Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Essie arrived home with her head spinning after her conversation with Mr. Woods and parked by the side of the drive where a shiny, polished commercial truck sat blocking the garage entrance with a battered one in the circle drive.
What in the world was going on? She grabbed her purse and the papers Mr. Woods had given her and rushed to the front veranda where two men stood.
“Hi. Can I help you?” Essie asked.
“Hi, ma’am. I had a meeting set up with Esther Ferguson. Are you Esther?” His pressed uniform shirt introduced him as Ben from Continental Home Construction and Remodeling.
“I did as well,” the other man blurted out. He wore an unmarked denim work shirt and well-worn jeans. “I’m Ivan Clarke of Clarke’s Remodeling Services.”
“Gentlemen, my apologies. My aunt passed away last week. I’m Essie Ferguson, the new owner.”
Ivan shook his head slightly. “I’m sorry to hear that, Miss. Your aunt was a lovely woman.”
“Yeah, that’s sad. Are you interested in remodeling? I’ll be glad to give you the estimate instead. I’m Ben from Continental, the largest construction company in town. We’re the biggest for a reason.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Ben.” Essie couldn’t help but be impressed by his professional appearance and attitude.
“While I was waiting, I walked around and found several urgent things you should take care of immediately on the exterior of your home. Guttering, the porch is sagging, and that back door is stuck closed.”
“Miss, I’d be more concerned about the wood rot on the roof. You’re going to have a big leak soon,” Ivan told her with a serious expression.
“He’s right,” a deep voice said in her ear.
Essie jumped three feet into the air. Well, probably not that high. The men took a step back from her sudden movement. She noticed they didn’t react to the voice.
“Are you okay, miss?” Ben asked.
Essie turned slightly and rubbed her arm.
“A mosquito just bit me.” She glimpsed the old-fashioned man standing behind her.
Edmund shifted to stand next to the group.
He studied the men. After all she’d read overnight, Essie wasn’t afraid of the apparition.
He hadn’t spooked her aunt. Surely, she was safe.
“That’s not the first time someone’s accused me of being a pest,” Edmund told her as she glanced his way.
She could imagine Esther giving him trouble over the years as he hung around chatting to her while everyone else was unaware of his presence.
Essie pretended she couldn’t see him either.
Having people gossip about the new owner of Ferguson’s Folly who talked to ghosts?
That would sink any hopes she had of establishing a new business.
Leave it to Aunt Esther to give her another push to follow her dreams. Essie would investigate a bit more, but she’d made her decision.
“Gentlemen, I appreciate you coming and giving me some advice about what I need to do. I am looking to add some bathrooms and other features to the mansion and grounds. Would you be able to help me on some projects?”
“We’ll be glad to create a master plan for bringing your home up to snuff. Continental will even provide financing so you can get started next month,” Ben announced proudly before adding, “Bathrooms are tricky. You’ll need all new plumbing. That’s a big project.”
“I’ve added several bathrooms to older buildings before. Often, I can access piping in the vicinity to expand. I can start tomorrow if you would like,” Ivan told her.
Edmund walked behind the two men. He stood slightly behind them, studying each man before moving to Ivan’s side. Edmund even pointed at him to make sure Essie understood his recommendation. Relief flooded her at not needing to choose.
“How about this. Ivan, would you come tomorrow, and we’ll walk through the house and grounds to talk about my plans? Ben, let’s set up a date next week if you have availability to do the same.”
Ben pulled out his phone and checked his calendar. “Sorry, I’m booked solid. How about the following week?”
Essie agreed on a date and time, knowing full well she’d cancel that tomorrow after speaking to Ivan. Who wanted to work with a contractor who was never available? And Edmund thought Ivan was better.
Thanking the men, she watched them return to their trucks before looking around to spot Edmund again. He had vanished. “Thanks, Edmund. You show up and point before disappearing before I can ask why?” she mused aloud.
“He visited again, huh?” Sara asked from the porch.
Essie turned to face the housekeeper who had come outside when she heard the flurry of activity. “Edmund? Yes. Aunt Esther had set up appointments with two contractors. While I was talking to them, he chose one for me.”
“Interesting. Come inside for some tea. You can tell me what Mr. Woods said. I’m assuming Edmund chose Ivan Clarke?”
“He did. Okay. You have to share what you know. And a cup of tea sounds amazing.” Rubbing her forehead as she walked up the stairs, Essie hoped a bit more caffeine would fend off her looming headache.
