Page 113 of An Adventure For Aster

He’d found out last week that Rose and Poppy wanted shelving units installed along one wall in the new addition to hold and organize fabrics and supplies better than having it all in the storage rooms.

They dropped the wood down that Zane and he were unloading from where the delivery truck had placed it.

“Daphne all settled?” Zane asked.

He’d moved his sister into her cabin on Monday. Though it was a holiday, no one cared, and his sister was dying to get into her own place and start her new life and career.

It’s not like it was much to move. The place was furnished, Poppy buying everything new. Daphne had bawled her eyes out when she’d seen the eleven-hundred-square-foot place that had been completely remodeled and looked like it came right out of a showroom.

Daphne had been speechless and Poppy was quick to say they wanted to make sure the person who took care of their kids had the best so they stayed. But if Daphne ever wanted to move out, it would be a nice guesthouse in the future.

He was glad the pressure wasn’t put on his sister to never be able to move on, but for now, he didn’t think his sister wanted to ever leave the property of the McGill estate.

“She is,” he said. “Happiest I’ve ever seen her. She deserves it.”

“Just like you deserve to be here too,” Zane said.

He smirked. “Dude, you really have changed and gotten all mushy.”

“Ass,” Zane said.

His phone rang in his pocket so he pulled it out. “Hey, give me a minute, I need to take this.” He noticed it was Tucker calling him and knew the sentencing was coming after the guilty verdict a month ago. “Hi, Tucker. How did it go?”

“Great,” Tucker said. “We got the man. We’ve suspected for a while who hired them and they finally crumbled. Both are going to serve twenty years but could have gotten much more. The man behind it was arrested and charged. That will be another long drawn-out legal battle, but it’s good to know it’s over.”

“Carrington has to be relieved,” he said. He knew he was. The teen texted him a few times a week, just checking in with him or him with her. They’d talked twice when he felt she was struggling, but he wasn’t so sure he knew what to say himself.

He didn’t seem to have the nightmares she did, but in his mind, he’d seen so much more in his life. She still had that threat hanging over her head.

“She is,” Tucker said. “She wants to talk to you. She’s right here.”

“Hey, Carrington,” he said. “Congrats on this.”

“I know,” Carrington said. “I can’t wait to ditch the bodyguard, but Dad says not yet. He just won’t follow me around everywhere.”

“Little steps,” he said.

“Thank you again,” Carrington said. “I mean it. I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to thank you enough. I can’t even imagine what could have happened.”

“Don’t try to imagine it. Don’t think of it at all. No need to let your mind run where it never went. It’s only going to work you up.”

“I know, I know,” Carrington said. “I understand. Dad said he’s looking for a house to rent there for a week or so this summer. We’ll let you know, but we’d like to visit if you’re around.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “Let me know when.”

He heard Tucker’s voice in the background. “Dad said I need to let you go,” Carrington said. “I’ll text you soon.”

“Thanks, Aster,” Tucker said, getting back on the phone. “I’ll be in touch soon.”

“Bye,” he said and hung up. He turned to Zane. “They got the guy. The other two are going away for twenty years.”

“Sounds like a good ending to me,” Zane said.

“Just about perfect in a way,” he said.

He and Zane got to the pile of wood and picked it up, bringing more over, and the pain shot right through his chest into his shoulder and had him dropping the wood and his right hand going over his heart. He gasped for breath.

“What’s wrong?” Zane asked.

---