“As good as. You should’ve seen it, Jules. It looked like a warzone.”
“Was there a winner?”
“That I can’t tell.” Martin frowned. “Charlotte’s spirit had enough power to show us her body, in all its horrifying state. Whether she haunts this place, I don’t know. We have no accounts of any haunting here; although I might be able to find something from a reference work I have.”
“So, what happens now?” Julia asked.
Martin sighed. “We have to find a resolution. Just leaving matters as they are will only result in ongoing trouble, perhaps even an escalation. Tom and his archdeacon might set things to right in that vault, but it’ll never know peace until Charlotte is at peace.”
“How do we bring that about?” Claudia asked.
“We need to know more,” Martin replied. “We need to find out who signed off on Charlotte’s death certificate. It had to be a doctor. Was he duped into signing it, or was he in collusion with Sir George? I’ll check my reference. As for tonight…” Claudia stirred and met Julia’s eye. The elephant in the room loomed large. “I’m afraid we’ll have to postpone any, ah, threesome for a while. We also need to find out more about Charlotte’s lover.” He pointed at Julia. “You’ll need to sleep in that room again. I might be able to communicate with him or even Charlotte. That means being in the same room with you as you sleep.”
Claudia felt mixed emotions, deflated in one way, excited in another.
“It’s getting late now, Martin.” Julia glanced at the clock. “What have you got in mind for tonight?”
“I’ll set up some of my instruments throughout the Hall. They’ll record any unusual activity out of our immediate observation range. Claudia and I’ll stand watch in your room when you go to bed. From what you say, the dreams begin quite soon after you fall asleep. I hope to see something, perhaps Charlotte, perhaps also the spirit of her visitor, and find out just what it is they want of you. Is that okay?”
Julia nodded. “Okay then, but what if Sir George shows up?”
“I’ll deal with him.” Martin smiled.
She smiled back. “I like your confidence.” She stood and stretched. “Well, I’ve had a busy day, so I’d like to go up to bed now.”
Martin and Claudia placed the instruments in strategic locations in the passageway outside the bedroom as Julia changed for bed. “Do you think anything will happen tonight?” Claudia asked, holding her husband’s hand and stroking it with her thumb.
“I think so.” He looked at her. “Are you nervous?”
“Me?” she scoffed. “Hardly! I don’t think anything will match up to that horrible case back in the Daniels LaRoche hospital, and we came out of that intact.”
“Don’t get cocky, love,” he said quietly. “There are some nastier things than that out there.”
She gave him a long, steady look. “Okay, maybe I am being cocky. When I’m with you, I feel I can take on anything.”
“That’s good to know.” He smiled tenderly and stroked her cheek. “Between us we can deal with things as they come.”
Just then Julia called out, “Ready!”
They opened the door and went in. Julia sat up in bed wearing pajamas in a rich shade of purple. With her pale features it made her look much younger. “Did you set your gadgets?”
“All done.” Martin held up a video camera and tripod. “If you’re okay, I thought I’d set this up too in case anything should materialize around you. It’ll give us a permanent record.”
“Okay. Set it up and then take a seat. I’ll put on some music, it helps me relax.”
Martin set up the tripod and switched the camera on. Julia zapped the CD player, and Enya began to sing “The Memory of Trees”. Martin nodded approval. “Good choice.”
“She’s such a good artist.” Julia grinned. “I’d be jealous if she wasn’t such a nice person too. Is there anything else you need?”
“No, we’re all set.”
“Then I’ll shut down for the day.” She snuggled down under the duvet.
Enya’s voice flowed around the room. Claudia gazed around. The bedroom walls were painted a warm shade of honey, and the ornate plasterwork ceiling had been toned down with a creamy wash. All the furniture appeared to be modern, and an adjacent bedroom had been turned into an ensuite bathroom. Gustav Klimt prints hung upon the walls. Her feet sank into a deep pile carpet in a restful shade of earth brown. There seemed little sign of Alex’s occupancy. Claudia guessed she didn’t sleep over often enough to leave a mark.
