At security, we say goodbye.
“You call or write if you need anything from now on. Promise?” Gram says.
“Yes. I promise.”
I hug her as tight as I can without hurting her. For such a strong lady, sometimes she seems so fragile. I watch her go through the line, and before she ambles out of sight, she waves at me one more time. I have to fight back the tears stinging the corners of my eyes. Thank God for Gram. Thank God.
Dear Martin
I need to see you. The Atheneum park? Tomorrow at 10?
Anon
Dear Anon
Yes. See you there.
Martin
I can’t explain why I want to see him and tell him. It just feels like the right thing to do now that Lydia is gone. Martin should know I figured out my gift, and I can handle myself. I’m no longer that pathetic girl who lets the ghosts mistreat her. Now, I’m a true medium.
I wait on the bench beside the children’s library, the trees in full bloom shading me from the sun and hiding me from view. Finally, I can marvel at all the little details of summer without distraction—the power of the sun, the freshness of the air, the abundance of annoying tourists.
Martin wanders into the park and pretends not to see me. A woman playing with two little boys does a double take at Martin’s top hat and tails. Way to be inconspicuous, dude. Martin sits on the opposite end of my bench and pulls out a book, like a spy meeting his informant.
“My family knows,” I tell him. “Turns out, my grandmother is a medium, too. She had to come and help us get rid of Lydia. We did it, though. She’s gone.”
“This is good news for you. Did you learn how to do it then? Move them on?”
“Sort of.”
“It’s quite a skill. I’m sure you could use your power to great advantage.”
Of course Martin sees dollar signs. Is he offering to be my broker?
“I don’t think I want to do that.”
“Well, you may change your mind after a few more summers of crappy tips at the coffee shop.” He bobs his head at my Island Coffee T-shirt.
“I just wanted you to know,” I say around the sour taste creeping into my mouth. Why does talking to Martin always make me feel dirty?
“Very well. Congratulations. I’ll continue to honor our arrangement. I assume you will do the same. Have a nice day.” And with that, he stands and stalks off.
Yes, Martin, please do honor our arrangement. Only Martin could make a threat to falsely accuse him of rape sound like something out of a Jane Austen novel. But I’m glad he’s still scared, even if I had to play dirty to ensure that he would keep his mouth shut.
The wind whips by my face, making me squint and smile at the same time. Salt spray crusts my lips and lashes. I bounce and swish over the waves on the kneeboard—like walking on water and flying at the same time. Why have I never done this before? Ally and Devonte wave and give me the thumbs-up from the back of the boat, and Charlie turns back every few seconds to check on me, too.
I tumble—head first, hurtling and splashing. The lifejacket immediately brings me back to the surface. Gasping, I open my eyes and see the boat turning in a wide arc, circling back to retrieve me.
“Are you okay?” Charlie calls as he maneuvers the boat beside me.
“Such a rush!” I yell back.
Charlie pulls me up off the swim platform and unhooks my life vest. He takes my wet face in his hands. “I love seeing you smile.”
And his kiss is the saltiest, sexiest, best kiss I’ve ever had.
Epilogue
My mother shimmers in her ivory gown, her red hair cascading around her bare shoulders. She smooths down her skirt and touches her fingertips to the corners of her eyes before turning to me. “Okay?” she asks.
“Yeah. Perfect.” I smile.
She takes my arms and holds them out to my sides, examining me in my hydrangea blue dress. “You look perfect too,” she says, her eyes wet with tears.
“Ready?” I ask. Outside, the music has changed. Our cue.
She beams. “Ready.”
We walk through a set of french doors and emerge onto a patio. Mike and the boys wait under a rose-covered pergola. They’re dressed in white shirts with khakis and blue ties the same color as my dress. About seventy people look on from rows of white chairs. As we start our walk down the aisle, Mom gives my hand a reassuring squeeze. Beyond the lawn and the dunes, the ocean rolls and roars. Sunlight glints off the surface of the water, twinkling like a million tiny diamonds. Tears form in my eyes.
When we reach the end, Mike takes Mom’s hand, bowing his head to me in a small gesture of thanks, as if I’m giving her to him, allowing him to take her. And even though I know he doesn’t need my permission, I like that he acknowledges my part in our new family.
Mom hands me her bouquet before I step to my place at her side. And once I’m there, I allow my eyes to meet Charlie’s. He’s smiling, and I return his look of joy with one of my own. I smile because I know that everything will be all right now and because we’re here in this moment together and because it’s all the things that it should be—hopeful, optimistic, filled with love. That’s how I feel. That’s how it is.
The minister begins the ceremony.
About the Author
Melissa MacVicar lives with her husband and two children on Nantucket Island. She loves classic rock, watching football, and reading anything romantic and suspenseful. She survived prep school, and was brave enough to attend her college reunion.
When she turned forty, Melissa decided to renew her adolescent passion for fiction writing. Having once thought publishing a novel to be an impossible dream, she’s proud to be achieving her lifelong goal. In addition to writing, she’s a full-time teacher, an avid runner, and a somewhat reluctant tri-athlete.
