Chapter Twenty-Four
Eric showed up at the cabin bright and early the following morning. He’d checked in with her multiple times the night before, but Ashley’s parents had needed to leave a little sooner because of some kind of problem associated with their new real estate business that they’d opened in North Carolina, so everyone was going to be having a very early breakfast before her parents took off on their long drive home. Eric had decided that he’d better be there, although he’d still head over to Anya’s place as soon as the Mitchums were on the road since they would be eating at six.
She smiled when she saw him parking his truck through the window. Anya had ended up taking the afternoon off, because Jake had obviously talked with Penny, who knew that they were installing security at her house.
Something she hadn’t known was that Jake wanted her to work at least a half day every day if possible, so they could start investigating each and every name once Anya had narrowed down those who matched her own parameters.
“How about we leave you with your manager title, Anya, and you can work weekdays from two until five? Maybe you can make yourself available for any emergencies, like if multiple funerals are booked. I still feel most comfortable with you in charge, because you’ve worked with me for so many years. Jaynie is a great designer, but you know how to manage people. Could you still do your accounting and handle the bank deposits with those kind of hours?” Penny had asked earlier when they’d spoken on the phone.
Of course, she could, Anya had decided. Anyone could handle the counter. What she was best at was keeping track of inventory and the books, which she could easily do at home. Jaynie would get a trial run as the manager, but Penny would hire a third person to manage the sales counter and answer the phone if Jaynie had trouble taking charge with double duties when Anya wasn’t there.
“I have the day off today,” she said to Eric as he walked into the cabin. “In fact, Penny shortened my hours because Jake has supposedly talked with her about my research. He wants me to work at least a half day every day if I’m able.”
“Really?” he answered, cupping her chin and giving her a lengthy kiss on the lips. “How do you feel about that?”
“I think I can manage the books at home. An hour a day is about right, and then I’ll still be going into work from two until five and handling the bank deposit after making sure everything is running smoothly. Plus, Jaynie will get a much-deserved promotion.”
“I was going to surprise you with some ideas from Ashley about converting the cabin for you, but it will be better if you’re here when she comes to look at the cabin this afternoon while my mom spends some time with the baby.”
“That’s so nice of her. I wonder if she could recommend anything I might be able to do right away in the office? It would be nice to work out of that larger space again since I’m going to have to spend a lot of time on a computer. I can handle sitting at the kitchen table for an hour or two every day, but I have a feeling that I’ll have trouble if I sit there longer. Spring is a ways away.”
“She seems to know a lot about construction and what it takes to build a new home. She was talking to someone on the phone at Callahan Construction the other day about solar heating, and it sounded like she was advising them. I think it was their branch that she worked at in Eau Claire before returning to Crystal Rock.”
“I admire her for that,” Anya admitted. “She’s the last person I thought would become interested in construction.”
“I hear you. I wasn’t sure what to think when I heard that she and Brian got married. I knew Brian always had a crush on her, but all they did was fight. I always thought she hated him back in high school,” Eric said, grinning. “But I guess there was more going on there than I knew.”
Anya laughed.
Until she noticed a couple of large trucks arrive in the driveway, one appearing to be loaded with equipment while the other had a lift, much like the local power company used.
“Well, this is probably going to take all day,” Eric muttered.
She grimaced. “I guess I need to figure out where to have them install the new modem.”
“I don’t think that Jake would object if you had your office wired as well as your temporary living room out here,” Eric said.
“Okay. I’ll see what these guys have to say, I guess. You probably know more about these things than I do.”
“I doubt it,” he said, grinning. “We’ll just have to handle it together. Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out.”
* * *
Instead of ordering food, they finished all the Christmas leftovers, and by the time Ashley showed, it was after two o’clock. The two crews were still busy at work outside, but they appeared to be through with the property alongside the road at the back of the cabin, and they were currently working on the lakefront.
Ashley smiled when she walked inside the cabin. “You’ve sure got it cozy in here. That fireplace insert was a great idea.”
“Thanks for coming to take a look, Ashley. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it,” Anya said.
Staring into her eyes first, Ashley gave her a quick hug. “I’m sorry for everything you’ve been going through. I’m here if you ever need a friend. Brian knows a lot about what’s been happening since we were in on the capture of the two men arrested last year since I was kidnapped.” She grimaced. “And Jake just gave us a call and filled us in about what you’ve been going through since we live so close to the cabin.”
“I’m glad,” Anya admitted. “It’s going to be difficult when Eric has to leave.”
“I know,” Ashley said, sighing.
After tugging off her coat, Eric handed her some coffee and they sat and talked for a few moments about what kind of improvements Anya was looking for before getting ready to head into the other part of the house.
“You’ll probably need your coat,” Eric said, pulling on his as Anya reached for a fleece lined sweatshirt.
After slipping her coat back on, Ashley dug into the large bag she’d brought along, bringing out a clipboard along with a monstrous size tape measure. “I came prepared.”
