“Agreed.” I paused in the doorway with the flashlight in my hand. I couldn’t see much beyond the bottom step, but clearly there was a room just beyond.
Nomi…nomi…vita…
“Did you say something?” I asked, knowing good and well that it wasn’t Alex I heard. Those were voices from the past, voices warning me not to come any closer. I was never good at following directions.
“No. Please be careful, Megan.”
I kissed his cheek and stepped onto the top step.
Chapter Twelve
March 1932
“Danny! It was marvelous, wasn’t it marvelous? Nobody believed that it would be good, but I knew it would be. I mean, you knew it would be brilliant…but I believed you, and it was a beautiful film.” I paced the tiny dressing room and fanned myself as my face flushed. I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him tight.
Dan’s warm voice filled my ear as he whispered his congratulations. I was so relieved that Fields of Green had turned out so beautifully. So relieved that the Golden Gamma would live to fight for another role, another film, and that my life as Hollywood’s brightest star would continue.
Yes, I held him tight. My little bit of home. Dan Petit had proven to be a brilliant manager, a genius, really. That devilish Eva Fonterelli thought she could steal him from me with her flirtatious manners and large eyes. I heard she promised him the world, but he’d never even entertained the notion; at least not that he confessed. I’d asked Vivian about it, but she’d merely smiled and reminded me that we three were a cord that would never be broken.
Danny, Vivian and I would always be together. We were family.
“Thank you, Danny.” I kissed his cheek and hugged him again. There were tears in my eyes now.
“Don’t cry, Joanna. You’ll lose an eyelash. Nobody wants to see a one-eyed movie star,” he scolded me playfully as he reached for his handkerchief. He was right, as he always was. I’d have to return to the auditorium soon to meet the fans with the rest of the cast. Fields of Green hadn’t been a one-woman show. It had been a full-on production that had taken nearly six months to complete.
Funny to think that just a few years ago I was struggling for bit parts in local plays, but somehow Danny had made it all work. He negotiated all my contracts and made all the arrangements. Although I knew part of our success rested on my shoulders, I had no illusions about the matter—I couldn’t have done this without him. I trusted him implicitly, and he’d come through for us.
With Vivian as my assistant, I had it all; she cared for my every need. Bringing her along had also been Danny’s idea and not one I’d welcomed at first. There were too many strange memories, not to mention her occasional bloodletting, though she was always careful to hide it from me. As much as she could. Wearing long sleeves all the time, even during those blazing hot days in the movie lot trailers. When she wasn’t pressing my clothes or finding my lunch or doing something else for me, she wrote in her book constantly and talked to herself. Her abject weirdness seemed a small price to pay considering how wonderfully she kept me, but there was something nagging at me, an unsettled feeling that sometimes accompanied Vivian’s quiet presence.
For long stretches, months and months, we would get along famously. She’d read the reviews aloud while I poured our coffee in the mornings. We shopped together…what irony that Father’s wish had come true after all these years! At times, Vivian had been like a true cousin—no, make that a sister—to me. But then some strange melancholy would come over her. I’d hear her crying in the night, mumbling in her childhood language. And when I went into her room to comfort her, she would be sleeping and shaking and crying. She hated my intrusions and would avoid me for days after, as much as she could. She’d ask about going home, home to Morgan’s Rock, and I’d smile and pat her hand and remind her that we had films to make. Things to do. Sunshine to soak in. I loved California.
But Vivian was right.
I could not stay away forever. The three of us, in our strange way, needed to return home. It was as if Morgan’s Rock imparted something magical to us, something intangible yet necessary. For Vivian, she would spend all her days in Father’s library. I would visit the stables every morning, as had been my practice long before my Paden arrived. Dan did not live at Morgan’s Rock, as he had his own comfortable estate just north of Rockville, but he too spent many days there every week. His favorite room was the large Great Room. Even when it was cold, he loved that room. And so did I when it wasn’t foggy out.
