Her Surprise Sister

The guy—Landon—gave a crisp nod. “Good.” He flipped open a cell phone.

In normal circumstances she would think it impolite to listen to someone else’s phone conversation. But nothing about this encounter was normal, and she intended to hear what he said. This encounter had one thing going for it: it had taken her mind off her troubles, at least briefly.

“Maddie? This is Landon. Just listen, will you?”

This Maddie person must not be eager to talk to him, judging by his tone.

“I’m over at the Coffee Stop, and there’s someone here you have to meet. I think she might have some answers about that odd package you received last week.”

He paused while she talked, and Violet could hear the light notes of a female voice, but not the words.

“No, this is not just an excuse to see you.” He sounded as if he were trying to hold on to his patience.

More waiting, while the voice went on.

“Okay,” he said finally. “Right. We’ll be here.”

He clicked off, and then met Violet’s raised eyebrows with another flash of that smile. “Five minutes. It won’t take her any longer than that to get here. Her apartment is just down the street a block or so. And you’ll find meeting her interesting, I promise.”

She glanced at her watch. “Okay. I’ll give you five minutes, no more.”

“Good.” He rose, taking her coffee mug. “I’ll get you a refill. And you look as if you could use something a little more substantial than that croissant.”

“What do you—”

But he’d already gone to the counter. She was tempted to pull out a mirror and look at herself, but that would betray the fact that she cared what he thought. Anyone would look frazzled after as many sleepless nights as she’d had.

She glanced at her watch again as he came back with the coffee.

“Still timing me?” he asked, sitting down.

“No. I was just thinking that there’s a call I should make soon.” She’d have to check in at the hospital to see if there’d been any change. And try to track her brother down, if she could.

“Go ahead, if you want.”

He might be making an effort to be accommodating. Or he might be interested in who she was calling. She hadn’t quite made up her mind yet about Mr. Landon Derringer.

“I’ll wait until I’ve seen your mysterious friend,” she said.

He glanced at the door. “You won’t have long to wait. She’s here.”

The door swung open and a woman stepped inside. Slim, chic, sophisticated. And other than that, Violet’s exact double. Violet’s breath stopped. It was like being thrown from a horse, the wind knocked out of her. This couldn’t be true, but it was. The evidence stood right in front of her.

* * *

Landon rose as Maddie turned toward them. She took a step, her cautious smile fading as she looked from Landon to his companion. Her eyes widened; her face paled.

“Maddie, are you all right?” He kicked himself mentally. He should have given her more of a warning.

She nodded and walked toward them as slowly as if she were wading through water. When she reached the table, he pulled a chair out and she sank into it, never taking her eyes from the other woman’s face.

He was having a bit of difficulty with that himself. He looked from one to the other, feeling almost dizzy. Same long, straight auburn hair, same chocolate-brown eyes, same delicate features. Aside from the obvious differences in style and clothing, it was like looking at mirror images.

“Who are you?” Maddie ignored him when she spoke, all her attention on the other woman. He’d been careful not to ask the woman’s name, since she’d clearly been suspicious of him, and he waited, curious, to see how she responded to Maddie.

“Violet Colby.” She said the name, seeming perplexed for a moment, as if wondering if she really were who she thought she was.

Small wonder. How could anyone react when confronted by an exact duplicate?

The stranger—Violet—seemed to shake herself, as if in an effort to regain control. “Who are you? Why…” She glanced from Maddie to Landon. “Is this a trick of some kind?” Her voice sharpened with suspicion as she looked at him.

“How could it be a trick?” he asked, spreading his hands to indicate innocence. “When I saw you sitting here, I thought you were Maddie. You’re identical. I couldn’t make that up.”

Curiously, Maddie’s expression was equally suspicious as she looked at her duplicate. “I don’t believe it. Are you the person who sent me that note?”

Violet looked confused. She shook her head, the long ponytail swinging, tendrils of hair freeing themselves to cluster on her neck. Maddie hadn’t worn her hair that way since she was about fourteen, when she was in the middle of her horse-mania stage. It made him feel for a moment as if Violet were a kid.

Careful, he warned himself. You don’t know anything about this woman, and Maddie’s family has money and position. This could be some sort of elaborate scam, and if so, it was his duty to protect Maddie. He’d promised her brother he’d look after her.

When Maddie didn’t speak, Violet seemed to feel more of a response was called for. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. What note? How could I send you anything when I didn’t even know you existed until just this moment?”

They could go on dancing around the question all day, it seemed. He’d always rather go straight to the heart of the matter.

“Look, it’s obvious that you two are identical twins. Just look at yourselves. Maddie, did you bring the note?”

He expected a flare-up from Maddie at his assumption of authority, but she just nodded and fished in her bag. The shock of this encounter seemed to have knocked the stuffing out of her for the moment.

Maddie drew out a much-creased piece of notepaper and pushed it across the table. Violet spread the note flat and bent over to read it.

Landon didn’t need to look at the page again to know what the note said. The words had been revolving in his mind since Maddie received it a couple of weeks ago.

I am sorry for what I did to you and your family. I hope you and your siblings, especially your twin, can forgive me as I ask the Lord to forgive me.

No signature, and the ink was a bit faded, as if it hadn’t been written recently.

“I don’t understand,” Violet said, pushing the paper back to Maddie. “Where did this come from? Why would you think I had anything to do with it?”

“Because you’re obviously the twin referred to in the note,” he said, watching her closely. But he couldn’t see any indication that she was faking. Her puzzlement and distress seemed natural.

“Let me tell it,” Maddie said, interrupting. “It’s my business.”

Not yours, in other words. But he couldn’t be pushed away so easily. In the absence of her father and brothers, Maddie needed someone to watch over her, even though she didn’t think she did.

“This letter appeared in my mailbox a couple of weeks ago.” Maddie touched the note. “It was tucked into a new Bible, with no indication of who it was from.” She shrugged. “It upset me at first. It seemed so weird. But then I assumed it had just been sent to the wrong person. I don’t have a twin.” She paused. “Anyway, I didn’t think so.”

“I didn’t think so, either.” Violet paused. “They do say that everyone has a double somewhere. Maybe it’s just some sort of odd…” Her voice died off, probably because she realized how ridiculous that was.

“The obvious solution is usually the right one,” Landon said. If he didn’t keep pushing, they’d never come to a conclusion. “Would you mind telling us about your family, Violet? If you were adopted—”