Page 84 of Manors & Mischief

“Just the woman I was talking about,” Devon’s mom says.

I give her a smile, then peer at Nichols. I walk forward. “Here’s the proposal for the haunted house.”

“I don’t appreciate the calls I’ve received this morning, Miss O’Malley.”

“What calls?”

“Calls from Harvest Falls citizens.”

I peer over at the mayor for context because I simply have no idea what he’s talking about. She just laughs. “You know this town. Or you should know. They see something they don’t like, they don’t mind bending your ear about it.” She turns back toward Nichols. “No one liked that you came in and shut down a completely harmless haunted house for children in the middle of the festivities.”

“I was doing my job.”

“There’s a case to be made that says otherwise.”

Nichols sighs, and clearly, I have walked in on them discussing the manor. “I never told anyone to call you,” I tell Nichols. “I’ve written up the proposal as requested.” The next words slip out unintentionally but fighting for the manor is so ingrained in me at this point that I can’t keep them back. “I would appreciate a swift response.”

Just yesterday, I thought the worst of my problems involved figuring out how to make this right with the people who purchased tickets, but now I’m on the brink of abandoning them all together. I’ll have to stay until I see this through no matter what Nichols decides.

“I will get to it as soon as I can.”

“Thank you.”

I turn to walk away, but the mayor calls my name. I heave out a breath, knowing she wants to talk about Devon and hoping I have enough strength to keep my wits about me to do so. When I stop, she tells Nichols, “We’re not through with our conversation, but I’ll leave you enough time to go through the proposal, and then I’ll be right back in here.”

I smirk a little at that because if that isn’t Mayor Lachey, then I don’t know what is. She’s like a beautifully decorated cupcake filled with determination and spunk.

Mrs. Lachey comes up behind me and loops her arm through mine. She leads me into the hallway and then into her office where she lets me go and sits, taking off her jacket and hanging it on a rack in the corner.

“Devon is home. He has strict orders to not bear any weight on his leg, but he’s home.”

I don’t know why she’s telling me this. She must know what happened at the hospital earlier, either from Devon himself or she would’ve guessed when she saw me come running out of the place. “That’s good to hear.”

“I feel like it’s not my place to interfere in anything Devon and you have, but I just want to say that he’s not in the best place right now.”

I agree, but I really don’t want to hear excuses. My own mind can conjure them up, but that doesn’t mean it makes anything right. “I know.”

She nods like she’s fixed everything between us. Relief washes over her, and I realize she thinks we’re okay. That everything will be fixed as soon as he comes around, but I’m hurt. I’m mad. The trust that we had is shaky at best and all but gone at its worst. I clear my throat, feeling the emotion come up before I can even get the words out. “I feel like I should tell you that I am fighting the preposterous decision by Code Enforcement, but I’m just doing it for the next owner. In all probability, I’ll be selling the manor.”

All the life washes from her face. For the first time since I’ve known her, she’s speechless. She blinks as if she can’t even comprehend what I’ve just said.

Because she isn’t saying anything, I feel forced to speak for the both of us. “I’ve just come to the conclusion that I can’t count on income from the manor if I’m being blocked whenever I try to do something. It makes the investment risky and unstable. I love the house. I love what it means to me and to others. I even love Harvest Falls, but for once, I’m going to do things the smart way and cut my losses before I really sink myself in too deep. As it stands, I already owe fines I can’t pay back, and to think I could be charged with more is just more than I can bear.”

Her mouth moves but no sound comes out. Her eyes flick all over the place as if a hundred different thoughts are going through her brain right now. “B-but Devon.”

“Devon made up his mind already, and I prefer not to put stock in someone who can change his mind so rapidly.”

“Ember.”

Before another word can come out of her mouth, I cross the distance between us and hug her. I hug her for the way she accepted me. For the way she fought for me. I hug her for all the work she does for Harvest Falls and the way she loves this town. It truly was a treat to live here, and one I won’t readily forget.

But as I hug her, I know it’s the right decision. It’s about time I started making decisions with my brain instead of my heart.

“Don’t worry, I’ll stick around and figure out what to do about the haunted house. If he approves, I’ll keep the haunted house open. If he denies, I’ll issue refunds as quickly as possible.”

I give her one last squeeze and then leave the office. I don’t know how much more of this I can take. It’s been an emotionally taxing day.

The halls of the town offices narrow until I exit out the glass door. I step outside, and the breeze lifts my hair. I take a deep breath of fresh air.