The Ghost Files 3

by Apryl Baker

  “I spent three days tied up and enduring torture, including the sledgehammer she used to break both my hands,” I continue. “It was the ghosts that helped me escape. Eric and several of the ghosts I’d seen were all her victims. They were terrified of her, but they still helped me. Once we were okay, I helped them cross over. All except for Eric. He said he’d wait for me.”

  “Wait for you?”

  “I was almost dead myself,” I whisper. “If Dan hadn’t found me when he did, I’d be dead. Eric stuck around after that, said I needed someone to keep me out of trouble.”

  “He saved your life,” Eli says.

  “Yeah, he did,” I agree. “When I woke up, I learned they’d found Mary, and she was alive. When Mary was well enough to talk, she told her mother everything. Mrs. Cross gave me a home after that, grateful for her daughter’s life. She accepted me for me and what I do, however weird.”

  “So if it hadn’t been for Sally, you’d still be ignoring the ghosts,” Eli murmurs.

  “Yeah, I’d still be living in relative peace, too.” I nod and wince at the pain that ratchets through my head. “I wouldn’t be dealing with psychotic ghosts all out to hurt me, either.”

  “This will sound awful, Mattie, but…bear with me,” he says softly. “I’m glad.”

  “You’re glad?” I all but shriek. He’s not serious? How can he be glad I went through all that?

  “Don’t freak out, Hilda,” he chides. “I said bear with me. I’m glad you decided not to ignore the ghosts and embrace your gift. If you hadn’t, I never would have met you.”

  “Oh,” I say meekly. Wow.

  “You definitely threw me for a loop,” he says ruefully. “The first time I saw you was when Caleb carried you into the house, blood pouring out from everywhere. You looked so pale…fragile. The only thought I had was to hurt whatever was hurting you, but I didn’t see any ghosts. From the moment I saw you, my first inclination was to protect you, same as Caleb and even Dad. I also wanted to kiss you. It was damned hard to concentrate when I was trying to ink you, too. You had the softest skin and I winced every time I applied the tattoo needle to your bare flesh.”

  “Glad I was out for that,” I say honestly. “I don’t do pain very well.”

  “You sure do a mean left hook, though.” He grins at me and I laugh.

  The first time I’d met him was in New Orleans. I’d just woken up after being unconscious. The room was dark and he’d grabbed me. I came up swinging and when he fell, I’d bashed his head into the floor and managed to get his arm behind his back in a grip guaranteed to break it if he moved.

  “I understand the first beat down,” Eli says, “but not the second time you hit me. Care to explain?”

  I hadn’t meant to do that. I’d gone to find him to apologize to him for the first smack down, but I’d fallen into the memory of the man killing his wife. When I opened my eyes and seen his aqua ones staring into mine after just having seen those same eyes look at me while he killed me, my survival instincts kicked in. I’d given him a black eye. He and I seem to have a bit of a violent history up until this point. So I’m not telling him that one.

  “All I’ll say is well, you deserved some of those punches,” I grouch. “I warned you often enough not to call me Hilda.”

  “Aw, but I love to see you get all flushed and riled when I call you Hilda,” he purrs and moves closer to me, the heat intensifying as it pours off his body.

  “I was pretty sure you despised the very sight of me,” I whisper, my insides clenching, curling, and fluttering all at once. I’m slightly sick, but now I know what that feeling means. It’s intense desire. I want him to kiss me again.

  “No,” he says softly. “I was embarrassed at all the ribbing from Benny and Caleb. You confused me too, Hilda. No one has ever affected me the way you do. It was so intense, I ran away from you, but once you looked into my eyes, I was a goner.”

  Holy smokes. “You’re a goner, huh?” I ask, my voice breathy.

  “Yeah.” He stands up and sits down on the bed next to me. “From the second I saw you, I knew. I could run and I could hide, but I knew.”

  “What did you know?” I ask as he leans down until all I can see are his eyes.

  His lips brush mine in a feather kiss. I gasp at the sensation. He rubs his nose alongside mine and trails butterfly kisses along my jawline.