Yes, I always returned. For even though I spent grueling days on sets with demanding directors and partied (at least for the photographers) all hours of the night, I had to go home eventually. The ghosts of Morgan’s Rock, Father and Mother, were beckoning to me. After the premiere, we would go back to our hotel and pack. It was time to go. Vivian was elated.
“There now. Let me do it. You’re making a mess of your face.” I tilted my face up to Dan and allowed him to pat my eyes carefully. “You’re a doll, Joanna Storm. A beautiful, lovely doll.”
I smiled up at him, grateful for his compliment. But then he grabbed my arm. I thought he would say something else, but that’s not what he wanted. He kissed me. Danny kissed me, and I was so stunned that I couldn’t think to stop him. I didn’t slap him—I wasn’t offended, strangely enough—but I felt a deep sense of regret, a kind of soul sadness. I stepped away from him.
“Don’t do that again, Danny.” He wasn’t willing to let me go, so I snatched my elbow away from him. “Don’t ruin our night, please. Let me go.” I reached for my capelet as I suddenly felt sick. A cold chill raced up my fingers, hands and arms first before quickly spreading to my entire body.
“You must know I love you, Jo. You must know that. How can you take Paden as a lover when you know…”
“Stop!” I warned him as I struggled to toss the soft fabric over my shoulders.
He wasn’t listening to me; as a matter of fact, I could barely hear him now. Why were the lights so erratic? I clutched the back of the fabric-covered chair to steady myself. Much to my relief, the door opened and I heard another muffled voice.
“Joanna! Catch her! She’s falling!”
Vivian leaned over me, her perfect face twisted with concern. The cold feeling had been replaced by a growing burning sensation. My hands and feet began to shake, and terror washed over me. What was happening to me? Why couldn’t I speak? I tried to call out to Vivian, to ask her to find Paden…where was he? Why wasn’t he here? Danny? Are you crying?
But no words came forth, only a strange gurgling sound.
And then the memories came. I saw my father reaching out his hand to me. He was wearing his best suit, the one he wore just for me on my birthday. On the most horrible night of my life. Then I could see Mother standing in front of a black marble obelisk. We were in Egypt! She was smiling, her hat askew with the mosquito netting caught in the wind.
Mother!
My body flailed, and I felt my stomach seize as if I were being punched by an invisible hand. What was happening to me?
More memories flooded my mind. Riding on Magadan through the countryside. Our Kent home in the distance. My true home. Then I was at Morgan’s Rock. I flew through the halls as if I were a ghost.
Was that it? Was I dying?
I sped through the hall, my body freed from every encumbrance. I could hear music playing, and there were people singing. Not singing. Chanting. Yes, I remembered now. I’d been in the hidden room, the one past the pantry. I’d been there, but I’d forgotten about it. How had I forgotten?
I’d been in the dark, lost in the dark.
And now I was in the dark again. I fell asleep, and when I woke I felt as limp as a rag doll. They were all there, Vivian, Danny and Paden. Staring at me. Danny was the closest now. Paden hung back for some reason. Why? Don’t leave me, beloved. No, he’s not really here. This isn’t right.
I clutched Danny’s hand and finally managed to speak before I passed out again.
“I want to go home.”
I closed my eyes and drifted away.
Chapter Thirteen
Present Day
“I don’t know why I’m so surprised by this, but I confess that I am. I had no idea this was down here, Megan. How did you know?” Alex waved his flashlight at me. The beam of light struck me in the eyes briefly, and I blinked against it.
“Stop blinding me.” I pushed his hand away and ignored his question. “Is that another wall? I know there’s more. This shouldn’t be here. I saw a long hallway and a room just beyond because there was a torch light.”
I could feel Alex’s eyes on me. He knew the answer, so why was he so surprised? Right, because it was easier for him to think I was crazy than to believe that I was somehow connected to the past. Strange to think that before moving to Morgan’s Rock, I never thought much about these sorts of things. I was never a ghost hunter, never a paranormalist, not in any real sense. I never went in for horoscopes and such. My world was a much bigger place now. Much bigger. But I had no patience with Alex. If he didn’t want to believe that I was connected to Joanna Storm, I wasn’t going to waste my time convincing him.
