01 | Cold

The early winter morning air was frigid, I pulled my scarf up around my face as I jumped down out of my truck. The snow crunched under my boots as my feet sunk into the four inches of fresh powder that had fallen overnight. The evergreens and spruce trees were decorated with the white, branches hanging heavy and sagging under the weight of it.

I turned around to see my little sister, Mary-Beth snuggling in deeper to the jacket I had bought her before making the drive to our new home. She kept her gaze focused on the world outside of the windshield, barely blinking. She hadn't spoken more than a handful of words the entire drive, most of them 'yes' and 'no'. I didn't blame her for the cold shoulder, we had lost our closeness. The twelve years between us and the fact that I'd barely come home after I left for college had seen to that.

The sudden and tragic death of her mother and our father had forced me into the role of guardian. A role that I was completely unprepared for. I could barely take care of myself and now I was responsible for the life of a teenage girl, who was not only grieving the death of her parents but being forced to leave everything she had grown up with to live with someone she barely knew. Yeah, I didn't blame her one bit for the cold shoulder.

"I'll be right back. Holler if you need something." I waited a moment to see if she would respond but the only inclination I got that she was even listening to me anymore was the slight tightening of her lips. I let out a sigh as I bumped my door closed with my hip, leaving the truck running so I didn't have to heat it up all over again. The old thing was a pain to work with, the only reason I hadn't scraped my savings account dry and bought something better was because it had been my fathers. The only thing I had that belonged to him. He'd given it to me when I turned seventeen, it had been this ugly baby blue color and the gears jammed up when it got too cold. The only thing that had changed was that most of the paint had either rusted or chipped away by this point, but the gears still jammed up. It was irritating but familiar and at this point familiar was comfortable.

I moved up the driveway toward the cabin as quickly as my legs would carry me, wanting to get out of the cold as soon as possible. I could see smoke billowing out of the log made chimney, I took that as a good sign that someone was up this early in the morning. I had made better time on the road than I had expected. I was supposed to pick up the keys for the property I had bought around ten but it was only eight. So I was crossing my fingers that someone would be awake. My feet slipped around on the icy wood planks as came up the steps onto the small wooden porch, I had to reach out with my hand to catch myself on the rail.

"Watch yourself there. I haven't gotten a chance to lay out the salt this morning." A deep timber came from behind me. I jolted forward a bit in surprise, turning my head quickly to see a man with a snow shovel clasped in his hands. He was dressed in a long winter coat, a friendly smile on his bearded face. Beside him stood a lanky boy, longer hair stuffed in under a red beanie. He was probably about ten years old at best. He didn't look very enthused to be up so early and standing outside in the cold. I completely understood that feeling.

I gave the pair a friendly smile, keeping my hand planted firmly on the rail as I turned to them. I wasn't about to risk a slip down the stairs and into the cold snow, "Hello, sorry to bother you so early in the morning. My name is Lucinda Cartwright. I was told to come here by a Casey Jones to pick up the keys to the house I bought..." He stared at me, looking like he had no idea what I was talking about, "Uh, it's the old Victorian near the lake..." I rambled hoping he would somehow understand.

"You mean, The old Wolfe residence? My wife probably told me something about that last night at dinner. Went in one ear and right out the other like most things she tells me..." He mumbled to himself, " Well, Casey's right inside, cooking breakfast for everyone." He reached up and scratched at his beard, "Not from around here, I suppose?"

"That obvious?" I say with a small nervous laugh.

He tilted his head to the side, "Ain't nobody around here wearing boots as fancy as those ones." He motioned his shovel towards my feet. I glanced down at my stilettoed, knee-high boots.

I lifted my face back up with a sheepish grin, cheeks flamed with my own embarrassment. He only smiled, "Mac why don't you show the kind lady inside. She looks about ready to frost over."

Mac's expression turned brighter, probably because he was getting to go back inside. He charged up the stairs towards me, taking them two at a time, "I'll take you in." I tried to reign in the awkward feeling in my stomach, I was terrible with children. I had no idea how to speak or act around them, so I simply nodded my head.

"When you're done, you head on back out here. This driveway ain't shoveling itself." Mr. Jones called to Mac. I watched the moment of merriment disappear from his face, shoulder slumping forwards. I chewed the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing. I looked back to the truck to see Mary-Beth watching from the passenger seat, I wondered if I should leave her be or have her come in with me. I felt uncomfortable with the idea of leaving her in the car in the cold even with the heat running.

Mac must have noticed my distracted gaze because he turned around and looked at the truck, "You got someone else with you?"

I peered down at him, "My sister, Mary-Beth."

