“This is news to us,” Mom said.

Mrs. Redmond sighed. “Well then, I’ll get right to it.” She pulled out a stack of papers and set them on the coffee table. “The estate is sizable, which is why I was brought in. It was left solely to you, Briseis.”

“So, it’s a house?” I asked. “Like, a big house?”

Mrs. Redmond laughed. “Yes. A large house. But there are also personal possessions and the land it all sits on. About forty acres.”

Mo gasped.

“Forty acres? How big is that?” I asked. “We measure things in city blocks around here.”

Mrs. Redmond thought for a moment. “Think a football field without the end zones. That’s about an acre.”

“And we’ve got forty?” My mind raced. That was a lot of land, and that probably meant a lot of living, growing things.

Mrs. Redmond nodded. I could feel my mom’s hand trembling on my leg.

“Where is it?” I asked.

“Upstate. Right outside of Rhinebeck.”

“And it’s mine?” I asked.

“It’s yours,” Mrs. Redmond said. “This is exciting, isn’t it? Like I said, most people are expecting something when it comes to wills and estates. But you all look genuinely shocked. Forgive me. It’s nice to not have to watch people argue over who gets what.”

Mo shrugged. “Sounds messy.”

“Legacies are a complicated thing,” Mrs. Redmond said. “Especially when something of value is involved.” She returned her attention to the stack of paperwork. “Everything was arranged before Miss Colchis passed away. We’re able to skip probate altogether if you have a legal guardian who can sign the paperwork for you. And when you turn eighteen, everything will be put in your name.” She handed me a large manila envelope. “I would ask that you keep an open mind when you go to see the place. Miss Colchis was an eccentric person. In the envelope are notes and keys that she asked be provided to you, Briseis.”

“What kind of notes?” I asked.

“I’m not sure,” said Mrs. Redmond. “They are intended for only you to see. My job is to make sure her wishes are followed to the letter, and I am very good at what I do.” She smiled proudly. “I once had a woman leave an entire house and several million dollars to three tabby cats and a basset hound. Her actual children tried to contest the will, but it was ironclad and I made sure those animals got everything they were owed.”

“Lucky pets,” Mom said in disbelief.

Mrs. Redmond nodded in agreement.

Mo took out her phone. “The estate is near Rhinebeck? That’s two and a half hours from here.”

“It’s a little out of the way,” Mrs. Redmond said. “Maybe a lot out of the way, but it’s all yours. There are a few stipulations that I have to go over with you.” She read from a sheet of yellow notebook paper. “Miss Colchis asked that you not sell or otherwise change the property until you’re at least eighteen. She seemed to think you’d find it agreeable once you’ve had a chance to go see it. The property has been in her family for many, many generations.”

“What kind of taxes would we have to pay on a place that big?” Mom asked.

She was already thinking about this from every angle.

“Taxes, insurance, and utilities are paid through a trust,” Mrs. Redmond said. “It’s been done that way for many years. It’s easier when a house is completely paid for, less to worry about.”

I opened the envelope and two keys fell into my lap: a small, modern-looking one, and a larger one that looked much older, like a skeleton key.

“It’s a big house—lots of rooms,” Mrs. Redmond said. “I think the big key should open most of the doors inside. You’ll have to do some cleaning, maybe some redecorating, but I’m sure you’ll love it.”

I held the keys in my hand. A big house sounded nice but going there meant I’d have to leave Brooklyn where I could avoid green spaces if I wanted to—and even then, it was hard to simply exist. This new place sounded like it was literally in the middle of forty acres of wilderness. I’d been open to hearing what Mrs. Redmond had to say, but now that I had, I didn’t know if I wanted to deal with it.

A scratching noise sounded from behind my bedroom door. I didn’t even glance in that direction.

“What’s the catch?” Mom asked. “It sounds too good to be true, which means it probably is. So, what’s the catch?”

“Nothing’s ever as good as it seems, right?” Mrs. Redmond said. She straightened her skirt. “I’ll be honest with you. Rhine-beck is picturesque. It’s a touristy spot. But once you get past that you’ll see that it’s not quite what you expect.”

“What do you mean?” I was looking for an out. With everything going on, this wasn’t what I needed. I didn’t want to go someplace where the day-to-day would be harder for me. “Not what we’d expect? That sounds kind of scary.”

Mrs. Redmond laughed and her face relaxed. “Look at me, scaring you off before you even get there. What I mean to say is, Rhinebeck is full of colorful characters, but you shouldn’t let that put you off.”

“I’ve lived in New York my entire life,” Mo said. “I’ve seen my share of colorful characters.”

Mom turned to Mo. “I’m a pessimist. Give it to me the way you see it. You’re always looking on the bright side.”

Mo thought for a moment. I hoped she’d tell Mom this was too much to think about and that it’d be better if we stayed in Brooklyn. “Maybe this is exactly what is supposed to happen right now.”

My heart sank.

“We’ve been struggling,” she continued. “And we’re about to struggle a whole lot more with this rent hike. We’re gonna be paying forty-two hundred a month.”

“Are you serious?” I didn’t realize it would be going up a thousand dollars. I looked around the apartment. It was cute, but not forty-two hundred dollars’ worth of cute, and a rent hike that big sounded illegal but landlords were always doing some shady shit.

“One of your parents will have to sign for you, and I brought duplicates of all the documents,” said Mrs. Redmond. “As soon as you sign, you can go look around.”