by Luanne Rice
“Where should we do it?” Allie asked.
“I don’t know,” Quinn said, looking around. “Where do you think?”
“Up there,” Allie said, pointing at a patch of clear water where the sunlight looked like diamonds.
Quinn nodded. Just seeing the spot gave her a lump in her throat. She held the box tighter to her chest. Allie slipped her hand under Quinn’s arm, touching the metal box. They stood locked together, the two sisters and their parents, just the four of them, alone for the last time.
“This is it,” Allie whispered.
“I know.”
“Do you have the flowers?”
Allie went to the place behind the wheelhouse where she had laid the bouquet—the last flowers from their mother’s garden at Hubbard’s Point, some white roses from the garden in Aquinnah.
“Right here,” Quinn said just as the boat reached the spot.
Sam cut the throttle. He and Aunt Dana came up front. Very gently, Aunt Dana tried to take the box. Quinn’s hands stuck to it; she couldn’t seem to let go. But then she saw Allie smiling, and she did.
Aunt Dana was looking at the box. Her blue eyes looked very gentle. She had a soft smile on her face, but tears were pooling in her eyes. She held the box as if it were the most precious thing in the world. Then, very carefully, she pried the lid off the top.
Quinn and Allie dipped their hands in, taking handfuls of their parents’ ashes. They threw them overboard, letting the wind scatter them across the waves. They had died in the ocean, and Quinn knew it was the place they had loved best. She pictured her father at the helm of his boat, and she saw her mother standing beside him, smiling with love.
“Mommy, Daddy,” Quinn whispered so no one else, not even Allie, could hear.
She heard Allie whispering the same thing. Then Aunt Dana reached in, and when she let the ashes blow from her hand, Quinn remembered what her mother had said about sisters: Love your sister, Quinn, the way I love mine. So while Aunt Dana was scattering the ashes of her sister, Lily, Quinn took the hand of her sister, Allie.
“You too, Sam,” Quinn said.
“Oh, that’s okay,” he said. “I don’t belong—”
“Yes, you do,” Quinn said insistently. “You’re part of our family. We wouldn’t have this boat if it weren’t for you. Go ahead.”
“Please,” Allie said.
And so Sam took his turn, while Aunt Dana slipped her arm around his waist, hiding her face in his shoulder so no one would see her crying. Then Allie stepped forward with the white flowers, and she threw them in.
Allie’s flowers, Quinn’s gifts. They were taken every time. Every single time, Quinn thought now.
She had to turn her face away, because she was crying too. This was really good-bye. Her parents were in the sea for good. She watched the sunlight sparkle, taking their ashes and the flowers farther away. She thought of the full moon last night, and wondered whether some of its silver light was left on the waves, whether mermaids were swimming just beneath the surface to take her parents to a better place.
“Good-bye, Mommy,” Quinn whispered, tears shining on her cheeks as the sunlight gleamed on the bright blue waves.
Good-bye, my love, good-bye, Aquinnah Jane… . I know you are safe, I know you are loved… .
Quinn heard the words in the wind, and when she turned to look over her sister’s shoulder, she saw a clear wave breaking on the shoal, its transparent curl filled with tiny bright fish and a shining green tail. And Quinn could swear that although the sun was still up, she saw a mermaid’s silver net, filled with love and sea fire and an armload of white flowers.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
LUANNE RICE is the author of True Blue, Safe Harbor, Summer Light, Firefly Beach, Dream Country, Follow the Stars Home—a recent Hallmark Hall of Fame feature—Cloud Nine, Home Fires, Secrets of Paris, Stone Heart, Angels All Over Town, Crazy in Love, which has been made into a TNT Network feature movie, and Blue Moon, which has been made into a CBS television movie. She lives in New York City and Old Lyme, Connecticut.
