Old Town From the Ground Up

[Billy Broder]

outfit

Billy stood in the empty space. Most of the east walls had been torn open, the debris already cleaned up, to get at the electricals and rewire a few things. The remaining walls were already painting a crisp white by the previous owner and would do well for his work. Several 2x4''s were aligned and fixed into a new interior wall at the back near the small lift to the basement where storage was. All around the two-story tall room was painter's tape in bright obnoxious blue and yellow. They marked out where bookshelves would be, where furniture would stand, and were other... more arcane additions needed to be allotted space for in one capacity or another. Billy was very careful not to actually mark anything out as a circle or use any runes for this part. He had too many contractors and inspectors wandering through and didn't need the headache of someone messing with it and not telling him.

It would be just his luck to lay everything out in advance, only to find out when he was putting it down and activating something that someone ripped off a bit of tape changing a rune from warding to summoning or something stupid. Yeah, noooooo thank you. Besides, this stage was all just getting his plans in place.

One of the biggest notable points was a massive square in the center of the room, several other lines of tape ran through it but that was going to be one of his biggest key features. A rather big circle he planned to use to ward the whole building from danger. He smiled thinking about the project, it was ambitious even for him. It would take some time though, this whole thing was costing a lot more than he had planned and he'd even started a small online shop to sell wards to help pay for it. Weird enough, you sell a bracelet that can stop a bullet- just one and just the once- and people would pay good money for it. If they believed in that sort of thing. He was careful with his peddling of charms and did his best to be discerning but he needed money and as Mac had once shown him... there was a booming market for that kind of thing.

Billy glanced at the open folder on the fold out table he had set up, one of four he had set up but this one wasn't covered in tools, on it was one of the most important things he'd ever undergone. A decision that would utterly shape the library he was building at its very core.

Several small squares were presented in the open binder, showing different colors of wood and a few possible carpet designs. He needed to narrow this down and pick which one he liked best. The right floor really helped tie a building together after all.

[Brooke Hansen]

hair look

It wasn’t every day cyber picked up something, especially in their business. The incongruent nature of magic and electronics put the two at odds. So, to say the Exchange had a cyber office was to invite mockery. Yet, in some shrouded sublevel of some far-removed location, a marginalized team held vigil over the web. Today’s tip came down that grapevine. It wasn’t much, nothing too damning, but still required follow up from the local office.

The door was open—or unlocked—so this wasn’t breaking and entering, more like trespassing. Brooke didn’t sneak, but she paid attention to her feet, the rubber-soled vans quietly squeaking with each step. She an eye on the construction strewn floor, mindful not to make a racket. The renovation was chaotic enough, and she took a measure of the space; drywall, concrete, open framed timbers, all tied together with painter’s tape.

Scattered building supplies and discarded tools held a thin layer of powdered masonry and sawdust. Brooke could smell it on the air and it made her nose itch. She tried to discern the construction’s endgame, and what kind of store this would be. In the end she decided it was too early to say. Reckoning she’d come far enough without issue, and eager to get to the bottom of this, the senior junior agent opted to make her presence known.

“Hello!” She called, her voice echoing in the open space. “Anyone home?”

[Billy Broder]

Billy was focused as he bounced between oak and walnut, both very nice shades of wood for his floor slates, which would not be real wood but rather water sealed and easy to install flooring that was much easier to take care of and replace than real very expensive wood. (IRL Tangent here, these things are great) He was just about ready to pick when he stood up straight to properly stretch his back out and caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He glanced to the side, wondering what the crime rate in this part of town was and if he should stop sitting on his ass and just make a few new batches of ward stones already when he spied a young woman a head and change shorter than himself. Now there was no reason to think this woman couldn't beat him up or throw him through a wall or any number of other insane things- Billy had seen enough of that to not trust anyone on appearance alone.

But he was also hoping to set up a business here, a place for people to enter and feel safe, so he couldn't just taint that right out of the gate by freaking out on a stranger. Literally, he needed to be very careful with how he conceptualized this space in his own mind for everything to come... a bad break in too early or something could really sour his impression of the building and ruin it for what he wanted ritual-wise. But this young lady seemed nice enough so he wasn't too worried about something hitting him that negatively.

When she spoke her voice echoed off the empty white walls, something Billy liked about the space while it was empty. He moved over into a better line of sight and waved at her. “Hey, sorry I'll be right with you.” he said before making sure he didn't need anything from his binders or what-have-you. After a second he also double-checked that he knew where his permits were just in case she was an inspector or something before walking back over to her.

