Tymber Dalton (39 page)

She leaned forward, more intense. “He never saw, never felt what I did. He doesn’t understand. As long as I’ve owned that house, I’ve controlled who lived there. Since I’ve owned it, no one else has died in the house. I always made sure I could take it back, because I knew no one would live there very long. Now you want it, even though you know what it’s capable of. Don’t you love your husband?”

Sami’s mouth set in a grim line. “Ms. Johnson, I do love my husband. And that’s exactly why I have to buy this house.”

She studied Sami for a moment and nodded. “Okay. I have a feeling you think you know what you’re doing. I hope you’re right.”

“That makes two of us.” Sami got up and opened the door. Matt entered first, trying to mask the concern on his face.

Steve kissed her on the cheek. “Everything okay?”

She forced a smile. “Fine.”

Ms. Johnson’s son reclaimed his seat next to his mother. “Mom, you okay?”

She nodded. “I’m an old woman trying to make myself let go of the past.”

* * * *

They left the office with copies of the signed paperwork. Everything would be filed the next morning at the courthouse, but for all intents and purposes, the house was Sami’s.

“What did she say to you, Sami?” Steve asked from the front seat. He’d been unusually quiet since they’d returned with the supplies.

The rain still poured, loudly hammering on the SUV’s roof. Sami sat in back on the passenger side, behind Steve, and caught Matt’s eye in the rearview mirror.

“She wanted to tell me about the house’s history, about her husband, nothing much. I think she’s sad to let it go. Her son pushed her to sell.”

“That’s weird,” Steve said. “Her husband died there, and she didn’t want to sell it?”

“I don’t know. She had some good memories, it was their first house.”

“I suppose,” Steve said, “but she sure seemed reluctant to sell.”

Sami took a deep breath. “She’s convinced it’s haunted.”

Steve was silent for a moment, and she saw Matt glance at her in the mirror.

“Haunted?” Steve finally asked.

Sami seized the opening. “Yes, apparently that’s the local lore. In fact, Julie Prescott, the woman I told you about, who owns the new age store in town? She’s coming out tomorrow to look at it. When I told her where we lived, she practically begged me to let her see it.”

“Oh?” She couldn’t interpret Steve’s tone of voice.

Matt caught her eye again, and she ignored him. “Yes. I’ve got some great ideas for my book, but I need to spend some time with her so I can learn some of the things I need for the story. One of my characters is into all of that. Julie’s going to help me with research.”

Steve remained silent for a moment. “Well, it’s probably a waste of her time, but if it’s going to help you with your book, I’m all for it. I hope she’s not too disappointed.”

The rain finally let up, and they stopped for dinner on the way home. Sami called Julie from the restroom.

“It’s all set for tomorrow.” She quickly caught her up.

“Great! I did more research, and I think I have the grave locations. Might not be exact, but I’m hoping I can figure them out.”

“Remember, pretend you haven’t been to the house. My husband doesn’t know about your other visits.”

“Right. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Sami returned to the table, and Steve excused himself. “I’ll be right back.” Matt and Sami watched him slowly work his way to the restrooms.

“Well,” Matt asked, “what do you think?”

“About what?”

“His reaction to you telling him about Julie.”

She shrugged. “It’s hard to say. He seems very tired. I hope he plays along tomorrow.”

“He seemed open to it. The worst he can do is say no.”

Sami didn’t think that was the worst, but kept the thought to herself as Steve returned.

“Oh, I meant to ask you about your necklace,” Steve said after he sat down.

Sami looked up from her food. “What?”

He pointed to her onyx pendant. “That’s new. Where’d you get it?”

Sami touched it. “Oh, this? Julie gave them to us the other day at her shop.” She glanced at Matt and couldn’t see his, although she suspected he wore it under his shirt. “It’s supposed to bring good luck.”

Steve smiled. “Well, we got the house, and you got me home from the hospital, so apparently it’s working. She seriously thinks the house is haunted?”

“I guess so. Maybe she’s got some voodoo”—she shook her hands in the air—“she thinks can scare the ghosties away.”

Matt forced a laugh, but Steve appeared genuinely amused. “I promise I won’t tell her you said that,” he said.

“Actually,” Sami continued, fixing her gaze on Matt, hoping he’d play along, “I think Julie’s interest lies more with Matt than with the supernatural.” She took a sip of tea while Matt nearly choked on his.

Fortunately for her, Matt picked up right away. “I seriously doubt,” he said, using his napkin to mop up slopped tea, “she’s interested in me.”

She gently patted Steve’s arm and leaned in. “You should have seen her, fawning all over him. She asked about his wife. I said he’s single, and she nearly jumped him right then. She practically ravished him putting the necklace on him.”

Steve’s eyes widened and he laughed. “Whoo-hoo, you go, dude!”

Sami kept her gaze steady on Matt, knowing he’d get her back later. She’d have to remember to tell Julie to act the part.

Something lifted Steve’s mood. For the rest of the meal he acted chattier and more animated.

* * * *

The rain had slackened, but by the time they reached the park it returned with a vengeance. The main road was sloppy, and Matt switched to four-wheel drive to climb the first hill. Sami felt the wheels spin in the sloppy muck, catch, and they crested the top. He drove slow and carefully and parked close to the house, but the plywood stacked in the carport made a dry exit impossible.

“Hold on and I’ll get the umbrella,” Matt said.

“That’s okay.” Steve was out the door and up on the porch before Matt could untangle it from under his seat.

Matt looked at Sami in the mirror. “You realize I will get you back.”

She knew what he meant. She grinned. “Hey, you said we had to act, so act.” She bolted for the porch before he could reply.

