Excerpt: The Orsus

Something heavy that sounded slightly like a fist pounded on the front door. Travis sprang up. “I’ll get it!” he said.
“Stop,” Elie said. She tried to grab hold of him, but even slightly heavier than her, he was still faster. “Travis, we have servants for this kind of thing!” But he was already across the hall and opening the door. Elie sighed and started to push herself up. The person hadn’t used the knocker, so Elie and Travis were probably the only ones who had heard anyway.
“Hello,” she heard Travis said.
“Hello, are you Mr. Moore?” a man’s voice said. Elie looked up at the front door, but the streetlamps outside hadn’t been lit yet and she couldn’t see the man that well.
“No. I’m Travis, Travis Smithson,” he said in a joyful tone. Elie, in contrast, had a horrible feeling somewhere in the general vicinity of her stomach.
“Oh,” the man said. “I’m sorry. I must have the wrong house. Goodbye.”
“Goodbye.”
Elie’s face paled and her eyes widened. Travis swung the door shut. “What a funny guy,” he said. He even had the nerve to be smiling.
“Open it back up!” she yelled.
“Open what?”
Travis looked genuinely confused. Elie could have killed him right then and there. How he was Chad’s brother, she’d never know.
“That man,” she said. “He was looking for Mr. Moore, my father.” She glowered at Travis until the message sunk in.
“Oh! So he didn’t have the wrong house?” He paused and looked up at the ceiling, trying to appear as innocent as possible. “I guess that means he’s wandering around the street knocking on random doors in the cold.”