The Blacker House

by Nicole Mulloy

  Patrick looked from Seth to Kate. “Well, I’m freaking exhausted. Are you ready to go?”

  “Yeah, let’s go,” Kate said. “Come on, Ace.”

  *

  The grandiose Blacker House’s destruction was the number one story on the morning news. “An historic home has burned to the ground,” the reporter announced. Crews on the scene showed the house burning high into the night sky.

  Kate sat in the Murphys’ family room, eating a bowl of cereal and wearing the same dirty clothes from the night before. She flipped to another channel and watched her house burning on that network as well.

  Mom and Dad had been pretty upset. Seth was the brave one, making the call late last night. He provided as few details as possible about the actual cause of the fire, just that he had been looking for something in the basement, needing more light, using the old lantern. Mom and Dad were so happy that their children were okay, that they didn’t ask too many questions.

  “We’re leaving now,” Mom finally said. “We’ll be there in a few hours.”

  Now, as she sat in Patrick’s cozy house, she felt so good, peaceful. Patrick hadn’t actually appeared yet, still sleeping after the exhausting night. His parents had risen early and left to run errands. They seemed really nice, leaving her a full pot of really good coffee. Kate set her bowl down, pulled her knees up to her chest and actually smiled. Her house had burned to the ground and she couldn’t be happier. How crazy was that?

  “Hey sis, how are you?” Seth appeared, hair rumpled from sleep.

  “I’m okay, how are you?”

  Seth paused and then smiled. “Actually, pretty good. I slept great.”

  “Me too.”

  “Coffee?”

  “Sure.”

  They sat in front of the television, watching the morning news shows, just to catch the few minutes here and there dedicated to the burning of the Blacker House. After a while, Patrick finally woke up and joined them on the couch.

  “The cause of the fire seems to be an oil lantern which fell and broke late last night following some unusual earth tremors in the area. Nobody was hurt in the fire, we’re glad to report, but what a loss for the town of Huntington, losing the historic Blacker House.” The reporter shook her blond head in dismay, as if the burned house had been hers. “We’ve been unable to reach the owners of the house, but we’ll hopefully bring you that interview when we finally contact them. Back to you in the studio.”

  “So, what happens next?” Kate asked.

  “I guess Mom and Dad will find us a hotel or an apartment to live in, at least for now. Then, when the insurance money comes in, they’ll look for a new house.”

  “A new house. Sounds pretty good,” Kate said. “Maybe something really, really new. A nice, boring house with no sad histories, no suicides, no barking dogs, no invisible parties and no murderous ghosts. Do you think Mom and Dad could find us one like that?”

  Seth laughed. “Let’s hope so.”

  27.

  Ten months later.

  Kate once again entered the dirty halls of St. Pete’s. Lockers banged and freshman ran, panicking to find the right homeroom. It felt strange to be back after the long summer.

  Kate felt strong and happy as she started her first day as a senior. She found her new locker and easily twisted off the new combination. She didn’t really have anything to put in the locker yet, seeing as she didn’t have any books yet, but it was good to know that the locker combination worked. She slammed the door shut.

  Last year had been rough. The day after Halloween, the Gilberts were without a home. Mom, Dad, Lucy and Marie returned from Indiana immediately, and Matt came home soon after. The entire family stood dumbfounded, staring at the smoking ruin that was their home. Ink appeared out of the bushes, as if nothing unusual had happened, and rubbed against Seth’s leg, wanting to be fed.

  Afterward, they rented rooms in a hotel. A few days later, they moved into a small, but fully furnished rental house. It felt weird to be sitting on strange smelling furniture and sleeping in a mushy mattress with sheets that probably dated from the Clinton administration. Kate shared a bed with Lucy, while Matt ended up on a couch and Marie on a foldaway cot.

  Seth stayed only a few weeks, until the fall semester ended. Then, he packed up his cat and his few belongings and he left, returning to Nebraska for good. Kate hoped Seth found what he wanted in Nebraska. She would miss him.

  The rental house was cramped and tempers were short. Sure, they didn’t have to deal with cranky spirits anymore, but they also had no clothes to wear. Buying an entirely new wardrobe sounded like a lot more fun than it actually was, Kate discovered. It involved long days of constant shopping, for everything from underwear to shoes, shirts, bras, tights, socks, jeans and belts. It was exhausting and not fun at all. Even little things like envelopes, stamps, pens, paper, rubber bands were all gone. You never know how much you miss paper clips until you have none, not even one, available.