She opened her senses, getting a feel for the room and the surrounding spaces. Now she knew what to look for, she could also sense a current of some energy running through the stonework of the hall. She watched for a few minutes, being careful not to disturb it. “Do you sense this, Marty?” she whispered.
“Yes,” he replied quietly. “I feel something’s going to happen tonight.”
The music ended and the CD player switched off. Martin and Claudia sat quietly, waiting for Julia to fall asleep, or for her ghostly visitor to appear. Time passed. Claudia felt too keyed-up to be bored, but she had to fight an urge to fidget.
Eventually, Julia’s breathing grew deep and regular. Martin glanced at his watch then checked the equipment. They heard the clock in the hall chime midnight, but nothing untoward happened. “Things don’t necessarily happen at the midnight hour!” Martin cracked with a wry smile.
“I don’t know about that.” Claudia pointed. “Look there! See that glow around Julia’s head?”
The glow appeared to brighten around Julia’s sleeping form. Some seconds passed then she stirred and pushed the covers aside. Glowing faintly, Julia got out of bed, stumbling as if sleepwalking, and crossed to the window. Pushing aside the drapes she stepped back, as if waiting for someone. A moment later another glowing light appeared in the window, and Julia returned to bed. The other glow followed her then seemed to grow and solidify. Suddenly a man of medium height stood by her bed, looking down at her with deep affection. He wore a coat over a navy blue uniform. As he removed the coat, gold epaulettes shone prominently on his shoulders.
“Martin?” Claudia said, her voice barely audible.
“Yes, I see them. I was right. Our visitor’s a naval officer.”
Julia sat up in bed, her eyes closed, but she turned her head as if to look up at the spirit of the man.
*
Charlotte had been weeping, copious tears shed through the loss of her much loved aunt and uncle. Cousin George was lord of the manor now and Sir George to boot. With the demise of her aunt he’d set his face against her, and life in Tennington Old Hall had become grim. The matter of the will hung between them like a thundercloud. It would only be a matter of time before she’d have to leave in any case, but with Richard’s help, that time would come sooner than the wretched George Attoe could imagine.
Her surroundings seemed both familiar and strange. It was her bedroom, certainly, and yet it was also the room of a stranger. The furnishings seemed odd, with many things she couldn’t identify. She had the feeling of being watched but could see no one.
But Richard is here. My love, my fiancé! She looked at him and felt that deep down thrill to know such a wonderful man had chosen her for his life’s partner.
“My darling!” she gasped and clung to him. “Oh, it’s so good to see you!”
“My love!” he said, caressing her hair. “I came as soon as I could.”
“You’re so very brave,” she whispered, stroking his chest. “Even though George is away, I fear he may discover us before we’re ready to flee.”
“Bah! If that rotten cousin of yours does come home, I’ll thrash him, see if I don’t!” The look on his sun-bronzed face was cheerful and confident, the expression of a man and a leader of men. “We know how to deal with his sort in the Royal Navy.” He took her hand and kissed the palm. “All is in hand, my love. By tomorrow night you shall be away from here and out of that man’s clutches forever.”
She watched as he pulled off his fine linen shirt and slipped out of his breeches. Her face glowed with a delightful heat as she saw his manhood emerge. It was only the second time she’d seen it, and the second time that she’d ever seen such a thing. The memory of their first night together spent in a small inn on the edge of Kings Lynn town filled her with renewed wonder. He’d been so kind, so attentive, and so careful as he’d entered her that all her aunt’s dark warnings about the carnal act seemed like old wives tales.
*
“Oops!” Martin watched as the naked spirit got into bed beside Julia.
Claudia snorted with suppressed laughter. “Oh, Marty!” she gasped in a near-whisper. “Shouldn’t we break this up? It’s going to be so embarrassing for poor Julia!”
He reached for the camera but paused. “Oh, bugger, we can’t!” She cocked her head and looked a question at him. “This may be the heart of the crisis,” he explained. “Everything we see with our own eyes might not be what we need to see. There has to be some independent back up we can check afterward.”
