While I was planning to have her start kindergarten this fall, as of now, her exposure to peer group had even fairly limited, at least until I’d gotten her to day care. Though, even there, she could be a bit introverted, as Helena was quick to tell me. Always in her head and thinking.
She’d gone through all the bookshelves provided in the first couple of weeks, leading her to invent new shapes and structures with building blocks and tinker toys. A friend could only do her good. Even if it was just one.
The city fell away behind us, as though into a chasm, as we hit the outer reaches of the notorious L.A. freeway. Keeping up with the traffic to avoid any unpleasantness, even if the windows looked thoroughly bulletproof, the driver kept well over into the slower lane, keeping her eyes, shielded behind a pair of Alexander McQueen shades, themselves appearing at least bullet-resistant, on the road.
Lily’s impressed reactions only intensified as well pulled up to the gate. A massive, wrought iron thing that looked like it might be used to prevent invasion by the French, surrounded by an eight-foot-high red brick wall.
The gate whirled open, with little of the squeak and groan that might be expected from the haunted house aesthetic. There were no other cars on the circular drive, surrounding a massive marble fountain with depictions of mermaids frolicking.
“They’re already inside,” the driver said, reading my mind.
No matter how many times you saw it, one never really got used to telepathy. Particularly when it was being used on you.
“Right, very good.”
It was best to try and be agreeable. Even with those whose intentions weren’t clear. Even when up against the enemy in court, I tried my best to keep things light. Not least to enjoy the shocked expression when I would bring the hammer down, crushing their assumptions and hopes of victory, if not their very soul. I didn’t feel too good about the last one, but the first two were enough to make me dance a little jig.
Not proper professional conduct, though, so I tended to wait until I was out of the courtroom before busting a move. My office, with the door locked, was generally the safest place.
Leaving our luggage by the fountain, the driver set off again to bring others to where they needed to go. I was never clear if the drivers were hired out commercially or if White and White kept a fleet of limos, and their drivers, on retainer, just in case they needed them. Considering how rich they were, either one was possible.
Taking as many bags as possible I could, I held fast to Lily’s hand to keep her from going exploring and trudged up to the house. My mind was running laps around my skull with possibilities, giving me a bit of headache.
“We live here?” Lily asked.
“For now, yes. At least until it is safe to go home.”
“Home isn’t safe?”
“Not sure, sweetheart. No one is for sure. Things are a bit odd right now, and it’s better to be safe.”
I chose my words very carefully. Lying wasn’t an option. Not with something that important, but the poor kid already had enough nightmares. Mostly involving the accident. She seemed to be doing better recently, but the specter of near death still reached out on occasion.
It was enough to spook anyone. No matter how tough they thought they might be either in body or mind.
“Honey, I’m home,” I declared, apparently to no one.
“Quiet,” Lily observed.
“Maybe they went out,” I suggested.
I didn’t really think so but could hear a familiar edge in her tone and didn’t want her having a freak out. Rare as they were terrible, I didn’t want us to have to go down that road again.
“Oh,” Lily said.
She seemed to take my theory more or less at face value, averting any incoming crisis. Getting the rest of the luggage from out by the fountain, we went to find our rooms. I’d never been to the house before, or even really seen anything like it, the architecture perfectly set up for a vacation home. Everything about the place inspired calm and relaxation. Like everything would be right with the world.
The effect seemed particularly strong on Lily, who seemed noticeably calmer as we scaled the steps to go look for our bedrooms. It definitely made the stresses of the world outside the resort feel far away.
Chapter Nine - Emilie
There was even a crib. A sleek, modern thing, set in the corner of the bedroom. It wasn’t clear if all the bedrooms were set up in the same way, just in case, or if we’d just happened on the one intended specifically for us.
Either way the room was gorgeous as the rest of the house, which I was happy to find was big enough to mostly ignore our roommates should we end up being incompatible. It didn’t seem likely as the whole idea behind the co-op was to share the childcare. Both the White siblings had shown their intelligence, and it wasn’t a stretch to imagine that elements such as compatibility would have been taken into account when arranging the co-op situations.