The Big Cold House

Another window display, and temperamental heater.

A week passed, and Brenda finally put down her binoculars, stopped obsessing over her lover, his new wife, and the tiny house. Her days at the shop were spent unpacking things for her Easter display, and occasionally peeking out the front door and to the right where the tiny house stood, albeit out of direct view.

She scrubbed her mannequins, dug out two rabbit costumes in pink and blue, then dressed Shirley, and Robert. Mannequin "Waters" would be dressed as a yellow chick, and she had a feeling that Mr. Blundon's  departed 13 year old son "Waters" would not like it very much. 

She would make time to go into the attic, and ask him directly through telepathy, and see if anything came through. She wanted him to communicate. Above all, he had to understand that she was not trying to humiliate him by making his mannequin self be a yellow chick. She immediately heard a voice inside her head saying. " If I was 4 or something."

She wanted to call Fiona, but held back. She had to learn that the spirits communicate on their own terms. They love attention, and respect. Fiona would only reinforce what she had just learned in an instant.

She hurried to get back to the house before dark so she could go into the attic costume box, and see what else might come up. "Waters" could help her decide. That is, if he felt like it. When she got into the house, it was freezing cold. 

She called Herbie Clayton, and he told her to go into the basement, and flip off a red switch, and he would be there in the morning. Meanwhile she could hold up in her room with a space heater, and a sandwich.

Going into the basement was something that petrified her. What if the light went out, and something brushed against her ? Something big and hairy. 

She steeled herself, turned on the light, walked over to the boiler, found the switch, and turned it off. There was no gas leak. The light hanging from the rafter stayed on, and she got up the steps to the kitchen without a spider going down her throat. 

With a sandwich, and hot chocolate in hand, she went up to the attic, rummaged through the costume box, and when she pulled out a magicians outfit, she heard a cracking noise in the wall. She almost wrote it off to "cold house contractions," and caught herself. "Okay Waters. A magician you will be for the two adult Blundon Rabbits."

She expected a flurry of communication from Mr. Blundon's boy, but realized that it doesn't always work like that. She retreated to her room, finished her sparse meal, brushed her teeth, and fell into a deep sleep. The family was happy with her efforts. She felt it in her bones.

In a few more days, Mr. Griffin would be coming to the house for lunch, and tea. Things had to get better after that. It would be "confession time." Deep down, Brenda hoped that Mr. Griffin had already "figured everything out" pertaining to her relationship with Daniel.

 

C J. Marks

Author's Note

This takes place in early 1950's.