Vegas.”
“What does he do?”
“He works for an IT company as a supervisor. What’s with all the questions?” Since when did her sister care about her personal life and not just tease her for having one?
“Andy, we have to go.” Holly pushed off the couch and headed toward the bedroom.
The bag forgotten for the moment, Andrea looked down the hall where her sister had gone. “I hate it when you call me that, and I’m not going anywhere,” Andrea called after her.
Holly came back into the room, sans heels for sneakers.
Andrea didn’t know her sister even owned any.
“Now isn’t the time for games. We have to go.
” Holly ran to the window and peeked between two blinds.
“Listen, I’ll explain everything on the way, but right now, we have to leave.
” Holly tied her hair back into a bun and pulled a blackie hoodie over her tank top.
“No, you explain now. Why are you really here, Holly, and why am I running from him?”
Holly huffed but seemed to know she wasn’t going to get Andrea’s compliance without some kind of explanation.
“I got involved with the wrong people, and now they’re after me.
I thought I could lay low with you for a few days until the heat died down and get out of the country, but now I know others are after me. ”
“Who?”
“Your boyfriend.”
Andrea reared back as if slapped. “He’s not my boyfriend, and what do you mean he’s after you?
He’s in IT; what does he care about you?
” Not that Andrea knew what her sister did anymore.
She preferred not knowing, but whatever it was, it was never good.
Holly had always been drawn to the wrong crowd.
Holly looked at her as if she were a simpleton. “He’s not IT, Andy—drea. He works for the government.”
Where did her sister get that idea? “No, he used to be in the military, but he got out.”
Holly shook her head. “No, he’s a spy of some kind. He’s not who you think he is.”
Now Andrea was pissed. Her sister was making up shit just because she couldn’t stand the idea of Andrea being happy. It wasn’t the first time she had tried to cast doubt. Holly had made it a game. “You’re just saying that because you’re jealous someone is attracted to me and not you.”
Holly whirled on her, jabbing a pointed finger at her.
“Andy, now isn’t the time for sibling rivalry.
There are too many coincidences. He moved in right across the street from you.
He singled you out. Wouldn’t take no for an answer.
” Holly ticked off her fingers. When she pointed it out like that, it didn’t look good in Michael’s favor, but she wouldn’t allow her sister to dictate who she dated.
It could just be a coincidence. “He was sent to spy on you to get to me or thought you were me. He’s the enemy, Andrea.
I’m sorry. We have to go now.” Holly moved past her to Andrea’s bedroom and started packing her bag for her.
“No, I’m not running.” Andrea crossed her arms over her chest, her feet braced wide.
“What do you have going for you here?” Holly waved her arms around her. “A tiny house in a retirement community. A dead end job. You’re going to end up dead if you stay.”
“And who’s fault is that?” Andrea snapped. “The only reason I have been hiding the past seven years is because of you.”
Holly looked at her, stricken, as if just now realizing the impact of her choices. “I’m sorry, Andy. I know it’s my fault. I can’t help we share the same face.”
“It’s not just your face,” Andrea said softly, shaking her head sadly. “It’s your lifestyle. You think nothing can touch you because you don’t face the consequences of your actions. I do. You steal for a living. What did you take this time that you have the government looking for you?”
“The less you know, the better. Let’s just pack, and we’ll go away somewhere.”
“We can’t go together. We’re an even bigger target then.
” She’d find another location with WITSEC.
It wasn’t like this was her first rodeo, but she had hoped it would be her last. She was so tired of living on the run, scared of Holly’s enemies finding her again.
Andrea just wanted to live her own life.
Holly took Andrea’s hands into her own and looked at her earnestly. “I’ll get you some place safe, and I’ll go my own separate way. I’ll never look you up. I’ll disappear from your life for good.”
“It’s better you leave now.” Andrea pulled her hands away and diverted her gaze from Holly. Her sister had abandoned her once, and she’d survived—barely. She could do it again.
“Fine,” Holly said after a moment, her voice hollow. “Let me get my bag, and I’ll go. I am sorry for everything, Andrea,” Holly mumbled softly before heading down the hall.
Andrea’s eyes lifted to the bag. She peeked inside, unable to hide a grimace at the bright orange material. She pulled it out. It was soft and sheer. It was a scarf. Covered in a floral pattern. She looked inside the bag to find another scarf just as bright and ugly.
She would say one thing for Michael, he had terrible taste in clothing. She looked at the label on the bag to see who had sold this kind of material and dropped the bag. Andrea recognized the label.
“She was right,” Andrea whispered to herself. Holly was right about Michael. He was using her to get to Holly. Or worse, suspected she was Holly. “Holly,” Andrea called down the hall.
“What? What is it?” Holly came running back into the room.
They both froze, hearing the squeal of tires outside the door.
“We have to go, now.” Holly grabbed Andrea’s arm and dragged her through the house and out the back door.
“What about our stuff?”
“We can buy stuff later. We have to run now.” Ice ran through Andrea’s veins at the sound of terror in Holly’s voice.
“What about the car?” Why run when they had a car?
“They’re too close. We have to hoof it. We’ll go through some backyards and lose them and find a car.
” Holly kept up a punishing pace as if she were an Olympic runner.
They had only made it two blocks, and Andrea was already out of breath, but the grip her sister had on her arm didn’t allow for her to slow down.
Andrea didn’t bother mourning any loss of the things she was leaving behind.
Not pictures or papers. Not even clothes.
Everything in the house was replaceable.
She had done that on purpose so she could leave without a single regret.
Though she wished she could tell Maya goodbye.
The woman was the closest thing she had to a friend.
“We have to stop,” Andrea panted.
“We can’t stop.” They hadn’t heard anyone following them, but Andrea hadn’t been looking. Her only focus had been to run.
“I can’t breathe.” Andrea wheezed, feeling a stitch forming in her side. Damn, she was out of shape. She always assumed when she went on the run, she’d just get in her car and drive. Running and evading hadn’t been her plan.