I looked past the sailor's statue and spotted another large Victorian stone building, the only one with a restored facade to compete with the town hall.
“What is that building for?”
“The law firm of the...” Mum paused, and her worried look made an uneasy feeling rise inside me. “DeLoughreys.”
DeLoughrey. Them, again. I didn't know what was more absurd: that the DeLoughreys owned so much real estate in town or that this town had a goddamn law firm.
“Do you want me to give you a ride to the house first, or do you want to come grocery shopping?”
“House?” It escaped me, and I looked at Mum, who was leaving the neat and lively center of town again, circling the brass statue of the old sailor to follow the other cars.
Mum had mentioned living with friends when she used to be at university, but I would have thought more of a flat or a residential wing on campus rather than a whole house.
It really surprised me that she still owned a home here somewhere. After all these years...
“It was kind of a student residence at the time. But I bought it up later because the former owner knew me well and offered it to me for a good price.”
Why didn't I know about this? She could have mentioned that she owned a whole property in Canada...
As for financial means, I wasn't surprised. My mother had studied molecular biology, which is why she earned a lot of money in Sacramento. But I was beginning to wonder how she would get money here. As far as I knew, it was quite difficult to look for jobs in the field of molecular biology outside of big cities and to secure a good income in addition. This small town would kill her wealth... Plus, the fact that Mum was a researcher.
“Sure, you own a house here. Just like that. Why am I not surprised?”
Grinning sarcastically, I looked at her. She returned it unconcerned.
“So, are you coming with me to the grocery store?”
To be honest, I wasn't particularly comfortable waiting for Mum alone in an abandoned house. Who knew what was going on in the neighborhood? Maybe there were students living there who threw wild parties, got high on marijuana, and actually rode around the neighborhood on motorbikes and accidentally swept children off the asphalt.
The thought made me smirk. Soon, I would be one of them, but I would stay away from such things.
I was looking forward to student life itself. A few weeks ago, I wanted to study in San Francisco with my best friend, Larissa. Unfortunately, I had made this plan without my mother's doctor, and since I would not be of legal age for another week, Mum had decided over my head that I should come along. Mum was glued to me. That was the only explanation that made sense. And I was aware of how unhealthy this behavior was.
The problem was that it would have complicated everything even more if I had moved away, so Mum had enrolled me at this no-name university. It amazed me that they even offered my degree course here, in the middle of nowhere...
“Hello, earth to Bayla? Are you still there?”
Perplexed, I stared into my mum's face.
Mum rolled her eyes impatiently. I remembered her question.
“Oh, right, I'll come with you.”
We turned into a side street, but it wasn't a street, I realized. It was the driveway to a huge grocery store called Belly Shop. A sprawling car parking area stretched out in front of us, and Mum was having trouble finding a suitable space.
“How is it always so crowded here?!”
Annoyed, she joined a queue of cars waiting for a red Mini Cooper to pull out of a parking space.
“Why don't we go shopping somewhere else?” I suggested, but Mum shook her head.
“You'll laugh. This is the only decent mall around here for miles. The nearest is in Bradiston, twenty miles from here.”
“Like there's only one shop here. What about the little shops?”
“They're just boutiques, stationery shops, herb shops – nothing I'd need at the moment. There's always a weekly market open down at the harbor on Wednesdays, and there's a baker there too. But there's everything here that's on my shopping list.”
Of course, the shopping list. My mother and groceries… She always had her detailed list, and woe betide if something wasn't found in the shop. That's why it always took us what felt like years to get out of a shop. If something wasn't there, she was always in a bad mood. How could we stand it here for half a year?
After about five minutes, the time had come, and a black car that strongly resembled ours had parked out.
“Finally!” Mum murmured and pulled into the free parking space. Neatly parked, she pulled out the keys, opened the door, and got out.
“You can go on in. I'll get some more money and a shopping cart from over there. Feel free to pick anything.”
With those words, she slammed the car door behind her and marched toward the ATM, where a small queue of people had formed.
A black shadow flitted across our windscreen.
I flinched.
My gaze followed the black bird that had perched on the car in front of me. It was a raven, puttering around on the roof of the car, curiously looking at its reflection in the window.
Sighing, I leaned back in the seat. My eyes fell on the radio. This was my chance.
I turned the station up louder. News was on again, and Joe was still chattering away.
“However, the hunter team that had gathered last week was not allowed into the woods. The reason is that the Copelands, who own the lands around Vanderwood University, will not permit the hunt. The family does not respond to interview questions.”
