No wonder he let her have the lake house.
Her stomach growled and she headed back to the front door to grab her groceries.
She picked up her bags and the bottom felt wet against her arm. She glanced inside to see if her soup cans had busted.
A deep sense of dread settled in her stomach.
The inside was dry. She glanced over at the sheet holding her clothes and noticed a dark ring around the bottom. Reaching down, she touched it.
She pressed her hand to the ground. It was wet.
Horrified she looked up at the ceiling.
That’s when she noticed the large wet ring on the ceiling.
“How long has it been like that?” She muttered to herself.
She stood and rubbed her hand to her temple. Another headache was brewing and she couldn’t really think right now.
She grabbed the biggest pot out of the kitchen and put it under the leak.
Then she took her clothes into the laundry room. She turned on the light and realized the dryer was gone.
Her stomach began to hurt. Could things get any worse?
She made a mental note to call her attorney tomorrow and ask him why she had not been informed of all the damage to the lake house.
Right now, it was late and there was nothing she could do.
She sat her pile of clothes on the washing machine.
Without a dryer there was no use in washing her clothes tonight.
She walked back into the kitchen and opened a cabinet. All the red dishes she’d bought for the lake house were gone. She opened the next cabinet thinking the renters had just moved some items around.
The coffee cups were gone except for a large mug whose handle was broken off.
Her silverware was gone, replaced with a set of plastic utensils.
She sighed. Her hunger was now gone, replaced by an overwhelming tiredness she felt deep inside.
Thankfully the coffeepot was still there. It was a cheap one she’d picked up at a yard sale. She didn’t find any filters but did find some paper towels. She fashioned a homemade filter, prepped the coffee for the morning and set the timer.
She headed into the master bedroom, trying to brace herself for what she might find there.
She flipped the light switch and looked around.
The furniture was gone. The only thing left was a stained mattress on the floor that had seen better days.
She went down the hall into the other two bedrooms. One still had the furniture but was missing the mattress. And the other bedroom had nothing.
Her shoulders sagged and she felt like she couldn’t catch her breath. She blinked back the tears which stung her eyes.
So much for a good night’s sleep. She wondered if she would ever have a moment in her new life when she didn’t feel so overwhelmed with fear.
Swallowing down the pain in her heart, she walked out of the room.
In the living room she stood at the window and looked out. Tiny dots of lights from the other houses lit up around the lake.
