Sanctuary (Murrells Inlet Miracles Book 1)

by Larsen, Laurie

  They walked around the back of the house. “The bushes are all overgrown,” Nora commented.

  “Yes, unfortunately, during the later years of your aunt’s life, she was unable to keep up with the gardening herself, and didn’t contract anyone to do it for her. However, this can easily be taken care of by a local nursery, and then it would be much easier to maintain yourself.”

  They continued to walk around to the side, and Nora pointed out the circular wing. “The circular wing seems a little out of place.”

  “Yes, the intricacies of the house seem very irregular if you’re not familiar with Queen Anne. This is a round tower with a conical roof, and this second floor porch is very elaborate. The intricacy of detail throughout the exterior is characteristic of Queen Anne architecture.” He shielded his eyes from the sun with one hand and used his other to point. “You see a wide variety of window designs and surface textures. The first floor exterior is straight-lined, with narrow, smooth clapboards and yet the second floor is completely different. It’s textured and wavy.” He looked at Nora with a pleasant expression. “Part of the uniqueness of this treasure.”

  “Are there any other Queen Anne mansions in this area?”

  “No, none. I know of a few in New England – Connecticut, New Hampshire – but none here on the beach in South Carolina.” They had returned to the front of the house. Patty squeezed her arm, a little too enthusiastically. Ouch.

  “It’s cool, isn’t it?”

  Nora rolled her eyes. Easy for her to be excited. She wasn’t being roped into caring for and renovating this monstrous house of disrepair. Nora had a sudden image of her retirement savings draining like sand through a sieve as she spent the money required to fix this place.

  “What?” Patty said, frowning. “You don’t love it?”

  Nora shrugged and took a deep breath and followed Mr. Becker up the front steps to the door. He bent at the waist to fit the key into the door and when successful, he pushed it open. “Ladies …” he said, and made a majestic sweep of his arm. “After you.”

  Patty scampered through the door with a big grin, and Nora followed.

  They walked through a small foyer and into a massive, once-majestic living room. Aunt Edie’s selection of couches and tables came from the same timeframe as the house – old and elaborate. They certainly weren’t Nora’s preferred style, as she thought of her modern living room in her fifteenth floor apartment overlooking the heart of the city in Philadelphia. But she had to admit, the old furniture fit in well here. Her own modern stuff would look out of place in this house.

  She ran her hand over the upholstery of a velvet couch with cherry wood edges. She brought her hand to her nose and smelled dust. The entire place needed to be aired out and freshened with sunshine and air.

  “The hardwood floors are in marvelous shape,” Mr. Becker commented. Nora agreed, they were refinished and well taken care of.

  The walls were roughhewn and covered with a gray paint. Although it could use a fresh coat, it wasn’t in too bad of shape. At least there was no period wallpaper. Not only did Nora loathe the look of old wallpaper, it would almost certainly be torn up and need replacing.

  They continued through the house, inspecting the kitchen, the bathroom, an empty library and the one bedroom on the main floor before climbing the stairs to the second floor and glancing through four more bedrooms and the circular ballroom. It was magical, but completely useless as a space, in Nora’s opinion. What would she possibly use a huge ballroom for? Then they made their way to the third floor which consisted of a few more multi-purpose rooms.

  Returning to the living room, Mr. Becker continued, “As you see, it’s in moderate condition. You could certainly renovate to your heart’s content to restore it to its original glory, but if that’s not your intention, you would have some basic work done to make it inhabitable.”

  Nora turned in a circle, taking it all in. Her mind started running and all she could see was work, money, planning – all in overwhelming amounts. Stress and tension took over her body and she was finding it difficult to breathe through it. Patty must’ve known from the look on her face because she took her arm and led her away from Mr. Becker, saying, “Hey, it’s a lot of work. Yes. But you don’t have to do it all yourself. Get some help. Hire out. Break it into small pieces, and do a little at a time.”

