Maddy

“Hey!” She said, “Maywood!”

To your great shock, it was Maddy Halbert standing before you, arms crossed and a harsh look in her eyes.

You felt yourself grow cautious. What could this woman want, having made it more than clear previously that she hated your guts. Would she try something? Was she carrying a knife? A gun? You took a step back.

“It was you, wasn’t it?” She asked, eyes narrowed in accusation. “The big fire at the steel mill that’s on the news?”

“Miss Halbert, I don’t know where you got that idea but-”

“Don’t start,” she growled. “You were asking after my brother and his creep friends, and a few days later one of their big meeting places catches fire. You were there, weren’t you? You were the one who got my fuckhead brother all worked up.”

Where was she going with this? You felt very uneasy, and half suspected that several of the cultists were going to jump out and get you there and then. But the street was empty, all was quiet save for the singing of birds.

“What if I did?” You countered.

That provoked a pearl of laughter that took hold of Maddy, going from simple joy into shaking, full-body hysterics as she howled with joy. You were afraid that the woman was having some kind of episode, but eventually she calmed down wiping away tears and huffing into restrained giggles. “Oh god,” she breathed, her face transformed into an expression of unmatched delight. “Oh, oh that’s so sweet. All the money he sunk into that place…all up in smoke,” that realisation got another bout of giggles before she finally gave you an appraising look. “Whatever it is you’re planning against my brother, I want in.”