The Haunting of Brynn Wilder: A Novel

by Wendy Webb

  “So we heard,” Simon broke in—was he trying to break the tension? He raised his eyebrows and turned to Dominic. “Gil told me that, after you all got Alice into bed, you stayed the night in their suite so he and Jason could get some sleep.”

  “It was no trouble,” Dominic said.

  “We invited them to join us tonight, but Gil said another time would be best,” Simon said. “I guess she was still pretty shaken up today. Fearful. Not quite herself. Apparently, she’s been sleeping a lot.”

  The image of Alice’s drawings floated into my mind and sent a chill through me. It was as though she had known what was going to happen to her, where she’d end up that night, and who would save her, all long before it occurred. I thought about bringing it up, eliciting another discussion about Dominic’s theory about the veil. Maybe Simon had experienced the same sort of thing when his grandmother was declining? But in the end, I kept it to myself. I had already talked a bit to Simon and Kate about it. Nobody else needed to know.

  “They’re getting an alarmed baby gate installed at the top of the stairs in the suite to prevent it from happening again,” I said.

  “We installed it today,” Dominic said. That was news to me. “And yeah, the lady was in no condition to pay a social call. I’m wondering . . .” He sighed and let the thought lie there unspoken.

  “If it’s wise to care for her here?” I said, my voice a whisper. “I hate to even say it.”

  “Gil’s wondering the same thing,” Simon said, exchanging a glance with Jonathan. “But Jason won’t even entertain the discussion.”

  Just then, a man who appeared to be the chef opened the door and popped his head out. “We’re ready when you are,” he said.

  “Excellent, Charles!” Simon said as he and Jonathan piled up the trays and napkins. “Everybody, take your drinks!”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  We walked through the door, and I took a quick breath in. Both Dominic and I had been wanting to see the inside of this place, and it did not disappoint.

  Dark wood paneling covered the walls; there were high, beamed ceilings and a fire roaring in the fireplace; overstuffed sofas, armchairs, and ottomans were arranged in groups; antique Oriental rugs lay on the gleaming wood floors. There were heavy antique tables, Tiffany lamps, and framed black-and-white photographs lining the walls.

  The whole effect was warm, welcoming, and homey, while at the same time opulent.

  I looked from Kate to Simon and back again. “This is gorgeous,” I said.

  Simon grinned and squeezed Jonathan’s hand. “I want to take all the credit, of course, but it was Jonathan’s eye that put this all together. If he hadn’t come into my life, I would’ve been living in this dusty house alone, rattling around like a crazy person.”

  “Just you and a family of raccoons,” Jonathan offered. “That might have been nice in its own way.”

  Simon leaned his head on Jonathan’s shoulder and laughed. The right person at the right time, I thought.

  “Then I would’ve come here after my divorce, run off the raccoons, and the two of us would’ve gone quietly insane while the house crumbled around us, like our own version of Grey Gardens,” Kate said.

  “There’s still time for that,” Simon said.

  I liked these people. So much laughter, so much good-natured teasing. I got the sense that they would go to the ends of the earth for each other. What a nice thing to have in life.

  We made our way into the dining room, which had windows on three sides. A round table in the back was set for six. I saw our “linner” was already on the table, served family style. Two chickens, roasted with rosemary and lemon; pasta with fresh basil, tomatoes, lemon, parmesan cheese, and pine nuts; a mixed-greens salad; a basket of hot bread.

  Bottles of white and red wine stood uncorked on the table, and crystal glasses were beside every plate. Looking closer, I saw it was china, a cream-colored background with a delicate pattern of roses and green leaves.

  “This is beautiful,” I said to Kate. “The china.”

  “You noticed.” She beamed. “It’s our grandparents’ wedding china,” she said. “We use it on special occasions with special people.”

  I clasped her hand. I had my parents’ wedding china in boxes in a storage facility. Awaiting the day I’d figure out where to live and what to do with my life. All at once, I wished those decisions were made. That I knew where I’d be in a year. And with whom. And doing what. I was tired of all this uncertainty. For the first time since my mother’s diagnosis, I wanted clarity about me. All because of china? But sometimes the smallest of things can incite the biggest of revelations.

