Deputy Miller looked at Robert with a mixture of pity and sternness. “Sir, we have a court injunction signed by Judge Reynolds. You have thirty minutes to clear these people out of the house, refund their money, and vacate the premises yourself. Otherwise, I will have to arrest you for elder fraud and criminal trespass.”
Panic erupted through the house as the guests heard the deputy’s words.
“What do you mean we have to leave?!” a man shouted from the living room, marching into the foyer holding a beer glass. “We paid eight thousand dollars for this week!”
“Sir, you need to demand a refund from this man right here,” Deputy Miller said, pointing directly at Robert. “This property was listed fraudulently. You have thirty minutes to pack your belongings.”
Shouts, arguments, and crying children filled the hallway. Strangers scrambled up the stairs to grab their suitcases. Megan was screaming at Robert, punching his arm in a fit of rage, calling him an idiot and a liar, while Robert remained collapsed on his knees, weeping into his hands on the floor Henry had restored.
I walked past them all.
I stepped through the living room, past the wet towels, past the spilled drinks, and entered the sunroom overlooking the dunes.
I reached out and touched the wooden shelves Henry had built. The climbing roses outside the window swayed gently in the sea breeze, their sweet fragrance wafting through the small screen.
I picked up Henry’s navy blue mug from the kitchen counter where the stranger had placed it, wiped it clean with a napkin, and held it tightly in both hands.
Outside, the ocean waves continued to crash against the shore, timeless and steady.
As the sounds of shouting, rolling luggage, and police sirens faded into the distance, leaving only the quiet whisper of the wind through the dunes, I sat down in Henry’s favorite chair.
There was finally room for me in my own house.