“Sorry about that, what can I help you with Miss...?” he said, offering out a hand if she was the friendly hand-shaking sort.

[Brooke Hansen]

She waited as he scurried to meet her after making apologies. She waved his apology aside with a slight shake of the head.

“Hansen,” Brooke said with a chipper grin and shook his hand, even if she was more of a hugger. Her palm was dry and ever so soft, almost pliable. She met his eye with quiet confidence as they shook hands. Brooke took a half-step back, allowing space, not looking to crowd or be crowded.

“And I hope so! I’m looking for William Broder.” She said with raised brows, still amiable. Though, if Facebook was anything to go by, this was him. But she asked all the same, eager to confirm, and also to let him set the tone for the conversation. Perhaps there would be something to this investigation if he lied.

[Billy Broder]

Billy had forgotten right until their hands touched, the feel of skin on skin contact. Her hand was dry but all that ran through his mind were the nightmares he'd been having lately. The oily feel of molt green flesh sliding across his body and mind. It revolted him and his shoulders tensed as his face went momentarily stiff. He broke off the handshake as soon as was socially acceptable.

He wondered if he needed to start wearing gloves as he fought the urge to wipe his hand on his pants. That would just be too rude. When the young woman, Miss Hansen, asked after William Broder a look of confused interest flitted across Billy's face.

“Hansen, like that old band?” he asked. Having something to tie names to helped him remember them. “And I normally just go by Billy. It's nice to meet you.” he said.

He left the conversation open after telling her his preferred name. Open for her to explain why she was here and apparently looking for him. She used his actual name so was this another city inspection or something?

[Brooke Hansen]

“Sadly, no relation. Different spelling.” She said with a small laugh and a genuine smile. Mr. Broder was thinking of Hanson, where she was a Hansen. It was an easy association to make and one she had heard before, so she had the good-natured response queued up. She nodded to his preference; Billy Broder held the power of alliteration and disarmed, and William was a little stuffy. “Good to meet you, too, Billy.”

However, Mr. Broder was correct; this was an inspection of sorts, and Brooke reached into her coat pocket. She withdrew a golden medallion inscribed with intersecting radial lines. Clutched in the palm of her hand, she held it for his inspection. If he knew anything about anything, he’d recognize the powers she represented.

“Do you have a moment?” She asked, though her request was more a pleasantry than anything he could easily brush off.

[Billy Broder]

“Ah, foiled by spelling. This is seventh grade all over again.” Billy quipped, being friendly while trying to remember how that band spelled it's name and then mentally reverse it for his guest.

Miss Hansen said it was good to meet him then did something terrible. She revealed herself to be a figure of authority, which is rude in almost any culture but worse for Billy.

It's worth noting how Billy learned about the Exchange. He learned about them from his Dad, who painted a very VERY negative picture of the group. He described them storming in during the night and snatching people up when Billy was little. When he was older, Billy's said drew a lot of parallels between the Exchange and certain political groups in the 1940's... a particularly unpleasant subject considering his heritage and his mother being rather devoted in her faith. Hell, her new husband (did it count as new this many years later?) Was a Rabbi.

Look, Billy grew up terrified of the Exchange. A year ago he'd have already thrown down a ward and started a run for the nearest door. But his views on things had changed a lot and he didn't trust a lot of what his dad had told him anymore.

Outwardly, Billy's body language went through an intense plethora of reactions. The sudden stillness, the cold sweat, the tension, the pause, the consideration of reactions, a glance toward the door... then a long slow sigh.

Billy took all those feelings, all the things he had learned, all the things he was trying to do better and let them out in one big slow breath. Then he asked a question he'd been asking a lot when he met new people.

What would Max do?

He wasn't great friends with the firefighter, but he recognized two things about Max right away. First, Max was good with people, he was sociable and charming and clever. Two, Max was just a real decent guy, and that counted for more than anything.

So Billy tried to let all those old feelings go and instead looked Agent Hansen in the eye. “R-right. Sure. I got time. I'd offer you a seat but um... no chairs yet.” he said gesturing to the under construction space.

[Brooke Hansen]

Brooke would have gladly continued their genial banter, but she reminded herself she was here on Exchange business, and this wasn’t a time for levity. So, she only grinned at his joke and gave a throaty chuckle. Maybe there would be time for jokes later, but Brooke doubted that as she watched his eyes as he inspected the medallion in her hand.

