Chapter 25
Agnes and Lauren’s guesthouse, West Hollywood, Los Angeles
The mood in the guesthouse is not the one I was expecting.
Lauren and Agnes are both sitting by the table. Lauren’s eyes are swollen and pink-rimmed. She’s nuzzling into Lana Del Gay. Agnes is staring into space, barely aware of our presence.
Something’s happened.
Something bad.
‘What is it?’ Antoinette says, rushing over to Agnes’s side.
‘What’s wrong?’ Agnes gives her a mournful look and pushes her phone into my sister’s hands.
Antoinette blinks at the little screen for a couple of seconds then turns her eyes to me.
They are huge with horror but, I notice, a tiny glint of something else in them.
What’s going on?
Lauren rubs a hand over her eyes and turns to me.
‘A woman’s body’s been found,’ she says. ‘In an alley behind the Walk of Fame.’
‘Oh God, that’s awful.’
She nods. ‘It’s even worse because we know this girl. She was in mine and Agnes’s improv class.’
I look over at Agnes, who’s nodding. ‘Juno Blake,’ she says, leaning into Antoinette’s shoulder.
‘And guess what,’ my sister says, fixing her eyes on mine. ‘She was on PrivatePool.’
She hands me the phone and I read the news report. And then the comments underneath it basically saying she was asking for it.
Antoinette’s tone was loaded.
I know what she’s saying.
Another murder, another woman dead at the hands of the WeHo Ripper. There’s no way I can be in denial about the existence of this killer any more.
Her eyes are asking the question.
What are we going to do about it?
I give her a little nod because she’s right. It would be irresponsible of me to be out here and not try to find out who’s doing this. Especially when the police don’t seem to care.
The corners of Antoinette’s mouth turn up a little.
Looks like my to-do list just got a bit longer.