Chapter Five

Elise ran her fingers lightly over the quilt spread tightly across the queen size bed in an airy, windowed bedroom on the second floor of Timberline. The quilt was a mixture of blues, teals and purples, all put together haphazardly and yet somehow looking deliberate, The colours clearly reflected the changing colours of the lake outside the windows of the room. She marveled at the tiny stitches and intricate piecing work even as she sat on the very edge of the bed, hardly daring to believe it was for her.

The room that Jed had told her was hers was… too big. As a foster child, she’d always had the tiniest room (or unused closet), when she wasn’t sharing with another foster child or family sibling. In college she’d been in a tiny dorm room with several other roommates before finally moving into her own apartment – a tiny studio was all she could afford, and thus had made do.

But this… this one room was bigger than her studio apartment in Cedar Falls. The enormous bed, a large walk-in closet, lovely carved wood furniture and a comfortable chair near the window, an attached bathroom to herself, all decorated in muted colours… it was just too much.

There had to be a catch, Elise thought darkly. She didn’t deserve anything this nice – something had to go wrong.

“Will it do?”

Elise’s head whirled around at the sound of the voice in the doorway, standing up guiltily, as though she was an interloper in the room.

The woman in the doorway took a step in with a wide smile. “You must be Elise, of course; I’m Rose, it’s lovely to have you here.”

Elise felt herself relax a bit. “Nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Ra—Rose. I’m so happy to be here.”

Rose Raisenen was a woman who must be in her 70s, but looked much younger with her easy smile and a mop of unruly blonde hair. She had a twinkle in her blue eyes, and deep laugh lines betrayed her good nature. Though she was several inches shorter than Elise, she seemed to command attention. She had the pale skin and ruddy cheeks of someone from the British Isles – Elise guessed her to be English, rather than Nordic, as she had wondered on the phone.

“You must be dead on your feet after the day you’ve had, traveling and whatnot. Settle yourself in and then we’ll have a sandwich and cuppa tea by the fire downstairs. Take your time – it’s all ready and waiting for you,” Rose replied, stepping into the room.

“I… thank you. I’m ever so grateful,” Elise said quietly. “This is…” she gestured helplessly around the room, searching for words. “This is lovely. This is the nicest room I’ve ever had.”

“Well, not the nicest, but it does have a good view,” Rose said easily, crossing the room to the windows.

“No, it’s the nicest, truly,” Elise corrected her, and then turned to the windows facing the lake. “And the view truly is spectacular.”

Rose stood beside her for a moment, then squeezed her arm gently and strode back towards the door. “See you downstairs when you’re ready.”

Elise watched the retreating back, then allowed herself to smile. Maybe this was going to be okay after all…

#

Elise used her napkin to wipe away the crumbs from her lips as she finished her sandwich; surreptitiously watching Rose as she sipped her tea and stared into the fire happily. “I love an easy meal by the fire, don’t you?”

Elise thought for a moment. “I don’t think I’ve ever eaten fireside before.”

“What?” Rose squawked. “That’s one of my greatest pleasures, it is. I love a good fire, I do. I know it’s spring and all, but the evenings stay quite cool up here right into summer, so an evening fire is just the thing.”

“Before I came down, I peeked in a few rooms – I hope that’s okay,” Elise hastened to add. “I noticed a fireplace in nearly every room. Is there no heating?”

Rose laughed easily. “It’s your home now, love, of course you can peek in rooms – in fact, you can walk right in and out of them, if the spirit moves you. And yes, we have a lot of fireplaces, but mostly for ambience first and heat second. The late Mrs. Hale loved a good fire as well. We have heat and air conditioning, I promise. Running water and everything,” Rose added with a sly wink, making Elise smile.

“Do you live here as well?” Elise inquired.

“Oh no, not anymore,” Rose said. “I used to, years ago, when I was housekeeper for the late Mr. and Mrs. Hale, but as I got older, the stairs got tougher, and I found I wanted something a bit smaller to myself. In fact, you’re the only live-in help anymore,” Rose added.

“I noticed a small cottage down near the lake, past the garages. Is it not occupied?”

“It’s used for storage, only. It’s locked all the time, and I’ve not got the key, so it’s off limits, I’m afraid,” Rose said, her eyes flicking away from Elise’s face and back to the fire.

Elise thought her reaction odd, but let it go.

“When will I meet Betsy?” Elise asked, changing the subject.

“Little miss will be home tomorrow morning – she’s spending a couple of nights with a friend on the other side of the peninsula. She’s a poppet, she is, you’re going to love her,” Rose added, and Elise silently prayed that she was right. She hoped Betsy was a level headed, eager to learn little girl, not one of these children obsessed already with celebrities and sex and the latest app on their iPhones. Childhood was precious – Elise hated to see children growing up too quickly, throwing away their chance to be carefree and imaginative when they could.

She had had to grow up entirely too fast – she didn’t recommend it.

