"Miss Montgomery, I was a teenager back then but I remember the story well. My partner here is right, It is somewhat of a legend around these parts but I believe in it enough not to go messing around in that old place. Well anyway the story goes, back in '67or '68 this young couple passing through stopped at the Gas and Go, now it was for sale at the time and on a whim, they decided to buy it. Now the owners were getting up in age so they worked out a pretty good deal on the place.
Now a couple years go by and like any place that starts to get old, things start falling apart, and there was plenty of things that were in desperate need of repair. So when they couldn’t keep up with the place, they start thinking that maybe it's time to sell it and move on. They were hoping to save up enough money so they could move on up to Canada, wanted to buy a nice piece of land, build a house, and start a family.
So the young man takes on a bartending job at night, he figures his wife can run the place at night while he's doing his bartending gig.
Well one night a group of thugs down from Portland are driving through and they decided to stop at the Gas and Go. It was late and she was just about to close shop when they come barging in. So she figures, she'll take care of 'em and get 'em out as fast as she can. Well they had other plans because next thing you know she's lying dead on the floor behind the counter.
Those rotten bastards had taken everything out the register and then decided to rape and beat her to death.
Report said the thugs were on dope or something. Anyway hubby comes by to pick up his wife and he finds her lying in a pool of blood beaten beyond recognition. He calls the cops and before they get there, he shoots himself in the head. At first they thought it was a murder suicide, but when someone overheard one of the thugs talking about a hold up and how they'd beaten a woman to death, well it didn’t take long for the cops to catch up to all of 'em.
"My god," Ava sat overwhelmed. "So heartbreaking."
"Yes ma'am it certainly was, especially in a small town like this."
"Detective, you wouldn’t happen to know the names of the couple would you?" Ava asked. Magnus knew what she was thinking because he had been thinking it too.
"Yes ma'am, never forget, William and Celeste Nomiuet."
Magnus carefully returned the baby to the bassinet next to Ava's bed, he felt lightheaded.
Now it was he and Ava's turn to sit dumbfounded. The older detective cleared his throat. "Look, the way I see it, you two have been through enough. We'll make out our report and it'll read something like this. Steve Cason flew here to Vermont to try and destroy yours and Mister DuPonte's life; he'd spent most of his time and money snorting cocaine. When his supplier told him that he was going to have to wait to be replenished, he subsequently drove to Miss Montgomery's house where he hid in the backseat of her car, and lain in wait for the chance to shoot her.
When she stopped at the light on the corner of Jenson and Gardenia Road, Mister Cason saw his chance and forced her to pull into the parking lot of the abandoned Gas and Go.
Now I don’t need to go into the rest but that's about the gist of it and if it's okay with you all, then that's somewhat how it'll read in the report.
And I'm not saying that I believe in ghosts," he said looking at his partner who'd been eyeing him suspiciously throughout the entire conversation. "What I will say is that you ended up at that place for a reason and that if somebody did help you out well then I couldn’t think of a better man to do it than William Nomiuet."
Ava let out a sigh. "I appreciate that detective but answer me this, surely when the police showed up they had to have seen that someone else was there!" She almost shouted.
"No ma'am, I inquired about that and what the cops saw when they pulled up was you standing there doubled over in pain and Mr. Cason pointing the gun at you. The entire place was deserted, believe me, we checked every square inch of the place."
And so far Mister Cason hasn’t said anything about this so called attendant and if he does, well I'll think of something," he said and patted his partner on the back.
"I can't believe you just said all that without having to write a word of it down," his partner stared blankly at him.
"Son when you've been on the job as long as I have it doesn't take long before you realize that some things are better if they're stored right up here," he said tapping the side of his head.
"And I told ya, some legends are true. Now let's let these new parents enjoy their beautiful baby girl," he said and winked at them before leaving.
"Well that settles it," Magnus said.
"Settles what?"
"We have two guardian angels looking out for us Ava, so it looks like we're going to have to have a son, just so we can name him Will. I mean it's only fair," he said with a smirk.
"And I suppose you think that I want to go through all that pain again?" She asked her tone full of resentment.
Magnus looked at her and immediately began to apologize. "Ava, I 'm so sorry I didn’t mean to sound insensitive, I was …"
She could hide the grin on her face no longer.
"You scared me," he grinned and leaned in for a long and passionate kiss.
"And just so you know, I plan on having a lot more babies with you," she said and kissed him back. "But for now let's concentrate on getting me and the baby out of this hospital. I'm so ready to go home."
After having to stay in the hospital a total of four days, she was finally discharged and allowed to go home. She laughed as she watched Magnus drive home from the hospital. "Sweetheart, there's a line of cars behind us," she grinned.
"That's too bad, they'll have to wait or go around." He sat nervously behind the wheel. Although the ride home took longer than usual, Ava didn’t mind at all. While Nina sat asleep buckled up safe and sound in her car seat, Ava thought about Sterling, and the rest of her friends who were anxiously awaiting their arrival.