He whistled low, before looking up at me, "Is she pretty?"

I felt my lips twitch upward at his question, "I think so, but you're a little young for her."

He gave me a disgusted look, sticking out his tongue a bit, "Not for me, for My brother Graham. He's a big flirt. Or that's what my moms says. She caught him kissing on Meredith Green behind the bleachers during my sister's lacrosse game. She said she's going to have to chain him up like a dog." I tongued my cheek, doing my best to hold back my laughter. This kid didn't seem to care that I was a complete stranger.

"Thanks for the warning." I replied, "I'll make sure to keep Mary Beth at a safe distance."

He turned around and started walking, "You might want to keep yourself at a safe distance." He mumbled as he pushed the front door open. I wobbled my way to him like a baby learning to walk. Note to self, buy a new pair of boots on my way through town.

The warmth of the house almost had me sighing with relief. It was cozy, a big red couch set up to my left with a young curly haired girl coloring on a piece of paper. Across the room was an open kitchen with a round woman working over a stove, a baby hoisted on her hip.

The young girl glanced in our direction as we came deeper into the room. Her eyes were big, brown and full of mischief. She looked me over slowly, tilting her head back, "You're so tall. Are you giant?" She asked curiously.

Mac snorted beside me, "She's not a giant, stupid. Giant ain't real."

His sister pushed up from her knelled position, tightening her small hands into fists at her sides. She narrowed her eyes and lifted her chin defiantly, "I ain't stupid, Mac! Giants is too real and when one squishes you...you'll be real sorry you called me stupid."She finished up her argument by sticking out her tongue. Mac responded by stick out his own tongue, very enthusiastically.

"Ma! Mac called me stupid!" His sister screamed with a triumphant grin. I was suddenly happy that Mary-Beth was more of the cold shoulder type of girl.

"Mac! Don't call your sister stupid. You're in enough trouble right now, you really don't want to push it with me, mister." She spun around with a spatula in her free hand. She had an apron hanging from around her neck that said world's #1 mom on it in colorful letters, it looked like it was a homemade gift. Flour was splattered all down the front of it and smeared across her left cheek. She had probably gotten more of the bag on herself than in whatever she was trying to make.

Her brown eyes widened in surprise when she noticed me standing beside her son, "Oh my..." She tossed the spatula onto the counter before she reached up to try and tame the wildness of her curls, only to have the child hanging from her hip to immediately jam her tiny finger into it.

"Hello, you must be Lucinda?" She questioned while she tried to untangle the tiny tots fingers from her hair.

I gave her a tentative smile, "That would be me. Sorry to intrude on you so early in the morning. I made better time on the drive up than I had expected."

She returned the smile, "Don't worry about that, honey." The child at her side beginning to fuss.

"Should I wait outside or..."

"Hold that thought for a moment." She interrupted me before I could finish the thought, turning her face toward the long darkened hallway, "Graham!"

Izzie clapped her hands over her ears and scrunched up her face in distaste at her mothers hollering. Casey sent me another smile, an impatient light in her eyes as she waited for her other child. I heard the sound of a door pulling open and shuffling feet before a boy about Mary-Beth's age lumbered out of the hallways in only a pair of plaid boxers.

Izzie screeched and turned away from her brother, giggling as she glanced up at me, "Graham's naked."

"Graham!" Casey shouted at him. He yawned big, scratching the back of his head, "What?" He blinked his eyes slowly, obviously still in a sleepy haze.

"Put some clothes on, you're not a caveman as much as you try to prove that point to us daily. We have company..." She motioned a hand in my direction in an irritated fashion. Graham swiveled his body in my direction. His squinted, dark eyes sliding up from my toes to my face. I watched as a slow smirk crept onto his lips, "Hey."

It was flattering to know I could still attract the attention of the male species even if said male was much younger. However, according to Mac, his brother would be satisfied as long as the person had female anatomy. I gave him a tight lipped smile, "Hello."

Casey popped him in the back of his head and I did my best to not laugh, "Clothes, now." He turned away from her, rubbing the spot she'd hit. He sent a wink in my direction none to sly. His mother caught him and went to hit him again but he ducked out of the way, laughing as he disappeared down the hall.

"Kids, I love them..." She sighed in exasperation, shifting the baby girl on her hip, "But I suggest you never have them."

I only nodded and smiled awkwardly unsure how to respond to her comment. Izzie walked over to her mother, pulling at her apron, "Ma..."

Casey looked down, "what is it, Iz?"

"isn't the pretty lady super tall?" She asked. I was really beginning to regret my choice of shoes.

