Chapter 84 uninvited guest

Carol was sitting at a coffee table in shirt and trousers, alone, leisurely looking out at the clear San Francisco Bay from the nineteenth floor of the building.Yesterday she sent off her tall, awkward husband, Harry, on a shopping trip to Europe.With their business on track after all these years of painstaking work, Carol let the factory guys take care of things themselves and her husband traveled to Europe for two weeks by himself.As for myself, I enjoy a piece of tranquility in a beautifully decorated apartment. However, this tranquility was interrupted by the doorbell.She put down her teacup and frowned, feeling very unhappy.Anyone who wants to see her should talk to her through the intercom outside the gate below, and let her press the button to let the other person enter the elevator area.But someone came in recklessly.

She had no one waiting, no deliveries, no friends, in fact, she had no friends, only a few business acquaintances.Even if the administrator wants to come up, he has to call first to let him know.The doorbell remembered again. She got up, opened the door, and saw a little old woman looking up at her with an apologetic, worried, and beseeching smile on her face.Although it was summer, she was still wearing a rag coat and an old hat, and she was carrying a suitcase made of cardboard and a knitted bag.The old woman asked hoarsely, "Is that Carol?" "Yes, my name is Carol."

"I'm Harry's aunt," she said again with an odd smile, a mouthful of false teeth. Harry's aunt?Carol thought, feeling very uncomfortable.She had never met the old woman, but Harry's aunt had raised him after his mother died. Although they haven't been in touch for years, he talks about her often.Carol knew that her aunt had never given birth and lived in Nebraska. A farmer Harry once told her that his aunt was very kind to him, helping him through various difficulties and educating him.Now, this aunt came here to disturb her long-awaited peace. "Harry's aunt?" she said. "From Nebraska?"

"Exactly," said the old woman, and laughed so loudly that it sounded like a hen crowing. "He wrote to me after you and Harry got married, so I know your name. We haven't corresponded for a long time, though. I found your address in the phone book, and now, I really want to hurry up." see him." Carol took a breath and said reluctantly, "Aren't you coming in, Aunt?" "Of course you have to come in," the old woman walked in quickly.She stood in the spacious living room, looking around enviously. "I like it here! I really like it here!" Turning around, looking at Carol with bright blue eyes. "Can I have a look at the other rooms? After you've finished, tell me which room my luggage is in."

"Well—" Carol wanted to find an excuse to let the old woman know that it was impossible to live here, but she couldn't think of one.After all, she was the aunt who helped Harry in his most difficult times.Yes, the relationship between her and Harry was not so good, it could even be said to be indifferent.However, Harry is not a very thoughtful person, he is just a simple guy.Their business is too important to allow them to divorce.Because without her guidance, Harry would go bankrupt very quickly. She looked at her aunt, who was watching her eagerly, waiting for her to show her around. "Yes, of course, I'll carry your luggage." Carol took the luggage. "This box is very light." "In this world," said the aunt cheerfully. "That's all I have."

"All of you?" Carol asked. Aunt nodded. "I have been selling and selling property over the years. After my uncle passed away, I had nothing to do. I first sold movable property, then sold land piece by piece, and finally even sold the house. They rented me a room upstairs so I could live there so long. Then, I had nothing to sell, so I bought a bus ticket to come to San Francisco. Will Harry be back from get off work soon to see his old aunt? " Carol shook her head. "He's gone to Europe. He left yesterday. He's going to go for two weeks. He won't call me until he gets to Rome. Where is he now? Even I don't know."

"Oh, my God," sighed the old woman, and then smiled again. "So I'll have to wait until he comes back. Ah, let's see this nice place before I can settle down and live where you want me to live." Carol felt that her face was not good-looking.She said unhappily: "Auntie, how did you find this place from the long-distance bus station? How did you get on the elevator? People always use the walkie-talkie first, and then—" "After I got off the bus in the city," the old woman said very Said proudly. "I was told to take a few buses to get here. I did. Before I got off the bus, the driver told me where to go. I did as well. I came to this building and found your name and apartment number , someone just came out of the gate, so I took the opportunity to come in, and that was it.”

"That's it!" Carol said, knowing she looked upset, but not caring. "Go, look at the room!" They passed Carol's convenient and beautiful kitchen, and the aunt kept applauding and admiring it. Then there is the study.Aunt again praised.Then there is the master bedroom, which has two large single beds, a full-length mirror, a bathroom, and heavy curtains. There are floor-to-ceiling windows in the opening, and a balcony outside the window. Looking at the bay from there is another view. "My God!" cried the old woman in a low voice. Finally, Carol reluctantly showed the old woman to a little-used guest room with a large bed and comfortable furniture, which also had a bathroom, and a well-stocked bar. "Oh, my God! Oh, my God!" the aunt repeatedly exclaimed.She put the knitting bag on the bed, sat down on the edge of the bed, and started bouncing up and down, her eyes shining brightly.

