Free 1 Dead Girl's Guide to Style by Rose Pressey Page A

any time soon. Caitlin and I stepped out into the sunlight. My skin instantly tingled, a sensation that I hadn’t been used to, but that was becoming more and more common lately.
    “Well, that wasn’t as much help as I’d hoped for,” I said as we stepped outside onto the sidewalk.
    Caitlin released a deep breath and blew the bangs out of her eyes. “I thought for sure he would have more info for us.”
    I shrugged. “Well, it was better than nothing. It’s a start at least.”
    Maybe I could find out more about the vampire hunters and why they wanted Max. Maybe I was being naïve, but maybe it wasn ’t something bad that he’d done.

Chapter Ten
    After saying goodbye to Caitlin so she could meet Clark, I headed to the courthouse to look up the records of the disputed home. I wanted to see who really owned the place. I supposed some people would consider me a busybody, but the fact that I thought Mona was involved in something shady had drawn me in.
    The sun was unusually warm today. It almost felt as if I had a rash from the heat. Maybe I needed to put on a little extra sunscreen. Welcoming the relief from the sun, I stepped into the building and finally found the room where the documents were kept. Down the dimly lit stairs was the basement were floor-to-ceiling cabinets held the files. Tables and chairs took up the space in the middle of the room. After getting help from a sweet woman, I had the papers firmly clutched in my hand. I was almost afraid to look at the information on the page. A few seconds passed with my eyes closed, and I slowly opened them.
    It didn ’t surprise me much when I saw Mona’s name listed as the owner. It looked as if it had been transferred from Max to her. But something told me that he hadn’t done that willingly. So, he had owned the home, but Mona had conveniently left that part out and acted as if Max was crazy for even suggesting such a thing. I wanted to confront her with this information right away. She couldn’t deny what was written in black and white. I wondered if Max had shown her this evidence. Although it looked like legally the place was hers now.
    The woman looked at me and said, “The historic al society is excited that Ms. Patton is allowing them use the home.”
    I quirked an eyebrow. “Oh yeah, they are using the place?”
    “Oh yes, Mona says she doesn’t stay there often because she has another home, so she’s letting them have parties and luncheons there,” the woman offered.
    Mona had another home and Max was trying to get his place back? I wondered how many places she owned. And why had she been able to take the place from him?
    “Thanks for the information.” I grabbed my purse.
    “Think nothing of it,” she said.
    Reluctantly, I stepped out into the sunshine again. I peeked up toward the sun and shielded my eyes from its power. More than ever I wanted to be inside away from the heat. I knew where the historical society was, so I decided to walk over and ask them what the deal was with the house. Surely they would want the rightful owner to have the place. I stepped into the space and a friendly woman greeted me.
    “I’m here about the house on Abercorn Street.” I showed her the paper.
    Her eyes lit up. “Oh, yes. This is a lovely home and we ’re excited about getting it available to us.”
    I focused my attention on her round face. “I’m trying to help my friend get the place back. It is his home.”
    The woman frowned. She wasn’t so friendly anymore.
    “I don ’t think that is possible,” she said in a clipped tone.
    “And why is it not possible?” I asked.
    “Mona Patton owns the home and as you can see she had it transferred to her.” The woman pointed at the paper. “Besides, if she doesn’t own it, then we wouldn’t be able to use the house for our events. That would make us very unhappy.” Her eyes narrowed as she stared at me.
    So all she was worried about was whether she could use the house. I was sure that Max