The Crossing Trilogy

Chapter 2

2

Sydney and Jax watched Jessie walk to her car and drive off. She turned to Jax who was grinning at her.

“Do you know Jessie well?” He asked.

“Not entirely. We were best friends at ages four and five before I moved to Kelowna. We exchanged letters for a few years and had some visits but eventually lost contact. It'll be great to get to know her again.”

“She's good people. You can't go wrong with her as a friend.”

“That's good to know. So…do you want to start out here or inside?”

“Let's start out here with the foundation.”

For the next two hours Jax crawled under the house and inspected an equipment building on the property. Inside the house, he searched through cupboards, studied ceilings and pulled up carpeting to inspect the wood floor beneath. They talked flooring, appliances, windows, doors and roofing. On the second floor, he asked to see the attic.

Sydney led him into the storage cupboard. After they discussed a proposed two-piece bathroom, she stood on the stool and opened the attic door. “I'm coming up with you. This is exciting for me. Ever since I was little, I've wanted to explore the attic.” As she pulled the stairs down, a cloud of dust and spider webs came with them. She sneezed.

Jax reached up and helped her pull the stairs into place and locked the keepers for stability. He started up first. Half-way up the stairs, he looked down. “There are probably more than a few spiders up here.”

Sydney followed behind him with determination. “I like spiders. They eat the bad bugs.”

He grinned down at her. “Gutsy lady. I like that.”

“I'm not a girly girl if that's what you mean.”

There wasn't much to see. A dusty empty room. Since there was no power at the farmhouse as yet, the small oval window cast a dim light throughout. She laughed. “I don't know what my grandparents kept up here, but this is a disappointment. Back then, my curious five-year-old mind conjured up all kinds of mysterious images.”

Jax laughed with her. “Do you have any plans for the attic?”

“No. I have no intention of hauling things up here for storage.” She thought about the back door downstairs that entered the mud room off the kitchen. They'd already discussed sharing it as a laundry room. “I was thinking about the mudroom/laundry room and how big it is. Perhaps we could incorporate some built in cupboards and shelving for storage.”

“That's a great idea. And what I'd suggest for the attic is to change the window into an air vent. These old farmhouses lack adequate venting. There's a new system that is solar powered that comes highly recommended for controlling heat build-up, moisture and ventilation. An easy install with the new roof. We'll upgrade the insulation up here. Another inadequacy of old farmhouses.”

“Okay.”

“I think we're done. Let's go back downstairs and go over my notes.”

They left the attic to sit outside on the steps.

Jax looked over the pages on his clipboard. “I really think we can do something here. The foundation is solid and the roof structure appears sound. We'll shore up the squeaky floor boards or replace them. You're catching the roofing just in time. Another season and you'd probably have some leaks. I'm surprised at the overall condition, considering no one has lived here for a number of years.”

“My grandmother rented it out for a long time to a family that worked the hay fields. Nan paid the husband to maintain the farm. When he became ill and died, his widow took the kids and moved closer to family. The farmer across the road leases the hay fields and keeps an eye on the place. It was always Nan's intention to give me the farmhouse and she didn't want it to become ramshackle.”

“She's been lucky not to have squatters or vandals.” Jax stood and stretched his back.

Sydney joined him. “We were lucky I guess. But with the neighbour working the fields, there's probably too much activity on the property. And this road isn't as remote as it used to be.”

“Fifteen years ago, this area was rural. But the town has grown so much you're now at the edge of town. So—how about you meet me here day after tomorrow? Ten o'clock? I'll have a quote ready for you.”

Sydney nodded. “I'll be here.”

“You have some great ideas for this old place. Some retro and some modern touches. It'll be fun to make them blend. Meanwhile, I'll do some sketches for the laundry/storage room, the bathrooms, as well as the kitchen where there's lots of room to expand cupboards and put in an island.”

“I can't wait to see them.” She walked him to his truck.

Jax leaned across the driver's seat and pulled out a box. He placed it into her arms. “Here you go. Something to keep you busy until then. Some paint samples, indoors and out, a ring of coloured tin roof samples for that tin roof you want, and more rings of wood flooring stains and tile samples.”

Sydney's heart began to race. She smiled up at him. “Oooh…this looks like fun. I'm so excited. Thank you.”

Jax beamed back at her. “I really hope we get to work together. This place would be a dream job for me.” He climbed into the van and started the engine. He turned and gave her a wink. “And so would working with you. See you soon.”

Sydney dismissed his flirtation and said goodbye. After he disappeared down the road she smiled. He was an awesome specimen of maleness but he knew it too. Women probably chased him. But this was business and she didn't want to cloud the arrangement. Romance was not on her current to-do list. She didn't need or want the complications.

Somehow, she knew they'd be working together. Rhyder Contracting came highly recommended to her by a number of people in town. It was known for fast, quality work. She'd been told they weren't cheap but you always got what you paid for. And she liked the ideas he'd thrown at her for the past two hours. They were like-minded in that respect.

Sydney took another stroll through the house, holding up tiles and paint samples. Earth tones with some dark muted colours and bold splashes of colour held a certain appeal and she couldn't wait to get started. As Sydney stood in the master bedroom working out colour schemes, she felt a sudden chill. She walked to the window and looked up to the sky. She crossed her arms across her body and rubbed her hands over the goose bumps on her arms. Strange. The sun is still shining bright and hot. Her eyes scanned the lake and grove of magnolia trees. One tree stood at the back of the grove apart from the others. Sydney watched the branches move in the wind, the leaves twisting and turning to the point that some of the flower petals floated down and landed under the tree. A memory flashed through her mind. She saw herself as a small child sitting on a lower branch hidden next to the trunk.

* * *

“Sydney, where are you? It's time for your lessons”. She held her body tight to the trunk and giggled. This was her favourite place to hide from her grandfather. Here she could talk to her imaginary friend as her Nan called her. But Sydney knew she was real. Here she felt safe. This was her happy place.

* * *

At this point, Sydney noticed that none of the other trees were blowing in the wind. They were still. Maybe it's one of those circular gusts and it only hit that lone tree. She looked beyond the grove to see if other trees were affected. Her eyes scanned the area but all she could see far into the distance were open hay fields. Sydney looked at the lone tree once again and the movement stopped. The tree was still. The room suddenly felt warm again and her goose bumps disappeared. Weird.

She locked up the house and got into her jeep. Driving back into town, her thoughts returned to the memory she'd envisioned. Imaginary friend? I'll have to ask Nan if I had one as a child.