Cantonelli's Crest

The car ride back to the estate was eerily quiet as the friction between Grant and Elise grew. Elise was so tense in the driver’s seat that she didn’t even turn the radio on. Grant stared out the passenger side window, watching the silver guard rail on the interstate move with the car. Lucas chose to sit in back to avoid the feud. He could not believe that Elise had given up their position just to warn Grant of Mona’s devious plan. It could have backfired and most importantly the other employees may have seen the altercation. Lucas smiled as he realized the real problem of the situation. He shook his head, looking at Elise in the rear-view mirror. “You have feelings for Grant, don’t you?” Lucas said to Elise telepathically. Elise jerked the steering wheel to the right, surprised at Lucas’ question and everyone’s body jerked with the motion of the car. Grant turned his head to look at her to see if she was okay. “Sorry there was a possum in the middle of the lane,” Elise lied defiantly while glaring at Lucas through the mirror. To change the subject, Elise asked Lucas how he handled the woman and if anyone had seen them. She had to fill in Uncle Roman about the assignment when they returned, and she needed to have her facts straight. “Oh. I erased her memories of seeing us but made sure she remembered Grant’s speech. I placed in her mind that she then saw a mouse run across the floor. Right now she’s probably still standing on top of Grant’s desk screaming and flailing her arms. Then I slipped out the side door,” he said as he laughed. All three of them laughed and smiled as they were picturing Mona in hysterics while other people were trying to calm her down. The notion was devious but at least Grant knew that vampires had a good sense of humor. It seemed to help lighten the mood which eased the tension just in time as they approached the entrance of the estate. As they pulled up the cobblestone circle driveway to the main entrance, they saw a moving van parked out front. There were many workers going in and out of the vehicle and into the mansion. Looking at some of the furniture, Grant realized it was all of his belongings from his condo. “What are my things doing here? I told Roman that I would make arrangements to move by the end of the week,” Grant asked, perplexed. “One thing you have to learn around here is that Roman does everything when it’s good for him. You were taking too long,” Lucas said as he patted Grant’s shoulder and exited the vehicle. Grant looked at Elise in disbelief of Roman’s lack of patience.