Pink balloons lined the long driveway as they pulled in and she smiled when she saw them waiting to welcome home the newest addition to the family.
Even though they had all visited her while she was in the hospital she knew that there was nothing like having your friends and family waiting for you when you arrived home.
"She looks like an angel," Kelly said as she welcomed her home.
Kisses and hugs were given out and while Adrian and Kelly walked Ava and the baby inside, Magnus pulled Sterling off to the side.
"Did you get it?" He asked.
"Oh I got it honey; there is nothing to worry about. But are you sure you want everyone here when you do it?" He eyed him up and down as if he were crazy.
"No, I'm not crazy and yes I want all of our friends around us when I do it. I know that she'll like that idea very much."
"Now that's funny," Sterling couldn’t help but grin.
"What?"
"This is one of those freakish moments where I actually agree with you," he said.
"But don’t tell anybody," he winked and joined the others in the house.
"Ava honey are you sure you're up for us being here? Sweetheart you just got out of the hospital and you had a C-section for goodness sake. Aren't you sore?"
She chuckled. "I'm not tired, and yes I'm a little bit sore but it's nothing that I can't handle. Besides, being here with all of you is exactly what the doctor ordered."
"Well in that case, Magnus break out the champagne and let the fun begin!"
A little while later it was time to show Nina to her brand new room.
They had decorated the nursery in warm neutral tones and Ava smiled as she walked into the room. The sun was peeking through the blinds and it reflected off the antique crystal sconces that hung from the walls. The clinking of the tiny crystals made the room appear even more magical. She and Magnus stayed a moment and watched as Nina fell fast asleep. He turned to her and held her in a warm and loving embrace.
"You mentioned something about me being fulfilled?" He questioned her and looked into her eyes. They were sparkling and
he was mesmerized.
"Yes I did."
"Ava, I have never been this fulfilled in my entire life, I have you and Nina to thank for it."
"Magnus, I feel so much joy in my heart now and it's all because of you and this little angel right here," she said and gently touched little Nina.
"Sleep well little angel," they said before turning on the baby monitor and video recorder.
Not only would they be able to hear Nina while she slept but they would also be able to watch her. The high tech monitors were a gift from Sterling and Anthony. "It's the least we can do for our little goddaughter," they hinted. Ava hadn’t told them yet that she and Magnus had long ago decided to make Sterling and Anthony, Nina's godparents. She remembered when she asked Kelly if she would be offended.
"Not in the least bit," said Kelly. "Ava I know that Sterling has been there for you practically from day one and both he and Anthony love you. But I want you to make sure that little Nina knows that I am and always will be her number one aunt. You and I may not be related by blood but we've been through some pretty intense things and we made it through together so in my book, that makes us sisters."
"I couldn’t have said it better myself Kell," she smiled and hugged her friend. "And who knows, Adrian and I may want to hear the pitter patter of little feet too." She winked at her friend.
Chapter Thirty One
"All set," Sterling winked. While Magnus kept Ava busy upstairs, he and the rest of her friends busied themselves with lighting the candles, fireplace, and refilling the champagne glasses. They had turned the already cozy living room into the perfect setting fit for a marriage proposal. No matter what time of year Ava loved white twinkling lights, so Sterling had gone over while she was in the hospital and discreetly placed them around the windows in the living room
When he plugged them in, they all commented on how wonderful the tiny lights looked as they shone through the lace curtains. "Looks beautiful," Anthony said as he wrapped his arm around him.
"She'll be down in a minute, she wanted to change," Magnus told them when he came downstairs.
"Everything looks great guys, thanks so much for wanting to be a part of this."
"Thank you for including us," Adrian said.
He looked at Kelly adoringly. Even though he'd known her for such a short period of time, something told him that she was the girl for him. Not only had she made him feel wanted, but the lightning fast romance they'd been thrust into seemed to be working for them, he'd never been happier. And if he and Kelly wound up like Magnus and Ava well then, that would suit him just fine.
Ava felt better after she washed up and changed. She was happy when she found that she was able to fit into some of her clothes. It would still be awhile before she would be able to wear anything too constricting, especially around the stomach area. She'd have to allow herself at least six weeks to heal, the doctor had told her. She ran her fingers through her hair, and put on a bit of mascara. After she settled on a pair of modal stretchy wide legs pants and a form fitting tank, she stopped a moment and gazed at her reflection in the mirror.
She was a mother now, a parent and she smiled at the thought. She thought about watching her take her first steps, becoming a toddler and sending her off for her first day of Kindergarten. She couldn’t wait to become involved in every aspect of her daughter's life and she was so very happy that Magnus had choose to come back into her life at the perfect moment.
She grabbed a cashmere wrap that was draped along the wicker rocking chair in her bedroom before making her way downstairs.
"Alright here she comes," Magnus whispered. He was standing at the bottom of the staircase waiting for her.
"What's this?"
"Oh just a little something I asked our friends to help me plan," he said and walked her into the living room.
