Chapter 16
I glanced at her quickly, then grabbed Juno and rushed out. As we passed the woman, I heard a brief, mocking chuckle. It was so quick–barely a second. By the time I registered it, the elevator doors were already closing slowly behind me.
I felt like I was losing my mind. I thought, “Why would I think there is something wrong with a woman I’ve just brushed past?”
I paused for a moment, then, without a second thought, headed straight for the beauty salon. I gave the receptionist my membership number and personal details.
‘s no money left”
She told me, “Ms. Moreno, your card’s balance is all used up. There’s no
“I know,” I said. “But what I want to know is–who came in and used my card?” I stared at her, determined not to miss even the smallest clue. The receptionist replied. “A woman in a fuchsia dress. She just left.“
A wave of realization hit me. It really was the woman Id passed by. That laugh hadn’t been my imagination–she’d recognized me for sure. She was so smug, so bold, even unbothered when we nearly bumped into each other.
I picked up Juno and rushed to the escalator. Looking down from two levels above, I saw her–wearing the same fuchsia dress, her face turned upward, staring in my direction.
She had long chestnut hair, a sharp chin, and huge dark sunglasses. From the muscle tone in her arms, I could tell she wasn’t young, but her body was in much better shape than mine–slender waist, curves, and a very seductive figure.
She smirked at me, then flipped me the bird. I thought. That woman!
By the time I got downstairs, she was nowhere to be seen. I searched the mall from top to bottom, circling around in every direction, but came up empty.
It wasn’t until my son, June, complained that he was tired that I snapped out of my anger and frustration. Looking at Juno, I couldn’t help but smile wryly, thinking. What am I even doing?”
I went back to the beauty salon, canceled my old membership card, and signed up for a new high–tier one. Now, only I could use it–no one else could, even if they had the card.
I also asked to review the surveillance footage. Unfortunately, even in the footage, the woman was still wearing sunglasses, so her face was obscured. But for some reason, she seemed oddly familiar.
The receptionist apologized again, Tim so sorry. Ms. Moreno. When she came in to use your card, she said she was your sister. We didn’t realize she was a fraud… Also, we’re not allowed to use the surveillance footage in the treatment rooms,”
“What treatments did she get?” I asked.
“She had an imported hydrating
treatment and a full Pico laser session.
As I heard that, my heart sank. No wonder she spent 2,500 dollars so quickly. The salon had given her a 30% discount because of my membership.
I asked. “If she comes back, would you recognize her?”
The receptionist nodded eagerly. “Yes, we’d recognize her right away.”
After I left, I went straight to the police.
Although I knew it was unlikely they’d be able to track her down after she’d already stolen and spent the money, I had a feeling that I might be able to put some pressure o
on Dexter.
By the time I got home, utterly drained, 1 started putting away the things I had bought.
When Kimberly saw
saw me come home carrying all the bags, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for
me, “What did you even buy?
“Some of this stuff wasn’t necessary at all. Look at all of this… Oh my, what’s the point of buying wet wipes! You could’ve just used a towel to wipe things down.
