76

MAXINE

"You must be Maxine. Hi, I'm Ariel, Nick's sister." She said still smiling. She held out her hand but there was something about her smile that made me uneasy.

Nick didn't have a sister. He looked a bit flustered when I ignored his supposed sister and looked at him instead.

"Nick? You never mentioned having a sister." I said. That only meant that he lied to me. I wondered what else he lied to me about.

She glanced at him briefly. "Don't mind him. I'm his cousin. Grandma and grandpa sort of adopted me and took care of me after my parents died so we usually just kind of play it off that we're siblings." She explained.

This didn't sound believable but it was a similar story to Nick's. They were both raised by his grandparents.

I looked at Nick. "Is it true?" I asked.

He nodded. "It is." He said.

I hummed my distaste but I decided to be polite. "Welcome to town," I said, finally holding my hand out to her. She shook it.

"It's such a nice place." She told me. The smile was still the