“The Sheriff said it looked as if she had been drinking and fell-“
“No.” Ella shouted wringing her hands. “I’ll call her you’ll see. She’s just off on one her larks or – I don’t understand. I just saw her. We argued. I left. She’s fine. She has to be. I need to tell her that I love her. The last words I said to her can’t be hateful. Daniel? This isn’t true.”
“I’m so sorry, Ella.”
Her knees buckled as reality set in. They helped her to a chair. She just sat there unable to speak or think. After a good long cry she pulled herself together. There were things that needed to be done. Tempe would expect no less from her.
“We need to get going,” she sniffed fearful that another round of tears was looming. “I won’t let Iris bury her in the family crypt. She was very insistent that she’d be cremated.”
“I’ll ring the driver,” Daniel agreed. “Not to worry she made me executor of her estate. They won’t be sticking her in the ground. I promise you.”
“Good,” She managed to say. “Then when everything is taken care of, I’ll pack and go. I don’t doubt that the family will be eager to get their hands on this place.”
“Ella,” Daniel blinked with surprise. “This is your home.”
“That’s sweet, Daniel. I understand that the family won’t see it that way.”
“You don’t understand. Other than a few mementoes she left everything to you.”
“What? I don’t want-“
“Want or not,” he smiled for the first time. “It’s all yours. This building, the island, her private collection even her position as head of the foundation. I was with her when she had her will drawn up. She was very clear.”
“Why?”
“Because she loved you.”
“That and she was probably afraid that Reggie would gut this beautiful building and put in a pool hall or honky tonk.” Nora teased. “Ella, if things were different the two of you would have married. Deep down, she knew you loved her just as much as she loved you. It’s only right that you take over and continue her work.”
“I need to see her.”
CHAPTER 39
Cape Point, Police Station
October 2, 1952
Daniel stormed into the Sheriff’s office, Nora and Ella close on his heels. “Sheriff!” He bellowed. “I demand to know why strangers are keeping me from my cousin’s home.”
“I’ve been expecting you,” he said as he stood waving for them to take a seat. “Miss Ella, Mr. Muraille I am truly sorry for your loss. As for the Jordan brothers, I don’t know who they are or what they are trying to pull. They do have a copy of a recently drafted will that claims that your cousin left everything to them.”
“Poppycock! I was with Tempe when she signed her will two years ago. She left all of her personal assets to Ella.”
“I suspect she did,” he nervously confessed. “In fact there isn’t a doubt in my mind that is exactly what she intended.”
“It doesn’t matter, Daniel.” Ella tried to calm him. All she wanted to do was leave. She wasn’t allowed to see Tempe since she wasn’t a relative. It was up to Daniel to identify her remains. “All that matters is ensuring that she is cremated and finding out what happened. The mortician was extremely vague, Sheriff do you know what happened?”
“I wish I did, Miss Ella,” he stammered. “She was a truly fine lady. All signs point to her having taken a spill on the staircase after drinking too much.”
“She was asleep when I left,” Ella managed to inform him. “She had gotten quite drunk, it has been a habit she’s been indulging in as of late. Still, she knew that house like the back of her hand.”
“What do you know about these men? The Jordan brothers, I have concerns regarding them.”
“As well you should,” Daniel barked fully prepared to scream blue bloody murder until he felt Nora’s hand on his arm. Her touch instantly calmed him.
“Please, sit down,” the Sheriff pleaded. “The coroner and I agree that things just don’t seem right. Miss Ella, can you tell me about these men?”
“They are refugees at least that is what Tem- Miss Muraille told me,” she tearfully began. “I just-“She stammered wringing her hands as she sunk into the hard metal chair. “I had my concerns. In fact last evening we argued about it. She had been different lately, we quarreled a great deal.”
“Ella,” Daniel cautioned. “Perhaps we should retain a lawyer before you say anything else.”