“What’s that?” He shined his light on the wall. How had I missed that? “Are those symbols? Words?”
“Yes, I think so.” I dug out my phone and took pictures of the symbols. “I’ve seen these before.”
“What? Where?”
“Loretta Bradley, you remember her. She’s the librarian here in Rockville. She found a book by Vivian Kemal. These symbols are in that book.”
Alex sounded unsure. “You have the book? What kind of book is it?”
“The creepy kind. It’s about blood magic, but to be honest with you, I think the real meat of the book is that Vivian’s secrets are encoded; these are the symbols she uses. They look Egyptian but not quite. I’ve studied them, trust me.”
“Maybe this is a key because that looks like letters.” His flashlight flickered, and he tapped on it. We’d only walked ten feet into the secret room, but I was anxious to push past this temporary barrier. “On second thought, this could be something else altogether.” His fingers brushed across an odd icon, a triangle with a flame at the top. His observation sent chills all over my body.
“What are you thinking?”
“Well, not to buy into this craziness,” he said as if he really didn’t want to tell me, “but maybe this is a warning. Maybe we aren’t meant to get in here. You said these look Egyptian. Could be this is a curse, some kind of protective spell. And if Vivian Kemal is the one who put it here, then we probably shouldn’t take it lightly.”
I took another picture. “So you do believe in all this.”
“I think you should show me that book. Let an extra pair of eyes take a look at it.”
I felt so anxious, desperate. I wanted nothing more than to knock that wall down. Right now, this minute. What if Joanna was in there? Suddenly, I felt an icy hand on my neck, but it was only a brushing of fingers, fingers that weren’t there.
“Did you just touch me, Alex?”
“What?” he asked as he walked toward me.
“Did you touch my neck?”
“No. Why?”
“Someone just touched my neck.”
“I think we should take a break. I need something to drink, and you’re covered in dust.”
“But Joanna…”
“If you’re right, Megan, if Joanna Storm is walled up in there, then she’s not going anywhere. I know that sounds harsh, but barreling through the wall without thinking about the consequences could be dangerous. What if Vivian has this booby-trapped?”
That was a reasonable question. Although Joanna and Vivian had made up, I still didn’t trust her. I would never trust her. Not like Joanna did. “Okay, but I’m not giving up on this. This wall is coming down.”
I pretended that I didn’t hear faint knocking on the wall beside me. Alex said nothing about it, so I kept my mouth shut. “Let’s go, then.”
We hurried up the stairs and through the pantry. I’d have to clean this mess up later. Maybe Alex would help me. “You know, if you want to do this right, we can hire someone to come in and knock that wall down. I think it’s best that we don’t proceed half-cocked. What if we tear down…”
“I’m taking a break just to get a drink and show you the book. I’m not giving up on that wall, Alex. It’s coming down with or without you.”
We walked into the kitchen, and I reached for the water pitcher.
“You’ll have a devil of a time getting through that second barrier.” He shook his head as I poured us both a glass of water. “Hammers and crowbars might get the job done, but someone has run an electrical line above it all. It’s not going to be as easy as you might think.”
I sipped my water but kept my eye on him. So like Alex to discourage me. Did I need to remind him I was only here at Morgan’s Rock at his behest? He arranged all this. What did he think was going to happen when he dropped an author like me into a three-story time capsule?
“I’m not waiting. I’m knocking that wall down.”
“I think we’ve got more pressing matters to consider, Megan. What about the event? And Lori will be here tomorrow to talk about the housekeeper position; I bet you forgot about that. We need to think through all this. Again, I don’t mean to sound heartless, but what if you open it up and she’s not there? There’s no way the world won’t be watching. Once the word gets out that the search for Joanna is going on right here at Morgan’s Rock, you won’t be able to hide it.”
“Not if we do it ourselves, Alex!”
