CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
May jerked awake in the semi-darkness, gasping for breath, her arms flailing as she fought off the killer trying to drag her away.
Clutching the bedcovers, gradually, reality filtered back to her.
She'd had a nightmare about Lauren again, after finally managing to sleep. Despite being so tired, she'd tossed and turned, feeling haunted by her life decisions. Now it was getting light on what looked to be a cool but clear day.
Glancing at her alarm clock, she saw it was a quarter to six in the morning.
She might as well start her day, she thought, because she was sure she wouldn't be able to sleep anymore. She felt emotionally wrung out. The debacle with Owen still burned at her when she thought about it.
Why hadn't she given a better answer?
What even was a better answer? She felt so confused. And her eyes felt red, tired, and grainy.
Climbing out of bed, she ran a brush through her hair and then splashed water on her face. Then she went through to the kitchen and put coffee on, making it extra strong in the hope it would magically empower her to feel more awake, and less red-eyed and exhausted.
As she got the machine going, she heard the trill of her phone from the bedroom.
May's heart all but stopped.
A call this early?
It could only be the news she was dreading. Had a third victim been found? With her heart in her mouth, she skidded back into the bedroom and grabbed her phone.
She saw, to her astonishment, it was Kerry.
"Hello?" she answered. Her voice sounded hoarse.
"Morning, sis! Did I wake you?" Kerry sounded amused. There was noise in the background. A repetitive thudding sound and the clink of what sounded like weights.
May realized blearily that her sister must already be at the gym.
Did she need no sleep? Was she superior to May, who needed a full eight hours to function normally, in that way too?
"I was already awake," she mumbled, heading back to the kitchen to pour the coffee.
"Ah, good. I thought I'd better call you now as I'm not sure when I'll have another gap in our day. I'm gymming early. Treadmill, weights, and then we're getting on a helicopter to go track down a rogue witness," Kerry sounded enthused.
"Um, good luck," May said.
She wasn't sure what the take-home message was for her, but she could see that she compared unfavorably to Kerry's work ethic and energy levels. She felt inferior, even though she thought she was trying her hardest. Her tri-weekly runs through the farmland and the forest trails suddenly seemed to be inadequate in terms of fitness building.
She, too, should be heading to a gym in the early morning to lift enormous weights. The only problem was that the closest local gym was a twenty minute drive from her rural cottage, whereas the trails were a one-minute walk away. And it was lovely to run the route and listen to the sounds of nature.
May told herself she was not going to feel inferior. She was not. They were just different. And she needed to try take charge of this conversation.
"That sounds great, sis. So why are you calling?" May asked, tipping back her cup and taking a huge gulp of coffee.
Now that she'd updated her sister on her busy and important day, Kerry finally got around to the reason for her call.
"Yes. I just did the research on your suspect."
May felt a flare of excitement. This was sooner than she'd expected. Clearly intrigued, Kerry had made the time, and she couldn't be more grateful.
"Did you find anything out?" she asked eagerly. Surely her sister must have found something, to be calling so early.
"Well, to cut to the chase, I think you're wrong about your guess." Kerry sounded exacting and professional. "I think your guy is pretty legit. You must have done something incorrectly in the search."