Maybelle's Affair
Page 18
“Gilbert has done all the work,” Mary said. “He has all the records. He knows where the money needs to go.”
“We will be setting up an office in the stone building on the corner of Galena Avenue and Exchange,” Gilbert said. “It’s part of Maybelle’s estate. They recently had a vacancy on the fourth floor. Daphne Rudd will be working there, meeting with your family members, and remitting the funds invested, with interest, to them.”
“How long is that going to take?” asked the businessman with the cigar.
“It could take months,” Gilbert acknowledged. “But most of the work will be setting up meetings with them and figuring out how they want to receive the funds.”
“What are we supposed to do in the meantime?” the businessman asked.
“There will be a lovely waiting room set up in the new office space,” Maybelle said. “We would love to have you all join us over there.”
The drowned woman smiled, and water poured out from between her lips. “Will the chairs be nicer than these hard ones?” she asked.
Maybelle nodded. “Of course, we will have comfortable upholstered chairs for you,” she replied.
“Well,” Mr. Rudd said. “I don’t mind leaving this old parlor. Come on, let’s go and take a look-see at the new office.”
The group of twenty spirits walked through the wall of the house, but an endless line of other spirits followed them. Mary shook her head in disbelief. “All of these spirits were waiting to get into our house,” she said.
“And now, they’ll be at the office building waiting,” Dave said, turning to Mary. “Better?”
She smiled at Dave. “Oh, much, much better!”
Chapter Sixty-four
Mary quietly slipped from her bed in the large, newly decorated master bedroom. She turned and smiled at Bradley, half-buried in his pillow, sleeping soundly. The sun was barely creeping over the pink horizon, and the house was quiet. She put her robe on over her pajamas and quietly left the room, padding down the hallway to the kitchen.
The not unpleasant smell of a freshly painted house greeted her, as she walked. The change from the awful turquoise to a soft, gray-blue with white trim had made such a difference. It was like the house itself was happy again.
“The house is happy.”
Mary turned and smiled at the ghost gliding down the hall next to her. “Good morning, Olivia,” she said to Maybelle’s mother.
“Good morning, Mary,” the ghost replied. “How did you sleep?”
“I had a perfect’s night sleep, thank you,” she replied.
Olivia sighed happily. “It’s so wonderful to see this house filled with love and laughter again,” she said. “There were too many years of sadness and anger. I had worried that our home could never be happy again.”
Mary walked to the refrigerator in the corner of the large kitchen and opened it, pulling out a diet soft drink. “It feels happy to me,” Mary said, reaching up in the cabinet for a glass cup and then filling it with ice. “It feels safe and secure. Welcoming.”
She poured her drink over the ice and took a sip. Olivia shook her head. “Are you sure you don’t want a nice cup of tea, dear?” she asked.
Mary laughed softly, shook her head, and lifted her cup in a mock toast. “This gets me started in the morning,” she said. “But I’ll have some tea later.”
They strolled from the kitchen to the sunroom in the back of the house. The red-tiled floor was cool on Mary’s feet as she walked over to a large, cushioned loveseat and sat down. “This is my new favorite spot,” she admitted. “I love to sit here and watch the sun rise.”
Olivia chuckled. “And you love to sit here and look up at the stars.”
Mary acknowledged the truth of Olivia’s statement with a nod. “And I suppose I love to sit here and feed Mikey,” she added, meeting Olivia’s eyes. “It’s so peaceful. Thank you for taking care of all of the plants. If they had to rely on me, they would have died.”
Gliding slowly around the room, Olivia gently touched each of the plants that filled the room. “Can I tell you a secret?” she asked.
“Of course,” Mary said, sipping on her drink.
“Augustus had terrible hay fever,” she confessed. “He couldn’t get anywhere near some of these plants…” She stopped and looked around the room. “Well, most of these plants. I picked them because of their high pollen counts.”
Mary laughed and nearly choked on her soda. “Why Olivia, that was brilliant,” she said.
Olivia shrugged. “It was my escape,” she said. “I knew that he would not come looking for me here in the sunroom. It was my sanctuary.”
“Maybe that’s why I’m so drawn to it,” Mary said, folding her feet up under her legs on the big loveseat. “Because it was a sanctuary.”