Acknowledgments
First and foremost, I want to thank my husband, Angus. Without him, I don’t think this book would have been possible. His love, encouragement, and never-say-die attitude gave me the courage and endurance to undertake this enormous task.
To Eileen and Joel—I couldn’t have been blessed with kinder, more generous kids. You guys never complained (well, almost never) when you had to make your own pancakes or find your own clothes or in some other way wait for my attention because “Mom’s writing right now.” For your love and independence, I am eternally grateful.
To my parents, Richard and Susan Brooks, and my siblings, Seth and Emily, for their support and love over the years.
To the team at Red Adept Publishing—You helped make Jade’s story truly come alive. Michelle and Lynn, your thoughtful, detailed approaches to editing have made me a better writer.
To Mary Fan for the fabulous book trailer.
To real life friends who’ve helped along the way—Cara Seal, Tandi Harimon, Linda Muhler, Beth Connors, Elly MacVicar, and Steve Sheppard.
To my fellow pitizens—you know who you are, off discussing our mutual pain, our shared joys, and all things publishing in that dank, moldy pit. Without you guys, I probably would have given up long ago. A special shout-out to Hester for reading the entire book back when it was just a baby, Ink for fixing my queries, Chelsea for telling me about Red Adept, and Kell for her willingness to help with any and all problems I had.
To the many anonymous folks on the Absolute Write Forums who gave advice and shared their wisdom on the industry and the craft of writing.
Research help came from Catherine Flanagan Stover, Paula Lundy Levy, and the folks at the NHA research library.
Author’s Note
This novel is strictly a work of fiction. All the characters are made up by me with the exception of the ghost, Lacey. Lacey is based partly on a real person who lived in the 19th century. Her name was Eunice Chadwick Chase (1808-1888). I was
intrigued by what happened to Eunice when I first read Revenge of the Whale, by Nathaniel Philbrick. I decided to use some of the facts of her story in my novel and embellish it with details from my own imagination. The true facts about her as I know them are as follows.
Eunice resided on Nantucket her entire life and was married to Owen Chase (1797-1869). Owen Chase was a survivor of the sunken whale ship Essex. The Essex was rammed by a whale in 1820, and the story is said to be part of the inspiration for Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. Chase was the first mate on the Essex and went on to be the captain of two other ships before retiring to his home on Orange Street in Nantucket.
Eunice was the child of William Chadwick and Deborah Brown. Deborah Brown Chadwick died when Eunice was only six months old. Eunice had two stepmothers after her mother’s death. In addition to one full brother, she also had two half brothers.
Eunice married Owen Chase in 1835 when she was twenty-seven years old, becoming his third wife and stepmother to his four children. Chase was only home five months with Eunice before he went to sea again as the captain of the Charles Carroll. Sometime in the spring of 1837, while her husband was at sea, Eunice became pregnant. She gave birth in January of 1838 to a son, Charles Frederick Chase. Owen arrived home two years later, having already been informed of the situation with his wife. Herman Melville, who learned about Chase while he sailed on the Acushnet, wrote the following regarding this incident. Chase received letters “informing him of the certain infidelity of his wife… we also heard that his receipt of this news had told most heavily upon Chase, and that he was a prey to the deepest of gloom.”
Nathaniel Philbrick writes the following on page 216 of In the Heart of the Sea. “A matter of days after his return to Nantucket in the winter of 1840, Chase filed for divorce. On July 7, the divorce was granted, with Chase taking over legal guardianship of Charles Frederick. Two months later, Chase married for the fourth time, Susan Coffin Gwinn.”
So what happened to Eunice? Who was the father of her child? Was she devastated that Owen kept her son? What did she do to support herself after the divorce? I can only answer one of these questions. Searching the census of 1850, I found Eunice living with her father and stepmother on Nantucket. I also found Charles Frederick living with Owen and Susan.
Unlike the character in my story, Eunice did not commit suicide. She went on to live a long life. She didn’t remarry or have any other children. She lived some portion of her life at 61 Fair Street on Nantucket, according to property transfers records at the Nantucket Historical Association.
Eunice’s death record states that she died of cancer on April 20th, 1888. She was buried at the Newtown Cemetery on Sparks Avenue, presumably in her father’s plot, although she has no grave stone. She was the last of her siblings to die and seemed to be a woman of limited means. There wasn’t even enough of an estate to have a will registered in probate. As for Charles Frederick Chase, I have been unable to find many details about him. My guess is that he moved off-island.
About the Author
Melissa was born and mostly raised on Nantucket Island, and she currently lives there with her husband and two teenage children. When not being a wife and mother and teaching writing to seventh graders, she enjoys binge watching shows like Big Little Lies, House of Cards, and Outlander. Despite the rumors to the contrary, she does not actually wish she was a teenager again, nor does she see ghosts like the main character in her first novel, Ever Near. She does, however, love to hear from readers so send her a message on social media or at her email: [email protected]
Twitter: @MelissaMacVicar
Facebook: Melissa MacVicar
Instagram: melissa.macvicar
Titles By The Author
EVER NEAR: Secret Affinity Book 1
EVER LOST: Secret Affinity Book 2
ONE BROKEN DAY
Ever Near (Secret Affinity Book 1) Page 19