“Oh, brother.” She shot another look at the bed where Julia was lying on her back with an expression of bliss. “Okay, then. Ever wanted to watch a live sex show? ’Cause that’s what we’re going to get…”
*
His lips traced the curve of her throat. His hands stroked and caressed her. Strong, supple hands, well used to handling fine instruments at sea undid the laces of her nightdress and exposed her breasts and thighs to the cool night air. She sighed and lay back on her bolster. Her heart fluttered like a little trapped bird as he cupped her breasts and kissed them with ardent delight. When he pinched a nipple it shot a feeling of intense pleasure through her and she gasped and moaned.
*
“It looks like Charlotte was a moaner,” Claudia remarked. “I wonder if Julia is too?”
“Darling,” Martin said in protest, his face glowing with embarrassment. “This is bad enough without passing comments!”
“Sorry,” she said and smiled. “Okay, I’ll drop the critique for now. Oh my God! Will you look at that?”
*
Richard stripped off her drawers and parted her legs, the better to lie between them and savor the sweet bower between her thighs. Charlotte clutched his curly head and leaned back as he traced moist lines across her most intimate place to send shivery motes of fire through her tummy. Of course, dear Aunt Emma had told her never to touch herself there, or she’d go blind. The first time dear Richard had done so made sparks flare behind her eyes and she’d feared her aunt’s prophecy had come true. She’d felt such a fool for a while. But his reassurance and the pure unalloyed joy she felt when he kissed and licked her there had overcome her doubts and fears. And he mentioned something about shaving her hair that gave her a distinct thrill of naughtiness.
She moaned out loud.
*
“Ooh, tingly!”
“Sssh!”
*
His manhood brushed against her knee and she wished he’d move up so she could hold the thing again. It had felt so strange when he’d let her hold it that first night, as if his member were a separate living creature with a warmth and a pulse all its own. She’d said something of her thoughts to him then, feeling silly on a distant level for chatting out of sheer fright when it was Richard she was lying with and nothing to be scared of. He’d laughed and admitted that sometimes it did indeed seem to have a mind all of its own.
As if he’d read her thoughts he slid upwards, kissing a wet trail along her hot skin and up, over her breasts, his manhood brushing her thigh, until he gazed down into her eyes. “I love you!” he whispered.
“And I love you!” she said, stroking his chin. Then she clung to him, holding him tight enough to make him gasp. “Oh, Richard, take me, take me!”
And he was between her thighs in a moment, his manhood pressing against her, seeking entry, his firm, muscular body so hot and pliant and alive in her arms. He moved his hips back and entered her in a long, slow, smooth slide that filled her and stretched her and forced a gasp from her tightened throat.
“Ah!”
*
Martin tore his gaze from the scene playing out in the bed to eye Claudia. She watched wide-eyed, fanning her face with her notepad. As Julia began to grunt with a rhythm that was all too familiar, he stole another glance at the bed and looked away. “I hope they’re not settling in for a marathon,” he managed.
Claudia glowered at him. “Marty, don’t be mean! Why begrudge a girl a good hard shag?” She looked back at the bed and grinned. “I have the feeling Julia is kind of needy when it comes to sex. It looks like Charlotte’s doing her a favor.”
*
She would never hurt a fly, but Charlotte raked Richard’s back hard with her fingernails as he bucked and plunged inside her. Her body met each deep thrust of his member with a pulse of pure pleasure that grew stronger by the moment until her head swam. Breathing became difficult but his weight settled so naturally upon her. The feel of her breasts brushing through the hairs on his chest was strange but by no means awful. As her feelings mounted so she grew moister, and her blood began to pound in her ears.
“Oh! Oh! Oh! Oooo!”
Her vision blurred. Every limb, every atom of her body seemed so tuned to him and her needs that all else faded away. As he grasped her hips and drew her closer, the angle of his member changed and a surge of electricity shot through her. He thrust one, twice, his handsome face hovering above her twisted into a savage expression that both frightened and thrilled her. She felt the surge of his seed through his cock, and the feeling sent her shouting over the edge into an explosive orgasm.