also by Luanne Rice
True Blue
Summer Light
Firefly Beach
Dream Country
Follow the Stars Home
Cloud Nine
Home Fires
Blue Moon
Secrets of Paris
Stone Heart
Crazy in Love
Angels All Over Town
PRAISE FOR THE LUMINOUS NOVELS OF
LUANNE RICE
SAFE HARBOR
“Luanne Rice has a talent for navigating the emotions that range through familial bonds, from love and respect to anger… . A beautiful blend of love and humor, with a little bit of magic thrown in, Safe Harbor is Rice’s best work to date.” —The Denver Post
“Irresistible … fast-paced … moving … Through Rice’s vivid storytelling, readers can almost smell the sea air. Rice has a gift for creating realistic characters and the pages fly by as those characters explore the bonds of family while unraveling the mystery.” —The Orlando Sentinel
“Heartwarming and convincing … a meditation on the importance of family ties … buoyed by Rice’s evocative prose and her ability to craft intelligent, three-dimensional characters.” —Publishers Weekly
“This paean to sisterhood and the joy of sailing is an excellent escape … and readers who enjoyed Firefly Beach will happily reunite with some old friends.” —Booklist
“Luanne Rice’s exploration of the difficult emotional balance between professional success, personal fulfillment and family ties is pure gold. Evocative descriptions add interest to an already compelling tale. Equal parts romance, mystery, and character study … Readers beware: don’t start this book at bedtime; you may not sleep at all!” —Library Journal
“A story for romantics who have never forgotten their first love.” —The State (Columbia, SC)
“Rice is a deft scene-setter and sketcher of character.” —Kirkus Reviews
“A story you will remember for years to come.” —The Facts
TRUE BLUE
“With its graceful prose, full-bodied characters and atmospheric setting, this uplifting and enchanting tale is likely to become a beachside staple.” —Publishers Weekly
“Rice, as always, provides her readers with a delightful love story filled with the subtle nuances of the human heart.”—Booklist
FIREFLY BEACH
“A beautifully textured summertime read.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Rice does a masterful job of telling this powerful story of love and reconciliation.” —Booklist
SUMMER LIGHT
“Few … authors are able to portray the complex and contradictory emotions that bind family members as effortlessly as Rice… . This poignant tale of love, loss, and reconciliation will have readers hitting the bookstores.” —Publishers Weekly
“Rice’s fans will enjoy this well-spun yarn.” —The Orlando Sentinel
“The prolific Rice skillfully blends romance with magic.” —Booklist
“As can be expected from Rice, a touching story that will be hard to forget. Keep those tissues close at hand.” —The Facts
“Luanne Rice awakens in the reader the excitement of summer and love at first sight in this enjoyable novel.” —Abilene Reporter-News (Texas)
DREAM COUNTRY
“A moving story of love and reunion … an absolute joy to read … I finally put Dream Country down at 2 a.m. and almost called in sick the next day to finish it.” —The Denver Post
“Superb … Stunning.” —Houston Chronicle
“Captivating … Dream Country will cast a spell on readers.” —The Orlando Sentinel
“A transcendent story about the power of hope and family love … a compelling plot and nuanced character portrayals contribute to the emotional impact… . Rice creates believable dramatic tension.” —Publishers Weekly
“Engaging … a taut thriller … Rice’s de
scriptive gifts are impressive.” —Star Tribune (Minneapolis)
“A story so real it will be deeply etched into the hearts of its readers … Rice once again delivers a wonderfully complex and full-bodied romance.” —Booklist
“Highly readable … moving … a well-paced plot … Rice pulls off some clever surprises.” —Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“Poignant.” —The Midwest Book Review
FOLLOW THE STARS HOME
“Addictive … irresistible.” —People
“Involving, moving … stays with the reader long after the last page is turned.” —The Denver Post
“Uplifting … The novel’s theme—love’s miraculous ability to heal—has the ingredients to warm readers’ hearts.” —Publishers Weekly
“Rice has once again created a tender story of a new family unit, where love and loyalty are more important than biology and where learning to trust again opens the door to happiness.” —Library Journal
