Page 42 of The Last Session

“It must’ve cost a fortune,” Mikki said.

“Oh!” Grace paused. “Let’s stop here. These are the bathrooms.” She waved us through an open doorway, and we filed into a yellow-tiled space. The color reminded me of a middle school locker room. There was a row of aluminum bathroom stalls and a row of sinks.

“The bathrooms are… communal?” Karen looked bemused.

“They are!” Grace nodded enthusiastically. “We don’t break things down by gender. The showers are through here.” She led us throughanother doorway. Showerheads dotted one of the walls. At the end of the room, a lone set of curtains surrounded one showerhead.

“For those who want privacy.” Grace gestured.

Mikki and Karen nodded, seemingly unfazed, but I couldn’t help but feel a pinch of discomfort. I hadn’t showered in front of other people since gym class decades ago. That had been bad enough. If I used the “privacy” shower, would everyone else judge me?

“Where do Moon and Sol record the podcasts?” Mikki asked as we continued down the hall.

“Oh, they do that in a studio in Las Cruces.”

“Is that far?”

“Everything’s pretty far around here.” Grace led us out a back door. “Okay, here’s one of my favorite places. The pool!”

“Now we’re talking,” Karen cried. Mikki grinned as she slipped on her round sunglasses.

The pool area was gorgeous—lush and colorful, like the background of a funkyVoguemagazine spread. The kidney-shaped pool itself was patterned with mosaics, which were all sea-themed: tropical fish, seahorses, anemones, even a large octopus with far-reaching tentacles. The deck was covered with golden-toned mosaics, like a sandy beach lining the water. Palms and ferns dotted the periphery, interspaced with cacti. A beige canopy stretched over half the pool, providing shade. Lounge chairs of all shapes and sizes littered the deck; they’d clearly been brought here piecemeal, but they added to the quirky charm.

And there, in the shaded area, several people lounged. They sat up to greet us, and I recognized him immediately.

This time he was in a T-shirt and shorts instead of that puffy black coat, but his mussed curly hair, broad shoulders, and lazy grin were all on full display.

It was Jonah the PI.

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“Oh, wow! Dudes!” Mikki waved.

I stood frozen in place as Mikki, Grace, and Karen continued towards them. Forcing myself to move, I kept my expression neutral even as my thoughts spun. How was he here? Had he also made the connection between Catherine and the Center? Had Officer Kim told Catherine’s parents about my frenzied call?

Jonah smiled, squinting, as we approached. This motherfucker wasn’t even wearing sunglasses. Nothing to hide. He shook Mikki’s and Karen’s hands, then turned to me.

“Hi.” He stuck out his hand. “I’m Jonah.”

So we were pretending not to know each other. Okay.

“Thea.” I tried to inflect some poison into my voice as I grasped his palm, but he just nodded and turned back to the group. The other man stepped forward. He was shorter, with close-cropped dark hair and a genial smile. “Hi, I’m Ramit.”

I tried to seem warm, normal. The third in their group, a tiny fortysomething woman in a strappy pink bikini, bounded forward and wrapped me in a hug. “Hi! I’m Dawne with ane!” She wore a thick, flowery perfume. When she stepped back, I got a closer look: high ponytail with extensions, shimmering bronzer, and lip filler.

“Thea,” I said, but she was already back by Jonah’s side. He was saying they’d gotten there that morning.

“And we’ve just beenunwinding.” Dawne gave a happy sigh. “It’s so special to be here.”

“Where are you from?” Mikki asked.

“LA.” Dawne nodded serenely, her hand pressed to her ample chest. She looked like someone who could’ve been onLast Chance Love.

“Let’s finish the tour, and then you all can hang out before dinner!” Grace’s enthusiasm was unflagging. I glanced at Jonah and found he was looking at me. He gave me a reassuring smile. I suddenly wantednothing more than to punch him in the face. Just seeing him was unlodging the anger from our last conversation.

“What is that?” Mikki pointed. On the far side of the deck sat what looked like an enormous barrel. “Is that a hot tub?”

“It is!” Grace grinned. “Japanese-style. It’s filled with water from the natural springs on this property, which feed the fountains too. You’re going to love using it at night.”

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