Chapter Ten – Jessica
I didn’t lie down after my hurried breakfast. I went straight upstairs and ransacked the study for more information about Dominick Dufresne. Unlike previous experiences, the memory of what happened to me came back rather quickly. The realization that I wanted more than anything to go back there—oh, that was torturous. I gathered I’d been gone in the present for only a few hours, but when I was with Dominick, time seemed to have stood still—I’d been with him for nearly a week. I wasn’t just with him—I was with him, and I loved him. As strange as it sounded, I loved him. Imagine finding the love of your life only to learn he wasn’t alive during your lifetime. Dominick died some time ago, but to me, he was alive and warm, and I had to find a way to get back to him. As I plundered the library for family histories and accounts of those early Dufresnes, I thought about that first moment I’d thrown the apple at him. I smiled about that now.
I had been so afraid of him, so afraid of what was happening. But that was another me. I wasn’t afraid anymore. Gone was the girl who used to cut herself and quietly wanted to die. Gone was the girl who wanted to find proof of life beyond death—I had that in spades now, didn’t I? No, I wasn’t afraid of the shadows, of the dark, anymore. I didn’t know why, but I attributed that turnaround to Dominick Dufresne and my time with him. He was so loving and accepting, so fascinated with me. I felt like a rosebud that was ready to bloom.
No, I wasn’t afraid of anything anymore.
Except for Champion Dufresne. Yes, I was afraid of him…not for me, but for Dominick. Champion had a murderous heart, as he made apparent by word and deed. I tried to warn Dominick about the danger, but he assured me he would be careful. He’d kissed my forehead and squeezed my hand as if it was me he was worried about.
And Annalee, who was always holding baby Ida—what a sweet young woman trapped in perpetual sadness. Even though she was young and probably the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen, she dressed in black daily and looked every bit the widowed matron.
That morning after seeing the fight in the garden, I walked into Sugar Hill, and it was like stepping inside for the first time. Unlike in the present time, the place smelled alive, like fresh wood and human sweat. It smelled like honey-scented candles and fresh flowers, which were in vases everywhere. There was less furniture, as modern homes tended to be full of useless things, but everything here was here for a purpose. I loved the beautiful dark wood of the foyer table and the spindly statue of a young girl that stood to the right of the front door. Even she had a purpose, for she artfully held a few pastel parasols.
“This way, dearest. She’s in here. Please just try to hold her. It would mean so much to Annalee.”
Not knowing how to answer that, I nodded in agreement. It was as if I had granted Dominick his greatest wish.
“She wants to hold Ida, Annalee.”
Annalee answered in her warm, rich voice, “Come sit beside me, Ophelia. You see how I am cradling her while she sleeps? That’s all you have to do—lift this elbow and use your hand to support her back. She’s quite rambunctious when she’s awake, though, so you can’t just let her go.”
“I would never,” I said in a surprised tone. I’d held babies before, but Ophelia apparently had quite an aversion to them. I accepted the baby and instinctively kissed her cheek. I did love babies. One day, I planned to have at least one. Maybe two. Now their eyes were on me, watching me as if I were some simpleton. “Really, it’s all right.” To the sleeping little girl, I said, “Aren’t you lovely?” I eased my finger into one of her clenched fists, and she grabbed it in her sleep. Quietly, I sang “Rock-a-bye Baby,” and Annalee appeared extremely uncomfortable as I did. Was I offending her somehow? But Dominick’s expression was one of pure love. I’d never experienced that before. “Uh-oh. I think someone’s bottom is wet.”
“Here, sister. I’ll change her.” Annalee smiled down at me as she scooped up the child, kissed my cheek and sailed out of the room, leaving Dominick and me alone. What should I do now? What should I say? I’m not this Ophelia woman you’re looking for. I’m Jessica Chesterfield, a paranormal investigator from the twenty-first century. I come in peace.
Absolutely not.
