“Hey, how was your day today?”I asked.
“Eh, it was alright.What about you?”he answered, expecting a long answer based on the cheesy smile on my face.
“I’m so glad you asked!As of today, we now own the old house I’ve been wanting to remodel for forever.I was hoping you wanted to go over there with me after dinner to check it out.What do you think?”
“Sure, sounds good to me.What’s for dinner though, I’m starving!”Dylan said, hoping we would grab a burger from his favorite fast-food place in town.
“Grill Shack?”I said with a laugh, knowing he would say yes.
“You know it!”Dylan clapped then buckled his seatbelt thinking about that juicy burger he’d been craving all day.
After dinner, the two of us drove over to our new house –our new house, just the thought of it gave me chills–we wereready to explore and find the newest adventure that awaited on the other side of the big oak door.We made it a celebration, drum rolling it out on the front door before unlocking it.This was a big accomplishment, and it was finally ours – a house we could call our own.
I had always dreamed of owning a Victorian home; a big wrap-around porch with a porch swing and a wrought iron fence surrounding the yard.Only this was a massive undertaking.
I bought a fixer upper.
It’s kind of a dump.
But this was one of the reasons I loved it, and it was also why I was able to afford it on my own.The bones of the three-story, light blue farmhouse were good – it just needed some –ok, a lot– of work on the inside.
The first thing I tackled was the kitchen.Nothing extravagant, but Dylan and Ipainted the cabinets, switched out the appliances and installed a new sink faucet.Small changes that made the house livable.Slowly, and in between client jobs,I worked on painting the walls in each room, upgrading the bathrooms and decorating.But mostly, I spent time outside.The gardens and the creek were my happy places.Dylan and I would spend hours outside planting flowers, berry bushes and fruit trees or splashing in the creek.
It was my sanctuary.A place I could call home.And it didn’t hold all the memories of the times I lay on my bedroom floor talking to Lee on the phone.Here, I could build new memories with my too-cool-for-mom son.
Today, I sit on the porch swing and think of all the things we’ll do at this house as he grows up: watch him and his friends run around in the dark playing man-hunt, peek out the front door as he says goodnight to his first girlfriend, help him put on his tie for prom, celebrate graduation, a backyard wedding.I smiled at the thought of all these things but then I caught my breath when the realization hit that I wouldn’t be celebrating these moments with his father by my side.
I took out my journal and wrote a letter to myself.I like to document the times when we have big milestones – it’s like I’m on the phone with Lee, telling him all about my week during our weekly phone calls.
June 7th
This is the first summer in our new house.Dylan and I have already painted the kitchen, the living room, his bedroom, and my room.I’ve slowly been buying decorations for the house; I think you would have liked it here.I know you were never really a country boy, but being out in the country is so peaceful.I love that everyone knows everyone here.This is probably the dumbest thing ever to like about a place, but I love that when you drive down the road to get to our house, it’s almost like a one-way road and everyone stops at one end to wait, taking turns to drive by and then waving as they pass.
There’s one school for each of the age groups and they’re all named after the town.We live in Oakhaven, Virginia, population 1200 (1202, if you count us as the newest residents).
I can’t wait to celebrate all the little moments here.I wish you were here with us.
Love Always,
Ellie
Chapter Twenty-Nine
LEE
Eleven years earlier
Finally back state-side and all I can think about is sleeping in my own bed, in an actual house with a real bathroom.I unlocked the door and found a stack of mail sitting on the kitchen counter.I don’t have many bills so there’s not a lot even though I’ve been gone for a year.There was a sticky note taped to the fridge from Dane:
“Welcome home.I’m at the bar every Wednesday waiting for you to get back.I did it, we got married.Let’s catch up.
Dane”
I open the fridge and see he’s left me a six pack, so I grab one and pop it open, absently flipping through the mail on the counter.I’m mid swig when I see the front page of an issue from the New York Times that I forgot I subscribed to.The headline read:Big Time Drug Swindler: ESCAPED.I set my beer down and picked up the paper, reading the article in its entirety:
Eddie Johnson, aka Big Boss, was in custody last month when a prison fight resulted in the death of one officer, two inmates and Mr.Johnson was left unaccounted for after the scuffle.He remains at large and is considered dangerous.Anyone with information on the whereabouts of the suspect is urged to take caution and seek out local authorities; do not engage.
There was a picture, a mugshot, of Eddie Johnson, age fifty-two, under the article.I swallowed a lump in my throat and set the paper back on the counter, looking at the top of the page for the issue date.Six months had passed since the incident, and I wondered whether they had apprehended him by now.Sitting down at my computer, I powered it up for the first time in a year.I opened the internet browser and typed inEddie Johnsoninto the search bar.A page full of results appeared and I scanned the headline of each looking for clues as to a recent update.The fifth one down was from a news report dated three days ago; I clicked on it.Mr.Johnson had not been located in a raid conducted three days ago based on a tip from an anonymous caller in Arkansas.We are still searching for the suspect; if you have any information, call the tip hotline.
