Adam's Thorn (20 page)

It felt nice to have some company
in the house.

Going outside, Barbie walked
around to the back to get the clothes off the line.  Her gaze fell on the rose
buses and she wandered over to them.  Having four graves, albeit one empty and
one a mystery, near the house was creepy.  Not during the day, it seemed eccentric
then, a little sad, but at night… Damn those horror movies she loved watching. 
She certainly hadn’t watched any since arriving at Great Aunt Penny’s old, dark
house.

Maybe the roses would look better
if she trimmed them up.  The bushes were wild, tall and wide, the roses big and
beautiful.  A few bouquets in the house would brighten it up.

Unlike the cultivated roses, the
wild roses were rich with scent, and by the time she’d cut the flowers off the basket
she’d set aside was full.   The bushes definitely looked a lot neater, though
she had some nasty scratches for her efforts.

Leaving the secateurs on the back
veranda to finish off the bushes later, she picked up the basket and took it
back into the kitchen.

Retrieving some vases from the
cupboard, she trimmed the thorns off the rose stems and arranged the roses into
different vases.  By the time she’d finished, she had five vases in all, their
scent filling the air.

Leaving one on the table, she set
one vase on the hall table, another in the lounge room, one in the massage
room, and one in the little study.

Coming out of the study, she met
Bruce, one of the painters, coming back down the stairs with a big box almost
overflowing with wall paper scraps.

“Hello.”  He smiled, his eyes
friendly, almost appreciate as they swept over her.

“Hi, Bruce.”  She gestured to the
box.  “That’s a lot of wall paper.”

“That’s just the start.”  He
hefted it.  “Shame it got so tattered and worn.”

“You like wall paper?”

“For old houses like this, yes. 
Wall paper definitely has its place.”

“Then you must be disappointed
that I’m having paint instead of more wallpaper.”

He thought for a second before
shaking his head.  “Not really.  You chose nice, soft paint colours, so it’ll
go well with the furniture and the style of the house.”

Barbie started towards the massage
room.  “I’ve got an antique dealer coming to have a look at the furniture.”

“You’re selling it?” Bruce looked
aghast.

She smiled apologetically.  “Well,
yes.”

“Huh.”  He glanced around.  “You
could keep it in the house, sell it as a package deal.  It’d attract people who
are into old houses and furniture.”

“Maybe.  I thought about it, but
it adds so much extra to the cost.  Besides, a lot of the furniture is in need
of a fair bit of TLC.”

“Maybe you should look at
restoring it.”  The second painter, Shane, came down the stairs holding another
container of stripped wall paper for the big bin outside.

“Not my forte, I’m afraid,” she
replied.

He frowned.  “Seems a shame to
lose so much history.”

“It’s a history I don’t know much
about.”

“Really?  But wasn’t Ms Declan
your Aunt?”

“Great Aunt, but we didn’t have
much to do with her.”

“Shame,” he muttered.  “Old lady
always seemed lonely.”

Hearing a slight note of censure,
Barbie cast him a sharp look.

Catching it, he smiled, seemingly
embarrassed.  “Sorry.  Not my business.  When you think about it, Ms Declan
never really wanted anyone near her place.”

“Some people are like that.” Bruce
shrugged and headed outside.

Shane studied Barbie.  “Maybe you
should find out more about the house, about the land.”

“I guess.”

He nodded and went outside to
empty the container.

Going into the massage room,
Barbie folded up the washed towels and put them in the big cupboard.  Checking
the stock of oils, she saw that the number of scented candles was getting low. 
Knowing that clients liked the scented candles burning, sending out a soft
fragrance to relax them, she decided to head into town and see if the
supermarket had any, otherwise she’d have to ask Melissa to post some candles
to her from the city.

Which reminded her, Laura had been
going to post her some sage.  Barbie didn’t particularly believe in sage for
warding off ghosts, but she wasn’t about to hurt her friend’s feelings and have
it returned, besides, it couldn’t hurt to burn it, could it?

Laughing at herself, Barbie rang
the local post office to be informed that yes, there was a parcel waiting for
her.  A card had been left in her letter box informing her that it would be
returned if not picked up by a certain date.  She just made the date by two
days.

