WindSwept Narrows: #10 Eloise Paddington

by Diroll-Nichols, Karen

  “Yes, Lili…you sit here…” She lifted her to a chair and put her close to the table. She knew Hannah had packed some finger foods for her and opened her pack, peering inside. She found the zip bags and set them out on the table. “We have apples and cheese and some bread rounds and some pears…a bottle of juice…and…peanut butter and jelly fingers,” she saw the excited smile, the little hand up immediately.

  “Now you’re making me hungry,” Morgan commented with a relaxed smile. “I’m going to change clothes. Help yourself, Eloise,” he stopped beside her, his palm covering hers. “Your hands are like ice…I’ll get fire wood and we’ll heat up the place quick.”

  “I’m okay, Mr. Kelley. I am very grateful for your help, believe me,” Eloise opened the clasp at her throat, laying the ankle length heavy cloak on the chair before sinking down and letting her head rest on her folded arms on the table.

  Morgan noted he’d been right about her hair. It was a pale red gold color and hung straight down to the center of her back. She had the sides pulled into a loose braid at the back of her head.

  “Want to see if you can find us some food while I change and get the fire going?” He asked, stepping back and moving to the wide stairs that led to the bedroom in the loft.

  Chapter Two

  “Yes…I can do that,” Eloise half listened to the sound her boots made on the stone floor, gazing around the large A-frame as the lamps threw shadows around the very big single room. The windows were huge and opened to the front they had just driven along. The house was an interesting mixture of old world lamps and wood fireplace but very modern appliances in the kitchen. She stood at the sink, cleaning the salad mix she found in the fridge, slicing fruit and cheese and laying things out on plates. He seemed to live on things that could be quick and with little cooking.

  She placed two tall glasses filled with ice and water on the table before wandering to the large front window, her palm up and touching the glass. It was extra thick and she even thought it was plated. She leaned closer to look at the sides.

  “We had some bad storms here last night while I was away, I’d guess,” Morgan came down the stairs rolling sleeves on the solid brown flannel shirt he’d put on over a T shirt, his gaze once more going to the out of date dress and ankle boots. “I’m going to lock all those down now, Eloise. We have the lanterns.” He said as if guessing her question.

  Eloise nodded and watched him go out the main entrance, within minutes all the windows were covered with very thick wooden covers that latched in the centers outside. She was sitting with Lili when he came in for the third time, carrying the wood hauler. He closed the door behind him. She watched him kneel at the large encased fire place, getting a heat source going before removing his gloves and laying them on the stone mantle.

  “It’s a beautiful house,” she said quietly. Accepting that Lili was finished eating, she cleaned things up for her quickly and had her on the floor with the bundle of books and toys that were in her pack for her. She sat on the thick rug before the fire playing, chattering to her dolls.

  “It’s a good place to get away,” he agreed, taking a seat and pouring some of the vinaigrette dressing over his salad. “Thanks for making this.”

  “The fridge works.”

  “The solar generator is tied into the fridge only. I had it set up that way. Can’t imagine anything else being a necessity during a power outage,” he explained. She ate quietly, fingers nimbly lifting slices of apple and biting thoughtfully. “Are you worried?”

  “I don’t want to be,” she answered with a small laugh. “I want to think we escaped smoothly. I’m a natural skeptic, I think. The other bad news is I know they’re worried and it bothers me that I can’t let them know we’re alright,” she said with a quiet sigh.

  “How would they know, Eloise?”

  “Because my little car is parked in the employee parking lot. Because it would seem odd after hours. Because Cassidy is a brilliant security person and as soon as it was mentioned, she would pull video coverage and they would see what happened,” she outlined with a long sigh. “I left my phone at the gas station but took the sim card out, so they can’t reach that. It’s just been that kind of day,” she looked up from her plate with a small frown. “Did I ask if you had a productive meeting in Tacoma?”

