Jack, Belle guessed, would know.
And Jack, Belle guessed again, would appreciate the opportunity of a viewing.
“All right then, I’ll try to tell it with no embellishment,” Joy said, not sounding at all happy and pulling at Belle’s attention.
Belle looked from Jack to Jack’s mother as she began.
“Over two hundred years ago, I think it was 1798, or something like that, the master of this castle was named Joshua Bennett,” Joy started. “He was known to be very clever, somewhat forbidding, quite accomplished, shockingly handsome and a complete womaniser.”
“Is this necessary to the story?” Jack asked, though it wasn’t a question, as such, more a demand for his mother to move along to the important stuff.
“I have to give the back story,” Joy protested.
“No you don’t,” Jack retorted.
“The back story is the best part!” Yasmin repeated (almost) her words of minutes before. Jack’s gaze swung to her and she clamped her mouth shut under the heat of it.
“I’m giving the back story,” Joy declared mutinously. Jack shook his head with frustration and Joy carried on, “Meanwhile, living in the village, was a woman named Brenna Addison. Brenna was known to be very sweet and very pretty but also quite quiet. Brenna had made a bad marriage. Not that her husband wasn’t well-to-do, he was a wealthy merchant, but that he didn’t treat her very well.”
“What do you mean, he didn’t treat her very well?” Rachel asked.
“He beat her and you have to know it had to be bad because that was likely very hush-hush at the time and probably not entirely frowned upon but everyone knows it happened. It’s an integral part of the story,” Joy answered, throwing an obstinate glare at Jack as if daring him to challenge this fact.
Jack stayed silent and Mom and Gram’s eyes moved to Belle.
She didn’t see them, she felt them but she ignored them and kept her own gaze glued to Joy who continued telling the story.
“Brenna and Joshua didn’t meet until after Brenna’s husband had taken some voyage and his ship had wrecked. Everyone assumed he was dead. The story goes that no one was sad to hear it because Brenna was a lovely girl and everyone in the village liked her,” Joy recounted. “Joshua and Brenna did meet, however, at a ball in the drawing room of this very castle. They say they fell in love the minute their eyes met and they were virtually inseparable from that moment on. Within mere months of meeting, they were married and quickly thereafter had two children, Lewis first, then Myrtle. Lewis was the vision of Joshua, Myrtle the exact same of Brenna. They were all very happy, Joshua settled down, Brenna blossomed under his devotion and the children grew up in a house of love.”
Yasmin moved, lifting her feet up to the edge of the chair, wrapping her arms around her calves and resting her chin on her knees, obviously settling in for the good part.
Belle felt a tiny shiver slide through her because, she suspected, since the child ghosts were, firstly, children and, secondly, ghosts, the good part was really the bad part.
Joy went on with the story. “The problem was, Caleb Caldwell, Brenna’s first husband, had not died in the shipwreck. He survived. Without his health then, after he recovered, without any money or papers and being a long, long way away, it took him years to get home but he finally did. Needless to say, he was not happy to find that his wife had married another in his absence and bore him two children. They say what made him even more incensed was that Brenna was happy, delightfully happy with her new family, far happier than she ever was with him.”
Joy drew in a breath and continued.
“He didn’t look himself, older, thinner and with significant scars, no one recognised him. He came back to the village and learned what he learned but he never shared who he was. Instead, he plotted against Joshua, Brenna and their children.”
“I don’t think I like this,” Belle whispered and realised she was pressing herself into Jack’s side and his arm was tighter around her shoulders.
Even though she realised this and normally she would move away, she absolutely did not even consider such an action.
Instead, she too, lifted her feet so her heels were in the couch and dropped her knees so her legs were resting on Jack’s thigh. She turned into him and put one arm around his stomach, the other one she burrowed so it could wrap around his back. Then she put her cheek on his shoulder and held on.
As she was doing this, Jack gave her a squeeze and said softly, “Poppet, it’s just a story. It’s a sad one but it happened a long time ago.”
