I need you, Kit. I have to get through all this crap between us… because I need your help.
The truck hits a small bump, and Kit looks back at the road. I swallow down my anxiety, trying to quiet the torrent of words threatening to burst through my lips.
I came here because I need help. It would be pretty stupid to cop out on that now, especially since I think my father really has found me…
The idea of being back in that town, in Vince’s arms, makes me shudder. Hot sweat breaks out under my arms and trickles down my sides. I remember Father telling me how lucky I was. How once I married Vince, I wouldn’t work in the factory anymore.
I’d just stay locked up in Vince’s cabin, cooking, cleaning, and always pregnant.
The idea makes me physically sick. For a second, I think I might have to ask Kit to pull over, but the trees around us start to thin out. Suddenly, we’re cruising along in bright sunlight. Ahead of us, a long blue streak appears with a rough line of green above it.
The road curves to the left into a circular drive, and that’s when I see the estate.
I’m shocked into complete silence. The place is huge—three stories high, with wings built around a central structure. The architecture is exquisite, with stone scrollwork and statues worked into every roof corner and wall edge. Ivy grows wildlyagainst the edges, as if the house has been embraced by the forest.
“You could fit a hundred people in here!” I gasp. “This place is huge!”
“More than that, actually,” Kit says with a little grin. “Each wing has a suite, with a bathroom, parlor, and a guest room attached. The central hall contains the study, library, and ballroom. Kitchens are dead center. Around the back, there is a series of small rooms intended for the staff to relax in. And behind that, a cottage for the caretakers.”
“You’d need a fucking team of them,” I mutter.
He sighs. “I do, in fact. Susan and Joe are very old now. I pay them far more than I should—Grandfather would have fainted dead away if he saw the figure—but they do so much out here. I know Joe can’t keep up the gardens by himself, and Susan can’t possibly handle all the cleaning. I’ve spoken to them about getting more staff, but they keep insisting they can handle it.” He sighed again. “Grandfather may be dead, but so many people are still insanely loyal to him.”
“I think you should just make the decision yourself,” I say. “And get some new people out here. Their comfort and safety are more important than their pride.”
“I agree. I just don’t know how to go about hiring anyone trustworthy. All the people I can think of to do the job wouldn’t want to move out here.”
I take a few steps towards the house, looking up at the high roof. Considering the imposing structure and the cruel old man who used to live here, I expect the place to feel uncomfortable, maybe even spooky. But it doesn’t.
It feels friendly, almost. And… expectant. Like it’s waiting for something.
Thoughts run through my mind, disjointed pieces and parts that haven’t fully come together. I remember how many people in town are homeless or in unsafe conditions while this beauty sits here with empty rooms, desperate for dozens of hands to care for her.
“Would you like to go inside first?” Kit asks. “Or go for a walk around the lake?”
“Let’s bring our bags in,” I answer. “Then you can show me around.”
As we approach the front door, a small old woman with dark gray hair appears in the doorway. She looks fragile, but her steely blue eyes fix on me with a powerful, determined gaze.
“Hello there,” she says, smiling. “I hear you’re the new luna, my dear. I’m Susan, the housekeeper.”
“Nice to meet you,” I answer politely, holding out my hand.
Susan shakes it in a firm grip. Then her lip trembles, her eyes tear up, and she throws her arms around my neck.
“Thank heavens Kit finally found himself a nice girl!” she cries, squeezing me tightly. “I’ve prayed for this day. Alisha would be so happy.”
“Grandmother never seemed to offer strong opinions either way, on anything I ever did,” Kit replies dryly. “I don’t imagine she’d throw a party for me.”
“Most likely not, young master, but she’d have been happy all the same,” Susan states. “I knew her well, waited on her personally, and she told me a great many things she never told anyone else.”
I see Kit’s eyes darken a little, but he doesn’t say anything. He just gathers up all our bags and gestures for Susan and me to go in ahead of him.
The hallway is wide and long, with incredibly high ceilings. I take slow steps as I follow Kit, looking around in wonder at the paintings, tapestries, and statues that decorate the area.
“I’ll leave our stuff in the library,” Kit says. “Did you want to stay in one of the guest rooms or in one of the suites?”
“Take me for a tour,” I suggest. “And then let’s decide.”
