Caged Read Free Page B

unaware she’s being watched.
     
                  Her head slowly turns in my direction and I notice her eyes are brimmed with tears. “What’s wrong, Princess?”
     
                  “I’m terribly claustrophobic. I was doing okay with my phone to distract me but when it die d… ,” she admits as a tear slides down her cheek. Her voice different than any other time she’s talked since I met her. Childlike.
     
                  I want to feel sorry for her. I’m sure it’s tough to be stuck in an elevator with a stranger facing your fear with no escape. If she were n’ t such a bitch this would be so much easier. In typical male fashion I simply say the obligatory, “I’m sorry.”
     
                  She doesn’t have a sassy come back, just nods her head and looks down to her empty lap. “Would it help to talk? Maybe take your mind off your surroundings.” She just shrugs her shoulders completely defeated, a shell of the woman who stepped out of the Mercedes a few hours ago.
     
                  “I take it you didn’t know anything about this building before you called my office to see it?” She shakes her head no in response. “Can I ask why you’re here?”
     
                  Wiping the tears off her face with the side of her finger, “My father.” I wait for her to continue, there has to be more to it than that. “I’ve been looking for a space to renovate for a loft. I like the feel of the old mills and warehouses and thought maybe I could find a place I could take one floor and sell or lease any other floors. Anyway, my dad has really been pushing me to find something, wanting me out of his house. He knows the old cow who owns this place. She convinced him it would be perfect for me, going so far as to tell him it had fairytale possibilities. I don’t think my dad gives a shit about the possibilities he just wants me out. After weeks of nagging me, I finally gave in to get him off my back. It’s not good enough that my entire life revolves around his businesses. He never takes into account the reason I haven’t found a place is because I work eighty hours a week. It’s not like I want to be in my dad’s house at thirty years old.” Tears are streaming down her face as she unloads the burden she’s holding in. “To answer your question, yes, I have heard rumors but don’t believe in the supernatural. I figured we’d be in and out in thirty minutes. He’d be off my back, the old lady would be satisfied I had at least looked, and I wouldn’t have wasted too much of your time.” Ah, she has a desire to please after all. Maybe she’s not the frigid bitch I had been hanging out with for the last five hours.
     
                  “I hate to admit it but there is something about this place and the woman who owns it. Every time I’ve ever been here something weird has happened. I always feel like the building wants something from me, but hell if I know what it is. Maybe being trapped in here will enlighten me. You know the woman who owns it has refused to let me list it with another agent despite repeated attempts. I’ve begged her to let me out of the contract. She’s convinced the right buyer will come along who will want to renovate the space instead of demolish it.” I let the words drift off, silence engulfing us.
     
                  When it has become too awkward and I need to hear something other than Claire breathing, I tell her what I would do with the building if I owned it. I describe the courtyards I would create outside, the area for an in-ground pool, a black iron gate surrounding the property. I would take each floor and make them into lofts, leaving the industrial feel but putting in really high-end appliances and fixtures. There is a little over five thousand square feet on each floor, which would make for really nice floor plans, erecting three to four bedrooms on each