“Ahhh, your needy husband,” Celeste teased, answering a call from Drew.
“Yes, it’s already taken care of,” Celeste rattled on, listening to Drew. She held the phone down so to talk to me. “You bringing Alicia home?” she asked, I nodded as she told Drew she was on her way.
I walked around the house, observing everything that would be sold off. “This place is crazy,” Alicia called from the north balcony. The house had two sets of stairs, leading to two different wings in the house. “Come here, I want to show you something.”
I walked up the stairs with a smile. I knew she was making plans in her head. It made me happy that she was finally excited about the estate. I was pretty sure Celeste wore the pants in their home as well, and she knew she’d be living there whether she wanted to or not. Might as well make the best of it, that’s how she felt. I could relate, feeling the same way many times.
“What do you think for the nursery? I want to paint it with pink fairies, sort of like I did for Nicky’s room, a little girl’s enchanted forest, only with more pinks and purples. What do you think?”
I took the baby from her arms and snuggled her close to my neck. I loved the smell of her, she was precious. “I think I love it, and this room would make the perfect nursery,” I replied, happy for her excitement.
“Yeah, I guess this could work. Have you seen the office here? Maybe Celeste would stay home more?”
“She will, they’re working on it. I was actually just heading there now, wanna come?”
“I’ll be down in a few. I want to check out a few more things up here. What are we supposed to do with the whole other side of this house?” Alicia asked, overwhelmed with the space she was going to have.
“How about an art studio?”
“Oh, my god, Morgan. I picked the perfect room? I can do this, uh?” she overzealously told me.
“You sure can. I love your art. I’ll see you in a few,” I said, handing over the baby again.
Opening the door to the breathtaking office with bookshelves as walls, I noticed the two cardboard boxes set aside for me. I wondered if I should just take them home for Drew. He’d probably get mad at me for going through them without him. That’s what I’d do. I would take them home to Drew. It was safer that way.
I sat in the brown leather desk chair and looked around the almost empty room. I wanted that room. I would love to turn it into a reading retreat. I could make it so cozy. I’d even have one wall full of kids’ books for Nicky.
Getting an eerie feeling, like when I was reading a suspenseful book, I saw something out of the corner of my eye, on the middle shelf of the bookcase. I am not even sure why I noticed it? None of the moving guys had seen it when they packed up the room? It was just a corner, barely visible, peeking out of a tiny crack in the wood.
Trying to get a hold on the little corner, I ripped it. Holding the torn piece between my fingers, I wondered how it got in there. What was it? I could tell that it was a miniature manila envelope, but why was it hiding there. Maybe it accidently got stuck there. Prying on the shelf, I used enough pressure to pull it out. I could tell before I even opened it, it was a key, and it wasn’t accidently hiding between two pieces of wood.
Holding it between my fingers, I looked around for a secret compartment or something. Shaking my head I shoved it in my pocket. I was being silly. I wasn’t reading a book. It probably didn’t go to a secret room at all. It was more than likely to a safe deposit box or something. I pulled it back out, inspecting the gold paper. Sure enough, on the back of the tiny envelope was the number 795 just below NSB. I knew what NSB was. It was our bank, well, one of them anyway. Answering my husband’s call, I placed the key back in my pocket.
“You coming soon? The photographer will be here any minute. Do you really want me to dress Nicholas for this?”
“No way, we’re leaving now… Drew?”
“Yeah.”
“The moving guys left two boxes of papers here for me. Should I bring them home for you?”
“No, I’ll send Celeste after them tomorrow. Come home. Nicky will be awake soon.”
“Okay, but you just called him Nicky again.”
“You don’t have to point it out every time I do it.”
“Yes I do. I’ll see you in a few. I have to run Alicia home first.”
“You should stop and get us some beer. We’ll float around the pool naked after Marta leaves and NICHOLAS goes to bed.”
I laughed at the notable way he didn’t say Nicky. “I can do that. I think Marta needs to leave right after supper, and Nicky should be in bed by seven.”