“How are you, sweetie?” she said. “How’s school going?”

“I’m taking this semester off,” I said. “Taking a break.”

“I wish Danielle had gone to college,” Sally said. “She never has done things the regular way.”

“I guess not,” I said.

“How is Danielle, anyhow?” She tried to sound casual. Soft lines showed around her eyes and mouth.

“Good, I guess. We don’t really hang out.”

Sally nodded. “I haven’t seen her since before she . . . left,” she said.

I ignored Sally’s clumsy euphemism for prison. I wasn’t surprised Danielle had stayed away from her. She and Sally had never been close.

“Charlotte, I need her phone number.”

“You don’t have it?” I said, surprised.

“She changed it. I have the old one, from when she was on my cell phone plan. We haven’t talked in a long time.”

I did know how to get in touch with Danielle—we’d run into each other at a restaurant a couple of months back and exchanged numbers. But if Danielle wanted to avoid Sally, no way was I getting in the middle of it. I frowned, looking out the window. So strange to see all the tropical plants growing indoors. It seemed backwards.

“Charlotte, I know this puts you in an awkward position. But I really need your help. I need to get ahold of her. My aunt died.”

“Gosh,” I said. “I’m sorry.”

“Well, she’d been ill a long time. The problem is, she left Danielle an inheritance. Now the probate lawyers need to talk to her, there’s paperwork to do, and she’s nowhere to be found. It’s a bit embarrassing.”

She said this last in a whisper, leaning forward, conspiratorial.

“Please help me,” she said. As she spoke she slid a white envelope over to me.

“What’s this?” I said.

“Open it.”

Inside the envelope was a sheaf of hundred-dollar bills. I counted them twice—a thousand dollars.

“I know you can use it,” Sally said. “I just need her phone number. Please.”

There was no way I could pass up that much money. I searched through my phone for Danielle’s number and read it off to Sally.

“Perfect, darling, thank you so much. I’ll call her tonight, as soon as I’m finished up here.”

“Thank you,” I said. “For the money.”

She stood. “Oh, sweetie. It’s been lovely to see you. You get prettier and prettier. Can you find your way out?”

“Yeah, sure,” I said.

She hugged me goodbye, smothering me again in her expensive perfume, her aura of wealth and power. I hurried past the smooth stone walls of the lobby and out to the parking lot, with its clean painted lines slanting in parallels. I sat in my hot car for a minute, letting my skin thaw before turning the ignition. I felt dazed by the heat and the money in my pocket.

I texted Danielle immediately. It’s Charlotte. Have to see you. It’s important. Drink? She texted me back and we made plans to meet at six at a new bar called the Mockingbird.