“I’m looking forward to meeting her,” Elise replied genuinely. “Can you tell me where she is, academically? I don’t want to start her too advanced or too beginner. I’ve got quite a few lesson plans prepared in all subjects, I just want to make sure the level is appropriate.”

“The master has all her previous academic records – I’ll get them for you to review before you go to bed,” Rose replied. “And he expressed an interest in Betsy learning more than just typical studies.”

Elise cocked her head to one side, confused. “Can you tell me what he meant?”

Rose clucked her tongue impatiently. “I’m not entirely sure – more that her education was more than reading books or taking quizzes. Field trips, practical applications of things. He also wants Betsy to learn how to care for herself – do laundry, make a meal, iron, and so forth.”

“He wants his eight year old niece to be a 1950’s housewife?” Elise shot back, immediately regretting it and wishing she could take it back, but Rose roared with laughter.

“It sounds very old fashioned, but his sister – Betsy’s mum – was always very cared for and spoilt, and never knew how to take care of herself, and relied on others. I think he wants Betsy to be able to take care of herself when the time comes and she’s a grown up. Maybe not an ironing lesson, but…” Rose trailed off uncertainly, but Elise better understood the spirit of the request.

“I’ll be sure to work in academics, field trips, ironing tips and some light mechanics on the car or something,” she said, her voice only half sarcastic, and Rose smiled.

“That’s the spirit, child, that’s the spirit,” Rose replied.

“So, in addition to teaching Betsy and caring for her here – I presume I’m also in charge of all aspects of her life, setting aside playtimes, brushing teeth, monitoring television watching and so forth – I’m also to keep Timberline clean and prepare any meals needed for anyone here?” Elise asked, and Rose nodded.

“I know it sounds like a lot for one girl…” Rose began and Elise cut her off.

“On the contrary, I like to be busy,” Elise replied. “I’m looking forward to the challenge – and to having such an enormous kitchen to cook in,” she said with a sly smile. “I love to cook almost as much as I love to eat.”

Rose laughed. “In that case, yes, you clean, you cook, you care for Betsy like a governess, and you teach her. And the rest of the time is your own.”

“How do I get groceries, supplies and the like?” Elise asked.

“You can either give Jed a list – he does most of the shopping for Timberline – or if you have the time, you can go yourself. I know it’s difficult to plan meals and such unless you can have a good wander around the grocery store. There’s a great supermarket in Calumet – Jed can drive you, or give you directions anytime you’d like to go,” Rose answered.

“And please don’t think you’ll be trapped her all the time,” Rose continued. “We’ll make sure you have days off, or a few hours to yourself here and there. I can still watch Betsy and keep an eye on things – at least for now while my eyesight holds. And Jed is wonderful with Betsy, and the master will be around at times, so you’ll be able to have a good exploration of the Keweenaw. It’s truly God’s country up here, so many beautiful things to see everywhere you turn,” Rose said proudly. “You’re going to love it.”

“I can’t wait to see more,” Elise said. “I… I like to take pictures, so I’m hoping my camera and I will have lots to see together.”

“A photographer!” Rose exclaimed and Elise hastened to dissuade her.

“Amateaur, at best, but I enjoy it,” Elise said shyly.

“Can I see some of your photos?” Rose asked sweetly. “I’d love to see them.”

Elise swallowed. “I’ll bring down my prints tomorrow,” she relented and Rose smiled.

“Excellent!” Rose said, standing up and sweeping their plates away in and into the kitchen. “Now then, you look dead on your feet – why don’t you get yourself to bed? Betsy will be here tomorrow, so you have a big day ahead,” Rose said gently.

Elise acquiesced and they made their goodnights before Elise wearily climbed the stairs towards her room.

Now with permission, she couldn’t help but peek in the rooms on her floor, even opening a few doors, mostly revealing closets or bathrooms, but each new room a discovery. She saw a door recessed back at the end of the hallway that she hadn’t noticed before, and hesitated only a moment before grabbing the knob.

It wouldn’t turn.

She tried again, and then realized it was locked.

She wondered what was behind the door, but exhaustion got the better of her, and she retreated to her own bedroom. As she kicked off her shoes, she caught sight of herself in the full length mirror across the room.

She stopped and studied herself for a long moment. She saw a round face with wide green eyes, full lips that often made her feel embarrassed, and a slight cleft in her chin. Her one redeeming quality – her hair – was thick and long, a blonde well-kissed with red, which tonight was tugged away from her face by a thin band. Her body was…

She sighed.

Her body was what someone might charitably call voluptuous, but that she would call too big. Large breasts, a bit too much belly, a noticeable backside, but with strong legs and skin that some might call porcelain, but that Elise called “burned way too easily”.

She wasn’t a true beauty, she knew that, but at least her face had some character, her body told a story, and her eyes saw things through her camera’s viewfinder that others didn’t see.

She looked at herself for a long moment, and then sighed. “You are lucky to be here, Annaliese Blake. Lucky indeed.”

And with that, she curled up in bed and was asleep in moments.

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