A quick flashback to the vampire in the parking lot has me thinking yes, especially with how I reacted. I decide to go to bed as well.
Tomorrow I’ll look at the old Winters’ house, but if it’s in my price range, I’m taking it. Situated on the border of the woods, it is just what I’m looking for. As I climb the stairs, the rain starts, and I hear the sound of distant thunder.
Waking up to the annoying sound of singing birds, I growl in frustration and stick the spare pillow over my head. With a start of surprise, I sit up and brush my hair out of my face, letting the pillow plop back onto the bed. Looking toward the window, I stare in confusion. The curtains and the window are thrown wide open.
What the hell? I mutter, knowing I always close the window and keep the curtains tightly shut. A morning person I am most definitely not. Even after so many years in the army, or maybe that’s the reason I like to sleep late.
“Grandma, did you open my window and curtains this morning?” I holler, as I scramble out of bed.
“Yes, I’ve booked you an appointment to see the old Winters’ house before work today, hence this treat,” Eve replies.
I watch in surprise as my grandmother enters the room, carrying a large tray full of sausages, crispy bacon, fried eggs, hash browns, grilled tomatoes, buttered toast, black and white puddings, and a large mug of coffee with plenty of milk. Nose sniffing in delight, I quickly take the tray off her and set it on my bed.
“Wow, thanks, Grandma. I’ll just freshen up.” I give her a quick kiss on the cheek and rush into the bathroom.
Back in my room, I tuck into my breakfast. With a groan of happiness, I finish the last bite of my toast, grab my mug of coffee, and set the empty tray on the floor.
“That was wonderful, thank you. What time is the viewing?”
“Ten. You have forty minutes to get ready and get to the house to meet Alex Higgins, the local estate agent.”
“No probs, that’s loads of time. Thanks Gran...for everything.” I give her a quick hug.
“Go on, get yourself ready, girl, before you’re too late.” I watch Gran’s face as it lights up from the impromptu hug.
I know Gran missed me and worried The Protectors would find me and kill me, just as they had my parents. It was a silly fear, as children I learned are never harmed. However, the loss of my mum is still raw for her, and the thought of the last connection to her being murdered terrified her.
She knew I was determined to follow my own path, and I think she is proud of the strong woman I have become.
She will always worry, and with me living nearby she will know I’m safe. Though she’d never understand my affection for my dog.
Why a witch would ever have a dog was beyond her. In her old-fashioned way of thinking, if you’re going to have a pet at least make it a cat.
****
Quickly I scramble into my tracksuit bottoms and tank top and put my hair into a scrunchy. Grandma does not like people wandering around in their pajamas, even if it is only for a couple of minutes.
Jogging downstairs, I fill two dog bowls with food and fresh water. A quick woof of hello and a happy tail wag is my greeting before Jasmine devours her food.
Running back upstairs, I get into the shower. A quick wash, brush of my teeth, and change into a pair of jeans and a light jumper. Pulling on a pair of boots, I pick up my jacket and car keys, before heading back downstairs.
“Grandma, I’m going now, I’ll see you at lunchtime,” I yell out as I leave the house.
Seeing Jasmine I call her over. I climb into the front seat and she hops in beside me, and I head to the old Winters’ house.
My first glimpse of it takes my breath away. Through the windy trail and trees, I catch sight of the two-story house. The paint is fading and peeling, and some branches are brushing against the upstairs windows, gently scratching the glass. The upstairs balcony has a dead plant in a cracked pot on it, and the wrap-around terrace has a sad apologetic look, as if embarrassed to be caught in such disarray. The estate agent standing in front of the house wears a defeated look on his face.
I for one have already fallen in love with it and can see so much potential. But no way am I letting him know that!
Climbing out of my car with Jasmine on my heels, I cross the area of the drive to the estate agent.
“Mr. Higgins I presume,” I inquire, while offering my hand.
“Ah yes, but call me Alex please. Eve Allhallows said you were looking to buy? Miss Allh—”
“Reynolds, Candie Reynolds,” I interrupt.
“I do apologize, and you wanted to look at this house?” Alex asks, as if I had gone crazy, or he had misunderstood.
“Apparently. May we look around since I’m here?” I request, since it does not look like we’re going to move. Doesn’t the man know how to walk and talk at the same time?
“We, ahhh you have a dog? Yes, of course you can,” replied Alex, sounding highly flustered.
“Yes, I have a dog. Now we’ve figured that out, can I look at the house please,” I reply a note of warning and irritation in my voice.
I know exactly what he was thinking; it didn’t take a genius to figure out since it was written all over his face. A dud indeed, and even if I was, why should it matter one way or another?