“I assure you Mr. Muraille,” the Sheriff held up his hand. “Miss Westbrook is not a suspect. Anyone who knew them, knew that there was no way on God’s green earth, Miss Westbrook would ever do anything to harm, Miss Temperance. It’s not unheard of for two people who are, -“he paused seemingly searching for the right words. “Close. Two people who are close to have a falling out now and then. Tell me about last night?”
“We had a spat and I decided that I needed some space. I woke Mr. Davis and had him ferry me back to the mainland early this morning. It was around four in the morning. I caught the first train back to New York. I never should have left her.”
“Now, you couldn’t have known,” the Sheriff tried to comfort her. “We still don’t know if anything was amiss. As for this business with the will, for that you’ll need a lawyer. I have the name of the lawyer who drew up the will those gentleman have. All I ask is that you let me know what I can do to help.”
The legal wrangling for Ella, who truly didn’t care about her inheritance seemed to take forever. In truth it was only a few short months. Once the judge saw the evidence and the lawyer for the Jordan’s confessed to his illicit actions the case was settled fairly quickly. The Sheriff for his part after learning the Jordan’s true identities couldn’t wait to raid the island.
They were surprised while lacking remorse when they discovered the two were dead. Then it was up to Ella to close the house. Most of the contents in the main house belonged to the family. Ella was eager to rid herself of the family’s possessions. She only wanted time alone to mourn.
She arrived with a large ferry, packing crates and a complete inventory which thanks to Temperance’s attention to detail left no question of what belonged to whom. Unfortunately, Iris Muraille insisted on accompany her. Although Iris did support Ella’s claim on the estate, she didn’t by any means trust her.
While Ella supervised the workmen they had brought along, Iris headed straight to the bar. Ella was surprised when the workman turned surly. These were men and boys she had known for over a decade. Suddenly, they were lazy and prone to making snide comments. Iris seemed oblivious but turned her focus on there being something wrong with the gin. Whatever the problem might have been, it failed to keep her from indulging.
Just when the work was finally progressing, Iris decided she was going to help Ella by giving orders and buzzing around like a madwoman.
Finally, Ella hit the brink between the constant bickering between the men and Iris’ sudden need to help. Just as she was about to tell everyone to leave, Iris clutched her chest and collapsed.
While Iris was convalescing in the hospital, Ella managed to finish the job. She was left with questions; what had happened to Tempe and why had the Jordan’s tore up the flooring and walls. At the time she had planned on returning to the island, in order to restore things to their former glory. Time passed and although she would visit Cape Point, going back to the island without Tempe by her side was an inconceivable notion.
CHAPTER 40
Cape Point Inn, ME
September 23, 2017
Once they were safely locked away in their own room Faith’s phone began to vibrate.
“Ugh, more messages that are just coming through. This almost makes me wish I had stayed on the island. Not being in constant contact with the world is not a bad thing.”
“What’s that?” Shawn wearily inquired.
“Texts from my Dad, who is deeply disappointed that he is not going to walk Carey down the aisle. Then ther
e is Carey who is getting fed up with Rishi’s mother and our father because no one is happy that they eloped. The only good message I got was from Rishi, apparently the police didn’t know Neumann and Schmidt’s true identities or affiliations until after they were dead.”
“Makes sense it was 1952, people didn’t have information at their fingertips the way we do.” Shawn surmised. “Don’t let the family get to you.” She added when she caught the pensive look Faith was sporting.
“I feel bad for Carey. She is getting a mountain of crap tossed at her for doing something that made her incredibly happy. It’s not fair.”
“They’ll get over it once they hear about the baby.” As soon as the words were out Shawn blanched. She could only hope that Faith was far too agitated to notice.
“You’re right, I mean – wait what did you just say?”
“I wasn’t supposed to.” She nervously squeaked. “It’s too soon. When I left town she hadn’t even told Rishi yet. I don’t know if they’ve gone to the doctor yet.”
“Then why did she tell you? Oh wait, she didn’t did she?”
“No, I hugged her and that was that. I can’t believe I just spilled the beans.”
“I’m going to be an Aunt?”
“Please don’t tell her I told you.”
