Chapter One
Hannah looked at the burned husk of the adorable two-story on the orc-inhabited street. She stood next to the insurance investigator and waited.
“You had your contractors seal it?”
“Yes. If it is considered repairable, they can start in two weeks.”
The adjuster nodded. “I am going to take a look inside. I will be back in a few minutes.”
Hannah communicated with Jennel while she waited. The adjuster is here. It might be a total teardown, but we will know shortly.
Jennel responded. Okay. I am just waiting for a notification from them, regardless.
Hannah agreed and was about to start chatting with Neekil when the adjuster came out.
“It is salvageable. We have been working with a new specialist who can restore the framework to the original specifications. She’s good and very fast. Once she has done her thing, you can call in your team to fill in the walls. It will be set for insulation and drywall.”
He handed her a card. From the Ashes, building frame restoration.
“That is strangely specific.” Hannah started punching in the number, and when it rang twice and then picked up, she put on her phone voice. “Hello, you have been recommended to me by an insurance adjuster. I have been led to understand that you repair and restore damaged buildings.”
The voice was soft. “Only the framework and only wood. I can only work with wood.”
“Oh, that makes sense. I would like to get a quote for a project. House fire due to a firebomb.”
“Please text the address to this phone number. I will take a look today. You will have the quote by tomorrow.”
“Thank you. Whom am I speaking to?”
“Oh. Isocar Lavrel.”
Hannah paused. “You are a beaver shifter?”
“No. I am adopted.”
“Oh. Well, that would be great. Do you have an idea of the time you will be coming by?”
“Between one and four.”
“Oh, excellent. I will warn the nosy neighbours so you don’t get any interference.”
“That will be appreciated. Thank you for the call.”
“You are welcome, Isocar.”
“Call me Izzy, please.”
“Izzy then. I look forward to your estimate, and I don’t say that often.”
There was a soft laugh. “Call me if you don’t have it by noon tomorrow.”
“I will.”
She ended the call and smiled. “So, let’s see what she says.”
The adjuster grinned. “It is weird for a real estate agent to be working the claim.”
“The owner is working out a romantic relationship, and she has only been here a month. She doesn’t want the locals to think of this place as unlucky.”
“Right. Oh, this was that gremlin property. Right. Well, good luck with Izzy. I have seen her work. It’s good.”
“Thank you. I have a few more houses to check on. Thanks for meeting me here.”
“No problem. All part of the service.” He nodded and left. Analytical mages were not normally so social.
Hannah checked her schedule and saw she had to look at two more houses that the mayor wanted filled, plus Neekil’s farmhouse and dark elf caverns were really coming along.
Everything should be habitable by the end of the month, in four days.
Neekil and his brothers were so excited it was ridiculous.
The bed made of stone was growing on her. Her new dark elf skin didn’t sweat as much, and she could really take a pounding with something rigid under her, and over her, for that matter.
She locked up the boarded-up door, put a lockbox on the knob, and sent the code to the restoration specialist. Her siblings and parents were ready to go crazy on this build to get in the good graces of the mayor.
Hannah had already made an impression on the head of the city. Now her family wanted to take a crack at it.
* * * *
Isocar looked at the lockbox information and smiled. “Grandma, I have another job to do.”
Her grandmother smiled and rocked in her chair. “Good. Maybe this place will start feeling like home.”
“Grandma. How is restoring burned buildings going to make things feel like home?”
Her grandmother smiled and picked up her tea, taking a sip. “You will figure it out.”
“You could be less vague, Grandma.”
“Dearest Izzy, I have been dead for ten months. You need to get back to the world.”
“You don’t feel dead to me, Grandma.”
“You are keeping me alive, Izzy. That’s not good. It is hard on you.”
“I am fine, Grandma. I have plenty of energy, and it’s nice to be able to use it to focus you. When you really want to go, let me know.”
Her grandmother crossed her arms. “Absolutely not. I heard the sentence you didn’t say.”
“What?”
“That you will be right behind me.”
Izzy sighed and pulled on her sunglasses and sweatshirt with her company logo on it. “We will discuss this when I am back. For now, I have to rescue a house.”
“Fine. I will be here.”
Izzy made sure she had her identification, her mage license, and a backup set of sunglasses with her phone. It was orc territory, so she would run into the clan chief in the first five minutes. It would probably be when she was removing the block from the door.
