Bridges - Chapter 5
Bridges
Chapter 5
By Lori Finnegan
2013
Jarred spent the weekend making trips to Mankato to furniture and home improvement stores where he was quickly learning to be a do-it-yourselfer. He made arrangements with two furniture stores for deliveries the following week, bought accessories at a bed and bath store, and then shopped at a home store for tons of supplies for fixing the place up himself. If his friends back home in California could have seen him, they would have been laughing, he knew that for sure.
By Sunday evening, he had a pile of stuff in the 'guest room' at the front of the house waiting for when furniture arrived, and had spent the entire weekend removing old wallpaper by himself. It was annoying and frustrating work, and Jarred was relieved when the last piece came off and a goopy pile at his feet. He fell asleep that night contemplating paint colors.
On Monday, the first delivery of furniture came in. Jarred had felt a little guilty about going behind Lira's back and purchasing furniture without checking with her Historical Society, but he really didn't plan on doing all that work she mentioned. Still, he had brought her brochures with him with him and consulted them when he picked out the pieces for each room. He had no idea if he was on the right track, but if Lira ever did come back, maybe she would appreciate the effort.
He opened the door to the delivery men and pointed out where he wanted each piece to go. He was impressed by how fast they worked and how quickly they had come and gone. Suddenly his house was half filled with furniture. Jarred stood back to look at it, and it was really beginning to come together.
He then went from room to room and decided on paint colors once and for all. Then he hopped in the car and headed to the store. He had gotten home and was halfway through painting a room when his phone rang, so he set the brush down, wiped his hands and picked up his cell. The display revealed that it was Sean calling.
“Hey, what's up?” Sean said after Jarred had answered.
Jarred chuckled. “I'm half covered in paint and so is this room I'm supposedly painting.”
“Wow, man. You're gonna have to invite me over there sometime to see the inside of that place.” Sean paused. “I just don't want to go into the basement.”
“Don't worry. I won't force you.” Jarred laughed. “But you're welcome over any time. Especially if you want to help me paint. You won't believe how many walls I have left after taking off all that hideous wallpaper.”
“I think I'll survey the damage first,” Sean said. “I'm still a little afraid your house has ghosts in it, remember!”
Jarred picked his brush back up and began to touch up a few areas. “I remember. Hey are we still on for tonight? What time should I be over there?”
“That's what I was calling about. To remind you, and tell you to come around six.”
“Sounds great, I'll see you then. And you can come over to the haunted house another time.”
Sean didn't say anything for a moment. “It's not actually haunted. Is it?”
Jarred only laughed.
*****
It didn't take too long to get to Sean's that night. Well, it didn't take too long to get to anywhere in Cleveland. It was an incredibly small town. Sean lived on the outskirts where the houses started to look like farms. Jarred was beginning to see corn fields and cows when he pulled into Sean's incredibly long, gravel driveway.
Sean's house was tucked away at the back of a long field and behind a clump of trees. There were several other smaller buildings in the area, making Jarred wonder if Sean did indeed live on some sort of a small farm.
He pulled up behind another car, climbed out, and got his guitar out from the back seat. That was when he heard voices and the sound of drums and followed the sound around the house to another building. This one was a large shed that had an open side. It looked like a glorified garage and reminded him of his days playing at his friends' houses... only this was the big time. It was all Sean's, and all the guys were inside already having a great time.
They waved to Jarred when they saw him and called him in.
“There's a spot for you right there,” Sean said and pointed to a stool in front of the drums. “I even dusted it off since we haven't had anyone play guitar for a while. Conor doesn't exactly... ahem... practice with us much anymore. Not after he learned the songs, anyway.”
Jarred looked down at the stool and then back up at Sean. “I see how it is.” He sat down and looked over towards Dave. “Well? Let's have a beat!”
Dave kicked up a beat, Alex started up on bass, and once Sean had started up on the keys, Jarred began a few chords. He recognized the melody from their set at the pub and it was easy to play along to. It wasn't long before he and guys were playing as a whole band.
No one missed Conor.
It was nine o'clock and three pizzas and several rounds of coke later, they were all played out and ready to call it a night. The night had flown by for Jarred. It had seemed like a long time since he had played that hard, but it in all reality, it had only been a few weeks. Or less.
