The apartment was accessible from the back of the beauty shop as well as from the outside. Sarah led me up a flight of narrow stairs. She unlocked the door and opened it.

“It ain’t much, but it’s cheap. I’m your landlord. I own the building, and I live in the apartment next door. Just these two apartments. One of my girls was renting it, but she got married last week, so we’re vacant again.”

I looked around. I liked the hardwood floors, although they were in need of a good buffing.

“No bedroom, I’m afraid, but the living area is huge, so you can use a futon at night. I updated the appliances in the kitchen two years ago, so they’re nearly new. Updated the bathroom too. It’s small, but state of the art.”

“It’s actually pretty cute.” I was getting a good vibe from it, which surprised me. And heck, a manicure was only a couple steps away. I loved a good mani-pedi.

I looked through the kitchen and then the bathroom. “I assume it’s ready now to move in?”

“Yup. All you have to do is sign the lease.”

“Are you willing to go month-to-month?” As cute as the place was, I’d be moving into one of those better apartments on the outskirts of town when I got a car.

“Absolutely. Most of my tenants go month-to-month. Because the place is so small, it’s really just a starter pad. Usually people are here for six months to a year.”

“That sounds perfect to me. I work over the city attorney’s office, so it’s close enough to walk. I don’t have a car right now.”

“Sounds like you’re interested, then.”

I nodded. “I definitely am. I don’t have any furniture though. I’ll have to arrange for a mattress or futon before I could move in.”

Sarah nodded. “I can help you there. If you want the place furnished, it’s an extra fifty a month. I can move in a sofa, a coffee table, two chairs, and a pullout bed. Lisa had her own stuff, so the furnishings are in storage down in the shop. I can have my boyfriend move them up anytime.”

I let out a laugh. “By the end of the day?”

“You betcha.”

I held out my hand. “Then, Sarah, you’ve got a deal. I’ll write you a check right now for the first month.”

That transaction taken care of, I headed over to the hotel, grabbed my suitcase, let them know I wouldn’t be staying another night, and took my stuff over to my new apartment. By then my lunch hour was over, so I stopped by Rita’s to grab a sandwich to go and headed back to the office. These sandwiches were adding up and squashing my car fund. I’d need to get to the grocery store and lay in supplies.

No sooner had I logged back in, when my phone buzzed. Marj.

“Hey there,” I said.

“Jade, I’m so sorry I couldn’t find an apartment yesterday. Joe needed some help because his secretary was sick and he had some filings that couldn’t wait.”

“I know.” Shit! I cuffed my hand over my mouth.

“You know? How?”

I sucked air through my teeth. I had promised Marj no more secrets. “Talon told me.”

“Talon? When did you see Talon?”

I sighed into my phone. “He came to see me last night.”

Silence on the other end of the line. In my mind’s eye, I could see Marj’s mouth dropped into an oval.

“I promised I wouldn’t keep anything from you, remember?”

“Yes,” she said. “I appreciate that.”

“He wanted me to come back to the house.”

Marj squealed into the phone. “Yay! That’s great.”

“I turned him down. I don’t think it’s a good idea right now.”

“Are you kidding? It’s a great idea.”

“Well, it’s too late. I’m bound for at least a month for my new apartment. I just signed a month-to-month lease today.”

“You did? Where?”

“The apartment over the beauty shop.”

Marj huffed. “That dive? I would’ve found a much better place.”

“Marj, I scanned the ads this morning. The only other places are those apartments on the outskirts of town, and I need a car for them, so the beauty shop it is. It’s a cute little place.”

“If you say so.”

“I say so. Remember, I’m used to living modestly. It won’t bother me at all.”

“I’m sorry.” She sighed. “I don’t mean to go all diva on you. If you’re happy, I’m happy. But I’d still rather have you at the house.”

“I know, but it’s probably good for me to be on my—”

I dropped the phone.

Chapter Seven

Talon

I walked into Jonah’s office, needing to talk. What was it with me and talking lately?

His secretary was back today, though she looked a little pale.

“Are you feeling better, Dolores?” I asked the gray-haired woman who had once been my father’s secretary.

“Yeah. I look a lot worse than I feel.”

“Is Joe around?”

“He just went out to the pasture. I think he’s in the north quadrant today if you want to go looking for him.”

“Thanks.”

I drove out to the stables. Several months had gone by since I’d taken my horse, Phoenix, on a ride. I’d go out and find Joe, maybe help him a little if he needed it. I’d already been to the orchards and taken care of things there for the day.

Phoenix snorted when he saw me. The hands exercised him regularly, but I had been lacking in my attention to him lately. I’d had the horse since I was fifteen. I loved animals. This horse and Roger were my best friends.

I groomed him, saddled him up, and took him outside the barn, where I mounted and took off. The day was clear, the mountains green and violet in the distance, the sky a bright cerulean. Just another day in Colorado. I didn’t appreciate the beauty of my home enough. I needed to bask in it more often. I worked Phoenix up to a gallop, letting the wind ruffle my hair as we sailed through the breeze.

Phoenix. I’d named him after that majestic flaming bird rising from the ashes.

 

The one with the low voice grunted, finishing.

“My turn,” Tattoo said, pushing Low Voice away.