Page 4 of Unbidden

I imagine cleaning it and shudder.It must take days.

“We don’t need it. Richard picked this house out. When Father died, we considered moving into the family home, but it didn’t feel right, so we stayed here. Besides, Victoria grew up here. I didn’t want to take that away from her.”

I can tell she’s holding something back. When she mentioned “Father,” she winced. I wonder if he had anything to do with Mom leaving.

Stop it, Sage. You don’t need to know.

Parking in a garage big enough to fit at least twenty cars, Alice turns off the engine. “I want to warn you, Victoria’s extremely excited that you’re here. I know you’re not, but please don’t be cruel to her. She’s innocent.”

I feel a pang of guilt over the way I’ve been treating her. My natural distrust of people comes from my mom. Especially these people. But she’s right. Victoria wasn’t even born when Mom took me away from here, so she’s innocent. I keep that in mind as I exit the car.

Alice keys a code into the panel by the door before ushering me in. Once inside, she leads me down a hall into a large foyer.

“Victoria, we’re home,” she calls out, then turns to me. “Richard is away on business, but you will meet him when he gets back later this week.”

I hear footsteps padding down the hall. I turn to look in the direction they’re coming from, and a body comes to a halt in front of me.

“Hi, Sage. I’m your cousin Victoria, and I’m beyond glad you’re here.” The girl standing in front of me looks a lot like her mom. Standing about five-six, she has dark hair piled on top of her head. She’s gorgeous.

“Um, hi,” I manage as I marvel at the pure happiness on her face. Her smile is so bright it could blind me.

“Can I show Sage to her room, Mom?” Victoria asks.

Alice glances at me with a frown before pasting a smile of her own on her face. “Of course. I’m sure Sage would like to get some rest. It’s been a long day.”

Victoria grabs my hand as I clutch my backpack. She begins pulling me down the hall, but I tug her to a stop and turn back to Alice. “Can I start school tomorrow?”

Alice looks surprised, even though I mentioned it on the plane. “Are you sure?” I nod in response. “Okay. I will make some calls and get it set up.”

“Thank you. Oh, and my bag?”

“I will have Thomas bring it up for you.”

I give her a small smile before letting Victoria continue to pull me down the hallway.

"Who's Thomas?" I ask her after a few steps.

Victoria giggles. "The butler, silly."

What kind of fresh hell did I walk into? A butler? Who has a butler?

Apparently we do.

“I wanted you to have the room next to mine, but Mom said you would probably appreciate some privacy, so you’re down the hall from me. This room is mine.” She stops in front of an open door and gestures inside. “You can come in anytime. I don’t mind.”

I gawk at the pink that threw up in the room and make a note not to spend a lot of time in there. I hope my room isn’t similar.

She continues down the hall, this time not pulling me as I follow her. When she reaches the door at the end of the hall, she stops in front of it.

“Mom and Dad are on the other side of the house, so you don’t have to worry about them. If you plan to sneak out or anything, let me know so I can show you the best way.” She gestures to the door. “This is your room. I hope you love it. Mom tried to decorate it for you, but we didn’t know what you liked, so if you don’t like anything just let us know and we’ll bring the decorator back to change it.”

When she stops, she sucks in a breath. She’s talking so fast she’s not even taking time to breathe.

“It’s just a room.” Her face falls slightly so I add, “But I bet I’ll love it. Show it to me.”

She smiles brightly again. She reminds me of a puppy. Easily entertained, but also sensitive. Then I feel bad for comparing her to a puppy.

You’re going soft, Miller.

---