The Mansion -ONC 2022

TWO

Luke and I left in high spirits. The sixteen-year-old egged me on to sign. I couldn't ignore the excitement on his face, the look of hope, loads and loads of hope. It had brought tears to my eyes.

I had signed on the dotted line and Mr. Brady handed me the brown envelope, which was actually a folder with many documents inside.

There were four first class flying tickets with a contact person to change the tickets to our names. She had been aware of it all, or so the note that came with the business card and printout of the tickets had said.

Melonie and Cassy were going to jump through the roof.

"Can we get take out?" Luke asked as we drove down the free-way back to Evelyn's house.

"It feels as if we had won the lottery."

Luke laughed. "Mom, but seriously, why us?"

"I don't know. He took a liking to me, and that was all I could think. He spoke endlessly about the house, and now that I think about it, I think he was prepping me for how to take care of it. But back then, I didn't even think he would leave it to me."

"It's not a house, Mom. Robbie Williams has one in Wiltshire. His looks like a semi castle."

"I know."

"Did they leave any images in there for us to browse through?"

"I don't know. We will look through the envelope thoroughly tonight. Your sisters is going to pee in their pants."

Luke laughed. He hadn't laughed like that in a long time. My boy seemed so lost without the guidance of his father that sometimes I did not know to push him through it. Pat, Evelyn's husband, was the only father figure my boy had in his life, apart from Will, his football coach. What was he going to do in Wiltshire? The only football they had was soccer.

We picked up five pizzas from Tony's Pizza Place and headed home to Evelyn's house.

Upon entering, Luke's grin on his face had said it all.

"The way that boy smiles tells me he left you something of value."

"A freaken castle," Luke yelled and Evelyn's eyes grew as Mel and Cassy gasped.

I laughed as I reprimanded Luke for blabbering out the surprise.

"I'm sorry, Mom. And it's in England. We are moving to England."

"Wait, what?" Evelyn's expression froze in shock. Her gaze flickered to mine. "The UK?"

"It's a mansion in Wiltshire."

More shocking gasps filled the air. "Wiltshire, where all the pompous celebrities hung out."

"Evelyn?" I sang as she had this name for rich British people I had found crude.

"You are going to move?"

I sat down and told her everything about the reading. Her eyes kept growing as her mouth gaped and her fingers fanning over her chest. Luke chirped in whenever I'd left something out, but the excitement was clear in his tone.

"First-class tickets?" Evelyn asked.

"Which reminds me, we have to pack. I have so many things to do in the next few days. We have to get to the Manor as soon as we can."

"Sis, it's not a manor, it's a mansion."

"I know, but it's called the Trouble Manor."

"Don't you want to think this through? I mean, it's a huge decision."

"There wasn't time. It was yes or no, as it came with a condition."

Her eyebrows knitted together. "Condition?"

Luke told her the condition. "It's a new start, Aunty Eve. I'm sure you guys are sick and tired of us—"

"Hold your tongue. Do you know how far England is for me? I'm never going to see you again and I love, love having you guys here."

I grabbed her arm. "I know you do, but we need a new start. One where Frank isn't everywhere."

"Lil, he is in your heart. You are still going to see him in Wiltshire, too."

"I know. It's not what I mean. As a family, we need a break, and not from you and Pat. We love you to death. We just need a fresh start, heal and move forward." Tears glistened in my eyes. "It's been two years, and it just went backwards since he passed away. I can't live like this anymore, Eve."

"I know," she mumbled and sighed. "Just know you are always welcome here. I don't care if you feel like a burden, Lil. You never are and you never will be. You are like the sister I never had."

I grabbed her around her shoulders and squeeze my arms around her figure. "I love you. And you and Pat have to come visit soon. I'll buy you the damn tickets."

She chuckled. "We going for high teas and mingle with the pompous celebs."

I laughed. "You better practice that British accent."

***

The next few days it was contacting the school, explaining the move to England, getting all their transcripts ready, and resigning from my caregiver job at hospice. I was a registered nurse, had a degree and everything, but I doubted I would ever need it again.

A part of me felt as if I made the biggest mistake of our lives, but it was not just my decision. The kids wanted it too.

The past two years weren't easy and hopefully this change would be for the best for all of us. I had to believe that.

The tourist company that Mr. Brady had used to set up the tickets was a great help, too. The agent, Brenda Travis, gave us an entire brochure on what she could find on Wiltshire and Trouble Manor. It was one of the oldest Manors in Wiltshire and was very secluded.

She couldn't stop gushing about its size and how beautiful it was. It even had a lake.

I couldn't wait to set foot on this manor, to meet the staff and everyone that was part of the manor. The way Jonathan spoke about her, she sure sounded alive. She was the change all of us needed and a change I welcomed and felt great about as we were about to board the plane.

"You call me when you get there, and enjoy first class." Evelyn said as I heard Pat gave Luke and Mel instructions to take videos of first class.

"I will. Thanks for everything you guys have done for us the last few months."

She wiped a tear with the tip of her fingers and sniffed. "It was my utmost pleasure, and remember. If the Manor is not what you thought it would be or if anything isn't working out, Lil, you are always welcome in my house."

"I know. It will work. It has to work." I hugged her again.

It had to work. I would make it work.

1089 words

I finally got to the 2k mark. This chapter sounds a bit bland and will decide whether to keep or chuck it later on. Let me know what you think. Thanks for reading. If you love it, don't forget to share, vote and comment. Every bit helps.