Chapter 12: Blackmail

Rory made it back to her apartment, exhausted and spent, desperate for the last two days to be erased from her mind. As she climbed the three-story walk up–the elevator was permanently ‘temporarily out of service’--she reached in her purse for her keys, and paused as soon as she looked up.

Her apartment door was propped open.

She inched forward, her heart pounding. The apartment building was old, the locks finicky at best, but in her three years of living here, she’d never had any issues. She tucked her keys between her fingers, channeling Wolverine from the X-Men movies, the keys becoming her claws, ready to defend herself.

Carefully, she eased open the door–and screamed, dropping her makeshift weapon. At the same time, Rachel jumped, a bottle of red wine slipping between her fingers and crashing to the hardwood floor. Wine spilled around her like a puddle of blood.

“Jesus, Rory!”

“Rachel, what the hell are you doing here?” Rory gasped.