Reality (Linstead AU)

Chapter 26

The drive had taken Jay and Erin out into rural Connecticut, eventually up a country road upon which they hadn't seen a single car heading in either direction for more than two minutes. Jay already envied the people who lived in the area for the tranquillity. Judging by what little he could see of the sporadic houses set back from the road, they were all rich folks like the Voights.

The sat-nav on Erin's phone, sitting in a holder on the dash, showed that they were nearing the destination, so she slowed right down. Shortly, they came to a driveway that was guarded with an electronic metal gate. A silver Mercedes was parked there. It was a cheaper model than Jay's, he noted. The guy inside would be the real estate agent.

There was just enough room for Erin to pull off the road and tuck in behind the Merc. As she did so, the real estate agent got out and approached. He was bald, maybe fifty, and had glasses on that made him look more like a professor or something, Jay thought.

Erin lowered her window.

"Ms Voight? Good morning. I'm Roger Smith of Bishop and Smith Real Estate. We spoke on the phone."

Erin shook his hand through the window. "We did. Nice to meet you. This is Jay Halstead, my boyfriend."

Jay greatly enjoyed hearing her say that. He nodded a greeting as Smith lowered his head to look into the car.

"Hi. Would you guys like to follow me up to the house?"

"Let's do it," Erin said brightly.

Watching Smith go over and type a passcode into the keypad beside the gate, Jay noted for the first time that the house's name was on a plate fixed to the brick pillar that the keypad was mounted on. 'Eagle's Nest.' He couldn't imagine owning a house with a name rather than a number, even if it was quite a cool name.

"Eagle's Nest," he commented. "If this place doesn't have an impressive view across the hills, I'm going to be disappointed now."

"Let's go see," Erin said, her tone implying she knew more than she was letting on.

The gate slid open and Smith got back into his car. He drove slowly along the driveway that wound upwards around the hillside. Erin followed him, and as they rounded the corner, an entire valley opened up in front of them. It had been hidden from the road by the hill. Further up, the house sat on an plateau that had presumably been created prior to construction. It was a big house, but not enormous in the way that Jay had pictured it. It was a modern steel and glass construction, with what looked to be an entirely glazed wall facing the valley. Beside the house stood a double garage that was connected to the house by a short, enclosed steel and glass walkway.

"Very nice, Erin. And what a view. I can see why you were interested in this for sure. And I guess I know why they called it Eagle's Nest."

"I love scenery like this," Erin said. "Hard to find in this area."

"Even harder to find when you're looking at apartments in New York," Jay quipped.

Erin giggled. "Idiot. Come on, let's go look around." Having parked up in the area out front of the house that was big enough for a couple of cars with room to spare to turn one around to go back down the drive, she killed the engine.

As Jay got out, he noticed that it was distinctly colder here than it had been in New York. That would be one down side of living on a hill on the side of a valley. He also noted Erin wince after she got out. Sports cars were not good for hip injuries.

"Still hurting?" he asked sympathetically.

"Generally it's improving, but getting out hurt just then for sure."