"You look beautiful by the way," he said and led her by the hand in front of the fireplace.
She looked at her friends standing close by and thanked them for being there and for making the room look so nice.
"Have a seat," Magnus said and helped her into one of the overstuffed chairs.
"You all are acting weird, what's going on?" She giggled at the sight of all her friends timidly standing by.
"Ava," he said as he got down on bended knee. "I wanted your friends to be here to share in what I'm about to ask you because I know that you think of them as part of the family, and I want you to know that I do too. You have given me everything that I could ever want and I want to spend my lifetime doing the same for you. Ava Montgomery, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" He asked and stared so hard at her she was sure that his gaze would pierce straight through to her heart. She couldn’t help but notice that his hands were trembling as he pulled out the engagement ring from her shop, the one that she'd admired almost each and every day.
"Yes," she said. "Yes." Tears of joy streamed down her face as he gathered her in his arms and kissed her.
Cheers of delight rang out from her friends but they made sure not to be too loud, they didn’t want to wake little Nina who was sleeping peacefully in her room upstairs.
She was admiring the ring that he'd just given her.
"How did you know about the ring?"
"A little bird told me," he said and winked at Sterling.
Her throat clogged with fresh tears. "Let's not have too long of an engagement alright?" She said with a smile.
He hastily nodded his head. "I agree, how about two months from now?"
"Oh a summer wedding." Kelly and Sterling suddenly became even more excited.
"Please say yes Ava, nothing would please him more than planning your wedding," Anthony encouraged her.
She cocked her head and pretended to appear doubtful. "A summer wedding in two months? Sounds like a reasonable amount of time to me."
"I'd say more than reasonable," he said helping her onto her feet and taking her in his arms.
"I guess I better inform my parents that they'll be attending a wedding in Vermont this summer."
"I guess you better," she said with a smile.
Later on that night after everyone had left and it was just the two of them, Magnus thanked her.
"Why are you thanking me?" She asked. They had just gotten finished sharing the good news with his parents and after checking on little Nina, had gotten into bed.
"I want to thank you for not giving up on me," he said and pulled her closer.
"When I got to that Inn, you could have told me to leave and I have to admit, a part of me thought that you might. But the moment that I saw you and saw the look in your eyes, I knew that you wanted me there."
She took his hand in hers and kissed it. "Baby you never told me, how did you know that I was there?"
"That's right; I didn't get to tell you. Well when I was driving in I too stopped at the Gas and Go. Remember? I told the detectives that I'd stopped there and asked for directions?"
"Yes, I remember."
"Well it must have been Will, he told me that you were new in town and that you lived in the big Victorian. He told me that you along with half the town would be attending the dinner, he even gave me directions."
"It's amazing if you think about it," she said turning to look at him. "I mean without help from us who live in the present, Will and Celeste would have had no chance at a life in the future. And without help from Will and Celeste in the past, you and I wouldn’t have found one another. Magnus you do realize that had you not made that call, we would have never met. And that is a thought that I never want to think about," she said and kissed him on the lips.
"And you'll never have to," he said.
It was several weeks later when Magnus told her the news. He'd just gotten off the phone with his realtor. The realtor told him that a young couple had made an offer on the house.
"We got an offer," he said as he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
"That's wonderful, are you going to accept it?"
"Well do you know anything about the person making the offer?" She asked.
"Yes, my realtor says that they are a young couple looking to move in, do some renovating and start a family. Apparently the wife has a green thumb and would like to build a greenhouse. But like I said they offered what they could afford and I'm afraid its way below what I'm asking for the place. I mean after all, it has a history," he smirked.
"Magnus DuPonte, if you do not accept that offer no matter how low, I am going to leave you standing high and dry at the altar on our wedding day. Which might I remind you, is coming up in a little over a month," she said and began playfully punching him in the chest.
He started to laugh, and took hold of her hands while kissing each one. "Don’t you even think about leaving me high and dry. I've already enthusiastically accepted their offer, so we are officially free of Montieu Plantation. I know that you didn’t like the place but it wasn’t all that bad was it?" He grinned.
She put her arms around him. "Magnus I didn’t always dislike the place, of course I didn’t. It's just after everything that happened that night I was more than ready to say goodbye that’s all. I'll always hold it near and dear to my heart because it's the place where I met and fell in love with you. And I know that because of what we did, the new occupants won't be harmed by anything supernatural. They will be able to live a long and happy life there, ghost free," she grinned.
"You know if the Chamberlain's hadn’t been willing to work out a deal with me, I wouldn’t have been able to buy this place, let alone the store so I think it's good to pay it forward. Doing something nice for someone you don’t know is a good feeling and I have no doubt that the couple you sold the plantation to will forever be grateful to you for giving them a break."
"They better be because like I said, I'm losing a lot of money," he smiled and gave her a wink.
When the realtor told the young couple that their offer had been accepted, they were ecstatic. Not only had Magnus accepted their offer, but he included the furnishings as well.
Echoes in the Bayou Page 29
