The House Read Online Free

that morning. Seems like the rent was always due. She was always handing over her checks to the landlord. We had no bank account. What little money, if any was left, went for food.” The icy stoicism that had caught Anna’s attention and drawn her to Edward overtook him. His body appeared to go hard like an arrow. He clinched his jaw. “She worked for a doctor, cleaned his office, and the offices of the other doctors.” Edward seemed sad. Then a bitter anger arose. “She was also his mistress, the doctor who hired her. He gave her drugs, prescriptions, to keep her going. She loved him.”
    The stimulants and relaxants Violet Manning received from the doctor delivered a semblance of balance in a world that was strewn with poverty, disrespect, and overwork, yet it never allowed her to reach a plateau of freedom.
    “He got her other cleaning jobs. That’s how we made it.” The light that had burned in Edward’s amber pupils from moments earlier when discussing plans for his real estate business drained from his eyes. Anna felt death sliding over her body. Craving to escape her mother, she reached for Edward’s hand, drew up the covers, and nudged into his chest. She kissed him. He entered her again. The more Anna received of Edward, the more she wanted. And so it continued until Anna’s graduation.
    Anna and Edward had been seeing each other for a nearly a year and a half when Anna graduated college. Anna’s parents had headed back to their car once the commencement services were finished. It was Mother’s Day 1972 and Anna’s heart was full of determination not to return to where she had started. An ache spread through her chest as she walked with Edward. He had sat in a different section of the stadium away from Elena and Reverend Elijah during the graduation services. He would be driving her home to meet them in an hour.
    Anna had given herself to this man and revealed her vulnerability. With no job prospects, she would be dependent on her parents, something she hadn’t thought of when committing to art history as her major. Still wearing her graduation gown, and with cap in hand, she said, “Where do we go from here?”
    “There’s not much I can offer you.” Edward pocketed his hands and angled the heel of his right shoe toward the pavement. “I’m not what you think.”
    “I can’t go back there,” Anna said, speaking of home. “I won’t.”
    “With this degree,” Edward opened her diploma and perused it, “You could do a lot with a house.”
    Like turn it into a museum? Anna silently mused. Or make it a home. She had loved studying the art treasures of Rome, Greece, and Northern Africa and the masterpieces housed in the Louvre of Paris and other museums around Europe.
    “I’m not your father,” Edward said. “I’m immunized against poverty. I may die poor, but it won’t be because I haven’t tried.” Anna quelled the cautious excitement pouring into her stomach. “I’ll give you a home,” he said. “No matter what it takes.”
    We all need a show of affection, devotion, a home . Elena’s words would remain alive long after Anna introduced Edward to her parents. Throughout her marriage, with Edward away on long business trips, she would recall her determination not to return to living with her parents.
     
    Chapter 4
    A young man with the name Dr. Grimes embroidered above the pocket of his white coat entered the hospital room.
    “This is my oncologist,” Edward said.
    Anna stood and extended her hand. “Anna Manning. Edward’s wife.”
    “Paul Grimes. Pleased to meet you.” The young physician’s eyes glittered with surprise. He glanced down upon Edward lying in bed, and then back to Anna. “Will you be helping Edward in the coming weeks?”
    “It’s time for you to go, Grimes,” Edward barked.
    “As your physician, Mr. Manning, I have to ask these questions.”
    “Don’t try that shit with me. Mr. Manning is for an old man. I’m not dead yet.” Edward threw back the