Chewing her lip, she wondered if
she should go into town.  Henry, Bruce and Shane seemed trustworthy, there was
really nothing to be taken, the jewellery was distributed between her family
and herself, the remainder sold for a tidy sum, the money banked.  She had her
cards and cash in her handbag.  The cats were safe in their room.

Besides, she needed groceries, and
the painters were going to be here for quite a few days yet, not to mention
carpenters fixing the banisters and a lot of other things, including the broken
window frame in the upstairs library.

She’d have to leave the workers
here sooner or later.  She was on her own, and the shops closed by the time the
workers went home.

Making up her mind, she grabbed
her small shoulder bag, informed Henry that she was going shopping and ensuring
he had her phone number if needed, and went out to the car.

Entering the supermarket, one of
the first people she saw was Hallie at her usual position at the checkout.  Seeing
her, Hallie smiled tentatively.  Knowing now that it hadn’t been her fault that
Adam had misunderstood everything, Barbie smiled warmly at her and waved.  The relief
that washed over the teen’s face made her feel guilty.

 
Stop it, don’t dwell on it. 
Move on.

Grabbing a shopping trolley, Barbie
topped up on perishable items, checking out the aisles for scented candles.  Unfortunately,
the candles they did sell weren’t the kind she required.

At the checkout, which was
deserted, Hallie greeted her happily.  “Hi, Barbie.  I’m so sorry about the misunderstanding.”

“So am I,” Barbie replied.  “Can
we be friend again?”

Laughing, Hallie nodded.  “I’d
like that.”  She pulled the bottle of milk through the scanner.  “Adam can be a
bit over-protective, but he’s an okay guy when you get to know him better.”

“I’m sure,” Barbie murmured.

“As for Mrs Hubble,” Hallie
continued, “she doesn’t mean any harm.  Once you get to know her, she’s a nice
lady.  Always bakes for sales and things.”  The eggs went across the scanner,
followed by cheese and bread.  “So, how are things going up at the old house?”

“Coming along.” Barbie was glad to
change the subject.  “Henry and his painters are stripping the wallpaper on the
inside and sanding down the wood on the outside.”

“Oh, Henry does a great job.”  Ham
went across the scanner.  “I hear you’ve been getting some massage jobs.”

Wow, wasn’t Hallie the font of all
knowledge?  Barbie found it hard to resist laughing.  “It’s doing okay.  Which
reminds me, do you know anywhere I can buy scented candles?”

“I’m guessing the ones we have
aren’t what you need?”

Barbie pulled a face.  “Sorry,
no.”

“In that case, you can ask Mrs
Swanson.  She makes her own candles, soaps and things.”

“Think she’d be willing to sell
some?”

“Absolutely.  She sells them to
anyone who wants to buy, only they’re a little pricey because, you know, it’s
all natural and stuff.”

“Sound just fine.  Do you have her
phone number?”

“She owns the restaurant and is
always there this time of the day getting ready for the evening rush.”

Barbie wasn’t sure about the rush
part, Peeron being so small and quiet, but she nodded as if she totally agreed.

Parting ways with a happy Hallie, Barbie
stored the groceries in the boot of the car before walking to the restaurant,
opening the door and entering to find a woman with tight grey curls sitting at
a table reading a magazine and sipping coffee.

Upon seeing Barbie, she stood up
and smiled, coming forward.  “My, my, Barbie Declan.  How nice to meet you
again.  Can I get you something? We do lovely takeaways, too.  Our menu is
right there.” She gestured to the menu above the bar.

“Thank you, no.  I’m actually here
because Hallie said you make scented candles?”

Enthusiasm gleamed in Mrs Swanson’s
eyes.  “I do.  Come out the back and I’ll show you what I have.”

Delighted that Mrs Swanson
actually had some on the premises, Barbie followed her out the back, down a
small passage, and right into a lounge room.  That’s when she realised that the
restaurant was built at the front of the Swanson’s private home.

Mrs Swanson led her into another
room, where the smell of spices, herbs and perfumes was strong.  There were
tubs of homemade soaps on the floor, as well as packets of candles both short
and fat, and long and thin, but what caught Barbie’s attention were the thick,
tall ones sitting on a bench.

Bending down, she sniffed, closing
her eyes as the scents played through her.  Geranium, rose, lavender, violets, sandalwood,
and so many other scents.  “I’m in heaven!”

