So tell me why, instead of sitting at the dining room table and getting my work stuff in order, I was snooping through Hiro’s loft? I glanced at the cell clutched in my hand—the phone Hiro insisted I keep with me. Personally, I thought he needed to take it with him. I mean, how was he going to call a car to get to Kieran’s?
When I asked him, he cackled like he had some secret.
I didn’t bother asking. One secret at a time, please.
Right now, the secret was a supposed murder locker. So… If I were a murder locker, where would I be?
What would I be?
Knowing what I knew about Hiro and Kieran, it was obvious a murder locker was something nefarious. After wandering through the entire place, which was like four times the size of mine, I could say with absolute surety that there was no locker in here. At least not the kind that they had at gyms and in subways.
Nope. No grungy metal box with a lock here.
As I said before, the place was pretty sparse. He had two rooms that had no furniture at all. I was going to ask him about that. I mean, why would you have this nice big apartment and barely have anything in it?
Also, Hiro had clearly lied when he said we didn’t have space for my bean bag and desk.
I think if I had an apartment like this and a bank account like Hiro’s, I’d probably have an abundance of stuff. Hoarder level, really. But maybe that’s because I was used to having nothing, and the things I did have came from beneath dead bodies. I think it would be nice to have all the stuff that made a house feel like home.
I’d definitely have lots of books.
I wandered through the main living area and past a large brown sectional across from the wall-mounted TV. Before I could get too far, I doubled back and dropped onto my hands and knees, trying to ignore the ache in my wrists, fingers, and knees as I leaned down to look beneath the huge piece of furniture.
It was dark under there, so I clicked on the flashlight on the cell phone and aimed it beneath the narrow space. Nothing.
Giving up, I went back into the kitchen that was allexposed brick behind wooden cabinets and stainless-steel appliances that looked brand new. There were a few open shelves with some plates, bowls, and glasses. After snooping really well through all the cabinets, I went to the fridge for some water. Snooping made me thirsty.
I had a moment of guilt for meddling around Hiro’s apartment after he’d moved me in and confided in me about his past. Knowing what turned him into a ghost felt like I could finally see into walled-off places inside him. Him trusting me enough to let me in was a big deal, so repaying him by searching his place was kinda diabolical.
Still, it wasn’t enough to stop me from wandering over to a large wooden door practically in the kitchen. I’d never seen a kitchen with a closet. After tugging it open, I stood there staring, surprised yet… not.
Hiro did love snacks. So I guess him having a massive pantry to put them in wasn’t that much of a shock. Butwow, it was like he had his own personal bodega.
Inside was lined with shelves, not the flimsy wire kind either but thick wooden ones that floated right there on the walls. It was big enough to walk inside, and even if I closed the door behind me, I’d have space to move around.
The second I stepped fully in, a light clicked on overhead. He had a lot of lights around here that just came on when you got close enough. Like he couldn’t be bothered to flip a switch or turn on a lamp.
I glanced behind me, guilty, like somehow I’d been caught in the act.
Yes, Rett, caught in the act of looking at his snacks. Stupid.
The shelves were stocked with boxes of nuts, granola, andeven Goldfish. You know, those cheese crackers that look like fish. I love those! Unable to resist, I leaned up to snatch a bag out of the box. The bag crinkled as I tore it open, and the scent of cheddar rushed up my nose. I tossed a few in my mouth and sighed happily.So good.
Still munching, I turned to the shelf behind me and let out a gasp at the entire row of candy. Twizzlers, Skittles, lollipops, M&M’s, and even Tootsie Rolls. Right next to that was a huge jar of popcorn kernels and a huge bowl.
He had other stuff too, stuff that was more boring. Protein powder, electrolytes, bottled water. For a guy who said he needed to get groceries, he seemed very stocked to me.
As I finished off the Goldfish, I noticed the walls were white like the rest of the place but somehow not the same. There was something different. Setting aside my empty snack bag, I leaned in to drag my fingers over the wall between the shelves.
It was textured. Like… wallpaper?
I thought wallpaper was ugly with giant flowers on it, and it peeled up at the corners. And you worried it would fall on you in the middle of the night and then you’d get smothered…
But no. This was definitely wallpaper. Because it was white, it wasn’t really as noticeable.
Why would a man who doesn’t decorate anything decorate his pantry?
Was he that passionate about snacks?
