LatinosUSA

“The house sure looks bigger from the outside than the inside,” I commented as our 20-year-old Lexus bumped along the rustic drive. “Isn’t that crazy, Harvey? Why would that be?”

“We haven’t seen the basement, I guess. But why would we? I doubt it’s finished,” he answered, attempting a three-point turn to park nose-outward without winding up in the ditch.

We were in the midst of a week-long dog-sitting vacation in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Harvey’s former student, Annabelle, had business in Houston and opened her home to us in exchange for the peace of mind of knowing that her sweet mutt was well-tended while she was away.

“Maybe it’s nice,” I replied. “We should see what’s down there.”

“Marney . . .”

“What, Sweetheart?”

“You’re being a Nosey Parker,” he assessed, rather inaccurately, I’ll let you know.

“Maybe it’s a game or movie room. You’d enjoy that, wouldn’t you?”

Harvey lifted his brow while pulling the key from the ignition.

As always, Brindled Bella was waiting for us at the door. I stepped in and around her with our bags of kitchen staples and locally grown peaches and blackberries.

“Hey, Bella. Are you ready to walk?” Harvey bent down, mussing the fur behind the perk of her ears.

Immediately, she began dancing in circles so that Harvey had to work to attach the leash to her collar.

“You coming?” he called to me.

“Yep,” I said, closing the refrigerator door on the cottage cheese and watermelon. The rest could wait until we returned.

~~

The remainder of the week flew by in a blink. Though I had anticipated ample time to tend to my reading and crochet, the lazy mountain pace inspired more than a few hours of doing little more than sitting on the deck, gazing out over the landscape.

That’s not to say we didn’t fit in a few thrills. We stopped by the farmers’ market a couple of times, grabbed lunch at the pub in town, and spent a lovely afternoon at Gorges State Park, where we lingered before each waterfall long enough to take selfies that we’d send to the kids.

~~

The morning of our departure, I was a tad mortified upon surveying the mess we had made. Dirty dishes, an unmade bed. Our things were strewn all about the house. Not that we had engaged in any kinky behavior together, Harvey and I, or anything one would find unseemly. Really. Though after all these years, the sight of my husband toweling off after his shower still makes me, well, a little frisky.

“Honey, what time are we heading out?” I hollered through the open sliding doors. Harvey was contentedly rocking himself in a chair on the deck while Bella dozed beside him.

“I don’t know. We just need to get to Asheville in time to meet Annabelle for lunch.”

“Lunch? You didn’t say anything about meeting up with her. I have work to do before we go.”

“Well, hop to it then.”

Perhaps Harvey didn’t pay any mind to my low growl, but Bella did. She came prancing in, ready to please.

“Are you going to help me with the laundry?” I placed a quick kiss on the top of her head before touring each room in search of dirty towels and linens.

I had no idea where the machines were located. I’d checked behind every door in the common areas and could only assume they were downstairs.

As I opened the door to the basement, Bella charged ahead of me. I, on the other hand, held onto the railing, taking the steps one at a time.

Before I was halfway down, I could hear her whining. Whimpering, actually.

“What’s wrong, girl?” I asked, just as I reached the bottom step.

Whether she was vocalizing in surprise or embarrassment, I’ll never know. Could Bella be an accessory to . . . this?, I wondered.

Bodies. So many bodies. Many with stab wounds, given the blood stains surrounding the slits in their Patagonia-wear. Tourists, I’d imagine, though a few were clothed in flannel.

All I could think was Why hadn’t Annabelle covered up these people’s carcasses or, I don’t know, frozen the damn things? Then, I quite rationally assessed the challenges of disposing of rotting corpses, the lack of freezer space, and whatnot. After all, it doesn’t get that hot in the mountains.

I decided to save my questions for another day and carefully climbed over the mound of torsos and splayed limbs. Pairs upon pairs of eyes seemed to watch me as I filled the washer with the week’s worth of still-damp towels. I unfortunately had to kick an arm aside to get to the detergent but reverently replaced it once I had the wash cycle going.

A couple of hours had passed while I assembled our belongings. The buzzer for the second load, the bedsheets, went off just as Harvey was busy tapping his foot at the door. I folded them hastily, struggling with the fitted sheet as I always do, and joined him to schlep our things out to the car.

Once the back hatch was loaded, I did one last sweep through the house to ensure we’d not left anything behind. (Why is it that I always forget my razor in the shower?) As I laced up my shoes to head out, Bella sat before me, a look of pleading in her humble eyes.

“Don’t worry, Sweetheart. I won’t say anything about your Mama’s . . . hobby,” I assured her.

Her tail began wagging to beat the band as I shook her paw before stepping out and locking the door.

~~

When we arrived in Asheville, I found Annabelle to be just as striking as I imagined she would be. Since retirement, Harvey doesn’t keep ugly acquaintances.

We put our orders in at the counter of the Indian street food place and took a booth near the back, making sure that our order number was visible to the servers.

While we waited for our food, I pretty well just listened in as the two of them reminisced about Annabelle’s in-class shenanigans. However, my ears pricked a bit when she began updating him on her career. I give her credit, she’d done well for herself.

When our food arrived, I was the only one eating. Annabelle and Harvey appeared unaware of the plates before them.

“And have you found Mr. or Ms. Right yet?” Harvey asked without an ounce of tact.

“Not even close.” Annabelle gave a weary shake of her head.

“What? You haven’t been dating anyone?”

“Well, yeah, I’m seeing this woman, my personal trainer, but she won’t be around long.” She rolled her eyes. “Trust me.”

“Oh, but I do,” I chimed in before taking a bite of my veggie pakora and settling back into silence.