Holding back his breath, Carol put the box on a shelf and saw the old woman staring intently at the bar. "I have another question, Aunt," Carol said. The old woman stopped bobbing up and down, and her bright eyes fell on Carol. "what is the problem?" "How long are you going to live here? "Oh, my God," the old woman shook her head. "I have nowhere to go." Then, that apologetic, sad, pleading smile. That night, at bedtime, Carol decided that Auntie would only be staying for two weeks, and when Harry came back, she would be told to go away.The thought of spending a fortnight with the old woman made her sleepless, sat up, and cursed under her breath.Then she put on her nightgown and thought of the kitchen to drink milk, which calmed her down—she hated taking drugs.

She went quietly from the bedroom into the hall, and as she passed the guest room where her aunt lived, she heard the sound of glass clinking behind the closed door. The next morning, Carol got dressed and went to the kitchen to make her regular breakfast: a small glass of orange juice, a hard-boiled egg, a slice of bread and a glass of spiced slices.She began to cook her eggs, thinking of her husband, who, despite his absence, still made her life unhappy—this time because of the old woman who lived in the guest room. She pursed her lips, cooked the eggs, made tea, put the bread in the oven, and hoped that her aunt would wake up later.At this moment, the old woman appeared in the kitchen and said enthusiastically, "I slept so soundly. Let me tell you, I like that house. And, let me tell you, I'm going to starve to death."

