The Line That Binds Read Online Free PDF Page A

flooded a bit, but I didn’t find any other problems,” I replied through my wired jaw. After I’d fractured it while riding my bike six weeks ago, I was worried about talking at first but was surprised how clear my voice sounded though clamped teeth. Most people could understand me, if I chose to speak. The whole ordeal made me wonder if it was some form of karmic justice for being a smart ass. If something of a higher power wanted me to shut the hell up, I’ve obliged. Mostly.
    “Good. Simone called from the event house.” Pop’s eyes shifted automatically to the well painting above the fireplace, contemplating it as he’d done at least once a day for the past seven years. “The Waydes arrived today.”
    I let his words sink in. They were the words both of us had been wishing we’d never have to say, or hear, and they were as weighty as I’d imagined. They’d arrived. “What did Simone say?” I asked, wondering if there was some normal task she needed me to work on so I could ignore the horrible news. I was still pissed that Janine hadn’t left most of the property to Pop or Simone. They were her family, her friends, and her loyal employees. They’d been here for her. The people moving into the main house now weren’t her family. They didn’t know her.
    Pop ran his fingers over his white mustache and sat straighter in the dining chair. “She was at the event house with Mr. Wayde … Carson. I believe that’s his first name. He inquired about the house’s lack of water so she called me.” He stared at me for a moment, then took a deep breath. “Look, Ben, I’m grateful that you humored me this summer searching Genie’s house. I know this isn’t your problem or concern, and you might not even believe it all to be true, but I’m going to need more help. I can’t do it by myself.” The look in his heavy eyes supported his statement.
    I was never sure what to believe, but I loved my grandfather enough to help him. After all, he was the one who helped me escape my alcoholic father. In many ways, I owed him. I owed Janine, too. She allowed me to move here and treated me like family from the start. “I’m not sure what else I can do to help, but I’ll do whatever you want.”
    He sighed and leaned back into the chair, which squeaked under his weight. “It’s times like this I wished I still smoked.” He snatched a toothpick from the holder in the center of the table and stuck it between his lips. “I know we tore through the house this summer and found nothing to explain why Genie left most of the estate to LJ. She wasn’t a cruel woman; she wouldn’t have wished her fate on her worst enemies, let alone any part of her family. That means she had a reason. It would have helped if we’d found some information about the well itself. All I know is what she told me, and that’s not much.”
    I nodded, processing all of the information, remembering him saying the same things as we dug though countless journals and loose papers boxed inside the basement, the bedrooms, and the kitchen. We’d also found papers stashed in random places, like above cabinets and inside the bathrooms. Janine had a habit of hiding things, and it was exhaustingly obvious how easy it was to lose stuff in that house, even with a good memory. The housekeeper, Claire, wasn’t much help before she’d left. She’d cleaned and moved a lot of the random junk to the basement, which could have buried what we were searching for.
    “It’s going to be difficult to get back in there now so we’ll have to take advantage of any opportunity we get.” Pop shifted in his chair as he paused. The wrinkles on his forehead creased with consideration as his eyes settled back on mine. “LJ should be going to your school. Maybe you could befriend her … Don’t give me that look,” he said gruffly when I scowled at him unconsciously. “If she’s anything like Genie she’ll be really nice. Besides, it covers multiple angles. You could