“Just hear me out. Let’s look at the bigger picture. Remember that thing where that reporter, I can’t remember his name, Hispanic guy, he thought for sure he’d found Jimmy Hoffa.”
“Al Capone, you mean. Geraldo Rivera went looking for Al Capone’s vault of stolen money. I know where you’re going with this. I’m not looking for treasure. There might be a woman’s body down there. Doesn’t she deserve to be found?”
“How do you know that? Be honest with me, Megan, and none of that mumbo jumbo about past lives and reincarnation.”
“Mumbo jumbo? That’s what you’re calling this? I’m still seeing Joanna Storm, Alex. And whether you believe it or not, I went back. I was Joanna!” I slapped the counter as if that would push the tears back from my eyes. And I want nothing more than to go back again! “For months. Time doesn’t move like we believe it moves. You can travel to other times and places.”
“Megan, you can’t go around saying stuff like this. Just hear me out. You experienced missing time. That happens. That I can believe because it’s happened to other people. But you’ve got to keep it together. Don’t do this now. Not when we’ve got so much to lose. What happens when you open that wall and there’s nothing there? Everybody calls you unstable, and there goes the book contract, the movie deal. Or worse yet, what if she is there? No more mystery, and no more market for this story. No one is going to care anymore.”
I could hardly believe what I was hearing. “What about Joanna? What if she’s down there?”
“It’s hardly like Joanna Storm is walled up alive in that room. And surely not by Vivian Kemal’s hand. Vivian died before Joanna’s disappearance…unless you want me to believe that Vivian’s ghost did it.”
I hadn’t considered the timeline, but I wasn’t so eager to write off that possibility. Even if it seemed like an unlikely one.
Before Alex could gear up for a fight, there was a tapping at the kitchen door. I poked my head around the bar, surprised to see Loretta Bradley standing there. And she wasn’t alone.
Micah Todd was with her.
Chapter Fourteen
“Hey, Loretta, Micah. What brings you two by?” I welcomed the pair into my kitchen as Alex eyed them with his usual suspiciousness.
“Well, I won’t lie. We weren’t in the neighborhood, but I had to see what you’d come up with in that book. Have you made any progress? Oh, hello
there. I’m Loretta.”
Alex remembered his manners and rose from the barstool and extended his hand. I was happy to see a charming smile on his face. Yeah, he could be a charmer when he wanted to be. “Alex. Nice to meet you, Loretta.”
“This is my friend, Micah. He’s a fellow researcher and writes for our local paper. I hope it was okay to bring him along. He’s found some more pictures, too.”
I smiled at that news. “Really? More photos of Paden?” I ignored Alex’s scowl and accepted the envelope from Micah.
“I’m not sure, but they were from the same box. Wasn’t much else in there except some old programs. Hi, I’m Micah.” He extended his hand to Alex, and the four of us chatted for a few minutes, but my anticipation was growing by the second. I opened the envelope and dumped the photos on the counter. My breath caught as I turned the first one over. It was Joanna Storm herself, wearing a golden headdress and a matching gown. Although the photo was black and white, I knew that dress. I knew it was gold. This was the studio’s attempt at putting Joanna’s Golden Gamma moniker to work for them. They’d supplied the dress and the photographer. In the end, Joanna had rejected all these photos.
They were far more risqué than I could have guessed they would be. I had no idea that photographer was intentionally exploiting me. These weren’t supposed to see the light of day. That had been the agreement. I had insisted on it when they came to me with this idea, but here they were.
“Megan?”
Loretta touched my arm lightly and brought me back to reality. What was I doing? I smiled at her. “Wasn’t she lovely? I can’t believe someone like Joanna could just disappear.”
“You doing some construction?” Micah peeked his head around the counter toward the open pantry.
“Nothing official. Just a few minor repairs,” Alex answered for me and promptly closed the door. “Nothing we would need a permit for, that’s for sure.”
“I wasn’t suggesting that.”
The Haunting at Morgan's Rock Page 18