“I am sorry you are using that description, sir, but, yes…. I was hoping to raise my child in this loving home.”
“I am afraid that will not be possible, Amberly. Our beliefs will just not allow that. You are not a child yourself any longer, and it is time you began to take responsibility for your decisions. I am afraid that pre-marital sexual relations are just not acceptable behaviour under this roof. Do I need to read you what the scriptures of God have to say on this matter?”
Amberly just hung her head and sighed. She shook her head subtly back and forth. As bad as this moment was, the last thing she needed right then was to have some Bible verses quoted to her.
“We took you in as a baby, Amberly. We fed you. We clothed you. We put a safe roof over your head. We tried to raise you in a good Christian environment. Apparently, it was all for naught. We are too old to begin again with another baby, even if it was conceived in the approving sight of God. Your mother is still weak from her illness. We just do not have the means, even if we approved.”
Amberly was suddenly more frightened and fearful than she had ever been in her life. She was being banished, it would seem. She had violated her parents’ laws of mortality and good Christian behaviour, she guessed, and now this was to be the end of the line with them. She had no idea what she was to do or where she was to go, but she did know one thing: she was keeping this child. She did not know all the details of how she had come to be in the care of her foster parents, but she knew that she had been abandoned as a baby. There was no way she was doing that to her child.
“You have thirty days, Amberly. Thirty days to find yourself a new place to live and a way to support yourself and your……child…. I think that is fair, under the circumstances.”
Amberly flinched at the caustic edge of sarcasm that was in her father’s tone as he spat out the word “child”. Having this sudden deadline looming was bad enough, but the disdain in his voice over her unborn child made her angry. If this is how Christians behave, Amberly thought to herself, then she now knew why she had never embraced the faith. There was to be no discussion. Amberly thanked herself for having had the foresight to save the money she had so far earned through her various jobs since finishing high school. It looked as if she would now need every cent she had horded.
She did not say another word to either of her parents after that day. She felt discarded and ostracized by her father, and her mother had just vanished. She did, however, look deep within herself and found the strength to move on. She had no idea where this came from, but it was there all the same. She talked to some of her friends in town, who filled her in on those programs available through various social service organizations that could help her financially as well as emotionally and physically, as she faced this crisis. Helen Wicker, her social services counsellor, helped her find a great job as a receptionist at a local auto sales company downtown. The owners were very understanding and sensitive to her situation, and it was the best employment situation she had had since leaving school.
They had arranged to help her out once her baby arrived, and Helen was working closely with her in finding suitable subsidized housing based on her unique situation. The one bright spot of having had her parents reject her was that she had lots of time to work before the baby arrived. She and Helen had looked at many small apartments, but none of them felt right to Amberly as she looked each one over. On many of their drives around the area, Amberly and Helen passed the same small but charming little cottage-like house, set back from the road in a natural cove of mature trees, just south of town from where Amberly was working.
“Helen…. what about that place?” Amberly asked as they passed the small house after yet another unsatisfactory apartment viewing.
“Back there on Beech?” Helen asked as she slowed for the light ahead of them as it turned from yellow to red.
Amberly nodded as she looked back through the rear window of Helen’s car.
“It’s a whole house, Amberly. I am not sure you could afford it.”
“Could we at least look? It’s so cute!”
Helen had her doubts, but she shrugged and made a U-turn as soon as the light turned green. They doubled back to Beech Drive and coasted into the gravel drive that curved in front of the white wooden structure. Helen had to admit that it was really cute. It was not as large as she had remembered it from having passed by it all those times, and even if Amberly could not afford the rent there, she was curious to see the inside of it for herself. She dialled the number on the rental sign that was out front, and the agent agreed to meet them right away, since she was just leaving for the day and it was on her way home.
The agent opened the door for them and let Amberly wander through the place while she and Helen chatted. It was small as houses went, and actually had about the same square footage as a lot of the apartments that she and Amberly has been looking at. Helen was quite impressed at what was there. Both bedrooms were small, but it seemed a perfect size for Amberly and her new daughter—Amberly had found out just that morning that she was to have a baby girl. The rest of the place was designed as a large open area combining a living area, a dining area and a galley-style kitchen off to one side. Not anything fancy, but immaculately pristine. And the bonus was two-fold: no real neighbours to speak of and a sizeable grassy lot behind the house, accessible through a sliding door from the kitchen. A narrow path led from the kitchen door, passed under an archway of trees and then opened up into the grassy field.
Helen hated to think what the rent on such a place might be, but Amberly seemed so thrilled that she let her have her moment before filling her in on the price she was sure would accompany it. Helen talked quietly with the agent as Amberly wandered out back to see the open field.
“What’s the deal on this place? Seems like it’s been empty for a while.”
“For about four months now. Last tenants left in the middle of the night. No explanation. Forfeited their security deposit, too. No idea what happened. No forwarding address either. They left the state.”
“Seems like such a cute place. Great setting. Quiet. No neighbours. I hate to think what the rent is. Just hate to have my client crushed when she finds out. She seems quite taken with it.”
