My sister-in-law recounts the story, everything from some guy named Manny to a key and a message in a bathroom mirror. The whole time she’s speaking, I attempt to gauge how Sadie is feeling, but she remains stoic as ever—unbothered.
"And then, we grabbed the key, paid Manny, and called Sam on the way here," Olive finishes.
My brother huffs. "Who is this Manny guy? And did you need to be so descriptive?" He glares at his fiancée with an almost imperceptible smirk, but all she does is laugh before crawling in his lap.
"He was cute, but no different from you talking to Brooke the bartender from Golden City," Olive playfully pats his chest.
Sadie perks up at the name. "Brooke Larkin?"
"Fuck if I know." Sam shrugs.
"Was she stunning, with shoulder-length brown hair, best friends with Levi Montgomery’s fiancée?" Sadie prods.
Sam runs a hand through his hair. "Actually, yes."
Sadie sucks her teeth. "It’s a good thing you haven’t seen her, Olive. She’s as gorgeous as Manny was hot."
"Oh, I have. I internet-stalked her." Olive giggles to herself. "Considered sending her a thank-you card for sending this one home alone, even."
"Wait a minute." I hold up a hand, taking a calming breath. "What did Manny have to do with this story? Other than the two of you wanting to get in his pants?" The words taste bitter coming out of my mouth. I know Sadie and I aren’t even really a thing, but I don’t want to think about her with someone else.
"Nothing, just wanted to see y’all’s faces," Olive explains as Sadie stands to high-five her.
"It was pretty priceless. I think even Howard got jealous for a second," Sadie adds.
"So you just dragged us all here to fuck with us?" Howie mutters. "Uncle Lon is going to be so pissed at you, Sadie. I left in the middle of the rush."
Her shoulders push back, and her legs widen just slightly, as if she’s preparing for an argument. My heart rate increases—Sadie, ready to throw down, sends a rush of excitement due south.
"No, How. I’m not saying this coulda been an email. I’m saying that one tiny part was included for our enjoyment. The rest of the story is true." She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a gold key that’s affixed to a flat, diamond-shaped keychain. "See?"
"What does emailing have to do with this?" Sam asks.
Ignoring him and reaching out, I pull on her hand until she comes back to sit beside me. My palm rests on her thigh out of habit, or maybe for my comfort at this point. Sadie holds the key out to me, and the moment it hits my fingers, it shocks me.
"Jesus fuck!" I shout, dropping it. "The thing just gave me a zinger."
Sam shakes his head while the rest of the group is left both shocked and amused. Sadie bends forward, grabbing it from the floor.
"Do we have any idea what it goes to?" Sam asks. "Or is that what they emailed?"
Sadie looks at the key clutched in her hand. "It was a joke, Sam." Sadie deadpans. "And nope, just that it’s supposed to help somehow."
Olive pries herself off my brother’s lap, standing and walking toward the kitchen. "I’m going to get some stuff to help us think."
By stuff, she meant an Aperol Spritz for her and Sadie and a beer for each of the rest of us. She returns with a tray like a server flitting around her own house, and we inspect the key.
"Looks like any run-of-the-mill key you’d get from the hardware store." Howie finishes staring at it and tosses it to Sam.
My brother catches it, turning it over in his palm a few times. "Any thoughts on what JBI could mean?"
The keychain itself is fairly plain except for the inscription.
"Ooh, ooh, I know." Olive raises her hand like we’re on some sort of trippy game show. "Josephine, Beth, Irina." A shiver rolls through her on the last one.
Sadie’s eyebrows shoot to her hairline, and she gulps her drink.
"So, it would be safe to assume, given what happened..." Howard pushes his hair back with his hand. "That maybe this goes to something they’ve wanted you to find. We could try the house."