by Tim Myers
Elise stepped toward him, took the sheet he’d just folded out of his hands, and said, “It’s okay to grieve for him, Alex. If you’re not up to this celebration tonight, we can still cancel it.”
Alex shook his head as he said, “I can’t bring myself to go against Jase’s last request. I’ll say good-bye any way he wanted me to.”
She hesitated a moment, then hugged him fiercely. Alex was surprised by the display, but before he could say a word, Elise said, “I should have offered you my comfort earlier, but I just didn’t know if I had the right to do it. Alex, when I saw Sandra do exactly the right thing by hugging you, I wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Please forgive me for letting you down when you needed me.”
Alex pulled away. “Hey, are you crying?”
“No,” she said as she wiped away the evidence of her lie. “Alex, I’m so sorry about Jase. I didn’t know him long, but he always had a smile for me.”
He said, “Thanks; I truly do appreciate that. I’m just beginning to realize how much I’m going to miss him.” Alex squeezed her shoulder gently, then said, “Don’t ever think
you let me down. You’ve always been here for me when it counted, Elise.”
She started to say something more when Tony walked in. He started to back away immediately. “Whoa. Sorry to interrupt. I’ll talk to you later, Alex.”
“That’s okay,” Elise said. “I’ve got to finish cleaning room nine. Alex, we really should give the rooms names instead of numbers. Just think how much more impressive the Canawba Suite sounds than room nine.” Before Alex could say a word, Elise added, “Just think about it, okay?” as she wiped away the last of her tears.
She left without even glancing at Tony.
Once she was gone, his brother said, “Sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“She’s an employee and a good friend, Tony, nothing more.”
Tony rubbed his chin, then said seriously, “You should tell her that. I saw the look on that woman’s face, Alex. She’s smitten with you.”
“She has a fiancé, Tony.”
“Not for long, if I can read the signs, and believe me, little Brother, that’s what I’m best at.”
Alex said, “Was there something I could do for you?”
Tony shrugged. “Okay, we won’t talk about it. Alex, I want us both to go up to the top of the lighthouse and rehearse the release of the ashes.”
“I just figured we’d wing it. Honestly Tony, I’ve got a ton of work to do.”
Tony said shortly, “Would it kill you to spend half an hour with your brother?”
Alex stacked the last sheet he’d folded onto the pile, then said, “Listen, I’m sorry; you’re right. I know you lost your uncle, too. Let’s go.”
It was most likely the last thing the two brothers would ever do together in the world, and Alex couldn’t blame Tony for wanting them to do it right.
Chapter 12
They were all the way to the second window inside the lighthouse when Tony said, “I dropped the slip of paper with my lines on it for tonight. I’ll be back in a second.”
Alex said, “Can’t you just do your best from memory?”
“Alex, this is important to me.”
Alex said, “Okay, I’ll go back down with you and help look for it.”
Tony protested, “That’s okay, I’m sure I dropped it at the door. You go on ahead, and I’ll be with you in a minute.”
Alex said, “Fine by me,” as he moved up the steps.
At least the place was deserted for their rehearsal. Several townsfolk used the lighthouse as a StairMaster with a twist, and Alex tried to climb the steps whenever he could manage to get away himself. Unfortunately, running an inn didn’t always give him enough free time to do that, though he did manage to get in his walk to the mailbox and back almost every day, a pretty long hike itself.
But there was nothing like being inside the lighthouse.
He caressed the walls as he climbed, feeling the coarse, cool texture as he ascended.
Alex got to the top and was relieved to find the observation platform itself deserted. That was a little unusual; normally, at least somebody was up there during the afternoon.
As promised, Tony joined him a few minutes later. Alex asked, “Did you have any luck finding your note?”
“I had it in my pocket all along,” he admitted sheepishly.
Alex looked down at the two buildings of the inn, one the same as always and the other being reconstructed right beside it. He said, “I figure we’ll pour his ashes out here. If there’s any wind at all, they’ll spread out over half of Canawba County.”
“That’s fine,” Tony said. He hesitated a moment, then added, “Alex, we need to talk.”
Alex asked, “About what?” as he took in the view he so cherished.
His brother said firmly, “It’s about Jase’s money.”
“What about it? You got most of it, and the Preservation Society got the rest. It was nice of you to offer to share your part, but I can’t take it. This is how Jase wanted it, and I’m respecting his wishes to the letter.”
Tony snapped, “I’m not trying to break his will, I’m trying to give you a gift. Why can’t you take it? Are you too proud to ask for help from your big brother?”
Alex said, “I honestly just want what Jase wanted me to have. Would I have accepted a ton of money from him? Absolutely. Am I happy with what he chose to leave me? You’d better believe it. His books were the most important part of his life. In a way, you got the short end of the stick, Tony.”
“If I live to be a hundred, I’ll never understand you,” Tony said, exasperation thick in his voice.
“I never claimed to be all that easy to figure out,” Alex admitted.
Tony looked out at the view, taking in the edges of the
Blue Ridge Mountains. After a period of silence, he said, “I miss him, too, you know that, don’t you?”
“He was the last bit of family we had,” Alex agreed.
