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A few minutes later, Jensen finished with the pond, and I moved into the living room so I could watch him get into his Bronco. A part of me wanted to go down there and tell him not to leave, but I was afraid. I hated the fact I was terrified of the unknown.
Why did I put up so many walls to protect myself? Doing so only resulted in me being scared that I might not find my way out from behind them. Groaning, I closed my eyes and rested my forehead on the cool windowpane.
What am I going to do?
16
EVERLEIGH
When I went to bed last night, I knew I wanted to do something different today. Both my parents had made comments about me visiting my father’s medical practice, and that was exactly what I was going to do. I needed to get away from the house for a while, even though I was tempted to search every nook and cranny for more secret compartments. I haven’t told my mother about the love letters, but I planned on doing it today and had placed the wooden box in the passenger seat of my car.
In a way, I was nervous to show them to her. Her loyalty was to her father, who clearly didn’t write the letters.
It only took a few minutes to get to my father’s office, and when I pulled into downtown Southport, I couldn’t help but smile. It was different from the massive hospital I worked at. The buildings and shops were all different colors, like a street of rainbows. My father’s clinic, Seaside Family Practice, was bright green with white trim and shutters. It was cheery and inviting, which helped a lot when scared sick kids would visit.
I pulled in behind the building and walked around to the front with the box of letters resting against my chest. Before going inside, I looked up and down the tourist-filled street. The last time I ventured into the bustling, cozy beach town, I ran into Michelle. So much has happened since then.
When I entered the office, I found my mother at the front desk. In one corner of the room, a woman and a young boy with tousled hair sat slumped in the chair, his hand clutching his abdomen as he leaned forward and rested his head against a trash can. A sense of protectiveness swarmed through me at the sight of him; I wanted to make him feel better.
“Everleigh,” my mother gasped, catching my attention.
I turned to see her eyes lit with excitement, but she was on the phone. She beckoned me over with a wave of her hand, her smile just like my grandmother’s.
Still holding the box in my arms, I walked through the door that led around to the office. My mother hung up the phone and stood, spreading her arms wide. I set the box down on the desk and hugged her hard.
“You finally made it by. Your father and I were wondering if you’d ever show up.” I let her go and she smiled wider. “Must be kind of hard to get away with Jensen being over at the house.”
“That is not what’s going on, Mom,” I said, laughing. “He’s been more of a pain than anything. At least until yesterday; he came over to clean the pond.”
She nodded. “Oh yeah, he used to do that every month. There was a long list of things your grandmother wanted done at that house.”
“Where is that list?” I asked. She bit her lip sheepishly, and it wasn’t hard to guess who had it. “Jensen has it. I should’ve known.”
My mother shrugged. “Hey, he was happy to take on the load. A lot of it was stuff your father doesn’t have the strength for.” She shook her head and snickered. “He’s not as young as he used to be.”
“I heard that,” he called out from behind us.
He walked into the office while a lady holding a little girl in her arms walked out the door so they could come around to the front of the desk to check out. My father gave my mother the little girl’s chart so she could send them on their way.
“It’s good to see you, pumpkin,” he said, kissing the top of my head. “You doing okay?”
One of his nurses called back the little boy from the waiting room, so I knew he didn’t have much time to socialize.
“I’m fine,” I said, hugging him tight. “I’ve missed coming in here.”
He laughed. “Well, I’ve missed you being here.” He patted my back and smiled. “I have to go, but I’ll see you later.”
Once he was gone and the waiting room was empty, I picked up the box and leaned against the desk, facing my mother. When she looked at it, she smiled.
“That’s really lovely. Where did you get it?”
Her comment answered the question in my mind . . . she must not have known about the letters, either.
I snorted. “I found it. Do you want to know where?”
Her head cocked to the side, her eyes bright with anticipation. “Where?”
I grinned. “Under the floor in Grammy’s room. My toe snagged on the edge of a floorboard, and it lifted up. When I tried to put it back in place, I couldn’t do so without shifting some of the others. That’s when I saw this,” I said, holding the box out to her, “covered in three inches of dust.”
