“I don’t think he likes Joe and the judge. He was hiding from them. I found him under the bed in your room. I wasn’t snooping or anything. Your grandpa was with me.”
“I didn’t think you were.” She patted the dog’s silky head. “I don’t think Toby likes men, but he probably also senses my grandpa and the judge aren’t dog people.” She smiled. “I’m glad you are.”
“They’re okay, I guess.” He hitched his thumb at the road. “So is it okay if I take him for a walk?”
Ellie had been dealing with her psychic abilities for so many years now that her barriers automatically slid into place whenever she was talking to someone. It was only when she was dealing with strong emotions that she had a problem. But right now, for Ryder’s safety, and because she didn’t want to embarrass him by asking Nate if it was okay—he was almost sixteen, after all—she opened her mind to his thoughts.
“You’re not planning on going far, are you?” she asked in an effort to discover what he was up to. That he didn’t like being questioned came to her clearly.
To him it felt like an interrogation. Like no one trusted him anymore. He couldn’t do anything without someone thinking he was up to no good. The one thing Ellie didn’t sense was that he was planning on running away. At least he wasn’t yet. “It’s just that I’m planning on making lunch. Is there anything special you’d like to eat?”
“Do you have pizza?”
“Unless Joe and the judge ate it, I have some leftovers in the fridge. Just don’t tell Nate. It’s his favorite.”
“Prosciutto, garlic sauce, and cheese?”
“You know him well.”
He shrugged. “He brought it every time he visited me and my mom last year.”
The poor kid had been through a lot. It was no wonder he was acting out. Ellie had gone through her own rebellious stage at his age. For an entirely different reason, of course. But at least Ryder had his mother’s support, and Nate’s.
Ellie hadn’t had anyone she could turn to at home in Durham. Her father was lovely and kind but not really there. A brilliant man who spent most of the time in his head, oblivious to what was going on around him. Her brother and sister had been equally oblivious to the tension between Ellie and her mother. But it wasn’t like she could have shared her secret with them anyway. She couldn’t have risked tearing her family apart.
She’d escaped to Mirror Lake Inn as often as possible, spending holidays and summers there. All her worries and fears had faded away the moment the inn came into view. She’d found peace here, peace and happiness. She hoped Ryder found the same.
“I have a better idea. It’s your first day here. I’ll order whatever you want for lunch from Zia Maria’s.” She pulled up the menu on her phone and handed it to him.
“Is it okay if I get an Italian panini?” he asked, handing back her phone.
“Absolutely.” She glanced at the image on her screen. “It does look good. I think I’ll order one for myself. We won’t tell my grandfather or the judge though. I’m trying to get them to eat healthier.”
“Joe found the bag of potato chips you had in your room,” Ryder said with a grin before heading off with Toby obediently trailing after him.
Ellie sighed. At least her grandfather hadn’t found her stash of chocolate bars. She had to find a better way to deal with her stress than eating chocolate and chips. Her phone vibrated in her hand. Better yet, she thought when her mother’s name appeared on the screen, she had to deal with the reason for her stress.
“Enjoy your walk, guys,” she called after them, bringing the phone to her ear. She’d barely gotten out a hello when her mother went off on her.
“Is it not enough that you had my father threaten to take me to court for elder abuse, you guilted your sister into giving Toby to your grandfather? She’s absolutely devastated, Elliana. She loves that dog.”
Ellie stared at the phone. She had no idea what her mother was talking about, at least when it came to her grandfather. Her sister was another story. Obviously Bri had thrown her under the bus, using her as an excuse for why she’d left Toby at the inn. God forbid she tell their mother the real reason she’d left the dog behind.
Ellie walked up the steps and took a seat on a rocking chair. This wasn’t a conversation she wanted her grandfather to overhear. And that’s when it hit her. Earlier, Joe and the judge had said they had a plan, but like her, they’d been distracted by Toby. She’d been so busy with the dog afterward that she hadn’t thought to ask them about it. They didn’t just have a plan; they were waging a full-out assault.
“Do you have nothing to say for yourself?”
“I had no idea Grandpa was talking to you or that he’d threatened to take you to court.”
“He didn’t speak to me. He refuses to take my calls. His lawyer sent an email directly to mine!”
As far as Ellie knew, her grandfather hadn’t retained a lawyer. It was something she’d been planning to talk to him about today. Jonathan must have sent the email. “I’m sorry it’s come to this. But you must have known Grandpa wouldn’t take this lying down. As far as he’s concerned, you’re trying to sell his home out from under him. Put yourself in his shoes for a minute. How would you feel if we did this to you and Dad?”
“It’s not the same. Your father and I are healthy and have all our faculties.”
“So does Grandpa. He might have had a stroke, but otherwise he’s healthy.” And she planned to keep him that way for as long as she could. “I can send you a report from his doctor, if you’d like. And he’s happy to take a legal competency test.”
“If he’s fully recovered, as you claim, why did you tell your sister that he needed a therapy dog to help with his recovery?
Ellie ground her back molars together, feeling like Bri had played her and she’d walked into a trap. But no, Ellie had seen what she had seen. Bri hadn’t meant for this to happen. She was trapped by a lie of her own making. And Ellie had no choice but to cover for her. She wouldn’t risk Richard confronting Bri if Ellie told her mother the truth. Not that her mother would believe her anyway. She frowned, wondering if that was part of the problem. Maybe if Bri had their mother’s support, she’d leave Richard.
“Grandpa doesn’t like to go for walks. I thought having a dog would encourage him to get out more. Not to mention that the inn is a better place for a dog than a condo in the middle of a busy city. Was Richard upset? I got the impression he didn’t like Toby.”
“No, he wasn’t,” her mother reluctantly admitted. “Toby’s very protective and territorial of your sister. This morning, he bit Richard.”
“You might want to ask yourself why that is, Mom. Dogs are a good judge of character.”
“What are you inferring?”
“I think you know. But if you don’t, for Bri’s sake, open your eyes. She needs you.”
“So what, now not only am I a horrible daughter, I’m also a horrible mother? I’ll have you know that everything I’ve done is to protect your sister. And if you have any love for Brianna and your father, you will stop fighting me on this. My father obviously listens to you. Tell him to let this go. If he doesn’t, I’m afraid things won’t go well for you, Elliana. I didn’t want it to come to this, but I’ll have no choice than to submit evidence to a judge why you’re incapable of acting as your grandfather’s legal guardian and power of attorney.”