She glanced in my direction before looking back to her daughter, "That she is."

"You think she's maybe tall enough to be a giant?" Izzie cast a look back over her shoulder to Mac. Those big brown eyes showing she was up to something.

"You know, she very well could be." Casey gave me a playful wink as she humored her daughter's imagination, "But we should keep it a secret, humans aren't supposed to know they exist."

Mac heaved an exasperated breath, crossing his arms over his chest, "Great, now she'll never let it go." He mumbled in annoyance. His mother shot him a quick look that silenced him.

Graham shuffled back into the room fully clothed much to his mother's pleasure. She turned to him, pulling the child free from her side, "Take Lily, please." She handed her off to him, her tiny hands reaching out to her brother with excitement. He gave her a big smile as he lifted her high up into the air, blowing a raspberry onto her stomach as he dropped her down. Her high pitched squealing giggle jingled through the crowded family room.

"Anyone else smell that?" Mac questioned as he sniffed at the air. I took in a breath and choked back a cough at the smell of burnt pancake batter.

"Smells like something is burning..." Mac commented on the obvious statement that I was sure everyone already knew.

"Oh, Jiminy Christmas! The pancakes!" Casey exclaimed as she spun around and rushed back to her stove, leaving me in the room with snickering children. I could only imagine that the world of a parent must be hectic with one child to look after, let alone four of them. I maneuvered around the lot of them and into the kitchen to find Casey dumping a smoking pan into the sink.

"Would it be better if I came back later? I'm sure there are still a few things I need to pick up in town. You know how it is when you're packing, always forget something..." I rambled over the sound of the faucet water she was running.

She cast a look over her shoulder at me, waving one of her hands dismissively in the air, "Nonsense. I'll give the kids cereal for breakfast. God knows they hate when I cook." My eyes flickered around the smoky kitchen, counter covered in whatever concoction she had been trying to cook up. The consistency looked nothing like pancakes, so I couldn't blame them for that feeling.

She turned off the water and wiped her wet hands onto the apron as she turned toward me, "Let me fix up my face and then I'll take you up to the house." Casey slipped her apron up over her head and hung it from a nail in the wall as she passed by me.

"Mac, you better get your butt outside and help your father shovel that driveway. Don't make me tell you again." She shouted as she hustled down the hallway. I watched as Izzie pointed a finger in Mac's direction and silently laughed at him, there is nothing like the love of a sibling. He frowned at her before he turned and made his way outside, slamming the door shut behind himself.

I stood awkwardly between the kitchen and the family room. Izzie was staring up at me with her big brown eyes full of wonder as she silently studied me and Graham trying to charm with his. I felt like an animal at the Zoo as if they had never seen another human besides their family members before. I almost latched onto Casey when she appeared, happy to no longer be alone with her children.

"Graham, make sure Iz and Lily eat breakfast before the bus gets here. You better make sure you get your butts to the bus stop on time or so help me...I will not be happy if I have to make a second trip into town today." She leaned over and dropped a kiss on Lily's forehead, moving toward Graham.

He pulled back quickly with a furrowed brows, cheeks tinted with pink, "Ma..."

"Opps, sorry. I forgot you're too old for that." She replied as I smiled at his embarrassment.

It was sweet to watch their little family interactions. I had never known my own mother and when my father finally decided to remarry I wasn't interested in getting to know Kelley and she had little interest in getting to know me. When Mary-Beth was born she cared that much less. We were both happy when college had taken me far away. I think she had always been a little jealous of mine and my father's relationship. I had always been his connection to my mother and a constant reminder to Kelley that she had existed.

Casey scooped Izzie up off the floor and into her arms, covering her face with kisses, "Now you behave yourself today. I don't want any more calls about you fighting with the other kids."

Izzie pouted her bottom lip and crossed her arms over her chest, "They deserved it. I saw them with those other boys who are always picking on Mac. They was there when they beat on him. You told us we was 'posed to always stick together."

"Yes I did, but that doesn't mean you need to beat on others. Two wrongs don't make it right. We try to always talk it out or walk away first, before we stoop to fighting, understand?" I looked at the small girl in Casey's arms, she didn't look like much but from her Mother's words it was obvious looks were deceiving.

She pulled her lip in and wrapped her arms around her mother, snuggling into her, "Okay, ma."

"That's my, good girl." Casey gave her a squeeze before she set her back down on her feet. She clapped her hands together as she turned to me with a determined look in her eyes.

