Page 5 of Push & Pull
Petra scooted behind her, cracking open the bathroom door to make sure it was empty. “Excuse me,” she said. “Oh, don’t mind me. You go back to Stanford. Or UCLA. I dunno.”
The girl rolled her eyes as Petra closed the bathroom door on her.She could make a good one.Anyone who could afford to transfer between so many colleges and not get a degree out of it, could spare some cash to Petra’s Survival Fund.
“Oh, come on.” Someone had left their wallet on the bathroom sink. “This is too easy.”
Unfortunately,Cody Murdockdidn’t carry cash on him, and the one credit card in his wallet was infamous for its high-level protections. Petra was better off getting a gun and holding it to Cody’s head until he emptied his account at an ATM, and that was so not her style.
“Looking for Cody Murdock.” She held his wallet above her head when she emerged from the bathroom. “Cody?Coooody?” When nobody responded, she headed farther down the hall. “I’ve got your wallet, Cody. Where are you, boy?” She whistled as if calling for a dog. “Hey, you!” She cornered the guy with the torn sweatshirt. “You know Cody? He left his wallet in the bathroom.”
A finger pointed to the last door on the left. “He’s in there. Dude’s probably too blasted to care about his wallet.”
“Your help will be duly noted in the afterlife.” Petra knew what was behind that door.A quick jaunt to get this boy his wallet back.Assuming Cody was in theYvonne Marseille Experienceroom.
When Petra thought of it as like an escape room and not a place where no one achieved a damn thing in life, she laughed.
“Cody Murdock?” Petra poked her head into the dark room. Ambient lighting made the local drug den look more special than it was – and, to tell the truth, Petra had to hand it to Yvonne for making whatever was in her bag looksnazzy.“I’m looking for Cody.” Petra held up the wallet to the woman who looked a lot like her sister. “Do you know him? This is his.”
Yvonne slowly rose from the pile of blankets that had been her abode on the floor. “Cody’s indisposed.” She motioned to one of the guys dozing off his high. Petra didn’t look away until she was sure he was breathing. “I’ll take that for him.”
“Everyone okay in here?”
The wallet snapped out of Petra’s hand. “Everyone is having the time of their lives.” A soft sneer appeared on her wiry face. Petra couldn’t help but notice that this Marseille sister didn’t have as thick of a French accent. “Why? You want to have some fun, too?”
“Ah…” Petra shrugged. “Not really my scene. I only wanted to make sure the man got his wallet. Doesn’t look like anything’s missing.”
“So you peeked?”
Good job, weirdo.“Obviously. I had to know whose wallet it was.”
Yvonne opened Cody’s wallet and pulled out the single credit card. “Too bad there’s no reward for you.”
This was getting weirder by the minute. “You got a problem with me? Here I was, attempting to be a Good Samaritan. That’s what you get, I guess.”
“Problem? I don’t understand what you’re doing here.”
She must be on drugs.That was the only explanation. “I’m an old friend of Hailey’s. I’m guessing that’s why your ass is here, too.”
Yvonne returned to her blanket pile, Cody’s wallet still in her hand. “You must be from Hailey’s earliest days. So much changes for a person between twelve and now.”
Was she implying that the only reason Hailey would be friends with Petra was if they had known each other since childhood? When kids were less discerning about class and aesthetics? “Boy, they sure do,” Petra said. “Think I’ll go track her down. Oh, and I doubt you care, but your sister is out there acting like a fool.”
“I’m not my sister’s keeper. Although…” The wallet tapped against Yvonne’s cheek. “If you happen to see Simone, send her over. I’ve been saving something special for her.”
Petra offered a noncommittal grunt on her way out the door.As if.She wasn’t directing anyone in Yvonne’s direction. If someone wanted to get fucked up that night, that was their prerogative, but Petra would not take part.
That’s how it goes. You’re the poor girl whose family runs in dark shit, but you’re also the only sober freak at every shindig.It used to bother her a lot more. Then Hailey made another valiant attempt to get sober, and here Petra was.
Although she wasn’t in Miami forHailey…that was a lovely coincidence while Petra was in town for work.
By ten, she was ready to head back to her hotel room. But while the bartender packed up his open bar and the partygoers were left with whatever they could raid in Hailey’s kitchen, the hostess rushed up to Petra. Her eyes were only a little bloodshot, and she only smelled alittleof pot.Better pot than what’s going on in the guest room!
“Are you leaving?” Hailey’s hand clasped around Petra’s wrist. “I need your help. I think we may have a situation. I… I can’t tell.”
It wasn’t like Hailey to court panic, whether she was a junior high beauty queen or a twenty-something prima donna. Petra’s stomach dropped at the implication of this drug-friendly party having a “situation.” Even worse if Hailey was coming toherfor help.Sober friend strikes again.No time for Petra to feel that swirl of smug superiority in her gut, though. Not with one of her oldest friends sweating in her linen suit.
“What’s up?”
Hailey tugged on Petra’s arm until she followed back down the hallway. “It’s my friend, Simone. Did you meet her? The tall one with short hair. Daria really fancies her.”
