The House of Bells: The Essences Saga - Book #1

House: Chapter 3

Three

Silas spent those few hours staring into space in his office. Waiting for the phone to ring. Twice, he picked up the receiver to call Min and see if she needed anything. And each time, he gingerly placed it back down on the cradle with a frown. An errant thought scampered through his brain.

"I have some experience with troubled souls..."

What did she mean by that? Min was running from someone or something. That was his only conclusion to her erratic past. Was it a man? His cells snarled in response.

Her background check came clean, but any data from before ten years ago just did not seem to exist. Oh, he had her birth date and parent's names - she had been adopted - and various other impersonal bits of information. But no marriage, no children, no living family of any kind. Min Meyer did not seem to be the type of woman who was not married, tied down with a mortgage or kids, snatched up from the single's rat race.

So, why was that? What troubled soul lay across her path?

And why did he have a bad feeling about her caring for those girls?

Silas shook his head of the questions. What he needed was a distraction, and some coffee. Jennie was working today at the coffee shop across the street. He could talk to her, see what she says about the strange woman he hired.

*****

The rest of the hour passed. I noticed that traffic was getting heavier, and a school bus stopped at the corner of the cul-de-sac, letting a group of elementary children off. Soon, more buses were stopping at the corner, and groups of young teenagers were walking home from the nearby middle school. One group walked down the sidewalk near the corner, and a girl broke off, shouting her goodbyes before bounding towards the house.

This must be Ashley. Her blond ponytail flipped behind her as she took the porch stairs two at a time. She skidded to a dead stop when she saw me, then she grinned hugely. Strangely, she felt vaguely familiar to me. I brushed off the feeling immediately. Sometimes people just trigger something in my brain that I never understood.

"Hi! Can I help you?" Her voice was exuberant and girly. I stood up and walked to her, smiling at her zeal.

"Hello. I'm Min. You must be Ashley." Her smile faltered a little when I said her name. I realized that she had no idea who I was. Immediately, there was a sadness behind her eyes that she tried very hard to hide.

"Ashley?" An older girl was hurrying up the front path; her eyes on me. "Who are you? What do you want?" She put herself in front of Ashley and planted her feet, glaring up at me. She had the same brown eyes and blonde hair as Ashley.

Amber Johnson. The older sister.

"My name is Min Meyer. I am your new caregiver," I said simply. Ashley peeked around her sister's shoulder and beamed up at me. Amber said nothing, just glowered.

"Wonderful! I'm Ashley Johnson; this is Amber-ow!" Amber cut off her younger sister's introductions by grabbing her arm and pulling her inside. I followed the two girls into the kitchen. Amber was already dialing the phone. She continued to frown at me as she waited for the other line to pick up. Ashley was rubbing her arm and was shooting daggers at her sister.

"Mr. Blake, please. This is Amber Johnson."

Comprehension set in. I waited for Amber to satisfy her trepidation at me being here without notice. I frowned, upset that Silas hadn't announced my arrival. But then again, he only hired me this morning. Ashley began eying me speculatively, biting her lip. She smiled brilliantly whenever I glanced at her.