Carol took the hard-boiled eggs out of the water and put them in the cup, trying to control her voice, she said, "Auntie, how do you cook your eggs?" "You don't have to bother." "It doesn't matter, I have a lot in the refrigerator." "Well," her eyes sparkled expectantly. "I don't eat much. I admit I ate a lot last night. However, I can eat a little for my health." "So what do you want to eat?" "I've always liked eggs. Four eggs are enough. Fry and turn over. If you have bacon, add a little more, but don't fry too much. A few slices of bread, butter, jam, and more Stir-fried mashed potatoes with cooked minced meat are even better." As he spoke, he sat down at the small dining table in the kitchen and watched Carol put down his breakfast and prepare it for her with a straight face. The old woman didn't help, but her mouth kept talking.She talked about Nebraska's hot summers and cold winters, about irrigation and drought, about cattle and pigs and chickens and horses.Carol had grown up in the city and had no interest in any of that.Now, all she wanted was to get out of the house. Go shopping, out of sight, out of mind. As she piled the pile of ready-made breakfasts on the plate, the aunt said, "You didn't make coffee, did you? We always keep a pot on the farm, and life is hard without coffee." "I've got tea ready," Carol replied promptly. "Don't you like tea?" He said, placing a plate full of food in front of the old woman, plus a knife and fork and a napkin. "Oh, I haven't had tea for a long time; it would be nice for a change." Carol poured the tea and put it on the table, the old woman took a sip and exclaimed: "Wow! No, it's too bitter, you'd better boil a pot of coffee! " Carol was so angry that his hands were shaking, he took out the electric coffee pot, filled it with coffee and water, put it on the table, plugged it in, and said: "It will be fine in a while, I'm going out to buy things now, you can use it slowly. "Her voice was cold, with some sarcasm. The old woman put the food in her mouth unceremoniously, and said with a twinkle in her eye, "Now you can go, Carol, you really can." "Carol went into the living room and picked up her wallet from the floor mat, which was her habit; every time she went from the bedroom to the kitchen, she threw the wallet there. She took the wallet and took the elevator to the garage below. She got into a small sports car and drove to the nearest supermarket. She shopped according to the shopping list she wrote the day before, and now she had to take double orders for everything. She pushed the car and waited in line for the checkout. When she opened When I checked the wallet, I found it was empty. She stared blankly at her wallet, convinced that she took the money from a box at the bottom of the bedroom chest of drawers. She didn't like to carry large sums of money with her, so she only took two twenty-dollar bills.She has always been in charge of their family's money. "I think I have to pay the check," she told the cashier. "I seem to have forgotten to bring money." "It doesn't matter, if you like, it doesn't matter to keep the books, your credit is very good. Mrs. Harley. "No," she said, she never took credit. "I'll write you a check." When she signed the check, she recalled the old woman's route that morning: from the guest room to the living room, to the floor mat, to the wallet on top, she reached in with her veiny hands and took forty dollars... She returned When I arrived at the apartment, I saw my aunt sitting upright in a chair without washing the cups and plates she had eaten, with a smile on her face.As soon as Carol came back, she began to talk incessantly, knitting nimbly with both hands at the same time.But Carol ignored her, put away her purchases, went straight into the bedroom, closed the door, and checked the locked locket, the key to which she always carried with her. Inside the box were some ancient and valuable coins and jewels, as well as modern treasures.She quickly counted the cash, and the total was four hundred and sixty dollars, when she remembered it was five hundred.She did take out forty yuan and put it in her wallet. This was not a dream.The old woman stole four thousand yuan. She locked the box angrily, took it to the large closet, and put it in the corner of the highest floor.Then I locked the closet door and left the bedroom, wishing I had put the lock on in the first place. "What's for dinner?" the old woman screamed when Carol returned to the living room. "I don't know what to have for lunch yet," Carol said sternly. "We call lunch dinner at home," replied my aunt, nodding her head. "Eat a good meal at noon, which is called dinner, and what you eat at night is called dinner." Carol straightly picked up the old woman's plate and sent it to the dishwasher. The days that followed were long and painful.The old woman eats, sits, hooks, talks and sleeps.She was still wearing the same dress as when she arrived, which upset Carol. One morning, after breakfast, she saw Carol heading for the door with her purse and laundry basket, and she asked, "Are you going to do the laundry?" "Yes," said Carol, always impatient when he talked to her. "Then, it's time for me to wash it too. Wait a minute, I'll take off this dress, and you can wash it by the way." "There is an automatic washing machine in the basement, so you can wash it yourself." "Oh, well," said my aunt. "Take off that coat for me," Carroll said. The aunt came in and handed out the clothes, and Carol took hers down to the basement. As she did the laundry, she thought about things that had been missing for days: half a dozen expensive imported china dolls, a gold plate, a small etching that she and Harry had been at an art fair in France. Discovered, the maker is a very promising young artist.She kept a close eye on her purse, but nothing else was missing. The day before, she questioned her aunt about the missing things, but the old woman shook her head and said, "I don't know, those things must have stood up by themselves and gone away." Carol really couldn't do anything with her, the old woman never left the apartment, either inside or outside the apartment, and when Carol wasn't out on the street or in the room, she just looked at Carol intently.At noon the day before, Carol entered the guest room to look for the missing things while the old woman was eating.But the old woman jumped up and rushed over to Carol who was pushing the door and said, "If you want something inside, tell me, and I'll get it!" She smiled. "It's no choice to depend on others, but I like to have my own world, I hope you don't take offense." The washing machine is full of water and the machine starts to