Free Death's Hand by S M Reine Page B

less ‘step it up’ by Sunday.”
    “All you need is a hot shower. Come on. Let’s rinse off.” Elise chucked the paper towels in the nearest trash.
    They headed down to the locker rooms once more. Elise and Betty stripped down, grabbing the first two showers. Betty sighed when the hot water hit her muscles. “I think I’m going to have the flu on Sunday,” she called over the barrier. “I’m scheduled to spend the day in bed.”
    “I’m not going to force you to work out. You’re welcome to stay home and watch romantic movies with a tub of ice cream if that sounds better than being fit.”
    Betty turned her shower off. “Well, when you put it that way…”
    Elise dressed at her locker. If Betty had been as wiry and muscular as Elise, she would have paraded around naked constantly, but her friend was much more modest. “Stop staring at me, you pervert,” Elise said, toweling off her hair. She had never removed her weightlifting gloves.
    “Sorry, I’m just waiting for you to snap in half like a twig,” Betty teased. “Seriously, would it hurt you to eat a little junk food once in awhile?”
    Elise snorted. “I’m just not a connoisseur of gas station candy.”
    Ann exited the shower, towel wrapped around her own lumpy figure like it was armor in her battle against fitness, and waddled toward a bathroom stall.
    “Should somebody tell her that she doesn’t have anything any of us haven’t seen before?” Betty asked in a stage whisper.
    “No. You could grow a sense of decency without anyone being too stricken.”
    “Are you kidding? I’m a national treasure. Men everywhere would weep,” Betty said, pulling on a clean shirt and flipping her hair over the collar. “Are we going home now?”
    “Why, so you can grill me about Anthony?”
    “I think I can restrain myself,” Betty said. “I can already tell you’re not going to date him, oh Mistress Dark and Broody. You better let my baby cousin down really gently after the date tonight or I’ll kick your ass.”
    Elise frowned. “Who says I’m going to let him down at all?”
    “Your long and noble history as Queen Bitch.”
    “Gosh Betty, you’re the best,” she said flatly. “Anyway, I have to do a few errands before my date, so I can’t sit around with you tonight. I’ll just drop you off.”
    “Why don’t I take Betty?” Ann volunteered, emerging from the bathroom fully clothed. She tore at her tangled hair with a comb, although she didn’t look to be making much progress. “I need to head down to that side of town tonight anyway.”
    “Or Betty could get a job and actually buy a car,” Elise suggested.
    “I don’t see that happening in the next ten minutes,” Betty said. “Or the next year, for that matter. You sure you don’t mind taking me home, Ann?”
    “It’s not a problem at all.”
    “Great. See you, Elise,” Betty said. Her friend gave a short wave without looking at Ann.
    They headed out into the sprinkling rain. Betty covered her head with her gym bag, hurrying into Ann’s car. Ann strolled through the weather completely unperturbed, turning on the car and pulling out of the parking lot with all the hurry of a cat waking up from a nap.
    They drove without speaking for awhile. Betty picked at her fingernails, cleaning her thumbnail of the remaining vestiges of pink polish. She wanted to go home and paint her nails candy apple red instead.
    “So what’s with all this rain?” Betty asked idly, rubbing loose flakes of polish off on her jeans. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen it like this before. It never rains longer than a few minutes on the worst days.”
    “I don’t know,” Ann said. “I haven’t lived here that long.”
    “It’s definitely going to be a wet winter if this is any indicator. I think those people who talk about global warming must be full of shit, because it only seems to keep getting colder and wetter around here. You know, when it—”
    “Do you ever wonder what Elise is