  Nora gasped and concentrated on filling her lungs, holding the air, and letting it out. Her fingers tingled and her head spun, but she forced herself to slow everything down.

  “Okay. I just can’t imagine doing all that work without knowing what my end goal is. What is the purpose of it? What is this place going to be?”

  Patty turned and looked back into the living room from the foyer. “In other words, why do it? What’s the payback?”

  “Yeah. I mean, I won’t be living here. I can’t just pick up my whole life in Philadelphia and relocate it to Murrells Inlet. And even if I did, why would I want a big huge house like this, all for myself? I’d honestly rather get a beachfront condo where I can enjoy the waves and the sand without all this work.” She sighed and shrugged. “I really think I’m going to go back to my original plan, which is to sell it.”

  “Oh,” said Patty, a sad look on her face.

  “Is there anyone else in the family that would be happy to receive this gift from Aunt Edie? If so, I’d be happy to transfer my inheritance to them.” Patty looked thoughtful and Nora added, “Or a close friend of Aunt Edie? Someone who would be excited about this?”

  Because to her, it was just one huge, monumental problem. A problem that she didn’t have the desire or inclination to solve.

  “I guess we could ask Mr. Becker,” Patty said quietly. Nora knew that Patty had wanted the fairy tale ending. Patty wanted her to come here, fall in love with the big place, unearth all her memories of Aunt Edie and get enthused about remodeling. But her logical side kept getting in the way.

  “Mr. Becker,” Nora said as she approached him. He popped his head up. “I wondered if there was anyone else who received an inheritance from Aunt Edie who may be interested in receiving the house from me as a gift.”

  He looked thoughtful for a minute and turned to Patty. “What do you think, Patty?”

  She gave him a confused look.

  “You two are the only inheritors.”

  Nora lifted her hands. “Well, that’s that. You got the money and I got the property.” She turned back to Mr. Becker. “Seeing the actual property just reinforces what I already knew in my heart. I don’t have any use for it. I don’t have what it takes to put the heart and soul back into it, and I live too far away to care for it properly. So, I guess I’ll need to work with a realtor to put it up on the market as is and take the first reasonable bid.”

  “Oh, but you can’t do that. Not yet. Not until you’ve seen one more thing.”

  Nora didn’t want to see any more and couldn’t think of one thing that would change her mind. But Patty took the bait. “What is it?” she asked with interest.

  “The barn.” Mr. Becker led the way to the front door, opened it and followed them out. They hiked about a hundred yards to the big barn that was much more modern than the house. Nora remembered it from her childhood because that’s where she used to care for the horses.

  As if reading her mind, Mr. Becker said, “The barn was built in the late sixties and is a very simple but effective structure, sound and free from water or wind damage. In other words, it’s in good shape.”

  In other words, thought Nora, her life savings wouldn’t be flowing into the barn, only the house.

  Mr. Becker extracted another key and used it to unlock the padlock on the chain that was serpentined around the two front door handles. He pulled the big door open and led the way in. He found a switch and suddenly the interior was bathed in light. Nora couldn’t help a sudden gasp at the impressiveness of the barn. It looked like it could be a professional horse-training facility, with a dozen stalls along one wall, six on ea
ch side of a cement hallway. Beyond the stalls was a large indoor riding rink, its surface covered with a thick coating of mulch or dirt.

  “Wow,” escaped from her mouth on a stream of air.

  “Impressive, isn’t it?” Mr. Becker said. “Are you a horsewoman yourself, Nora?”

  “No,” she responded, just as Patty was saying, “Yes.” She turned to look at Patty, her brow furrowed. “Well, she used to be when she’d visit Aunt Edie here. You used to love the horses, Nora, remember?”

  Nora did remember. A smile formed on her lips. “Yeah, I spent a lot of happy hours in here taking care of the horses. Feeding them, grooming them, cleaning their stalls, and riding them.” She looked around the arena. “Did Aunt Edie upgrade in here? I don’t remember it being like this.”