“Yes, yes, of course, this way please. As you can see the house has been abandoned for quite a while, and ah, yes, this way please,” answers Alex, gesturing toward the locked front door.
“If you would unlock the door, I can walk around the house by myself if you prefer. How much did you say it was going for?” I casually inquire, as if I don’t care one way or another.
“Yes, well, it’s going for €175,000, though if you are interested, it could probably be negotiated. To be honest, I think the owners just want to get rid of it.”
“What land comes with the house?” I ask, hiding my smile and wondering how many times he’s tried to get rid of the property.
“Well, the land is very extensive. Most of the woods are part of the land. There’s a trench around the boundaries. Old Mrs. Winters wanted to make sure no animal would be harmed if they crossed over to her land, but wanted it apparent to people they were about to trespass. There is also an old ruin and small graveyard,” Alex replies, muttering the latter part under his breath. With a defeated look on his face, he turns to leave.
“I can’t look around the house if you won’t unlock the door!” I exclaim in annoyance. Good god what is with this man, for crying out loud! What, did most people feel unsettled on hearing there was a graveyard on the land?
“Oh you still want to look at it?” gasps Alex, quickly unlocking the door before I change my mind.
“Of course I do,” I huff, giving him a strange look.
****
Entering the house, I see high ceilings and spacious rooms. Three doors lead off the hallway. Opening the first, I find the sitting room with a huge open fireplace.
The second door reveals a cupboard under the stairs is in fact a bathroom with toilet and sink. The last door at the end of the hall is the kitchen and dining room.
The dining room also has a large marble fireplace and an alcove leading off to a sunroom. The kitchen has a large wood stove and another door leading into the utility room with the back door, and as Grandma Eve had promised, a dog flap.
Upon opening the back door, I notice a nice bit of garden, not too big, with a shed and a small fence around it, the woods surrounding the fence.
Feeling pleased I reenter the house, lock the back door, proceed back into the hallway and upstairs. I notice four doors leading off the upstairs landing.
Inside the first room is a big, old-fashioned, claw- footed tub, toilet and sink to the left, and a shower to the right. If I hadn’t fallen in love with the house already, the bathroom would have made me fall for it in an instant.
Wow, I’m in love!
Leaving the bathroom, I open the next door, which is a bedroom with a veranda. Seeing a long wardrobe, I cross the room and open the doors to find not just a simple wardrobe, but a walk-in one with shelves and two rails.
How are you still empty? Seriously, the house is gorgeous.
Leaving the bedroom, I move to the next room, which is another large bedroom, and then upon opening a door to the left of the room, I find an en-suite bathroom.
Very nice, I murmur, thinking this would do as a guest bedroom.
Entering the last room, I decide I can partition it off, and build a darkroom, and still have plenty of space for my computer desk and chair, a couple of book cases and maybe even a comfy chair.
I head back downstairs and out the front door, where I spot Alex impatiently waiting for me.
“Is there anything you’re not telling me about the house?”
“She died in the house,” Alex blurts out, as if he can’t hold the information in any longer.
“Who did, old Mrs. Winters?”
“Yes.”
“Did anyone else?”
“I don’t think so,” Alex replies.
“Natural causes or murdered?” I might as well know, though to be honest, it still wouldn’t stop me from buying the house.
“Natural, of course,” gasps Alex in shock, as if the idea of murder is a foreign experience.
“Of course,” I say with irony, thinking of my parents.
“Okay, there is a hell of a lot of work needing to be done to the house. I’ll offer €125,000, but obviously I’ll need to get a surveyor out to look over the place, if the owners are interested in my offer. Also, anything in or on the grounds as of this moment, is part of the sale. Contact me at Eve’s when you receive an answer.
“You’re interested in buying it?”
“Haven’t I just said that? Look, let me know when you have an answer. I have to go to work now. Thank you for letting me look around. Come on, girl.”
I open the car door, and Jasmine squeezes in ahead of me giving her tail a happy thump. Climbing in, I fasten my seat belt and drive off.
“You like the house, too?” I ask with a feeling of excitement.
“Woof.”
“It’s gorgeous, and thankfully most of the work seems to be surface, though it will still take time as well,” I mutter thinking of all the sanding down which needs doing inside and outside, the painting and the building of the dark room. The branches from the trees nearest the house need to be cut back so they don’t overshadow, and cause future damage and dampness.
“The drive will need tarmac put down, too, and the porch needs support beams, or something done to it to stop the sagging. Yeah, there’s a lot of work needing to be done.” I sigh, and so does Jasmine in answer.