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ELEVEN

Lana smelled the aroma of the warm coffee that was in her hands in satisfaction. His breakfast consisted of bread with peanut butter, and coffee was ready.

Sometimes Lana misses her fancy solace while at Merian, but she banishes that feeling all the way. It is not his right to miss such luxury.

His short time in Merian was a sweet, doom-wrapped dream. He doesn't want to remember it anymore. Because the prick of guilt keeps bothering him, every time he remembers Luke-and of course his wife.

Lana shook her hands, expelling the memory in annoyance.

He then brought his breakfast out on the side porch of the house, to enjoy the fresh morning air as usual.

From there, Lana can see a cool view of the trees, perfect to start the day.

Slowly Lana, put her plate on a small table then sat on a long iron swing that was also on the terrace.

The swing was old, like the state of the house, but still solid. Lana checked it out, so she didn't have to be afraid of it. The swing was on the layout facing towards the abandoned land beside his house.

This swing is a favorite of all Aubrey relics. Lana really likes the slow cradle of the thing, while enjoying her morning coffee .

It calms the mind.

The air this morning was already quite cold, because autumn was soon over, but it had not made Lana shiver. He wears a long-sleeved sweater and feels warm.

Lana chews softly while occasionally sipping her coffee. His mind floated on the work he had to finish today.

For almost three weeks he worked at Joan's, and Lana enjoyed it quite a bit.

His job is to help explain what farm work will be done to new guests, including taking them around. After that, he would return to Joan's house, and take care of the guests already present.

Joan's farmhouse, able to receive about 15 guests, in 10 rooms. Almost like a hotel.

The difference is, Joan does not offer room service, such as washing or cleaning the room. The guest is responsible for it themselves. Joan only provides three meals a day.

Because of that Lana's task is not too heavy.

In the morning Lana will ask each guest in the room about what menu they want, then also inform the schedule of work they must follow for the day.

After that, he cleaned and tidied up the room in front that functions like a lobby where guests gather when night falls.

Joan has forbidden him from doing this, because it does not include his duties, but Lana insists. He did not like to sit idly by while waiting for guests to come.

Lana also wants to help Lana's work in the kitchen, but Joan resolutely refuses. There were already two people helping Joan in the kitchen, and she said Lana didn't pass the test to work there.

But Lana sometimes still helps work in the kitchen if her time is free, not work related to cooking, she only helps spend kitchen necessities that are not produced by Joan's land, Joan's land, like cheese and milk, or bread.

Lana stays busy, but with a more relaxed rhythm of work than Melina.

Joan and Erich gave a new meaning to the word abandonment.

Lana's been trying her hardest to get away from them. He always refused, if Joan invited him to chat casually on busy grounds. Lana also rejects the kindness of Erich who never tired of inviting her to eat together.

But it usually never works.

Joan can always find an excuse to talk to her, and Erich strictly forbids her to go home before she eats. So Lana was forced to grant their request.

They also never objected to Lana's cold demeanor. Joan kept talking to her even though Lana rarely responded and her answer was always short

They both turned a blind eye to Lana's defensive nature.

And Lana finally just resigned, he did not try to be more friendly, but he also will not try to be evil by doing rude.

However, she needed a job, and Joan's place gave her a hefty salary, not greater than Melina's, but enough, for almost all her food was supplied by Joan.

Including his breakfast bread and peanut butter. He just needs to buy coffee. This meant that he could save almost all of his salary. For Lana this is a very important factor. That's why he survived

And the night work environment is not bad either.

Lana does not spend a long time in Joan's house, when the sun has set, Lana is usually free to go home after dinner is over.

But the short amount of night time spent there, already kept Lana busy.

Not only did he help one, but two ghosts break away from the house. If not for wanting to work longer there, Lana would have definitely ignored him.

The first ghost made Lana drop the plate in shock.

The ghost did not appear suddenly before him, but the sound of his crying echoed around the house. Not as bad as the singing of the bobo nina he heard in Merian, but enough to make the feathers of Lana's nudge stand up.

After three days of trying not to care, Lana finally gives up and searches for where the ghost actually is, hoping not to meet the ghost of suicide again.

Lana sneaks upstairs as soon as dinner is over, and is relieved that she only encountered the ghost of a young woman wailing in the attic. The ghost was crying on the floor of the attic facing the closed window

But that relief was instantly countered by his ominous form.

The woman seemed to have died in an accident.

His face made Lana unable to look at him for long, as most of them were out of shape.

His right hand was sticking out in a strange position due to the fracture. And one of his legs, obviously left only a little bit of meat that made him still cling.

Lana was actually already about to walk out of the room and cancel her good intentions, but the eye gaze - or a portion of the eye left of her - they met.

And of course Lana had no choice, other than to start greeting and inviting him to chat.

After elaborate introductions and long talks for two nights in a row, the ghost turns out to be eager to see the beautiful Eiger mountain scenery for the last time from the attic.

