Page 31 of The Summer Request
“That’s it, up there.” Val pointed to a house that looked like it was hanging off the cliff above.
“How many stairs is that?” asked Lisa. “It doesn’t look safe, honestly.”
Val laughed. “Oh, come on. It’s safe! I’ll go first.”
Off she went, power-walking the stairs, taking them two at a time. Michelle and Lisa followed slowly but steadily behind.
Once Val reached the top, she turned to cheer them on. “You can do it! Wait until you see this view! I feel like an eagle!”
“What kind of eagle bullies her friends into doing things they don’t want to do?” asked Lisa.
Michelle laughed, coughing from her breathlessness. She was used to hiking, but something about this was making her winded. Maybe it was the anxiety. “All of them, I think. Birds are pushy.”
Lisa nodded, clinging to the handrail for a moment before tackling the last flight. “She’s definitely an eagle, then. Or maybe a pigeon.”
“A pigeon-eagle.”
“Is that a thing?”
“Yes,” Michelle lied, but her face betrayed her. Lisa shot her a look before turning and trudging up the rest of the stairs.
They made it into the backyard and spotted Chloe by the pool. She waved wildly with both hands.
Michelle waved back. She felt bad for the girl. If Lou found out what she was up to, he would surely get angry. He wouldn’t hurt her…or would he?
No, not like that. He could cut her off from the Emerald community like he did Justine. That would hurt her. But it seemed she was well on her way to doing that herself.
“Hey!” Chloe yelled. “I’m so glad you made it. Come on in.”
Val didn’t need to be asked twice. She was right behind Chloe, chattering away. Lisa followed, and even Michelle had to admit she was curious to see what this house looked like.
They walked into the two-story living room, their voices echoing off the empty walls. It was an ugly sort of house, all concrete and glass. Some people liked that modern look, but Michelle wasn’t one of them. The windows were like big, soulless cubes cut out of stone.
Even the shaggy rug in the center of the enormous room didn’t make it look any less bleak. It was cold, like Justine had never been here.
“Sorry about this. It took me longer than expected to turn off all the cameras, but we’re good now. You’re free to look wherever you like.”
Michelle raised an eyebrow. “Really? Anywhere?”
Chloe nodded. “Anywhere!”
“Do you have any recommendations?” Lisa asked.
Chloe bit her lip. “It depends on what you’re looking for. I can check his computer. He thinks he’s really smart because he makes me use my own account, but he keeps all of his passwords in a little black book by the desk. I can access almost anything.”
Oh, shoot. Michelle did the same thing at home. Hopefully no one got into her house with the malicious intent of logging into her utilities or paying off her mortgage.
“I’ll come with you,” Lisa announced. “I need to make up for my poor performance at the last house.”
Chloe laughed. “Sure.”
“I’ll be upstairs,” Val said. “This place isn’t as big as I expected it to be. Shouldn’t take long.”
Michelle let out a sigh. “I guess I’ll wander around down here.”
Michelle started her rounds, but her heart wasn’t in it. The barren living room didn’t have much to look through – just a TV and some fairly empty shelves.
She was able to flip through the ten books that were on display. It didn’t seem like they were ever actually read. It was more like they were there to signal to guests what kind of person Lou was. All of them were about the power of positive thinking and the importance of not eating carbohydrates.