Mr. Broder froze. She almost expected him to bolt for the door, the way his eyes darted. The ghost of concern passed over Brooke’s expression. There was guilt here, and that did not bode well. His sigh, how he succumbed to the inevitable, gave her pause. All fight or flight was gone when he spoke next.

She slid the medallion back into her coat pocket, a consolatory smile settling into place as he made another joke. Mr. Broder relied on humor as a defense mechanism; something to watch for if his tone changed.

“This shouldn’t take long.” She replied, downplaying the lack of seating. “And like I can be out of your hair and you can get back to things.” They stood in a gutted building, all sawdust and raw concrete. She tried again to imagine what he had planned.

She cleared her throat, getting down to business. “This is regarding an item you sold online.” Reaching into her pocket again, she produced a quarter-folded piece of printer paper. Unfolding the sheet, she offered Mr. Broder the printout of his listing.

[Billy Broder]

There were things that Billy expected from this meeting.

He'd woken up enough times in the night after a bad dream about it. Men in black suits, old school witch burning, ... being buried out in the Nevada desert... But in none of his imaginings did the super scary Exchange Agent say 'like' as if she was a valley girl. It caught Billy off guard and he blinked a couple times as his brain rebooted and caught back up to the conversation. It was such a strange thing, dragging a sentence out with the word like. He did the same thing with the word um and it annoyed his familiar. It was a very... human thing to do.

It helped him contextualize her as more than a boogeyman in his mind.

She reached into a pocket and pulled out a small folded paper with one of his products on it. A simple metal coin with no official markings on it since it had been etched clean of all that and then had its two faces covered in small squiggly runes. Then it was bundled up with a what looked like black powder that had been poured out next to the coin in a small pouch with a long string. The three items, coin, sand, and pouch were displayed. The sand was a couple different things that amounted to flash powder while all the magic was in the coin. When it activated it would ignite the powder and then consume the thermoreaction to power a quick and dirty ward. The result would crack the coin in half but throw up a solid, literally, defense for a couple seconds.

Enough to stop a bullet from a small caliber pistol if you timed it perfect, but it was more to stop you from getting hurt in a slow-speed collision or just as a bit of insurance. Billy was rather proud of this because it was just a twist on his old Warding stone formula with some intentional flaws to make it useful but not revolutionary- and a one time thing.

He leaned forward nodded once then straightened back up. “Um, well yes. I sell those. I call them shield coins- but they're fairly subtle and I try to be careful about who I sell them to. I vet my customers.” Billy said, trying to sound responsible. He had a few guesses on why an Exchange agent would come to him and his first guess was a Ministry of Magic thing about the Exchange wanting to make sure he wasn't out there trying to expose Magic on Youtube or whatever. He really hoped that was what it was because the other options... his mind drifted to a book stashed under his mattress full of symbols that seemed to slither across the pages... He hoped they were just mad that he was selling magic items.

[Brooke Hansen]

Brooke nodded encouragingly as Mr. Broder explained how he was selective and vetted his customers. An admirable process, but how often and how many had he turned away? Frowning in thought, she cocked her head to the side. The expression passed quickly. “Good practice,” she allowed with a smile. “Don’t want stuff like this getting into the wrong hands.”

It went without saying that the Exchange decided which hands were right or wrong. This had also been the only report escalated to the Easthaven desk. Who could say what other trinkets Mr. Broder had sold without their knowing, and while of some importance, Brooke wasn’t here to review his ledgers. However, depending how cooperative he was, an audit was still on the table. She moved on to the main point.

“And this sweet rune work,” she said, tapping the listing to draw Mr. Broder’s eye back to the squiggly runes. Brooke was no ritualist; her blood wouldn’t allow it, but she knew enough to appreciate the elegance in the script and recognize the expertise. “This is your craft?”

[Billy Broder]

Billy didn't smile back when agent Hansen flashed her teeth at him. Instead he focused in on her words, not wanting stuff like that getting into the wrong hands. A kind of intensity settled over his shoulders, the kind his friends would recognize when he was practicing magic. A focus the usually nervous man almost never held in his daily life. He looked straight into Brooke's eyes and each word spoken held a quiet force of certain belief behind them. “Everything I sell is purely defensive. Nothing meant to harm.” This was a point of principle for Billy. There were spells he could use- ways to angle wards and the concept of separation he practiced that was... unpleasant. He had gotten the idea from his friend Serafina when she'd used one of his wards to cut a vampire in half. It was a loophole he'd fixed in his shield coin design- but one he could intentionally improve if he wanted to go around cutting people, or trees, or cars in half. The most disturbing thing he'd discovered was that the power requirements of doing so were alarmingly cheap.

