Page 22 of The Newcomer
“Oh, Tanya,” Letty said with a long sigh.
Her sister had a long history of short, disastrous relationships with men, but even for Tanya, this was the Tanya-est thing ever.
“What are you going to do?” Letty asked.
“I’m not sure. I’m supposed to do a catalog shoot down in Florida next week, but I don’t have any place to stay until then. I don’t even have a change of clothes. Literally, all I have is what’s on my back. And my car, which I have to keep moving because the bank wants to repo it.”
“And the Louis Vuitton,” Letty pointed out. “How much is that thing worth?”
“Don’t even go there. I’m not hocking Louis.”
Letty waited for the other shoe to drop.
“I was thinking,” Tanya said slowly. “What would you say about my moving up there?”
“Here? You’d move to New York?”
“Why not? I could probably get a lot more magazine work. Definitely more runway. Maybe take some acting classes. Like you. Hey,I meant to say I loved you inChristmas in Charleston.You were the only one with an authentic Southern accent. Maybe you could hook me up with your new agent?”
For a moment, Letty was seized with an irrational—and selfish—urge to scream “No!” But she would never do that. Tanya was her baby sister. Okay, technically half sister. The two of them had been on their own since they were sixteen and seventeen. Scarlett and Tanya against the world.
“Maybe,” she said. “Where would you stay?”
“I was thinking maybe I could camp out on your sofa or something? Just until I get my feet on the ground, start getting some work?”
Thewaitress arrived back at the table with their order. She lingered, arranging the plates just so, pouring more coffee and water. “Anything else?”
“That’s all,” Evan said.
“Hold up,” Vikki said. “I understand you’re friends with Scarlett Carnahan?”
Zoey shrugged. “She used to work here, so yeah, I knew her. But she quit, so I haven’t seen her in, like, forever.”
“But you know your friend is in trouble, right?”
“I read about it in thePost,but you know how newspapers are. They make up most of that crap they print. Anyway, I know Letty wouldn’t hurt anybody. Especially that sister of hers.”
“Okay,” Vikki said. She tore the mustard packets apart, squeezed mustard on top of the egg, then picked up her bagel and bit into it.
“She’s lying,” Evan said, when Zoey was gone.
“I know. I’ll get back with her later, when you’re not around.”
She took another bite of sandwich and chewed slowly. “Let’s talk about you for a minute. I see from the tabloids that things were pretty bad between you and your ex. You’d already moved on, right?New girlfriend and all? You don’t exactly look like a grieving widower to me.”
Evan’s jaw tightened. “Tanya was the mother of my child. And now that child is missing. Who knows what kind of situation Letty has gotten her into? Maya is only four. She’s very sensitive and high-strung. She was seeing a therapist even before all of this.”
“Why not just let the police find Letty and Maya?” Vikki asked. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy to take your money, but be straight with me here. This isn’t just about finding the person who killed Tanya, and it’s not just about the kid. Am I right?”
He sipped his coffee and then carefully composed his answer.
“As I mentioned on the phone, Letty worked for me, until I met Tanya. She was privy to some, uh, confidential business arrangements, and then, while Tanya and I were living together, she obviously was around all the time, while I was doing business, talking to associates, that kind of thing. She asked a lot of questions. Tanya was a head case, but she was no dummy.”
“Ohhhhh,” Vikki said, nodding. “Letty and Tanya knew the dirty details about the Airbnbs, and you were afraid they’d spill the beans to the city. Am I right?”
“Not in so many words,” Evan said. “Tanya was determined to move out to LA. She thought she’d get more acting jobs there. I was happy to let her go.…”
“And get her out of your hair, and off your payroll,” Vikki interrupted. “But she wanted to take the kid. And you weren’t having it.”
