by Bobbi Holmes
“Unfortunately, I don’t have any family left. I never got married, so I never had children,” Colin explained. “I never had any brothers and sisters, so there are no nieces or nephews. But that doesn’t mean I still can’t enjoy the spirit of Christmas.”
“Spirit of Christmas?” Owen frowned.
Colin took a deep breath, closed his eyes briefly, and then looked at Owen and smiled. “Yes. Can’t you feel it? A time when anything is possible?”
Owen stared at Colin, yet said nothing. After a moment he stood up and said, “It was nice chatting with you, but I’m tired. I didn’t sleep very good last night. I think I’m going to go take a nap.”
Colin said his goodbyes and watched the young man walk away. After Owen went into his motel room, Colin whispered, “Time for the next phase of my plan. Have fun washing your hands.” Colin chuckled, leaned back in the chair, and waited.
Once inside his motel room, Owen pulled his wallet and cellphone out of his pocket. He tossed them on the dresser and then removed his jacket. Dropping the jacket on a chair, he sat on the end of the bed and removed his shoes. Several minutes later he went to use the bathroom before crashing for a nap. When he was done using the toilet, he went to wash his hands. After turning on the faucet, he started to put his hands under the running water when the water began to sputter. No longer flowing, the water came out of the faucet in several short bursts and then stopped altogether.
Frowning at the faucet, he turned its handle to the right and then left, but no matter which direction he turned it, nothing happened. He walked over to the tub and shower and tried turning on the water there—but again, nothing happened. Glancing at the toilet, he tried flushing it. It had flushed a moment ago, but this time it refused to flush.
Now irritated, he walked out of the bathroom and to the phone sitting on the nightstand. He called the front desk.
“The water is not working in my room,” Owen told the person on the other side of the line a moment later.
“I’ll be right over,” the man from the office assured him.
Five minutes later, Sam knocked on Owen’s door. After trying the faucets for himself, he excused himself a moment later and went outside.
“Excuse me, that’s your room, right?” Sam asked Colin, pointing to the door of his motel room.
“Yes, it is. Is there a problem?” Colin asked.
“Can I get you to go inside and see if your sink and tub has water?”
“Certainly.” Colin stood up, went inside his room for a moment, and then came back outside. “No, I’m afraid I don’t have any water in there.”
With a weary sigh, Sam said, “Okay. We’ll get it fixed.”
A few minutes later Sam went to the Hoopers’ door and knocked.
“Yes?” Marcella said when she opened the door a moment later.
“I’m Sam from the front office. I’m sorry to disturb you, but this building seems to be experiencing some plumbing problems.”
“Plumbing problems? What kind?” Marcella frowned.
“Is your water working?” Sam asked.
“It was a minute ago. Do you need to come in and look at it?” she asked.
“If you don’t mind.”
“Certainly.” Marcella opened the door wider for Sam to enter. When he walked into the motel room, he found Forrest sitting on one of the chairs, watching television. He went straight to the bathroom. To his surprise their sink, tub and shower, and toilet seemed to be in perfect working order.
Someone once compared Ruby Crabtree to an angry Strawberry Shortcake doll, with her curly red short hair, round face, and pug nose. While Ruby was only five feet tall, the motel owner had proved to be a force to be reckoned with. It wasn’t just that she had sent four husbands to the grave—but she seemed to have the ability to always get what she wanted. Over a year ago that had included maintaining ownership to the Seahorse Motel, in spite of the fact certain information had come to light that indicated Ruby’s family might have illegally obtained the property where they had built the motel—property that had once belonged to the Marlow Family.
Ruby stood outside the motel office, ranting to Sam. “Did you have to call the plumber? You know they will charge me double time since it’s Sunday. Can’t you fix it? Isn’t that what I pay you for?”
Sam groaned. “I tried. But I have no idea what’s wrong. It’s only those two rooms. And they both have guests. We need to get it fixed immediately.”
“Move them to another room,” she suggested.
“I told you. We’re full.
“We’re never full this time of year,” she reminded him.
Sam shrugged. “I know. But yesterday the last three rooms were taken.”
“Certainly someone is getting ready to check out?”
“No. It seems that almost all our guests have family in Frederickport they’re visiting for the holidays. I don’t know about the three who arrived yesterday, I didn’t check them in. But they’re registered through Christmas. I double-checked, because two of the rooms that were rented out yesterday are the two with plumbing problems.”
Before Ruby had a chance to respond, the plumber walked up to them.
“When can you get it fixed?” Ruby asked immediately. “And how much is this going to cost me?”
“The good news, it looks like the problem is confined to those two rooms. The bad news, it’s going to take a while; we will have some parts to order. Plus, I can’t get to it until after Christmas. We are slammed right now and a little shorthanded for the holidays.”
“There is no way to get the water on for those rooms?” Ruby asked.
The plumber shook his head. “I’m afraid not.” He went on to explain the problem in detail.
Fourteen
Originally, Chris had planned to pick his brother, Noah, up at the airport. But after the fire, Chris had called Noah and informed him they would be staying at Marlow House. Noah had insisted on renting a car and driving from the airport to Frederickport. Noah didn’t believe his little brother needed to make that round-trip drive to Portland, especially after losing his home to a fire.
