Earl headed that way immediately. Zach trailed after him while making some comment about Earl’s Pinterest account.
I turned to Milo, and he laughed at my expression.
“Didn’t expect him to be a quilter, right?” Milo asked. “Earl looks like he’s more likely to bash heads than sit behind a sewing machine. But it’s the opposite.”
“Well, more power to him. I’m familiar with people making assumptions about me. It’s annoying as fuck. You three work on bikes for a living?”
“Yep, plus buy, trade and sell. You ride?”
I shrugged. “Not for a long time. Since my Army days.” My teeth dug into the inside of my lip as I considered how to say this next part. “I’m guessing you’ve heard about my record?”
“Sure, man. What else are small towns for, but making sure everyone knows everyone else’s business? But we don’t care about that shit.”
I nodded gratefully, and was even more grateful when Milodidn’t ask for my story. Instead, he stopped by my desk, angling his head to look over the sketch I’d been working on.
“Damn, this is good. You drew it?”
“Yeah. Trying to come up with ideas for a mural.” I gestured at the large blank space that was just begging for artwork. “I’d like it to double as decor and showing off what I can do.”
“You do all your own designs?”
“Sure.” I pulled up my sleeve, showing him the ink on my left arm. Geometric patterns interwoven with flowers and vines and trees.
Milo leaned in, examining the work. “Fantastic.” He pushed up his own sleeve, revealing the tribal designs on his forearm. “Got these a while back, and I’d love to add to it, but I want something more unique next time.”
“Well, once I get this place up and running, you know where to find me.”
“I’ll take you up on that.” He glanced around the room again. “You need help with any of this? I can do a little plumbing work. Maybe you could give me a discount when I want to get some ink done.”
My grin was genuine. “Absolutely.”
Milo pulled out his phone. “Give me your number. We’ll set something up.”
Damn, had I actually made a friend? Aside from Piper, Milo would be my first in Silver Ridge since my return.
We exchanged contact information, and I was just starting to think this whole neighbor thing might actually work out when Earl walked back into the room carrying a cardboard box.
He dropped it on the floor with a heavy thud. Zach followed behind him, and both of them had stormy looks on their faces.
“The hell is this?” Earl grunted out.
“What?” Milo said, strolling over. “You don’t like the fabric selection? Geez, how picky can you be?”
I was equally incredulous. What were these twoscowling about?
Then Milo went over to the box and looked inside. His expression turned hard. He looked up at me. “You want to explain this?”
Okay, they were making me nervous.
I moved closer and looked down into the box.
A rectangle wrapped in clear plastic lay on top of the fabric. A brick of white powder, compressed and sealed.
Thehell?
My stomach dropped. “That’s not mine.”
“Right,” Zach said. “It just appeared in your house by magic. I’m not judging anybody’s recreational use, but this is enough for felony intent to distribute.”
