"It's been too long, Violet!" Star's voice is angry.

I sigh and look up at her, standing over me as I tie my shoe. "So? It hasn't been the first time she's been gone for this long."

Star huffs. "I just… have a bad feeling."

"So?" I repeat.

"Jane always said to listen to our gut, and my gut says something's wrong."

I straighten. "Let's just go to class, and we can ask Chuck if he's seen anything." Chuck's our Krav Maga instructor. He's from Korea, but he preferred Krav Maga to kung fu and decided to teach.

"Okay…" Star doesn't look happy. I take her hand as we walk to the door.

She yanks away. "I'm not a baby."

"I know," I say, reaching for her hand again.

It's several flights of stairs to the street, and only a block and a half to the dojo. However, once we arrive, the doors were closed.

"The doors are never closed," I say aloud.

Star shoots me a withering look. "Thanks, Sherlock." She lets go of my hand and peers inside. "It's dark. They're closed?"

"That's weird…" An uneasy feeling builds in my stomach.

Star turns. "Okay, so we go to the restaurant."

I blink. "What?"

"We should try and find Jane, see if anything's wrong."

"But she'll get so mad…"

"Who cares?" she snaps. "God, you're such a baby."

"She told us never to leave the apartment except for class," I insist.

"We can make an exception if she hasn't been home for four days!"

I sigh, sensing the argument is futile. "Fine. Let's go. But when we get kidnapped, raped, and murdered, I'm never going to forgive you."

"You're so paranoid, Vi-vi." She linked arms with me, tugging me sideways slightly so I was closer to her height.

It took us a while to find the place where Jane worked; we actually had to ask a man sitting at a bus stop for directions. He had a plain brown soul, indicating simple-mindedness, so we figured he was safe enough.

"Nice place," Star said as we approached the front door. I couldn't tell if she was joking or being serious.

"Eugenie's. Weird name."

I shoved the door open with my foot and followed Star inside. A man stood behind a podium-like structure. I guess it's normal for restaurants, I wouldn't know… Jane never took us out. The man's soul is a calm, drab green, indicating a laid-back personality.

The man smiled at us. "Where are your parents, girls?"

Star smiles, flashing her adorable dimples. "Oh, our dad sent us here with a message for his friend. Her name is Jane. Do you know where we can find her?"

The man, as all adults do, falls in love immediately. "Jane? Red hair?"

"That's her," I say.

"Hmm… I actually haven't seen her since yesterday." He leans easily on the podium. "She's actually supposed to be on shift right now… wonder where she is."

Star and I exchanged a look: shit.

"Well, we're going to hang around for a bit, see if she comes back. Our dad insisted that we deliver the message." Then Star beams at the guy like he's Superman or something. "Mind getting us a table?"

He grins back and ushers us to a comfy booth. I sit us across from one another, me watching the entrance, and her watching the kitchen.

The guy brings her a milk and me a soda on request. I slowly sip at my drink, while Star gulps hers down, leaving a white mustache on her upper lip. I giggle. Even with her colorful vocabulary and maturity, Star really was just a cute little kid sometimes.

"Shut up," she mutters, swiping her arm across her face.

We wait for about 45 minutes. I don't miss the furtive glances from the other people at the restaurant, wondering why two kids are sitting alone in a booth.

Five minutes later, the cops show up.

I mutter an expletive under my breath. "Don't look. Seven cops, headed towards the kitchen."

Star nods, then grins slightly. "You sound like you've dealt with this kind of thing before."

"Fake it 'till you make it," I respond.

The police walk into the kitchen, and I see Star eyeing their backs. A minute later they re-emerge, followed by a terrified manager and a nervous chef.

As if by unspoken agreement, we stand and follow them out. Outside, there's an ambulance, lights whirling, and at least ten police cars. I grab Star by the hand and go closer, to listen in, because none of the police are paying us the slightest bit of attention. Their souls vary from dull red to brick colored, showing their logical mindset and concentration.

"-last night, in a ditch," one policeman is saying to the manager. "She didn't leave with a friend?"

"No! No, she left alone," the manager says. His soul is pulsing… he's really freaked out.

"This is obviously a murder, sir, we need any and all evidence we can gather."

"Well, there was this man…" The manager blots his forehead with a napkin. "He was wearing a trenchcoat, and was sitting with another short man. I saw her talking to them… but only briefly."

"Anything strange you can tell us?"

"I don't believe so… it's just that the man in the trenchcoat was obviously interested in her… he watched her the entire time he was sitting there. Even when she went in the kitchen, he moved his head… like he could see through walls."

Star edges closer, trying to get a look inside the ambulance.

"Excuse me? Girls?" I look, with dread, at the policeman glaring at my sister and me. "This is a crime scene."

"We're just looking for somebody," I say quickly. "A… family friend. Red hair, waitress at the restaurant?"

The policeman's face turns several colors before finally turning white. He seems at an utter loss for words.

And suddenly, I know.

"No," Star whispers.

There is such pity in his eyes. "Girls, I think you should-"

I shove past him, easily knocking him to the pavement. I hear a crack.

"Violet!" Star yells.

But I barely hear her: one step, five steps, and I'm standing over the body. A white sheet covers the face, and I whip it back in one fluid motion:

Jane. It's Jane, hair wild, gaping hole in her throat. Very obviously dead.

Star is tugging on my arm, and when I look her eyes are rooted on the body. I realize… I have to get her away from here. I have to get us away.

Two policeman at our backs.

It's a blur: I grab Star by the arm and bolt past them. They shout after us. I run the wrong way on purpose, so they'll follow us the wrong way. I twist through several alleys, still tugging Star behind me. At some point she starts to run. Eventually after a crazy wild-goose chase, I dash up the stairs to our apartment, shove Star inside, and lock the door behind us.

Star's collapsed on the floor, panting. I'm frozen for a moment, before looking out the small window. "They're not following us."

Star doesn't reply. She stands up, rubbing at her shoulder, tears brimming in her green eyes. "I…"

"Hey, it's okay." I move to her and hug her, hard. My heart is pounding from the running, but somehow… somehow I'm not upset. Like I knew this would happen. And besides… Jane wasn't really like our mother, right?

You need to be strong for her, the Voice said.

I know. I hold her closer.

I know.