Whispers (Argent Springs) (8 page)

“I already explained that was the local’s price.
It’s ten for you.”

“But I’m buying it for her.”

Penny shrugged, obviously enjoying pinning Erin to
the wall.

Erin pulled the remaining eight dollars from her
pocket. “This is all I have left.”

“Looks like you’re two dollars short.”

“Are you kidding me?”

A dark look hardened Penny’s expression. “Not even
a little.”

“Then I’ll have to go back to my room and get
more. I don’t have it with me, and I didn’t bring a credit card.” She’d really
like to tell both of them to go to hell, but she didn’t dare.

“You’ll have to leave your shoes, then. It’s the
only guarantee I have that you’ll come back.”

Gert nodded. “Company policy.”

“You want me to walk home in the cold to get two
dollars?”

“It’ll teach you to not spend money you don’t
have.”

The enjoyment the two women received at her
expense sickened her. Annabelle or someone should have warned her about this
place. She leaned over to unlace her boots, embarrassing tears fighting for
release, but she wouldn’t let them. This was a hard lesson learned, but she
wasn’t about to let them see her cry.

“Jesus, Penny. Do you always have to be such a
bitch?” The sound of Rick’s voice brought Erin up sharply in her seat.

Disappointment cooled the features on both of the
women’s faces. “Just trying to have some fun, Rick.”

“By making her walk home in the cold with no
shoes? Yes, I saw the whole thing,” he said before either one of them could
answer. “That’s what your dad used to do to the drunken miners who didn’t pay
their tabs. It’s not what you do to a lady.”

Rick faced her. As much as she’d hated him
earlier, she was extremely grateful to see him now.

“How much did she charge you?”

“Ten dollars. I gave her two for a tip.”

He shook his head in disgust as he faced the
bartender. “It sounds like she’s paid for both drinks already and gave you a
tip that you damn well didn’t deserve. Did you know she’s Annabelle’s niece? I
hope you’re both ashamed of yourselves.”

Erin thought she might actually have seen looks of
contrition on their faces as Rick took her elbow and helped her from her seat.
She hoped they did. It bordered on cruel how they’d treated her. No, she wasn’t
a local, but people should never treat others that way.

“Is it all right if I walk home with you?” Rick
asked as they headed for the door.

She nodded, her tears not sufficiently buried for
her to give a vocal response.

Chilly air was their constant companion as they
made their way home. They’d almost reached Annabelle’s house before Rick spoke.

“I’m sorry about that. Penny and Gert grew up with
a bastard for a father. Normally, they’re okay, but every once in a while that
mean streak they inherited shows up.”

“It’s okay,” she said as they reached the porch.
“As they put it, I’m not one of the locals. Obviously they don’t like strangers
in their town.”

“Pretty women is more like it.”

She raised a brow in question.

“If you weren’t so pretty, they wouldn’t have
harassed you at all.” He opened the door for her, letting her precede him
inside before he closed out the night. “Don’t judge the rest of us based on the
actions of a few. Some aren’t happy that we have to be overrun with tourists in
order to make a living, but most are grateful to have a source of income. Don’t
let them make you feel unwelcome.”

He took off his coat and hung it on a hook near
the door. “Goodnight,” he said as he headed toward the stairs.

She slowly undid her coat as he left. His words
had soothed part of her soul. He’d called her pretty. But he’d also hinted her
value came from contributing to the livelihood of his fellow citizens. She’d
hoped for more, but she was happy his opinion hadn’t been worse.

*        *        *

The next morning, she and Annabelle ate alone
again. Rick had headed into his garage early to start on a snowmobile engine
rebuild he’d promised to have done for a customer this week according to her
aunt. Erin felt bad for running him off again, but Annabelle assured her that
Rick was rarely around for breakfast on weekday mornings.

Erin hauled a set of sheets from the laundry room on
the first floor to the bedroom where the Finchers had stayed. Annabelle was
already there, dusting a beautiful antique chest of drawers. The lemon scent of
polish combined with the soothing smell of lavender.

“I love your perfume,” Erin said as she snapped
open the bottom sheet, flinging it across the bed.

