Summer Breeze by Catherine Anderson Read Free Book Online

the lower sash with all his might, but nothing happened. Resting an arm on the exterior sill, which was rough with peeling paint, he considered his options. To get inside, he would have to break the glass. Given the fact that it was colder than a witch's tit outside, he decided that it would be worth the expense.
    When Darby was back on his feet, Joseph would replace the pane, no harm done.
    Decision made, he drew back his elbow and struck the glass. The thick leather of his jacket sleeve protected him from the shards. A few more elbow jabs finished the job.
    "Back, " he ordered his dog. When Buddy had retreated to a safe distance, Joseph brushed the fragments from the outside ledge, then swept the ground with the edge of his boot, piling the glass off to one
    side of the window. "I don't want you getting your paws cut. "
    The window had been boarded up on the inside as well, Joseph realized as he groped the opening.
    Madness. One layer of wood over the windows wasn't enough to satisfy the woman? Standing at ground level, Joseph couldn't butt the planks with his shoulder to break them loose. Fortunately, he always carried a few tools in his saddlebags.
    Within moments, Joseph had set to work with a crowbar to loosen the one-by-fours from the inside casing so he could knock them free. He winced at the racket each time a board fell into the room, but there was no way to do this quietly. He had forewarned Rachel Hollister of his intention to enter her house, so hopefully she wouldn't be too alarmed by the noise.
    When the window opening had been divested of barriers, Joseph fetched the lantern, his bedroll, and his saddlebags from where he'd placed them on the ground. After thrusting all his gear through the window, he turned for his dog.
    "Come here, you willful mutt. Let's get in out of this dad-blamed wind. "
    Buddy made the growling sound that Joseph found so endearing. He gathered the silly canine into his arms and gave him a toss through the window. Agile and sure-footed, Buddy was soon bouncing around inside the room, his nails clacking on the floor. Bracing a hand on the sill, Joseph swung up, hooked a knee over the ledge, and eased himself through the opening. A musty, closed-up staleness greeted his nostrils.
    After locating his gear, Joseph struck a match and
    lighted the lantern. The lamp's golden glow illuminated a bedroom that looked as if its occupants had departed only that morning. A woman's white nightdress had been flung across the foot of the made-up bed, which was covered with a blue chenille spread and ruffled shams that matched the tiny flowers in the wallpaper. The armoire door stood ajar to reveal a man's suit and several white shirts, the remainder of the rod crowded with a woman's garments.
    Upon closer inspection, Joseph saw that a thick layer of dust coated everything. He guessed that this must have been Henry and Marie Hollister's bedroom, and he felt like an interloper. A Bible on the night table lay open, a thin red ribbon angled across one page. Recalling the family's tragic end, he could almost picture Mr. and Mrs. Hollister rising to greet the day, never guessing that it would be their last.
    "Come on, boy, " he said to Buddy. "I'm getting the fidgets. "
    Joseph's fidgets worsened when he stepped out into a long hallway. A small parlor table, standing against the end wall, sported a vase filled with yellowed, disintegrating flower stalks. Judging by what remained of the leaves and the faded blossom pieces that littered the tatted doily, the flowers had once been irises. It gave him chills to think that Marie Hollister had probably cut the flowers and put them in water right before she died.
    Holding the lantern high, Joseph continued along the corridor. He considered calling out to identify himself, just in case all the noise of the breaking glass and falling boards had upset Rachel Hollister. But what
    more could he possibly say? Before coming inside, he'd rapped on the door three times, once