Page 12 of Outcast
“Yes, ma’am. We can certainly beat that rate.”
I had no idea what my brothers charged these days, but if the business was struggling, it seemed smart to undercut the competitors.
“How much?”
“One fifty?”
She groaned. “Fine. I was on my way back from Granville, so I’m just past the mayor’s farm.”
“The mayor…”
“The Prince place! Geez, do you live under a rock?”
No, but she kind of made me want to pick one up and smash something. Maybe her taillights.
“Got it. Be there ASAP.”
“You better be for what you’re charging.”
Click.
Bailey and Nova were talking quietly, whispering over the pizza box between them. They were obviously close, but I didn’t really suss out a romantic vibe.
“Bailey, what’s the going rate for a tow?”
“Depends on how far. Within twenty-five miles, it’s a hundred bucks.”
“Well, I just raised the rate. It’s one fifty now.”
“I’m sure Holden will love that,” he said.
“Hey, thenice placewanted two hundred. Clearly, you all were due for an increase.”
“Yeah, have fun telling Holden you know better than him after two fucking minutes in town.”
“I didn’t mean it that way.” I paused. “Where is Holden, anyway?”
Bailey shrugged. “At some business thing.”
Well, great. I was hoping he’d give me a few pointers before I went out on my first tow. I hadn’t done it in years.
Looked like I was on my own.
I went upstairs to grab the keys, then headed outside to pick up the truck over by the auto shop. It was only a few hundred yards from the house, so I was on the road in fewer than five minutes.
I arrived to hitch up the stranded car not ten minutes later. Piper Billings still bitched the whole time I did it, complaining about how long she had to wait.
Luckily, I’d done a lot of tows as a teen, and muscle memory took over. I got the car hooked up for the tow, took down the woman’s info for billing, and offered her a lift.
She wrinkled her nose as she glanced at the industrial tow truck. It was caked in dust and grime, not exactly pretty, but it’d get the job done.
“I’ve got a friend on the way,” she said.
I waited until a black sedan pulled up behind us. Wouldn’t do to leave a woman alone on the side of the road.
She sighed with relief. “Thank you. Sorry if I bit your head off. It’s stressful to get stuck like this.”
“No problem at all. You want us to take a look at the car?”
