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“But there was some question about all that. The other twin insisted that the handwriting was wrong and accused his twin brother of forging their brother’s signature. It tore the family apart. Each of them wanted a piece of the property, and they argued for quite some time before settling on selling it and splitting the profits. In the meantime, the twin who had helped their brother owned the house.”
“Whoa,” I said, sitting back as the story unfolded. “What happened then?”
“The twin reneged on selling the house,” she said. “He came up with a ton of rules and hoops that would have to be jumped through in order for someone to buy the house. They included silly things like the person who bought it had to have ties to Murdock within the last twenty years and certain architecture had to be restored by the buyer and certain pieces of artwork had to stay with the house. It was all too much, and on purpose. Eventually the rest of the family pushed him away and gave up on the property, and he moved away, leaving the home to fall into disrepair. We have offered countless times to send a crew up there and maintain it properly, but his only jobs for us are to keep the lawn mowed and the electricity and water running. Nothing else.”
“Does anyone know where he lives?” I asked.
“Just that he is not in Murdock,” she said. “There have to be records somewhere, but they would be confidential.”
“I see,” I said.
“It’s been so long,” she continued, “and no one has been by to see anything or take any action. The bills get paid automatically. There is a rumor that all of them are dead now. They were older when all this went down, and that was years ago.”
“Crazy,” I said. “Well, I won’t take up any more of your time.”
“Of course,” she said, straightening herself up and seemingly remembering she was supposed to be a professional. “Do you want to see any of our other properties? We have a lovely house just a few blocks from that one.”
“No, thank you,” I said, cutting off her spiel. “Thank you again for the information.”
“Of course,” she said, disappointed.
As I walked out, I pulled out my phone, taking it off do not disturb. I had a couple of messages, and I smiled. It was the group chat between the boys and me. I opened it up as I got in the truck and rolled the windows down.
I had struggled with what to tell them about Allison. Graham and Caden had met her already, and I figured they could tell how much I liked her then. They would have told me if there was something that worried them about her, but every time I mentioned her, they had nothing but glowing things to say. But Mark and Victor were still question marks. Victor was bitter about women anyway, so I was pretty sure he would douse cold water on me if I brought her up, but I had to anyway. I needed advice.
Hey guys, I typed. I need some help.
What’s up? Mark replied.
There’s this girl, I typed.
Allison, both Graham and Caden typed almost immediately.
Yes, I responded, with a laughing emoji. I don’t really know how I am supposed to do all this.
Are you insane? Graham responded not long after. She’s great, man. Do you have feelings for her?
There was a pause as everyone waited for my response. The silence itself was kind of a response. I knew what the answer was but typing it out was admitting it. Putting it out in the world, for better or for worse. If I said it, especially to them, there was no turning back. But that was the point, wasn’t it? I wanted them to tell me to go for it. I wanted them to know how I felt about her.
I started to respond, and felt a giant weight lifted off my shoulders as I did.
14
ALLISON
Things were starting to shape up around the house in a way that I never imagined, at least as fast as they had. In just a few short weeks, the floors had been redone, a few walls knocked down and one replaced, cabinets and closets built out of whole cloth, fixtures replaced, entire tubs switched out, rooms painted—the list went on. There was so much done that it was almost unrecognizable from what it had been, and in many way was starting to feel like it had when my grandparents had lived in it. With every decision, it was like I could feel them guiding me.
The dining room reflooring had been a big job, and an expensive one at that. But with Ryan’s help, it was done, and now I felt like we should celebrate. The last few days, we had been so tired when we went to bed that we just cuddled up and passed out. I missed him, and I knew he missed me. The morning wood was hard to deny, but the last few days there was always something that kept me from staying and enjoying it.