“Man, Jarred! You seriously rock! You have to tell us more about your musical background sometime.” Sean sat on his stool and watched Jarred put his guitar in its case. The others had just left.
“Yeah, definitely.” He clasped it down tight and picked it up. “Anyway, you're welcome to come over to my place and see how creepy my place really isn't. Unless you're brave about the basement thing. I really don't go down there much either.”
“It's a plan!” Sean said.
*****
On Tuesday, Lira had come down a little bit from her high on Friday night. There was no mistaking, she had Jarred on her mind, but come Monday morning, she was able to function like a reasonable adult again. Given, her smile was just a big brighter than normal, and people noticed. At the office they were all telling her she looked especially nice.
Her aunts, on the other hand, did not notice. They had their minds focused on one thing and one thing only.
“Tell us, dear Lira,” Aunt Ida said from the back seat that Tuesday afternoon. “Were you able to see inside the old Victorian house?”
“Yes. Do tell us.” Aunt Carol's tone was a bit more harsh.
Lira drove along and didn't take her eyes off the road. “Yes, I did get inside,” she said with a smile. “In fact, he gave me a tour.”
For a moment, she could almost feel the air of shock of her aunts in the car.
“Oh my!” Aunt Melba said.
“Well,” Aunt Carol said tersely. “Everyone likes Lira, after all. Of course he invited her in. So tell us, what was it like inside?”
It was then that they pulled up at the light right next to the Victorian house. On the side street was a large white delivery truck with two men carrying a brand new green couch into the house. It was half wrapped in plastic.
“No! No!” Aunt Carol cried and pressed her hands to the window. “Oh my word, that is the ugliest couch I have ever seen in my life! He cannot seriously think of putting that in that lovely house. It's all the wrong style!”
The light turned green, and while Lira drove on, her aunts kept watching the men bring the couch inside until they were out of view.
“Lira,” Aunt Carol said her name as though she were in trouble. “What exactly did you say to him when you went inside?”
Lira made a turn toward the City Hall and carefully drove on. “Well... I politely introduced myself and said I was from the Historical Society. He then offered to give me a tour, and I said I would like that. Then at the end of the tour, I showed him our brochures and said we could work together to help him with the house. He politely declined but thanked me for the information. It was all very nice.”
“Hmm.” Aunt Carol was tapping her fake nails on the arm rest. “I think you're too polite.”
Lira looked at her in shock. “How can that be? I did get in to see the house. Which, by the way, he hasn't done a thing to. Yet. The paint was for a fence in the back. Rachel and I found that out when we-” Perhaps revealing to her aunts that they had spied on him from a church rectory wasn't the best idea. “Well, we discovered that on our own. I'd say I was pretty successful in getting all the information you asked for. If he doesn't want to work with the Historical Society, isn't that his right?”
Aunt Carol's face was turning an odd shade of pink. “It is not his right!” she said a little too loudly for being in an enclosed space. “He bought a historical building! It is his duty to work with us!”
Lira didn't reply. She knew when to shut up.
It was only a few more minutes until they arrived at the parking lot of City Hall, and she and her Aunts got out of the car. She took Aunt Melba's arm and helped her to the door.
It was going to be a long meeting.
*****
Jarred had worked hard over the beginning of the week to get his house looking up to par. He was looking forward to Sean's visit on Wednesday night, and he wanted the house to look its best. The place really looked like a home. Jarred had even got most of the main rooms painted, being extra careful to not drip any on the delicate woodwork. Once all the furniture was in and laid out over his brand new area rugs, the place was really looking good. Jarred had never worked so hard on something besides music in his life, and he was proud of it.
He had just thrown away some of the extra paper trash laying around from some empty boxes when there was a knock at the door. He threw it open-only to see...
Bobby the Ghost Investigator. Standing next to Sean.
“What the....” Jarred couldn't even finish.
“Okay, before you say anything,” Sean said and held out his hands in defense. “This guy is a friend of my brother's from school, and I thought it would be fun to de-ghost your house! What do you think?”
“It's called exorcise.” Bobby held up his recorder along with another bag which Jarred assumed held more ghost crap.
