Opening her eyes, she looked around the room. She was momentarily confused about where she was. The dream had felt so real.
Brrr….it was cold. Her hands felt like ice. The heat wasn’t working again! No wonder she was dreaming about being in an igloo in Alaska.
Once again, she was regretting buying the old farmhouse. It needed so much work done. As a teen, she had a romanticized idea of living in an old farmhouse and making it beautiful. Chelsea had held onto that dream through her twenties. Now at 30, she finally had her dream come true, but was she up to all the work this place needed?
Stepping onto the cold floor made her shiver. She quickly found her burgundy fuzzy slippers and put them on. Grabbed her matching robe and walked downstairs. First on the agenda was getting the heat fixed. She had the name of someone who her co-worker knew. She said he had reasonable rates. At this point, Chelsea was ready to pay anything. She needed heat!
When she walked by the large bay window in the living room, she gasped in awe. This was why she had bought this farmhouse. For the view. The sunrise over the pasture was stunning.
Chelsea made some hot raspberry cocoa. She took a moment to enjoy the sunrise while wrapping her cold hands around her hot cup.
Yes, she was nervous, thinking about all that needed done, but it would happen. She was determined. Later that morning she dialed the number her friend had given her.
That was easy. Mr Deckle was real friendly on the phone and said he would come over in the early afternoon. His voice reminded Chelsea of her dear grandpa. Mr Deckle was semi retired. He wasn’t ready to hang up his toolbelt yet.
Knowing he was coming over gave Chelsea motivation to clean. She cleaned downstairs and then started cleaning her room. Looking at the antique dresser that had been left there, she debated again about keeping it. It was in good shape. The middle drawer was ajar, and she tried to push it shut, but something was keeping it from closing.
Stretching her hand to feel behind the drawer, she grabbed onto the object that was jamming the drawer. Pulling out a well-worn leather wallet, she looked inside and was shocked by the thick wad of cash inside! It added up to several thousand dollars! Who carried that much money around?
As far as Chelsea knew, this farmhouse had been abandoned for a few years. She wouldn’t have any idea of how to contact the previous owners. There was no ID inside the wallet. Taking the wallet, she put it in the nightstand by her bed for now and went back to cleaning. What if there was more money in the house to be found?
Two hours later, her mind was still whirling when the doorbell rang. Mr Deckle was here.
“Hi Miss, Mr Deckle, at your service.” He put out his hand, and Chelsea shook it as she smiled. His cheeks were rosy, and he was bald with some tufts of hair behind his ears.
An hour later, Chelsea felt heat, and she did a little dance of joy. “You are wonderful!” She said to Mr Deckle, his eyes twinkled at her compliment.
“It’s my pleasure. Feel free to call me with any more issues you may have. This farmhouse was a beauty in her day. All it needs is someone to give it some TLC. He smiled at Chelsea.
“I am going to try my best. Did you know the people who lived here before?”
“Yes, a family of six, they were a fun family to know. Lived here until their children grew up.
Chelsea quietly wondered if the wallet had belonged to any of them, as she followed Mr Deckle to the door.
“After they left, there were some rumors floating around that some bank robbers had used it as a hideout. But you know how rumors are. ” He gave her a wink and bid her goodbye.
Chelsea closed the door and her belly flopped. Bank robbers! Were they still around and would they come back for their money?
*to be continued *
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Nuggets of Gold 