“I agree with all of that except the rent. We are just not getting much serious interest since the last renter. People have come and looked but all have left without any follow up calls or anything. The owner, who lives out of the area just wants to get it filled. Here is what we are asking now.”
The agent handed Helen a sheet that they had been using for advertising. Helen was taken aback at the figure.
“That’s it? For this place?”
“As I said, the owner just wants it filled and to be getting some income off of it. He has run into some cash flow problems in some of his speculative investments and he is a bit pinched. I am sure I was not to disclose that, but oh well……”
“This girl is one of my clients down at the County Social Services Department. It’s a long story, but she is getting financial help due to her situation. Would this place by any chance qualify for a DR8 housing subsidy?”
“Actually it does. It just falls under the square footage and just within the geographic boundaries for that program.”
“Wow. I tell you…. I would take it myself if I needed a place. It’s lovely.”
The rental agent just smiled, but did not comment. She had already said too much. Just as they finished talking, Amberly returned from her exploration of the grounds behind the kitchen.
“Helen! I just love it! It’s perfect! Just the right size, and so quiet and isolated from any real noise from town. And that field out back! My little girl would love playing there! Any chance the rent is not over the top?”
The rental agent handed her the marketing flyer and Amberly’s eyes flew wide open. She looked up and Helen who mentioned that the housing subsidy available to her was also applicable here, so it would actually be a better deal for her than any of the
apartments she had seen so far.
“Seems like a sign, Helen……I just get this feeling that I am supposed to live here. It just feels so right! Where do I sign and when can I move in?”
Unadoptable
Amberly and Helen met with the agent at her office the next morning, after a final walk-through of the house. Helen double checked on the SR8 program requirements for 764 Beech Drive, and sure enough it qualified. The agent had seemed suddenly reserved and closed-mouthed about the property as they began the paperwork, but Helen thought no more of it. She was sure she was just reading something into the situation, that was not there. Amberly was thrilled and she was relieved that she had finally helped her find something and had her settled, as Amberly’s delivery date was looming ever closer on the horizon. On another positive note, the former tenants had left in such a rush that they had left most of their furnishings, which would help Amberly considerably.
The furnishings were basic, but seeing as how her finances would be stretched thin once the baby arrived, Helen was appreciative. There had been no mention of any extra fees for the stuff left behind. Again, Helen thought this odd, but she just let it go. Must have been an emergency of some sort, she guessed, to make the departure so hasty. In the end, it was a bonus that Amberly could well count her blessings for. She would have no phone for a while and obviously no car—the house was just off the bus line that ran by her job, so every little bit helped as she prepared for her new baby.
Helen dropped by the car dealership on the Friday afternoon that Amberly was to move into her new place, to give her the keys and offer her a ride home. It would have been impossible to erase the huge smile from Amberly’s face as she took the keys and climbed into Helen’s car, but there was something about this that was just not sitting right with Helen. She herself had been through the social services system as a young child, so she was naturally overprotective of her clients. Maybe she was just worrying too much. She kept thinking back to her rough start and bad experiences when she was Amberly’s age…. maybe that was it. But there was something else…. the rental agent had just seemed abruptly secretive and guarded about the place. And that story about a cash flow problem…. something about that did not feel quite right to Helen.
She pulled up to the house and followed Amberly to the front door, letting her client lead her into the large open space that served as a living and dining area. She remembered how special it had been to her to have her first real place, and she was sure Amberly would always remember this moment. Helen thought back. Amberly had not been physically abused as Helen had at her age, but the situation otherwise was eerily similar. Amberly stopped in her tracks as she made her way through the front door, and her hands flew to her mouth as she gasped.
Helen stood back and let her have her moment. On the kitchen island stood a large bouquet of roses interspersed with baby’s breath, with a card attached. Amberly looked at Helen who just shrugged innocently. She sat quietly on the sofa as Amberly gently opened the card to read the message that Helen had included to be sent with the flowers. She turned to face her counsellor, and wiped away a single tear.
“You shouldn’t have, Helen. The note is beautiful and the flowers are lovely as well. Thank you so much. For everything.”
Helen stood as Amberly ran to her and hugged her warmly. Helen felt her own eyes tear up as she held her client tightly.
“You are more than welcome. It was not so long ago I was in your shoes. I remember how this feels. Just a little something to brighten up your new place.”
Amberly walked her to the door and hugged her one last time as they said good night.
“Call me anytime if you need anything or have any questions I can help you with. Your casefile will remain open until you are on your feet. It was a pleasure working with you, Amberly. And if you need help with your little girl, I am always available— and not in an official capacity. This is on me on a personal level. Take care, honey.”
Amberly stood at the door and watched as Helen got behind the wheel. She waved as she drove off and Amberly closed the door, feeling alone, but good. She might be starting out a bit roughly, but she felt confident and optimistic as she walked back into her own place. My own place! It was a comforting thought after all the rancour and anxiety that she had just gone through.