The woman was a rock climber, and often stayed at Joan's place whenever she visited Grindelwald. He died falling off a cliff while climbing the Eiger mountain.

Lana imagined she was falling on a sharp rocky abyss, as her body was torn apart horribly.

According to him, the most beautiful view of the mountain could be seen from this attic.

Excitedly, Lana tried hard to open the window of the attic that was worn out. Joan must have never opened that window in years.

With the help of a makeshift tool found all around, Lana finally manages to open it. The mouth that was no longer shaped belonged to the woman, immediately exclaimed cheerfully, but then again disappointed, because it looked only a dark night scene.

She came back cheerful after Lana said the sun would rise in about two hours, and said she would wait patiently.

Lana had a fight in her heart to tell him that she would 'sleep' as soon as the sun came up, but Lana ended up silent, not having the heart to ruin her hopes.

All Lana can do is listen to the story while occasionally looking at the clock, so as not to miss when the sun will rise.

And when the sky red finally materialized and gave rise to the sun, Lana could hear the woman's sincere thanks before her figure became more transparent and finally out of sight.

Lana hoped that the dimly lit scenery she could only see in a short time earlier was enough to calm her down.

The next night Lana had dinner with a light heart.

Because the sound of crying was no longer heard. Lana manages to get the woman to leave, despite having to pay the price for her efforts.

Lana almost fell unconscious from two consecutive days of not sleeping. His body almost collapsed on a pile of wood for the fireplace, if only one of the guests who was being accompanied, did not catch his body deftly.

Fortunately the guest was from Seattle, so Lana could manipulate her explanation of Joan into not overdoing it.

Lana just said that she slipped, deliberately skipping the meaning of the words 'pass out' and 'fall' when translating the guest's speech.

Joan looks doubtful, but eventually releases Lana, on condition that she work inside only. Joan herself finally led the guest to the room. Lana's work ration, much of which was cut by Joan that day. And once again Lana felt very grateful.

The second ghost she met in Joan's kitchen, was a little funny.

She met him, when one of Joan's servants in the kitchen could not come, and Joan was forced to allow him to help in the kitchen, even though his job was only to wash the furniture as in Melina.

Lana almost threw the pot she was holding in shock, as a ghost appeared in the corner of the kitchen, close to where she was washing dishes.

The ghost of a middle-aged man with a bald head, excitedly he smelled the scent of cooking in the air.

Lana was already going to ignore him, but the man greeted her first.

She learns of Lana's efforts to get rid of ghosts in the attic and is very grateful. He was also disturbed by her crying. She plainly asks Lana to fulfill her final wish.

That desire is what makes Lana inexhaustible.

He was infatuated with Joan's cooking, especially the meat pie. While still alive, he bought meat pie almost every day from Joan.

The spirit fell ill for several months before dying, causing him to skip the routine. Now he wants to taste it again.

Ghosts are unnecessary and cannot eat of course. But according to him, it is enough to see one pan steaming hot to make him satisfied.

Lana had already tasted Joan's meat pie, and quite understood why the ghost was charging her. The pie was delicious, more delicious than Marco made.

Eventually Lana timidly asks Joan to make her the pie.

Joan was surprised, but with a wide smile, eagerly, responded. Too excited maybe, until the whole guest gets a meat pie for free that night.

He called out for a happy voice while inhaling the delicious aroma of the pie. He circled the pie slowly, and enjoyed the savory aroma that rose along with the warm steam.

As the thank you continued, the ghost disappeared. For this case, Lana does not need to stay up late. He only needed to wait for the kitchen to quiet down when he handed it over.

Besides the two of them Lana does not see any other ghosts, except the one following the guest.

But Lana's an expert at being ignorant of ghosts like that.

Although one of the guests came last week, followed by a female ghost with a wet figure like Diell.

Lana can only surmise that the ghost is his ex-wife, as he is in Grindelwald for his honeymoon with his new wife.

Lana's daydreams were cut by the buzzing sound of chatter from the garden land beside her house. Lana tried to squint her eyes to see through the crowd of trees.

But it didn't look anything, but then the sound of the mower, splitting the silent morning atmosphere.

A wide variety of small animals were startled, seen running away leaving the crowd of trees. Lana could see one squirrel rushing up another tree in the corner of her yard.

Is the owner cutting down trees for sale?

Lana inwardly regretted it, because she liked the cool scenery beside her house. But it is not his right to process.

Lana could only hope that the owner of the garden would not cut all the trees to baldness.

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Luke nearly fails to hide the smile on his face, as he sees Lana walking into Joan's courtyard.

Joan herself very clearly saw Luke's face change, but canceled commenting, because Lana was close.

Lana's face looks surprised when she sees Luke sitting at the dinner table accompanied by Joan and Erich.

But then immediately, he arranged for his face to become ordinary. Lana didn't even ask why Lukas was here.

Lana just greeted the three of them briefly and went straight out to do her job.

