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I glanced at the elderly ghost. “What do you mean? I was returning Otto’s car.”
“You’re supposed to be in town for that brunch you were invited to.”
I knew the brunch she meant. I’d received an invitation for a fundraiser from someone I didn’t know. “I need you to stop spying on me. It isn’t healthy.”
She averted her gaze. “I thought it would be helpful to keep track of your schedule.”
“I’m not in the market for an assistant, thanks.”
“Why didn’t you go? The diner serves an excellent Eggs Benedict.”
“Because I didn’t feel like it. Part of being an adult is avoiding things we don’t want to do with impunity.” I entered the house, confident she wouldn’t follow. Neither she nor Ray wanted to get sent to the Great Beyond, which they knew I could arrange if they stepped out of line.
I looked at the paint cans in the dining room and kept walking. Despite the restoration of my arm, I changed my mind about painting, which simply meant I could tackle the next task on my list of five thousand. I bypassed any carpentry jobs. I’d want Ray by my side for those, and I wasn’t currently in the mood for company. I hadn’t slept well. The Corporation’s vault still weighed heavily on my mind.
Maybe I deserved to be caught in their net. Sure, they planted the bomb in Bruce’s head, but I was the one who unwittingly detonated it. And Solomon only died because Matilda wanted to protect me. Granted, he attacked first but still. I knew what she was willing to do when we entered the house.
My arms tingled, and I instinctively rubbed them. I glanced at the thermostat. Not an unexpected chill. An unexpected visitor.
As I pivoted toward the window for a peek, the front door swung open, and a burly man lumbered across the threshold.
“Can I help you?” I asked. It wasn’t my friendliest tone.
The man blinked in surprise. “I didn’t think anybody was home.”
“Why would you come inside the house if you thought I wasn’t home?”
My question appeared to stump him. Not too quick on the uptake, this one.
“I meant that I thought this place was still empty. I didn’t realize anybody moved in.”
Nice recovery, but he reeked of bullshit. “And you were hoping to what, drink the bottle of vodka you stole from your parents’ liquor cabinet?” I gave him a mock inspection. “Aren’t we a little old for that?”
The intruder didn’t seem amused. His innocent facade morphed into a face of stone. “Listen, you weren’t supposed to be here, okay?”
I crossed my arms and fixed him with a hardened stare of my own. “According to whom?” The mysterious brunch invitation was starting to make sense.
“Doesn’t matter,” he said gruffly. “Now we have a problem.”
“You’re on my property without permission. That’s the real problem.”
He took a menacing step forward. “No, the real problem is I have a job to do, and now you’re in the way.”
“Story of my life lately.” Despite this guy’s threatening demeanor, I still had Bruce on the brain, and I didn’t want him to suffer the same fate. “I don’t know who you are or why you’re here, but I don’t want to hurt you. Please leave so I don’t have to.”
He offered a lascivious grin, as though I’d extended an invitation to join me in the boudoir. “That’s okay, honey. I like it rough.”
I groaned. “Why did you have to go there? So unnecessary.”
He lunged. My arm shot forward, and I palmed his forehead like it was a basketball. His mind was easy, pliable. His body slumped to the floor within seconds. When I left London, not once did I think I’d have to use my powers as much as I have in Fairhaven. If I’d known, I never would’ve moved here. This was supposed to be a haven—it was right there in the town’s name. Instead, I felt like I’d dropped myself straight into a nightmare of my own design. Damn crossroads.
The skin on my hand began to burn, and I wrenched it away, terrified of triggering another failsafe.
The intruder smiled, absolutely fine.
“What the hell?” I cut a glance at my hand. “You’re a mage.”
“And you’re a headache waiting to happen.”