Jarred gave a sigh. “Okay, fine. But only because I like your music. Did Bobby tell you I turned him away last week?”
Bobby smiled.
Sean shook his head. “No, he didn't.”
“Well, come on in, one and all.” Jarred held his door open. “And if there are any ghosts out there, come in too, because there are none inside of here to get rid of yet!” He saw nothing and then shut the door behind Sean and Bobby.”
“First, I have to do a walk through without either of you two in the house.” Bobby was looking around at the high ceiling of the entryway.”
“Well, I was kind of planning on showing on Sean around, b-”
Sean pushed him toward the door. “It's okay, We'll go in next. He has a process. It's kind of cool. You'll see how it works and be amazed. Trust me.”
Jarred was doubtful. “Okay. Well, why don't I show you the backyard while we're waiting.” He led the way around to the back gate. “I know, super exciting.”
“Hey, it's pretty nice,” Sean said once he came through the gate.
Jarred had painted the entire fence all the way around the perimeter of the yard and cut the grass so that it was neat. He even pulled out most of the unsightly weeds by the back where someone used to have a garden.
Sean held his hands up like a picture frame. “I'm seeing a big barbeque, a picnic table... and perhaps some plug ins where we can hook up our equipment.”
Jarred smiled. “Sounds like a good hangout. Though I'm not sure the neighbors would like like the sound pollution.”
“Pollution!?” Sean looked offended. “Our sound is classic! They should only feel blessed to hear us.”
“Then maybe you can play at the church across the street.” Jarred laughed.
Sean suddenly took a bow. “You're looking at the Sunday morning pianist five years straight.”
For a moment, Jarred really wasn't sure what to say. He didn't know if Sean was serious or not. But, then again, this was a small town. It probably wasn't all that odd that Sean played in the band and for the church choir. “Well, then you probably are blessed,” he finally decided to say.
The back door opened and Bobby appeared wearing odd looking goggles, startling both Jarred and Sean.
“What the hell are those?” Jarred asked.
Bobby flipped them up onto his bald head. “Night vision goggles. I had to go in the basement.”
Sean visibly shuddered. “Ugh! We won't go down there. Will we?”
“No.” Jarred walked back toward the house and up the steps to the back door. “We won't go into the basement. “Come on, I'll give you the grand tour now.”
“I'll sit out here and take some notes!” Bobby called after them. “Don't worry, I have a flashlight!”
Jarred flipped on the backyard light for Bobby and then showed Sean the kitchen. He hadn't done much to it. He was going to have to get someone to do a real renovation on the kitchen. If he were to ask Lira, she would want it period, but for him, he wanted it functional for today's standards.
Sean had a good time looking at all the nooks and crannies of the old kitchen that new kitchens didn't have, like a built in bread box. Jarrod had thrown a bunch of plastic bags in there.
Next they took the little staircase upstairs. Jarred had repainted it a light brown to match the wood, and it was no longer glaringly pink. At the top of the staircase they emerged into the hall. Jarred had painted the walls a warm gray. He had also cleaned the wood with a special wood cleaner that he had gotten from the home improvement store; one that he was assured would not damage the woodwork. It had a new shine to it, and the hallway looked almost new. In some of the rooms, he had guest beds, and in the one across from the master, he had set up a small office for himself, which not only housed a desk and computer, but two guitars, and several stands with music.
“Wow,” Sean said after he walked out of the office. “You have really worked hard this past week. I wish I knew what it was like before, but I can't imagine it was like this.”
“It was in pretty rough shape,” Jarred turned the light off in his office and then moved across the hall to the master. “And I still have quite a ways to go, but at least now it's mostly livable. Next step is the kitchen, electric, and the roof, which definitely needs to be done before winter. By the way, when does winter start here? I've only heard about your snow.”
Sean turned and smiled at him. “Late October.”
“Shit.”
They finished the tour throughout the rest of the house, and before Jarred knew it, they were standing in front of the basement.
“Well?” he said, gesturing down the stairs. “Did you want to go down, or not? Unfortunately, only the one light works.” He turned on the main basement light which lit one at the top of the stairs and then another at the bottom. Jarred new the basement was much larger.