*
“Whoo-ee!” Claudia gasped. “Dayum, Marty, but that little display sure made me perspire in my panties!”
He shot her a glance. His face looked flushed. “Okay, I’ll hold my hand up and say I’m as hard as a rock.”
She cracked a grin. “Well, I did think you were sitting funny!” Her grin widened. “I’m going to need some good sexual therapy of my own after this.”
“I’m sure something can be arranged. But right now, we need to contact Charlotte and her lover.”
*
Charlotte lay pinned beneath her husband-to-be, feeling breathless and dizzy. His warm body felt so hot and heavy, and she hugged him with arms and legs in a terrific squeeze of pure joy. A polite cough sounded from nearby and she jumped. For a second she thought her maid had entered the room against her express wishes, but when she craned her neck to peer out from below Richard’s arm, she saw a man standing by the bed. “Oh! Richard, there’s a stranger in the room!”
Richard faded into nothing and she screamed. The stranger winced and held up his hands.
*
“Charlotte, I’m sorry to approach you in this fashion and at such a time…”
“How dare you!” Julia shouted, rolling out of the bed and grabbing the sheets in a desperate attempt to retain her modesty. “Where’s Richard? What happened to him? Help!”
“Help?” Julia’s confusion surged when she realized she was back in her own body. “What…what happened?”
Twenty minutes later Julia sipped at the brew and shuddered. Strong coffee served to wake her up, but she looked as if nothing but time would suppress the hideous awkwardness she felt.
Martin and Claudia sat across the kitchen table from her. Claudia kept her face fixed in an expression of polite concern. Martin’s expression appeared neutral, but a distinct shade of red betrayed his embarrassment.
“Now you’re awake enough, I think you’d better take this,” he said, sliding a video data card across the table. “It contains the entire recording of what happened.”
“Thanks.” She tucked it in the pocket of her dressing gown.
“We haven’t watched it, I promise.”
“I believe you, but then, you saw it all anyway.” She set down her mug and covered her face
with her hands. “Oh, God, I wish this were all over with. I’ve never felt so bloody humiliated in my life!”
“It’s understandable and don’t worry,” Claudia said. “What happened here stays here. Marty, is there any reason why Charlotte didn’t stick around once you’d approached her?”
He chewed his lip and Claudia could see he was relieved to be thinking about something else. “Something tells me the situation isn’t quite right for her,” he said at last. “What I think we’re seeing is the playing-out of her last few days.”
“Kind of like a drawn-out death trauma?” Claudia asked.
“In effect, yes.” He turned his sea-blue eyes upon Julia again with sympathy. “Julia, what happened tonight was awkward to say the least, but I’m afraid it’s not over yet.”
“Are you telling me there’ll be other nights like this?” she said in as level a voice as she could muster. “Will I go through all that again?”
“I doubt it, but the possibility’s there.”
“Oh, brother!” She picked up the mug and took a deep swallow. Tears sprang to her eyes as she fought down a cough.
“Isn’t there any way to force the pace?” Claudia asked. “Why not hold a séance?”
“I have the feeling things can’t be rushed. These spirits are locked into a timetable and an agenda of their own. They’ll play ball when they need to but not before.”
Julia stroked her throat. “Almost everything I experienced when Charlotte was in my mind is too fuzzy for me to grasp, but something puzzles me. If Richard was possibly Charlotte’s fiancé, why did she sleep with him? Whatever happened to Victorian morality?”
“It existed alright, but not to the extent most people believe.” Martin grinned. “I saw figures once which showed an average of one Victorian bride in five was pregnant when she walked down the aisle.”
“Wow!” Claudia blinked. “That wouldn’t seem too farfetched today.”
“Nope. In those days, once the engagement ring was on the finger a couple was considered married in all but name.”
“Okay, so dear Richard got his nuptial rights before tying the knot?”
Ghosts and Lovers Page 8