“A novel by Luanne Rice is the best thing … for times when a reader needs a lump in the throat and a teardrop on the page.” —The Sunday Oklahoman
“A moving romance that also illuminates the tangled resentments, ties and allegiances of family life … Rice spins a web of three families intertwined by affection and conflict… . [She] is a gifted storyteller with a keen sense of both the possibilities and contingencies of life.” —Times Record (Brunswick, Maine)
“Powerhouse author Luanne Rice returns with a novel guaranteed to wrench your emotional heartstrings. Deeply moving and rich with emotion, Follow the Stars Home is another of Ms. Rice’s classics.” —Romantic Times
“Beautiful, touching … Emotions run deep in this heartwarming tale… . This unforgettable journey will stay with you long after you’ve read the last chapter.” —Rendezvous
“Rice’s story of love and redemption will please fans of her tender and poignant style.” —Booklist
“Heartwarming … This is a novel that will touch readers’ hearts.” —The Sunday Oklahoman
CLOUD NINE
“A tightly paced story that is hard to put down … Rice’s message remains a powerful one: the strength of precious family ties can ultimately set things right.” —Publishers Weekly
“One of those rare reading experiences that we always hope for when cracking the cover of a book … A joy.” —Library Journal
“Elegant … Rice hooks the reader on the first page.” —The Hartford Courant
“Warm, sweet, and deeply touching … a novel filled with poignant emotion and the fine, soft twist of elegant storytelling … a heartfelt look inside the workings of ordinary yet extraordinary lives.” —Deborah Smith, author of When Venus Fell
“A celebration of family and the healing power of love. Poignant and powerful … One of those rare books which refreshes and renews the landscape of women’s fiction for a new generation of readers.” —Jayne Ann Krentz, author of Sharp Edges
HOME FIRES
“Exciting, emotional, terrific. What more could you want from a late-summer read?” —The New York Times Book Review
“Compelling … poignant … riveting.” —The Hartford Advocate
“Rice makes us believe that healing is possible.” —Chicago Tribune
“Good domestic drama is Rice’s chosen field, and she knows every acre of it… . Rice’s home fires burn brighter than most, and leave more than a few smoldering moments to remember.” —Kirkus Reviews
BLUE MOON
“Brilliant.” —Entertainment Weekly
“A rare combination of realism and romance.” —The New York Times Book Review
“Eloquent … A moving and complete tale of the complicated phenomenon we call family.” —People
More critical acclaim for
LUANNE RICE
“What a lovely writer Luanne Rice is.” —Dominick Dunne
“Ms. Rice shares Anne Tyler’s ability to portray offbeat, fey characters winningly.” —The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Luanne Rice handles with marvelous insight and sensitivity the complex chemistry of a family that might be the one next door.” —Eileen Goudge
“Miss Rice writes as naturally as she breathes.” —Brendan Gill
SPECIAL ADVANCE PREVIEW
Luanne Rice applies her bestselling blend of love and family to a riveting new story of two people searching for the truth, for the meaning of justice, and for each other.
Luanne Rice
THE SECRET HOUR
On sale wherever hardcover books are sold
February 4, 2003
THE KITCHEN WAS QUIET. THE KIDS WERE TRYING so hard to help. Sitting at the breakfast table, his back to the cove, John O’Rourke tried to concentrate on the legal brief he’d stayed up last night finishing. Maggie buttered a piece of toast and slid it across the table. He accepted it, nodding thanks. Teddy hunched over the sports section, scowling at the scores, as if all his teams had lost. Brainer, the dog, lay under the table, growling happily as he gnawed an old tennis ball.
“Dad,” Maggie said.
“What?”
“Are you finished reading yet?”
“Not quite, Mags.”
“Is it about Merrill?”
John didn’t respond at first, but his stomach twisted in a knot. He thought about his eleven-year-old daughter knowing about Greg Merrill, his all-time most time-consuming client, the Breakwater Killer, the star of Connecticut’s death row and, as such, the talk of barrooms and courtrooms everywhere. John wanted people talking; it was part of his strategy. But he didn’t want his daughter knowing.
“It is, honey,” he said, lowering the brief.
“Are they going to kill him, Dad?”
“I don’t know, Maggie. I’m trying to make it so they don’t.”
“But he deserves it,” Teddy said. “For killing those girls.”
