the kid was popular in school. He was far too thin, wore thick glasses, and had a serious acne problem. She just bet there was a stack of books somewhere he’d been engrossed in when Cemal had called him.
The boy’s eyebrows shot up.
“Yes,” he answered quickly.
“Yes, ma’am,” she corrected.
The boy looked irritated.
“Yes, ma’am,” he said between clenched teeth.
“Tommy.” She walked around him and tilted her head. “If I’m going to take my resort back, I’m going to need to make sure that each of my employees is on my side,” she said clearly.
The boy seemed to take in her words, and his slight frown turned into a pout.
“Your…?” He cleared his throat. “Gosh, this is your place?”
“It is,” she said easily with a smile. “My aunt and uncle have been running it while I was away at college.”
“Well, shit,” he said, straightening up. “I’m so sorry, Mrs. Brooks,”
She smiled. “Miss,” she corrected. “You can call me Raven.”
“I didn’t know,” he said quickly.
“No, I take it a lot of employees don’t.” Her aunt and uncle had probably hidden that detail from everyone over the past ten years. “But I bet you could enlighten them.”
Tommy smiled and nodded, then turned towards the door, the prospect of a tip totally forgotten.
“Tom?” she said, getting his attention. “I’ll expect to see you in the uniform next time.”
He groaned slightly. “Miss…” He stopped when she arched her eyebrows. “Raven, it doesn’t fit.”
“It doesn’t?” She frowned. “Well, we’ll have to fix that. Until I have a chance to correct the issue, your best slacks and dress shirt should do nicely.” She motioned to his worn jeans, T-shirt, and sneakers. “And some dress shoes. If you need an allowance to purchase some, see me tomorrow.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said with a big smile. “Thanks,” he said and left quickly.
She walked over and opened the doors to the bedroom suite and assessed the large space that would be her new home until she could secure her own place. The bedroom could use some freshening up, as could the bathroom, but she was thankful that the room wasn’t as rundown as the lobby had been.
She headed back into the larger sitting room, pulled open the sliding glass doors, and stepped out onto the balcony. Leaning her hands on the railing, she took in a deep breath and enjoyed the fresh smell of the country air.
There was a hint of the crisp cold snow that floated down from the top of the mountain in front of her, and she took several moments to appreciate it all. Then she turned her gaze to the left and held her breath.
She’d avoided driving through the small town of Cannon Falls when she’d headed to the resort. Normally, tourists or guests would take the business loop directly through town to get there. However, locals knew the old highway that wound around the hills and avoided the heart of the town.
The fear of what she’d see had caused her to take the old route.
Now, she turned her eyes towards the small town of Cannon Falls, the place that had been so close to her heart. The place she’d destroyed.
She didn’t know what to expect. Ten years ago, hardly a single building remained standing. Had they rebuilt it? What did it look like now?
Seeing the outline of the newer trees against the larger ones that hadn’t been destroyed, she felt her heart swell. Where once had stood the charred remains of the forest that had burned down, it was now green for as far as the eye could see. The lines of everything she’d destroyed were blurred.
Her knees buckled and she folded down to sit on the floor of the balcony as her eyes watered.
What had made her think she could do this? Why on earth would she ever return to this place? It had been two months since she’d received the call that her grandmother had passed away peacefully in her sleep. Her father’s mother had been the only family who had welcomed her after the fire. The only person in the world who had cared, really cared for her.
Now, that person was gone, just like everyone else who had cared in her life. She was once again, all alone.
The darkness was back, awakened once again after so long of a reprieve. Its gloriously dark tentacles reached out, consuming, overwhelming once again. Changing, twisting the mind. Splitting it in two as it had once before, long ago.
The smell of smoke hinted at its return. The sight