Once we drove through Llyncroft village, Willow Grove sat on the cliff's edge. It had trees on one side and the gardens overlooked the sea.

We pulled up in front of the sand-coloured building made of old stone bricks. It was hard to see from the road because a flowering magnolia tree hid it. I wasn't sure what to make of that. It was late May and magnolia trees only bloomed for about a week in March normally.

There was a new conservatory attached to the building. Intricate wrought iron, painted white, and hundreds of panels of coloured glass were used in the conservatory's construction, casting fragments of colour throughout the room. It made a beautiful indoor-outdoor space. It looked like May had moved the dining room here. I really liked it.

I noticed Mrs. Blackwood by the front door, sitting on a bench, enjoying the sun. I waved to her. She smiled and pulled herself to her feet. She pulled me into a hug and whispered in her ear, "you look so much like your gran. I miss her every day. It's so good to see you."

Mrs. Blackwood took Marcus's hand and gave it a shake. "It was very kind of you to come with our Evie," Mrs. Blackwood said.

"Don't be silly, there's nowhere else I'd rather be," said Marcus. "After everything that's happened, it's important I'm here."

Agnes opened the front door and handed me the key. The hallway had changed little since I'd last been here. It still smelt the same, but there was a damp staleness in the air where the property had been empty for a while.

Beyond the reception area, there was a small reading room, dining room, lounge, and a set of stairs leading further into the property. Agnes led us through the dining room, to the kitchen area in the private area of the property.

This area was homely and contrasted from the reception which shouted business. Having a private area away from the hustle and bustle of guest visitors was an idea I liked.

"Welcome back to Llyncroft House," Agnes said. "It'll be good to have you back here."

"We'll see," Marcus muttered. "We still need to work out what's the best thing for everyone."

Agnes glanced at him, her expression unreadable. You understand Evie must live here for a year to inherit the property. This needs to be her principal residence."

"We'll see," said Marcus, striding to a door at the back of the kitchen. He turned the key in the lock and opened the door to reveal a small patio area surrounded by pots, trellises, and trailing vines. "Looks like your gran had a green finger, just like you."

"It will be nice to be around something that reminds me of her," I replied, looking at the cute courtyard. I could imagine myself spending a lot of time here with the scent of herbs and dappled shade.

"This is the private family courtyard. May spent much of her time here. It's a real sun trap," said Agnes.

Agnes showed us around the property. The amazing light of the conservatory called to me. I wondered if I could move things around to make this the main living space. Upstairs, there were three family rooms and four en suite rooms which May used for the bed-and-breakfast.

May had earned her five-star rating because she had done each room up to an incredibly high specification. "This is beautiful," I said, marvelling at what she had created. "Seriously, it's going to be hard to keep this up."

"Don't worry, Ducky, we'll all be here to help you. This is the only guest house in the village, so it's important this place works," Agnes said.

"Why do you assume Evie will continue the business? This is way too much pressure on her. She is not as strong as you seem to think she is," said Marcus.

"I'm not assuming anything. Only what was written in the will that May left her the business, and she needs to live here for a year."

"That's right, live in the house for a year. I don't want her to deal with the pressure of running a business."

Marcus irritated me by thinking I couldn't manage this. I already ran a business. "Don't worry, love, we'll make it work."

Agnes looked as if she was about to say something, but she seemed to change her mind and shook her head.

"After your gran died, I cancelled some bookings," said Agnes. "I didn't want to throw you in at the deep end."

"I'm glad you've got some sense," Marcus muttered.

"There are bookings arriving on Saturday. You've got three days to prepare before people arrive," said Agnes.

"You can't expect her to take over and run a place like this straight away. What were you thinking?" shouted Marcus.

"I'm sure Evie will be fine," said Agnes. "And if she's not, I will be here to help her and we can work things out together."

Marcus clearly didn't trust Agnes. Rather than hang around to witness the brewing argument, I slipped away to check out each the guest rooms.

Two of the guest rooms had double beds and two had two single beds. That would be fantastic when families stayed. I noticed the curtains in one of the twin rooms were closed, leaving it in darkness. I wanted to see what it looked like in daylight, just in case there was a lot of dusting I needed to do before the weekend.

The bedroom window overlooked the grounds of the cottage and the sea. The grounds were more substantial than I remembered, but I could imagine my dream garden with an immense oak tree in the centre. I was excited to understand how sunlight and shade affected the garden, so I could plan how I wanted it. There might even be space to own a few goats.

I could hear raised voices in the corridor. Great. Marcus seemed intent on defending me, though I couldn't work out why I needed protection from an elderly woman. Seriously, he didn't need to be that protective of me. I needed to get back to them before he said something I would regret.

As I turned, I noticed a dark stain on the carpet and groaned. I was going to need to replace that carpet.

My eyes tracked the stain up the side of the bed. I saw grey hair and staring, lifeless eyes.

I screamed.

***

Cant wait for the next episode? Join use at https://reamstories.com/mariadean to continue Evie's journey

***