Page 88 - The Houseguest

innocent.” I replied: “You’re saying you were framed, then?” Brian repeated emphatically: “I was innocent.”
I finally told him: “Look, if I’m going to let you live in my home. I’m entitled to know some details...”
“Fine,” he finally conceded. “I was set up...by my own father. Like I said, I didn’t do it.” I answered sarcastically, “So you didn’t do the crime, but you had to do the time?” That broke the tension between us somewhat, though he wasn’t amused. “Alright Brian, here’s how we’re going to play this. To me, this is nothing more than a tax-deduction. I won’t be your friend. We won’t celebrate birthdays or exchange Christmas cards. You will share the address of the home I live in and I will cover your reasonable and approved expenses through Pierre. This is based on a six-month trial period. Do you understand?”
He nodded his head in agreement, apparently still unable to successfully contribute to a two-way conversation. I told him I would contact Pierre and arrange the logistics. I assumed he didn’t have many possessions to move into the condo. We stood and parted ways, again no need for a handshake. I wanted to make sure I never felt anything for the man who would be going back to prison in my stead.
Brian moved into my condo three weeks later, the home I had only ever shared with Karina and Katie. It was a bittersweet day knowing someone would be walking the same ground, taking food from the same refrigerator and climbing the same set of stairs that my loves once did. I had to focus on the true reason I’d let him infiltrate our world. The poor loser was going to be set up for my crimes, never even knowing it was happening. Therein lies the difference between a puppet
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The Houseguest by Linda Ellis www.LindaEllis.life