5. Chapter Five
ANNA
Anna peered through the ruffled kitchen curtains, getting her first good look at the backyard in the bright morning light. She hadn’t gotten a good look at the property when she first arrived. Darkness still fell early in this part of the country at this time of year, and she and her new employer had been too busy discussing other things.
It was a sizable back lot, the first quarter of which was the extensive patio she’d glimpsed the night before. Ceramic pots and urns sat on large, flat stones, now empty, but which she imagined filled with bright, colorful flowers when the season permitted. Beyond that, a fenced-in in-ground swimming pool was on the left side, grass and a stone walkway on the right. In the back, she could just make out an open space of grass with a tool shed in the corner. Tall, stately arborvitae stood like sentinels guarding the back property line. To the left and to the right, large deciduous trees, devoid of leaves, reached toward the sky, lording over dense bushes between them.
It was no wonder Mrs. Campbell didn’t want to leave this place to move into a small, impersonal living space. And based on Anna’s initial assessment, there was no reason she had to, not with just a little bit of help.
Through the stark branches, Anna caught glimpses of a black SUV coming down the driveway next door. Curious about the neighbors, she peered closer. A man got out of the vehicle and stood there, looking at the house, as if taking it all in. She could only see the back of him, but he appeared tall and had coppery-bronze hair that captured the sunlight.
The teakettle began to whistle. Anna paused in her snooping to tend to that. By the time she returned to the window, the man was gone.
She turned her attention back to preparing breakfast. Scrambled eggs, toast, fresh-squeezed orange juice, and hot tea. When everything was ready, she put it on a tray with Mrs. Campbell’s morning meds and carried it into the master bedroom suite. The older woman was sitting up in bed, reading glasses perched on her nose, frowning down at her iPad.
“What’s a seven-letter word for clear and translucent?”
“Hyaline,” Anna answered without hesitation.
“Yes, of course,” Elsa grumbled, jabbing the screen with arthritic fingers, then laying the tablet to the side. “It’s so refreshing to encounter a young person with a decent vocabulary. And useful for these crossword puzzles. My memory isn’t what it used to be, I’m afraid.”
“It’s not a word you hear often.”
“You’re a dear, sweet girl,” the older woman said. “I think we’re going to get along just fine.”
Anna did too.
She spent most of the morning familiarizing herself with the house, where things were, what she wanted to tackle first. The house didn’t require much in the way of cleaning, not on the surface level at least, but she could see where some deeper scrubbing was required.
Ears open and alert in case Mrs. Campbell needed something, Anna did some dusting, ran the vacuum, and swept the areas with hardwood flooring with a dust mop.
She made a light, healthy lunch, then shared tea and a rousing game of Scrabble with Mrs. Campbell. The elderly woman said she liked to play games every day in an attempt to stave off age-related mental decline as much as possible.
Afterward, Mrs. Campbell dozed off while reading, and Anna found quiet ways to occupy herself. She cleaned out the refrigerator and started on the cupboards, keeping a running list of what they had and what they needed.
Then dinner with pleasant conversation, which involved Elsa telling stories about Pine Ridge and the people in the neighborhood, before retiring for the evening.
As Anna lay in bed later that night, she couldn’t believe things had worked out so well. Elsa was a lovely lady and a wonderful boss. The job was laid-back and easy. Lots of downtime. So much better than what she would have had to deal with at that other place.
Too good, in fact. Something had to go wrong soon. It always did.
And when it does, Anna said to herself, I’ll deal with it.