  “I knew you were the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen.” His lips find my earlobe and I nearly come off the bed at the intense sensation that grips me. “I knew you were special and amazing.” His lips find mine again, but are gone before I can even think about kissing him back. “I knew you felt like home to me.” Those wonderful lips of his trail down my neck. “I knew, Mathilda Louise Hathaway, you were it for me.”

  He leans back until he’s looking into my eyes.

  “I knew you were mine.”

  Chapter Eleven

  His lips crash against mine and the fires of Hades himself are unleashed upon my poor unsuspecting body. It feels like my very soul is bubbling up and pouring over. The emotions are intense and scary, but at the same time, I reach up and pull him closer, kissing him back with a vengeance. I can’t seem to get close enough to him and pull him so close, I feel like I’ve fallen into an inferno. I am Icarus flying into the sun. My body relaxes, the heat from his chasing away the cold and I sigh in sheer joy.

  Eli presses closer, pushing me back into the pillows, but one of my many goose eggs makes contact with the nurse’s call button and I let out a small, painful cry. Eli pulls back and is instantly contrite.

  “Did I hurt you? I’m so sorry!”

  “Ahem.”

  We both swivel our heads to see Ezekiel Crane in the doorway. I’m not sure if he’s amused or pissed. Eli’s eyes widen and he steps back, only his foot catches on the chair leg, making him land on his butt with a loud thud. There’s a definite chuckle from Ezekiel. Yes, he’s amused, but not angry.

  “What is going on in here?” Nurse Leigh demands from behind my father. He turns to look at her and I can see her eyes glaze over just a bit. She blinks several times and then blushes. I smile. I’m pretty sure he has that effect on most women. He’s one of those men that are just too handsome for their own good. Why couldn’t I have inherited some of that?

  “I do apologize,” he murmurs. “I came to see my daughter and startled them. They weren’t expecting me.”

  Nurse Leigh hadn’t noticed Eli picking himself up from the floor. She’s flustered and even Eli grins a bit at the formidable Nurse Leigh losing her composure.

  “Your daughter?” Nurse Leigh frowns and glances at me. “I thought she was in foster care.”

  “She is for the time being,” he says and gives Nurse Leigh another melting smile. “I just found out about her a few days ago.”

  “Oh, my, well that’s wonderful news.” She returns his smile and throws me one. “I’ll let the two of you visit, then. Do you need anything, Mattie, dear?”

  “No, ma’am,” I say and can barely hold in a chuckle of my own.

  She backs out of the room and lets the door swing shut. Ezekiel turns his attention back to us and moves further into the room. His face is concerned, but the eyes are sharp, landing on the salt lines Caleb had placed along the window seals of the room. I’d told him it was useless since he couldn’t block the door, but doing something made the boy feel better.

  “Are you all right?” he asks at last. “I got a call to say you’d been admitted into the hospital and rushed right over. I knew you’d fallen earlier and hit your head. Is it something to do with that?”

  “Partially,” I say. The concussion is probably the result of hitting my head so many times in almost the same spot over the last few days. “I’m a klutz. I just slipped in the bath and hit my head. Got a little water in my lungs, too. The doctors just want to keep me for observation. I’m fine.”

  He cocks his head and stares at me. I have the distinct impression he knows I’m lying to him. A liar a
lways knows a liar when they see one. Instead of pushing the subject, he asks, “Hmm. When are they releasing you?”

  “A couple days,” I tell him. I get the hinkiest feeling I’ve had in a long time and my flight or fight instincts kick in. There’s just something about him that makes me want to run in the opposite direction as fast as I can.

  “I’ll have them move you to a private room then,” he nods.

  “That’s not necessary,” I say quickly.

  “Nonsense,” he waves my protests away. “I can afford it and you deserve some privacy. I do like that nurse, though. I’ll make sure she stays on as your primary nurse.”

  Eli and I exchange a glance. Oh, yeah, he’s getting the same hinky feeling I am. “Look, Mr. Crane…”

  “Please call me Zeke.” The smile is supposed to be reassuring, but it doesn’t feel like that to me. “I know you won’t be comfortable calling me Dad for a while, so until then, you can call me Zeke.”

