“I like him being out there.”
“Why? He’ll never see anything going on. You said he just closes the door and hides in there all night. Frankly, it’s a little creepy to know he was out there all that time, scaring Amelia with his light.”
“He has to come and go, doesn’t he?” Aidan said.
“So you think he’s the one creating all the mystery at night?” Kendall said.
“He didn’t plant the voodoo dolls,” Aidan told her.
“Honestly, Aidan, I know this is what you do for a living, but don’t you think people who do things like that—try that kind of scare tactic—are usually kind of frightened themselves? That they do things like that because they’re too scared to face the person they’re attacking.”
“Usually,” he agreed, his eyes on the road.
Usually.
She read the unspoken corollary. Usually—but not this time
She had been feeling more relaxed than she had all day; dinner had been easy, pleasant, natural.
But his comment had spooked her, and then, as they crested a slight rise, she saw the plantation.
It rose high and white in the moonlight, and there were lights on inside, so many that it should have looked warm and welcoming. But somehow, tonight, the place she had once loved looked like a cruel jack-o’-lantern.
Aidan parked in the drive, looking up. “I can’t believe what they’ve accomplished since this morning,” he said as he got out and reached into the back to take Kendall’s bag, then started up the steps. She quickly followed him, unwilling to be alone outside.
It hadn’t been that long ago that she had slept here most nights. After Amelia had died, she had been determined to leave everything as nice as she could. She had stripped off the old bedding, washed it and given it to the Salvation Army. She had purchased new sheets and new drapes, and she had scrubbed the bathroom and kitchen herself. She had never really known why, except that she didn’t want anyone coming in and saying that the place smelled musty or like a nursing home—or like death.
Inside, the floors were covered with plaster dust and there were white handprints on the banister. She could see that one of the hallway walls was freshly plastered and painted, and she imagined that most of the plumbing pipes had gone in behind it.
“They are working hard,” she said, as she looked around.
“Yeah, they’re trying to finish and get out as soon as possible. My brother wants to do something here for Halloween. I can hardly believe it, but I think they’ll be done in less than a week. They’ve got people coming in tomorrow and Sunday.”
“Amazing. I love my landlords, but I can’t get a drain un-clogged for a week,” Kendall told him.
He started up the stairs. “I was actually surprised to find that the bedroom was in such great shape. It was Amelia’s room, right?” He stopped and looked back at her. “Your work, I take it?” he asked with a smile. “Why? Amelia had died.”
“I just didn’t want anyone coming in and thinking badly of her.”
“Well, thanks. I had a comfortable sleep last night. While I slept.”
“I’m kind of glad of it now myself,” she said lightly.
She followed him up, thinking that the house felt strangely chilly, as if it wasn’t happy to have them there. She told herself not to be ridiculous, that it was a house, nothing more, and didn’t have any feelings about anything. Once upon a time, she reminded herself, she had loved it—especially the attic, filled with all Amelia’s family treasures.
Flynn family treasures, she corrected herself.
She wanted to ask him about the attic and whether they were tearing that apart, too. She felt indignant about the very possibility, then told herself again that it was no longer any business of hers and remained silent.
In the master bedroom, he set her bag down at the end of the bed. She saw that there were logs by the fire and more arranged on the hearth. She looked at him, and he shrugged a little sheepishly. “Zach has been spending most of the day out here, so when you agreed to come, I asked him to buy some logs and kindling.”
“Nice,” she said.
“There’s all kinds of stuff in the kitchen, too,” he said.
“Great.”
“And I have one of those little DVD players and some movies.”
“Do you really want to watch a movie?” she asked him softly.
He walked over to her, set his hands on her shoulders and met her eyes. “No.”