  We all took our seats. Jonathan carved and served the chicken, and we all passed the side dishes around as a server filled our wineglasses.

  “So, Brynn,” Nick began. “Rescuing Alice last night aside, how are you liking Wharton?”

  I finished a bite of my chicken and smiled at him, thinking of my visit to him in his office. He had been so helpful, so welcoming. Not like tonight. I decided then and there that I was going to let it go. Everyone had their moods, their bad sides. Their inner Eeyore.

  “I love it,” I said. “Spending the summer here is just what I needed after a stressful few years.”

  “I’m sorry about your mother,” he said.

  Before I even had a chance to thank him, he turned to Dominic. “And you? Why did you decide to summer in Wharton?”

  Simon and Jonathan seemed to be holding their breath. Simon was glowering at Nick.

  “Nick,” Kate said softly. “Let’s just have a nice dinner.”

  A tangible tension grew in the room. Why wouldn’t that question lead to a nice dinner? Everyone asked summer residents that same question.

  All at once, my senses were on high alert. I saw Nick’s eyes trained on Dominic. Intense. Focused. What was this about? Anger started bubbling up in the pit of my stomach.

  “I thought it might be fun,” Dominic said, nonchalantly. “Why?”

  “It’s no big deal,” Nick went on, taking a bite of his chicken, a benign smile on his face. “We’re always curious when people come to stay awhile. You know Whartonians. We’re busybodies.”

  “So I’ve heard,” Dominic said, chuckling. “Happy hour is one big gossip fest.”

  I caught Dominic’s eye and smiled at him. I wanted him to know I was behind him.

  But then Nick said something that wiped the smile off my face.

  “It’s just that we don’t get many visitors like you here,” he went on. “People are wondering about you.”

  “What people?” Kate said, a bit too loudly.

  Simon’s eyes narrowed. “Are you kidding me?” he said to Nick. “We don’t get many visitors like you here? What are you, in Deliverance?”

  “I was just saying—”

  “Saying what?” Simon pressed. “Just curious.”

  I knew Nick was suspicious because he’d had his eye on Dominic when he first got into town. But this felt like it was crossing a line. Why did they invite us here? To interrogate him?

  Kate looked aghast.

  But Dominic chuckled, looking around at everyone at the table.

  “I don’t mind, really. The man’s just curious about a new man in town.”

  He smiled at Nick, who wasn’t returning the goodwill.

  “Nick,” Kate said in a harsh whisper. “That’s enough. I mean it.”

  Hostility hung in the air. The sound of silverware scraping against the plates was palpable.

  “What do you do for a living, Dominic? Do you have your own business?” Nick kept on. “A website or something like that?”

  “No,” Dominic said, calmly taking a bite of chicken. “My business mainly comes from word of mouth.”

  “I get that,” Nick said. “I did an internet search on you and couldn’t find anything.”

  Dominic smiled. “Oh, looking me up?”

  Nick smiled back at him. “I’m a cop. It’s what we do.”<
br />
  “You do internet searches on everyone who comes to Wharton?” Dominic wanted to know. “I suppose you need something to keep your guys busy.”

  This was a dance of rivals, and I didn’t like it one little bit. I was going to shut it down.

  “What brought you to Wharton, Nick?” I interjected, breaking the silence.

  Evidently, I had broken his focus as well. Nick snapped his head around to look at me, surprised. “I’m sorry?”

  “You’re asking everyone what brought them to Wharton and grilling them about why. I’m curious about your story. How you ended up here. And exactly why.” I smiled broadly at him. “Don’t leave out any detail, no matter how small. I have all night.”

  Simon put an elbow on the table and rested his chin in his palm, raising his eyebrows. “Do tell, Nick.”

  “Kate brought me here,” he said.