  “I think we got distracted, but I did…I’ve got my clothing packed and will probably stay up there,” he finished the salad. “I’ll have a friend close up the house and lock things down…” his voice came to a stop when the knock came on the front door.

  Eloise was across the room, scooping up Lili and immediately going to the huge bathroom, toys hastily stuffed into her pack. She set Lili on the floor and handed her the pack.

  “Play here, Lili…and be quiet a few minutes,” she moved to the door and peered through the opening, barely breathing.

  “This is private property,” Morgan said when he opened the door, seeing the two young men exactly as Eloise had described them, though surely looking a little more frustrated. “That’s why the gate was locked.”

  “We walked and didn’t mean to disturb you,” one of them said.

  “We’re looking for our sister…she’s a little…”

  “She’s not quite right, if you get my drift,” he confided with a dramatic sigh.

  Eloise straightened up indignantly.

  “Sorry. We just got back…and if you don’t mind, we have plans,” Morgan put his palm up to close the door only to find a hand on it. One pale brown eyebrow arched considerably, his body tensing. One scowl meeting the other.

  “I’m positive I saw her on your property…” He said coldly, his gaze darting around the interior.

  A lilting French accent was the next thing the three males heard, all eyes turning toward the sound and all three felt their jaws drop.

  Standing in the entrance opening was a woman clad in nothing but two towels. One wrapped securely around her hair, the other tucked beneath her arms and just barely topping her thighs.

  “Morgan? Cherie…oh…I did not know we had company…I will wait,” she said with a saucy wink and a seductive French accent. She turned and disappeared into the bathroom. Eloise leaned against the closed door, barely breathing, her eyes closed.

  “As I said…we were just married and I’m busy,” Morgan pushed the door closed, locking it firmly. He stood quietly.

  “The tracker says she’s here!” Came the hoarse hiss from the other side.

  “Bitch musta found it and planted it on them, let’s get out of here. She’ll have to surface somewhere,” the other one growled, their footsteps leading from the house.

  Morgan held a finger to his lips when she stepped quietly from the hall, her clothing back in place and hair hanging free. He moved very quietly toward her.

  “Where’s both back packs?” He asked, his eyes following her fingers.

  He lifted both packs in one hand. “Bring Lili…follow me…”

  He led them to the second level, gesturing to the large carpet in front of the small window. “Lili can play there…” he opened all the zippers on Eloise’s pack and dumped everything onto the spread on the bed. His fingers rooting through things and then gingerly feeling the straps and pockets of her pack. He sighed thickly, two fingers coming up with a small square with a pin on the end. “They’ve been tracking you,” he repeated the process on the child’s pack but found nothing.

  “What do we do with it?” Eloise asked, her palm on her throat.

  “We’ll put it on someone’s car tomorrow morning when we head north,” Morgan watched her neatly repack her clothing, books and other things into the large pack.

  Eloise nodded numbly, placing her pack on a cushioned chair and sinking to sit on the edge of the bed for a quiet minute.

  “Lili…it’s time to put things up for bed, please,” Eloise looked at Morgan. “Do you have extra blankets and pillows? Please?”

  Morgan went into the large walk in closet and came out with an arm loa
d of things, dropping them to the bed. He watched her arrange a pallet of blankets on the floor, kneeling on the floor at her side as she tucked the blankets around Lili.

  “No ‘jamas tonight?” Lili yawned and snuggled down with her small bear.

  “Not tonight…we’re going home in the morning,” Eloise promised, kissing her softly. “G’night, baby girl…I’ll be here, I promise.”

  “G’night, Elle…”

  Morgan watched her walk to the chair and curl against the side, eyes wide and unseeing as she stared into the night outside. He moved to her side, dropping to his heels and turning her face to look at him.

  “Eloise…I need you to trust me and listen to me,” he said carefully, her nod immediate. “I will not let anything happen to you or Lili. I’m going to get a case I have in the safe downstairs and check the windows and doors. I’ll be right back. I want to leave early in the morning. Do you think you could prepare some food like Lili carries so we can get out of here? I’m going to pack my cases and put them in the car.”