Sean hesitated. “Do you have a flashlight?”
“I don't, but I bet Bobby does. In fact, I think I heard him say so.”
“Don't think I'm a wimp or anything, but let's skip this for another time, okay, buddy?” Sean was smiling awkwardly.
“No worries.” Jarred turned the light off again and closed the door which was on squeaky hinges. “It actually is pretty creepy down there. Really damp with a ton of spiders. Huge ones. I think I saw a giant centipede, too.”
Sean didn't say anything.
When they walked back into the kitchen, they noticed Bobby sitting at the dining room table with his notebook. “Care to hear my thoughts?” he asked, wiggling his eyebrows. It looked weird under his bald head.
Sean sat down quickly at the table.
Jarred shrugged. “Why not?” he said.
“Okay.” Bobby took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Usually the way my process works is that I walk through the house silently and gather my own occurrences, or if I feel something in particular, I write it down as well. From what I compile, I share with you, the homeowner. Then, when I'm done telling you what I've gathered, you tell me the true story of the history of this house.”
“That's great, only there's one problem...” Jarred had his head in his hand. “I don't really know the history of the house.”
Bobby looked at Sean. “Do you?”
Sean shook his head. “I only know rumors and stories that I heard about it as a kid. Nothing more than you probably know.”
“Hm.” Bobby looked perplexed. “Well, perhaps this will be a two day investigation. We'll have to find someone who knows about the history of this house before we proceed.”
“Oh, I know someone!” Sean said. “Lira Montgomery. She's always hanging out with her old aunts at the Historical Society. I bet she knows everything about it.”
Jarred tried his best to keep a natural smile and pretend like he had never heard her name before.
“Perfect!” Bobby seemed to like this idea because he began packing his things up. “Let me know when she's agreed upon a date to meet us here, and we can continue.”
Jarred and Sean were suddenly left alone, and Jarred realized what a strange evening it had turned out to be. “Well, I'm glad you got to see the house,” he said. “Next time I'll get some super bright lights and we'll venture into the basement. Promise.”
Sean looked like he was trying to smile. “We'll see about that!”
Bridges Index
Chapter 5
By Lori Finnegan
2013
Jarred spent the weekend making trips to Mankato to furniture and home improvement stores where he was quickly learning to be a do-it-yourselfer. He made arrangements with two furniture stores for deliveries the following week, bought accessories at a bed and bath store, and then shopped at a home store for tons of supplies for fixing the place up himself. If his friends back home in California could have seen him, they would have been laughing, he knew that for sure.
By Sunday evening, he had a pile of stuff in the 'guest room' at the front of the house waiting for when furniture arrived, and had spent the entire weekend removing old wallpaper by himself. It was annoying and frustrating work, and Jarred was relieved when the last piece came off and a goopy pile at his feet. He fell asleep that night contemplating paint colors.
On Monday, the first delivery of furniture came in. Jarred had felt a little guilty about going behind Lira's back and purchasing furniture without checking with her Historical Society, but he really didn't plan on doing all that work she mentioned. Still, he had brought her brochures with him with him and consulted them when he picked out the pieces for each room. He had no idea if he was on the right track, but if Lira ever did come back, maybe she would appreciate the effort.
He opened the door to the delivery men and pointed out where he wanted each piece to go. He was impressed by how fast they worked and how quickly they had come and gone. Suddenly his house was half filled with furniture. Jarred stood back to look at it, and it was really beginning to come together.
He then went from room to room and decided on paint colors once and for all. Then he hopped in the car and headed to the store. He had gotten home and was halfway through painting a room when his phone rang, so he set the brush down, wiped his hands and picked up his cell. The display revealed that it was Sean calling.
“Hey, what's up?” Sean said after Jarred had answered.
Jarred chuckled. “I'm half covered in paint and so is this room I'm supposedly painting.”
“Wow, man. You're gonna have to invite me over there sometime to see the inside of that place.” Sean paused. “I just don't want to go into the basement.”
“Don't worry. I won't force you.” Jarred laughed. “But you're welcome over any time. Especially if you want to help me paint. You won't believe how many walls I have left after taking off all that hideous wallpaper.”