  “Really?” I asked him, deliberately not looking at Kate. “That’s not entirely true.”

  “What?”

  “I heard all about it. You were an up-and-coming police officer in the Twin Cities. You didn’t know Kate before you came here. Hers was the first case you investigated in Wharton, and you were brought here to do that, but Kate herself didn’t bring you here. Although it might be convenient for you to say so.”

  Simon stifled a laugh and poured another glass of wine for himself and Jonathan.

  “I guess I’m not the only one searching on the internet,” Nick said. He held my gaze for a long moment. “I was reassigned here.”

  I smiled, taking another sip of wine. “Why were you reassigned to this small, sleepy town?”

  Nick narrowed his eyes at me, his look tinged with anger. “What are you implying?”

  “I’m not implying anything,” I said, not letting up. “But I see you’d rather not get into it.”

  Everyone at the table was staring at me.

  I looked over at Dominic. “You ready to go?”

  He pushed himself up from the table. “Whenever you are.”

  I held Kate’s gaze for a long minute. “I’m sorry,” I said.

  Kate put her hand up. “I’m the one who’s sorry.”

  She glared at her husband. Nick pushed his chair back from the table and stalked out of the room.

  Kate turned to Dominic. “I did not invite you here for this. I have no idea what got into him, and frankly, I’m mortified. Please accept my sincere apologies.”

  Dominic smiled at her and turned that warmth to everyone else at the table. “I wouldn’t want to be that guy tonight.” He grinned. “He is going to need a serious ‘I’m in the doghouse’ bouquet of roses to smooth this thing over.”

  It broke the tension.

  “Are you sure you have to go?” Simon asked. “We could have a nightcap and gossip.”

  I exchanged a glance with Dominic. “I’d love that, but I think we’ll take a rain check,” I said, pushing my chair away from the table.

  Kate stood up and held her arms out. “I am so sorry,” she said, hugging me. “I have no idea what got into him. He’s really not that guy.”

  “I’m sorry I got so defensive, but I wasn’t about to let him talk to Dominic like that,” I said. “No matter what Nick thinks, he’s a really good man.”

  Kate, Jonathan, and Simon walked us through the salon to the front door. Dominic took my hand, and we walked through it, down the steps to the path leading to the parking lot.

  Simon, Kate, and Jonathan stood on the porch. “Promise me you’ll come back,” Simon called out to us. “I will personally sit Eeyore down and give him a PowerPoint presentation on how to treat a dinner guest. Better than that, I won’t invite him.”

  Kate shook her head. “I don’t know what to say,” she said.

  As Dominic and I walked to the car, hand in hand, I felt his anger course through his veins and into mine. In the car, he sat looking straight ahead for a moment.

  I reached over and took his hand.

  “What was that about?” Dominic asked me. “Why does he have such a chip on his shoulder?”

  “No idea,” I said.

  A more familiar expression crept onto his face. He grinned at me. “Heads on stakes.”

  I smiled at this. It completely defused my anger. “I didn’t like his tone,” I said.

  “You were a lioness back there,” he said. “Defending me.” He reached out and took my hand. “I haven’t had a whole lot of defenders in my life. Thank you.”

  My phone buzzed before we got out of the parking lot. I fished it out of my purse and saw it was a text from Kate.

  “I am completely mortified. Please say you don’t hate me.”

  I texted her back. “Of course not. I’m sorry I went off on Nick like that. No idea what his problem with Dominic is, but whatever it is, it’s wrong.”

  I dropped my phone back into my purse, wondering why Nick had been so hostile. All of that badgering about why Dominic had come to Wharton. What did he care? It was none of his business.

  I gazed at Dominic’s profile as he drove us back to LuAnn’s. Against my will, my stomach did a flip when I realized I didn’t know why he had come to Wharton, either.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  All was dark at LuAnn’s when we got back. We quietly made our way through the restaurant and upstairs to Dominic’s room. There wasn’t even a question this time; we simply went inside together.