spin.Carol sat down and recalled what happened after the unexpected visitor arrived.She felt that the old woman was nothing like the aunt Harry had described, who was kind and hearty. Yes, my aunt is hearty, but a little rough, even a little evil and selfish.He said my aunt was always kind and understanding, but if the old woman had any kindness for her mistress, it didn't show it. And her appearance, according to Harry, is very beautiful, but Carol can't see any beauty in her. However, she believes that childhood memories have become idealized over the years.Those memories of Harry may have been completely imagined by him.The old woman never mentioned her early life with her nephew, and the old people like to talk about the past most. Is that old woman a fake? Carol thought it was a possibility.The old woman might have actually come by bus from Nebraska, but that didn't necessarily prove she was Harry's aunt, she might have known the real aunt, found out about Harry and the real aunt's early years, and came forward to impersonate her.She might have heard that Harry had a slightly successful career and decided to put it to good use. Carol felt that there was another possibility, that is: this old woman is simply a professional liar.Harry might tell people about his early life with his aunt in the office, in the pub, or wherever, so the old crook upstairs knows and pretends to be aunt. Carol clenched her hands. When she returned to the apartment, she found the old woman sitting upright on the chair again, with a smile on her face. She had obviously changed clothes, which might have been bought in the 1930s.Carol threw her the clean laundry and said, "You iron it yourself." "Oh, no need to iron, really no need to iron. Thank you, Carol." Carol sat down next to the old woman, and suddenly noticed that the old woman was wearing perfume after taking a bath—Carol's favorite perfume.She has always kept it in the bathroom, no wonder she couldn't find it when she checked it."Auntie, we have to talk," she said nervously. "I just like to talk, I can talk all day. Do you want to hear about home?" Or "I want to know, are you really an aunt?" "She felt she had no choice but to cut to the chase. "What did you say, Carol?" She said it again. "The old woman laughed and shook her head and slapped the arm of the chair." That was the funniest thing I've ever heard. " "I have to know," Carol refused to stop there. "Why do you think I'm not?" "Because I've never met you, and Harry isn't home, I'm only relying on your story, so you could be anyone. If you want to continue living here, you need to show identification. " "Carol, you've become a most annoying person." "Don't talk about this, you must have an ID card, it may be in your bag, can you show it to me?" "Ah," the old woman shook her head. "Can't think of anything to prove your identity." "What about the driver's license?" "I've never driven a car in my life." Carol was silent for a moment, then said, "Do you have a Social Security card?" "Uncle never applied for that kind of thing, we just lived off that piece of land." "At your age, you don't have legal documents?" "If there is, I don't know, I have never received a dime from the government." "I can call the farm and ask, and they can tell me if you left the farm and came here." The old woman shook her head vigorously. "There's no phone there." "Well, then, I heard that everyone in the country town knew everyone, and I called the exchange over there to find out, and—" "That didn't help, I've hardly been in town in years, and I know The people in my house are all dead now, and the people who bought my land, the people I rented the house from, don't like to be around people. So, I don't think there's much use in calling." Carol took a deep breath, and said resolutely: "Since you can't produce anything to prove your identity, then I can only ask you to go, and go now." The old woman leaned towards Carol: "Let's go?" "yes." The aged eyes became cold, and the shriveled mouth was pursed. "If you want to drive me away, I will fight you hard!" Carol was terrified, seeing the old woman stretch out her claw-like hands to her. "I'm going to gouge out your eyeballs! Catch you, bite you! You are not allowed to bully me, understand?" Carol jumped up and ran away, the old woman laughing behind her.Carol went back to her bedroom and heard the old woman say from behind: "We haven't decided what to have for dinner yet!" Carol sat in the bedroom with the French windows facing the balcony wide open because it was still hot.She wanted to pack up and move to the hotel until Harry came back.But then the whole apartment was left to that horrible old woman.No, she thought, can't do that. She wanted to call the police, tell the police her fear and suspicion, and ask them to investigate.But she knew she couldn't do that, the police would come and question her aunt, Harry would be angry if she was really her aunt, and their marriage was already strained enough that it couldn't stand any more. She thought, getting up to check the locked cash box again, and found it still in place. She decided that she could only hang out with the old woman until Harry came back. She called a nearby supermarket and they agreed to deliver her groceries.Then she called the pharmacy and asked the pharmacist to send her the sedative and sleeping pills according to the prescription, which she rarely used.She asked the pharmacy to send two copies, because she was going to travel abroad by boat.After putting down the phone, she felt nervous, and she couldn't sleep well for several nights.She's going to get a good night's sleep tonight. After the pharmacy delivered the medicine, she took it to the bathroom, stood in front of the big mirror, and looked at herself for a while.She thought her eyes were strange, and she knew why, because she knew that the old woman was dangerous, and she was afraid. Carol is forced to live in the same apartment as her, with no one to talk to or rely on. It was four more days before Harry called back from Rome.It would be great if there was a bosom friend who could make a phone call and confide in her heart. For the first time in her life, she felt the importance of a friend. However, she has no friends.She is stuck.She poured out the sedative, swallowed it, and waited for it to take effect... She managed to pass the day, the old woman dangling before her eyes, but she ignored it.Before going to bed that night, she swallowed sleeping pills, and she slept soundly.But after getting up at noon the next day, I was tired and dizzy.The old woman sat in the kitchen waiting for her breakfast, and Carol mechanically prepared it for her.The old woman