“I think I'll survey the damage first,” Sean said. “I'm still a little afraid your house has ghosts in it, remember!”
Jarred picked his brush back up and began to touch up a few areas. “I remember. Hey are we still on for tonight? What time should I be over there?”
“That's what I was calling about. To remind you, and tell you to come around six.”
“Sounds great, I'll see you then. And you can come over to the haunted house another time.”
Sean didn't say anything for a moment. “It's not actually haunted. Is it?”
Jarred only laughed.
*****
It didn't take too long to get to Sean's that night. Well, it didn't take too long to get to anywhere in Cleveland. It was an incredibly small town. Sean lived on the outskirts where the houses started to look like farms. Jarred was beginning to see corn fields and cows when he pulled into Sean's incredibly long, gravel driveway.
Sean's house was tucked away at the back of a long field and behind a clump of trees. There were several other smaller buildings in the area, making Jarred wonder if Sean did indeed live on some sort of a small farm.
He pulled up behind another car, climbed out, and got his guitar out from the back seat. That was when he heard voices and the sound of drums and followed the sound around the house to another building. This one was a large shed that had an open side. It looked like a glorified garage and reminded him of his days playing at his friends' houses... only this was the big time. It was all Sean's, and all the guys were inside already having a great time.
They waved to Jarred when they saw him and called him in.
“There's a spot for you right there,” Sean said and pointed to a stool in front of the drums. “I even dusted it off since we haven't had anyone play guitar for a while. Conor doesn't exactly... ahem... practice with us much anymore. Not after he learned the songs, anyway.”
Jarred looked down at the stool and then back up at Sean. “I see how it is.” He sat down and looked over towards Dave. “Well? Let's have a beat!”
Dave kicked up a beat, Alex started up on bass, and once Sean had started up on the keys, Jarred began a few chords. He recognized the melody from their set at the pub and it was easy to play along to. It wasn't long before he and guys were playing as a whole band.
No one missed Conor.
It was nine o'clock and three pizzas and several rounds of coke later, they were all played out and ready to call it a night. The night had flown by for Jarred. It had seemed like a long time since he had played that hard, but it in all reality, it had only been a few weeks. Or less.
“Man, Jarred! You seriously rock! You have to tell us more about your musical background sometime.” Sean sat on his stool and watched Jarred put his guitar in its case. The others had just left.
“Yeah, definitely.” He clasped it down tight and picked it up. “Anyway, you're welcome to come over to my place and see how creepy my place really isn't. Unless you're brave about the basement thing. I really don't go down there much either.”
“It's a plan!” Sean said.
*****
On Tuesday, Lira had come down a little bit from her high on Friday night. There was no mistaking, she had Jarred on her mind, but come Monday morning, she was able to function like a reasonable adult again. Given, her smile was just a big brighter than normal, and people noticed. At the office they were all telling her she looked especially nice.
Her aunts, on the other hand, did not notice. They had their minds focused on one thing and one thing only.
“Tell us, dear Lira,” Aunt Ida said from the back seat that Tuesday afternoon. “Were you able to see inside the old Victorian house?”
“Yes. Do tell us.” Aunt Carol's tone was a bit more harsh.
Lira drove along and didn't take her eyes off the road. “Yes, I did get inside,” she said with a smile. “In fact, he gave me a tour.”
For a moment, she could almost feel the air of shock of her aunts in the car.
“Oh my!” Aunt Melba said.
“Well,” Aunt Carol said tersely. “Everyone likes Lira, after all. Of course he invited her in. So tell us, what was it like inside?”
It was then that they pulled up at the light right next to the Victorian house. On the side street was a large white delivery truck with two men carrying a brand new green couch into the house. It was half wrapped in plastic.
“No! No!” Aunt Carol cried and pressed her hands to the window. “Oh my word, that is the ugliest couch I have ever seen in my life! He cannot seriously think of putting that in that lovely house. It's all the wrong style!”
The light turned green, and while Lira drove on, her aunts kept watching the men bring the couch inside until they were out of view.
“Lira,” Aunt Carol said her name as though she were in trouble. “What exactly did you say to him when you went inside?”