  I closed the door behind us, and he backed me into it, kissing me with an urgency that made me lose myself in his touch. Without a word, we tumbled onto the bed, our arms and legs entwined.

  Later, after a jumble of curious dreams, my eyes fluttered open. Moonlight was streaming in through the window, falling on his chest. I lay there next to him, lightly tracing his illustrations with my finger. Always something new to find. A face that hadn’t been there before. Or a new position for an illustration I had seen, or thought I had seen.

  Who was this man? Mystery swirled around him and wrapped me up in it. I wanted to know, and yet I didn’t want to know. Something deep within my heart told me to just let it be.

  As I was drifting off, I heard a voice, soft and low in my ear. “Savor every moment with him,” a woman whispered. I curled in closer, and soon we began breathing in and out slowly in tandem, our hearts beating together as one. This is exactly where I belong, I thought, before sleep overtook me.

  The next morning, after showering the night off my skin, I met Dominic downstairs for breakfast. We chatted with Gary a bit, neither of us wanting to bring up the ugliness with Nick the night before. As we were finishing our omelets, Dominic looked at his watch.

  “I have a few things to take care of this morning, but I’ll be back this afternoon,” he said, pushing his chair back. “I’ll come find you.” He leaned down and kissed me on the forehead and then was gone.

  I didn’t ask him where he was going. He did this often, disappearing on mysterious errands. I thought of the night before and vowed to just let it be. Yet another great unknowing. It was becoming a pattern this summer.

  On my way back to my room, I noticed Jason and Gil’s door was open. I poked my head inside and rapped on the frame.

  “Knock, knock,” I said.

  Gil was sitting at the table engrossed in some paperwork but looked up when he heard me.

  “Morning!” he said. “Come on in.”

  I slipped through the doorway and took a couple of steps into the room. “I don’t want to bother you all, but I’m wondering about Alice. How’s she doing?”

  He shook his head slightly and glanced up to the second floor. I noticed the new baby gate at the top of the stairs.

  “Not great, I’m afraid,” he said, his voice low. “She was in bed all day yesterday. Jason’s up there with her now. He hasn’t left her side.”

  I pulled out a chair and sat down next to him. “Is it exhaustion?”

  “I’m not sure,” Gil said. “Yes and no. It’s like the disease has advanced several stages all in one night. Whatever
made her go down to the lake really took it out of her.”

  “Have you called her doctor?”

  “He was here yesterday,” Gil said, holding my gaze.

  “And?”

  “He said it’s best to just let her rest. Her vitals are fine. Her heart is strong. She just needs to get her strength back, and at this stage of the game, it might take a while. That’s what the doctor said, anyway.”

  “Did you tell Jason about the drawings?” I said, dropping my voice to nearly a whisper.

  Gil shook his head. “He’s been in a state himself,” he said. “Yesterday he called the girls, Bec and Jane, to tell them what happened. They’re on their way here with their families.”

  I let that sink in for a moment.

  “I apologize in advance for the onslaught of kids.”

  I reached over and took his hand. “I’ll bet it will be good for Alice to see them,” I said. “The kids, the grandkids. Where are they all staying?”

  “LuAnn found them a house a couple of blocks away,” he said. “We’ll be there with them, mostly. They’ll be in town for only a few days, but we thought it best to have them in a house they can retreat to rather than the kids running around through the hallways here the whole time.”

  “That would have been fine with everyone, you know,” I said. “But I get it. It will be more comfortable for the kids to have a house and a yard. When are they getting in?”

  Gil glanced at his watch. “Later today. Before dinner, I think. Bec is going to call me, and I’ll meet them at the house with the keys.”

  Jason emerged from Alice’s room and closed the door quietly. When he saw me, he smiled an exhausted smile and trotted down the stairs after locking the baby gate behind him.

  His normally impeccable appearance was showing the cracks of stress. His hair was rumpled and looked as though it needed a cut and a shampoo. Bags, with dark circles, ringed his eyes. He hadn’t shaved yet today. My heart squeezed when I noticed his T-shirt was on inside out.