  “I can do that,” she answered, blinking when he didn’t move.

  “Morgan. My name…it’s okay…”

  “Morgan,” Eloise repeated his name slowly.

  “She’ll be okay here…” He stood up and held out his hand. “Let’s get things ready for tomorrow.”

  Eloise worked quietly in the kitchen, cutting fruit and cheese and putting them in bags before leaving everything in the fridge on the shelf. She gathered a couple bottles of water from the shelf in the cupboard before browsing all the cupboards for things to take along. By the time he returned from carrying two large suitcases to the garage, she had the morning collection finished, complete with small bags of cereal for Lili.

  She walked to the bottom of the wide staircase, frowning at the hard plastic case sitting on the stairs.

  Morgan saw her stare, uncertain about her reaction.

  “I keep a gun in the house,” he said simply.

  “You’ve been well trained,” she said, looking at him without hesitating, climbing the stairs to the master bedroom. She curled into the large chair, watching him lay the case on the bed and go through the motions of preparing it.

  “I’ve been very well trained,” he answered without looking up, laying the gun on the nightstand, the case closed and on the floor. “You take the side next to Lili, Eloise,” he told her, removing his shirt and tossing it over the other chair. “And before you ask, yes, I have a tattoo but I do not do show and tell,” he sat on the side of the bed, untying his shoes and kicking them off.

  “I don’t think Noah thought he would ever be show and tell, either, Morgan,” Eloise said with a small smile. “But it won him the best daddy ever smile and that seemed to make it all worth while,” she told him, pulling the blankets down and lying on the pillow, her feet hanging off the side.

  Morgan was still thinking about that one when he was leaving the bathroom. Like Eloise, he left his pants and shirt on when he slid beneath the blankets.

  “I think you can take your boots off, Eloise. I don’t think they’ll be back this way,” he said, hoping he sounded confident. He lay on his side, watching her sit up and open the buckles on her boots, dropping them lightly to the floor before laying back with a sigh.

  “What is your tattoo?” She asked, facing him and looking at the arm he turned toward her, his hand coming up and pushing the sleeve out of the way. She looked at the black and white image of a pair of boots with a weapon turned into them, a set of dog tags dangling from the handle and a helmet on the top. “You lost some friends,” she guessed softly, her hand rising and letting her fingers touch the image.

  “I lost friends….”

  “I’m sorry. I…my cousin…Gwen…we’ve talked about this for years…about how or why with humans what they are…how can mothers still want to bring babies into this world?” Eloise curled her fingers around the blanket, her eyes closed. “We started talking about making our own world when we were little kids…someplace safe…someplace where…where it was different,” she whispered sadly. “You believe when you’re little…when you get older, you just wish you could still believe…”

  Morgan realized he had no answer for her.

  “What do you do for a living, Eloise?” He asked, curious about the woman sharing his bed.

  “I’m a programmer and IT specialist,” she said with a small yawn, pale lashes up to meet his eyes. “I make sure all the computers and point of sale terminals and alarms are functioning well and properly. Nothing more tetchy than an irritable user in the Emporium. What do you do?”

  “I was afraid to tell you…”

  Eloise laughed softly. “Why?”

  “You’ll start mistering me again,” he said honestly. “I’m going to be the administrator and head of the school Logan wants put together for the resort location.”

  “A principal,” she laughed, her sigh long. “All part of making a new world.”

  “We can only hope,” he agreed, boldly reaching over and taking her palm in his, their fingers entwined. “Good night, Eloise.”

  “G’night, Morgan…thank you…thank you so much…” She said softly.

  Morgan knew he slept little. Every little noise had him alert, his hand out and on the butt of the gun resting near his head. When he finally slept, it surprised him to wake shortly before seven in the center of the bed, his arms around Eloise from behind and her fingers wrapped around his.

