I’m not sure what his problem was, but he seemed to dislike me immediately. He wasn’t outwardly mean, but he wasn’t friendly either. He was flat—his voice, his affect, his everything. And it wasn’t just me. He treated all the employees the same. While it was nothing to legitimately complain about, it didn’t make for the greatest of working environments.
“Anything I need to know about?” he asked, sounding like an overprotective father.
“No, nothing like that,” I reassured him.
“Well, there’s a silver lining. You can take the time you need to find a job you like since you won’t have to worry about rent and utilities.”
“If I’m going to stay there, I want to pay rent and utilities.”
“Aspen, I’m going to be honest with you. Your mother is wanted for questioning regarding her involvement in three murders as well as a list of other charges. And we can’t find her. Having you here in Devil Springs will give me a peace of mind I wouldn't have otherwise. In exchange for that, I’ll take care of the bills.”
I knew there was no point in arguing with him. Besides, I didn’t have the money to pay for anything anyway. I barely had enough to cover groceries and other necessities after paying for the moving truck.
“I’ll agree on one condition.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“You let me pay rent once she’s caught.”
“Does that mean you’re taking my offer?” he asked hopefully.
I exhaled slowly. “Yes, I am. Thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me. I never wanted you to leave in the first place,” he said and cleared his throat. “Do you still have a key to the house?”
“Yes, I do,” I said as I looked at the key that was still on my key ring. Even though I’d never planned on going back, I held onto the key for some reason, and it was a good thing I did.
“Good. If you want, I can have someone come by and change the locks once you’re settled in. I did have an alarm system installed after you moved out. ‘Your bday’ is the code.”
“Did you just say ‘bday?’”
“Yes. The code is eight digits. ‘Your bday.’ Spell it out on the keypad,” he explained.
“How did you come up with that?”
He chuckled. “Everyone says not to use your birthday for passwords. You know how much I love a good play on words.”
“You sure do,” I laughed. He was a self-proclaimed word nerd. His words, not mine. I’d secretly been fascinated by his word games as a teenager.
“All right, what else do I need to tell you? You’ll need to make a grocery run or pick up something to eat. If there’s any food in the house, I can assure you it’s not edible. And the house will likely need to be aired out and dusted. I think there’s a vacuum in the hall closet.”
“I thought you lived there.”
“Technically, I do,” he said, hesitating before he continued, “but you know how my job is. When I’m gone for weeks or months at a time and only home for two or three days, the last thing I want to do is refresh a house that’s been closed up for months. It’s easier to stay in a hotel room for a few days.”
“I’ll be there by myself?” I asked, hoping I didn’t sound as unsure as I felt.
“Yeah,” he paused. “Is that okay?”
“Of course,” I said. “I didn’t realize you wouldn’t be there, but now I feel a little less guilty about crashing at your place with little to no notice.”
“My place is your place. Always will be. But you’re on your own moving in. I won’t be back in town until sometime next week at the earliest.”
“I’ve already loaded the moving truck by myself. Unloading it won’t be any different,” I said. He didn’t need to know about the hell I’d gone through trying to get my mattress and sofa loaded onto the truck. I’d been able to disassemble everything and carry it to the truck one piece at a time. Everything except those two items, and I’d seriously considered leaving them behind at one point. But that would result in additional fees I didn’t have the funds to pay. Plus, I needed a bed and wouldn’t be able to afford a decent one until I found a new job and had worked enough to have a few paychecks under my belt.
“You sure? I can arrange to have someone meet you there to help with the heavy lifting,” he offered.
But I didn’t want anyone else to witness my move of shame unless they absolutely had to. He was already giving me a place to live, for free. I didn’t feel right taking any more handouts from him.