Fable: An Unfortunate Fairy Tale Book 3 Read Online Free PDF

do I know that they want us as
tenants?”
    “ Pish-posh.” Terry frowned
at Sara. Mina had to hold back a grin; she didn’t think people
spoke like that anymore. “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. I’m
telling you, I pulled a huge favor out of my hat, and I can tell
you there’s not going to be another offer out there like this. I
did this for you because I think of you like my own daughter. And
you deserve this.”
    Just then a weird buzzing sound came from a
square box in the kitchen. Terry ran forward and pushed a button.
“Yes, who’s there?”
    “ It’s meee. We bring
Sara’s car like you asked. Now push button and let us in.” It was
Mrs. Wong. Terry rolled her eyes before she pushed the button. Mina
assumed the big iron gates at the end of the drive were opening. A
few minutes later the Wongs entered through the front door,
carrying boxes from the Happy Maids van.
    “ Eh, nice big house you
get, Terry. What ex-husband did you get this from? Maybe you can
give him my number.” Mrs. Wong’s broken English made her attempts
at being funny sound awkward.
    Mei’s husband placed his hand over his heart
with dramatic flair. “Oh, Mei, you wound me. Now stop yammering,
and let’s help them settle in.”
    With only a few more failed attempts to talk
themselves out of the house, Sara finally gave in and helped haul
the last cardboard boxes into the foyer. The Wongs and Terry tried
to keep some light chitchat going, but it was obvious from the
rings under Sara’s eyes that it was time for them to go. Once
everyone was gone, the house was eerily empty.
    Sara stared at one of the blank walls
covered in striped wallpaper in puzzlement. “This house. There’s
something about this house.” She reached out a hand to touch the
wall and then shook her head as if to clear the troubled thought
from her mind. “I’m sorry, honey, I’m exhausted. Let’s find a room
and unpack and talk tomorrow. It’s been—” she started to sniffle
but held it back, “—a long day.”
    Mina agreed. Was the funeral only a few
hours ago? The rain was still coming down outside, and the
occasional lightning illuminated the night sky. The second floor
was filled with more turns, wings, and darkened rooms. Sara found a
room to her liking and settled in by immediately crawling onto the
bed and not moving. Not wanting to leave her mother alone,
especially tonight, Mina crawled onto the large king-size bed and
lay next to her mom.
    Sara’s eyes were shut, and Mina could see
the barest glimmer of tears sliding out of the corners. Her
mother’s long hair had fallen out of its bun, and a hint of gray
could be seen mixed in with the brown. Had this tragedy aged her
mother years in only a few days? Mina took a deep breath and
quivered with pain and sadness. She slid her hand into Sara’s hand
and squeezed gently, comforting her mother without words. Sara’s
breathing evened out, and she squeezed her daughter’s hand back. A
few minutes later, they were both asleep.
     

Chapter 5

     
    A thudding noise woke Mina in the middle of
the night. She sat straight up in bed and looked around the
darkened room in fear. Nothing stirred, and nothing moved. The rain
still poured outside, and the night sky lit up, followed by the
delayed sound of thunder. The brief flash of light proved that
nothing was in their room.
    She turned to look at her mom, who was still
curled up in a fetal position and was sleeping very deeply. She
knew that Sara had been worrying about their lack of housing
situation, and now she looked like she could sleep for days. Mina
lay back in bed and stared at the ceiling, then the walls. She
rolled over and tried to sleep on her stomach, but it was no use;
she was wide awake. Her mind kept trying to catalog all the
possibilities of what could have made the noise, and her paranoid
teenage brain wasn’t going to let her go back to sleep until she
found out what it was. She was still fully dressed, so she tiptoed
out of the