Chapter 13

The next morning, I stood on my deck, coffee in hand, and looked out at everything. I needed to get over how amazing this place was while still understanding how lucky I am… it was a fine line.

And I'm sure that once all the chores start, the newness would wear off.

I was really surprised yesterday when I received a prompt reply from Dragon Fencing that they would be able to come by this morning to give me a quote on what I wanted. Like, seriously, things back home never seemed to work that fast.

But anyway, I was on my deck, coffee cup in hand, waiting for the fencing guys, when I heard a soft little meow. I looked down at my feet and there stood the tiniest, cutest little black kitten ever. He (I defaulted to 'he' I will fully admit) rubbed his little head against my leg, seeming to beg me to pick him up.

And how could I not?!?

Coffee in one hand, cause that thing was not being put down until I emptied it a few times, and a kitten in my other, I wished for an Adirondack chair to be able to sink into. Unfortunately for me, I only had a space and not a magical wishing well. No chair popped up, so I sat on the step instead.

I placed the kitten on my lap and started to pet him. (This time I checked and confirmed it was a him). He purred under my hand and I just had to smile. Of course, I was keeping him. Even if the farm didn't need a mouse catcher, he was too cute not to keep.

"How about Hades?" I asked, looking down at him. When he replied with his own little meow, he had now cemented his place here in the Elysian Fields.

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I heard the rumbling of a car before I saw it. Putting Hades down, I stood up to welcome my guests.

I watched as three men got out of the car, one very clearly overdressed for the occasion.

"Hello, Ms. Li," said the very pleasant voice of the man who came to a stop in front of me. He was tall, with black hair and gray eyes. The rim of his gold glasses sparkled off the sun as he looked down at me. His black three-piece suit, perfectly pressed white dress shirt, and his impeccable blue tie set my warning bells off. The reflection of his glasses in the sun set my heart racing. I was still getting over my fear of shiny metal.

If you think it is a dumb fear, please refer to the chapters before, where I very clearly explained that shiny things and contrasting colors were the best way to become dinner.

This man did not look like he worked at a fencing company, and I did not see the need for an owner to come and give an estimate himself. In fact, I have yet to see the owner of a fencing, gardening or any type of physical labor company come to a client's house in a three-piece suit.

"Hello," I replied, not getting down from the deck to greet the company. "Who are you?"

OK, so ten years in an apocalypse had really made me forget all the manners beaten into me by my foster parents. Sue me.

"Ah, sorry for not introducing myself. My name is Liu Wei and am the assistant to the CEO of Phoenix Conglomerate," he said, extending his hand to shake mine. I did not return the gesture.

"How is it that the assistant to the CEO of a huge conglomerate has the time to give me a fencing quote? Is business that slow?" I like to think that I was highly fluent in the language of sarcasm… whether it came out as such or not, I was not entirely sure.

Liu Wei laughed at my response and withdrew his hand. He indicated to the two men behind him to step forward. "This is Liu Hong Tao and Liu Ming Jie. They are from Dragon Fencing and will be more than happy to help you out."

"And the reason why you are here?" I asked, my eyebrow raised.

He looked startled when I asked that question, like he never suspected me to wonder why such a higher-up was invested in my fence.

"Ah," he said, as if he just came up with the answer. "You bought this land through Urban Paradise from Phoenix Conglomerate, and now are using our fencing company. I am just here to see if you are satisfied with our services or not."

I wanted to look down at my hair to see if it had turned blonde in the past hour without me noticing it. Nope? Yeah, I didn't think so.

"Sure," I replied, really not believing his explanation. I looked at the other two men who were clearly here to do their job. "Let's get started, shall we?" I asked as I went down the two steps to the men that were waiting. Coffee still in hand, because coffee was life.

I explained everything that I wanted, a somewhat decorative concrete wall; after all, I would have to look at it too, and at least ten feet tall.

They looked at me kind of weirdly when I said that, but frankly, it was the story of my life... well, lives, so I just ignored it.

"A standard fence is six feet tall," said Liu Ming Jie. "Studies have shown that even adding extra height does not deter someone from trying to climb it and it is just a waste of money."

Awe, how sweet… "Thanks. You are right, let's go 15 feet and call it a day."

"Fifteen feet?!?" Asked Liu Hong Tao, wondering how a recommendation from six feet was more than doubled in just a sentence.

"Should I go higher?" I asked, looking at them, confused. Yes, I was playing with them, but I didn't ask them to save me money, no matter how sweet that idea was. And with their professionalism, I was willing to work with their company, even if it was attached to the creepy guy following us from behind.

I had to smirk at the look on his face every time he stepped into a puddle or… other farm-type patties… in his patent leather shoes. Meh, who invited him here anyway?

Back to the guys here to do actual work. I smiled at the look on their face.

"I want this place to be as safe and secure from the outside world as I can make it," I said. "I don't want to spend my time stressing that I should have, could have made the fence higher. Besides, not everything that would try to climb the fence would be human."

"You're right," said Liu Ming Jie. "There are a lot of bears around here, as well as deer and wolves. Each one would be attracted to your property for different reasons. It would make sense to build something that they cannot get over. The beauty of concrete fencing, as opposed to something like chain link, is that bears cannot use any part of it as a handhold to boost themselves up. However, for aesthetic purposes, I suggest no higher than ten feet as it."

I thought about what he said, but honestly, wolves, deer, and bears were the least of my worries. "Alright, ten feet. Now, my biggest problem is the gate entrances and exits. I would want three major ones, north, east, and west, and another six smaller ones, similar to a door. The back part of the property backs onto the mountain range and I don't see a need to fence that off. The doors I would like to look invisible from the outside, if at all possible. But I have no idea how I want the three major gates to look, and there is an even bigger problem of how to lock them securely."

Since I had no idea outside of an electronic lock, I would have to ask the experts. Unfortunately for me, they let me down.

"The best and most secure way to enter and exit from a gate is through an electronic lock that you would have to either input a code or have a signal for," said Liu Hong Tao.

"And what would happen if the electricity would go out?" I asked, looking at the man.