When Noah arrived at Marlow House Sunday afternoon, Danielle thought he hadn’t changed much since she had met him the previous December. However, she did think he looked more rested—relaxed—happy—which was saying a great deal since the man had just fought holiday traffic at two airports and had driven a couple of hours before reaching Frederickport.
Danielle noticed the resemblance between the two brothers more this time than when she had first met Noah. The brothers shared more than a physical resemblance. Noah, like Chris, was a medium. He too could see ghosts—just as their mother had been able to do.
Danielle stood in the entry hall with Walt, Chris and Hunny while they all greeted Noah.
“Thank you so much for letting me stay here,” Noah said after giving Danielle a hug in greeting.
“We’re happy to have you. I just wish we hadn’t had to burn Chris’s house down in order to do it,” she said with a smile.
“If anyone burned my house down, it was me,” Chris grumbled and then flashed a smile to Danielle before giving his brother an exuberant bear hug.
Until the previous Christmas, Chris hadn’t seen his older brother since he was a toddler. In fact, he hadn’t even remembered he had an older brother. They had been put in foster care after losing both parents, yet unlike Noah, Chris had eventually been adopted.
A friend of Noah’s had helped track Chris down, and last Christmas they had reunited. After the holiday, Noah went back to his teaching job, and Chris stayed in Frederickport, running the foundation from the money he had inherited from his adopted parents. Yet he and Noah had kept in touch, often talking daily.
After the hug between brothers ended, Walt shook Noah’s hand, and then he motioned down the hallway and said, “Why don’t we take this in the living room. Joanne made some sandwiches. She thought Noah might be hungry after all his traveling this morning.”
Chris glanced down at Hunny. “I hope those sandwiches are still there.”
“I had a talk with Hunny. I told her not to touch them,” Walt said.
“It’s rather nice to be with people who find nothing unusual about talking to spirits or having meaningful conversations with pit bulls,” Noah said.
They had just walked into the living room when the front doorbell rang. Danielle glanced out the window and noticed an unfamiliar vehicle parked in front of Noah’s rental car.
“I’ll go get that. You guys start on the food,” Danielle said.
A few minutes later Danielle opened the front door and found Ruby Crabtree standing on her porch.
“Ruby? Wow, this is a surprise,” Danielle greeted her.
“I’m sorry for just barging in,” Ruby said. “But I need to talk to you, and I didn’t think I should do this over the phone.”
“Umm, sure. Come on in.” She opened the door wider and stepped to one side, letting Ruby enter. “Walt is in the living room with Chris and Chris’s brother. They’re having some sandwiches. Would you like some? We have plenty.”
“No. I would just like to talk to you—alone if that is possible,” Ruby told her.
“Sure.” Danielle led Ruby into the parlor, shutting the door behind them. Danielle took a seat on the sofa while Ruby sat on one of the chairs facing her.
“How is Chris, by the way? I heard what happened to his house. That’s horrible,” Ruby said.
“He’s okay. Just grateful no one got hurt. He plans to rebuild. For the time being, he’ll be staying here.”
“And you said his brother is here?”
Danielle nodded. “Yes. He came to spend Christmas with Chris. Now that Chris no longer has a home, we told them they could stay here.”
“That’s very generous of you. But then, you enjoyed running the B and B, didn’t you?”
“Actually, I did. But we’re okay with how things are now.”
“I was rather hoping you might be willing to take in two more guests.”
Danielle frowned. “Excuse me?”
“I don’t know if you are aware of how busy all the local motels are in town. In fact, there is not a single vacancy.”
“That’s kind of unusual for this time of year,” Danielle said.
Ruby nodded. “Yes, it is. Winter is usually pretty slow, but it does pick up a little around Christmas—mostly families of locals who need some place to stay. But this year…well, I guess everyone in town has relatives visiting for the holiday, and they apparently don’t have room for all of them. Which is good for us, but…”
“But?”
“I have two guests who are checked in through Christmas. This morning the water stopped working in their rooms. And they certainly can’t stay in those rooms if they can’t take a shower or flush the toilet.”
“What does the plumber say?” Danielle asked.
“The plumber promises us the other rooms are fine. Whatever the problem is, it’s confined to those two rooms. But they can’t fix it until after Christmas.”
“Have you called another plumber?” Danielle asked.
“Yes. And no one can even come out until after Christmas.”
“So what is it you want from me?” Danielle asked.
“Is there any way—please, please—that you will take my two guests? I’ll pay for their rooms. And you don’t even have to provide breakfast, because we don’t provide breakfast anyway.”
“Ruby, I would love to help you. But you know I can’t rent out rooms anymore. We don’t have a license.”
“Just this one time,” Ruby begged.
Danielle glanced to her south wall. “I’m afraid a relative of yours would be down to the city to complain in a heartbeat if she had any idea we were taking renters again.”
“Pearl Huckabee? Please, don’t remind me that woman is related to me,” Ruby grumbled.
“You know how she is,” Danielle reminded her.
