Читать книгу Water Steps - A. LaFaye - Страница 10

HOUSE

We came to a gravelly halt in front of a big old house with a stone foundation, wide gray shutters that looked like splintered wood, and large boxy windows in the roof that looked out over the trees like bulging eyes.

Staring at the attic window eyes that faced the lake as I got out of the car, I said, “My bedroom doesn’t face the water does it?” I loved my attic bedroom at home, far away from the downstairs bathroom, but I didn’t want to be anywhere near a good view of that lake.

“Not at all.” Pep said, lugging a suitcase out of the trunk. “Your bedroom’s the back one, right there.” He pointed to a bay window above the back door.

“Come on, Kippers.” I put the cat down, keeping his leash in my hand, and walked him inside. Kippers liked to think of himself as a dog, so he traveled on a leash and played fetch with superballs.

His leash hook jingled and echoed through the nearly empty rooms. I could even hear his claws clickety clacking on the hardwood floors. I didn’t like the silence of the place. It made me feel like an invader.

My bedroom had two bay windows. One faced west to look over a small stone courtyard between the driveway and an old stone shed. The other window faced north to a ring of shrubby trees not even big enough to hold a birdhouse, let alone a tree fort like mine. At least I couldn’t see the lake. But the echoey bigness of the room made me kind of thin inside.

Even the closet was big enough for a bed. Big old houses with wood floors and echoey rooms had long histories. And histories hid ghosts. I didn’t like it one bit. I had half a mind to dig out our tent and sleep outside in the woods to the east. I had my Camping Badge. Why not put it good use? I even started searching the boxes for my tent until I realized camping outside would probably mean I could hear the waves lapping at the shore, threatening to flood. Scratch that plan.

Instead, I left Kippers to roam the house and Mem and Pep to unpack. I headed for the road we came in on, thinking I might find a mountain path I could map out for our Get With the Land project. Besides, heading for high ground sounded like a nice, dry way to spend the summer.