I’m about to start decorating the living room. Olivia is coming in to talk to me about maybe being my lawyer while I’m here.
“Oh, you should. Olivia is awesome.”
“Why, thank you, Katy, I think you’re pretty awesome too.” Olivia winks at her.
She blushes shyly, looking a little lost, so I keep typing even though I know it will probably bite me in the ass.
You wanna come inside too? You’ll get to see what thehouse used to look like in 70s glory.
“Really?” she snorts.
Oh yeah, right down to the avocado green bathroom suite.
She makes a horrified face, and I grin before I slip my arm through hers and tug her toward the door. Olivia walks beside us with an amused grin on her face.
When I unlock the door and usher everyone inside, Olivia gasps. “Holy crap, you were not kidding.”
“It’s like going back in time,” Katy muses.
More than you know, I think to myself. I walk to the kitchen and tug open the fridge. The only thing inside is cans of soda, which I put in there yesterday from the stash I keep in my van. I point, asking without words if either of them wants one. Olivia declines, but Katy takes a 7-Up.
“Alright, first up. Do you want me to speak with your current lawyer, get a sense of the situation, and determine if they’re agreeable to me assisting? I don’t want to step on their toes, and if they’re planning on sending someone down here, then I’ll back off. I’m just?—”
“Worried,” Katy finishes for her.
“Yeah.”
I hold up my finger for Olivia to give me a second and flip to the text-to-talk app before dialing the number for my lawyer. I get put on hold for a little while before my lawyer picks up.
“Please tell me those assholes haven’t tried anything else?”
I snicker at the greeting before I start typing.
“Hey, Laura. Just so you know, you’re on speaker. I have someone here who wants to help me out. I’m going to pass you over because it’s easier if she explains, but you have full permission to tell her everything. I’d really like her take on things, anyway.”
“You’re sure?”
“Yeah. She’s a lawyer, and her husband, Wade, is the cop who took care of me.”
“Alright, I’ll explain what’s going on. Talk to you soon, Sorrow.”
I hand my phone to Olivia, who winks at me before walking away, leaving me with Katy and no means of communication.
I bite my lip before I nod for her to follow me into the living room. I point to the decoration stuff and shrug before pointing to her and me.
“You want me to help you paint?”
I shrug again and add a nod, leaving it up to her.
She claps excitedly. “I’d love to. I’ve never decorated before, but it looks like fun.” She looks down at her jeans and top before sighing.
“I’ve got some old clothes next door. I’m gonna run over and get changed first. What about you? You want to borrow a shirt or something to protect your clothes?”
I give her a thumbs up. I should have thought of that myself, but I didn’t know I was going to be doing all this when I arrived in Tempest, so I didn’t pack painting clothes. Naive, perhaps, but it is what it is.
She nods and heads out as I plonk myself down on the sofa, coughing when a cloud of dust wafts around me. With a sigh, I get to my feet and start stripping the covers from the cushions before throwing them all in the washing machine. There’s a large glass jar filled with washing pods, so I grab a couple and throw them in and turn it on before looking over the rest of the room to take a stock of what’s there. By the time Katy comes back, I’ve found some furniture cleaner, some air freshener, polish, and antibacterial spray. I’ve also found a bunch of cleaning rags and clothes, which I leave on the counter for later.
Taking the shirt from a grinning Katy, I throw it on over my current outfit. It isn’t until I’m rolling the cuffs that I realize this shirt isn’t Katy’s.