was nagging, and the harsh voice made Carol unbearable, so he had to leave the kitchen to swallow more sedatives.When she came back, she brought a large plate of breakfast to the person who called herself aunt, and then hid in the empty living room with a teacup. The days passed surprisingly slowly.Although Carol was very careful, valuables kept disappearing.The mouse was waiting for an opportunity to steal, and it was impossible to guard against.Carol did not take more medicine than prescribed by the doctor, but she felt unwell and groggy. At noon the day before Harry called back from Rome, Carol felt very unwell and decided to take a shower while the old woman was gorging herself in the kitchen. When she got out of the shower, she still felt dizzy.She dressed and went into the aisle.When passing the guest room, she heard the sound of glass colliding again, and she continued to walk towards the kitchen angrily, preparing to wash the dishes. She suddenly found that the door of her bedroom was opened a crack, frowning, and hurried over. Although she still felt dizzy, she couldn't hold back her anger any longer.She saw the old woman with her back turned to her, bending over to put the contents of Carol's locked box into her knitted bag.Apparently, the box had been pried open. "What are you doing?" Carol yelled. The old lady turned and stared at Carol with fiery eyes.Her mouth was caved in, Carol knew, and the old woman had taken out her false teeth, which made her look savage and terrible. The old woman actually yelled at her: "Get out of here!" "you can not--" "I can!" screamed the old woman.A gnarled hand reached into the bag and pulled out a knife.She swung the knife and approached Carol. Carol dodged left and right, nearly falling, and she yelled drowsily, "Please!" However, the old woman kept pushing, and Carol backed away again and again. The knife swung and stabbed.The old woman's toothless mouth still yelled: "I want what you have! I want everything from you!" Carol raised his hands to protect himself, stepping back step by step. Her calf touched the balcony railing, and only then did she realize that she had exited the French window and reached the balcony.As the old hag approached, she felt chills all over her body. The hand holding the knife kept waving, and the other hand stretched out to Carol, getting closer and closer.Carol opened her mouth wide, but couldn't make a sound.The anesthesia and extreme fear in her body made her unable to move. Then, the hand that wasn't holding the knife, was pressed against her chest, and with a push, Carol threw back and into the air like a petrified bird. Harry was sprawled on his back in the large leather chair, with his feet resting on the arms.He grinned and smiled at his aunt sitting at the table.Each of them had a glass of wine beside them. "Ah, aunt," he said. "You're amazing, I mean it." It's all right now, Harry. said the old woman, with a pleasant smile. "It's good of you to be here, really, I'm telling the truth. It's just as I wrote you in my letter before I went to Europe, and if anything happens to Carol, you can live here with me for the rest of your life gone." "We haven't been in touch for so many years. Thanks to you, you still remember my old aunt and sent me money to travel to San Francisco. I'll come right away, right?" Harry laughed and took a sip of his wine. "It's unfortunate what happened to Carol, and it can happen to you here. Really." "I want to say that this is an arrangement of fate, and nothing can be blamed." Harry nodded. "Like your neighbor in Nebska, got gored by your bull." "Damn fool," said the old woman, sipping her wine. "He was driving the cattle into the pen when that nasty bull came out of the barn and jacked him to death." "I guess he didn't know the barn door was open, maybe you didn't tell him." "It's no use talking now. He should have checked first. He's been bothering me and your uncle anyway. This is not good, that is not good, nagging non-stop every day.Let me tell you, it wasn't me who suffered in the end. " "Well, and the hired hand. How did he run up to the tractor he was driving, knock it over, and kill him?" "Nobody's been able to find out. That idiot must have tripped in front of the tractor to pick something up while it was moving. Well, he's a troublemaker too. He made trouble when your uncle was transporting pigs out of town. You also want to sue me when your uncle comes back." "On the day before my uncle came back, he was crushed to death by a tractor." "I am not lying about the date of his death!" "Uncle's death was also unfortunate, he fell down the barn stairs and broke his neck." "Poor man!" "It's Carol now." "As you say, it's an unfortunate incident. She was ego, though, and you know what the coroner said." "Yes," said Harry, smiling. "She's got so much medicine in her system that she loses her center of gravity and I guess she's dizzy and can't stand" "She's got a bunch of those pills," said the aunt. "I know because I peeked in her medicine cabinet. You know, she probably put it in her tea too.I think she grinds the medicine into powder and boils it in tea, I can assure you, she doesn't seem to get enough of it. "Harry was laughing again." I can't say I don't miss her, but I told you in my letter that she was so domineering, that when I was around she would dictate everything and everything. To nag.I tell you, she's always nagging. " The aunt pursed her lips and smiled, then, the smile disappeared, she tapped on the wine glass and said, "The glass is empty, how about pouring some more?" "Okay!" said Harry, standing up quickly, pouring two glasses of wine, one for the old woman, and returning to the wide chair, stretching his limbs and resting his feet on the armrests. "Auntie, Carol has become a memory. From now on, it's just you and me." The aunt raised her glass, and now she was staring at Harry with cold narrowed eyes.She put down the glass and said, "You know, you've always been a good boy. Before, when we lived together, you were always a good boy, but you were too slow and stupid, you know? You. Stupid, slow! Harry, you haven't done a pretty thing." "That was a long time ago, Aunt," said Harry cheerfully. "Well, I don't think it's changed. I didn't open my mouth to pour the wine, and you didn't react when it was right in front of your eyes. Look at you, whether you're sitting or not, sit up straight, Harry!" "What did you say?" he said. "You heard me, put your feet down, don't lie like that anymore, it's not good for your internal organs, and it also affects digestion." Harry blinked and sat up straight. "Okay, Auntie." "Sit up straight, Harry!" said the old woman sternly. "Straighter!"