Page 79 of Little Bitter Truths
“Oh, I have no doubt about it.”
“What did you say next?”I asked.
“I wrote: ‘I’ve been thinking about a lot of things since Wren died, and I know I could have handled things better after Grandpa died.’”She glanced over at me.“It seems tequila turned me into the bigger person, for once.”
“Maybe this needed to happen.How did she respond?”
“She said: ‘You don’t need to apologize.I’m just happy that you reached out.’”Mia paused.“Then she asked how I was doing and how the investigation was going.”
“What did you tell her?”
“Not much.I said it’s been hard, and that I’ve been struggling with thinking about how to live a life without my sister.”She huffed a frustrated sigh.“It’s just, not like me, you know?I’d never admit this stuff to Renee.We aren’t close.”
Alcohol had changed that.Beneath the wine, tequila, and late-night emotions, she had finally allowed herself to be honest.
“What else did Renee say?”I asked.
“She said she wished she was here so she could give me a hug.”
It seemed like something she would say.
Mia glanced back at her phone.“She asked what she could do for me, and …”
She cringed.
“Oh, no,” I said.“I’m guessing you said something you regret.”
“I told her I was having a hard time being alone, and Renee offered to come to Cambria for the weekend.She said she could leave her kids with a friend.”
“How did you respond?”
“I said I’d like that, which is crazy.Even drunk, I can’t believe I’d ever say such a thing.”
“I’m guessing she was thrilled about it.”
“Yeah, she said: ‘See you soon!’”Mia lowered the phone, slapping a hand to her forehead.“That was the end of last night’s conversation.”
“With everything going on, if you don’t want her here right now, I’m sure there’s a polite way to let her know it would be better if you caught up with her another time.”
“It’s far too late.You know how my phone buzzed a few minutes ago?”
“Yeah?”
“It was Renee texting me to say she’s on her way.She left Bakersfield over an hour ago.She’ll be here soon.”
I thought back to my conversation with Renee.The tears she’d shed when talking about Wren had seemed genuine, as had her regret over never having a closer relationship with her cousins.But if she believed Mia might have been the killer’s intended target, I would have expected some hesitation about coming to visit.A killer was still out there, yet Renee didn’t seem concerned.
“Georgiana, did you hear what I just said?”Mia asked.
Not wanting to alarm her, I offered a slight smile.“Sorry, I was just thinking.”
“About Renee?”
“Yes.”
“What about her?”
I paused a moment to consider what I wanted to say and how I wanted to say it.“When I spoke with Renee, I got the impression she has wanted a relationship with you for a long time.Now that you’ve opened the door, I’m not surprised she’s jumped at the opportunity.It’s just, she knows the case hasn’t been solved yet.There’s an element of danger in her coming here, but she’s still coming.”
