Bad Melody (Seven Deadly Sins #3)

Chapter Eight: Lunch with a Friend

The Sub Shop was a small hole in the wall within walking distance of the Emporium. It was small and easy to miss if you weren't looking for it. The door was narrow and the sign outside was faded to almost nothing. The inside was hardly any better – the floor was worn black and white check, the walls were a dull yellow and there were only two small tables for eating in. Most of the space was taken up by a long counter for order placing and watching a bored high schooler in a green apron make your sandwich. Overall the place had a small hometown vibe to it and I liked it.

Maybe it was because most people just ordered and left.

Not me though. Not today. At the moment I was all about staying as far away from my aunt's shop as possible.

"What'll it be?" A woman who spent a lot of time in the sun asked me. Most of her face was brown leather except for the skin around her eyes, which looked ten shades paler. Her motorcycle t-shirt, boots, and give-away sunglasses face tan marked her as a Harley rider.

"Can I get a meatball sub with extra sauce on wheat?" I ordered.

"Cheese?" she asked not bothering to look at me as she punched in some numbers on an old register.

"Just parmesan."

"Chips and a drink?"

"Yes, please."

"That'll be seven fifty."

I paid the woman and she gave me my change and a cup while telling the kid what to do. I thanked her and walked over to the end of the counter where the fountain machine was. I made sure to be careful not to fill up my cup with too much ice and poured myself a Coke. I took my bag of Doritos from a small display and went to sit down at one of the tables.

As I settled in the door opened letting in a warm gust of summer air. A group of kids rushed in, sucking up the air conditioning while grabbing a bite to eat. They all looked to be around my age, maybe a little younger. Most of them were in bright swimsuits and shorts, probably on their way to a fun day at the lake. Just the thought made me feel a small twinge of sadness. I pushed away thoughts of Chase and pulled out my phone, trying to find something else to distract me as I blended into my surroundings. Every now and then I felt one or more of them look over at me, but no one was brave enough to approach and ask who I was. It was a small town so I figured they knew who was by rumor and gossip anyway.

"Hey, Eliza."

I looked up and was startled to see Andy standing before me. She looked good. Really good. The last time I'd seen her she was still pale and sickly looking, but now she look well-rested and her face had filled back out. Her eyes had lost some of their haunted look and her hair was cut into a fashionable summer bob. She was wearing a cute white sundress and matching espadrille sandals.

"Hi, Andy. How are you?" I asked genuinely happy to see her.

"Good," she said and gave me a friendly smile. "Do you mind...?" she asked pointing to the seat across from me.

"No, please," I said waving her to sit down. There were so many kids up at the counter putting in their orders and texting furiously I figured Andy had a few minutes to catch me up on how she was doing. I'd been getting some texts from Chase but there was nothing like seeing the proof for yourself.

"So how are you, really?" I asked. I narrowed my eyes as I studied her, looking for any minute signs of fracture or fear. After first meeting Andy a little over a month ago, I never thought I'd actually come to care for her, much less like her, but we'd bonded through tragedy and commonality. We were both trapped in a web of evil bigger than both of us – and Andy had tried to fix what she could on her end. I gave her lots of props for that alone. Most people in this world didn't bother to fix what they'd broken – my own parents were living proof of that.