That won her Mrs Swanson’s stamp
of approval, and the amount of candles she bought almost got her a standing
ovation.  The candles were boxed, a receipt given, and then Mrs Swanson was
ready for a nice, long chat.  It took all Barbie’s skill to get away without a
long chat and without hurting Mrs Swanson’s feelings.  She managed it by
pleading the workers at the house, and that she’d be sure to come back and
check out the homemade soaps.

She’d just gotten back in the car
when Ali leaned in the window.  “Nice to see you back.”

“Nice to be back.”  Surprisingly,
it was partly true. 
Huh, fancy that
.

“Listen, how about coming to the
pub for a drink tomorrow night, just a friendly get-together?”

Genuinely liking Ali, and not
averse to an evening of fun, Barbie nodded.  “Sounds all right.”

“We usually have a few drinks, chat,
a bit of dancing.”

“I’m in.”

“Great.  See you around six.”  Ali
walked away, her high heels clicking on the footpath.

Stopping at the post office, Barbie
picked up the parcel that Laura had sent her.  That reminded her of exactly
what it was for, and biting her lip, she wondered if it was fair to leave Fred
and Barney alone in the house for several hours in the evening.

What if the place really was haunted
and it wasn’t her imagination?  Her Great Aunt had apparently seen and heard
things.  But then, she’d also lived there until the day she died, she hadn’t
left a screaming mess, so it had to be safe.

One way to find out for sure.

Driving home, she unloaded the
groceries from the car and put them away.  Cutting up the cake she’d bought
especially for the painters, she arranged them neatly on a plate, put a pot of
hot tea out to stew, set out 3 mugs and let Henry know there was afternoon tea waiting
for them.  The men descended on the kitchen like three starving, over-sized
waifs.

The cats were settled in her room,
Barney under the doona and Fred lying on the window sill sunning himself.  Returning
to the lounge, she phoned Laura.

“You got the sage?” Laura asked as
soon as she heard Barbie’s voice.

“I did, thank you.”

“About time.”

“Sorry. It apparently got here the
day I left for the city.”

“You didn’t mention you were going
back so soon.”

“Last minute decision.  I had some
things I needed to get done.”

“It wasn’t about Adam?”

“Of course not.”

“Of course
so
.  What did
that jerk do?”

“Don’t lie to me.  I can hear it
in your voice.”

“Everything’s fine.  We had a
chat, cleared the air.”

“You had a chat?”  Laura’s voice
was disbelieving.  “
You
had a chat with Adam?”

“Is that so hard to believe?”

“I’m not sure.  Yes?”

Barbie laughed.  “Really?”

“Kind of.”

“If it’ll make you believe it any
more, he gave me his phone numbers in case I hear any more weird noises.”

“He gave you
his
phone
numbers?”

“Yep.”

“Sweetie, that’s very…personal.”

Barbie rolled her eyes.  “Hardly. 
He was just being nice because he knew I didn’t want to ring the police.”

“So what’s he going to do?”

“He’s a cop.”

There was silence on the other end
of the phone for several seconds before Laura said, “Well.”

“Well what?”

“Is there something going on
between you two that I need to know about?”

“Good God, no!”  In appalled
amusement, Barbie laughed.

“You sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“I think you protest too much.”

“And I think I’m about to hang up
the phone.”

“Okay, okay!  Sheesh.  Don’t
overreact.”  Laura changed the subject.  “I’m glad everything is going well. 
Now, how are your ghosts going?”

“I don’t have ghosts.”  Then, to
really ick her friend out, Barbie added mischievously, “But I do have four graves
at my back door.”

“What?”

“Yeah. Two of the graves are
apparently my Great, Great Aunt and Uncle’s.  Or is that Great, Great, Great
Aunt and Uncle’s?  I don’t remember.”  Barbie did a mental search back on what
she’d been told.  “No, I’m sure it’s my Great, Great Aunt and Uncle.”

“How did that happen?”

“They died.”

“Never be flippant about the dead,
Barbie.”

Remembering just how serious her
friend could be about the departed, she sobered.  “Sorry.  Anyway, they both
died when they were young.  The other grave is empty, something to do with
Great Aunt Penny having it as a memorial for her love who went MIA in World War
Two.”