There was an eye roll follow a long and dramatic sigh but she nodded. “I suppose I can resist the urge for violence until then.”
“That would be greatly appreciated,” Marie chuckled. Laura was always the dramatic one. She always had been. No amount of conditioning or parenting had fixed it. They’d just had to learn to accept her overly dramatic nature as part of who she was. Perhaps she’d go into acting one day. She’d be damn good at it.
Rachel grumbled from her position by the window. “I can still beat you up.”
Laura’s brows shot up in surprise and she stared at her younger sister. “Is that a challenge?”
Rachel shrugged but her eyes were defiant. Even at five, almost six now, she had a temper and she rarely backed down from a fight.
“Can we hold off on the wrestling until we get out of the car? I’d prefer there be no civilian casualties.” Marie sighed and sent a glance towards Paul who was sleeping peacefully in his car seat. She knew that wouldn’t last very long. The minute the car stopped moving he would wake up and the wailing would start.
She couldn’t wait until he passed the age of two. There was just something about that age. The terrible twos everyone called them and she had found that with all of her children they had all been terrible.
“Oh we’d never hurt little Paul.” Laura cast a loving gaze at her younger brother. Sure he was annoying and he was a baby and didn’t do much. But she couldn’t dream of hurting him. It was her job to keep him safe. She was the oldest, after all.
Marie leaned back in her seat and rubbed at her tired eyes. She had no clue why she was so exhausted, but that seemed to be her life now. Chasing after three children, trying to do research on the side, and managing a household. It was exhausting. Now she was going to have someone else to take care of.
She wasn’t bitter. Shannon was a lovely woman and it was no ones fault that she was dying of cancer. These things just happened. But she was a stubborn old goat. The whole reason they had to move was because she refused to leave that old house of hers. She refused to spend her last days anywhere else other than in her own four walls.
In a way Marie could understand the mentality. She wasn’t sure she’d want to spend her last days in a hospital hooked up to a million machines with people she didn’t know or care about poking and prodding at her. If she had the choice to just take a bunch of painkillers and sleep in her own bed every night she would probably take that one.
Especially when the bed was in such a magnificent house.
Marie drew in a breath of surprise as they turned into the drive and she saw the large brick home with its wide windows and stunning two stories. She was sure it was just as nice inside as it was outside.
The lawn was well maintained and the gardens were in full summer bloom. And as they came to a stop she could see Shannon in casual clothes on her hands and knees weeding the front garden bed.
Eric was out of the car in a flash and rushing over to his mother. “Mum! You shouldn’t be doing that. You’re supposed to be resting!”
She sent him a glare and shook a handful of weeds in his direction. “Bugger off, lad. I’ll do as I damn well please. I’m dead anyway.” She got creakily to her feet. Her glare was replaced with a smile when she looked over at Marie. “So nice to see you, dearie.”
“Nice to see you too, Shannon. Your gardens look just lovely.” Marie worked to get Paul’s car seat free and get him out of the car.
“Well they will be once I get these damn weeds out.” Shannon grumbled and sent another dark look at the gardens. “They never do seem to go away for good.”
“Why don’t you hire someone to do that for you, mum?” Eric asked slowly leading his mother away from the garden and towards the front door.
“I’m perfectly capable of taking care of my own house. And I like to garden, I’ll have you know.” She held her head up and kept her voice superior. “I just don’t like weeds is all.”
“Well I’ll help you with them after we get the kids settled,” Marie offered as she followed them towards the front door. Rachel and Laura were following the crowd and eyeing each other menacingly. Marie sent them a warning glance and they both plastered pleasant smiles on their faces.
“Oh that would be lovely. It’s such a nice day for it and I’m sure little Paul could use some sunshine.” Shannon smiled into the car seat where, surprisingly, Paul was still sleeping soundly.
“I think it would be good for everyone to be outside for a little after being in the cramped car. It wasn’t a long drive, but there wasn’t a great deal of space.” Marie sighed as she followed Shannon through the front door and into the grand entryway. It was every bit as lovely on the inside as she had imagined it would be.
“You have such a lovely home, Shannon. I can’t believe I haven’t seen it before.” Marie longed to reach out and stroke the wood banister or the silk wallpaper as they walked down the hall but she kept her hands to herself as they made their way to the kitchen where Shannon took out a pitcher of lemonade.
“It has its quirks, but most old houses do. Eric was never fond of them. Couldn’t get away quick enough.” She watched her son’s face darken a little and kept her smile in face. “But I’ve always liked it. Felt quite at home here all my life.” Shannon seemed to ponder something for a moment, her eyes going distant. Then she held up the pitcher. “Lemonade?”
Chapter 2
Settling In
* * *
Marie was glad that she’d packed a day bag for all of them because the moving truck didn’t come for another day. She wasn’t sure what had caused the delay but she was mostly pleased that it had shown up.
Luckily they’d moved into a fully furnished house as opposed to a brand new one. Everyone had had a bed to sleep in and no one was put out too much by the lack of their personal possessions. That didn’t mean they weren’t happy for them to show up.
