His logic was sound, there was no denying that. However, the thought of spending days being constantly reminded that she had dropped the ball as a grandchild didn’t sound fun. It sounded painful. The whole town would look at her like some kind of monster for only visiting her grandmother once.
Just as she stepped out of the truck—without slipping, though Johnny was ready to catch her just in case—another old truck pulled up behind them. Johnny pressed his lips together, looking guilty.
“Does no one own a car from this decade here?” Holly commented. “Who is that?”
Johnny didn’t bother to answer. Keller and Garret quickly jumped out of the truck, looking startled. Holly wasn’t sure what to make of the situation.
“Are you two just now getting here?” Keller asked, strong brow furrowed.
“Yeah.” Johnny nodded. “We had a small delay. Did you see the black car?”
“With the tinted windows?” Garret spoke up. “Yeah. Sketchy.”
“They almost ran us off the road. They only could have come from here.”
“Do you think it was—”
“How do you like the house so far, Holly?” Keller said quickly, cutting Garret off. All three of them looked tense. Something was clearly going on.
“House doesn’t seem to cover it,” Holly said slowly. “It’s more like a castle.”
“Come on, let’s get you inside.”
“Wait a damn minute,” Holly snapped. “Something’s going on here. It’s obvious. That black car freaked you all out. What are you two even doing here?” She gestured to Keller and Garret. “Until you tell me what’s going on, I’m not moving. I’m not going in the house. I’m not getting in any of your trucks. I will stand right here until my car is fixed, and you will never see me again.”
“Nothing is going on,” Johnny said in a calm and far too reasonable voice.
Holly whirled around, jabbing a finger at Johnny. “Don’t pull that smooth, charming crap with me right now,” she said.
“You think I’m charming?” If he weren’t so damn handsome, she’d want to knock that smile right off his face.
“If you three are planning something, I have mace in my purse, and I can scream louder than a banshee. Try me.”
“What?” Garret’s brow pulled together, turning his face into a mask of hurt. “You think we’re going to hurt you?”
One look at him told Holly the thought had never crossed his mind. Some of the tension drained from her body, but not all. “You have to admit, this whole thing is really suspect,” she said. “You’re three strangers who happen to be bigger and stronger than me. You’ve brought me to a secluded spot in the woods. That black car has something to do with it, I’m sure. What am I supposed to think?”
“I know you have no reason to trust us.” Keller sighed. “But believe me when I say, the last thing any of us would ever do is hurt you.” His blue eyes burned with raw honesty. Holly held her gaze. A strange sensation stirred in her chest like there was an invisible string pulling her to him. She resisted the pull.
Defying all logic and rules of stranger-danger, she trusted him. She trusted all three of them.
“Okay.” She nodded. Her breath felt shaky. “But can you please tell me what’s going on? Not one of you has denied that something is happening. Does it have to do with Pearl?”
“Yes,” Garret said. “It’s complicated. She left us with very specific instructions for how she wants this to go.”
“What is ‘this?’” Holly exclaimed. “I’m just here to sell the house.”
“You can’t,” Johnny said.
“Excuse me? She left it to me, didn’t she? If I own it, I can sell it.”
“She left a letter for you, didn’t she?” Johnny asked.
Holly felt the color drain from her face. “I didn’t tell you about that.” She placed a hand flat against the side of her purse. She could almost feel the burning shape of the letter inside.
“No, but Pearl did. She has more letters for you. The next one is inside the house,” Johnny said.
“What is this?” Holly snapped, her frustration mounting once again before she could stomp it down. “Some kind of sicko scavenger hunt from beyond the grave? Is this Pearl’s revenge on me for being a terrible granddaughter? Are my sisters getting similar letters?”
“No,” Keller replied. “Just you.”
“Why?” Holly felt like she was going to cry. “Why me?”
“That’s not an answer we can give.” Johnny’s voice was soft and filled with empathy. “But we can tell you that you’ll understand everything. She made sure everything went into the letters.”
“I never signed up for this.” Holly suddenly felt very exhausted. She wanted to lie down and sleep for days.
“Let’s go inside,” Keller urged gently. “The next letter is in there.”
“Do you know what they say?” Holly asked.
“We all have an idea,” Keller admitted. “We promised Pearl we’d let her do this how she saw fit. She truly believed this was the right way to do it.”
“Do what?” Holly moaned though she knew she wouldn’t get an answer. She let Keller and Garret flank her as they walked toward the house. Johnny walked behind them. Holly cast a glance over her shoulder only to find him looking back as well. He watched the road where that black car must’ve come from.
Keller produced a key from the pocket of his jeans.
“You already have a key to this place? I don’t even have a key to this place,” Holly said as Keller swiftly put the key into the lock and opened the door like he’d done it a hundred times before. He even knew how to pull the door tight against the frame to make sure the locking mechanism came undone properly. He must’ve spent a lot of time here, as he said.
They allowed