“I know. But it is Christmas. And I have nowhere to put those two people.”
“A couple? I thought you said you needed two rooms,” Danielle asked.
“Not a couple. Two men, an older gentleman and a younger man, about your age. They aren’t together. But their rooms are the ones where the water stopped working.”
The next moment Walt walked into the parlor. He looked with surprise from Danielle to Ruby. “Is everything okay?” he asked.
“Walt, can you come in here a minute?” Danielle told him.
After Walt walked into the parlor and took a seat next to Danielle, she told him what Ruby had said. After she finished her telling, he looked at Ruby and asked, “You said they are both staying through Christmas. I assume they are here to visit with family. Maybe one of their family members can put them up?”
Ruby shook her head. “No. I talked to both men. I was hoping that might be the case. But it seems both men are just passing through, and for whatever reason they planned to spend Christmas in Frederickport, I’m assuming alone, since they both claimed they didn’t know anyone in town.”
“That’s sad,” Danielle said.
“I know. And I really hate having to tell them there’s nowhere for them to stay in town, especially since they’re already here.”
“They could stay here,” Walt suggested.
“Walt, like I told Ruby, we can’t take in renters. I can’t even imagine the fit Pearl would throw if she found out.”
Walt laughed. “I wasn’t suggesting we take in renters. I was simply suggesting we open our home to two travelers for Christmas. It’s not like we haven’t had strangers under our roof before, and we have plenty of room.”
“You mean not charge them?” Danielle asked with a grin.
Walt responded with a smile.
“If you would do that, I’ll donate the rent money to whatever charity you want!” Ruby vowed.
“It’s a deal,” Danielle said. “And tell them it includes breakfast. We’ll be making it anyway.”
“Thank you, thank you!” Ruby gushed.
Danielle stood up. “If you will excuse me, I have to talk to Joanne. I believe she is still in the kitchen. I need to tell her two more guests are coming.”
“Where are they putting you?” Marcella asked Owen as he carried his suitcase to his car as she followed along. A few minutes earlier she had overheard a conversation between him and the motel owner when she had gone to fill up her ice bucket.
“Marlow House. It used to be a bed and breakfast. I’ve always wanted to see inside that house,” Owen said. They reached his car, and Marcella watched as he opened his trunk and tossed his suitcase in the back of his vehicle.
“So I guess that means they can’t fix your water? I wonder if we’re going to have a problem in our room,” she asked.
Owen shrugged and slammed the trunk shut. “According to the plumber, the problem is confined to my room and Mr. Bari’s.”
“Mr. Bari?” She frowned.
“The man right next door to you. The room between us. You shouldn’t have any problems with the water.”
“And Mr. Bari, are they moving him too?” she asked.
“Apparently so. I guess they talked to him before they told me. Well, I need to get going. Nice to meet you. Enjoy your stay.”
Marcella stood silently and watched Owen drive away. She turned abruptly and hurried back to her room. Just before she reached it, she made an abrupt right and headed for Mr. Bari’s door. She knocked loudly. A moment later, he peeked outside.
“Yes? How can I help you?” he asked.
“I understand your room has some plumbing problems,” Marcella said.
Opening his door wider, Colin stood in his doorway and smiled at Marcella. “Yes. In fact, I’m going to have to move.”
“I am so sorry to hear that. What a pain. Just when you’re all settled in,” she said.
“No problem, I already packed.”
“I was just thinking, if it would be easier for you, you could
move into our room and we’ll let the motel move us somewhere else. After all, it is Christmas, and I hate thinking of how inconvenient this is for you.”
“I am so mad!” Marcella shouted at Forrest after she entered their motel room ten minutes later, slamming the door closed behind her.
“What’s wrong?” Forrest asked.
“Why couldn’t we have plumbing problems like the rooms next door?”
“You don’t want to be able to take a shower? Flush the toilet?”
“Don’t be stupid,” she snapped, throwing herself on the bed dejectedly.
“Then please tell me what you are talking about.”
“Do you know where they are moving them?”
“Moving who?”
“The guys renting the rooms with no water. They’re moving them to Marlow House. Marlow House! If we had just been checked into one of those two rooms now, we could have been the ones going over there, not them!”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes, I am serious. I tried to get that old guy next door to switch rooms with us—but he wouldn’t budge.”
Fifteen
“Mrs. Huckabee, I didn’t expect to see you again today,” Carla greeted her when Pearl took a seat at Pier Café’s lunch counter, which she stood behind refilling the salt and pepper shakers.
“I’m hoping you have some of that apple pie I saw this morning,” Pearl told her.
“We certainly do. Would you like me to warm it up?” Carla asked, as she rescrewed the lids on the salt and pepper shakers.
“Yes, and I’d like a scoop of vanilla ice cream on it and a cup of coffee. I’d like some water too.”
“Certainly.” Carla abandoned the salt and pepper shakers and then went to get Pearl a glass of ice water. After setting the water in front of Pearl and filling her coffee cup, she went to get the pie and ice cream.
“It sure was sad what happened to Chris’s house,” Carla said as she set the plate with the pie and ice cream in front of Pearl a few minutes later.
