Page 16 of Grave Curse

“There has to be a reason.” I frowned as I read the notice, all the while struggling to keep my suspicions on a tight leash. It could merely be a coincidence that I told Tyr about Draco, and forty-eight hours later the guy was getting bounced out of the shop next door. Tyr was powerful in certain circles, sure, and there was a rumor that he owned this little strip mall across the street from the Gravediggers HQ. But when I’d straight-up asked him about it, he’d rolled his eyes and said he didn’t know if I was an idiot for believing every story that came my way, or aparanoid freak for believing he was always there, lurking behind every damn thing that happened in my life.

So this was a coincidence.

Had to be.

“It says here that the eviction is based on the renter’s failure to disclose past health code violations. It includes a list of them with lots of numbers attached to them, blah blah blah.” Shaking my head, I handed it back to him when his agitated pacing brought him back within range of the counter where I stood. “Does that make any sense to you?”

“No! I mean, yeah. But also no.” He took a breath in a clear struggle for calm. “I worked out of my garage before I managed to scrape up enough money to open my very own shop here. There were one or two violations every year during that time, but they weren’t bad, and I never got closed down. And those violations they got listed there? I paid the fines every time, fixed whatever it was that the state wanted fixed, and that was that. These violations aren’t like a criminal record that follow you the rest of your life, so of course I never mentioned them on the renter’s agreement. I didn’t know I had to.”

“I think you should fight it,” I said while my heart hurt for him. He looked like he was on the verge of crying, the poor guy. “Damn The Man, Draco. Make these jerks at Blue Horizons, LLC pay.”

“How?” Draco finally stopped pacing and looked at me helplessly. “I sank every penny I had into getting my place set up exactly how I wanted it, with new equipment and furnishings. I’m getting the first and last month’s rent and security deposit fully refunded, so I guess that’s something, but I don’t have the cash for a lawyer on top of all that. I’ve gotta go,” he added, shaking his head in a gesture of pure despair. “I just wanted to let you know you were a great neighbor, even if it was only for a couple weeks.”

“Yeah, likewise. Good luck, Draco,” I added when he shuffled out the door, the picture of a broken man. I had a sinking feeling that I would never see him again.

Which was sad, but also very, very odd.

I’d dealt with Blue Horizons, LLC since I’d set up shop here. The corporation owned this property and was our nameless, faceless landlord, not just here but they also owned the loft I rented and called home. For six years, Blue Horizons had pretty much left me alone to do whatever I wanted at Vixen’s Den, including building some fancy changing rooms and installing a stripper pole with a mini stage.

You’d think that pole would have been someone’s breaking point up in corporate HQ, but no. Not only did they give me permission to do it, they sent someone to walk me through the building permits I needed, and then they took care of hiring a construction firm that did an amazing job. I loved Blue Horizons, LLC and considered it a lucky break that I even found this little shop.

Though, I wasn’t the one who had found it, of course. Tyr was the one who’d stumbled across it when he’d decided to set up the Gravediggers MC compound across the street. I’d checked the place out more on a whim than anything, only to find its low rent and amenities were an unbeatable opportunity. Not only did I have the world’s best low rent, every few months or so a property manager popped in to check on the place to make sure the plumbing and all things electrical were in tiptop shape. Twice a year, some lady from customer service called to see if I needed anything. The one time I mentioned I needed easier access in the back for receiving shipments, the next day another construction crew appeared to take down the narrow concrete steps I’d nearly killed myself on, and replaced it with a ramp that was at least twice as wide. I wasn’t billed for a thing, and my rent didn’t suddenly skyrocket. It was like Blue Horizons, LLC wasmy personal fairy godmother, and all I had to do to make any wish come true was ask for it.

No wonder it seemed weird that Draco had been treated so badly. Those violations must have been extreme—like hidden-body-parts-in-a-freezer kind of extreme—to get him booted so quickly.

Yikes.

On second thought, maybe it was a good thing he was moving on to greener pastures.

“Okay, that’s two days in a row we’ve had upsetting or shocking things happen,” Roxie said, polishing off her donut with a delicate wiping of her fingers on the napkin. “You know what that means, don’t you?”

Still frowning about Draco, I glanced at her. “No, what?”

“Bad things always happen in threes.”

As if on cue, the electronic bell at the shop’s front door chimed, and my brows went up when I saw who walked in. “Romeo, this is a surprise.”

“Threes,” Roxie repeated ominously, before heading to the breakroom to clock in and no doubt start the coffee.

Romeo lifted his chin in the direction that Roxie had gone. “What was that about?”

“Oh, nothing. So, how’s Shiloh doing? I haven’t seen my girl since we all got together to celebrate her new status of having a baby on board. How far along is she now?”

The Vice President of the Gravediggers and all-around security guru beamed like the proud papa-to-be that he was. “Five months and counting. Just last night we were talking about doing a gender-reveal party, but Shiloh didn’t want to run into any party that you were planning. Your birthday’s less than two weeks from now, the day before Halloween, right?”

I wrinkled my nose. “Yeah, and she’s obviously heard I throw killer Halloween bashes to celebrate. Not this year, though, sofeel free to plan your shindig. I’m not going to have a birthday party this year, or maybe ever again.”

“Why not?”

“Dude, I’m about to be twenty-nine. Do you know what that means?”

“Why don’t you tell me.”

“It means I’m a year away from being thirty.”

“Yeah, that tracks,” he drawled. “What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing. It’s actually great, considering there were times when I was convinced I’d never make it to adulthood, much less thirty.” Automatically I touched the faded scars on the tops of my forearms before crossing my arms in front of me. “But I’m feeling a little old-maidish—no man in my life, no kids, no prospects of a family on the horizon. The way I’m feeling, the fewer reminders of how life is passing me by, the better.”

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