“Oh, come on it won’t be that bad.”
“Right, it’s not like Carey has a little bit of a temper or carries a gun.” Shawn scoffed. “Oh, and her hormones are going to be out of sorts.”
“You have a point, armed and hormonal isn’t a good combination. I promise to act surprised. This will be our little secret.”
Shawn nodded as she released a hearty yawn.
“You need sleep,” Faith scolded Shawn who was trying to coax her into taking off her clothes.
“I know,” Shawn grumbled.
“Need I remind you that Farrah ended up in the emergency room after that entity in Louisville tried to jump her?”
“No, you don’t. Thank you for taking care of me.”
“That’s my job. I’ll run you a hot bath.”
“Thank you, but since we’re in a hotel I think I’ll take a shower.”
After the both of them had showered and settled into bed, Faith broke out her laptop and got to work.
“You’re working?”
“Nope,” Faith quickly closed the computer and set aside. “Tell me about them? Ella and Temperance, you’ve met both of them. What are they like?”
“I don’t think they talked a lot. Not to one another anyway.”
“What do you mean?”
“They were together for twelve or thirteen years and neither understood how deeply the other loved them. It was like they both afraid to confess their feelings. I get that in the beginning maybe there are things you don’t delve into. But when you’re together for over a decade and just can’t say the words. I do not understand that.”
“That’s sad.”
“I think you’d like the both of them, Temperance especially. She drank, smoked and earlier today informed me that her sister in law was a walking social disease.”
“You’re right, I’d like her.”
“Ella is at the point in her life where she doesn’t give a hoot what anyone thinks,” Shawn brightly stated. “I just can’t imagine what it was like for them to fall in love when they did. There were so few people they could tell. Maybe that is why they were afraid.”
“Or they were just cowardly,” Faith leaned over and kissed Shawn on the cheek. “I’d like to believe that love conquers fear. We certainly had our ups and downs when we first started out. Look at us now. I can’t go a whole day without hearing your voice. What are you planning on doing with the eye and the scorpion?”
“I am thinking that we need all the help that we can get. First thing in the morning I’ll call Milo.”
“Oh, yippee.”
Shawn rubbed her eyes before she opened them. The hotel room was dark with exception of the light illuminating off of Faith’s laptop. She smiled at the sight of her lover seated at the small desk, toiling away. Although, she didn’t enjoy waking up to find herself alone in bed. Shawn shivered, her skin prickled alerting her to the fact that they weren’t alone. She glanced over at the edge of the bed.
Sitting on the end with her legs crossed and her head resting in her hand was a woman. She was thin to the point of being emaciated. Her long scraggly hair was multi colored. The sight reminded Shawn of a circus clown.
“Oh.” She grunted the realization of who the woman was upset her. She sat up glancing over at Faith only mildly surprise that she hadn’t heard her.
‘She can’t hear you.’
“She will,” Shawn whispered.
‘No, you’re asleep, Shawn.’ The woman informed her.
“So, this is just a vivid dream?”
‘More or less. I thought it would be the easiest way to talk to you.’
“Oh, you’re in the mood for a little chit chat,” Shawn grumbled. “You’ve had over forty years to strike up a conversation with me.”
‘And you’ve have had the same amount of time to forgive me. I did what I did, because I truly believed that it was the best thing to do for you. It doesn’t mean I don’t love you. The Williams seem like nice people.’
“Yes, my parents are good people.”
‘And they are your parents. I couldn’t raise you. I couldn’t give you the life they gave you. I can’t say, that it didn’t hurt to give you up. I am happy that you had a happy childhood. You may not know this but I used to drive up to their farm and watch you. I watched you laughing, playing and calling her Momma. There was so much space for you to run and play. You were loved which is all I wanted for you. But, I couldn’t stay away. I had to see you. I needed to know if you were okay. To reassure myself that I had made the right choice. How much do you know about me? Other than I gave you up.’