Lira made a turn toward the City Hall and carefully drove on. “Well... I politely introduced myself and said I was from the Historical Society. He then offered to give me a tour, and I said I would like that. Then at the end of the tour, I showed him our brochures and said we could work together to help him with the house. He politely declined but thanked me for the information. It was all very nice.”
“Hmm.” Aunt Carol was tapping her fake nails on the arm rest. “I think you're too polite.”
Lira looked at her in shock. “How can that be? I did get in to see the house. Which, by the way, he hasn't done a thing to. Yet. The paint was for a fence in the back. Rachel and I found that out when we-” Perhaps revealing to her aunts that they had spied on him from a church rectory wasn't the best idea. “Well, we discovered that on our own. I'd say I was pretty successful in getting all the information you asked for. If he doesn't want to work with the Historical Society, isn't that his right?”
Aunt Carol's face was turning an odd shade of pink. “It is not his right!” she said a little too loudly for being in an enclosed space. “He bought a historical building! It is his duty to work with us!”
Lira didn't reply. She knew when to shut up.
It was only a few more minutes until they arrived at the parking lot of City Hall, and she and her Aunts got out of the car. She took Aunt Melba's arm and helped her to the door.
It was going to be a long meeting.
*****
Jarred had worked hard over the beginning of the week to get his house looking up to par. He was looking forward to Sean's visit on Wednesday night, and he wanted the house to look its best. The place really looked like a home. Jarred had even got most of the main rooms painted, being extra careful to not drip any on the delicate woodwork. Once all the furniture was in and laid out over his brand new area rugs, the place was really looking good. Jarred had never worked so hard on something besides music in his life, and he was proud of it.
He had just thrown away some of the extra paper trash laying around from some empty boxes when there was a knock at the door. He threw it open-only to see...
Bobby the Ghost Investigator. Standing next to Sean.
“What the....” Jarred couldn't even finish.
“Okay, before you say anything,” Sean said and held out his hands in defense. “This guy is a friend of my brother's from school, and I thought it would be fun to de-ghost your house! What do you think?”
“It's called exorcise.” Bobby held up his recorder along with another bag which Jarred assumed held more ghost crap.
Jarred gave a sigh. “Okay, fine. But only because I like your music. Did Bobby tell you I turned him away last week?”
Bobby smiled.
Sean shook his head. “No, he didn't.”
“Well, come on in, one and all.” Jarred held his door open. “And if there are any ghosts out there, come in too, because there are none inside of here to get rid of yet!” He saw nothing and then shut the door behind Sean and Bobby.”
“First, I have to do a walk through without either of you two in the house.” Bobby was looking around at the high ceiling of the entryway.”
“Well, I was kind of planning on showing on Sean around, b-”
Sean pushed him toward the door. “It's okay, We'll go in next. He has a process. It's kind of cool. You'll see how it works and be amazed. Trust me.”
Jarred was doubtful. “Okay. Well, why don't I show you the backyard while we're waiting.” He led the way around to the back gate. “I know, super exciting.”
“Hey, it's pretty nice,” Sean said once he came through the gate.
Jarred had painted the entire fence all the way around the perimeter of the yard and cut the grass so that it was neat. He even pulled out most of the unsightly weeds by the back where someone used to have a garden.
Sean held his hands up like a picture frame. “I'm seeing a big barbeque, a picnic table... and perhaps some plug ins where we can hook up our equipment.”
Jarred smiled. “Sounds like a good hangout. Though I'm not sure the neighbors would like like the sound pollution.”
“Pollution!?” Sean looked offended. “Our sound is classic! They should only feel blessed to hear us.”
“Then maybe you can play at the church across the street.” Jarred laughed.
Sean suddenly took a bow. “You're looking at the Sunday morning pianist five years straight.”
For a moment, Jarred really wasn't sure what to say. He didn't know if Sean was serious or not. But, then again, this was a small town. It probably wasn't all that odd that Sean played in the band and for the church choir. “Well, then you probably are blessed,” he finally decided to say.
The back door opened and Bobby appeared wearing odd looking goggles, startling both Jarred and Sean.
“What the hell are those?” Jarred asked.
Bobby flipped them up onto his bald head. “Night vision goggles. I had to go in the basement.”
