Page 91 of Grave Curse

My man always had it, I thought with a smile as I carefully headed up the stairs. As I did, Tyr’s voice drifted to me.

“Hey, Loki. You busy?”

*

Tyr

The night-shrouded house lit up with a flash of headlights as a car drove up the long driveway. The muffled sound of the garage door opening and closing rumbled through the kitchen walls before the door connecting the garage to the kitchen opened. In the semi-dark, the silhouette of a tall, lean man reached for the nearby light switch next to the door.

Nothing happened.

“What the…?” He flicked the switch a few more times, as if that would somehow make it magically work. When the magic didn’t happen, he moved deeper into the kitchen with the clear intention of checking the two pendant lights hanging over the travertine-topped peninsula counter.

As he moved deeper into the house, Loki shut the door behind him with a bang. Almost at the same time, I turned on the light at the cheery bay window breakfast nook where I sat.

The man nearly jumped out of his skin and gaped at both of us, arms pulled in tight over his chest. “What…?” He squeaked the word, and though his hair was still a rich mahogany, I could have sworn several gray hairs suddenly appeared. “Who are you? What the hell are you people doing in my house?”

“Good evening, Brody McSwain,” I said while Loki loomed over him until his chest brushed the man none too gently. The man let out a faint scream. “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Tyr, and this is my brother, Loki. Say hi, Loki.”

“Cocksucker,” Loki hissed, bumping him again.

I shrugged. “Close enough.”

The man, Brody, almost hyperventilated. “How did you get in? I-I have alarms—”

“I’d get a new security company if I were you, McSwain.” Romeo emerged from the depths of the house, a shadow darker than shadows. “A toddler could bypass your system, and I’m no toddler.”

Now with everyone in place, I offered my father-in-law a tight smile. “Now, Brody—may I call you Brody?”

“Wha… I-I—”

“Great, thanks. Brody, here’s the thing. Romeo, Loki and I are here to collect a debt. My father taught Loki and me how to do this when we were just kids, so by now Loki and I are very good at debt-collecting.”

“The best,” Loki added, still hissing.

“I’m pretty good at it too, though my specialty is security,” Romeo offered helpfully. “When it comes to breaking bones, the brothers are masters of the game.”

“Masters,” Loki echoed ominously.

It was nice to see how much fun they were having. “I hope you’re picking up what we’re putting down, Brody. We’re not leaving this house until you’ve found a way to pay your debt.”

“You’ve got the wrong guy. I swear, I don’t have any debts. Not the kind that would make leg-breakers like you visit me. I mean no disrespect,” he added on a gibbering half-laugh that sounded hysterical. How my brave Ginger came from this jellyfish, I’d never understand. “I j-just have the mortgage on this house, one credit card… oh, and I bought a new car, it’s very nice, it’s a Maserati—”

“We’re not talking about that kind of debt, Brody.”

“Yeah, deadbeat.” Loki moved close to hiss in the older man’s ear, and I almost laughed when the other man mewled and hugged himself. My brother could really bring the psycho whenhe wanted to. “That word mean anything to you, Mr. Maserati?Deadbeat?”

A flash of understanding bloomed in Brody’s gray eyes before he edged away from Loki. “Um. N-no.”

Romeo sighed. “Bad move, McSwain. Very bad move.”

“Agreed, Romeo.” I shook my head in mock regret. “This skinny assclown just lied to us. What do we think about that, Loki?”

“Fucking hate liars.” If my brother’s voice got any lower he’d be undetectable to the human ear. “Wanna crush them with my bare hands.”

I nodded approvingly. “I can see why. Brody McSwain here knows he’s a fucking deadbeat dad who owes over half a mil to his child, but he just denied that to our faces. Obviously he thinks we’re stupid.”

“I’m hurt,” Romeo offered.

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