Following his Footsteps?

With my phone still out, I remember to give the real estate agent a call to update her on my progress so she can put the house up for sale. 

She picks up on the second ring.

“Hello,  Georgina Realty”

“Hi, this is Athera” I say nervously, I’ve only talked to this person a couple times and still unsure of how all this works. With what I’ve discovered about my grandfather, I’m even more on edge at the moment.

“Athera, yes, how is the clean out of your grandfather's home going?” She says cheerfully, she must be having a good day. 

“It’s going well,” I say and pause, “You should be able to put the house on the market in a couple days. There are just a couple of last things I need to finish tomorrow.”

“That’s wonderful news! Let me know when you’ve officially finished” She says quickly.

“Of course, thank you.”

“Thank you. Have a great day Athera.” 

With that, the line goes dead. I guess she has other things to do. Realtors are apparently really busy, or at least she is. From what I’ve researched, she is one of the best in the county, the one that everyone wants to work with. 

I take one last moment to go through the house one more time. Nothing is left except what's in the attic.

I check the notebook one more time before I leave, pulling it out from my bag to check the instructions. It says to leave some of the cash on the attic ladder, which I do, then walk out the door and heading home.

The rest of the week goes on, I attend my classes, wondering when I will hear...or not hear about the completion of the artifacts being moved. I still don’t quite understand what is happening. The money and notebook are stashed in the back of my closet because I am unsure of what to do. Do I follow in my grandfather's footsteps? Do I just end it all when I maybe get the confirmation that the artifacts were taken care of?
Stuck in the spiraling thoughts, my phone ringing brings my attention back to the present.

"Hello?" I say into the phone, curious about the unknown number.

"Hello, I am calling to confirm that your boxes have been moved into storage 36, have a nice day." the lady on the other line says before hanging up the phone abruptly.

Okay, weird, I'll have to check the notebook again to find out what storage 36 means and then call the authorities to go take them to the proper museum. But it’s good to know that its taken care of and the house is now ready to sell. 

I take the moment to call Georgina Realty and update her. She was thrilled to finally be able to put it on the market. I told her that it’s in her hands and to keep me updated when necessary. 

Once I make it back to my room, I dig in my closet to find the notebook. Pulling it out, I flip through the pages of storage unit numbers, which correspond with locations. Knowing the needed address, I call up the proper number for the authorities and pass along the information as an anonymous tipster.

With the attic cleared out and my grandfather's old home now empty and up for sale, I decide to continue on with life.

But no matter what I do, the question is always lingering in my mind. Continue my grandfather's legacy, or stay my course. Getting all those boxes out of the attic wasn't very eventful, but if I continue with this path the danger and complexity will surely increase.

Still trying to make a decision, the drive home from another full day, and a rather full week of classes passes by quickly. As I sit in my driveway contemplating, trying to organize my thoughts and wants, but something doesn't feel right. I glance around, into the rearview to check my surroundings, when suddenly I feel a small pinch in my neck.

My head aches something awful. I slowly blink my eyes open to a bright light and a small room. When I finally get my eyes fully open, I can see a small table with a couple of chairs, I am laying on a simple cot, and sitting in one of the chairs drinking a steaming cup is a middle aged man. He looks a bit chubby, like he sits too much at a desk, has a trim beard slightly whitening, with glasses sitting at the edge of a slightly pointy nose. 

I tried to move, to sit up a bit. The man looked up from the paper he was reading and smiled.

“Hello”, he spoke softly, in a kind manner, “I’m Agent Hegras, I was your grandfather's connection in the agency.”

“Oh, um, hello” I say back, still groggy from whatever they knocked me out with. I finally sit up, swinging my legs over the side of the cot. 

“Why was I knocked out?” I ask softly, wishing I sounded more confident than scared.

“Ah, yes, well standard procedure for new informants. And, I wanted to make sure our meeting remained secret in location as well as in general.” He responded matter of factly, back to reading his paper.

“When you feel up to standing, come and sit with me, have a cup of tea.” He gestures to the pot and extra cup sitting on the table that I missed before. The white porcelain blends into the wall unless you are looking for it. 

Confused and a bit annoyed about his casual attitude to knocking me out and kidnapping me, it takes a couple more moments for my head to become clearer. I attempt to stand, wobble a bit and slowly walk the few steps to the table to sit down across from Agent Hegras. He puts down the paper for a moment to pour a cup of tea and slides it across the table. I pick it up, cradling it in both hands and take a deep inhale of the warm flavor. It smells of cinnamon and cardamom, must be a chai variation. 

We sit in silence for a couple moments while I take a few sips of tea. It’s not too hot, just warm enough to feel the heat fill my body and not burn my tongue. Beginning to feel the awkward silence, I decide to break the silence and set down my cup.

“So, Agent Hegras was it? What did you mean by, new informant?” I ask with a bit more curious confidence than before. 

He sets down his newspaper, takes a sip of his tea and takes a breath. 

“Your grandfather and I worked out the procedure for after he passed. I am sorry for your loss Athera, your grandfather was a great man…”

“What? A procedure? I’m sorry, but I think you have the wrong idea, I haven't decided about following in his footsteps yet” I say rather quickly, interrupting the Agent, and stuttering a bit. I am not usually assertive, but this is happening too quickly for me to process properly, especially when I don’t know what to do.

“Of course,” Agent Hegras said after a moment's silence, “I understand this is a lot to comprehend and yes, you do have a decision to make. That was the reason for our meeting. I wanted to talk to you directly, give you the reality of what you would do, what your grandfather did.”

Staring at my cup on the table, I open my mouth to speak and stop. My mouth is gaping open like a fish. There is so much on my mind…

What do I decide? I feel like I have questions, and yet I’m not sure what to ask. 

Taking another sip of the tea, I decide to focus on gathering information. Right? More information equals a more informed decision, especially one that will be so life altering. 

With that, I sit up a bit straighter and look across the table at Agent Hegras. 

“Alright, tell me everything.”