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angle, the foliage, it made it hard to tell.
    “Here we are,” Dirk mumbled, like speaking too loudly would bring down doom on us both. “This is Tessa's house.” Pausing, he turned to stare at me. I wondered how pale I was. “No, I guess it's your house now, Farra.”
    Yes, I thought numbly, gazing at the giant, twisted thing covered in leaves and debris. This is all mine.

Chapter Five.
    ––––––––
    “H ow can anyone live here?” I gasped, my eyes whipping from the building, to the doctor, then back again. “I—there can't be tenants here. Impossible. No one could deal with this!”
    His eyes were stuck on the front door. “It didn't always look like this. I'm pretty shocked it got this bad so quickly.”
    So quickly. “Wait,” I said, holding my head as if it might fly off. “Wait wait wait. So quickly? When did this happen, then? This looks like years of neglect!”
    Dirk flicked his eyes at me, the rest of him still as the surface of a pond. “I saw it around two weeks ago, maybe less.”
    My temples squeezed, pressed under my tense fingers. “You saw Tessa before she died.”
    “That's right,” he said softly.
    “And—and this place looked different then?”
    His nod was so very small. “It did.”
    When I let go of my skull, I felt blood returning to the skin I had squeezed. It pulsed, distracting. “I don't get it. I don't... how is that possible?” Staring sideways at the building, I gawked up at the hulking shape again. “How am I supposed to do anything with this? Dirk, what do I do now?” My voice sounded so tiny to me.
    I jumped when he grabbed my shoulder; a firm, comforting touch. “Farra, you don't have to go in there. This was Tessa's responsibility, not yours.”
    Tessa... my grandmother. A woman I never even knew. Recalling her letter, I gripped my backpack tightly. Why did she ask me to do this?
    “Farra, just think about it. We can go back to the village, you can catch a train out, you can leave this behind. It isn't your burden.”
    Through the front window, I caught a flicker of movement. A hard face, pale as cream with eyes darker than sin. Grault is here! How did he beat me? “Dirk,” I said, reaching out to grip his fingers. “If this is too much for me, I'll come see you. I'll go back to Barrow Village and say goodbye before I run.” Like my mother.
    His arm pulled me in, hugging me roughly, like he'd known me my whole life. “Alright,” he muttered, stepping back before I could return his embrace. “The way back is easy, you come as soon as—if you—ever feel the need.” His brows furrowed deeply. “I helped Tessa how I could. I'll help you too, anytime you need it, Farra. Okay?”
    “Okay,” I said, my smile growing helplessly. I didn't remember the last time someone had hugged me like that. “And thanks for the help so far.”
    “Anytime,” he said, hoisting his walking stick high. “I mean that. Anytime, Farra.” He waited a moment longer, eyeing the house warily. Then, with a flimsy grin, he waved while striding away.
    I stared after him, fingers waggling until he vanished around the hill.
    Now, it was just me and the house.
    The walkway below was cracked, a long line of stones that bloomed with weeds. I couldn't see around the house, the hedges and trees circled it heavily enough to hide anything there.
    It had been eerie before, but now, alone as I was, it was straight up scary. Just go inside. It's only an old house. That's it. Plus, Grault is inside, so it isn't like you'll be by yourself!
    Pumping myself up, I strolled my way to the dented front door. Holding my breath, I gripped the knob. I would have knocked first, except the idea made me feel silly. And of course, feeling silly is the last thing I want right now, right? I thought to myself sardonically.
    Twisting the handle, I nudged the door inwards. The hinges were loud, the yawning of a lion. “H—hello? I, uh, it's me. Farra Blooms?”
    Inside the main room, dim light