  “Yes, my notes show that she did a complete rehaul on the barn, arena and stalls about ten years ago.”

  That would explain a few things. First, why this place looked much more modern than the house. And second, why she never had the money to refurbish the house, because she’d spent it all on the barn.

  Nora nodded. “It’s nice,” she said simply.

  “It also has a small apartment.”

  Nora looked at him. “Really?”

  He motioned for them to follow him. They walked to the southeast corner of the large barn and pulling out his keyring again, he selected a key and unlocked a plain two panel wooden door. Inside was a small living room with couch, table and TV, a small eating area with a table and four chairs, a galley kitchen and a door that led to a bedroom and bathroom.

  “It’s adorable,” exclaimed Patty. And for once, Nora had to admit Patty was right. It was adorable. It was cute and quaint and modestly decorated, so different than the big mansion.

  “It looks comfortable. I wonder if Aunt Edie lived here towards the end instead of in the big house.”

  “I don’t know that for sure,” he said, “but it’s certainly possible. It’s also an option for you if you feel you’d be more comfortable here. It’s fully heated, air conditioned, running water, what have you.”

  “All the comforts of home!” Patty said.

  Nora thought of her high-rise luxury apartment overlooking Philadelphia. “Let’s not go that far.”

  Patty chuckled and smacked her arm.

  “So,” said Mr. Becker, “would you like to take a ride to your beach?”

  “Yes!” said Patty, but Nora said, “Actually, I think we can find that on our own.”

  “Okay.” He took the keyring out of his pocket and handed it to her. “I’m going to leave these with you.”

  Nora stared at them but didn’t take them. She felt like she was at a crossroads and this simple transfer of keys took on a substantial meaning that she wasn’t ready for.

  “My suggestion is to stay here a few days. Either stay at a local hotel, if you don’t feel comfortable staying on your property yet, or bunk here. In the big house, or here in the apartment. Get a feel for the land, the buildings, the beach, the location. Don’t make your final decision now. Give it a few days and maybe you’ll know what’s right.”

  “What happens when I decide?”

  “Get in touch with me and give me your decision.”

  Nora sucked in a deep breath. “What exactly are my options?”

  “You accept the inheritance and the ownership transfers over to you. At that point, you can abide by your aunt’s wishes and use the property to help others, or you don’t have to. You can sell it and keep the profit. Or, you don’t accept the inheritance, walk away and the property goes into probate.”

  Her mind whirled again, but Patty’s advice came back to her. One step at a time. She didn’t have to do everything right now.

  “Okay.” She reached out and took the keys he offered. She squeezed them in her hand, and the sharp edges dug into her palm and fingers. “I will stay here a day or two and make my decision. I’ll be in touch.”

  “Great.” He reached in his breast pocket, pulled out a business card and handed it to her. “So nice to meet you both.” He gave a little salute and left the apartment.

  They stood in silence for a few minutes and then Patty said, “Shall we go get our suitcases?”

  Nora sighed. “I don’t know. Have we decided where we’re going to stay tonight?”

  “I think we should stay here. It’s sort of a middle road between leaving completely and getting a hotel room, and staying in that big massive dusty house.”

  “It is comfortable looking here. But only one bed,” Nora pointed out.

  “But it’s a king. I’m game if you are.”

  “Okay,” said Nora before she could agonize over it anymore, and followed her sister out to the car.

  A half hour later, they had unpacked, put their clothes and toiletries in place, and settled into the apartment’s living room. A heavy silence hung over them both until Patty said, “Want to go check out the beach?”

  “Yes, I sure do.” The beach. Regardless of where she lived, she always felt at home at the beach. The sound of the waves, the feel of sand under bare feet, the smell of the salt put her in her own little happy place. The few times she’d taken an actual vacation away from the law firm, she’d gone to a beach. The prospect of living within a few miles of one, was exciting.

  They went outside and piled into the rental car. “I wonder if this little compact car can get there,” Patty said.

  “We can at least try. Do you remember how to get there?”

