I turned and saw a young man standing to my right. It took me a second to realize that he was Franklin, the driver.
“Oh no,” I said. “Just exploring.”
He nodded, taking a drag on a cigarette. “Big place, huh?”
“It’s crazy. How does anyone find anything?”
He shrugged and ashed his cigarette. “You get used to it, I guess.”
“How many people are living here?”
He shrugged again. “Permanently? Supposed to be just Barone and his family, but there’s probably fifty, maybe sixty people staying here at any given time.”
I gaped at him. “Seriously?”
“Seriously.”
“Why don’t I see them?”
“Because they have orders to leave you alone.”
I let that sink in. “Why?”
“You’re the boss’s new stepdaughter. He doesn’t want you corrupted, I guess.”
He was beginning to give me the creeps. “Well, thanks.”
“Sure.”
I turned and left the kitchen, walking fast. He had seemed nice at first, but the longer I saw him, the more awkward I felt. I wanted to get away from him.
I went up to the top floor and began walking again. Paintings lined the hallways, and I began to notice more people around. They all ignored me and walked quickly past, not saying a word. It began to feel a little strange, but I realized it was because they had been ordered not to bother me.
And that suited me just fine. I wanted to be left alone while I explored.
Another fifteen minutes of aimless wandering and I came to a dead end. The hallway I had just come down was strange, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.
I had to walk to the other end and back again to realize that the hallway had only one single door.
The door was large and wooden. On a very small metal plaque, there was a name: “Louisa.”
I cocked my head, looking at it. The name sounded very familiar, and then it hit me: this must be Lucas’s sister’s room.
Curiosity got the better of me, and I found myself knocking.
And quickly stopped myself, but too late. I had already knocked twice, loud and booming.
Why hadn’t I met her yet? I realized that there must have been a reason why they were keeping me from her. Or why she had been keeping herself from me. Maybe she hated me? Maybe she despised my mother for marrying her father?
I took a few steps back away from the door. I was suddenly very nervous. But nobody was answering, and the silence stretched on. Maybe she wasn’t in her room; maybe I was safe.
I turned and went to leave. I took a few steps quickly down the hall, trying to be quiet.
“Running away?”
I stopped. The voice was young, female, and coming from right behind me. I turned, a knot in my stomach.
She was pretty, slight, with big eyes, thick hair, and a slim face. I could see the resemblance between her and Lucas, though I guessed she took more after her mother than he did.
“Uh, I’m sorry,” I said.
She cocked her head. “For what?”
“Knocking. I didn’t mean to bother you.”
“Sure you did,” she said.
“Uh, sorry,” I said stupidly.
“You’re Natalie.”
I nodded. “You’re Louisa.”
She stared at me for a second. The longer I looked at her, the more I realized that there were bags under her eyes and her clothes were all rumpled.
She looked tired.
“Come in then,” she said, disappearing inside.
I hesitated. I should probably just leave, but she interested me. Curious, I followed her inside.
Her rooms were bigger than mine. I guessed they took up the entire wing and part of the downstairs. It was a total mess, with clothes and trash all over the place. There were several large screens set up and electronic equipment scattered all over the ground. I recognized a lot of it.
“Sorry for the mess,” she said, sitting down cross-legged on a couch. “I threw a shoe at Rosita and she refused to come back.”
I laughed nervously. “Rosita?”
“She cleans my rooms usually. But she showed up in the middle of a raid.”
“Raid?”
“Yeah. Like, World of War Craft?”
I nodded. “Sure. Some of my friends play.”
“It’s fun.”
She watched me as I stood there awkwardly. “So, uh, you’re into computers.”
“Sure.”
“Me too. I go to school for computer science.”
“Good for you.”
I frowned. She seemed almost hostile one second and completely pleasant the next. I had no clue what to make of it.
“Uh, so. We’re stepsisters.”
“Sit down,” she said. I walked over and sat on the couch. “Yep, stepsisters. I’ve never had a sister before.”