Sean visibly shuddered. “Ugh! We won't go down there. Will we?”
“No.” Jarred walked back toward the house and up the steps to the back door. “We won't go into the basement. “Come on, I'll give you the grand tour now.”
“I'll sit out here and take some notes!” Bobby called after them. “Don't worry, I have a flashlight!”
Jarred flipped on the backyard light for Bobby and then showed Sean the kitchen. He hadn't done much to it. He was going to have to get someone to do a real renovation on the kitchen. If he were to ask Lira, she would want it period, but for him, he wanted it functional for today's standards.
Sean had a good time looking at all the nooks and crannies of the old kitchen that new kitchens didn't have, like a built in bread box. Jarrod had thrown a bunch of plastic bags in there.
Next they took the little staircase upstairs. Jarred had repainted it a light brown to match the wood, and it was no longer glaringly pink. At the top of the staircase they emerged into the hall. Jarred had painted the walls a warm gray. He had also cleaned the wood with a special wood cleaner that he had gotten from the home improvement store; one that he was assured would not damage the woodwork. It had a new shine to it, and the hallway looked almost new. In some of the rooms, he had guest beds, and in the one across from the master, he had set up a small office for himself, which not only housed a desk and computer, but two guitars, and several stands with music.
“Wow,” Sean said after he walked out of the office. “You have really worked hard this past week. I wish I knew what it was like before, but I can't imagine it was like this.”
“It was in pretty rough shape,” Jarred turned the light off in his office and then moved across the hall to the master. “And I still have quite a ways to go, but at least now it's mostly livable. Next step is the kitchen, electric, and the roof, which definitely needs to be done before winter. By the way, when does winter start here? I've only heard about your snow.”
Sean turned and smiled at him. “Late October.”
“Shit.”
They finished the tour throughout the rest of the house, and before Jarred knew it, they were standing in front of the basement.
“Well?” he said, gesturing down the stairs. “Did you want to go down, or not? Unfortunately, only the one light works.” He turned on the main basement light which lit one at the top of the stairs and then another at the bottom. Jarred new the basement was much larger.
Sean hesitated. “Do you have a flashlight?”
“I don't, but I bet Bobby does. In fact, I think I heard him say so.”
“Don't think I'm a wimp or anything, but let's skip this for another time, okay, buddy?” Sean was smiling awkwardly.
“No worries.” Jarred turned the light off again and closed the door which was on squeaky hinges. “It actually is pretty creepy down there. Really damp with a ton of spiders. Huge ones. I think I saw a giant centipede, too.”
Sean didn't say anything.
When they walked back into the kitchen, they noticed Bobby sitting at the dining room table with his notebook. “Care to hear my thoughts?” he asked, wiggling his eyebrows. It looked weird under his bald head.
Sean sat down quickly at the table.
Jarred shrugged. “Why not?” he said.
“Okay.” Bobby took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Usually the way my process works is that I walk through the house silently and gather my own occurrences, or if I feel something in particular, I write it down as well. From what I compile, I share with you, the homeowner. Then, when I'm done telling you what I've gathered, you tell me the true story of the history of this house.”
“That's great, only there's one problem...” Jarred had his head in his hand. “I don't really know the history of the house.”
Bobby looked at Sean. “Do you?”
Sean shook his head. “I only know rumors and stories that I heard about it as a kid. Nothing more than you probably know.”
“Hm.” Bobby looked perplexed. “Well, perhaps this will be a two day investigation. We'll have to find someone who knows about the history of this house before we proceed.”
“Oh, I know someone!” Sean said. “Lira Montgomery. She's always hanging out with her old aunts at the Historical Society. I bet she knows everything about it.”
Jarred tried his best to keep a natural smile and pretend like he had never heard her name before.
“Perfect!” Bobby seemed to like this idea because he began packing his things up. “Let me know when she's agreed upon a date to meet us here, and we can continue.”
Jarred and Sean were suddenly left alone, and Jarred realized what a strange evening it had turned out to be. “Well, I'm glad you got to see the house,” he said. “Next time I'll get some super bright lights and we'll venture into the basement. Promise.”
Sean looked like he was trying to smile. “We'll see about that!”
Bridges Index