  He pulls one of the chairs over to my bed and sits down. His posture is perfectly ramrod straight as he settles back. It has to be uncomfortable to sit like that for any length of time. I’ve never been able to do it.

  “Do you think you could give my daughter and I a few minutes alone?” He directs the question at Eli.

  I answer him instead. “I don’t know about that. Nancy would have a coronary.”

  “Ah, yes, your watchdog.” He laughs. “You are exceptionally lucky to have someone so fierce looking out for you.”

  I’m in complete agreement there. If my social worker had been anyone but Nancy, he’d have run roughshod all over them and who knows where I’d be right now? Thank you, Nancy.

  “I understand her reservations, Mattie,” he continues, “but believe me when I say there are no doubts whatsoever that you are my daughter.”

  “That might be true,” I say, “but I don’t know you and I’m not comfortable being alone with you. I want Eli to stay.”

  He nods in acquiescence. “Of course. My intention is not to make you uncomfortable. It’s going to take a while for us both to get used to each other, ma petite.”

  “What does that mean?” I ask him. He’d called me that earlier.

  “Ma petite? It means little one in French, and has always been my nickname for you.” He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a black velvet jewelry box. “This was your mother’s. I bought it for her the day you were born and I know she’d want you to have it.”

  “My mom…is she still alive?” I ask softly, taking the box from him. I’d wondered about that when he’d shown up at the police station alone.

  For a moment, his lips tighten then he sighs. “Yes, she’s alive, but she is not well. I had to institutionalize her a few years ago.”

  Institutionalize? My mom’s a nut case? Does she see ghosts too and he put her in the mental ward because of it? Would he put me there if he finds out I see them? My stomach clenches in panic and my mind goes into overload thinking about all the possibilities.

  Seeing the look of horror on my face, he rushes on. “There are no inherited mental illnesses to worry about. Your mother, she had a hard time after your kidnapping, but I’m hoping seeing you, alive and well, will bring her back to us.” He sighs and runs a hand through his hair. “The night you were taken, she was the only one home except for the housekeeper, who had gone to bed. I was away on business. She blames herself for your loss and because of it, she has slowly gone mad from grief.”

  I frown. It’s a different story than the one Dan’s mom and Silas painted. Silas said my mother had given me to Claire to get me away from the man sitting beside me. Dan’s mother called my father a monster. Zeke seems so sincere, though. I’m confused and not ashamed to admit it. So many questions rattle around in my aching head. Where to start?

  “Did you know my mom…I mean Claire…Amanda?” I ask. How had she even managed to get near me? I don’t think my father is the kind of man to take chances. He’s too ruthless to lose and yet he did.

  He grimaces. “Unfortunately, yes. We employed her right after you were born. Ms. Sterling came with impeccable references. I never suspected her true nature until she took you from us. I have gone over where I went wrong so many times. I’m usually very good at reading people, but I saw no warning signs with her. She was an exemplary nanny who absolutely adored you.”

  “She did love me,” I tell him. It’s true, too. No matter how messed up she got, I never doubted that. Up until that last day and even then, knowing what I do now, I still believe she loved me.

  “I was informed of the circumstances surrounding your entrance into the foster care system,” he says, eyes solemn. “Please don’t try to make me feel better. I understand the nightmare you lived through and how you were forced to survive in a system you should never have been a part of.”

  The stark pain in his eyes is heartbreaking. “Don’t do that. Don’t blame yourself, I don’t.”

  He leans forward and takes my hand. “I want you to understand, Emma Rose, there has not been a day that’s gone by since we lost you that we ever gave up hope. I’ve been searching for you ever since I came home and found you gone. You were loved and missed every single day. I am so sorry for everything that happened to you, ma petite,” he whispers. “I promise you I will spend every day for the rest of eternity making it up to you. You are loved and wanted and will always be. You are my daughter, my flesh and blood, and I love you. I’ve loved you since the day you were born and I will love you until the day I die. Please believe me when I tell you that.”

