Page 11 of Home Team Advantage
Chapter Seven
ANNA
The next few days were equally as pleasant as the first. Anna and Elsa fell into an easy routine. Almost too easy, in fact. Nothing in her life had ever gone that smoothly; there was always some problem that had to be dealt with, some obstacle that had to be overcome.
She knew it couldn’t last. It wasn’t a question of if something would go wrong, but when.
Her duties were easily accomplished. Elsa was pleasant and easy to get along with and seemed happy to have someone to talk to. The older woman was eager to share her vast knowledge of the area and the people who lived there. Her new employer, as it turned out, was a bit of a busybody.
Anna didn’t mind. Gossip had been the primary pastime among the women in her family when she was growing up, and it was a good way to obtain information since the men rarely shared anything with them. Chatter was more subjective than polite conversation but often more accurate too.
That was how Anna learned about Elsa’s next-door neighbors—the Callaghans. Mrs. Campbell had known the father, Kieran, since he was a young boy. Apparently, Kieran’s father had been one of the first Navy SEALs when the program was launched, and each of his seven sons, including Kieran, had followed in his footsteps.
Anna wasn’t sure if having a former Navy SEAL next door was comforting or intimidating. Probably a little bit of both.
According to Elsa, Kieran and his wife, Faith, had six children, the oldest of whom was close to thirty and had been in the service for the last ten years.
Anna wondered if the man she’d seen that first day was the oldest son. He looked to be about the right age, and the younger kids certainly seemed happy to see him. He didn’t look like any serviceman she’d ever seen, but, as she knew very well, looks could be deceiving.
She hadn’t seen him since. She peered through the kitchen window again as she rinsed the lunch dishes and put them into the dishwasher, as if doing so would magically conjure him again. It didn’t. All was quiet. The kids were probably in school and the parents off to work. Elsa had said Kieran owned a health club in town, and the mother did interior design for some fancy resort nearby.
Was the coppery-haired mystery man there now? Was he alone? And why was she so anxious to see him again?
The front door closed, breaking Anna from her musings and setting her instantly on alert. She hadn’t heard the doorbell, nor had she heard anyone knock. Mrs. Campbell was in the sunroom, reading the paper, and Anna was certain the door had been locked. She’d locked it herself after she went up to the street to get the mail.
“Where are you?” an irritated male voice called out from the living room. “We’re going to be late.”
Anna grabbed a knife and concealed it in a dish towel, then walked on silent feet into the next room. The man who’d apparently let himself in was around fiftyish or so, wearing a suit and looking at his watch. He looked unpleasant, but not dangerous. Except possibly for his overpowering cologne.
“Excuse me,” Anna said. “Can I help you?”
He turned and narrowed his eyes. “Who are you?”
When she opened her mouth to reply, he shook his head and put his hand up to stop her. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter.”
He huffed with impatience and walked toward the master suite.
“Hey,” she said as she crossed the room to stop him.
He reached the door first. Ignoring Anna completely, he knocked once, and without waiting for an answer, he opened the door and stuck his head in. “Grandmother, we need to go.”
Ah, so this was the grandson who wanted to put Elsa in a home. Anna felt a stab of pity for the older woman. The man wasn’t just unpleasant. He was rude and obnoxious too.
“Can I help you?” Anna asked again, this time with a sharper edge to her voice.
“Yes. You can tell me where my grandmother is and why she isn’t ready to go. I’m on a tight schedule.”
Mrs. Campbell chose that moment to enter the room, the newspaper folded in her lap, her motorized chair emitting a quiet hum. “Edward! Stop being so rude.”
The man looked at Mrs. Campbell, taking in her fleecy matching pants and top, and scowled. “Why aren’t you ready? You can’t meet with the director in that, and we have a one o’clock to discuss the financial obligations. Which reminds me, have you signed those power of attorney papers I left for you?”
“No, I have not. And I told you to cancel that meeting,” Elsa said. “Didn’t you get my voice mail?”
“We are not canceling,” Edward said, ignoring her question. “Do you know how many strings I had to pull to get you in there?”
“That’s on you. I told you not to. If you think it’s so wonderful, you go.”
“You’re being unreasonable. Willow Haven is a very exclusive facility.”