The Pike House, as Marie learned the building was officially named, was a four-bedroom home that had two bathrooms. Shannon had the master suite, as it was her house. Marie and Eric took the second largest bedroom. The girls were bunked up in another room. They currently shared a bed, but Marie promised to get them bunk beds by the end of the week so that they didn’t have to endure such close proximity for too long. Paul would have the last room eventually, but at the moment he still slept in the same room as his parents. So they had intentions of converting it into a playroom.
Shannon had no opposition to the changes. She was happy to have new life in the house. She was happy to have people around her. It had been so long since others had shared the space with her. It was clear that the loneliness had taken a toll on her.
Marie learned quickly that some days were better than others for Shannon. She would have days like the one they’d arrived on where she was fully of life and energy, ready to take on the world. And then she would have days, like the third day of their stay, when she couldn’t find the energy to get out of bed. It was just a matter of keeping an eye on her, making sure she took her medication, and letting her do what she could do day by day.
This job fell to Marie, of course. Eric went back to work the day after they moved. The move hadn’t cost him his job it had just put it an hour away. And he’d been willing to accept the commute, which was uncharacteristic but Marie had not been surprised. He’d worked hard to get that job and she would have been surprised to see him give it up.
Still it put her in a strained position. Not only was she responsible for settling them into the new home. She was responsible for the three children, as she had been for the last few years. And now she was also responsible for looking after Shannon.
She tried not to be resentful about it. He worked and she stayed at home. That was the arrangement. It had been their arrangement for a while. She’d given up her career to have children. She tried to stay relevant while working and researching from home, but there was rarely adequate time for it. If it weren’t for his job they wouldn’t be able to afford an
ything.
She knew that it was logical. She knew that it was practical. But sometimes she wished that she was the one working and he was staying home. Sometimes she just wanted to get away from it all. She hadn’t gone to school for twelve years so that she could be a stay-at-home mom. That hadn’t been her dream.
Marie shook her head and tried to clear the negative thoughts that clouded it. She didn’t need to be thinking about that right now. She needed to feed Paul. She needed to make lunch for the girls. She needed to check in on Shannon.
There was always something that she needed to do.
When she came into the kitchen she was surprised to see Shannon at the stove making soup and Rachel and Laura seated peacefully at the breakfast nook. She paused in the doorway for a moment to appreciate the scene. It wasn’t often that the two of them could sit side by side without trying to rip each other’s hair out.
The family dog, Sparky, raced past her and three sets of eyes turned in her direction. Marie had almost forgotten about Sparky. He’d been brought over with the movers and had been hiding since he’d arrived. Apparently he’d decided he was less afraid now.
“Sparky!” Rachel exclaimed and hopped out of her chair to cuddle the Border Collie. “Where you been?”
“Hiding from you, obviously,” Laura chided.
“Children, I thought we agreed to be nice. Otherwise you won’t get a surprise after lunch.” Shannon sent them a warning glance and Rachel settled for cuddling Sparky and Laura settled for staring at her nails as if they held the secrets of the world.
“So that’s how you convinced them to get along. Bribery?” Marie raised a brow as she joined Shannon at the stove. Whatever kind of soup she was making in the large pot in front of her it smelled delicious.
“I find it works quite well on children. It always worked on Eric and John.” Shannon smiled, as if remembering when they were young. “I don’t hear from John so much anymore.”
Marie gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “It’s hard with him being so far away. I’m sure he’ll call soon.”
“He doesn’t know.” Shannon’s voice was soft and her eyes stayed on the soup she was stirring.
“What?” Marie glanced back at the children, but they seemed thoroughly occupied in their own world. “What do you mean he doesn’t know?”
“John and I were never on the best terms. When he left here he put a whole ocean between us and hasn’t looked back. I wasn’t exactly going to get him on the telephone and give him the news. I doubt he would give a damn.” She set the spoon aside.
“Don’t say that. Of course he would give a damn. You’re his mother!” Marie looked appalled at the very idea.
“You’re sweet, dearie. And I do appreciate you being here. But there is a lot that you don’t understand. There’s a lot that happened to those boys in this house, things I don’t even have words for. And they have a right to hate me for it. After all, I stayed here.”
“And why did you stay?” Marie could fathom staying anywhere that would drive her children to hate her. Keeping them in harms way knowingly. But she also knew that she didn’t have the full story on this. She knew there were pieces missing.
“This is my home. I’m connected to it. It is a part of me. I was born here and I will likely die here if I get my way.” She reached up to grab a stack of bowls from the cupboard. “It’s hard to understand a connection like that to a building. My husband didn’t. But the army took him before he could put up too much of a fuss about it. I miss him, don’t get me wrong, but this house is really my true love.”
Marie looked around her at the kitchen, which despite Shannon’s failing health, was still spotless. It was a beautiful home. There was no arguing that. But to put it before her marriage, her children? Marie couldn’t understand that.