For the next six days, I kept my mouth shut about my true identity. Every waking moment I thought for sure I’d slip back to the present, but it hadn’t happened. What must Summer think happened to me? At first, I cried every chance I got. Annalee must have thought me absolutely maddening, although she was perfectly patient with me. “You’ll have your own child someday, Ophelia. In the meantime, can’t you give Ida even a little love?”
I’d grabbed her hand and assured her that I bore the child no ill will. “It’s just that I feel…lost sometimes. Haven’t you ever felt lost, Annalee?” Her face darkened, and I knew she did understand that emotion. She understood it completely.
For the next few days, I haltingly navigated the social constraints of the day. I said the odd awkward thing from time to time, but I mostly kept quiet and learned from Annalee. But Ambrose…he knew I was there, and I felt him constantly. He hated my presence, but I had a distinct impression that he hated Annalee even more. Why would that be? And if he hated her so much, why stick around?
For the first couple of nights at Sugar Hill, I didn’t have to worry about sharing a bed with Dominick, although his gentle spirit had put me at complete ease. He absolutely loved this Ophelia, and I found hour by hour that I envied her more than I could have ever imagined. But on night three, my “husband” came tapping at my door. Still unsure how to navigate the lamps and unable to find a candle, I stumbled in the darkness and made it to the door without stubbing my toe again. I didn’t think about covering up; I had on a ridiculously long nightgown that I was half tempted to take off because of the heat. Dominick’s nightdress was equally ridiculous. I’d never seen a man in a nightdress before. As silly as he looked, he was quite handsome in it.
“Yes?” I asked politely.
“I was wondering if you might like some company. I thought it might be nice to talk a while. We haven’t done much of that lately. Talking, that is. I mean, if you weren’t already abed. It’s barely dark. Goodness, I’m sorry to have disturbed you.” He ran a shaking hand through his brown hair and appeared as if he would run back down the hall.
“Dominick, wait! You didn’t give me a chance to answer,” I said quietly. I pushed the door open wider, and it squeaked slightly as I did. With an embarrassed smile, Dominick stepped inside, and before I knew it, we were kissing. Sweetly, chastely.
His sweet kiss surprised me. He didn’t seem in a hurry at all, and that made me want him more. “Dominick…” I whispered in his ear. Without another word, he picked me up and carried me to the bed. In one fell swoop, he laid me before him and shed his dress. There would be no talking tonight, and thankfully, I hadn’t changed my mind. I slipped off my gown and kissed him fervently. He groaned with excitement as we tumbled back on the bed. Before the night was through, we’d made love a few times, and I was happy to lie in the sweaty bed with him. When I woke the next morning, I felt tired but happy, especially since I was still at Sugar Hill with Dominick. Could it be that in this short amount of time I’d managed to fall in love with him? Perhaps the Hand of Fate or the Man Upstairs wanted me here. Yes, that had to be it. Someone had picked me up and moved me to the place I was supposed to be. Please don’t take me away from him…I silently pleaded night after night. Get it together, Jessica Chesterfield. No way could you fall in love in less than a week.
Who was I kidding? Of course I loved him.
“Mrs. Dufresne! Wake up! It’s almost noontime, and your husband will be looking for you to have dinner with him.” Annalee’s maid was in my room tidying up. “You ready for a bath?”
“Yes, please.” I pulled the thin sheet around me and sat up on the bed, my hair wild around my face. Olive giggled at the sight, and I had to ask.
“What is it?”
“You, missus. You look
like you got into a fight with a bear.”
I laughed at that. “Do I look like I won, Olive?”
“Oh no. You lost for sure, but you might have had a good time losing.”
I giggled and took the brush she handed me. “What’s happening in the house today?” I asked, curious to know what lay before me.
“I don’t know about today, but tonight is the ball, Ophelia’s Birthday Ball. But you know all about that; you helped plan it,” she said with a big grin. “I hung up the dress you were expecting and fluffed it out good…it came yesterday, and that was a near thing, wasn’t it? It’s beautiful, missus. Dark green like an emerald with roses sewn along the bottom.”
I looked over at the dress and started to examine it but heard voices coming up from downstairs. Men were yelling, swearing at one another. “What’s going on, Olive?” My skin began to crawl, and I felt sick. Very sick indeed.
