“Oh. Okay.” Anya shook her head and blinked several times. “What are you doing here?”
Loretta paused. “You’re in trouble. We’re sisters.” Then she’d enfolded Anya in a warm hug. “I promise I’ll take care of it, An. I promise.”
Safety surrounded her. She hugged her sister back, feeling the sense of family once again. “I’m so glad you’re here,” she whispered, drawing Loretta farther into the apartment. “Are you hungry?”
Loretta released her. “Starving. Let’s eat, and I’ll take a look at those pictures. The Snowville team will be here in about an hour, and then I’m thinking we move there for a bit. We can work this case together.” She shrugged, shifting her feet. “I thought we could use a few minutes together first.”
Tears pricked Anya’s eyes. “It’s so good to see you.”
Loretta grinned. “You too. Now. Do you have ice cream?”
“For breakfast?” Anya choked out.
“Sure. If you cook like our mom did, I want something from a carton.”
Anya shook her head, her gaze catching on Loretta’s gun at her hip. Her sister was a badass. “I can cook. I hope you really are hungry.” She headed for the kitchen. “What’s new?”
“Besides finding out a serial killer has focused on my baby sister?” Loretta asked, stretching her neck.
Anya jolted. “Funny. Very. How’s work?” She pulled out a couple of pots.
“Great.”
Anya turned to open the fridge. “Are you dating anybody?”
“Yep. Long distance . . . but maybe not so much now. You’ll meet him soon.” Loretta moved toward the table. “You?”
“No. Definitely no.” Anya paused as Loretta lifted her eyebrows. “Long story. I’ll tell you over breakfast.”
“Do I have to kill anybody?” Loretta asked, seeming to be only partially joking.
Anya snorted, feeling the bond she’d always remembered settling right back into place. “That might be something to discuss.” She laughed.
A sneeze brought Anya back to the freezing graveyard and stark reality.
Her heart hurt so deeply inside her chest. She couldn’t rub the pain away. Even her temples ached. Anya’s parents were both gone, and she was tired of being alone. For a brief time with Loretta, she hadn’t been.
She wavered, and Reese set a hand on her shoulder.
“You’re doing well,” he murmured, his normally bronze face pale. His intelligent eyes scanned the scores of agents, DC cops, and civilians all standing in the cold to say good-bye to Loretta. “I’m so sorry, Anya.”
“So am I.” She patted his hand. Reese had found Loretta dead and had had an angry hollowness in his eyes ever since. The FBI coroner had performed an autopsy, and now Loretta was being laid to rest in a peaceful cemetery outside Washington, DC, where she’d lived.
Anya looked around at the multitude of mourners. “Loretta was loved,” she said. The pain in her chest lessened a little.
“Yes, she was,” Reese said quietly. The casket finished lowering, and he turned toward her. “You need to return to protective custody until we find this guy. I owe Loretta that much.”
Not a chance. There was one good opportunity to catch this guy, and Anya was the key. He would not be allowed to continue. She purposefully let fury shove away the agony.
For now, she had a mission. Everything she’d learned, everything she truly knew about criminal psychology, told her exactly what to do. She dug deep for resolve and said a quick prayer for her sister to watch over her. She looked at the news vans and reporters being held back by a wide rope and several police officers. They seemed too far away across the icy snow. Could she get there before Reese stopped her? “How did they find out about Loretta’s death?”
Reese glanced over her shoulder. “I don’t know. It’s big news. Death of an FBI agent at the hands of a serial killer.”
The words sliced like a knife. Anya brushed snow off her coat and straightened her spine. “The service was beautiful.” The priest had been eloquent and had known Loretta well. Anya hadn’t even known her sister was Catholic. She focused on Reese, whose brown eyes were swirling with emotion. “Does anybody else know you were together?” she whispered. She’d known the second Loretta had introduced her to the man.
He concentrated on her. “No. It’s against Bureau rules, so we weren’t together.” His voice sounded clipped and almost robotic.
Anya sighed. “I’m glad you guys broke the rules.”