“I know that your first name was Lilly. You were only nineteen when you had me and you worked in a traveling carnival. You also had a dependency problem. You died when you were only twenty four.”
‘Dependency problem?’ She laughed heartily. ‘That is polite. I was drug addict. I want you to know the moment I found out I was pregnant with you, I went cold turkey. I didn’t use once during my pregnancy.’
“Cold turkey? That couldn’t have been easy.”
‘It was hell. But, I understood that life wasn’t about me anymore. It was about you. I never planned on giving you up. I thought I had everything under control. Until I slipped and used. You were only six weeks old the first time I slipped. Then it happened again and again. You were only thirteen weeks old when I was so high I forget that you were in the trailer. I left and went to score drugs. I had already been warned by the other travelers that if I screwed up again they wouldn’t cover for me. When I got back the cops were there. I lied thinking us carnies stick together. They threw me under the bus. Somehow I didn’t lose custody of you. But it was made clear that I clean up my act or I’d be on my own. A few weeks went by. I was clean by the time we hit upstate. Everything was good, then I got the crazy idea that doing a few lines was no big deal. I did and the world didn’t stop spinning. A few days later I was dropping acid and forgetting there was a small child that depended on me. The boss cut me loose and called the cops. It didn’t help my case that when they found me I was passed out in my own vomit. They took you. I promised you that I’d get you back. I’d get clean and you’d be coming home with me.’
“It never happened.”
‘Lucky for you, the Williams fostered you. They wanted to adopt you from the very beginning. It was almost two years later when I finally agreed to sign the papers. I had come to visit. You were happy and didn’t have a clue as to who I was. I knew I had to do the right thing. I knew then you had the gift. Just like me, my mother and my grandmother.’
“I long suspected that it was a family trait. It took a long time for my parents to understand.”
‘They didn’t gro
w up with it like I did. Your father had the gift as well.’
“What happened to him?”
‘Motorcycle accident. He did stunts at the motordrome. I didn’t get the chance to tell him about you.’
“What about my grandparents, did they know?”
‘Yes, they were the ones that called the cops. They wanted to take you but the court didn’t deem a couple of old carnies suitable to raise a baby. They were pissed when social services took you away. My mother never forgave me for giving you up. That’s right baby girl you’re from a long line of carnies. Of course with your fine education and manners if you walked onto the midway, everyone would know that you’re a Gilly.’
“A gilly?”
‘An outsider. No way you’d be working the Mitt Camp like me and your grandmother did. Before you ask what a mitt camp is, the tent marks go to have their cards read or fortunes told. Your grandfather was a pitchman. He could make more money working his way up and down the midway than anyone else. I know none of this is what you expected to hear.’
“Not even close.” She confessed stealing a glance of Faith who was still focused on her work.
‘She’s a good one.’
“Yes, she is.”
‘Of course I wasn’t sure the way the two of you clashed when you first met.’
“It’s funny now,” Shawn confessed. “Did you name me?”
‘Yes! I named you after Shaun Cassidy. I adored him. I changed the spelling of course.’
“Oh, my God. That’s horrible.”
‘That’s horrible? Not, I was a junkie who left you on your own when you were just an infant? But naming you after my favorite singer is a bad thing?’
“Why are you here? Why now?”
‘Because you are in way over your head, baby girl. If you are going up against this thing you can’t do it alone.’
“I can do this. It’s just another job.”
‘Your jobs are wearing you down. Don’t think she hasn’t noticed.’ She jerked her thumb towards Faith. ‘She’s worried and she should be. That’s probably why you didn’t tell her about the headaches in Chicago. Or the back spasms in New Orleans and of course there were the constant nose bleeds in Fall River. How much longer do you think you can keep this up? I’ve been happy watching you grow, love and laugh all at a distance. You didn’t know and you were fine not knowing. I’m here now, to warn you. If you are going to take this bastard on, get help. Get all the help you can find. She wouldn’t fare well without you. Oh, and I know you know about the ring she has hidden in her sock drawer. If you get through this unharmed maybe you should ask her. Just a thought.’
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