  “You really mean that, don’t you?” I whisper, unsure how to react. The intensity in his eyes burns into mine.

  “You were our entire world.” He smiles. It’s a real smile that reaches his eyes and I feel the truth of that statement. Which is weird. The only time I feel emotions are when I’m feeling those of a ghost. “When we found out Melissa was pregnant, we redesigned an entire wing for your nursery and playrooms. Then when you were born and we held you in our arms for the first time…” He closes his eyes and the love that I feel emanating from him is so strong, it overwhelms me. This man loves me more than anyone or anything in his entire world. “You were our little angel, our ma petite.”

  A single tear slips down my cheek. I spent the last twelve years bouncing from one place to the next, missing what I knew I’d never have. Yet, here sits a man who claims I had all that, have always had it, and will always have it. Eli squeezes my other hand. I grip his very tightly.

  “It will take time for you to trust me, to trust the things I’m telling you,” he says. “I just needed you to know how I felt. The days have crawled by since I got the phone call from Ms. Moriarity telling me that you’d been found. I’ve spent the last sixteen years worried about you, scared you didn’t have the things you needed, that you were with people who didn’t love you. Then I find out my worst fears were realized. Foster care. Dear God, I’m so sorry I couldn’t protect you from that. I’ll do everything I can to help you to trust me…and to love me as much as I do you, my sweet girl.”

  He uses his free hand to open the jewelry box I’m still holding and I look down. Inside rests a ruby pendant suspended on delicate silver chain. It’s beautiful. The color is a true red, not the pinkish hue you see on most rubies today. It flashes bursts of fire as it catches the rays of the muted light.

  “Your mother loved the color red. She wanted to do your nursery in red, but I talked her into more soothing tones of blues, browns, and yellows. Everyone said I was secretly pining for a boy since I refused to use shades of pink or purple, but those colors weren’t for you. I knew the softer gentle earthy tones would work better.”

  I gasp. Those are my favorite colors. I love them more than anything else. I feel grounded around them, more at peace. He’d known that about me even before I’d been born?

  “When you look at this, I want you to know you are loved by your parents, that I’m here and will be here no matter what. I bought this for your mother to show h
er how much it meant to me that she gave me the most precious gift in the world, and now I’m giving it to you so you can remember you are the most precious thing in the word to us.”

  I have no words. For once in my life, I’m at a complete and total loss. This man that I know in my heart is a very, very bad man is telling me how much he loves me and I can feel it. How am I supposed to respond to this? I don’t know what to do, what to say. Panic rises up and the overwhelming urge to hit something seizes me. My first instinct is to demolish the person making me feel like this and it takes every ounce of strength I have not to do it.

  He leans forward and kisses me on the forehead. “Shh, sweet girl, it’s all going to be okay. I promise. I also have something that will work a lot better than the salt lines.”

  Eli tenses up beside me and I slowly raise my eyes to meet those of my father. They are back to being amused. He reminds me so much of Silas right now, and that isn’t good. I cringe away from him. “I’m not sure what you mean…”

  “Come now, Mattie, you and I share a gift, one your friend is aware of or you wouldn’t have put the salt where he could see it. Let’s agree to be honest with each other, yes?”

  “I didn’t put the salt there,” I tell him.

  “My brother did that,” Eli says when Zeke just gives me a stare that blatantly says he doesn’t believe a word I’m saying. Eli stands and looks almost as dangerous and threatening as my father. It makes my pulse quicken and I have to remind myself to breathe. Heat radiates from him.

  “Well, well, I didn’t expect this,” Zeke murmurs and appraises Eli with a newfound respect. “Maybe I don’t need to worry about you as much as I originally thought, ma petite.”

  “What do you mean by that?” I ask, confused.

  “It’s a story for another time,” he sighs. He reaches up and takes off a necklace that looks like a simple black chain. “This is iron encased in onyx,” he explains and lays it down on the bed beside of me. “It works like a repellant and will help to keep some of the weaker ghosts away. It’ll also keep a ghost from touching you again. I was assured it will go with any outfit a young lady would wish to wear.”