“I still think you should give John a call. He really deserves to know, Shannon. And after all these years he may surprise you.” She offered a friendly smile and got one in return.
“I’ll think on it.” She began to ladle out soup. “Are you going to have some of this? It’s my homemade vegetable and chicken soup. Grew the vegetables in the back yard myself.”
“You are a woman of many talents, how could I say no.”
Chapter 3
Sparky
* * *
That night as she lay in bed with Eric and stared at the ceiling Marie found it hard to sleep. Her mind kept drifting back to her conversation with Shannon in the kitchen.
What was it about this house that had her so captivated? What was it about this house that had John and Eric so terrified?
She glanced over at Eric. He wasn’t asleep. His breathing was still unsteady despite the fact that his eyes were closed. She knew that he would lie like that for almost an hour before he would actually go to sleep. He would be reviewing everything that had happened in the day, ensuring that he’d made all the right decisions, and lining up his thoughts for the next workday.
She’d gotten used to his habits. After all, she’d had a similar process back when she’d been employed. She used to close her eyes and go over her lectures. She’d think about the students she’d talked to after class. She’d think about the papers she still had to mark. And she would think about the next lecture that she had to give.
She missed those days. They seemed simpler somehow. Likely because she’d known what she was doing then. She’d been sure of herself and confident. Now she was neither of those things. She didn’t know how to be parent. She didn’t know how to juggle three kids and manage the life of a dying woman. She was out of her depth.
She heard Paul stir in his crib and glanced over. He fussed for a little bit but settled back down. She was grateful for that. He hadn’t been sleeping well since the move. He hadn’t been sleeping well for the last year, realistically. But it had gotten worse since the move.
If she could just get one good night’s sleep she would be happy about it. She needed to recuperate. She needed her energy back. She had to get groceries tomorrow and get bunk beds for the girls. Then she would have to assemble the bunk beds. That would be an adventure.
It wasn’t that she didn’t know how to build things. It was just that some things were easier to assemble with two sets of adult hands.
If she waited for Eric to get home from work it would be well after dark. And she doubted that he would have the energy to help her. He’d barely had the energy to eat some leftover soup before falling into bed.
She glanced over at him again. His breathing was leveling out but she knew that he was still not yet asleep.
She wondered how long it would take him to burn out with this job. The two-hour commute, round trip, was going to take a toll on him after some time, especially when you added in the eight to twelve hour workdays. There was only so much that the body would take.
She’d seen him do it before. She’d seen him work himself until he was exhausted, sick, and irritable. She had a feeling that he would do it again just to prove that he could manage to keep this job rather than switch to a hospital closer or open his own practice.
He was so damn stubborn.
Marie paused in her train of thought at the sound of scratching at the bedroom door. She could have sworn that Sparky was in the bedroom, but it was really hard to keep track of him in the larger house. He had so many options of rooms to hide in. And he took every opportunity to hide.
The scratching persisted and she sat up n bed, her attention directed towards the door.
“Don’t bother with it,” Eric mumbled his voice thick with sleep.
“He won’t stop,” she countered. Sparky was persistent. If he wanted in the room then he would keep scratching until someone opened the door for him. He’d done some serious damage to the door at their old house. She really didn’t want him to ruin one of these nice doors. She wanted to do as little damage as possible to this beautiful house.
“He needs to learn,” Eric muttered rolling away from her and pulling the covers clos
e to his face as if to make it clear that he wasn’t going to get up and let the dog in.
“Well I’m not going to let him ruin your mother’s doors just because you want to teach him a lesson now,” she grumbled tossing aside the covers and getting out of bed. The hardwood floors were cold under her feet and she was regretting being out of bed already.
The scratching continued.
“Sparky, stop it,” she ordered. “I’ll be there in a second.”
She heard the complacent whine come from not the other side of the door but from the floor beside the bed.
She rounded to Eric’s side of the bed and in the dim evening light could just make out the shape of Sparky lying on the floor, his white fur like a beacon in the dark.
He thumped his tail enthusiastically and glanced up at her. He was still whining, clearly wondering what he’d done wrong.
The scratching at the door continued.
Marie glanced towards the door and then back at the dog. If it wasn’t Sparky that was scratching at the door then what was it? What was making the noise?
She looked at Eric but he was now fast asleep. He had wonderful timing, as usual. She debated shaking him awake and getting him to come with her to the door. She stood there for a moment considering it but then dismissed the idea.
She was a grown woman. She could check the door herself. She didn’t believe in things that went bump in the night.
Perhaps Shannon had a cat that she hadn’t mentioned. She seemed like the kind of woman who would own a cat. It was something low maintenance to keep her company. Yeah, that was probably it.
Marie walked hesitantly towards the door of the bedroom. Her feet were freezing on the hardwood. It was odd because it was June and the rest of the house was warm. Why was the floor so cold?
She took the doorknob firmly in her hand and drew in a deep breath. There was nothing scary on the other side, she reassured herself. It was probably just a cat. Or maybe a mouse. Old houses had mice. There was definitely nothing to panic about.
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