Tony nodded. “And then there were two. It’s just you and me, Bro, the last of the Winstons.” He looked out into the distance another minute or two, then said, “Thanks for coming up here with me, but I know you’ve got a ton of work to do.”
“Not a problem,” Alex said as they went back inside the lighthouse. As the two brothers walked down the stairs, Alex wrestled with the possibility that Tony could have had anything to do with Jase’s death. It was hard to believe that the man he’d just spoken to could have been capable of such a brutal act. Alex felt guilty for even considering it, but even as he chided himself for the thought, another voice whispered that their trip up the lighthouse steps could have all been for show, a way for Tony to make amends and ease his conscience about what he’d done. No matter how much it troubled his heart, Alex had to admit to himself that there was no reasonable way he could eliminate Tony as one of his suspects.
Elise met them at the bottom of the lighthouse.
Tony said, “Well, I’d love to hang around, but I’m heading into town to look up a few old friends. I’m glad we had the chance to talk, Alex.”
“Me, too,” he said as he brother headed for his car.
Elise waited until Tony was gone before she told Alex, “The sheriff just called.”
Alex asked, “Has he made any progress on the case?”
“No, he wanted to know if you needed crowd control tonight. I said you’d call him back later. It sounds like most of Elkton Falls is coming out to the inn.”
“I never even thought about all the people who loved Jase. Tell the sheriff to call Shantara Robinson and get her
to round up her crew from the Golden Days Fair. She’ll know what he means. No doubt Jase left a budget for cleanup, too, knowing him.”
“I’ll call him right away.” Elise studied a sparkling new pendant watch pinned to her shirt, then said, “The caterers should be here in ten minutes, and the band will come along an hour later.”
Alex gestured to the w
atch. “Is that new?”
“Yes,” Elise said simply.
“From Peter?” Alex asked.
Elise said, “No, he brought it to me from my parents.”
“Any reason in particular?” he asked.
Elise mumbled something, and Alex said, “Sorry, I didn’t catch that.”
“Today is my birthday,” Elise admitted.
Alex said, “I’m so sorry, Elise, I didn’t know.” He added with a shake of his head, “You never exactly filled out a formal application when you came to work for me.”
“You had your hands full at the time, if I remember it correctly.”
“I usually do. Happy birthday, Elise. I just wish we could have celebrated it under better circumstances.”
“Thanks, Alex.”
He said, “You know what? I think I’ll call Armstrong myself. Why don’t you take the rest of the afternoon off, in honor of your birthday?”
“I can’t do that to you, Alex; you’ve got your hands full here.”
He said, “I won’t take no for an answer, Elise. Think of it as my birthday present to you.”
Elise said, “To be honest with you, there’s nowhere I’d rather spend my birthday than at Hatteras West.” The smile spreading across her face was genuine. It was the part of her that kept pulling him in, a joy in her words and heart that attracted him to her. Okay, the fact that she was stunning didn’t hurt, but Alex had long since looked past her outer beauty to find the even lovelier woman just beneath the surface.
He’d have to make it up to her, missing her birthday like that. Maybe when things settled down some, he could take her out to dinner.
And then he remembered that all her evenings would be taken, now that Peter Asheford was in Elkton Falls to stay.
That evening, as the party started to gear up, Alex saw Irene Wilkins hovering near the edge of the crowd. He cut through the well-wishers and said, “Why don’t you come join me?”
She had been crying, he could see that even with the fading light of the day. “I can’t, Alex.”
“Irene, you know you belong here. Jase would have wanted you around.”
She shook her head. “I thought I could take it, but it’s too painful. Forgive me,” she said as she hurried away. Alex watched her go, sad that Jase’s farewell party had hit her so hard. He’d have to find time to talk to her sometime in the next few weeks to reassure her that he was thrilled she and Jase had found a small corner of their lives to share with each other.
Later, with the festivities in full gear, Tony found Alex and said, “Okay, Bro, are we ready to get this farewell started?”
Alex looked over to find his brother standing nearby as he took in the crowds that had come to say good-bye.
“We might as well. Let me go talk to the band.” A quartet from town had set up at the base of the lighthouse under blinking white lights Vernum had strung up in the trees. They looked like starlight up there, casting a gentle glow over the festivities. Alex had to admit, it was a good turnout, especially for a funeral. The buffet table was a hit, and several couples were dancing under the real stars.
Shantara Robinson, a friend from town who ran the general store, had asked Alex to dance, but he told her the same thing he’d told Sandra; he was there to say good-bye to Jase. Alex smiled grimly, wondering if he would have refused if Elise had asked him. He’d only seen her a couple of times since the party had started. Both times, she’d been standing close to Peter.
Alex approached the band, gave the bandleader the signal they’d agreed on earlier, and they stopped as soon as the song was over.
Alex said into the microphone, “May I have your attention please?”
Tony had deferred to him when it came to making the announcement, and Alex had reluctantly accepted. He wasn’t a big fan of speaking in public—it normally petrified him—but he’d do the best he could in honor of Jase.
