Simon laughed as he waved us toward the front door that was still open, light spilling through the doorway. "I think it's cold enough to warrant moving this reunion inside." He turned to Maxine. "Don't wake Harold. I'll put the car in the garage and bring the bags in later."
I was wondering who Harold was but that thought was forgotten as I entered the foyer. Sarah was right. We had died and gone to Tara. The east coast Tara. The foyer itself was as big as our entire cozy apartment in Rochester and I felt dizzy as I looked up at the high ceiling that was domed with a glass skylight. The stairs were grand, wrapping around itself in a majestic spiral. They were the type of stairs that I imagined debutantes would float down as they were announced into society.
Instead of a fresh faced debutante, there was presently a beautiful older woman walking down the stairs. She was wearing an emerald green sheath dress with black heels that were so high I would be tottering on them. But this woman walked down the stairs with practiced ease. He
r dark brown hair was pulled back in a soft chignon and a strand of pearls encircled her slim neck. I wondered what type of person dressed so formally this late at night. It had just hit midnight when we had arrived at Simon's house.
I looked down at my jeans and blue Oscar the Grouch t-shirt, feeling grubby from the long trip. I had assumed that everyone would be asleep since we were arriving so late, and I would meet Simon's family the next morning, when I had time to make myself presentable.
I felt extremely awkward, but the woman's blue eyes that were so much like Simon's were warm and welcoming.
"Simon! Finally!" she exclaimed, reaching the last step. She kissed Simon on the cheek, enveloping him in a hug. "I thought you'd never get here."
"Hi Mom." Simon returned the hug warmly and then turned to me. "Mom, this is Caitlin."
"Caitlin! So nice to meet you!" Simon's mother held my hands and kissed both my cheeks, which I thought was very European. At least, I think it was very European. The closest I had ever gotten to Europe was being subjected to Colleen's pseudo-French accent whenever she got the urge.
"Hello Mrs. Crewe. Nice to meet you." She was still holding my hands and I felt awkward but didn't want to seem rude by pulling away.
"Call me Beth!" she insisted. "Mrs. Crewe makes me feel old. I feel old enough knowing that my daughter is turning sixteen tomorrow! I'm so happy you could come, Caitlin."
I gave her a smile, trying not to look as uncomfortable as I felt. Simon's mother was warm and welcoming, but it was hard not to feel intimidated. I couldn't think of her as Beth, so I just avoided calling her anything at all. "Thank you so much for having us stay the weekend. You must already be so busy because of the party without having houseguests too."
"Nonsense," Mrs. Crewe said, waving her hand. Her blue eyes sparkled as she winked at me conspiratorially. "It's not like I do anything for these type of things anyways. I just hire the people and they make it happen like magic. I'd feel guilty for not doing more, but unless my daughter still wants a petting zoo for her sixteenth birthday party, it's better to leave it to the professionals."
I smiled at her confession, not knowing what to say in return. I wondered when exactly I had become a mute. Simon must have noticed my awkwardness because he slung his arm around my shoulders, guiding me next to him so I was no longer his mother's focus. "And this is Sarah, Caitlin's roommate and best friend."
Mrs. Crewe greeted Sarah with warmth as well and then she fawned over Grant, admonishing him for not visiting often enough.
"You must all be exhausted after the long drive. Are you hungry?" Mrs. Crewe looked at Maxine, who had been standing by the stairs. "Maxine, can we rustle up something for the kids?"
"It's okay, Mom," Simon interjected before Maxine could reply. "We ate on the road. I think everyone just wants to go to bed. I'm going to grab our bags from the car. Can you show the girls to their rooms?"
"Of course," Mrs. Crewe replied. "But Harold can get your bags."
"It's okay." Simon was already walking toward the front door, Grant following him. "It's late and I don't want to wake him. It's not much anyways." Simon looked back at me before walking outside and smiled. "I'll stop by your room to drop off your suitcase and make sure you're settled in."
I nodded, although I felt a little embarrassed for being singled out by Simon. His statement was clearly directed to me, but I wasn't the only houseguest present. I was worried that his mother would get the wrong idea, but she seemed unperturbed as she indicated we should follow her up the stairs.
"I've put you two in rooms next to each other. This place can be a bit of a maze to navigate, so I thought it would be easier to put you close together." Mrs. Crewe climbed the stairs without a hint of breathlessness as she talked. She must be in great shape because I felt myself getting winded following her. Sarah seemed perfectly fine too. Great, I was the only one out of shape.
"I know this place is too big for us," she continued, "And Martin, Simon's father, always says we should downsize to a smaller house. But I love this place. It's hard to think of giving it up."
"It's a beautiful house, Beth," Sarah said, having no problem using her first name. I envied her ease with strangers. "I can see why you wouldn't want to sell it."
Mrs. Crewe opened the door to a bedroom down the first hall we entered and ushered us in. "Sarah, this is your bedroom. I hope it's okay." She pointed to a door. "That's the bathroom and next to it is the closet. If you need anything, just buzz this intercom and someone will answer." She nodded towards the complicated device that hung on the wall next to the doorway. There was no way I would ever use that. It looked like it could launch rockets into space, and I'd probably end up setting off an alarm by accident.
The bedroom was spacious and impeccably decorated in autumn colors. It was dominated by a king-sized bed with a plush rust colored comforter.
"It's beautiful, thank you!" Sarah said with enthusiasm. She glanced at me, looking contemplative. "Actually, this room is huge. Maybe Caitlin and I should stay in here together. The bed's plenty big enough."
Leave it to Sarah to note my awkwardness. I knew she was also worried about my fear of having visions while staying at Simon's house. I wanted to finger the iridium charm that hung under my shirt but resisted the urge. I knew my aunt said it would prevent my vardoger from entering me while I slept, not from having visions, but I hoped it was like a talisman, keeping everything negative away.
Mrs. Crewe shook her head at Sarah's suggestion. "That's not necessary. I want you girls to be as comfortable as possible and Lord knows there's plenty of spare bedrooms in this house. Caitlin's room is right next door so you'll be close by."
We left Sarah in her bedroom and Mrs. Crewe guided me to mine, which was right next to Sarah's as she had said.
I had thought Sarah's bedroom was beautiful but the room we stepped into next was breathtaking. It was decorated in shades of blue and felt cozy even though it was as large as Sarah's. The four poster bed had a midnight blue comforter but the rest of the room was done in light blues, making it seem fresh and airy.