The moment waned and his shoulders seemed to lose their rigidity as his steam ran out. Just Billy again. When Brooke pointed out his runework his shoulders seemed to slump just a touch more. So it wasn't about who he was selling to. He swallowed to try and fix his suddenly very dry mouth then nodded his head. “Yeah, those are the runes I use.” he said. Was it dumb to admit that? Should he be lying? Crap, he was a terrible liar.

[Brooke Hansen]

Brooke didn’t refute his principled words, but she was yet convinced. He had passion, and he wanted her to believe him, but then who in his position would want different? Mr. Broder would lie if he was mixed up in something sus. The deception wasn’t personal, only par for the course. But he hadn’t disavowed the runework as his own. Broder could have easily admitted being a fence or middleman, just a guy trying to make a living. She nodded brightly, even as she loaded the next shell.

“So like, okay, these runes?” Brooke prodded a short and manicured fingernail at the printout she held, keeping him focused there. “It’s not the first time we’ve seen them. Ever been to Vegas before?” Even as she asked, she nursed a concern about Mr. Broder. He looked her age, or thereabouts, and some of the flagged cases were… well, he would have been little more than a kid at the time. But that meant little in her line of work. Transmogrify, body switching, regenerative tonics, or similar could muddy a timeline beyond recognition.

[Billy Broder]

Billy watched her point at the small picture of the coin as she dug deeper into the heart of things. Not the first time they've seen the runes. His eyes went a bit flat as he considered things when she mentioned Vegas. She could be talking about the fire, but that place was a hotbed of vampires so fuck anyone that said different. It was self-defense. Usually Billy's dad went out into the desert to teach him magic, or out on the road, so none of their mishaps would have flagged in the city of sin. Meaning, it was probably stuff done by Billy's dad... or stuff done by his friends. The Cult of the Watcher, Scions of the Great Eye, Proles Magni Oculi... Jerks.

Billy ran his fingers through his hair and let out a small sigh through his nose. “I'm from Vegas.” he said. Then to skip ahead a few pages in the conversation he added. “I'm guessing these runes have shown up in stuff involving a creepy Eye cult? I learned my magic from a member when I was a kid.” He was being flippant about it and downplayed the family relation but if they tied him to Vegas then this wasn't anything they couldn't source out. Especially if his father died the way Billy suspected.

It... it hurt talking about it all like this in a way he couldn't properly define. Like gouging a hole into himself that only empty feelings could bleed out through.

[Brooke Hansen]

A creepy eye cult was close enough to the mark that Brooke lost some of her personable charm as he mentioned it, even as she heard the torment in his voice. She had to keep a professional distance. They ventured into dangerous waters and while she hadn’t heard of The Cult of the Watcher, or any of their splinter groups before picking up the file, she’d seen their type before. Cults like these were a cancer. They spread their twisted agenda and corrupted a blissfully ignorant world. Their great revelations and dark ceremonies invited nothing but ruin.

Billy’s confession gave Brooke reason to be wary. Was he here to spread this cancer to Easthaven? The Exchange already had one cult active in the city; the last thing they needed was another. Were these renovations part of this Watcher cult’s grand plan? A headquarters, maybe? Speculation was good and proper, but it only got an agent so far.

“Go on.” Brooke prompted with a somber nod.

[Billy Broder]

Billy blinked at Brooke's simple response. Go on.... he wasn't really sure what to say there. He could say something for sure but... look he was trying to be nice an open but he was fighting uphill through a lot of childhood prejudice here.

He shrugged his shoulders a bit at her. “Um... that's kind of it I guess. What else am I supposed to say?” he asked.

[Brooke Hansen]

She met Mr. Broder’s flummoxed response with a dubious expression. That was all he thought to say? She sidestepped a smart retort about him needing to convince her that he wasn’t a danger, that he had dissolved ties to the cult, that the Exchange didn’t need to act. His reaction earlier said he understood the delicate situation he found himself in, so his question hadn’t come from ignorance.

