Past Midnight. Mara Purnhagen

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СКАЧАТЬ nap. I must have slept for a little while because I remembered dreaming about a dark-haired girl reading a book. She was wearing a long, old-fashioned dress as she sat against a tree, and I had the distinct impression that it was the same tree where Annalise and I had eaten lunch a month before. It was just a brief vision, but the image of the girl slowly turning the pages of her book stayed in my head until we arrived at our new house.

      Both Mom and Dad sat in the van staring at the place we’d call home for the next ten months. It was so new the front yard hadn’t been seeded yet. We’d be the first people to live in it. That thought alone made me smile.

      “Who’s got the keys?” I asked from the backseat. I couldn’t wait to look around and claim my bedroom.

      I nearly skipped to the front door while my parents slowly followed. Dad tossed me the keys and I stepped inside. Sunlight poured in from the bare windows.

      “Smells like new carpet,” I said happily.

      “Smells like cheap carpet,” Dad grumbled behind me.

      Mom looked around at the taupe walls and white trim and brown doors. “This place has absolutely no personality,” she announced. “I bet the interior of every house on this street looks exactly the same.”

      “That would make sense,” Dad said. “All of the exteriors look exactly the same.”

      I wasn’t going to allow their sour mood to affect my jubilant one. I ran upstairs, peeking into each of the three bedrooms until I decided on a room overlooking the backyard. It was smaller than the master, but it had more windows and a decent closet. I sat on the pristine carpet, leaned back on my arms and closed my eyes. This would be my room for at least one full school year. I couldn’t believe my luck—or Annalise’s ultimatum.

      After her second experience at the Courtyard Café, Annalise retreated to her campus apartment and refused to speak to our parents for a few days. They seemed upset by her reaction, but they were too busy examining video footage and planning their next investigation to really do anything about it. They weren’t prepared when Annalise showed up at their hotel room demanding a family meeting.

      “Family meetings” were rare for us. Usually it meant my parents were going to announce the next city we’d be living in. My dad tried to take control right away.

      “I know we need to discuss certain things,” he began, “but I’d like to set a few ground rules first.”

      Annalise stopped him. “I have only one ground rule. You need to listen to me without interrupting for five minutes. Then you can say whatever you want.”

      My sister had never been so assertive. She meant business, and my parents knew it. They nodded and Annalise took a deep breath. She told them that she had always participated in their projects enthusiastically, but she would no longer do so unless they agreed to a few new conditions.

      “What kind of conditions?” Mom asked warily.

      Annalise reminded her of the five-minute rule, and Mom pretended to zip her mouth shut and throw away the key.

      “First, I’m taking a year off from helping with any of your research.”

      Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Dad stiffen. I had overheard enough conversations during the past few days to know that he wanted to focus completely on the findings from the Courtyard Café, which had produced readings beyond their expectations. Instead of compiling all of the Charleston locations into one television special, he planned to dedicate a full hour just to the restaurant—and Annalise. He wanted to go back, and he needed her to go with him.

      “Second, I will return to that place only in my own time, when I feel that I’m ready.” Annalise looked directly at Dad when she said this. He sighed.

      “Third, I want the three of you to stay in one place this year. Same town, same house, same school for Charlotte.”

      I don’t know who was more surprised by the third condition: me or my parents. Annalise and I hadn’t discussed “changing things” since our conversation in Charleston, which I thought was merely my sister venting. I honestly didn’t think she would take action.

      Before anyone could respond to her request, Annalise held up her hand.

      “I know that may sound strange. But I have my reasons, if you’ll just hear me out.”

      She went on to explain that college had proved to her how important it was to have some stability in her life. She had loved traveling when we were kids, but part of her always wanted to stay in one place longer, to make friends and join teams and just generally be a part of something.

      “You were part of something,” Dad protested. “You were a part of our crew.”

      “Are you saying we’ve been terrible parents?” asked Mom, her brow furrowed with worry.

      “I’m saying that I want Charlotte to have a chance at something a little more normal.” She smiled at me. “And no, I don’t think you’re terrible parents.”

      Mom and Dad were obviously perplexed. Dad said he had always thought traveling was the best education you could get.

      Mom turned to me. “Is this what you want, Charlotte? Are you unhappy?”

      It was strange how quickly the conversation had turned. I fidgeted nervously.

      “It would be really nice if we could stay somewhere for a year,” I said. “I think I’d like that.”

      Over the next few days, my parents seemed to forget about their research as they tried to come up with a plan that would make us all happy. They found a small town about two hours north of Charleston with a good school system. They planned trips to nearby cities with locations they could easily drive to. All that was left was to buy a house. That’s when I stepped in.

      “I have one condition of my own,” I told them. They were looking up homes for sale online, and every picture on the screen showed some kind of dark Victorian. They weren’t thrilled when I told them I wanted to live in a new house, but in the end, they agreed.

      “We’re doing this for you,” Dad said with a shrug. “Might as well go all the way.”

      Mom smiled. “We’re doing this for all of us,” she said, touching Dad’s hand. “We want everyone on our team to be happy.”

      That was how I ended up sitting on the clean, brand-new floor of my clean, brand-new bedroom at the beginning of August. I was enjoying the empty space and the sun on my face when Mom came upstairs.

      “I see you’ve claimed a room,” she said, sitting down next to me.

      “Isn’t it perfect?” I asked. “I’ve always wanted something like this.”

      “Well, I’m glad. This house may not have much personality, but it certainly has a lot of light.”

      “I could sunbathe right here,” I joked.

      Mom patted my knee. “Enjoy. Then come downstairs. We have a lot of unpacking to do.”

      I groaned. Unpacking was the worst part about moving, especially since my parents always insisted we do it ourselves. СКАЧАТЬ