"Alright, why don't you say we get this show on the road, Miss Cartwright." She headed toward the door, grabbing a large purple coat from the rack and slipping it on. I moved towards her, pulling at my scarf to make sure it was going to block the cold from my face. She snatched her purse off the side table and keys from the hook by the door. I shuffled out after her, getting a little wave from Izzie as I closed the door behind us.

I was happy to find that her husband had salted the small porch while I had been inside, but I still held onto the rail just in case. I didn't have the best luck in the world and I wasn't willing to tempt fate.

I turned my attention to my truck, Mary-Beth exactly where I had left her. She looked completely unmoved. Casey took note of her in the passenger seat, "Poor thing, to be without her mother at her age. She's lucky to have you though." I had explained the entire situation of my needing to purchase the house over the phone in detail over the past couple of weeks that we had been communicating.

She patted my arm as we came down the stairs together, "Don't you worry too much. Most folks around here are real friendly, always looking to lend a hand when needed. Sometimes even when it's not..." I wasn't used to the neighborly way. I'd spent the past couple of years living in a city where no one wanted to be talked to, "Plus, once you get her in school she'll be so busy with friends and activities she won't have time to dwell on it." I found the general concern and affection sweet and only mildly uncomfortable being that it was coming from someone I had really only recently met.

Mr. Jones made his way up the half shoveled driveway, "Headed out already?" He questioned as he came up to his wife and leaned in for a quick kiss.

"I'm going to take Lucinda and her sister up to the house then I'm going to pick up the mail in town. How are things going with Mac?" She peeked over in the direction of their son.

Mr. Jones gave a look over his shoulder to Mac who was struggling to lift the snow filled shovel, "Oh he might be out here all day but I bet he won't fight in school again."

She gave a small laugh under her breath, "Well, don't be too hard on him Nate. He didn't start it after all." She gave him another kiss to before turning to me, "You okay to just follow me up to the mountain?" Her eyes fluttering over my truck with a skepticism. I nodded my head and she gave me a smile in return, cheeks rosy from the cold air.

"It was nice to meet you, Miss Cartwright." Nate gave me a smile as he scratched at his beard. One might think that he had a circus of fleas hiding inside of it. I returned the smile, trying my best to keep up with the friendly appearances. I was more than ready to get out of the cold and into my truck, "It was nice to meet you too Mr. Jones. You've got yourself a lovely family."

He chuckled at my comment, "I have a family of hooligans but it's nice of you to say otherwise." He leaned over and gave a small wave to Mary-Beth, clearly having noticed her presence a while ago. He met my gaze one last time before he turned, whistling as he went.

I turn my body to the truck, trudging through the snow. The door creaked as I opened it, heat slamming into my numb face. I scrambled up into the driver's seat, closing the door and shoving my hands up to the heater vent in front of the center console.

"You look ridiculous in those boots..." Mary-Beth says after a minute of silence. I turned my face in her direction in surprise to hear her speaking in a full sentence. Her blue eyes met mine with a silent indignation, "You were like a giraffe on ice."

I felt my lips twitch at her comment, "Thank you for the input Mary-beth." I replied dryly as I saw Mrs. Jones blue Toyota back out of the driveway onto the main road. I reached up and threw the truck into reverse, "I'll make sure to donate them the first chance I get."

The drive into town was a silent one, for the most part, the radio channels had stopped coming in clear so I had given up on that for entertainment a while back. Mary-Beth didn't seem to have anything more to say to me after her comment about my boots. I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel, blowing out a breath of boredom as we waited at the main intersection in town. The single four sided red blinking light was enough of a signal that this was indeed a small town.

The streets were fairly empty and the shops along the main strip hadn't yet been opened for the morning. A couple of them caught my eye as we passed, "Isn't this a cute little town? Maybe we can wait until monday to get you into class and spend tomorrow looking around. Maybe buy you some more winter clothes." I tried to get some kind of conversation flowing between us. I could tell this whole situation was painfully uncomfortable for the both of us, for different reasons.

There had been a time in our lives before I moved away for college before she grown into a teenage girl with hormones that we had spent quite a bit of time together. Mary-Beth had always been a shy kid that didn't seem eager to do much, except for one thing. Mary-Beth loved to do arts and crafts. When I had to babysit her we would spend hours painting, and making little structures out of q-tips. I always felt that was her way of communicating herself to the world. Most of my bedroom walls had been covered in drawing she had made for me.

I think I broke a piece of her heart when I had went away to college. She had written me letters and sent me pictures throughout my freshman year but that became less frequent until they stopped coming altogether. It wasn't long after that I stopped coming home.