Annabelle turned to her with a quizzical smile. “I’m
not wearing any perfume.”

“Then lotion or whatever you have on. It’s very
nice.”

The tiniest look of concern entered her aunt’s
expression. “I haven’t put lotion on today.”

“It smells like lavender.” Erin lifted the
mattress, tucking the elastic edge of the sheet beneath it before letting it
drop. “You’re not wearing anything with that scent?”

“You smell
lavender
?”

She gave her an encouraging smile as she nodded.
“Yes. I really like it. I noticed it the first day I arrived.”

Excitement burned behind Annabelle’s eyes. “Rosa
used to wear lavender. They called her the Lavender Lady because she always
wore purple and smelled like the plant.”

A tingle coaxed bumps to the surface of her arms.
“Really? You never wear it? It’s weird to keep smelling it then, isn’t it?”

She shook her head and then a smile relaxed her
face. “I know what it is. There’s a dried floral arrangement on the first floor
with lavender in it. You must be smelling that.”

“Must be.” Erin recalled seeing an arrangement
just inside the front door, although she wasn’t sure the scent would reach this
far. But, it was the only reasonable explanation.

After Erin finished with the bed and Annabelle
vacuumed the floor, her aunt patted the lovely rusted orange and brown quilt.
“Sit with me a moment. I get all out of breath these days doing housework.”

Erin sat next to her on the bed, remembering what
Rick had told her about Annabelle’s health. “Are you sure you’re okay? I can
finish up.”

Her aunt’s face seemed awfully pale at the moment.
“I’m fine, love. I just need to go at a slower pace. But it’s good for me to
keep moving.”

She nodded in understanding. “Maybe you should
think about hiring someone to come in and help with things.” If only she lived
in their quaint little town, she’d be happy to stop by every morning and help
her aunt.

“I have had Piper come a time or two to help with
the spring cleaning. And Rick’s always good if I need a helping hand.”

“That’s very kind of him,” she said, grudgingly
giving the man kudos. Color had returned to Annabelle’s face, giving Erin a
measure of reassurance. “Could I get you some water or something?”

“Some tea sounds lovely. If you’ll be a dear and
put away the vacuum and then cart these sheets down to the washer, I’ll get the
kettle going.”

“Sounds like a good plan.”

Erin did as she was asked and threw the bedding
into the washer before she joined Annabelle in the kitchen.

“I love the way you’ve tried to preserve the
old-time feeling in your house. You’re lucky to have found so many treasures
from the past.”

“Indeed.” Annabelle removed the tea bag from her
cup and set it on the saucer. “Truth be told, I have to thank the people who
lived here during the time between me and Rosa who kept everything in such
great condition. Most of the time, the house belonged to our family, but strangers
did own it for a short period of time. Fortunately, they didn’t stay long.”

She met Erin’s gaze with a penetrating one of her
own. “They thought the house was haunted.”

A laugh escaped Erin’s mouth. “But it’s not,
right? You told me that the first day.” Though there had been a couple of times
when she’d felt an odd presence, but she’d chalked that up to sleeping in an
old house.

Annabelle dropped her gaze, peering into her
teacup. Her aunt’s reaction brought forth a shiver.

“Aunt Annabelle? Are you now saying that it is?”
Intrigue with a touch of fright colored her voice.

“I should have been honest with you upstairs.” She
blinked a couple of times, her eyes seeming large behind her thick glasses. “There
are odd things that happen, like you smelling lavender.”

“But that can be explained.” She decided she didn’t
want a ghost living in this charming old house.

“And Henderson. He said during the year he lived
here alone before he met me, he’d sense a woman’s presence. And sometimes
she’d…”

“She’d what?” Erin asked with an uncomfortable
laugh.

A blush swept over Annabelle’s cheeks. “He said
he’d feel like someone was touching him.”

“Touching him?”

She shrugged. “You know,
touching
him. As
in trying to pleasure him.”

Erin choked on a sip of tea. “And you believed
him?”

“I don’t know. The man was a pillar of honesty. It
wouldn’t have been like him to make it up. He said it stopped once I moved into
the house, but several in town accused him of being a crazy old man when he
told them.”