Luke was disappointed, but then smiled. It was Lana's usual attitude, and of course she thought it was interesting.

Lukas is happy, because now Lana looks much healthier.

Working at Joan's house, gave her access to healthy, balanced meals on a daily basis. And that change could be seen from Lana's physique.

The brief encounter left Luke stunned by how Lana was so different.

His body was no longer thin, but densely packed.

The most noticeable change was Lana's glistening face. Lana's cheeks are dull and concave, alternating with smooth cheeks that are flushed with healthy, gray eyes look more and more prominent with beautiful.

There are other parts of Lana's body that now also look more prominent, but Luke could not see clearly earlier, because Lana covered it with a loose shirt.

"Your saliva will dirty my desk, Luke!!" sergeant Joan, seeing him not wink at Lana.

"I'm going to decipher your move to the next garden because of him?" Erich smiled seeing Luke try to distract from Lana.

Lana is already in the lobby room, but the dining room and lobby are separated by a wall with a very wide door.

Luke freely sees Lana pacing the messy lobby, as some guests decide to have a birthday party there last night.

Luke simply smiled at the statement of the two of them, "You know me very well"

"Of course, I changed your diaper as a baby" said Joan, who immediately made Luke wince in dislike.

His childhood was spent at his grandmother's house, which is now occupied by Lana. He was therefore quite close to Joan, although they were about ten years old.

Joan who lived in this house since childhood, of course, knew her grandmother's family well.

He and Neff are often at Aubrey's house, especially after her parents die. Luke lives there permanently. It made them close to Joan.

Their relationship drifted apart after Luke rarely visited Aubrey, and after his grandparents died alternately in just a few months, Luke never returned to the house.

He just told people to keep the house. Luke realized, that's what made Joan unfriendly.

Joan felt Luke was ignoring Aubrey's legacy, let alone selling it. The only reason Joan couldn't scold her directly was that she understood why Luke did all of this.

Luke needs time to heal himself from all the tragedies that have befallen him.

And honestly, Joan was a little excited to see Luke come back as cheerful as today.

"I was angry that you sold Aubrey's house, but I think your actions brought a profit I couldn't have imagined before" Joan said, looking at Luke meaningfully.

Lukas nodded. "I will never regret my actions to sell the house" he said steadily.

"But the girl was different from the others. You have to try hard to open his heart" Erich said.

"I know that" Lukas nodded again.

"She worked here almost a month and I still don't know where she came from other than America" Joan said in annoyance, recalling an irritable chat with Lana.

Luke could imagine that.

She knew Lana was from New York based on Neff's information. He declined to disclose what was in Lana's medical records, but voluntarily shared Lana's information he had obtained from the police line.

Lana is from New York, and for the last ten years she has lived alone, and has changed addresses more than twenty times.

The fact that made Neff and himself stunned.

Neff found no trace of any criminal activity that could have caused Lana to move so frequently. He could only come to the conclusion that Lana was running away from something.

But Lana's background is also very clean. She's a normal girl with normal parents.

His father is still alive, and works as a lecturer at one of New York's leading universities, his mother who has died of heart disease is a prominent lawyer. Their records do not show the abnormal life that made Lana have to run away.

That info only makes Lukas know, if Lana's smart brain is hereditary.

With the father of a professor and the mother of a lawyer, it is not surprising that Lana is very intelligent. His ability to master six languages made Lukas agape yesterday first.

"When are you going to occupy that house?" joan asked Luke, pointing to the garden next to his house.

"A few more days, once their work is done, I'll move in right away"

"Good, now go home. You'll scare Lana if she catches you looking at her lustfully"

Joan scooped up Luke's face as she passed towards the kitchen.

"I don't look at him lustfully!!" Luke with emotion, shouted at Joan.

Luke felt very low on hearing Joan's accusations. She was not like Petra who contemptuously forced her depraved lust on Lana.

Erich laughed at the quarrel

"Calm down, you know he's not serious about what he says". He rubbed Luke's hand to win it while glancing at Lana who had turned to hear Luke's cry.

Luke, who was also aware, had caught Lana's attention the wrong way, finally sat in silence.

"Lana is still away from us, but has made some progress. You should have seen how Joan was so moved when Lana shyly asked to make a meat pie for her. Joan almost floated off the floor when she heard it"

Erich chuckled softly about the incident two weeks ago.

"But then Lana came back as usual, cold and distant" Erich added in a regretful tone.

"It was his usual self" Luke said not surprised to hear it.

She was used to seeing how Lana suddenly got warm, but within minutes, it came back cold and looked upset. It was as if the warmth he had shown earlier was a mistake.

"Well, you're a good female conqueror, I hope your abilities haven't rusted" Erich said, raising his teacup with a meaningful smile.

"Hopefully!" luke lamented in his heart, following Erich to the end of his tea in one swallow.

He has taken a very bold step, hopefully not bad.