Page 9 of Grave Stone

“She needs to know why first,” I said to Stevie. Stevie didn’t have a choice about being involved because we lived together, but I wanted Hadley to have the option to decline the mess I was bringing to her door.

“This sounds interesting,” Hadley said excitedly. “What happened?”

I told her a shorter version of the story I told Stevie.

“Holy shit,” she breathed. “Yeah, I think coming here is best. Where are you now?”

“On the highway just outside the city,” Stevie said. “We should be there in an hour.”

“You don’t care that criminals might be after me?” I asked in disbelief.

“Someone would have to get past the gate, the cameras, the motion detectors, the locks, and the alarm system to get to us, and we would’ve had plenty of time to get to the panic room by then,” she said confidently.

“What the fuck am I gonna do? I can’t hide forever.”

“Patience, Pumpkin,” Stevie said. “We haven’t had time to come up with a solution. This crisis has barely gotten off the ground.”

“What solution could there possibly be? I’m supposed to be ash right now.”

“If you have to get a new identity, Ash could be your new name,” Hadley said.

“Let’s see what you can uncover before we jump to changing identities,” Stevie said.

“Tell me Glenn’s date of birth.”

“Uh, shit, it was in June. I don’t remember the date, but he turned thirty-two this year.”

“Found it. The twenty-seventh. Okay, let’s see what I can find.”

“Do you need anything else?”

Stevie laughed. “She didn’t even need that.”

“Having information given to me saves me a lot of time. I’m a PI, not a magician.”

“She says that, but watch, she’ll be able to tell you what color underwear he was wearing when he died by the time we get there.”

I exhaled heavily. “I cannot believe this is happening. I mean, I can, but damn it, I don’t deserve any of this. I’m a good person, for the most part. When I found out Glenn had been cheating on me for an entire year, I didn’t do anything to him. I should’ve gotten all the reward points and bonus miles for keeping that negative energy in check. Seriously, if this is how life is gonna be when I’m intentionally being positive, I think it’s time to give the negative side a try.”

“Let’s not be hasty,” Stevie said. “Everything is about perspective. Yes, there are some negative aspects, but there are some positive ones, too.”

“Ooh,” Hadley said excitedly. “Let’s hear Stevie’s Spin.”

“Well, just look at all the things Glenn can’t do anymore because he’s dead—and you didn’t kill him. He can’t cheat on anyone. He can’t drive that obnoxious-ass car and pollute the coastal scenery with its hideous color. He can’t ruin the lives of the clients he represents. I’m sure we can think of more.”

“He can’t almost get you killed anymore,” Hadley added. “After this time, I mean.”

“You suck at pep talks,” I told her.

“You’re not wrong,” she admitted. “So, about Glenn. Looks like his life went to shit after you broke up.”

“That’s unfortunate,” I said flatly. He deserved what he got, but I didn’t want to reap any negative energy for enjoying his troubles.

“For fuck’s sake. He cheated on you and threatened to sue you for breach of contract when you moved out. He was getting what he deserved. You can be happy about that,” Stevie said.

“You suck at pep talks, too.”

“I don’t have much practice. Only the weak need pep talks.”