Sara ushered her inside and led the way to the kitchen.
There, Essie discovered the kind housekeeper had already set everything out.
A plate of her favorite sugar cookies with blue icing stood in the middle of the table.
Essie still didn’t understand why the blue ones tasted so much better, but they did.
With a sigh of delight, she sat down and nabbed one with a bunch of icing and sprinkles.
“You are spoiling me,” she told Sara.
“Of course. That’s my job now. How did your meeting with Mr. Woods go?” Sara asked as she poured fragrant tea into two cups.
“He clued me in on some challenges,” Essie admitted.
“I told Esther not to leave me anything. I can always write you a check….”
Essie interrupted her. “Absolutely not! Aunt Esther did exactly the right thing by making sure you’re taken care of after all these years you’ve kept Ferguson’s Folly going.
And I’m going to rely on your assistance just as much as my aunt did.
Unless you’d rather retire?” She had to at least offer that opportunity to the older woman.
“Pfft! Like I’d be happy in a rocking chair watching soap operas. I will admit some of the heavier cleaning jobs are beyond me now.”
Essie could tell the housekeeper had hated admitting she needed help. “We are definitely going to need to increase the number of hands around here. I’m going to count on you for your insight in choosing who will benefit us the most. And I’ll be here as well. Put me to work too.”
“Oh, I couldn’t…”
Interrupting Sara, Essie rushed to assure her, “Yes, you can. In fact, I’m counting on you to direct everyone. Okay?”
Her inner struggle to agree showed on Sara’s face. Essie took a bite of the cookie and chewed, giving the housekeeper time to think. “These are so good.”
“You don’t have to butter me up, young lady. Fine. I’ll create a list of jobs that need to be completed, and everyone can pitch in.”
“Thank you, Sara. That would be perfect. Would you like me to share what I’ve decided for the future of Ferguson’s Folly?” Essie asked.
“Yes, please.” The older woman sagged with relief, and Essie immediately realized how disconcerted Sara must have felt—Esther’s death had pulled the rug out from under the housekeeper’s feet.
“I’m going to make the estate a premier location for events. Like tea parties, weddings, balls.”
“Oh, we haven’t had a ball here for years. I had to be in my twenties. I’d love to see the ballroom used again.”
“Me, too. I would never be happy just lazing around doing charity work. This will give me a job and create income to sustain Ferguson’s Folly for years to come,” Essie said. She forced herself to pull her head out of the clouds and face reality.
“This idea is going to take a lot of work and an investment. There’s always a risk I won’t be successful. But if I do nothing, the estate will run out of money. I don’t want to see a row of apartment buildings and strip centers filling this land.”
“That would be horrid!” Sara agreed. “So, where do we start?”
“I think we already have. Ivan Clarke is coming tomorrow to walk through the property. He’s already said something about wood rot. That sounds expensive.”
Sara nodded her head. “It does. But if he’s fixing that while he’s making the improvements you need, that’s efficient. Do you know about Ivan?”
“No. What can you tell me?” Essie asked, leaning in eagerly.
“He’s a good man. Reliable and trustworthy. He won’t try to gouge you on prices, and he’ll work from sunup to sundown. He needs to earn money.”
“Why?”
“His sister has cancer. She discovered the tumor after her divorce. She quickly lost her job and her insurance. Ivan moved her in with him, and he’s supported her for a couple of years.
He’ll bring her in to help. Tiffanie is fragile but fierce.
She’s also a trained interior decorator with an amazing talent. ”
“I bet that’s why Edmund signaled me to hire him,” Essie said.
“Probably. Ivan’s also much better than a big company that will outsource the work to some crew that doesn’t care. The job may take longer, but anything he does will be perfect the first time.”
How would she ever have done this without everyone’s help?
Essie popped the last bite of the cookie into her mouth.
Thank goodness she didn’t need to. She smiled at Sara and crossed her fingers under the table.
Please let this work out. So many lives were becoming entwined in the success of her ideas.
“I almost missed the blue cookies?” Zander observed from the kitchen doorway.
“I thought you were coming back tomorrow?” Essie glared at him.
“Let me freshen up the tea,” Sara said, standing up to turn on the flame under the kettle.
A flashback to how awful she’d looked this morning popped into Essie’s mind. Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment. “Do you always just show up?” she asked.
“I have a standing invitation,” Zander said smoothly as he sat down at the table.