* * * *

Pog glowered at them from the window seat. “Steve, go sit. I’ll get your meds ready.” Sami went to the kitchen and gathered everything, dumping a cup of kibble into Pog’s bowl.

“If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to change.” Matt went upstairs, and Pog bolted from his seat, following him.

Sami started Steve’s meds. “Are you okay? You look tired.”

He nodded. “I confess. I went to the basement while you were gone.”

Sami looked startled. “You did what?”

“I’m sorry but I wanted to help. I put the clothes from the washer into the dryer.” Was that relief on her face?

“Oh. You didn’t hurt yourself?”

“No, but I probably shouldn’t have gone down there. Then I went upstairs and took a shower. That was too much fun for one day, I think. Too many stairs.”

She wagged her finger at him. “Are you trying to end up in the hospital?”

He shook his head. “Nope. I’m tired of feeling useless.”

She sat next to him and softened her tone. “You’re not useless, Steve. But you need to learn to let others do for you. I wish you’d let Matt stay here while I went to the store.”

“I’m okay, Sami. I need to start doing things.”

“Wait until your sutures are out. Promise?”

He nodded. “Okay.”

“Good.” She glanced at her watch. “It’s been a long day, and I need a shower. Will you be okay? I’ll be back before your meds are done.”

He nodded. She patted his arm. “Can I get you anything?” she asked.

“No, I’ll be fine.”

He watched her go. It had all been a bad dream. If he went to the bathroom and lifted the toilet tank lid, there would be no bottle. In fact, he wouldn’t look. It wouldn’t be there anyway, why bother? He knew for certain Sami and Matt were not having an affair. When Sami talked about Julie, he saw Matt’s expression change. Matt was one of his closest friends, but as long as he’d known him, Matt rarely mentioned details of his love life. From the way he responded to Sami’s jibe, he must be interested in that woman.

Okay, so someone
was
coming to the house, like in his dream. It was something he put together in his subconscious. Sami had mentioned taking a class and his imagination took over.

Maybe she’d even mentioned it before and I forgot about it.

Steve lay back and closed his eyes. What seemed like a minute later, he felt gentle tugging on his arm. Sami, her hair damp from the shower and wearing shorts and a T-shirt, unhooked the IV.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I was trying not to wake you.”

How could I have dreamed horrible thoughts about her?
“It’s okay.” He reached out and stroked her left wrist, the one without the wounds. She didn’t flinch. “Do you know how much I love you?”

She blinked, smiled. Was it a sad smile? “I love you, too, Steve.”

“You must love me to put up with me.”

She patted him on the arm. “Go back to sleep. I need to try to write.”

* * * *

Pog followed Matt downstairs later. When the rain let up for a few minutes, Matt took him outside for a quick walk. Sami sat at the dining room table, where she could see Steve on the couch and Matt in a chair. Matt had his laptop perched on his knees, his feet on the coffee table.

Pog sat at her feet and whined.

“I fed you dinner. Go lay down.”

Sami slipped her headphones on, and found her playlist of music she called her “writing music.” A variety of different classical and instrumental pieces she could enjoy and tune out at the same time. They helped her focus.

After realizing he wasn’t getting anywhere, Pog finally returned to the living room where he tried the same act with Matt. She couldn’t hear what Matt said, but she watched him shake his head at the dog and point to the kitchen. The dog looked, but didn’t move. Finally, Pog curled up on the window seat.

Matt eventually went upstairs, Pog at his heels. He waved at her and mouthed, “Good night.” She nodded, waved, and continued working. Steve watched TV on the couch.

Sami worked for another hour, until she started yawning. It was after eleven, and she slipped her headphones off. Steve wasn’t on the couch. She shut down the computer, her heart racing.

She walked into the living room. “Steve?”

“In here,” he said from the kitchen. She found him staring into the fridge.

“What are you doing up?” she asked, more than a little relieved.

“I’m hungry.”

“Then why didn’t you ask me to get you something?”

“I didn’t want to disturb you.”

Damn him, now he was trying to be courteous. Her voice softened. “I’ll make it, and you’re due for medicine. Tell me what you want to eat.”

“Sami, I don’t want to—”

“Steve, I’m done working. It’s okay. Take the offer while it’s still good.”

He finally smiled and sat. “Scrambled eggs?”

She handed him his pills. “One or two?”

“Two.”

She moved Pog’s food dish away from the stove so she wouldn’t trip and spill it. Steve must have put more food down for him because it was full. No wonder the Lab was getting fat.

It only took her a minute to fix his eggs, and she sat while he ate.

“What time is your friend coming tomorrow?” he asked.

“Ten. Julie Prescott. I wouldn’t call her a friend, I barely know her.”

“Sorry.” He grinned. “Matt’s friend?”

Sami hoped the lie sounded good enough. “Wanna-be friend, at the very least.” She watched Steve’s face. The lie must have passed.

“Why does that name sound familiar?”

Might as well start with the truth. “She’s the great-granddaughter of Tom and Mary Prescott. He’s the one who molested and killed his daughter, they lived here in the house.”

“Oh. Good grief. Hell of a family history.”

Sami nodded. “Would you like me to leave the information out for you to look at?”

He shrugged. “Sure. I’ve slept so much today, I don’t know how well I’ll sleep tonight.”

“I’ll leave it on the coffee table.” She washed his dishes, putting them in the drainer. When she turned, Steve stood right behind her, startling her. He hadn’t made a sound.

“Sami, I wanted to say how sorry I am.” He took a step forward. She took a step back, until the counter pressed against her hips.

He put a hand on the counter on either side of her. “I promise, it’s all going to change,
I’m
going to change. It’s going to get better.”