"Do you really think helping me ditch school for a shopping day is the best way to start this whole parenting  thing, Lucinda?"She asked in a condescending tone that made her seem more like the parent and me more like the child. I clutched the steering wheel a bit tighter. My lips twitching with the urge to growl in irritation at her continued attitude while I was attempting to make some kind of connection with her.

I sucked in a breath, "You're right. School it is." I decided conversing with her probably wasn't the best thing for either of us and opted for a silent drive the rest of the way through town and up to the house.

Mary-Beth leaned forward in her seat as the house came into view, the most curiosity that I'd seen her have since we left our childhood home two days ago. I also couldn't resist the urge to lean forward and gawk at the beautiful structure that stood before us. The old Victorian stood in the clearing, it looked big enough to house a family of eight. Certainly more than enough space for the two of us.

The paint on looked faded and chipped in some areas, but that didn't take away from the overall splendor. From far away I could see that the craftsmanship of the woodwork was intricate and impeccable. I parked the truck behind Casey's Toyota, staring at the beautifully wrapped porch that was scattered with debris from the surrounding wilderness. Honestly, the pictures I had seen online had not done the home justice.

"What do you think?" I asked Mary-Beth as we sat in the idling truck together, just staring at our new house. This was the place we would build a new life together I wanted to know what she thought of it.

She leaned back as she unbuckled her seat-belt, "I think you bought us a haunted house." With that comment she opened the door and jumped out into the snow, slamming the door shut behind her.

I watched as she trudged through the ankle deep snow to where Casey stood waiting for us on the porch. I closed my eyes and took in a deep calming breath, "She's just trying to push your buttons, Luce. You're cool. This is going to be fine. You can totally do this. You can." I recited to myself as I killed the engine and got out of the truck.

The air around the house seemed slightly colder, the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as I followed the path Mary-Beth had made through the snow. It felt as if something or someone was watching from the shadows. I turned around and cast a look toward the nearby snow covered trees, wrapping my jacket tighter around myself.

The feeling passed quickly and I turned away, chalking it up to my nerves about the situation and Mary-Beth's comment. I headed up the creaky stairs to the porch, admiring the woodwork of the railing. The top of the post was carved into the shape of a wolf head which I assumed was one of the reasons Mr. Jones had called it the Wolfe house.

Casey gave me a tight lipped smile, "It's beautiful isn't it?" I nodded as I surveyed the porch up close. It certainly needed some work like most of the house but I could already envision spending my summers sitting on a porch swing reading and drinking tea in the sun. My gaze landed on Mary-Beth who was leaning against the wall near the front door, with a slight frown plastered on her face.

"I was surprised when the original owner's son had wanted to part with it. He didn't seem to care if it stayed with his family or not." Her comment surprised me a bit, it being such a beautiful home.

"Oh? Did he say why he wanted to sell it?" I questioned as she unlocked the front door for us.

Casey pursed her lips a bit, "I'm not quite sure. The house was already empty when Nate and I moved here twelve years ago. No one in town wanted to talk about it, they were all hush hush when I asked about it. Whatever it is, Mr. Wolfe's reasons are his own I didn't feel like prying into his personal life. He's a quiet man, lives up the mountain a few miles from her. Keeps to himself from what I've heard."

Mary-Beth cast a look in my direction as she pushed off the wall, "Told you. Haunted house." She muttered under her breath as she passed me, entering the house first. I stared after her, wishing that she would go back to the whole not speaking thing.

Casey continued to rattle on next to me as we moved into the house, I only caught the half end of her chatter, "His cousin Tamara owns an antique shop in town. She and her daughter are real friendly, a little odd but friendly." I nodded my head as I walked away from her, moving from room to room.

It had all of the original furniture, though someone had neatly draped white clothes over it all to keep it from degrading over the years while it had sat empty of life. There was a sense of loneliness as I wandered deeper into the house that tugged at my heart. I had a feeling that the home had once been filled with warmth, life, and love, but now it was vacant and cold.

I passed bedroom after bedroom until I found myself walking into one. The walls were painted a pale blue that reminded me of my truck, it gave me a familiar feeling. I ran my fingers over the dark oak desk, imagining someone had sat there once writing or reading. There was something special about this town, about this house, about this room that I couldn't describe. It was like getting a song stuck in your head but not remembering the words, only the tune.

"So what do you think?" Casey's sudden appearance jolted me from my thoughts.

I turned to her with a smile, "I think it's perfect."

Mary-Beth reappeared looking as dismal as she had when she had disappeared. Her eyes skittered around the room before landing on me.

"And what do you think?" Casey tried to engage with Mary-Beth.

She shrugged her shoulders, before turning away from us, "I think I'll be in my room with my new friend Casper if anyone needs me."