Belle nodded against his shoulder even though she didn’t feel the least bit better at what he said.
“I’ll hurry through the sad part, darling,” Joy assured her and then, as promised, swiftly went on. “Obviously, he killed them. He waited until Joshua was away on some business trip, he snuck into the castle, suffocated the children in their beds, dragged Brenna to the cliffs and threw her into the sea.”
“Oh my God,” Rachel breathed.
At the same time Belle whispered, “Oh my goodness gracious.”
At the same time Lila murmured, “That jackass.”
Joy continued.
“Joshua returned, learned his family was dead and he went mad, as anyone would. He stopped at nothing until he hunted down Caldwell. He brought him back, Caldwell was tried, found guilty and they strung him up,” Joy told them then looked at Belle. “It doesn’t have a happy ending for Brenna, Lewis and Myrtle but Joshua did find love again. He remarried and had three more children. Though,” her eyes moved away from Belle, “they say he was never again as happy as he was with Brenna.”
“You skipped over the part where Joshua found Caleb, played with him a little while, until Caleb was mad as a hatter then Joshua got sick of the game, ended up beating the crap out of Caleb and then brought him back barely alive,” Yasmin informed Joy then she looked at Mom. “That’s one of my favourite parts.”
“I can see why,” Mom muttered.
Belle ignored this exchange and asked Joy, “The children have been haunting the castle ever since?”
Joy gave Belle a small smile. “Yes, my dear, ever since. But, most important for you to know, until they were murdered, they lived here happily. And they live here happily now. They spend their days playing, probably just like they did when they were alive. They’ve never done anything mean or that first thing to harm anyone. They’ve even had some mortal friends along the way who they’ve talked to a little bit.”
“This is where the story gets good,” Yasmin told them happily, apparently unaware that she’d given away the fact that she thought every bit of the story was good.
“They talked to people?” Belle asked.
“Oh yes, not many, but they did it,” Joy answered.
“What did they say?” Lila enquired.
Belle felt Jack’s body still against hers and Joy’s eyes moved to her son.
She bit her lip nervously, Belle did not read this as a good sign and then Joy’s gaze swung to Gram. “They’d just tell stories of the masters and the mistresses of the castle.”
“They’d do more than that,” Yasmin put in. “They explained what had to happen to release them.”
“Really?” Mom asked, leaning forward.
“I think that’s enough,” Jack interrupted, he gave Belle another squeeze and she looked up at him. “As you can see, even if they do exist, they’re nothing to worry about.”
Belle nodded, thinking of those children stuck for hundreds of years in this house without their Mom or Dad and she felt that fact was even sadder than the fact that they’d been murdered.
She looked to Joy and asked, “What will release them?”
Joy’s eyes flashed to Jack before they went to Belle. “Well, they don’t exactly know.”
“But they think that their Mum has to come back,” Yasmin explained. “They think that the master of this house, not any master, but one that’s exactly like their father, has to fall in love with
another woman, who’s exactly like their mother. Once that happens, something else has to happen, they aren’t sure what, and their Mum will come back and sweep them away to heaven.”
As Yasmin spoke, the air in the room took a funny turn.
And not, Belle knew, a good funny.
And Belle also knew exactly why.
It was not lost on her that she shared the same initials as Brenna Addison, Jack shared the same initials as Joshua Bennett and Calvin shared the same initials as Caleb Caldwell.
It was also not lost on her that the back story (not including the shipwreck, but instead a divorce, and not including the ball, but instead a birthday party) sounded more than a little bit familiar.
“Holy crap,” Mom breathed, her wide eyes locked on Jack and Belle.
“Rachel,” Gram said with soft warning.
“Holy crap,” Mom repeated.
“Rachel!” Gram snapped and Mom jumped.
“What?” Yasmin asked, looking between the two.
