Page 195 of A Curse On Black Lake
“No way, Eddy? Eddy Rochester?”
He chuckles and steps towards me. “It’s good to see you,” he says.
“Uh, you too. What brings you back to Black Lake?” I ask him. Wow, he’s built now. He was lanky when we were kids.
He shrugs. “I was in town and wanted to say hi. I heard about your Grams. I’m so sorry.”
I blink rapidly in an attempt to keep the tears back. “Thanks. It’s been hard. I miss her every day.”
He lifts the bill of his hat. “So are you a midwife too? What about the apothecary?”
“Yeah, Grams trained me, but no one has asked. And yeah, the apothecary is all mine now, but things have been rough lately,” I say, keeping it vague. Eddy was my best friend as a kid, but it’s been over a decade. I don’t know him anymore.
“Oh? Why is that?” he asks.
I shrug. “You know … people,” I mutter.
He nods and shifts on his feet. “Can’t say I’m surprised. It is Black Lake.”
“So where did you go when you moved away?” I ask him.
“Mama moved us to Dallas, but then my dad got a job out in West Texas as a ranch hand, and they had housing. So it made sense,” he says.
“Wow, that’s a lot.”
He shrugs and digs around in his pocket, popping a peppermint in his mouth.
I chuckle. “Still popping those mints?” I ask him.
He laughs. “I could never seem to drop the habit. Better than smoking like my daddy, right?” he asks.
“Yeah, I suppose it is,” I tell him.
“Hey it’s so good to see you, but I have to get going. I have to be somewhere soon,” I tell him.
“Oh yeah, sure, no problem. Can I get a hug first before you go?”
I smile and step into his arms. He’s beefed out, but he’s no Killian, not that I’m comparing them.
I miss Killian.
“Good to see you,” he says.
“Yeah, you too. Are you in town for a while?” I ask him.
“Yeah, hopefully for a few more days.”
“Alright, well I’ll see you around,” I tell him and wave.
He tips his hat and walks off down the street.
Random, it would have been nice to have him here when Grams died. He was the one who knew her well since we spent so much time together as kids.
Going to the safe tucked in the study, I enter the code and fish out the stack of bills and count them.
Five grand. I’m four hundred and ninety-five thousand short.Awesome.
Passing Grams’ room, I spot her gold pendant necklace on the side table next to a framed photo. She loved that necklace, and I would have had her buried with it, but she insisted it should be mine. I couldn’t bear to wear it because it belonged to her, but it makes me feel closer to her, and I need that right now. Unhooking the clasp, I put the necklace on and look at the picture.