She got into her small SUV and drove to the neighbourhood in question. She knew which one was the house the moment she turned the corner. Smoke and fire left a stamp on the structure. It would take a lot of magic to fix the house, but she was up to it.
She parked in the drive and flipped her hoodie up, switching her colour-obscuring lenses for the shading ones.
Izzy walked around to the hatch and opened it, removing her screwdriver and a bunch of bits as well as a collection box.
She was about to turn to the house when a large green shadow crossed over her. “Hello, Clan Chief Oory. Hannah Lee mentioned I was coming?”
“How do you know who I am?”
She looked up at the scarred orc woman, who was six foot three. “Lucky guess.”
The woman scowled. “You hide your eyes?”
“I have heterochromia. It freaks people out.”
“I do not trust someone who can’t meet my eyes.”
Izzy sighed. “Isocar Lavrel.” She pulled her glasses off and then met the woman’s gaze. “Restoration mage.” She handed her a business card.
Oory blinked and took the card. “Holy shit. I see your point. Gold and crimson are an unlikely combination.”
“I have skin tone to match the eyes, if that makes it better or worse. And that does mean what you think it means.”
“Oh.”
“Yes, ma’am. So, I am here to remove the plywood from the door, walk around, and create an estimate to restore the internal framework to code-passing condition. From there, it is cladding, insulation, and drywall, but that isn’t my business.”
She nodded.
“Can I get going?”
“Certainly. I can rip the panel off for you.”
“No. Thank you. The wood here has been traumatized enough. I am efficient, stronger than I look, and quick. I will be done within the hour.”
“I will come with you. The homeowner is near and dear to our community. Her mate still owns the house next door. I believe he is saving it for her son.”
“Nice.”
She walked to the door and removed the slab of plywood by taking out the upper screws, stowing them carefully. She leaned her weight on the wood and pulled the rest of the screws.
When the wood leaned toward her, she caught it and set it aside. Oory grunted. Izzy didn’t know why. She stepped in and smelled the accelerant. Her eyes were great for seeing in the dark, so she moved around the space, found the initial point of impact, and then made notes on the structure.
Oory followed her and touched the desk where the most devastating impact had occurred. “She was working here. She had taken a break because her son had gone out for late-night tacos. If he hadn’t done it, she would have been very badly burned.”
Izzy nodded. “Right. I can see the fire. There was no one inside the house, but the backyard was full. The firefighters got here quickly. Someone in the clan had a water talent that managed to douse a lot of the early flames. I will just check the attic and send my estimate.”
She looked up and jumped, landing on some lightly charred joists. The interior just had the exit marks. The fire had come in through the broken windows and out through the roof. It was a strange chimney effect that was common in magic-spurred fires.
She nodded and estimated her work at five hours at five hundred per hour. So, if Hannah got authorization, she could fix it in the next three days.
She jumped down and landed lightly in front of the orc. “Okay. I am done. Thank you for the escort, Miss Oory.”
“That isn’t my last name.” Oory looked at her in bemusement.
“I know, but I am not an orc, not a clan member of any species. I have no right to use chosen and clan names.” She smiled. “If you follow me out, I can lock up.”
“I can do it.”
“No. Mine is the estimate, mine is the responsibility.” Izzy smiled.
They got outside, and she raised her hand. The plywood settled in place, and the screws left their container and re-fastened the board to the wall.
Izzy picked up everything and headed back to her car. Oory followed her. Izzy set everything back in place and smiled. “You have questions.”
“No. Yes. What are you?”
“Is it important?”
“I suppose not. I have just never seen someone with your characteristics or patterns.”
“Oh, the patterns were showing? Sorry.”
“It is striking.”
“Yeah, that is usually what happens right after people see them. Well, it has been nice meeting you. If I get the contract, I will probably see you again, but in that case, you won’t be allowed to do more than look through any glass you can find.
No one can be in there when I am working, unless you want to become part of the house. ”
Oory nodded. “Noted. Can we put cameras in the house?”
“Sure. On glass, battery powered, not in contact with the wood at any point.”
“Right. When do you think this is going to start?”
Izzy finished typing the email on her phone. “When I get the go-ahead, I can be here the next business day.”
“Well, we had better get the monitors in there fast.”
“Put everything back the way it was. I am going to be working off my own measurements, so don’t move anything. Not one fucking inch. Are we clear?”