“Everyone’s innocent till proven guilty,” Maggie intoned.
“He admits he’s guilty,” Teddy said, lowering the sports section. “He confessed.” At fourteen, he was tall and strong. His eyes were too serious, his smile a shadow of the grin he used to flash before his mother’s death. Sitting across the wide oak table, John reflected that Teddy would make a fine prosecutor.
“He did,” John said.
“Because he did those things—murdered girls, ruined families. He deserves what’s coming to him. Everyone says he does, Dad.”
Outside, the wind blew, and a shower of autumn leaves fell from the trees.
John stared at his brief. He thought about the confession, the sentencing—to death by lethal injection—the months Greg Merrill had already spent on death row; and he thought of his current strategy—to argue before the Connecticut State Supreme Court that Merrill deserved a new sentencing hearing.
“Ruined families?” Maggie asked.
“Yes,” Teddy said, glancing at his sister. “But don’t worry, Maggie. He’s in jail now. He can’t hurt anyone anymore. People want to make sure it stays that way, which is why our phone rang ten times in the middle of the night—even though we have an unlisted number. You should hear what people say when we go by. They want you to stop what you’re doing, Dad.”
“Okay, Teddy,” John said softly.
“But it’s his job,” Maggie said, her eyes filling. “Why is it his fault, our fault, that he’s just doing his job?”
“It’s not your fault, Mags,” John said, staring into her deep eyes. “Everyone in this country has rights.”
She didn’t reply, but nodded.
John took a slow breath in and out. This was his hometown, yet he felt the outrage of his friends and neighbors and strangers alike. Most of all he hated that his children were being made to suffer.
The critical issue in Merrill’s case had always been his mental condition at the time of the crimes; John intended to argue that Greg Merrill suffered from a mental illness that made him physically unable to control his actions. His first act upon becoming Merrill’s attorney
was to engage a top psychiatrist—to examine his client and aid in his defense. John’s unpopular work would, he hoped, result in Merrill’s being resentenced to multiple life sentences without the possibility of release.
Teddy stared at his father, green eyes dark with gravity and sorrow. Maggie blinked, her blue eyes—the same shade, exactly, as Theresa’s— framed by the raggedy bangs John had trimmed the night before. His daughter’s bad haircut filled him with shame, and his son’s solemn gaze seemed an admonishment of the worst, truest, most deserved kind. Since his mother’s sudden death, Teddy had become the self-appointed protector of women everywhere.
“It’s your job, right, Dad?” Maggie asked, squinting. “Protecting everyone’s rights?”
“You’d better get ready for school,” John said.
“I am ready,” Maggie said, suddenly stricken.
John surveyed her outfit: green leggings, a blue skirt, one of Teddy’s old soccer shirts. “Ah,” John said, inwardly cursing the last baby-sitter for quitting, but—even more—himself for being so hard to work for. He’d called the employment agency, and they were supposed to send some new prospects out to interview, but with his track record and late hours, John would probably just work her ragged and blow the whole thing by Halloween. Maybe he should just move the whole family over to his father’s house, let Maeve take care of them all.
“Don’t I look good?” Maggie asked, frowning, looking down and surveying her ensemble.
“You look great,” Teddy said, catching John’s eye with a warning. “You’ll be the prettiest girl in your class.”
“Are you sure? Dad didn’t even think I was ready for school—”
“Maggie, you look beautiful,” John said, pushing the papers away and tugging her onto his lap.
She melted into his arms, still ready to cuddle at a moment’s notice. John closed his eyes, needing the comfort himself. She smelled of milk and sweat, and he felt a pang, knowing he had forgotten to remind her to take a bath after the haircut.
“I’m not beautiful,” she whispered into his neck. “Mommy was. I’m a tomboy. Tomboys can’t be beautiful. They—”
The peace was shattered by breaking glass. Something flew through the kitchen window, skidding across the table, knocking milk and bowls and cereal all over, smashing into the opposite wall. John covered Maggie’s body with his own as squares and triangles and splinters of glass rained down. His daughter squealed in terror, and he heard himself yelling for Teddy to get under the table.