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“It’s an old house, not a rectal exam.”
“Uh, mold. Rodent feces. How long has this place been sitting vacant?”
Penny tried to swallow the lump in her throat. Aunt Elsie’s body hadn’t been discovered for weeks. “A while—the will stuff was messy. It’s been a couple months.”
They walked toward the front door, painted blue many years ago to match the shutters. Garden gnomes smiled on either side of the lopsided concrete step and all along the side of the house, their bearded faces covered with fallen leaves and spiderwebs.
“I’ll hold Gus, while you peek in there,” said Kat. “What does he think he’s going to do with that giant log in his mouth?”
Penny found the house key in her pocket, tied to a pieceof hemp string and a bead. The front doorknob rattled and scraped as she forced the sticky bolt open.
Gus whined. She glanced over her shoulder at Kat, who was squatting in the driveway hugging the Great Dane. Kat’s feet slid across the bare dirt as Gus strained forward, tail whipping back and forth. Penny called to him to stay and sit. Gus compromised by quivering in place and barking.
The front door creaked, falling further open on its own. Kat’s eyes protruded from her face and her shoulders hunched up. Penny pushed the door in a couple more inches. It didn’t move far on the slanted floor.
She stuck a booted foot inside. “What’s that sound?” Penny leaned forward. She rotated back to Kat, opening her eyes wide. “Something’s moving around in there…”
Kat’s mouth gaped and she was breathing in short gasps. “Penny—wait…”
Penny leaned her body in again. She jumped and yelled, “Whoa—that thing’s huge.”
She jerked her foot forward and wrenched her body sideways. Then she grabbed the door frame with her hands, fingers straining to hold on while her body seemed to be tugged into the dark house.
Kat screamed and leaped up. Penny crossed her eyes and made gurgling sounds. Gus sprang forward, his massive body covering the distance to Penny in three leaps.
He pushed his head around Penny’s hip and barked into the house. She hopped over to block him, putting her foot down fast to stop one hundred and thirty pounds of determined dog, and grabbed his collar before he hurtled himself into the dark cluttered interior.
Gus knocked her over. She landed with her butt in a pile of trash. He licked her face, whining happily. Penny grinned.
“You”—Kat stomped up to the doorway and pointed atPenny—“Are a terrible person. How can you joke around at a time like this?”
Penny stood up and shook off the dust. Old candy bar wrappers fell off her dress. “It’s good to be bad. I’m totally fine with it.”
Hands on her hips, Kat said, “That monster dog put his filthy paws on me. This house is disgusting. And you lost his leash for the third time today.” She leaned forward and took Gus by the collar then pulled him back. “I’m not going in there until we have gloves.”
Penny nodded. “You’re going to want a hazmat suit and a respirator.”
“It looks pretty bad.”
“Yeah. I’ll do a quick walk through.”
Penny told Gus to sit and threatened to lock him in the wagon if he didn’t behave. His bottom hit the ground and he cocked his head at her.
She winked at Kat. “If I don’t make it out of there, my boot collection is yours.”
Kat sniffed. “You know the only ones I’d keep are the Frye’s.”
Penny rubbed her shoulder, staring through the open door at the piles of trash inside. “I wish Aunt Elsie had called somebody,” she said. “Nobody knew it had gotten this bad.”
Kat reached over and gave her a quick side-arm hug. “I’m so sorry. You okay?”
“I didn’t expect this.” She’d always liked Aunt Elsie, who had been a blunt-speaking no-nonsense woman, with a lot of pride.
“We can wait, you know, like, until after we get some gloves.”
Penny pushed her hair off her face. “I’ll see if I can spot her cat. The Humane Society haven’t been able to find her.”
The inside of the house reeked like rotting chicken anddirty gym socks. Judging by the plastic garbage bags piled up against the walls, it was possible that was exactly what she was smelling. She pulled her dress collar over her mouth.
