Portal House - Chapter 11
To Keep, or to Burn?
ED:
I sat inside my work truck, staring at the house with my window cracked. It was objectively quaint. Ranch style, red brick with some accents of gray siding. New roof, new porch. Lots of land in front, and a sizeable fenced-in backyard. One could theoretically raise some goats or chickens here, and in this part of town, it’s practically expected. Maybe it would sell quickly, and I’d never have to look at it again.
My father-in-law pulled up in his newest hybrid lease. Always in either white or silver. This one was Unmarked Unit White. I squinted to make sure it wasn’t actually a cop, then remembered I’d already paid the traffic ticket I’d been issued last month.
I watched Mike get out of his car and walk over to my window with a big grin.
“Hey, good morning! Did you just get here?”
I rolled down my window the rest of the way. “Yeah, just waiting on you,” I lied. I was waiting to either muster the courage to walk inside or figure out a good reason to postpone.
He started talking as I turned off the truck and climbed out, “…trip out here for you, right?”
“Hm?” I followed him along the paved walkway.
“I said, shouldn’t it be close to the last trip over here for you guys? I noticed you only have a few things left inside.”
“Oh. Yep.” I tried to will him to walk faster with my mind, but that never worked.
Mike unlocked the front door, turned the handle a few times, then pushed at the door twice with his shoulder. “Hm.”
“Here, I got it.” I motioned for him to make room. This was the door Jessie kept asking me to replace, but I could never find anything structurally wrong with it. It just never wanted to open.
I turned the handle, hearing a slight creak in the wood, and popped it open with my palm.
“Weird. The moisture must have swelled it shut,” Mike said. “Thanks.”
I felt a rush of cold as I entered.
“Sorry if it’s a bit warm in here; I’ve been trying to save energy.”
“It’s fine,” I replied. Did he not feel that chill? I began to question myself as I followed him to the master bedroom.
“We’ve started painting in the bathroom, but I wanted to make sure you got everything out that you’re keeping before I painted in here. What do you think?”
I looked around at my old bedroom, peeking into the connected bathroom before remembering all the times the cabinets and drawers used to open themselves. I pulled the door shut.
“Jessie said to let you keep any old bedframes and mattresses, but I think she wants that filing cabinet and a few things from the closet.” I frowned, knowing I’d forgotten something. “Seems like there was more, though.”
“Okay, well, why don’t you check with her real quick while I get my dolly?”
I nodded, already dialing my wife’s number.
She picked up on the first ring. “Hey, sweetie, how is it going?”
“Hey, your dad and I wanted to make sure we don’t miss anything you want me to bring to the new place.”
“Oh, I think we have most everything.” She paused to think. “Did you pack up the file cabinet and both of our nightstands? I think I may have left some three-ring binders and other office supplies in the closet, too.”
I felt a hand tap my shoulder, and I turned around. I’d heard Mike close the front door and then no footsteps afterward, so it wasn’t him. Was it? Did he leave the door open?
“Ed? You there?”
My heart tried to pound through my chest. “Please, not now,” I said under my breath.
“Are you okay?” My wife asked, sounding both amused and concerned.
“I’m good,” I said, speed-walking out of the master bedroom. “We’re getting all that stuff. Is there anything left in the other rooms that you can think of?”
I tried hard to listen to what she was saying while putting distance between myself and the back of the house. I stopped just inside the office, seeing that notebook I’d forgotten to ask her about.
“What’s going on? Did something else happen?” Now she sounded worried. “Do you need me to come help?”
“Uh…no, we’re good. Sorry, I’m just a little tired.” I muted the phone to take a few deep breaths. I started to feel calmer. “Hey, what about this notebook?”
“Which one?”
I walked over to the desk and picked up her notebook. “It’s just a school notebook full of sticky notes and a ton of your handwriting. It’s almost used up, and the cover says, ‘Journaling Crap.’”
When I stopped talking, I noticed the line was completely silent.
“Hello?” I said, looking at my phone to see that the call had ended. Rarely did I hope that she’d hung up on me, but the alternative made my skin crawl. She immediately called back.
“Hey, I think the call dropped,” Jessie said, then she sighed. “Okay, if the notebook you’re talking about is in the office or the bedroom closet, I probably meant to grab it.”
“Okay, I’ll bring it with me,” I said, hoping my voice still sounded calm.
“Unless it’s that one I started in therapy when he told me to write down all the weird stuff happening in the house. I still think he wanted to have me committed. You remember my first therapist?”
“Uh-huh…”
“Anyway, that’s probably not it, because I asked Dad to burn it for me with his next load of paper trash. It was just a purple comp book that says, ‘Journaling Crap,’ or something like that.”
I froze, dropping the book on the desk. Purple. Journal. Crap.
Mike walked through the door behind me at exactly the same time as the notebook shifted closer to me. It only moved an inch or so. Enough that I saw it happen, but I could plausibly be convinced that I didn’t.
“So, what did she say?” Mike asked me, oblivious to what I’d just seen or felt.
“Well, she said to please burn this notebook as soon as possible,” I told him, pointing at it as I stepped back from it.
Jessie, still on the line, said, “Yes, burn it now, please.”
“Oh, yeah! I thought I threw that in the bin last week.” Mike grabbed the purple notebook and tossed it into a green recycle bin sitting in the corner by the side door. “I’ll take care of it once you leave.”
I heard nothing of what he said next. I just stared at the bin and shut the office door behind me, following him and his dolly through the house.
“She also said she needs me home in the next hour.” I didn’t care if he believed me. I needed to be done with this house.
“You’re such a liar,” Jessie said with a laugh just before I hung up on her. I made a mental note to bring her some chocolates as an apology.
To Be Continued…