“First, I want to thank you all for coming out to remember my uncle Jase. Some of you might find all this a little unusual”—there were more than a few nods in the crowd— “but anyone who knew Jase understands. He was a law unto himself in many ways.” There were even more nods now.
Alex gestured around him as he said, “This party was his idea, a way of saying good-bye. Thank you all for sharing it with us.”
At that moment, Tony walked forward, carrying the urn that housed Jase’s last remains, and all eyes were on him. As he joined Alex on the bandstand, Alex announced, “Per Jase’s last request, we’ll scatter the ashes from atop the lighthouse, and the lens will be turned on, one minute for every year of Jase’s life.”
Alex felt his knees tremble as he walked inside the lighthouse’s base.
Tony cradled the urn in one arm and put a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Nicely put, Alex. You did a good job out there.”
“Thanks,” he said as the two men walked up the steps together, Tony carrying the urn and Alex manning the powerful flashlight that lit up the interior.
When they got to the top, Alex asked, “Do you want to scatter the ashes or light the lens?”
“Why don’t we do them both together,” Tony suggested. “For old times’ sake.”
Alex said, “Think how dramatic it will be when the light starts rotating and catches a glint of his ashes as we release them.”
Tony agreed. ‘Tell you what, you turn on the torch all the time. I haven’t done it since we were kids. You can release the ashes, and then I’ll flip the switch.”
Alex agreed and walked to the rail. He glanced back to be sure that Tony was at his post, then shouted to the folks clustered below a variation on Taps, “To the lakes, to the hills, to the sky,” and started slowly emptying the urn as the lens came on above him. The wind gusted, shooting the flecks of gray into the night as the lens slowly started to rotate.
Alex walked quickly back inside and found Tony headed toward him. “Aren’t you going to hang around and enjoy the view?”
Alex said, “No, I think it’s a lot more dramatic on the ground, and we’ll have the light on for over an hour this time. I want to enjoy it from the ground.”
Tony said, “Suit yourself,” as he brushed past Alex and went out on the deck.
Alex hurried down the steps, and Elise met him at the door, a handkerchief pressed in her hand. “Alex, that was beautiful.” She studied his face, then asked, “It’s hard saying good-bye, isn’t it?”
“I just need some time to get used to Jase being gone. It’s just beginning to sink in that he’s not going to be around anymore.”
Elise said, “Why don’t we go inside, and I’ll get you a glass of punch.”
He declined. “No, I’ll be all right. I need to be here.”
“Alex, I insist. You can have something stronger if you’d like, but you shouldn’t have to act as the host for your own uncle’s farewell.”
He said, “Who better, Elise? There are a lot of people here I need to talk to.”
“Just come inside for a minute or two, Alex. You can collect yourself before you face them all again.”
He found himself agreeing. Elise led him through the crowd, and as the band started up, a great many people began to dance again. As Alex walked up onto the porch, he looked up at the lighthouse and saw the beam cutting through the clear night above him. A single figure was outlined in each sweep, casting an eerie light over Tony as he looked down on them all.
Alex started to sit down in one of the rocking chairs in the lobby when he saw that the door to his room was slightly ajar. He knew he’d kept it locked since moving Jase’s things in with him. Alex ran to the door as Elise followed with a cup of punch.
“What is it, Alex?”
“Somebody broke into my room,” he shouted as reached the doorway.
Inside, it was a complete disaster. The boxes Alex and Mor had so carefully packed were dumped on the floor in a jumbled mess. Had the thief found what he’d been looking for? Alex had no way of knowing, but there was a gnawing feeling in th
e pit of his stomach that he’d missed something important, some clue to his uncle’s murder. But had the killer found it, or was it still somewhere in that mess?
No doubt about it, the party had been the perfect excuse to break in while Alex was occupied outside. Whoever had done it had the nerves of a cat burglar, with most of Elkton Falls just outside.
Alex slumped against the bed, dislodging a book from the pile as it clattered to the floor.
Chapter 13
Elise, following close behind, asked, “Alex, who would do this?”
“Somebody was obviously looking for something among Jase’s things. I can’t help wondering if they found it.”
“Why do you say that?”
Alex started putting books back into their boxes. “They’re not here, are they? It was a pretty thorough search, so I’ve got to believe they got what they came for.”
As Elise knelt beside him and started helping, she said, “Not necessarily. This looks like whoever was in here got frustrated when they didn’t find what they were looking for. Why else would the books be slammed around like this? You certainly would be hard-pressed to find anything in this mess right now.”
That thought hadn’t occurred to him. “You know, you could be right. But what could they have been after? Tony got the only valuable things there were in Jase’s estate.”
“I wish I knew,” Elise said as she started on another pile of books.
Alex said, “Elise, you don’t have to do this, especially lot on your birthday. Why don’t you go and enjoy the party. Peter’s probably already wondering where you are.”
“I sent Peter back to town an hour ago,” she said without further explanation.
Alex didn’t say another word about it as they worked side by side putting things right again. After the boxes were repacked, Alex studied the lock on his door. The frame was splintered where someone had forced their way in. “I’ll have to fix this tomorrow,” he said, “But for tonight, I’ll have to stand guard.”