  “I seem to remember a dirt road that leads right to it.”

  Patty started the car and drove beyond the barn. Soon they encountered a dirt road and followed it, very slowly so they wouldn’t damage the car. A Jeep, it wasn’t. But soon they started seeing evidence that a beach was nearby – seagulls chirping as they flew overhead. Seagrass flowing in the breeze and the dirt transforming into sand. About fifteen minutes in, they drove over a hill and the vista opened up to reveal … the beach. They both cheered happily and Patty parked the car. They jumped out and ran down a sand dune, stopping once it got deeper to remove their shoes, then kept running till they reached the water. Neither hesitated before bounding in, stopping when they were about knee-deep.

  The water was chilly, but refreshing. Nora reached down and filled her hands, then brought them to her nose to sniff the strong salty scent. Memories came flooding back. This was her childhood. This beach, this barn, this house. And Aunt Edie, who was gone, but making it all possible for her to revisit that happy time.

  “It’s just as I remember it!” Patty shouted.

  Nora nodded. “Me too. It hasn’t changed at all.” She turned and looked back at the sand and pictured her and Aunt Edie sitting there in folding chairs, soaking in the sunshine and eating peanut butter sandwiches from their cooler and drinking from Thermoses of lemonade.

  They stood in the water for a while, then began making their way back to the beach. “I always loved it here,” Nora said.

  Patty said hopefully, “Maybe you can learn to love it again.”

  Nora studied her sister’s face and for once, found herself wishing she could approach life like Patty did. Patty never worried about anything. She faced life optimistically. Every new opportunity was an adventure. Not Nora. She analyzed and planned and worried about everything. Every new opportunity was a potential problem. It was up to her to identify what could go wrong.

  What if she worked on being more like Patty? At least when it came to this gift?

  Overcome by love for her sis, Nora wrapped an arm around Patty, pulling her close. Patty laughed and held onto her too, so she wouldn’t fall into the water. “I love you, Nora,” she murmured and Nora responded, “I love you too.”

  They reached the shore and stood for a few minutes, letting the wind dry their wet legs. Then they headed back to the car. “You know,” Nora said as they drove away, “it would be cool to own my own little bit of the seashore.”

  “It sure would!” exclaimed Patty and held her hand up for
a high five. Nora slapped her palm.

  They drove in silence for about ten minutes when suddenly Nora caught a movement out of the corner of her eye. A coal-black horse galloped along about a quarter mile away, keeping pace with the car. “Patty! Look!” She pointed and Patty looked over and gasped.

  “A horse on the property! Is that Aunt Edie’s horse? Or a wild one that just happened to find its way here?”

  “I have no idea.”

  The horse looked like it was up for a race and the sheer beauty of the black animal’s flowing tail and mane and shiny coat covering well-toned muscles made her heart jump. The distance between them diminished and it looked like the horse was heading to the barn. All horses knew how to go home. They pulled the car up to the barn, coming to a stop, and the horse stopped too.

  Nora jumped out of the car and slowed her pace to try to capture the horse, not startle it away. She spoke in a low, unthreatening tone, holding her hand out in front of her, palm up. She wished she had a treat the horse would want, a carrot or a sugar cube. When she was a teenager and spent the summers here, she’d always be armed with a horse treat in her pocket.

  “Hello, beautiful. Who are you? Do you belong here? Do you live here?”

  As the horse got closer she observed that “it” was a “he,” and he wore a halter, making her believe that he belonged to someone. She hoped that someone was Aunt Edie. If this beautiful animal was Aunt Edie’s pet, then she would imagine she would inherit him along with the rest of it. And for some reason she didn’t want to analyze at the moment, that prospect excited her.

  The majestic gelding stood still, about twenty feet away, facing her, his nostrils blowing air in and out. He was cautious, but appeared friendly, tame. She slowly covered the distance between them, carefully moving so as not to alarm him. She finally reached him and put her palm up to his muzzle so he could smell her and make up his own mind about her acceptability.