Page 70 of Never Been Gargoyled
“Someone will. Even if it's not me.”
He paused in his digging. “You're accepting that we might lose.”
“I'm trying to be realistic.” I sat back on my heels, wiping hair off my face. “The diary changes everything. Rebecca has proof she's Helga's daughter, and proof that Helga knew she existed. How do I argue with that?”
“By proving that Helga had good reasons for the choice she made.”
“What if she didn't? What if it was just a whim?”
Feydin set down his shovel and came over to crouch beside me. “The woman who restored this place from nothing? Who spent years creating something beautiful for future generations to enjoy? That doesn’t sound like a woman who’d leave the estate to someone on a whim. She knew you. And knew you’d be the best to take care of this estate she loved.”
“Then why didn't she respond to Rebecca's letters?”
“I don't know, but there has to be a reason.”
I wanted to believe him. But the evidence was stacked against us, and I was tired of false hope.
“Let's focus on making this place beautiful,” I said. “Whatever happens, happens.”
We continued working after that, the physical labor helping to quiet my anxious thoughts. Feydin had an eyefor design, suggesting placement for plants and pathways that somehow made everything look more natural and flowing.
“You should've been a landscape architect,” I told him as we stepped back to admire our progress.
“Helga was a good teacher.”
“Why didn’t she ever mention her daughter to you?”
He shrugged. “I assume because…” A frown filled his face. “I sensed she’d made peace with her life the way it was. She was a quiet person, and I didn’t pry into her past, just accepted what she wanted to tell me about the here and now. She was a kind woman. I miss her.”
Around noon, we heard voices coming up the drive. I looked up from the flower bed I was weeding to see a small group of humans and monsters approaching, their arms full of packages and baskets.
“Looks like the welcome committee finally arrived,” Feydin said.
I recognized several faces from my trips to town. Dorvak from the bakery, looking uncomfortable but determined. Someone was carrying a basket of produce, perhaps from Ogram’s farmer’s market, though Ogram wasn’t with them. A woman I'd seen at the library, and two others I hadn’t met before were also part of the group.
“Dazy?” The woman I’d seen at the library stepped forward with a warm smile. “I'm Liana.” She thrust out a carton of eggs. “These are from my own chickens. A little welcome to town gift. I hope you don't mind us stopping bywithout calling first.”
“Not at all. So nice to meet you.”
“We brought some things to welcome you to Harmony Glen,” one of the others said, setting the produce basket down on the stone wall we'd been working on. “Ogram sent this. He’s…the quiet type. Anyway. We should've done this sooner, but small towns move slow sometimes.”
“This is really thoughtful of you.”
Dorvak stepped forward awkwardly, holding a box from his bakery. “Bread. And some of those pastries you like.”
“You didn't have to do that.”
“Wanted to,” he said gruffly, then looked at Feydin. “How's everything working out?”
The tips of Feydin's ears darkened. “Very well, thank you.”
“Good.”
The other woman, who introduced herself as Laney, gave me a small basket full of tea sachets. “My own special blends. We heard about your plans here,” her bright gaze swept the gardens, “and we couldn’t resist stopping by. You’re planning to open a botanical garden, correct? I can tell it’s going to be amazing already.”
“Have you heard about the legal situation?” I asked. “Rebecca Hartwell?”
The group exchanged glances.