“Who are you talking to?” Bradley asked from the doorway.
Mary looked over at him, and her heart filled. His hair was sleep-messed, his t-shirt and pajama pants were rumpled, and his voice was still deep and gravely from sleep. “Olivia and I were chatting,” she said. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.”
He walked over to her and bent down, kissing her forehead. “You didn’t wake me,” he said. Sitting down next to her on the loveseat, he put his arm around her and pulled her close. “I thought we could watch the sun rise together.”
She snuggled against him and sighed. “I think that’s a great idea,” she sighed. She handed him her glass. “Would you mind putting this on the table, so I don’t spill it.”
He took a sip from it, shook his head, and then placed it on the table next to him. “I don’t know how you can drink that stuff so early in the morning,” he said.
She grinned. “It’s one of my superpowers,” she replied.
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his lap. “Want to show me some of your other superpowers?” he asked.
She threaded her arms around his neck and smiled at him, her face glowing with love. “Be prepared to be amazed,” she whispered.
He smiled back at her, his eyes filled with desire. “I can hardly wait,” he replied and lowered his face to kiss her.
A few moments later, Olivia glided out of the sunroom, chuckling softly to herself. “If they keep that up,” she murmured. “They’re both going to miss the sunrise.”
The End
About the author: Terri Reid lives near Freeport, the home of the Mary O’Reilly Mystery Series, and loves a good ghost story. An independent author, Reid uploaded her first book “Loose Ends – A Mary O’Reilly Paranormal Mystery” in August 2010. By the end of 2013, “Loose Ends” had sold over 200,000 copies. She has sixteen other books in the Mary O’Reilly Series, the first books in the following series - “The Blackwood Files,” “The Order of Brigid’s Cross,” and “The Legend of the Horsemen.” She also has a stand-alone romance, “Bearly in Love.” Reid has enjoyed Top Rated and Hot New Release status in the Women Sleuths and Paranormal Romance category through Amazon US. Her books have been translated into Spanish, Portuguese and German and are also now also available in print and audio versions. Reid has been quoted in several books about the self-publishing industry including “Let’s Get Digital” by David Gaughran and “Interviews with Indie Authors: Top Tips from Successful Self-Published Authors” by Claire and Tim Ridgway. She was also honored to have some of her works included in A. J. Abbiati’s book “The NORTAV Method for Writers – The Secrets to Constructing Prose Like the Pros.”
She loves hearing from her readers at author@terrireid.com
Other Books by Terri Reid:
Mary O’Reilly Paranormal Mystery Series:
Loose Ends (Book One)
Good Tidings (Book Two)
Never Forgotten (Book Three)
Final Call (Book Four)
Darkness Exposed (Book Five)
Natural Reaction (Book Six)
Secret Hollows (Book Seven)
Broken Promises (Book Eight)
Twisted Paths (Book Nine)
Veiled Passages (Book Ten)
Bumpy Roads (Book Eleven)
Treasured Legacies (Book Twelve)
Buried Innocence (Book Thirteen)
Stolen Dreams (Book Fourteen)
Haunted Tales (Book Fifteen)
Deadly Circumstances (Book Sixteen)
Frayed Edges (Book Seventeen)
Delayed Departures (Book Eighteen)
Old Acquaintance (Book Nineteen)
Clear Expectations (Book Twenty)
Finders Mansion Mystery Series
Maybelle’s Secret
Mary O’Reilly Short Stories
The Three Wise Guides
Tales Around the Jack O’Lantern 1
Tales Around the Jack O’Lantern 2
Tales Around the Jack O’Lantern 3
Auld Lang Syne
The Order of Brigid’s Cross (Sean’s Story)
The Wild Hunt (Book 1)
The Faery Portal (Book 2)
The Blackwood Files (Art’s Story)
File One: Family Secrets
File Two: Private Wars
PRCD Case Files: The Ghosts Of New Orleans -A Paranormal Research and Containment Division Case File
Eochaidh: Legend of the Horseman (Book One)
Eochaidh: Legend of the Horsemen (Book Two)
Sweet Romances
Bearly in Love
Sneakers – A Swift Romance
Lethal Distraction – A Pierogies & Pumps Mystery Novella
The Willoughby Witches
Rowan’s Responsibility
Hazel’s Heart