Lucky 33 (Love in the District #2)

1. Murder House

CHAPTER 1

MURDER HOUSE

T he TV screen flashed black and white images of a damaged kitchen wall as an ominous voice said, “He had ripped the cabinets from the wall.”

“Oh!” the women gasped.

“Even the farmhouse sink was missing and presumed sold to the highest bidder."

“No!” Amy exclaimed, covering her face while watching through her fingers.

“The historic Arlington, Virginia home was left in the same state as their relationship— broken. Their dreams, like her, dead.”

“That poor house,” Amy moaned, refilling her wine glass.

“You think it’s still on the market?” Katie asked, a hopeful look in her eyes.

“People died there, you vultures,” Brit said, her smile peeking through her serious expression.

The women dissolved into giggles.

True Crime Night was a tradition they'd started in college after becoming friends in their business courses. No matter what was happening in their lives, Amy loved that the trio tried to get together monthly .

Their dynamic hadn’t changed much over the years: Katie was the dreamer, Brit was the voice of reason, and Amy was the doer. This worked out well for the many group projects they had endured together in college, and now it played out over ten years later in their friendship to keep everyone grounded, but not too much so, if Katie had any say about it.

After the show ended, Brit switched off the TV and turned to Amy with a serious expression. “Okay, so, your 33rd birthday is next week.”

Amy groaned. Like I need reminding of my old age.

“Now, calm down. Just because you’re hitting your mid-30s before us doesn’t mean you get to grumble about it.”

“Yeah, you old fart,” Katie interjected.

Brit sat up straighter and said in a significant tone, “So, in honor of our group matriarch, Katie and I’ve come up with the ultimate birthday outing?—”

“A psychic reading!” Katie exclaimed, unable to contain her excitement.

“We were going to pause for a dramatic effect before telling her,” Brit laughed, slapping Katie playfully.

Amy’s expectant smile dropped. A psychic reading? If there were ever an unlikely thing for me to do, this would be the most unlikely.

“Guys, seriously?” she said, hoping that this was a joke to get her all worked up before telling her that, no, of course not. They’re going to dinner and drinks like normal people.

“You better believe we’re serious,” Brit replied, leaning closer to make intense eye contact with Amy. “You’ve been in a funk ever since your sister started spending all her time with her new hot boyfriend.”

“That’s not true!” Amy said a little too loudly. So, I’ve been a little down now that Laura is spending her spare time with Jake instead of me. I’m totally thrilled that Laura found love. Yeah. I’m overjoyed for her.

“It is, and we’re not arguing about it,” Brit continued. “ Anyway, Katie saw this psychic a few weeks ago to do recon and highly recommends her.”

“Yep,” Katie said, “She’s the real deal.”

“Have you had a head injury? A psychic? Katie, you’re a smart woman,” Amy scolded. I can’t believe I know someone who would visit a psychic. Katie’s head may be in the clouds, but her feet are always on the ground.

“A smart woman indeed,” Katie said, looking very proud. “And one who has been blown away by this woman's insight. She helped me get unstuck with my whole creative process at work. Also, her insight helped me let go of everything my mom does to annoy me. And she’s cheaper and more fun than a life coach.”

“We think a little insight and a new way of thinking is just what you need for your birthday. Consider it an adventure,” Brit added with an encouraging smile.

“Really, Brit? You really think a psychic reading is what’s missing in my life?” Amy asked, her voice dripping in sarcasm.

“Yes!” Katie answered for Brit. “Trust us. You know we’d never lead you astray.”

Amy would’ve said the same thing about her friends 15 minutes ago, but now she wasn’t sure. Is this a prank? Crap, they look serious, so I guess not. Brit and Katie looked at her expectantly. Ugh. Fine. A present is a present. I’ll have fun with it and then move on.

Amy smiled warily. “Okay then. Tell me more.”

“Yay!” Katie cheered. “I think you’ll really like her. Her name is Mystic Natasha, and her shop is in Georgetown, over on Wisconsin Avenue. It’s the cutest place. It’s very authentic and psychic-y.”

“What’s going to happen in a reading? You’re going with me, right?”

“Like we’d miss this,” Brit said. “We’ll be waiting in the shop for you, but the reading is just between you and the psychic. Katie, what happened when you were there?”

“It was so cool. She can tap into your energy—Amy, stop rolling your eyes. Anyway, she’s legit. She’s not some lady with a crystal ball at a carnival. When we started, she asked if I was concerned about something specific or had any questions I wanted answered. I told her I was having huge creative block issues at work and having trouble getting a concept together for the website redesign I was doing for the goat yoga company. Everything I was coming up with was too cutesy, remember?”

“You’re saying she gave you business advice?” Amy asked, wrinkling her brow.

“Not exactly. I wanted to find out why I was having trouble with a concept when I usually have about five ready for any project. Macro level, not the nitty gritty. She explained that she ‘felt into my energy’ when she did readings to see the bigger picture of the issue. She said that she got a lot of stress and tension from me and that a situation with someone close to me was the problem. My soul was trying to get my attention to deal with that first.”

I’m not buying this.

“Amy, I’m not a psychic, but even I can read your negative energy. A psychic’s job is to be an intuitive and a guide, not a consultant. Her being able to tell you your future is a myth. Think of her as a divinely inspired therapist. Long story short, the reading helped me realize that I was so bothered by my mom’s nagging and judgment about my life choices that I couldn’t properly focus on anything else until I dealt with that.”

Hmm, that’s not bad insight, but I’m still skeptical. At least it’s not going to be some hokey fortune-telling experience.

“Well, it’ll be an experience to remember,” Amy mused. “Alrighty, when are we going?”

“On your birthday. We’ve already discussed this with Laura and your mom. They’ve planned your family birthday party for another day so we can do this. Laura said, “There’s no way I’m missing this,’ so she’ll be there,” Brit explained.

Great, a bigger audience for this ridiculousness.

“Does this reading include drinks after?” Amy asked .

“Well, yeah. It’s a birthday party. We’ll also want to get the lowdown on all the juicy details that the psychic told you, so it’s a win for all of us to go out after,” Katie joked.

“Can we get food, too?”

The women nodded. “Then, I gladly accept,” Amy laughed, wondering what she was in store for.