  The insurance money seemed to take forever, but when it finally arrived, the entire family went house hunting. They found a nice ranch house in a nice neighborhood. It wasn’t grandiose. It wasn’t a town landmark. They no longer had a guest room or a sewing room. In fact, Marie and Lucy were forced to share a bedroom again, but nobody seemed to mind much. The house was delightfully dull and wonderfully ghost-free. Slowly, they replenished their possessions and by summertime, it began to feel like home.

  Occasionally, Kate drove down Fifth Avenue to look at the vacant piece of land where the Blacker House had once stood. Eventually, the red brick shell had been bulldozed and the bricks, hauled away. Then, the land was leveled off and grass seed planted. Only the walkway and stone steps remained. A “Land for Sale” sign stood next to the steps. Kate hoped that O’Connor was gone for good, but if a new house was built there--she didn’t want to finish the thought.

  Kate reached the door to her new homeroom. Kate wasn’t sure why, but over the last year, Ms. Dobbs had become nicer, calmer. Her eyes didn’t bug out like they used to and her voice didn’t tremble with anxiety anymore. In fact, Ms. Dobbs had become one of Kate’s favorite teachers. Now, as Kate walked into the room, Ms. Dobbs glanced her way and gave her a small smile and nod. Kate smiled back. Would wonders never cease?

  “Kate, over here!” Lisa whispered loudly. Kate made her way toward Lisa and sat in the desk next to her.

  “Hi,” Kate whispered back. “Do you believe we have to survive another whole year in this dump?”

  “I know,” Lisa said, her red lip curling slightly. “I don’t know how I’m going to make it. Hey, have you got a dress for the Autumn Ball yet Kate?”

  “No, it’s still a month away. Why? Do you want to go to the mall after school and look for one?”

  “Yes,” she said with a shy look, “because I need one too.”

  Kate stared at her, openmouthed. “Already? It’s the first day of school! Who asked you already?”

  “Zack. He asked me this morning.”

  “Zack? Zack Bryson?” Kate couldn’t believe it. Zack had transferred to St. Pete’s in the spring. He was six feet tall, athletic and gorgeous with glossy black skin. “Lisa, your mom is going to flip out.” Lisa’s mother only wanted her to date nice Asian boys. Unfortunately for Mom, Lisa didn’t care for nice Asian boys.

  “I know.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to tell her that he’s Asian, and when he shows up at the house with a corsage in his hand, well, what is she going to do?” Lisa giggled. “She’ll just have to deal with it. Anyway, I think I like Zack. He was so nice when he asked me. He was even kind of nervous, just like me.”

  “Oh, Lisa. We’re going to have such fun! We’ll have to rent a limo, then Chris and Lucy can come with us!”

  “Sounds great!”

  “Ladies, would you keep the shrieking down?” Ms. Dobbs said with a tilt of her head. Ms. Dobbs wasn’t exactly warm and cuddly, but her disposition had certainly impr
oved.

  “Hi, Kate.” A warm hand fell on her shoulder and gave a quick squeeze.

  “Hi!” A large smile spread over Kate’s face. She and Patrick had been dating for almost a year now and it was wonderful. Soon after the house burned down, she and Patrick went on their first real date, a movie and then dinner at the same Mexican restaurant.

  Word got out quickly, that “the new girl” was dating Patrick Murphy. They were seen holding hands between classes and kissing after school. He called her every night. They studied for tests together. For Christmas, he gave her a silver necklace with an amethyst charm. She had worn it every day since, in place of the gold cross. She gave him a new jacket to replace the destroyed gray trench coat, a black leather jacket with large, deep pockets for all his stuff. He looked downright dangerous when he wore it.

  “You look pretty today,” he said, sneaking a kiss on her cheek. He sat down in the desk in front of her, then twisted around to face her.

  “Thanks!” She knew she was glowing. They had talked about maybe going to the same college next year, maybe somewhere far away. Or maybe, they’d both just stay here and go to Marshall University together. Kate didn’t care, as long as she was with Patrick. He made her happy.

  Kate gave his ponytail a playful tug. This was going to be a great year.

  The End