“One thing I had done was to install a second breaker box since the original wiring was so old. One of Cal’s electricians came by and wired in some new heavy duty ground fault boxes for me when I had my washer and dryer put in and needed sturdier wiring for my electric fireplace insert.”
Ashley nodded, obviously approving. “That was a good move. The wiring should all be replaced, I’m afraid, and that will come with a hefty price tag for a place like this.”
“Yes.” Anya grimaced. “He gave me a rough estimate for a roundabout number of dollars when he was here.”
“You’re going to have my income to work with too, you know,” Eric said gruffly, guiding her along.
“But…” Anya cleared her throat, noticing the look of determination on his face. “Okay, already. I won’t argue.”
Ashley grinned, her eyes going wide as they entered the monstrous size living room with its towering ceiling and soaring stone fireplace. “I’ve always wondered what this place looked like inside. What’s its history, Anya?”
“It was built in the late eighteen hundreds as a small resort by my great great grandparents. Back in those days, the town of Crystal Rock was a destination point for wealthy vacationers during the summer, but then they closed the place up for the winter. Imagine what it was like when the original boathouse was built across the water below. There used to be a framed drawing hanging on the wall somewhere around here picturing the wide patio overlooking the lake that ran the whole length of the cabin. I’ll have to look for that image. It was so picturesque with the tables and umbrellas. I’m thinking there was an entire series of drawings hanging upstairs on the walls between the rooms.”
“How many rooms are upstairs?” Ashley asked.
“Sixteen, I think. My grandparents’ apartment is here on the ground level across the room, past the staircase,” she answered, pointing toward the hallway at the opposite end of the massive cabin.
Ashley looked surprised. “Well, right now, I don’t think it would be practical to heat the whole place of course. I guess what I need to come up with is a way to heat or cool each space by zones.”
“What worries me is the fact that I’m probably going to eventually need a new roof,” Anya admitted. “But for now, I can patch.”
“Well, if we convert to four seasons, we’re more than likely going to need to replace the roof,” Ashley said, grimacing.
Anya groaned. How could she ever afford that?
“Don’t worry about it now,” Eric urged, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and gently squeezing. “We’ll figure things out. Right now, you just need to concentrate on finding your sister. The only way for us to move forward is to try and solve the mysteries from the past.”
“I agree,” Ashley said. “Why don’t you walk with me, so I can take some measurements, Anya. Eric? I wouldn’t mind more coffee. I might be here for a while.”
Eric smiled. “Yes, ma’am.”
Ashley snorted. “Let’s go look at the upstairs first. I’m dying to see how this place is laid out.”
“Sure,” Anya agreed, grinning.
* * *
Anya strolled through the wide walkway upstairs, opening the door of every room so that Ashley could peek inside. She’d been impressed by the condition of most of the antique furnishings, which Anya had to admit, were still in excellent shape since she’d inspected everything carefully since she’d returned to Crystal Rock.
“If you don’t mind me asking, if your dad was someone who was always trying to make easy money, why didn’t he try to sell any of this furniture? And if you’re in need of money, why haven’t you sold any of it yourself, Anya?”
“Well, this place didn’t belong to my dad. My grandparents were still alive, even though they were living down in Florida. Strangely, Dad thought this place was a dump anyway, and he had no concept of the value of antiques.”
They approached the last door, which was located right above the fireplace in the living room.
Anya continued, “My grandfather died when I was going to school, and my grandmother ended up living her last few years in a nice retirement place. But she passed away when I was nineteen, and much to my surprise, this place was left to me. I’ve thought about selling some of the furnishings, but only if I ended up desperate since this place has always meant so much to me. I’ve had well-paying jobs, but my mom was deeply in debt. Somehow, I’ve managed to make enough to get through. My best memories of the past have all been here.” Anya cleared her throat. “Even Eric and I…well.”
Ashley started laughing. “I get it.”
“This is the last room. It was Grandmother’s studio. She painted. In fact, she used to teach Shanna. She always claimed that Shanna had real talent, and for a while, Shanna was interested in learning.”
When Anya opened the door, she was surprised at how neat the room was. She didn’t remember it being that way during the summer, but she hadn’t spent a whole lot of time in here. It had just been too painful. There were still some of her grandmother’s unfinished paintings hanging on the walls, and even a few of Shanna’s were still resting on some easels near the huge window overlooking the lake.
And as Anya took a good look at one of the paintings, her jaw dropped open.
“Are you alright?” Ashley asked, looking at her curiously.
Anya sighed. “Yes. I forgot how good they both were.”
“Yes, I definitely agree. Doesn’t the one you’re looking at seem kind of familiar?”
It did, but for now she was going to keep her discovery to herself. She could be wrong.
“Yes, it does. I’ve seen some that are similar at the consignment shop in the mall,” Anya admitted.
“That must be it. I’ve been in that shop several times myself,” Ashley observed.
A few minutes later, they left the room and headed downstairs to Anya’s office to see if Ashley could work out a plan to heat it through the remaining winter.