Brooke doubted that was simply the end of the story, and she had a thing for stories. Had he learned his magic from a member of this cult, and then what—little Billy Broder moved away? Or perhaps the cultist simply lost interest in sorcery and his young apprentice, and start a Starbucks franchise, or something else as fanciful.

Thoughtful, she took time to refold the paper and pocket it. She looked up to him. “Cults don’t just let someone go, Mr. Broder.”

[Billy Broder]

Billy pouted a bit as Agent Hansen made her point. He shrugged a bit because while it was true his situation was... unique felt like the wrong term but it was true all the same. He took a step to the side and leaned against the wall as he spoke with the Exchange agent. He felt like he needed the support. “I suppose that's usually true.” he said with another non-committal shrug. “But I was never part of the cult.” he said.

“I just learned the runes from someone that was. If I told you that whoever taught you long division was a Mormon so you must be one too, would that logic hold up?” he asked. “I didn't even know about the cult until last year, I've never had any contact with its members or been to any of the koolaid parties.” he said- citing Jones town as a joke though there was no real laughter in his voice. “I block sight in most my rituals anyway, just to keep things a bit safer.” He added that though unless Agent Hansen was an expert that probably didn't mean much. Knowing what he did now, it never really meant much past the importance he chose to place on the act.

Too metaphysical- focus on the here and now.

[Brooke Hansen]

Mr. Broder pouted and drew away, putting his back against the wall. She read his need for support as a defensive gesture, wanting something solid behind him. A brief triumph warmed her gut as he admitted she was correct. She had him! However, with a shrug, that warmth turned tepid.

As he tried to outmaneuver her with bad logic, Brooke narrowed her eyes. Sure, if they were talking about something stupid like long division, the teacher’s leanings mattered little. Sorcery, though, was a different kind of beast. It had teeth. The worst Brooke got from math was a headache. If Mr. Broder wanted to push that the teacher didn’t matter, only the learning, then a better analogy was learning explosives from a terrorist. He overlooked ideology and intent.

Their conversation took a turn, and Brooke raised an eyebrow when he admitted only recent knowledge of the cult. The Kool-Aid reference drew a smirk from the senior junior agent, although Flavor Aid was the preferred drink, but she let the mistake pass.

Brooke was no expert when it came to ritual magic; she knew enough to cause a catastrophe, or maybe avoid one. But she was steeped in the obscure and esoteric; it was in her blood, after all. She couldn’t do long division, but she could put two and two together: Vision held importance to a creepy eye cult. Their rituals needed to be in plain sight? You must be seen, somehow? Blocking sight, as he called it, snubbed the cult’s teachings, but she wasn’t learned enough to understand just how that made the magic safer. But, she keyed in on something he said: most my rituals. When did Mr. Broder want to be observed? She filed that away for later questioning.

“Okay…” Brooke murmured, not yet convinced, but hesitant to say he was a menace to society. He came off as squirmy but mostly harmless, like most humans. She changed tack and indicated the building site with a wave of her hand. “So like, this place… what are your intentions with her?”

[Billy Broder]

Agent Hansen seems to fully buy his completely solid logic for not being a member of the cult. Which was good, since if she dug further he'd have to go in on how he suspected he was meant to be a- ya know doesn't matter. Focus on the now and not on how shit of a dad his... well his dad was. Ms. Hansen gestured at the building around them and asked what his plans for it, her? He... didn't hate that. Thinking of the building as a her. Like with ships. Hmm.

He shrugged a bit then smiled softly as he glanced around at all the tape and construction.

“A library.” he said sounding pleased. “A small collection of books for magic folk and a lot of public books for the college kids. Texts books and things they might not be able to afford, you know?” he thought of his friend June and how helpful something like that would be to her wallet.

[Brooke Hansen]

Brooke’s eyebrows raised in silent appreciation of his endeavor. She figured he’d say a magic shop; that seemed to be the go-to. Easthaven had more than a few hawkers of such trinkets, and she didn’t want to consider the ones the Exchange didn’t know about. But a library! She took in the bare framing and drywall in a new light and imagined the stacks full of books and a chained-off section for the Forbidden Archive. It was all very baroque in her mind, something reminiscent of the Renaissance and less of a high school library. And Mr. Broder intended this not just for his fellow sorcerers, but the masses of Easthaven. She wondered how much money a library card would run.

