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be feminine, all ruffles and frills, certainly not the tomboy she grew into. Her mother bought her dolls and sewed tiny handmade outfits, while Lucky came home with a broken arm and a jar full of spiders.She hoped her mother would think the pansy earrings the most beautiful things in the world. And as far as her mother was concerned, they were priceless—treasured because of her love for her daughter. Lucky smiled, remembering her mother’s reaction at the time to the peculiar pansy earrings. She wrapped each piece of jewelry in tissue and laid them in a small box.
    Lucky opened the second drawer in the bureau and gasped. It was full of letters and cards bound with pink ribbon. Her mother had saved everything Lucky had sent to her during all the years she had been away. She couldn’t hold back the tears any longer. She sat at the foot of the bed and wept quietly, hoping Elizabeth wouldn’t hear her from the kitchen. When her tears subsided, she wiped her eyes and blew her nose. She placed all the letters and cards in a second box. This cleaning out project was much harder than she had anticipated.
    Elizabeth hesitated at the door of the bedroom. She could tell immediately that Lucky had been crying. “I’m so sorry, honey. Maybe it’s too soon for you to have to deal with all this—a lifetime of memories.”
    “I knew it would be, but it’s got to be done somehow.”
    “That’s true, but it’s too much to do in one day. Just chip away, a little at a time. Let me know what heavy pieces you don’t want to keep, and I’ll have my handyman come by. We can donate them to a charity or a thrift shop—whatever you’d like to do.”
    The doorbell rang once and a woman’s voice called out, “Hallooo.” Lucky wiped her nose. “There’s Eleanor now.”
    Elizabeth leaned over and gave her a quick hug. “I’ll be on my way. Oh, one more thing. Don’t forget to leave a faucet dripping—might keep the pipes from freezing. I’ll leave you to Eleanor’s clutches.”
    Lucky heard Elizabeth greet Eleanor and then felt the front door slam as Elizabeth left. Lucky returned to the kitchen just as Eleanor entered with a clipboard tucked under her arm.
    “I’m glad I caught you. You have time to go over things with me?” Eleanor asked.
    “Sure,” Lucky replied. Eleanor reminded Lucky of a small, furry mammal, always bustling, always rushing. She had an unruly mop of curly brown hair and walked at a slightly forward tilt.
    With Lucky following in her wake, Eleanor progressed quickly through each room, jotting down notes. “I’d say the square footage is probably, what, eighteen hundred?”
    “I don’t know for sure. My Dad would have known.”
    “How old is the roof, do you know?”
    “I remember my parents talking about it. I think they replaced it about five years ago.”
    “That’s good news. And do you know anything about the plumbing?”
    Lucky shook her head. “Sorry, no.”
    “That’s all right, dear. We’ll have an inspection set up to go over everything before we set a price. Now, that’s something I have to talk to you about. The market is down right now, as I’m sure you know. It’s the economy in general, but also the plant closure and the layoffs, and even the second-home market is a disaster. Your house isn’t going to appeal to the ski crowd, too far from the Resort. So…given that we’re in the worst time of year to sell, I don’t think you’d get very much, that’s assuming it would even move at all. Do you know how much is left on the mortgage?”
    “Not exactly. I have to go through some papers. I do know there’s a second to be paid off.”
    “Oh. Well, then. Maybe you might want to reconsider trying to sell right now.”
    One more stone in her path, she thought. Maybe she’d be forced to live here and hope to make enough money to pay the mortgages. She felt a deep connection to this house, but to live here now, so soon after her parents’ death, wouldn’t be the best thing