Page 57 of Blackout
‘When my father died, Mum, Addison and I moved in with my grandparents. Someone packed up our things and stored them next door. I haven’t been inside.’ I had only seen the outside of the house on the afternoon I went for a walk, and that was four weeks ago.
‘Harley, you should take your time, think this over and talk to Zach. Work out what needs to be done next door.’
I shook my head. ‘This is what my dad wanted then, and it’s what my mum wants now.’
‘If you’re happy to go ahead with the changes your mother has made, you can sign the paperwork. When the bungalow next door has been sold, I can finalise all your trust paperwork.’
I nodded. There was a moment’s silence before I said, ‘Brad.’ I wanted his full attention for what I was about to say next. ‘I’d Alex Black as the accountant for my trust.’
‘Alright, I’ll set it up and reach out to Alex when your paperwork is finalised.’ Brad stood and made his way towards the front door. ‘My card is on the table if you have any questions, so please call me.’
‘I’m going to read over this one more time, and when I’ve signed it, I’ll let you know.’
Twenty-eight
‘Why is there a mover’s truck in my front yard?’ Zach asked after I had showered and changed my clothes.
Zach stood by the bay window in his lounge room. I moved to stand in front of him and stared straight into his eyes, then told him the one thing I wanted to say. The one thing he wanted to hear. ‘I love you. The truck isn’t for you.’ I pressed my lips to his cheek. ‘It’s for me.’ I was calm as I moved past Zach, and out the front door. I knew I had stunned the man with the words that came out of my mouth.
‘Wait,’ Zach said, and the way his voice reached out across his front yard stopped me in my tracks. I turned around to see Zach leaning up against the front door. ‘Lex left your things here on the veranda last night after she dropped you off. Your suitcase, handbag and box of treasures. How much more stuff could you possibly have?’
‘Everything I owned I brought with me.’ Then I surprised Zach with, ‘The truck is empty, and I’ll be next door. I’ve only got the removalist for the day.’
I made my way over to the mover’s truck as he stared at me quizzically.
When the driver jumped out of the truck, I said, ‘I take it my grandma sent you?’
The driver nodded.
‘This isn’t the house that needs to be packed up. The house that does isn’t far from here. I’ll direct you.’
‘Okay,’ the driver said. ‘Jump in. Name is Jack.’
‘Harley,’ I told the mover.
I gave the driver directions to the house next door, and he manoeuvred the truck along the dirt track towards the neighbouring home.
The keys jangled in my pocket, and I placed my hand over them as I walked up the steps to the front door. I had never been inside this run-down weatherboard bungalow. I didn’t know what to expect. I opened the door, and I wasn’t surprised by the musty smell that hit me first up. I moved through the bungalow to open as many windows and doors as I could. Anything to air this place out.
After the smell started to disappear, I took a proper look at the home that was once meant to be a holiday retreat for my grandparents. But it had been used as a storage facility for all of my family’s treasures instead. Now that the bungalow was to be sold, it didn’t change the reason for it to be emptied. It had been ten years since I had seen what was once inside our family home, which was stored here.
The house was scattered with furniture and boxes. What a day to have to sort this out. Not the best time to deal with this but I had to work with what I had. I wanted this bungalow emptied today, then would find a builder to sort out what needed to be fixed both inside and outside.
There was furniture scattered everywhere with packed boxes in every room. I didn’t realise how much our small family house had held back then. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad, I told myself, but how did I know. I’d never had to organise a move before, but I would figure it out. Every box would need to be sorted through, and I would get to it eventually now that I had nothing better to do.
I walked through the rooms and assessed what was inside. The mover, Jack, needed to know where to start, and I didn’t have a clue. I didn’t even know what to do with all of this, as I knew I had nowhere to store it. I stood just outside the kitchen deep in thought when I felt two arms wrap around me. I breathed in cedar and coffee.
‘Zach?’ He would never know how much this moment meant to me. I looked down and saw Abby at my feet. She sat and gave me her puppy-dog eyes. That told me she had definitely missed me. ‘Can you help me figure this out, the bungalow I mean?’
‘So, what’s your plan?’ Zach squeezed me tight.
‘Get the bungalow sorted quickly before we talk,’ the words rolled out of my mouth.
‘Where do you want to store everything?’ he asked me like I had a plan. There was no plan. Zach turned me around to stare into my green eyes.
‘I haven’t figured that out yet. I’m still trying to work out how to fill you in on everything that’s happened,’ I admitted. I knew we had to talk, and we would as soon as I figured out this bungalow.
‘Okay, baby, let’s get it all in the truck. I have an empty container you can use for storage.’ Zach kissed my forehead and slapped my butt. Time to get this show on the road.