Page 137 of Beautiful Revenge
I open our text string and regret not making her share her location with me.
Me – Call me right away. Janie is in town.
I stare at the screen.
Not one bubble.
Fuck.
I call again.
“You’ve reached Harlow Madison. I can’t wait to talk to you. Leave a message, and I’ll call you back.”
“Dammit,” I bite.
Something doesn’t feel right. Janie’s in town and Harlow isn’t answering her calls.
I grab my keys and slide my cell into my pocket. By the time I hit the front doors, I’m in a jog to the parking lot.
If there’s one person I don’t trust who’s still walking freely around the world, it’s Janie-fucking-Madison.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
PAWN
Harlow
The stairs leading to the second floor are creakier than they used to be.
I wonder if they can just slightly fix that—but not completely. A creak here and there reminds me of my grandma walking up and down the wide staircase.
I’ll wait a month or two to make that request. I don’t need my contractor thinking I’m high maintenance before we even start.
The house is a mess. Whoever bought it from Grandma were hoarders in the worst way. Bags of trash litter every single room. The smell is atrocious. And the house itself looks like it should be condemned. It’s no wonder no one wanted it when it went into foreclosure.
This poor beautiful home.
“Don’t you worry,” I whisper into the dusty and dingy staircase. “I’ll make you beautiful again.”
I’m about to wander into the old room that Grandma kept just for me when I get a text.
Devon - Call me right away. Janie is in town.
Wait, Janie is in Winslet?
I should’ve called Devon right back, but I was too anxiousto look around after I mustered up the courage to actually walk through the front door.
I return Devon’s call, and it doesn’t even ring once when he answers.
“Harlow,” he bites. “Where are you?”
“I’m at the house.” I clear my throat and raise my voice to a normal level. “Sorry, it’s only slightly creepy. I need to get over that. But I did walk inside. I’m pretty proud of myself, actually.”
He sounds like he’s in the car. “Is the contractor with you?”
“No.” I push the door open to my old room and scream when something comes at me.
“Harlow!” Devon yells into my ear. “What is it?”