  Eloise stirred slowly, little sounds from Lili making her blink lazily. She was very comfortable. And nicely warm, she thought with a soft sigh. Only when her eyes landed on the four hands just beneath her chin did she frown. She ran her tongue around her lips at the same time the events of the previous day came rushing back into her mind.

  “Don’t move,” Morgan whispered against her neck. “I think your hair is stuck beneath my shoulder.” He carefully pulled his hands back, moving to sit up and stretch. He quickly and carefully unloaded the gun and put everything neatly into the small case before heading to the bathroom.

  Eloise was up quickly once the door latched, gathering Lili and taking her to the bathroom on the first floor. She had the child settled with milk and toast before collecting their things and straightening the bedroom. Morgan was busy carrying things to the garage, packing the back of the SUV. She had both their shoes in place, Lili’s hair brushed and tied into little tails.

  Eloise had poured a large glass of juice and made extra toast before carrying their packs to sit by the open garage door. Morgan grabbed up a slice of toast and drained half the glass of juice before making certain the fireplace was completely out. He put the small tracking device in his pocket, finished the juice and looked at both the girls watching him intently.

  “Ready?”

  “Yes,” Eloise lifted Lili to the floor and zipped her into her jacket, got the large paper bag of food from inside the fridge and followed him into the garage. She watched him stow their packs in the backseat while she was buckling Lili into her seat before climbing into the front of the car. Slim fingers held the front of her heavy cloak closed. It was still dark outside when Morgan raised the garage door, making certain things were locked down before getting behind the wheel of the car.

  “What color was their car, Eloise?” Morgan asked when he locked the iron gate behind them, heading the car toward the highway.

  “A deep red, a newer car,” she answered instantly.

  “I’m going to find us a phone so you can call and let them know we’re on the way back,” he said quietly.

  “Thank you,” Eloise watched the roads around them. Very little traffic at a little after seven, something she was grateful for.

  Morgan found a busy breakfast restaurant, pulling into a slot and putting a hand up to stop Eloise.

  “Wait here a minute, please,” he pulled the small tracking wire from his pocket and went to read some license plates, sliding it into the glass and rubber on a back window of a car sporting plates from a few stat
es away. “Lili and I will wait here for you…do you need change?”

  Eloise dug her hand into her pack, coming out with several quarters before hopping from the SUV and making a run to the main entrance. She listened to the ringing impatiently.

  “Cassidy Parker, please,” she said immediately, listening to the greeting. “Cassidy, it’s Eloise…”

  “Eloise!” Cassidy hit the record button immediately. “Where are you?”

  “We’re okay…please...please, Cassidy, make sure everyone knows that. We’re on our way back…we’re just outside Portland…”

  “But you’re okay?” Cassidy pressed firmly.

  “Honestly,” she said softly. “Lili and I are traveling with a friend of Logan’s, Morgan Kelley. By some luck, the car I chose to hide in, was his. I lost my phone…”

  “We found the phone…in a restroom trash can…I’ll let the police know,” Cassidy told her.

  “It fell in the toilet…it wasn’t a good day, Cassidy,” Eloise said with a sigh. “Get hold of Ethan…they thought I was Hannah…and said something about signing papers to make the attorney drop the inheritance suit…they said they’d let us free once I signed some papers, but…I didn’t believe them…I couldn’t call because Morgan’s phone is dead and there’s no power because of a storm…like I said…not a stellar day…”

  “I’m glad you’re safe…I’ll get hold of Hannah and Noah. When do you think you’ll be back?”

  “We’ll go straight to the resort…I don’t know…I’m guessing about four hours from now? Thank you for letting the others know…I’ve got to go, Cassidy. Morgan has been really nice about this whole thing and I don’t want to keep him waiting. See you soon! Bye.”

  Cassidy stared at the phone for a long minute before she began letting everyone know what she’d learned, including the police. It had been a very long, stressful night for a lot of people.