AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I looked at Steven now, potentially alone in the world, and I felt the rise of an unexpected emotion, one I didn’t feel very often.
Compassion.
I inclined my head toward the computer. “You fix that monstrosity, and I’ll see what I can find out about your sister.”
“Really?” Steven jumped out of the chair, knocking it backward in the process. “You have no idea how much I appreciate this.” He quickly bent down to straighten the chair.
“You can thank Nana Pratt. She drives a hard bargain.”
Steven smiled at the refrigerator. “Thank you, Nana. I always liked you better than Granny Higgins.”
“That isn’t saying much,” Nana Pratt said wryly.
Steven wandered over to the counter for a closer inspection of the computer. “Where’d you get this thing anyway? It looks older than Nana Pratt.”
“Mind your tongue, young man,” Nana said.
“I’ve had it for years,” I said vaguely. He didn’t need to know about the items I’d put in storage before I left for England. Now that we’d struck a deal, I was eager to have my house to myself again.
“I’ll need to come back another time with a few tools, if that’s okay.”
“Just text me when you’re ready. The odds are good I’ll be here.”
Steven couldn’t seem to stop grinning as we exchanged numbers. “I’m so grateful for your help, Miss Clay. Truly. I didn’t know what to expect when I came here, but you’re even better than I imagined.”
“Now he’s just kissing your ass,” Nana Pratt said with an amused shake of her head.
“You can go now,” I told them.
“Thanks again,” Steven said. He cast a hopeful look in my direction as he left the kitchen.
“I’ll make sure he gets to his car okay. Don’t need both my grandchildren going missing.” Nana Pratt sailed through the wall and disappeared.
I observed the empty chair where Steven had been seated. In six months, he was the only visitor I’d had, unless you counted deliveries. I didn’t mind. The whole point of choosing this house was its location. Ghostly neighbors I could handle; it was the living ones I tried to avoid. I’d mistakenly believed a big city like London would help me hide—the more people around, the less visible I’d be. It didn’t quite work out that way though, not when there were so many restless spirits there. I’d spent time in many historic cities, but living in London produced a whole host of issues that I grew weary of handling. I briefly considered moving to a desolate mountain range, but I figured the Poconos were good enough. I was close to the Delaware Water Gap, which was a nice feature for someone like me who liked to kayak and hike. Solitary endeavors. Those were all I wanted, the lifestyle that reminded me of Pops.
Once I finished my cup of tea, I wandered outside with a rectangular piece of plywood, a drop cloth, a small can of paint, and a brush.
“What are you doing?” Ray asked.
“New project.” I tossed the piece of wood on top of the cloth. Dipping the brush in the can of bright red paint, I wrote ‘No Trespassing.’ I was tempted to write ’Trespassers Will Be Tortured,’ but I didn’t want to draw the attention of local law enforcement.
“You’ve got a big property,” Ray said. “I don’t think one sign’s gonna do the job.”
I motioned to the pile of lumber. “I have plenty of wood.”
“Why not just get alligators for the moat and call it a day?”
“Now there’s an idea. Thanks, Ray.”
“Hey, I wasn’t being serious.”
Ignoring him, I crossed the small bridge that spanned the moat and hung the sign outside the gate. Nobody could say I didn’t warn them.
CHAPTER3
Painting kept my hands occupied the remainder of the day, leaving my mind free to wander. Instead of thinking about basic needs like what I wanted for dinner, I found myself thinking about Ashley.I’d been in her shoes. Adrift. Except I didn’t have a brother desperate to look out for me. At her age, I didn’t have anybody at all.
I rewarded myself for my manual labor with a cold IPA. I sat on the front porch with the bottle sweating next to my bare leg, observing the swath of orange that spread across the sky like an ink blot. The actual sunset was behind me to the west, a beautiful blend of pastel pinks and blues, but the more stunning view was to the east, in my opinion.
