Page 30 of Ink & Snow
“That’s the one,” Harper said when I had on my fifth pair. “Brings out your ass.”
“You’re right, it does,” Hazel said.
“I can see what Garnet meant about his costume,” I told them.
Hayden lifted a finger. “That was custom work. But yes, I think it’s paid for itself in tips.”
I turned in front of the mirror, feeling like an idiot. Mostly because the pants were very comfortable and absolutely nothing like the suit pants I’d usually worn for work before. And yes, I did look good in them, simple black, straight, perfect.
“He loves them,” Hazel said. “I knew it!”
“Of course he loves them.” Hayden snapped his fingers. “Shoes. Soyer, you are sticking with that all-black theme? With your complexion—”
“Yes, black is fine, thank you.”
The three jumped to it, dispersing to fetch several pairs of shoes for me. I tried on one after the other until I found a pair of ankle boots, simple but blessedly warm. They were also water resistant, meaning whatever I did at work, my feet would remain dry.
“What do you think for a jacket?” Hazel said to Hayden in an almost whisper. “I think maybe that coat we have in the back?”
Harper looked at the two of them. “You want to fit him with the weird coat?”
Hazel shrugged. “Do you see his shoulders?” He came over and patted them. I sat on a chair with my new boots, taking a needed break.
Harper frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. “You’re not wrong, but…”
“For all we know the coat is cursed,” Hayden said.
Hazel huffed. “I tried it on, and I’m fine.”
“Didn’t you say you smelled almonds all day when you tried it on?” Hayden asked.
“What coat are we talking about?” I asked.
The triplets looked at me as if they had forgotten I was there.
Hazel started, “Once upon a time—”
“The delivery man brought us an unmarked package. It’s a nice package and arrived without any dents whatsoever,” Hayden said.
Harper drew the zipper of his red fleece shirt. “And inside, we found a black coat. Looks custom made, but it has no brand on it anywhere, no labels at all in fact. It’s a really nice coat, all black, came wrapped in silk tissue and folded into a neat thirty-by-fifty rectangle just like our mom did the fitted sheets.”
The three of them nodded in creepy unison. I looked around in case I was being filmed for the townie version of Candid Camera.
“We honestly have no idea what to make of it. And it’s been sitting there in the back of the storage room since October of 2022,” Hayden said.
Hazel looked at me with bright eyes. “It would suit you perfectly. It’s all about the shoulders, you know.”
Harper nodded. “He’s right. The only question is, will you risk it?”
I sighed. “Guys, if you’re trying to drive up the price—”
“No, no,” the three of them said as one.
“We’d give it to you free of charge,” Harper said. “It’ll be good to be rid of it.”
I attempted a regal wave from the wrist. “Bring forth the cursed coat then.”
Which was how I ended up with a very nice knee-length black coat that had an inordinate number of pockets.
