Once Upon A Time

Once Upon A Time - Chp 11

John shook his head again and tried to look convincingly at ease. It was working, but only to a point. Jeremy Boucher was a likeable enough man. A few years younger than him, he worked primarily at home and only went to an office for the occasional meeting, but even those at times were conducted via Skype. Of medium height with reddish, blonde hair and light blue eyes, he was very average in his looks, his life style, and character. So what was it about him that made John wince in imagined pain?

The man and his sister were friendly, attentive, and highly amused at hearing of their little adventure. Sara looked nothing like her brother, inheriting only his coloring, but not his features. It was not uncommon to look dissimilar, John thought. He and Fanny did not resemble each other at all, except for the Thornton eyes.

"I am data analyst," Jeremy had told them once they sat down for some tea.

Margaret blinked at him but did not answer. It was one of those new positions she was still in the dark about.

"Oh, that's nice."

"It allows me to work independently and at home. That's always a plus," Jeremy explained.

"So you never go to the office?"

Letting out a short laugh the man shook his head while waving his hand around the room, showing her in one sweep that everything around them was related to his work.

"This room pretty much is my office. Sara wants me to convert the attic for my room so she can have a real living room."

"He can make such a mess sometimes," his sister added.

John nodded at the two and tried to imagine Fanny and himself in a similar position, living together now. He cringed instantly at the thought.

"You said you inherited the house from your grandmother?"

"From Nana Mary, dad's mum," Sara told him. "Jeremy was living here first. The place was a nightmare, dirty dishes and dirty clothes everywhere!"

"It wasn't that bad," her brother replied, defending himself.

"No, it was worse. The refrigerator had nothing but take away in it."

Margaret had to smile at that. Her brother Fred was the same making her believe it must be a trait most men possessed. For a second she wondered about John and mentally thought he must need a woman to keep things neat and tidy for him.

"After my divorce I needed a place to stay. Well, the house was half mine, so..."

"You moved in and took charge," Margaret answered for her.

"Someone had too."

The two shared a conspiratorial wink that neither man found that amusing.

"A lot of nana's things were still around. We kept most of the furniture but the other things went to auction."

At that news John perked up. They had brought the book though it remained for the moment, unattended to in a small carrying case by the side of the sofa. Each time Margaret saw it, she got the shivers so it was kept out from plain view. John appeared almost immune to it now though he occasionally still got the urge to read, but not with the same sense of urgency as before. Keeping it covered and out of sight was for her benefit, not his.

"Did you keep an inventory of her things?"

He expected they would say no, but Jeremy Boucher surprised him by nodding and pulled out the list compiled a couple of months ago.

"It's pretty exact; seems a lot of things had great value."

Moving closer to John so she could see, Margaret leaned against him, her shoulder brushing up against his as they read down the list, making careful note to spot any entry for books. The usual things were there; figurines, painting, autographed pictures, china, glassware, silverware, two dressers, several wooden chests, even some handmade lace and cloth. They went over the list twice but there was no mention of any books.