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Anna-Beth bent down and stroked the dogs. “Are you okay for me to walk them?”
“Do you mind me coming along as well? I feel the need to stretch my legs. I don’t get enough exercise.”
“I’d love the company.” Rix had a great deal of affection for Elizabeth. Out of all of the neighbors, she’d been the most welcoming. Everyone gave a wave and smiled, saying morning or evening, but Elizabeth actually made conversation. Rix talked often about having a full-on street barbeque but so far, they hadn’t tried to draw everyone together.
With the dogs on leads, they made their way out of her yard and headed toward one of the fields that Anna-Beth hadn’t known was there.
“How are you finding it here, sweetheart?” Elizabeth asked.
“I love it. I’ve got a good job. I love my house.”
“And how are you finding Rix?”
“He’s a good guy.”
“You’re both at that stage where you don’t believe, am I right? You think I’m a little old to be telling stories.”
She laughed. “I don’t think that at all. You’re not the first person to tell me about the cursed houses. A colleague did.” They were still waiting on some information about the previous owners. She wasn’t entirely happy about the thought of invading other people’s lives, but this had to be farfetched.
“You lived in the city, didn’t you, before coming here?” Elizabeth asked.
“Yeah. It’s two different worlds, that’s for sure.” She shivered at the memory of the gun.
“What about family?”
“Both of my parents passed away a couple of years ago. I don’t have any family. It’s just me.”
“Oh, honey, I’m so sorry.”
“It’s fine.” She thought about Rix. He’d been a family to her in the short time they’d been together. “What about you?”
“Don’t talk about me.” She waved her hand in the air.
The field was a huge open space.
“You can let them off the lead now. They will go crazy and run all over.”
Anna-Beth did as instructed and watched the dogs run. She laughed as she put her hands on her hips.
“You know, you remind me a little of myself when I was your age,” Elizabeth said.
“I do?”
“Yeah. You’ve got your life all mapped out. You know what you want but at the same time, you’re afraid to go get it. I understand. You’ve had heartbreak and you’ve been scared as well. It can cause anyone to want to take a step back from life. I get it. Believe me.” Elizabeth sighed. “This life, Anna-Beth, we only get one. Even eighty years, it sounds like a long time, but in reality, it’s not. Time flies, and we don’t get enough time to do everything. Don’t live your life with regrets.”
“I don’t understand,” she said.
“You do understand, you’re just afraid. Don’t be afraid. Live your life without regrets.” Elizabeth took her hand, holding it. “Whatever happens with Rix, embrace it. Don’t think, just allow your feelings to take over.”
She laughed.
The dogs each brought back a stick and she kept throwing them. When the dogs came back without the sticks and looked ready to call it a day, she put them back on the lead, and they started to make their way back to Elizabeth’s house. She declined a drink, wanting to get washed and changed for Rix’s return.
She invited Elizabeth around for lunch for the next day and as she got to the edge of the road to cross over for her own home, she came to a stop.
There was a limousine parked outside the house.
She tensed up.
Stepping across the road, she tried to ignore the car and the men.
The car door opened up as she got to her front door.
“Excuse me,” a man said as she slid the key into the lock.
Turning toward him, she saw he wore a suit, and there was ink just visible around his neck.
“Yes?” she said. She felt the first wave of panic rush over her.
“I don’t suppose you know who lives here?” He pointed at Rix’s house.
“No, I don’t.” She turned the key, stepping into her home. Just as she was about to close the door, he was there again.
“I think you’re lying,” the man said. He’d followed her up her small drive.
There was something about him that set her on edge. She didn’t know what it was, and she didn’t care for it or the feelings that swept over her.
“I don’t know who you think you are, but you need to step off my property and leave before I call the cops.”
The man smirked. “And what makes you think they’ll come running?”
She knew Rix was an MC president. He’d never lied to her, even about his time locked away, but this, this was the reality of the kind of business he was mixed up in. She was terrified. He wasn’t even here.
Pushing against her front door, she tried to close it, but the man stopped her, inserting his foot. He must have been wearing some decent shoes because he didn’t show any sign of being hurt and she pressed against the door.
