Page 56 of Curse of the Wolf
Bolin looked encouraged.
The inspector walked back into view on the roof, and I tucked the case behind my back. When he headed for the ladder, I jogged it back to my truck, returning it to the glove compartment. Duncan raised an eyebrow but didn’t ask for an explanation. Maybe he’d seen Bolin’s experimental pokes.
The inspector headed toward the parking lot, bringing his ladder and a toolbox with him.
“I’ll be curious to see his report,” Bolin said, “if the real estate agent sends a copy to us.”
“Is that likely?” Despite years as a property manager, I hadn’t been involved in the sale of any real estate. Not yet anyway. “One day,” I vowed under my breath.
“I don’t think they have to, but if they want my parents to pay for any repairs, they should send it along as proof that they’re needed.”
“How far will Abrams and Radomir take this charade?” I gazed out to the street, still hoping they would turn up in the area.
Duncan had left my truck and was strolling along the edge of the property. Had he spotted someone? He was looking about, maybe also hoping to find Abrams or Radomir lurking.
The inspector had almost reached us, and Bolin didn’t answer my question.
When I not only saw butsensedthe guy’s approach, I twitched in surprise. Radomir and Abrams had found a building inspector with paranormal blood. I couldn’t tell if he had the tendencies of a wizard or just a clairvoyant, but, either way, if he’d gotten close to any of the artifacts, he would have sensed them.
Hell, he might sense them here if he walked past my truck. That thought sent me trotting up to the inspector, hoping to keep him from nearing my vehicle. Now I wished therehadn’tbeen an open parking spot so close to the reserved staff area.
“Hi,” I said when he paused, his eyebrows raised.
With the ladder under his arm, he looked like he wanted to hurry straight to his van.
“I’m Luna Valens, the property manager. The owners said I should see if you need help with anything.”
The owners hadn’t said anything of the sort, but when I glanced at Bolin, he didn’t object. As the son of the owners, he had to count as their proxy, right?
“Move the case out of my truck,” I tried to mouth to him.
Bolin squinted, not catching the words. Did he not sense that this guy had magical blood?
“I’ve about finished my inspection,” our visitor said. “Unless you’d like to tell me about anyunusualaspects to the property that weren’t readily apparent.”
“There’s nothing unusual here.” I smiled at him.
“That’s not what the newspapers have suggested.” He shifted his weight, adjusting the ladder, and tried to step past me.
Though I couldn’t blame him for wanting to put away the awkward load, I blocked him and lifted a hand. “What kind ofunusualaspects did you expect to find? Anything I should keep an eye out for? Anything we’ll need to address before the sale?”I slid my phone out to text Duncan as I tilted my chin toward the closest building. “It hasn’t been long since I cleaned the roofs and the gutters, but the water from the downspouts does tend to pool around the foundations during a heavy rain. I was thinking of getting some extenders.”
The inspector followed my gaze, but he seemed to be looking at the bushes and hedges along the walkways and near the walls of the buildings. Wondering if I’dburiedthe artifacts out here?
Will you move the case out of the truck when this guy isn’t looking?I sent the text to Duncan and wished he’d stayed in the truck, napping.
“I was going to mention that in my report,” the inspector said absently, then eyed me.
Could he tell I was a werewolf? And did he look a little nervous? Maybe. He didn’t try to pass me again, but he shifted his grip on the ladder, like he might club me with it.
Instead, he looked toward the woods, and relief spilled out of him. “There’s my assistant.”
A shaggy man with a metal detector walked out of the woods, shaking his head. He was lean, almost gangly, but also had a paranormal vibe, a stronger one that I could sense from a greater distance.
I almost gaped, realizing it was aferalparanormal vibe. He was a werewolf. Not one I recognized, but there were lone wolves in the city, men and women who avoided the Savagers and the other packs to the south of Seattle.
“Your assistant was… inspecting the woods?” I scratched my jaw, looking around for Duncan. Had he gotten my text? Now that I needed him, I didn’t see him anywhere. By the moon, I hoped he hadn’t passed out behind a bush somewhere. “The property ends with the lawn there.”
“Those woods have been interesting to a lot of parties,” Bolin said quietly.
