Digging up My Bones (Kristen and Samuel) novel Chapter 4

Half an hour later, Samuel pushed open the gate, which was already covered in cobwebs. The weeds in the courtyard had grown even taller than the grass by the gate. They reached up to his waist.

It was clear that this place had been uninhabited for a long time.

Samuel stood in the courtyard, hesitating whether to take another step forward.

He had been here twice before, and he should have remembered that I kept the yard in excellent condition. It didn't look anything like this when he visited in the past.

The first time he came here was to drop off Toby and me. Back then, two-year-old Toby had just been diagnosed with uremia caused by underdevelopment of his kidneys.

He thought Toby was a jinx and bought this farmhouse in a remote village for us to move into. Every month, he transferred me 20 thousand dollars, which included the fees for Toby's dialysis treatment.

The second time he came was to force me to go and do the HLA typing to see if my bone marrow was compatible with Violet's. If his memory didn't fail him, he should recall that the yard was once filled with hydrangeas and roses. I had even built a swing there for Toby.

While Samuel was still lost in thought, Violet called again.

Her voice sounded weak over the phone. "Sam, have you found Kristen yet? Will she come and donate her bone marrow to me today?"

Samuel reassured her, "I'll handle this. Just focus on cooperating with the doctors for your treatment. Don't worry."

Violet seemed relieved after hearing this.

After hanging up, Samuel stood in front of the house for a long time. Even though the door wasn't locked, he didn't push it open and go inside.

If he had, he would have seen the two figures outlined in white chalk. Those were the markings left by the police after they discovered our dead bodies in the house.

Samuel just stood there.

In the end, he stepped back out of the yard and bought a new lock from the locksmith. Then, he locked the gate.