“Your father was obsessed with erosion. If we lived on the water, he’d have been out there with a ruler every day.” Edna sighed. “Don’t get me wrong, darling. I’ll be sorry to say goodbye to the lovely backyard, the pool, the sense of privacy. This place has charm. But with today’s market, I could be dead and buried before we’d get a buyer who would fork over the priceless sum you think your memories are worth.”

“I wish you had talked to me about it first.”

“What’s to talk about? And how often do you visit? Once or twice a year? Ever since your father passed over, six long years ago, I’ve been rumbling around this house by myself. Arnetta was always telling me I should rent my house for at least a month during the summer, make some cash, and stay with her in the retirement village to see how I liked it. I could kiss her feet. Staying with Arnetta at Golden Peaks was a blast. Now I can buy a place there!”

“I thought Arnetta got on your nerves.”

“She’s grown on me.”

“But why can’t you take a little time with this? We’ll go through everything in the house together, then you can have the sale.”

“The train’s already left the station, sweetie. Besides, this gentleman wants to move in as soon as possible. And I’m so lucky to have the things Cleo Paradise left behind to put on sale. People will show up who would never have dreamt of coming by. Hopefully I’ll get rid of every last bit of junk in our attic and basement. It’s been quite an adventure sorting through everything.”

“Don’t sell my things!”

“They’re in quarantine.”

“Mom, I don’t think you have the right to sell whatever Cleo Paradise left behind. Don’t you have to notify her and give her a certain amount of time to come back and retrieve her possessions?”

“Another lucky break! She left a letter that I found when I came back here on Sunday. I was hoping to see her but she left a few days early. She apologized for anything out of order, told me to keep the security deposit, and do what I wanted with whatever she forgot. I have it in black and white. She was a little bit of a slob so I call it even steven.”

“Well, you shouldn’t have put her name in the ad.”

“Why not?”

“It doesn’t seem right. I thought you liked her.”

“She was a sweet girl, even though she refused my invitation to take her to the club for lunch. You know what touched my heart about her?”

“What?” Karen asked flatly.

“She said she couldn’t wait to curl up in the gazebo and read a book. Your father and I sat here so many summer nights …” Edna’s voice trailed off.