She cleared the last vestiges of errant tea from
her throat, not quite sure she believed her aunt. “That’s a…great story, but I
hope she doesn’t ever visit me.” She glanced around the cozy room, trying to
sense if they were truly alone.

“To be honest, I like the idea of Rosa being here.
There have been times when I thought someone was here with me.” Sadness claimed
Annabelle’s features. “But maybe I imagined it because I wished Henderson was
still here.”

“You really miss him, don’t you?”

“I sure do. Even though we didn’t meet until later
on, he was the love of my life.” She gave a thoughtful nod. “I’ve always tried
to live each moment the best I can. But the moments with him were the ones I
cherish the most.”

Erin leaned over and wrapped an arm around her
shoulder, giving her a squeeze. “You’re my inspiration, you know. When I met
you, I realized life is passing me by, and I’d better get my butt out there
before I miss too much more. It’s time to climb out of my shell.”

“You’re out of it right now.”

“I know, and it feels good. I was such an idiot to
hide for so long.” She was part of the world again, having new experiences and
meeting new people. Although she might be more careful before venturing into
places like Krog’s alone.

“Don’t be too hard on yourself. It’s okay to take
some time to lick your wounds.”

“Two years?” Craig hadn’t been worth two months.

“He hurt you. “

Her simple acknowledgement brought tears to Erin’s
eyes and stole the control she had over her emotions. No one had given her that
necessary validation. Perhaps that was why it had taken her so long to get over
the death of her marriage.

“Oh, love.” Her aunt pulled her toward her, and
Erin wept against Annabelle’s shoulder as her festering pain surfaced.

Why couldn’t her mother have shown her that kind
of concern? It would have made things so much easier, and she probably wouldn’t
have married a man who didn’t love her in the first place.

A few moments passed before she was able to
wrangle in her flailing feelings. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to fall apart like
that.”

“It’s okay. If you don’t let it out then you’ll
carry it with you always, and negative emotional feelings have a tendency to
grow as toxic as a dead carcass rotting in a clear pond.” Annabelle pulled a
folded tissue from her cleavage and handed it to Erin. “It’s clean.”

Erin gave her a watery smile as she dabbed at her
tears.

Annabelle patted her arm. “You feel better
already, don’t you?”

She did. “Thank you for listening.”

“Anytime, love. Anytime.” She stood and reheated
her tea in the microwave. “I remember my first divorce. I was barely twenty-one
years old, and my mama was completely horrified when the whole town found out.
You would have thought I’d committed murder or something equally heinous. But
I’d married a drunken bastard who thought his lot in life was to tear me down.
I wasn’t having none of it. I couldn’t stay here, not with all the gossiping
and such, so I took myself to Denver where I worked as a typist. That’s where I
met Frank.”

Erin sniffed, grateful to lose herself in
Annabelle’s stories. “Did you love Frank?”

“I suppose, as much as one person can love someone
she’s only known for two months. He was in the service and was killed by
friendly fire. A tragic accident. My heart was broken at the time. But you
know, the times that we had were real good, and that’s when I learned to
appreciate each moment.”

The woman completely amazed her. “Thank you for
sharing that with me. It means a lot. Someday, I hope to fall for someone as
wonderful as Frank or Henderson.”

“What are you waiting for? Today is as good of a
day as any to stake your claim on life and start living it the way you want
to.”

Her words were like a slap of frigid winter wind.
What the hell was she waiting for? “You’re right.” Why had she not seen it
before? This was her life to live how she wanted.

“I’m thinking about driving up in the hills a
little way,” Erin said. “I’d like to take some pictures of the mountains and
the little town nestled below. Would you like to come with?”

“No, you go. I’m a little tuckered out after this
morning. I think I’ll read for a while and then maybe take a nap.”

“Do you want me to stay here with you? I don’t
need to go.”

Her aunt narrowed her eyes. “Did you not just hear
anything I told you? This is your life. Now go live it.”

“But I wanted to spend time with you.”

“We just did. And we’ll spend more time together
later on, but for now, you need to follow your heart. Your camera is calling.”