Haunting at Remington House. Laura V. Keegan

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СКАЧАТЬ style="font-size:15px;">      “Are you okay, Mrs. Harrison? You hired me to bring you to town. You told me not to tell anyone either. I dropped you off in front of that building across the street.” He pointed to the office of Kranston and Rivers. “Did something happen? Should I call Sara?”

      “Why in the world would I want you to call Sara? Get in, Joe. I need to get home. Now! Get this piece of junk you call a car moving.”

      Joe got in, started the car and hit the gas. Vivian’s face reflected in the rear view mirror. Joe was amazed. She was smiling. She’s going psycho on me. He’d warn Sara next time he saw see her. The woman needed therapy. He gunned the car and sped down the street. He wanted her out of his cab as soon as possible and, if it meant getting a speeding ticket, fine.

      When they neared the driveway to the Harrison property, Vivian said, “Let me out by the side of the house where you picked me up. Remember, this is our secret, Joe. Here’s a little something extra—so you don’t forget.” She handed him a fifty dollar bill. “And this is for the ride.” She handed him another fifty.

      “Keep it, Mrs. Harrison. Don’t need it. I told you I wouldn’t tell anyone I took you to town. I always keep my word.” She took back one of the fifties, refused the second. Joe wanted to tell her that her secret was already out, but he wouldn’t. Sara and Tom didn’t need the aggravation.

      Vivian looked quickly around making certain no one would see her. She opened the door slowly, then ran up the back stairs and into her room. After throwing her purse and coat into her closet she lay down on the bed and closed her eyes.

      Half an hour later, Vivian woke up. She looked around, puzzled. Something didn’t seem right. A vague memory of being in Joe’s taxi surfaced. Just a dream. At least her headache was gone. She got up and went to see what her sons were doing.

      Chapter 31

      The next several days were spent in preparation for the arrival of Tom’s family. Mary Stevens was helping Nell and Nell’s two nieces, Linda and Gwenn, with some general cleaning. Windows needed washing. Furniture needed rearranging. Floors needed waxing. A household of chores needed to be done so Cassie could relax when she got here. Tom knew Cassie well—if anything needed doing, she would take over. He didn’t want that, he wanted her to have a restful vacation. Besides, Nell and the girls had happily stepped up.

      While the women took care of the inside, Tom and Joe worked together on the outside, a needed break for Tom. “Heard any more from Nate?” Joe asked, his ax poised in midair as he prepared to chop more wood.

      “Yeah, I talked to him last night. I guess he’s not going to make it up here for at least a few weeks. Until he can get around easily, he’s going to stay in Jamestown and work from our office there.”

      “Sounds reasonable. You said your attorney is there, too?”

      “Yes, his office is there but it’s on a different floor of the Werner Building. It’ll actually be good for me not to have to deal with the businesses very much while Cassie’s here. I’d like to relax with her and her family for a while. I’d like to spend some time planning the remodel. I want to get the gym built and start plans for remodeling the third floor. Think you have enough time to supervise the work, Joe?”

      “You bet. Timing’s perfect for me. What are you planning for the upstairs?” Joe asked. “I don’t think you mentioned that before.”

      “I’d like to put an office up there. And Nate will need space for his living quarters. I was thinking there’s enough room that we can have a guest suite for Cassie and Michael when they visit. I hope she’ll like it here and want to come often, kind of a home-away-from-home. Michael travels a lot, so it would make sense that she could have part of the upstairs to call her own. We’ll see. Either way, I want to make it pretty comfortable in the attic. Think we can get it done by late spring? Then maybe Cassie could stay up there this summer.”

      “Shouldn’t be a problem,” Joe said. “I’ll get with Walt James; he’s an architect I used in New York. He loves old houses. He’s the most knowledgeable and experienced guy I know. He’s the one we need to draw up the attic plans. Maybe we can get him out here after the holiday. I’ll give him a call.” Joe brought the ax down with a whoosh, splitting the wood effortlessly.

      Tom picked up the pieces and threw them onto the pile. “Mind if I give it a try?”

      Joe handed him the ax. Tom raised the blade. Making an arc over his head, he quickly swung the ax down into the log, grinning as the wood flew onto the ground in two perfect pieces. “Always wanted to do that. Very empowering isn’t it?”

      The men spent several hours chopping and stacking wood. Neither saw Sara come from behind the house. She hollered and waved to get their attention. “You guys sure are working hard. I’m impressed. There’s enough wood cut to last for months. Tom, I need to talk to you.”

      “I’ll finish up here,” Joe said, slamming the ax blade into a log. “Go on. I have to get back to town in a while. I’ll see you later this afternoon.”

      “What’s up?” Tom asked, taking Sara’s hand in his.

      “I wanted to talk to you about Jimmy. Billy’s giving him such a hard time, worse than usual. His friend Alan was going to come for the week, but he changed his mind. Billy is seething. I wondered if you could find anything for Jimmy to do around here to get him away from his brother. Vivian always sides with Billy. So unfair.”

      “What about their dad? Isn’t he supposed to be here?”

      “He was, but I guess he isn’t even going to make it for Thanksgiving. So there’s nothing much going Jimmy’s way right now,” Sara said. “His dad, when he’s around, is fair and doesn’t take sides, but he’s hardly been around these past few months. In fact, Vivian said William left for Amsterdam this morning. She doesn’t know when he’ll be back.”

      “Cassie’s daughter might be the solution. She’ll be the perfect excuse for Jimmy to hang out here. She’s eight, so they should have a lot in common. Lizzie is an only child—having someone to play with will be her dream come true. They’ll be here tomorrow night. How’s that sound?”

      “I’m sure that will be great. But I meant today. Jimmy is miserable. Anything you could have him do around here?”

      “Hey, Joe?” Tom hollered. “Any chance you could use a hand this afternoon? Jimmy needs to get away from Billy and his mom.” Tom and Sara crossed the yard to where Joe was covering the wood stack.

      “Hmm. Well I guess he could ride with me into town. Don’t have anything for him to do, but he could hang out with me. Think that would be okay?”

      Sara hugged Joe. “Let me call him. I bet he‘ll be thrilled. He likes you so much. Thanks, Joe.” She made a phone call on her cell. “Vivian said yes!”

      After Jimmy and Joe had gone, Sara and Tom made a fire in Tom’s study, away from the hustle of the household. “I feel much better now. Thanks for being understanding about Jimmy.”

      “You have any idea why Vivian’s so hard on him?”

      “Sadly I do. Or I think I do. Jimmy was unplanned. I think Vivian knew she wasn’t cut out for the parenting thing. Billy was a handful, so when she had to take on the responsibility of two kids, it was too much. She loves them, СКАЧАТЬ