The Five Sons of Brent Star

Chapter Four

Ian's jeep sat outside; it needed a car wash, mud covered the bottom of it.

He opened the back door and helped me throw my overly large suitcase into the back of it. What appeared to be multiple gun cases sat in the back of his car.

"Are those necessary?" I asked when I buckled in, and Roscoe sat between us; it was a bench seat.

He looked at me. "Please tell me you are not anti-guns."

"And if I was?"

"Then it would make a lot of sense how you wrapped yourself into my dad's life."

My blood was boiling. "Oh yes, that's exactly how I did it. I showed up at his house daily with anti-gun signs waving them in his face. Yelling, pick me, Brent, choose me, Brent."

I stopped but then worked myself up as he navigated through traffic.

"It was at his first chemo treatment. That was where I met your father; he had no one there with him. He looked scared and alone. I was there for my aunt Susan who died of cancer shortly after that treatment. I didn't stalk your father; I didn't ask for him to throw me into this crazy mix of Sons that he has. All I saw was a man dying and needing somebody in his life. Somehow, I was that person." I turned my shoulders and faced the window.

Too upset to look at him.

Neither of us spoke the rest of the road trip. It made me madder that he did not apologize.

The sons had called the place we were going to a manor the day of the meeting. The wording in Brent's will called it the manor as well. My eyes shot open; even in the dark, it was easy to see the enormous building ahead of us.

"This is the manor." This was the first time Ian talked after I yelled at him.

I didn't respond.

I was still too upset with him.

I grabbed Roscoe's leash and slammed the jeep door harder than I meant. I grabbed my suitcase from the back before Ian could help me and stormed inside.

I had no clue where I was going; the place was a maze, and I was for sure going to get lost, but there was no way I was going to ask Ian for help.  At least not right now.

Two months. I had to make it through with five of them for two months.

The first night did not go as planned.

My stomach grumbled the whole time as I stayed locked in one of the many rooms I had found in my search for sleep. I picked the closest room to the front so I could take Roscoe out when he needed to.

It was early morning when I awoke. There were no curtains on the windows, and the sunlight woke me up. I needed caffeine if I was going to make it through the day.

Taking a morning walk was my and Roscoe's first adventure. 

It was gorgeous outside. The grass was green, rolling hills were behind us, and the birds chirped; it was like a fairy tale.

There were man-made paths that weaved in and out with trees all over; the nature presence at the manor was better than the living quarters.

I was reluctant to go back inside, but I needed coffee. And Roscoe needed his morning food. He would start to beg if he did not get it soon.

We walked around inside until we heard voices.

"I don't understand. What did you do to her?" I could hear what sounded like Luke, the beach bum of the brothers speaking.

"Nothing. I got her here like you all wanted. I don't know why you guys couldn't have picked her up yourself."

Someone was banging pans around. "We told you. The reading did not go exactly that well."