Page 4 of Lost Love Cove 3
“Why were you at my mailbox earlier today?” Carrie asked him, recognizing his trainers. “Why were you trying to break into it?”
Oscar pursed his lips. “The one organization I work for in Key West is the Monroe County Offices,” Oscar told them, and that icy feeling in Matt’s veins flooded through him. “I was asked to deliver notices to the Parkers, Carltons, and Marshalls in Lost Love Cove. I did that, and I was riding my bicycle home when the burner phone, the anonymous person had given me, rang. He wanted me to collect all the notices I had just delivered and destroy them. I went back and collected them all, but then I remembered there were two for the Parker house. But I had put the second one in the wrong mailbox.”
“You put it in the Carlton box instead,” Carrie guessed.
“Yes, sorry,” Oscar said. “When I saw you and Spot here hurtling toward me, I panicked and took off.”
Matt’s heart was now pounding like he’d just run a marathon, and a roaring started in his ears. He nearly didn’t hear Carrie’s next question.
“What were the notices about?” Carrie asked him.
“I don’t know,” Oscar answered with a shrug and then turned from the waist to grab his backpack, and was again stopped by Andy. “Chill, dude,” he hissed. “I have the notices in my backpack. I haven’t got around to destroying them.”
“Let him get them,” Carrie told Andy, who nodded but didn’t take his eyes off Oscar.
Oscar pulled three notices from his backpack and handed them to Carrie. She unfolded the first one, and her eyes widened. Matt stepped closer and read over her shoulder:
Final Notice: Regarding parcel 10051, 2 Lost Love Lane. Due to unresolved probate linked to the Winters estate, and failureto respond to prior notices, the title may revert to probate administration. Immediate action is required.
“This is Lori’s property,” Carrie’s head shot towards Matt, and he felt his breath catch as she unfolded the next one:
Final Notice: Regarding parcel 10051, 1 Lost Love Lane. Due to unresolved probate linked to the Winters estate, and failure to respond to prior notices, the title may revert to probate administration. Immediate action is required.
“My property,” Matt mumbled, his brain spinning as the implications hit him.
Carrie opened the final notice, and it was the same, but for the Marshalls’ house—all the properties in Lost Love Cove.
Matt sucked in a breath as his eyes met Carrie's, and he could see she was coming to the same realization—Matt’s problems with his property were a lot more than a mere error or mix-up of paperwork! The sale had been fraudulent, and that cut a lot deeper for Carrie as it implicated her best friend and her best friend’s late husband.
“Can I use the bathroom?” Oscar asked.
“Hey!” Andy warned. “This is not a hotel.”
“It’s okay,” Carrie told Andy and then looked at Oscar. “Yes. Of course.” She turned to Andy, putting the notices and letters down on Trevor’s desk. “I’ll get you both a change of clothes and put yours in the dryer.” She stopped as the lights flickered. “Or at least until the power runs out.”
“I’ll start a fire in the fireplace in the living room,” Matt offered, needing to do something to keep his hands busy while he triedto make sense of what was going on. “That way, if the power does go out and their clothes aren’t dry, we can leave them in the living room.”
Carrie led Andy and Oscar out of the study, and Matt followed them. He parted ways in the hall and took off to the living room, stopping as Carrie asked, “Matt, would you mind getting some linen from the closet in the laundry room and putting it in the living room?” She looked at Andy and Oscar. “You can each have a sofa to sleep on tonight.”
“Thanks,” Andy and Oscar said.
They left, and Matt went to do what Carrie asked. Once he’d put the linen out, Matt made a fire in the fireplace that was a lot like the one in his house, only this one was a lot newer. By the time Carrie came back downstairs and joined him, he was sitting on the floor just staring into the flames, his mind reeling.
“Matt,” Carrie’s soft voice made him turn toward her. “That fire looks amazing.”
“Yeah, I like to keep my hands busy when my mind is full,” Matt told her, springing to his feet.
“You can stay in the room Maggie…” As Carrie said, her granddaughter's name, her voice caught. She cleared her throat. “In Maggie’s room tonight. I’ve put clean linen on the bed.”
“Thank you,” Matt said.
“I don’t know how well they will fit as you’re a lot taller and broader in the chest than Trevor was,” Carrie said. “But I put some dry clothes on the bed for you.”
“Thank you,” Matt said, and they stood, staring at each other in silence for a few moments.
“Uh…” Carrie took a step back and pointed toward the study. “Do you think we should open those letters?”
Matt had to quell the urge to yell NO and then run into the study to grab those letters and throw them in the fire. He knew there was nothing good in them, and Matt didn’t know how much more bad news he could take today. But instead, he nodded. “Yeah.”
