Page 5 of Dark Moon Secrets

“Fuck,” I whispered, panic rising quickly, urging me to get out.

Then the drawer jerked open—the force was more than was needed—coming loose, and it dropped to the floor, spilling out the contents.

“Fuck!” I’d messed up Maria’s normally neat home.

Then I saw the envelope with my name written in a large cursive script. My heart pounded, the sound echoing in my ears.

With shaky hands, I picked up the envelope.

Should I open it now? I thought.

Of course, silly, came the reply.

I gasped and turned, expecting to find Maria standing behind me. It was her voice I’d heard, but there was no one there, and I reminded myself she was gone.

Holding my breath, I tore open the envelope and slipped out a spiral-bound document. I had no idea what this was about. Maybe Maria wanted me to organize her funeral or something like that.

What I read wasn’t anything close to what I was expecting.

This was Maria’s will—a legal document.

Maria had left me a bookstore!

My hands gripped either side of the document as I read quickly, not believing what was written. What the fuck would I do with a bookstore?

I’d not read much after my parents’ deaths. There wasn’t time with full-time work and having fun with my friends as much as possible to forget the grief that ate away inside me.

There were also the many books my parents had tried to get me to read, all because there was something they wanted me to learn. I didn’t pay much attention to the titles of the books as I refused to read them. The entire experience put me off reading altogether.

I continued to glance through the document. There was no doubt that Maria had an eye for detail. I couldn’t help suspecting she was up to something. She’d voiced a few times that I should go and study. My parents had made the same suggestion. I didn’t want to study, so I ignored them all.

My chest tightened.

It wasn’t as straightforward as inheriting a bookstore.

There were conditions.

Maria stated I had to run the store myself for a year, beginning within a week of her funeral. Then it was all mine. If I didn’t want to keep the store, I could sell it, but I’d have to donate the money to a children’s literacy charity.

There was no way I wanted to manage a bookstore.

What the hell was Maria thinking, making me do this?

I couldn’t do it. I’d sell it and donate the money. I’d organize her funeral and then get on with my life.

You won’t.

This time, I didn’t look behind me. It was nothing more than my mind playing tricks after the shock of finding Maria dead on the floor.

I turned the document pages slowly, my eyes misting with the responsibility challenging me.

Maria had appointed me to look after her estate.

Fuck, I’d already done this for my parents. There was no way I could do it again, and not for a virtual stranger.

I noticed the name of the legal firm on the bottom of the page—Jones & Michaels. I’d contact them on Monday morning to see what needed to be done. Mainly for me not to have such a big responsibility.

No, you won’t.

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