………
Several months passed without incident. One Saturday morning, Amberly went to the kitchen and poured herself a mug of freshly brewed tea before ambling to an old reclining chair that had been left behind by the former tenants. She sat down and leaned back as she popped out the leg rest. Until her daughter was born, she was being extra careful about what she ate and drank. Coffee was definitely off the list for now, but the green tea that her obstetrician had recommended was beginning to grow on her. She let the blessed calm and quiet of her new place wash over her as she sipped on the drink.
She had tried contacting her mother a few times since she had left home just to thank her for everything that had been done for her over the years, and to let her know she was okay. But all her calls and efforts had gone unanswered. She knew there was no point in trying this with her father, but she was hoping she could circumvent him to get to her mother. It was likely, she reasoned, that he might be intercepting her messages and that her mother had no way of knowing that Amberly had been trying to make contact. Give it some time, she thought…. maybe just too soon….
She closed her eyes and exhaled as she let the events of the last couple of weeks fade away. An odd sound caught her ear from the kitchen, and she came back to the present. At first, she thought it might be the wind blowing through the trees that enclosed the house, but as she looked out the window she saw that there was absolutely no breeze blowing. The tree branches were still and immobile. She listened again, and waited a few minutes and sure enough there was the sound again. It could have been the house settling, she guessed……she had heard of such a thing, but it seemed like it was more localized.
Amberly cocked her head as the sound repeated yet again, and sure enough it was coming from around the corner in the kitchen where she did not have a clear view. It was an insistent creaking sound, like a squeaky hinge that needed oiling. It was not constant, but was coming in regular intervals and Amberly could no longer hold her curiosity at bay. She set her mug on the table by the chair, disengaged the leg rest and slowly made her way into the kitchen as she followed the sound. She rounded the blind corner and looked up to find that every cabinet door on the wall that had been hidden from her view, was standing open. Not just slightly ajar, but wide open like someone had been putting things away and had just forgotten to close them.
She had indeed been in the cabinets just the evening before, filling them with things she had picked up from the store, but she was sure she had closed them all when she had finished. They were all closed when she had gone to bed the night before…. weren’t they? She had laughed along with a few of her female co-workers that week as they teased her about how she might experience “pregnancy brain”. Her one close acquaintance, Sarah, had told her that she herself had been a victim of this phenomenon.
“Pregnancy brain?” Amberly had asked.
“Yeah….at least that’s what my husband and I called it when I had my first. With all the changes my body was going through, hormonally and emotionally, I just spaced out sometimes. I could have sworn there were things I was sure I had done or taken care of that just slipped my mind. Nothing big: misplaced car keys, calls I thought I had returned but had not, little jobs around the house that had gone undone, that type of thing.”
Amberly giggled along with Sarah as she was well aware of new feelings and perceptions she had been having during her own pregnancy.
“I would have bet anything that all those things were taken care of, but sure enough when I looked again…. nope. I would not be surprised if this is what is happening to you, too.”
Amberly thought back to this conversation now as she looked up at the wide-open cabinet
doors. Must be it, she thought, as she closed each door in turn, sure that the creaking noises she had heard had been the doors just hanging uneasily on their hinges. She laughed at herself as she began to exit the kitchen, but looked over to see the first three doors still open. She closed them again….at least she thought again. Could she actually be so out of it that she had missed them? As soon as she had closed them she noticed a single door open again on the far end.
Now this was getting annoying. She knew she had closed them all. Despite the “pregnancy brain” theory, Amberly could not imagine she was getting so addle-minded that she was this inattentive to what was right in front of her. Time for a break, she thought. She reclosed everything and went to her bedroom to retrieve her sneakers. A walk in the fresh air out in the field beyond the house would clear her mind and get her back on track. Just to avoid the scene again, Amberly left the house through the front door and walked around the east side of the house, under the low hanging boughs of the elm trees that formed a protective arch just outside her bedroom.
The leaves flittered playfully as she walked under them, agitated by the light breeze that had suddenly come up. The sun was bright and high in the sky, and she breathed in the fresh air as she walked slowly along the worn pathway that moved away from the house and opened up into the grassy meadow beyond. She felt better already as the warmth permeated her skin, like a warm embrace to her whole body. She had adjusted to having to move more slowly these days as her pregnancy progressed, but it was still bothersome some days to have her mobility so limited. She walked up through the knee-high grass as the wind made them undulate like waves on the ocean. She held her hands down by her sides, letting the tassels of the wild grass tickle her open palms.
The meadow was fairly level for the first part of the expanse, but it angled up gradually leading to a rock outcrop higher up. It was not a strenuous climb by any means, but due to her condition, Amberly was huffing and puffing a bit as she reached the exposed rocks. The rock outcrop was a crumbling array except for the large flat piece of basalt that set in the centre, providing a nice level seat. Amberly lowered herself awkwardly onto the warm slab and let her breathing return to normal. It was not a high point for a stunning vista by any stretch of the imagination, but it did give her a relaxing view of her new house and the wide lot that extended behind it.
Haunted House Tales Page 12