“That man, Champion Dufresne, is here,” she said as she spat on the ground, “the one who hurt my Annalee. He is downstairs right now, and I would steer clear if I were you. Let the men handle that.”
“Oh no! Champion is here?”
I threw on my nightgown and ran out the door. I wouldn’t venture downstairs, but I had to hear what was happening. What if Dominick was in danger? I suddenly remembered seeing the brothers in the garden struggling, Champion’s knife raised high, the small but deadly blade glimmering in the sunlight.
And then I recalled Summer’s words. Summer’s voice saying, “He has a knife!”
Oh no! Don’t let it be true!
I ran down the hall and decided I couldn’t linger here. I scrambled down the stairs and followed the voices to the ballroom.
And then everything went black.
Chapter Eleven – Avery
Adjusting to sleeping with another person proved more difficult than I’d thought. I had no idea I was such a light sleeper, and every move Reed made woke me up. Jonah was the last person I’d spent the night with, but to be fair, those nights with Jonah were often sautéed in cocktails. Tonight, Reed was talking in his sleep, loudly enough to keep me listening. I didn’t want to know his deep, dark secrets if he didn’t want to share them with me. Better safe than sorry. I grabbed my robe and walked into the living room.
I loved this place. King’s Point rested on a high cliff that overlooked a private cove below. As promised, from this vantage point we could see the whales splashing just outside the cove. Today had been a marvelous day. I’d had no further brushes with fans or the paparazzi; in fact, it was quite easy to blend in here. Again I caught myself fantasizing about buying this place and saying goodbye to Sugar Hill forever. But it was just a momentary fantasy. I would never do that. Reed wouldn’t either.
I took a seat in the floral lounge chair that sprawled in front of the large picture window. It was dark on the ocean, and I could see nothing except the stars twinkling above and random lights from a few passing boats. Tossing a throw across my legs, I settled back and let my mind wander. This was truly paradise. I heard Reed stir for a few seconds, but he quickly went back to sleep as evidenced by his snoring. I smiled in the darkness thinking about the past few days. I loved Reed and was so happy to be here with him.
But why had I seen Handsome? I knew I’d seen him. For the fifteenth time today, I thought about picking up the phone and calling Summer. What if she needed me? What if something was wrong back home? I couldn’t leave her to shoulder everything herself. The sound of the ocean eventually lulled me to sleep, and for the first time in a long time, I dreamed.
And I dreamed about Dominick Dufresne.
“Ophelia…please come back to me.” Dominick stood in the front yard of Sugar Hill, the rain pouring down on him. His brown suit was drenched, his hair plastered to his head. He was as pale as a sun-bleached sheet, and then he suddenly fell over. Annalee ran from the house, her black dress trailing behind her.
“Dominick! Olive! Get some help!”
Annalee wrapped him in her arms and rocked back and forth. Her bottom lip trembled as she held him, and I could see her whispering something to him but couldn’t hear the words. I felt her heartbreak. And then I saw another face…a familiar face. Only she wasn’t with Dominick or Annalee. She was hiding for some reason, behind the big oak on the left side of the house. It was Jessica Chesterfield. With sadness she watched the scene, but then she saw me and began to walk toward me. That’s when I felt the hand on my shoulder.
I screamed myself awake to find Reed standing over me.
He laughed nervously. “I’m sorry I startled you. You nearly gave me a heart attack.”
“You? I was dreaming, and suddenly a hand was pawing at me,” I popped back, unable to sound anything but aggravated.
“I didn’t mean to paw at you. I called your name, but you wouldn’t wake up. Sorry, Avery.”
I flew into his arms. “No, I’m the one who’s sorry. You just surprised me, is all.”
He kissed me and took my hand. “Let’s go back to bed. We’ve got an early call in the morning, taking the boat out to see the whales, remember?”
“Yes, I remember. And then water-skiing after, right?”
“Yep, but if you don’t want to try it, you can just watch me. I’ve won trophies for water-skiing. I can flip and turn and do all sorts of tricks.”
