Chapters (97)
- Cover
- Back Cover Text
- Praise
- Booklist
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sixty
- Sixty-One
- Sixty-Two
- Sixty-Three
- Sixty-Four
- Sixty-Five
- Sixty-Six
- Sixty-Seven
- Sixty-Eight
- Sixty-Nine
- Seventy
- Seventy-One
- Seventy-Two
- Seventy-Three
- Seventy-Four
- Seventy-Five
- Seventy-Six
- Seventy-Seven
- Seventy-Eight
- Seventy-Nine
- Eighty
- Eighty-One
- Eighty-Two
- Eighty-Three
- Eighty-Four
- Eighty-Five
- Eighty-Six
- Eighty-Seven
- Eighty-Eight
- Eighty-Nine
- Acknowledgments & A Personal Note
- Excerpt
“All right, now each of us gets a ring. These might be a little big. I got them from the truck stop today. You must always have your ring with you, on your finger or a chain.”
They were three different skull rings that bikers and truckers liked. Nikki gave Marie the death’s head; gave Janie the sugar skull and kept the skull expressing rage for herself. The girls slid them on their fingers.
“Now it’s official,” Nikki said. “By this ritual we’re secretly known as The Skull Sisters. We’re family. We do everything together. Everything we get, we share. We protect each other. We never betray or tell on each other. None of us is better than her other sisters. No matter where we go or what we do in life, nothing will tear us apart, because we’ve made a blood bond and a pact that are forever.”
As the breezes raked through the treetops and the candlelight burned in their eyes, Janie, Marie and Nikki nodded.
Their bond was sealed.
“Now,” Nikki said, “the first thing The Skull Sisters are going to do is make sure Janie gets the money the Tullocks owe her.”
The next day they met in Prairie Sun Memorial Park. Its main features were the weather-beaten soldier statue and flower gardens honoring local people killed in wars.
In the section of the park with the playground, Janie, Marie and Nikki were on the swings, which creaked with their gentle swaying as Nikki outlined the plan to right the wrong the Tullocks had inflicted upon Janie.
“They treat you like crap and rip you off, right?” Nikki said.
“Yes.”
“They look down on you and people like us, right?”
“They do.”
“We hate them so much, right?” Nikki said.
“We hate them,” Marie said. “They think they’re better than everyone.”
“They owe Janie over a hundred dollars. All we’re going to do is get it.”
“How?” Janie asked.
“Simple. You said they’re planning to go away soon with their brats.”
“To Regina to visit friends.”
“So the next time you sit for them and just before they go to Regina, you just make sure a window is unlocked. That’s it. And we’ll go in and find where they keep the cash. They’ve got to have plenty in the house, and The Skull Sisters will collect—not steal, but collect—what they owe you.”
Janie thought about it.
“It’s perfect,” Nikki said. “If it happens when they’re away, it could be anybody—they have no reason to suspect you. And, they’re so freaking rich they probably won’t even miss it.”
“Sounds fair to me,” Marie said, admiring her new ring. “It’s not stealing if they owe you.”