had it appraised. Turns out, it’s rare and worth thousands of dollars, believe it or not, but Winnie doesn’t care about that. She still keeps it stashed under her bed in case burglars ever come in to attack.”
“Wouldn’t a baseball bat work just as well?”
“Probably. But it wouldn’t have the same panache. Why use a baseball bat when you can use a priceless Tongan war club?”
Oh, she adored Winnie. She would miss her so much. “Your grandmother in an amazing woman.”
“I know. Believe me, I know.”
At the angel room, she led the way inside and flipped on the lights. They came on for a moment then flipped back off again.
“Definitely overloading the circuit,” he said. “Let’s unplug what we can, reset the fuse, then try again.”
She started with the Christmas tree while Ethan worked on the other side of the room.
“I suspect this might be the problem,” he said, pointing to an extension cord that had a second extension cord with three lamps plugged into it.
“I’ve talked to her about not using extension cords everywhere,” he said with a sigh, unplugging the lamps. “She’s going to burn this whole house down.”
He unplugged the second extension cord and the lamps. “I’ll go reset the circuit breaker down at the end of the hall. Stick your head out and let me know if the lights come back on.”
“Okay.”
A moment later, the overhead chandelier came back on.
“Should I try to plug the tree back in?”
“How many extension cords did she use there?”
“None. It’s a pre-lit tree with only one plug.”
“Go ahead.”
She bent down, found the outlet, and a moment later the lovely white angel tree came on.
“We’re going to have to leave two of these lamps off. I think it’s just too much with all of the other lights on in here.”
He plugged only one lamp in, then went back to turn the light off and on. This time it worked perfectly. He turned it off and on again with no further problems.
“I think you did it. Good job,” she said. “I don’t know why we didn’t think to check the extension cords.”
He turned off the light for good and walked out into the hall, his features set with frustration.
“What would happen if a fire started up here and worked its way down to her bedroom when she is alone in the house again after Christmas?” he asked as they headed down to the great room. “She doesn’t move very fast these days. I don’t know if she could make it out.”
She didn’t want to think about that possibility. Nor did she want to think about Winnie being alone.
“I’ve offered to move in with her, but she doesn’t like that idea, either,” Ethan went on. “It wouldn’t be a perfect solution for either of us since I travel so much, but at least it would be something.”
“Maybe she could hire a companion.”
“I’ve suggested that, too. I wish I could persuade Lucy to come home to stay, but even that wouldn’t be the perfect situation.”
“Winnie loves this place.”
“I know. I get it. But even before she was hurt, Holiday House was too much for her to take care of by herself. I wish I could help her see that.”
“This isn’t just a house to her, though, is it? This is Winnie’s whole identity. She’s spent her entire adult life in this house. Sixty years. She has cared for it, remodeled it, raised her son here and, if I’m not mistaken, largely raised her grandchildren.”
“True enough.”
“Now that she’s coming to an age when the demands of caring for it are becoming too much, I wonder if she is struggling to figure out her new place in the world. If she’s not Winifred Lancaster, owner of Holiday House of Silver Bells, who is she?”
He stared at her, the lights of the Christmas tree reflected in his eyes. “You might be right.”
“I don’t know the answer, though. I’m sorry.”
“Thank you for being a sounding board, anyway.” He looked out the big windows to where the outside lights he had fixed twinkled against the darkness.
“It’s snowing again,” he said. “Which reminds me. When can I take Christopher skiing? I’ve got some time Wednesday afternoon. Would that work?”
She wanted to tell him no day would be good, but she knew she was being selfish. She didn’t want to go skiing, but it was unfair to deprive her child of something because of her own fear.
“I think Wednesday would work. That’s very kind of you. Thank you.”
“I like Christopher. He’s