I gazed at him in the moonlight. His half-smile let me know he was lying his pants off.
“Sure you have. I hate to disappoint you, but this newbie is going to crush you at water-skiing.”
He laughed. “Summer’s right about us. We are dysfunctional.”
“Speaking of Summer…I was wondering if maybe we could give her a call in the morning after we get back from our whale tour. Not to check up on her, but just to make sure she has everything she needs.”
Reed sighed as he hugged me close. “I can’t tell you not to, but you did promise me that you’d give me your undivided attention. You’ll be the matrone for the rest of your life, and I know where your mind will be after our honeymoon. And I love you for it.”
“But?”
“But just for our honeymoon, maybe it could be about Reed and Avery.”
I couldn’t argue with that, but I also couldn’t forget about seeing Handsome and now Jessica. “What if I just sent her a text?”
“Like I said, I can’t tell you what to do. You can do what you want, Avery, but Summer might take it personally. Nobody likes being second-guessed—especially not her—and you did put the ball in her hands.”
I could see the wisdom of what he was saying, but I could also see Jessica’s pale face staring back at me. She’d been dressed strangely, as if she were re-enacting a scene from My Haunted Plantation. What did it mean?
I didn’t have much time to think about it. Reed was clearly interested in other things. For a little while, I pushed Jessica out of my mind and abandoned myself to being in the moment with my husband.
When I woke up, the sun was peeking over the bay.
Chapter Twelve – Annalee
The change in my sister-in-law surprised me to no end, but it was a welcomed change. Seeing her play with Ida brought me immeasurable joy. What a relief that she no longer spent her days crying over her own lost baby. We didn’t talk about the loss anymore. This morning, she and Olive kept Ida occupied for me so I could get away for just a few minutes. They played with the baby in the ballroom—the child liked hollering out and making echoes in the room, a trick Ophelia had taught her. Although Ida couldn’t speak yet, you could tell she enjoyed every minute of it.
I didn’t plan to be gone long, only an hour or so. It was a beautiful day with bold blue skies and nary a cloud. The air was damp from yesterday’s showers, but it smelled sweet from the grass and trees that were greening fully now. I hadn’t yet had the time to mourn for Mineola; she’d been hustled away and buried quickly, but not in the slave cemetery. I insisted that Dominick provide her with a proper resting place, and so he had. Not in the family plot but nearby, and
not on the hallowed ground either, but she wouldn’t have cared for anything too religious. She wasn’t one to have such religious notions, although at the end of her life I finally saw that she did have faith in the Almighty and not solely her own gifts. Yes, that had been a surprise to me.
I walked to her plain gravestone and deposited the yellow flowers on the mound of dirt before it. I had no idea what her favorite flower had been, but I had seen her use these particular blooms in many of her spells and potions. Perhaps she would find these useful somehow. I whispered my thanks to her and decided to take the rowboat to the gazebo. It was farther than I had originally planned to travel, but I felt a compulsion to go. I must go. When I was a girl, my mother would bring me out here on occasion. She never stayed too long, and the place almost always brought her to tears, but I assumed she remembered her husband—the man I once believed was my father. I eased into the rowboat and in a few short strokes had landed at the shore that led to the gazebo. The white paint of the small building had shades of green, evidence of the surrounding foliage. The place definitely craved a gardener’s touch. Long slender wisteria vines laden with purple flowers inched toward the trellis, threatening to overtake the building if left unchecked. Fat bumblebees hung around the blooms and didn’t appear the least bit afraid of me.
I climbed out of the boat, uncaring that I wet the bottom of my hem. Olive wouldn’t fuss at me—she didn’t dare. And why was I here? I walked around the circular shoreline first. There was nothing much to see except a few turtles bathing in the sun and a few sprigs of wild yellow flowers popping up amongst the grass. I picked one and sniffed it. As expected, they had no smell but were lovely flowers nonetheless. Walking inside the gazebo, I had the sensation that someone was watching me. I’d felt this many times before but mostly in the house, never out here.
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