Page 8 of My Sister is Going to Kill Me

But that didn’t make sense. “Why is this amazing Babette in the business of subsidizing us to come to the Grand Canyon?”

Mandy paused. “It was a gift. Like the wristbands.”

“A gift? Are you one of their sales reps?”

Mandy shook her head.

“Is it an MLM?”

“No. It’s a wellness brand.”

“And?” Liv waited, holding her judgment on a tight leash.

“Babette paid for our spots. I’m one of her followers.”

“So it’s a cult.”

“No!”

“Remember that time Dad told us we were going on vacation in Big Bear and then that bald lady stuck us in a room with one VHS tape and a mountain of homemade fig bars?”

“It’s not a cult. Why can’t you just accept good things when they show up in your life?”

Because Mandy’s explanation didn’t hold up. Multithousand-dollar rafting trips did not just drop from the air. Or, at least, not for Liv. From an early age, Mandy had adopted their father’s attitude that “if it’s free, it’s for me,” whereas Liv tended to look way down the gullet of any gift horse that seemed too good to be true.

“So they gave us this trip, for free, for no reason?”

Mandy nodded vigorously. “I’m a Babette superfan, okay? I mean, I can’t afford most of their products, but I watch all the videos and—I know you think it’s stupid—but I started DMing her, and then Babette’s assistant, that guy PK, sent me this email invitation, and here we are, with the inner circle!”

The story was a bold one, even for Mandy. Did she really expect Liv to believe Mandy had somehow leapt the corporate ladder from random internet fan to swapping emails with an executive? Then again, here they were, halfway down the ten-mile trail to the canyon’s core. It didn’t make sense, but that was true of so many of Mandy’s—and their father’s—schemes. Liv knew expressing her skepticism would result in nothing but a wider gulf between them. If she pressed too hard, Mandy would say she was a killjoy. Ruining the adventure. That wasn’t how she wanted to start this sister trip. And she had to acknowledge that sometimes Mandy and Guy found loopholes that actually paid off.

“Okay,” Liv said.

“Okay?”

“Thanks for making this happen.”

Mandy let out a big breath. “I can’t believe we’re going to meet her!”

“Babette?”

“She’s, like, a goddess.”

“A lotion goddess?”

“Her story is amazing. She got her start as an activist exposing cosmetics companies that were lying about their use of animal testing and harmful chemicals. But when Babette didn’t see change fast enough, she and her brother, Charlie, started their own all-natural line that took over the industry. Her whole message is about empowerment, women claiming agency to change the world.”

“We’re going to change the world with her products? How? By having shinier skin?”

“No. It’s bigger than that.” Mandy unzipped her backpack and started rooting through it. She emerged with a glossy paperback with a giant title in italicized silver letters: Unleashed by Babette Sauvage.

“Listen to this,” Mandy said, flipping to a heavily highlighted page. “‘Inside every woman lives a wild animal. Our company exists to free her.’ Powerful, right?”

“You’ve been hiking this entire time with that brick in your backpack?”

“You wouldn’t understand.”

Liv didn’t. Her sister was a teacher and a talented artist. Their mom had been a commercial pilot. Liv worked for the State Department. And Mandy’s hero sold expensive face goop to feed women’s insecurities? It didn’t make sense.