Who wants us gone?

Who wants us dead?

Where in the world did Nolan run off to and why?

For whatever reason that last question vexed Lily the most. He’d said something before he left, but she hadn’t heard it in her foggy state. Still, she would have liked it if he had stayed. In the diner, there had been times when she’d thought he might actually kiss her again.

Out of all the mysteries she needed to solve, why Nolan Dawson didn’t kiss her and hang around after her house nearly burned down shouldn’t be at the top of her list.

Lily felt like she needed to do something, so she walked to the hotel room window and gazed out over the parking lot to the highway beyond. Polly and Herman shared a room next door. Oddly, the clerk who checked them in didn’t blink twice at someone adding a pet lobster to the guest list. Dante’s room was right above hers. She heard him walking above her every once in a while.

She balanced her cellphone on her shoulder as it rang. She waited for Alice MacIver to pick up. The attorney never failed to answer her biggest client.

“MacIver Law,” Alice greeted.

“Hey, it’s Lily. I just wanted to give you a heads up that we’re not staying at the house anymore. The trust or whoever probably needs to be made aware.”

The panicked catch of Alice’s breath was so evident that Lily could practically feel the apprehension radiating through the phone. “Is this because of the citations?”

“Citations?” It took Lily a moment to remember what the lawyer was talking about. “Oh, you mean Marcel Proust’s Remembrance of Things Past.”

“I’m sorry?” Alice clearly didn’t get Lily’s humor.

“World record holder for the longest book. The stack of citations is impossibly huge and painful to read, kind of like a Proust novel... you know what, never mind. It’s not important.” Jokes weren’t funny if a person had to explain them.

“I want you to know I’m working on it. Please don’t leave town yet.” Poor Alice. She was so scared of losing the Goode trust as a client.

“Working on what?” Lily leaned her head against the glass and watched a married couple walk toward the front entrance of the hotel through the streetlights. At least, she assumed they were married. They looked the type—same style of his-and-hers clothing and matching designer luggage. The husband strode ahead while the wife had a very animated conversation with his back. To herself, she said, “Oh, that’s sad. Fighting on vacation. They should make up.”

“I am sure we have a case for the misuse of power. Lucky Valley officials have no right to try to run you out of town. I promise you. I am handling it. That is what you pay me for. I am on your side.”

Lily dropped the curtain. She didn’t like the sick feeling churning inside her. “What do you mean Lucky Valley officials want to run us out of town?”

“Apparently, when they expanded the city limits to include the Goode property, they not only necessitated that the house be brought up to code, but if enough time passed without someone claiming the property, they would have been able to get a legal injunction that would give them the right to tear down the house and outbuildings and annex the property.”

“The city wants to take my house?” Lily again peeked outside. Clouds rolled across the sky, blocking out the stars and moon, darkening the landscape even more. Only the tall lights over the parking lot allowed her to see. “They can’t do that.”

Maybe she should save everyone the trouble and just give it to them? No more death threats or headaches. If the whole town hated them so much, maybe it was time to leave.

“I’m conferring with a friend who’s more versed in these kinds of property disputes. There are certain circumstances where Eminent Domain can be claimed by the government if it’s deemed for the public good. Or they can force the sale of abandoned property, which is what I think they were trying to accomplish. To keep the house in your family, you need to live there.” Alice sighed. “You can’t leave. If you do, and the house is not brought up to code, you could lose everything. When the trust was set up, there wasn’t a provision for this. With no property to oversee, all assets remaining in the Goode trust will be tied up in courts while it’s all sorted out. Trust laws have changed since the late 1800s. I assure you, I’m livid. Lucky Valley officials had no right to instruct the city code enforcer to try to muscle you out of your rightful inheritance.”

“Are you telling me that the town of Lucky Valley ordered the city code enforcer to run us out of town? First they gave us a giant list of nonsense and told us we have to fix it, and when that didn’t scare us off, they vandalized the property and threatened us?” Lily nearly choked on the words. Could it really be that simple?

Had Nolan left with the deputy to regroup and plan? Is that why the deputy refused to help them? Herczeg was employed by the town. The lawn fire happened the first night Nolan came over. Had he been inside distracting them? And today? Was their trip to the diner a way to get her out of the house so someone could torch the place?

“I promise, I am working to get to the bottom of this.” Alice tried to sound reassuring.

“Lucky Valley hired Nolan Dawson to get rid of me?” Lily needed to hear the woman say it was Nolan. She didn’t want to believe it.

“I’m sorry. I hadn’t heard there was vandalism as well. Send me any police reports and receipts and I’ll make sure it’s taken care of. Anything you need, just—”

“Thank you for telling me, Alice,” Lily interrupted. “I’ll let you know what we decide.”

Lily’s hand shook as she flipped the phone closed to end the call, cutting the attorney off mid-farewell.

All along, it was Nolan.

Nolan.

Dammit. She had not seen that one coming.

Logically, it all fit, all the pieces. Why hadn’t she seen it? How could she have been so stupid? All the construction accidents they were having, what better person than the guy who was supposed to fix things? He offered to help so he could... what? Keep a close eye on things? Sabotage any progress? Summon ghosts?

Break her heart?

Lily didn’t want to believe it, but Alice had no reason to lie. It was in the attorney’s best interest to have them stay. Nolan had tried to convince her to leave Lucky Valley several times.

A thud sounded behind the curtain and Lily jumped in fright. Something knocked a few times, and she edged closer to peek outside. She sighed in momentary relief. The married couple that had been fighting moments before now made out against the glass, kissing and fondling. Lily pounded several times to get their attention. The husband’s eyes met hers briefly, and the wife giggled as he led her away.

Lily stared at a smudged handprint the husband had left behind on the glass. How could she have been so wrong about Nolan? She felt betrayed, disappointed, sad.

No. That wasn’t right. She felt heartbroken.

Lily closed her eyes. She wanted to know why he had done it. She’d trusted him. He was going to be her business partner. He was her friend.

“Welcome to Lucky Valley, home of bad luck. Everything here really is cursed.”