C1 Beth’s Suspicions
Morning finally arrives. Beth hasn’t had a good night’s sleep since moving in a little over three weeks ago. When Martin awakens; he notices her intensely staring out the window, in deep thought.
“Beth, Hon’, you okay?” he asks; as Beth continues gazing out the window.
Now leaving her trance-like state, “What? I’m sorry; did you say something?”
“I said,” Martin goes over and embraces her, “are you okay?”
“No;” she replies unconvincingly, “I’m fine.”
“Beth.”
“No, really; nothing’s wrong. Really.”
He gently places his fingers under her chin. “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know,” she replies somberly.
“Beth, come on.”
She breaks away from her husband’s arms and goes back to looking out the window.
“Don’t you find it odd how little we paid for this house?”
“What do you mean odd?” Martin asks while starting to get dressed.
“I was talking with Trish the other day. When I told her how big the house is, and how much land we got with it, she was stunned. She said we could have easily paid four to five times the amount we paid.”
“So…we got lucky.”
“Maybe…I don’t know… it just seems strange to me. I mean, to pay so little for what it’s worth?”
“You know, this isn’t Parsippany, New Jersey…its Beaver Ridge, Rhode Island. Hell, I don’t even know if this place is on the map. Maybe the real estate market here isn’t as lucrative. Anyway, I’m sure not going to look a gift horse in the mouth.”
“I suppose. But it’s more than just what we paid for this house.”
“Then what?”
“Whenever Anna and I go into town; people stare at us without saying a word.”
“Well; we’re still strangers in the area, so…”
“No, it’s different.” Beth briefly pauses to gather her thoughts. “I honestly believe it’s more than just us being new in town.”
“Okay; so what is it then?”
“I get this feeling like there’s something they know about this house that they don’t want to tell us about. Or are afraid to.”
“You know what I think;” Martin straightens his tie, “I think you’ve read one too many Stephen King novels.”
Beth turns to face her husband, “I’m serious. I think there’s something about this house people aren’t telling us about.”
“Beth, Hon’,” he places his arms on her shoulders, “not all small towns have deep, dark secrets that they’re keeping from the new families about the houses they’ve just bought. Worst case scenario; this old house is termite infested, and the realtor just wanted to dump it off quick on some poor unsuspecting fools before they realized it…which I truly hope isn’t the case.”
“So what you’re saying is…you think this is all just in my head; and I’m blowing things out of proportion?”
“No. I’m saying we’ve just made some major changes in our lives. Beth, between my new job and moving to a new area, you’ve been through a lot these past few months. It’s perfectly understandable that you’re a little stressed out and on edge; anyone would be. You’ll see; once things slow down and you get a chance to step back and take a breather, you’ll realize that everything is fine…And that there’s nothing wrong with this house. And no one’s keeping secrets from you. Okay?”
“You think so?”
“I know so.” He kisses her forehead. “I have to go to work now; see you later. Love you. Bye.”
“Love you too. Bye.”
Beth watches from the window as Martin waves, gets in the car and drives away. She thinks about what he said…that everything will be fine once things slow down. She mutters under her breath…
“I hope so.”