“That’s fire.” She said with a grin, wishing she had something like this when she was in college. She wasted thousands of dollars buying textbooks she only needed for a single class. Regardless of any cult leanings, she wanted the library to succeed. “Probably a good few months from opening, huh? Just you doing all this?”

[Billy Broder]

Billy heard Hansen call his library idea fire. It was a term that basically meant the same thing as very cool, and the proper response would be a nod of the head or something. Instead, Billy's mouth opened without checking in and quipped “No open flame in the library.” he actually thought it was pretty funny... then realized that without context, of the book Name of the Wind, it just sounded like he was some stingy old timer worried about collections of paper. He wanted to correct it but the moment was past so... yeah he just got to feel like a loser. Woo. Wasn't he supposed to get less socially awkward as he got older?

Billy nodded at her question though, shifting away from the wall and standing up straighter. “Yeah. A few months if I go quick. Probably longer. I am using contractors but doing a lot myself.” He pointed at one of the big squares of tape laid out in the center of the floor plan. “I'm warding the shop as I go, so that its a safe haven against monsters and stuff- you know I got attacked by a vampire torso on the beach a few years ago? Anyway, I want this to be a place people can be safe if anything weird happens.” he said. He thought back to the beach and- holy hell, was that really three years ago? Felt like it had just happened.

[Brooke Hansen]

She smirked at his joke, a playful glint in her eye, but her composure didn’t crack. Had this been any other day she would have riffed off that, but this was Exchange business and Mr. Broder remained a filthy cultist until proven otherwise. Perhaps a stretch too far, but she wasn’t about to fraternize while working a case.

Her eyebrows raised in surprise and she still managed to scowl when he brought up the attack. That was news to her, though Easthaven was far from the safest place. The only vampire familiar to her was in the Exchange archives—and just a torso? It sounded too fantastic not to comment, but Mr. Broder moved past the incident and Brooke set aside her questions.

“We’re in agreement there.” She said, nodding. Safety was a prime directive, so if he truly wanted that then their missions aligned. From the way he described it, this library felt like a passion project. She paused, thinking. “You know, the Exchange has resources for community projects like this—not exactly like this—but close enough. Maybe we can advance those timelines?” An olive branch if he was on the level, a vigilant presence in his affairs otherwise. Brooke bet he’d decline either way.

[Billy Broder]

Billy looked at the tape lines across the floor and mulled it over, chewing at his cheek in a nervous motion as he considered things. Not just from a financial point, which was a real concern but he was managing... well it was taking a lot more money than he originally planned but still. Managing... Agent Hansen didn't say money though, she said resources, which was an admittedly more important offer considering everything he wanted to do. With the right help he could probably have this place warded and twice as secure and- no. An idea flashed across his mind and he knew right away he couldn't accept the help. He just didn't... trust the Exchange. He knew most of what he was told was probably a lie from his Dad but that didn't change how he felt.

And in the end, for his kind of magic how he felt meant a lot.

He let out another slow breath. “I don't think that will work. My magic- its rooted a lot in how I conceptualize and feel about things. I welcome the Exchange's oversight on this, you're welcome to come by any time and see how its going... but I need to do a lot of this on my own for it to function the way I need it to. I appreciate the offer though- and you can take that tidbit for free since the cult's magic runs on a similar principle.” Billy said, adding that last bit in with a wink.

Why did he wink? Gah now he felt like a dork. Was that too familiar? Would she get mad about it? Would she arrest him or- no that was the paranoia again, ignore that part. But stop acting so casual Broder, you're not Max. Just be professional and stop making things worse! Billy was glad Rowling wasn't around, that blunt bird bastard would probably get him in trouble.

[Brooke Hansen]

Brooke called it; of course, he didn’t think it would work. Though he gave her offer more consideration than she expected, and he gave a better answer, too. He went as far as to welcome the Exchange’s oversight. That was cute, as if the library would ever open without their blessing. Nodding deliberately, she accepted his excuses without protest. The wink put her off-kilter and she grinned, taking muted glee in the awkwardness that followed. The tidbit, however, she banked for later.

“Well,” She said with a sigh, and produced a business card from her inner jacket pocket. “If you change your mind, or think of anything else.” Brooke said, and offered him the card.

It was simply designed; a black serif typeface on bulk cardstock from some online printing outlet. The card read: Exchange P.I. with an address in Newton and a local phone number. She flipped the card between her fingers to show a scribbled phone number in blue ballpoint ink. “And that’s me.” Brooke winked back, her grin widening.