The garage is called Cole Auto Repair. It’s not really mine in the way people think. I still owe on the lease, on the old lift I bought second-hand, and on a small bank loan I took just to keep the lights on. But it’s the only thing I’ve ever built with my own hands.
I started working on cars when I was 18. Never went to college, never learned how to talk fancy. I just know what an engine sounds like when it’s about to give out, and I know how to fix it before it strands someone on the side of the road.
Three months ago, everything started falling apart.
A development company called Harrington Properties bought the entire block where my garage sits. They want to tear it down and put up a small retail center with coffee shops and a gym.
I’m the last tenant who hasn’t signed away the lease. My contract still has more than a year left, so they can’t just kick me out. But they don’t want to pay what they owe, either.
Their lawyer sent papers claiming I violated the lease by causing noise and affecting property values. It’s all made up.
Now they’re suing me in civil court to break the lease early and make me pay their legal fees.