“Oh, nothing,” Lila explained. “Rachel always gets a little freaked out about ghost stories. We lived in a haunted mansion once and both Belle and Rachel were a total mess.”
“That wasn’t a haunted mansion,” Belle said, desperately latching onto something that had nothing to do with the fact that her and Jack’s story so closely resembled Brenna and Joshua’s. “You’d angered the neighbours, Gram.” Belle twisted around to look at Jack and added, “They were not very nice, by the way, wild parties at all hours and they let their dogs do not good things in our front yard and never cleaned it up. They definitely deserved Gram having a word with them.” Belle looked back to the room and carried on, “She just didn’t stop at a word and painted about twelve of them, none of them nice, on the side of their house.” She turned back to Jack. “After that, they kept playing tricks on us, nasty tricks that made Mom and I think the place was haunted.” Belle twisted back to the room and finished, “We left shortly after that.”
“You painted words on their house?” Yasmin asked Gram, grinning.
“Yep,” Gram answered.
“She not only painted them, she stayed up all night. It was practically a mural,” Mom put in. “It was awesome. Too bad they painted over it.”
“What were they?” Yasmin queried further.
Gram opened her mouth to answer but Belle got there before her and suggested, “Why don’t you share that later?”
Belle’s words said later. Belle’s face said never.
Gram threw Belle a smile and closed her mouth.
“Now that I find sad. A Cavendish mural painted over. Tragic,” Jack stated dryly and everyone burst out laughing.
Except Belle, who turned to him and smiled.
Jack smiled back.
Belle felt his smile in lots of places, the best being her heart.
“Feel better about Myrtle and Lewis, poppet?” he asked softly.
Belle nodded.
“You’ll feel safe in the castle now?” he went on.
Belle nodded again.
He bent his head and brushed his lips against hers before he murmured, “Good.”
Then Jack’s arm wrapped around her back and he pulled her close right before Belle thought of the little ghost girl waving at her from the window.
Then she wondered if she was the one that would help release those children and send them to heaven.
Then she wondered if she’d have the courage to do whatever it was that might be required of her.
Then she decided that she probably wouldn’t even as she vowed to find a way.
Then they heard the first roar of thunder.
* * * * *
It was hours later, when they were all in the dining room, the pudding dishes had been cleared away and everyone but Belle was enjoying coffee, that Belle turned her head to Jack.
“Jack,” she called softly, intending to ask if he would mind if she accompanied him on his nightly after dinner walk with the dogs.
Jack looked at her, his beautiful green eyes gentle with enquiry.
Belle wondered if she’d ever get used to how handsome he was (especially his eyes) and she opened her mouth to speak only to be cut off by her Mom.
“Bellerina, after dinner, can I have a word?”
Belle looked to her mother and saw her face was earnest. A look Belle knew she couldn’t deny no matter how much she wanted to walk with Jack and his dogs and, she was forced to admit, she very, very much wanted to walk with Jack and his dogs.
“Of course,” Belle said to her Mom and turned back to Jack to finish what she’d started but instead asking him to delay his walk a bit but Jack spoke first.
“I enjoy your company when we’re out with the dogs but I don’t want you in that weather, poppet. The path gets slippery in the rain,” Jack told her.
Belle looked to the windows. It was late evening but the day was not done as it stayed light until very late during summers in England. However, it was dark as night outside. The lightning and thunder had ceased but the rain was falling hard, heavy and steady and had been since that afternoon.
Belle’s eyes went back to Jack and she nodded.
“I won’t be long, love,” he finished on a small smile.
Belle nodded again and returned his small smile.
“Well, I’m going in search of Myrtle and Lewis. If there’s any time they’ll show themselves, it’ll be during a spooky, dark storm,” Yasmin declared, throwing down her napkin and standing.
“It was a bright, sunshiny day when I saw them,” Belle informed Yasmin.
“Same here,” Mom added.
