anywhere If the house was supposed to look like a wed ding cake the bride had to be an evil witch Poppo I know what you’re thinking he said shifting the truck into park just before he let out a sweeping whistle Isn’t she a beauty No their next project wasn’t a beauty It was a hope less old house sitting in the middle of a yellow sea like a dried-up island We aren’t really going to live here are we Trina asked Trina her dad said in surprise You know I signed a contract Besides I think it’s going to be a lot of fun work ing on this place Fun Fun was playing softball Fun was going to the movies Fun was not fixing up a decrepit old house in the middle of nowhere Trina sat helplessly in the truck as her dad got out and waded through the sea of yellow flow ers He pushed open one side of the big black gate which squealed in protest and then the other side which was just as rusty He hopped back into the driver’s seat without closing the door and let his foot drag through the snapping overgrowth as they crawled to a stop beneath a gnarled arm of a giant oak tree What if I make you a swing and hang it from that big branch Trina sighed disappointed by the house and even more disappointed by her dad for still thinking of her as a little girl He should know that almost fifth graders were too old for swings Reluctantly Trina got out of the truck She felt as limp 66
as the tall flowers all around her until the eerie feeling that someone was watching her from the highest window a window that was all boarded up snapped her to atten tion She shivered despite the heat Poppo do you think it’s haunted You and your imagination he said shaking his head If I’ve said it once I’ve said it a million times There’s no such thing as a haunted house He hooked his thumbs in his belt loops and looked up at the house Try seeing her for the masterpiece she really is Pointing up at the roof he said See the fancy corbels under the eaves Trina had no idea what a corbel was but she knew she saw nothing but gray weathered wood Sure she said And just think about sitting on the porch and sipping lemonade all afternoon Or sliding down the porch railing into the front yard Almost fifth graders were also too old for sliding down railings and there was no porch and the front yard was an overgrown mass of weeds but Trina nodded anyway Arguing with Poppo at a time like this would be as hope less as the old house And that turret The what Trina said feeling her voice getting sad der and sadder That little tower with the pointed roof He cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted Rapunzel Rapunzel Right then as if answering his call a small bird darted from its nest in the eaves which made Trina wonder what else might be living in the big abandoned house 777
That turret is fit for a princess just like you Windows on all sides for a view of your own country gardens Then he yanked one of the tall yellow flowers from the ground roots and all Look at all these weeds No wonder they call her Goldenrod Who The house The house has a name Sure she does And isn’t she amazing She’s what you call a grande dame He bowed to the house as if it were royalty I am honored to make your acquaintance Madam Goldenrod Trina looked up at Madam Goldenrod but the only amazing thing about her was that she was still standing Even so she tried to play along with her dad’s giant dream She even tried to imagine the house with a coat of paint She’s such a beautiful But there was nothing at all beautiful about the house Trina’s eyes shifted from the drab clapboard house to the sparkling meadow of yellow goldenrod Yellow she said trying to sound excited After all yellow was her mother’s favorite color Then yellow she’ll be her dad said He took the steps nothing but stacked bricks and rotten planks two at a time and playfully knocked on the faded No Trespassing sign tacked to the door The key is under the mat Trina reminded him but that didn’t matter One of the big wooden double doors creaked open on its own and he stepped inside Trina slowly went up the makeshift steps and paused at 88
the open door She lifted a corner of the ragged doormat which was anything but welcoming No key She peeled away the doormat completely revealing a rectangle of dark wood where the doormat had sat forever but still no key Trina her dad’s distant voice called Coming she said But with her first step across the threshold into the pitch-black house she felt like she was barging in where she didn’t belong As if the darkness was a suspicious old lady her white cobweb hair tied up in a bun standing with her dusty hands on her hips blocking Trina’s way Trina stopped dead in her tracks wishing she had stayed in the truck Power must be off her dad called from somewhere deep in the darkness Shoot he said as Trina heard him slap his pockets No flashlight Lucky I still have my lighter A tiny dot of flame appeared like a lightning bug The creaks of his footsteps moved farther away taking the dot of light with him and then something squealed like a mad cat Poppo Trina yelled scared that the house had got ten him Just a squeaky door he hollered back More doors squeaked and boots clomped down hollow steps He must have been heading to the basement to turn on the electricity if a house this old even had electricity The air inside the house was thick and somehow it even smelled forgotten The odor tickled her nose and she sneezed so hard the noise echoed around her making her feel very small and very alone Except for that strange feeling she wasn’t 99