Yasmin waved her hand in front of her face. “Matters not, everyone knows ghosts like a good old storm,” she said with authority then continued. “I’m off, anyone want to join me?”
“You go on, darling, I’ll find you in a bit,” Joy said.
“You got it,” Yasmin replied and left the room.
The minute she did, Joy turned to Jack and noted quietly, “I’m concerned about her.”
Belle’s eyes slid to Jack and she saw he was watching the door Yasmin just used, his jaw was tense and his chin lifted in acknowledgement of his mother’s words.
“Why are you concerned?” Lila asked.
“She’s trying to hide it but I can tell, this latest divorce is taking its toll,” Joy answered. “Quincy is a good man and he adores her. At first I think he was confused and thought he could talk her ‘round. That didn’t work and now he’s very angry that she’s doing this.”
Belle was surprised at this news, thus she shared, “Yasmin told me about him when she was in my shop. She didn’t make him sound like a good man.”
“Most of what she told you is likely untrue,” Jack explained and Belle’s startled eyes went to his. “Not that she’s lying but exaggerating or telling tales, not to convince you but to convince herself. Yasmin has a habit of sabotaging her happiness.”
Before Belle could respond, Joy continued, “Her first husband was a bit wild, just like Yasmin, but he loved her too. They burnt bright. Therefore, eventually they burnt out. It was probably for the best though he too was a good man and would have done anything for her.” Joy’s eyes moved to Jack. “Yasmin has always had good taste in men. She’s just constantly throwing them away.”
Belle felt a funny, very unpleasant feeling steal through her at this reminder that Jack and Yasmin used to be an item. She’d been informed of that upon meeting them but it hadn’t crossed her mind since. Mainly because Yasmin didn’t act like an ex-girlfriend but like an adopted sister/daughter.
Her mind moved to Yasmin opening the hidden bar cabinet and how Yasmin knew exactly where to go and what to do.
Then her mind, which often liked to torture her, moved to the couch where Jack held her, kissed her and touched her and she wondered if he’d done the same to Yasmin there.
She licked her lips and her eyes caught on her grandmother’s face.
Gram was smiling at her. It was a small smile and m
eant to be a reassuring one and Belle knew Gram knew her thoughts.
This small smile normally would work on Belle and had many, many times in the past.
But, at that moment, for some reason, it didn’t.
“Have you talked to her?” Mom asked, breaking Belle out of her tortured thoughts.
“She won’t listen,” Joy answered.
“Maybe you should try,” Lila suggested gently.
Joy looked to Jack. “Maybe Jack should try.” Then she turned fully to her son. “She’ll listen to you, darling, you know she will.”
Jack nodded and replied, “I’ll have a word.”
Joy smiled at her son and then murmured, “I better go find her.”
She left the table and this heralded a mass exit, Jack stopping Belle on her way up the stairs to her mother’s room.
When she’d tipped her head to look at him, he told her, “If you want to join me in the study later, you don’t have to knock.”
Then he leaned in, brushed his lips against hers and he was gone.
She stood where he left her for a moment, still feeling his mouth against hers and wondering if his open invitation to his study meant as much to him as it did to her.
Then she turned and climbed the stairs.
Gram was in her mother’s room when she arrived and Belle knew immediately her mother didn’t want “a word”. Instead, Belle was going to get what they both referred to as a “talking to”.
She walked across the room to the windows, saying, “I’m not sure I’m up to this, guys.”
“Probably not but then again, when would you be up to finding out you were likely the conduit to release the spirits of two children bound to earth for hundreds of years, sending them straight to heaven?” Gram remarked.
Belle ignored her grandmother’s remark, looked out the window and saw the rain had stopped. She also saw Jack, Baron and Gretl heading up the cliff path. Jack was wearing a dark rain slicker, his head bare, the wind blowing his thick hair.
Jack, Belle noted, looked good from behind in his rain slicker with the wind blowing his hair. She liked the way he walked, even on the slick path, with long, confident strides, his body at his command.
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