by Amber Crewes
Meghan sighed. “You don’t understand, babe. She’s ridiculously famous. And so beautiful…”
Jack shook his head. “She’s just a person,” he reminded her. “And, it sounds like her life isn’t so easy. She has to hide out just so fans leave her alone? Don’t you think that sounds miserable?”
“I guess,” Meghan agreed. “But if I had her voice, not to mention her perfect hair and those high cheekbones, I wouldn’t complain about anything.”
“You are perfect just the way you are,” her husband insisted. “Don’t compare yourself to pop stars, babe. Remember, Lila might be gorgeous, but she has money, and money can give anyone the hair, skin, and outfits they want. You are naturally beautiful.”
“It’s LIE-UH,” Meghan corrected. “I guess you’re right... though I wouldn’t mind having a lot of money to make my hair look like hers…”
Jack rolled his eyes. “Let’s plan our Alaska adventure,” he changed the subject. “It’s getting late, and I want to make sure all of our plans are in place before we leave the ship.”
Jack picked up the telephone and dialed for Hugo. When the butler appeared, Jack handed him a notebook. “These are our plans,” he told him. “If you could confirm the reservations, that would be so helpful, Hugo.”
Hugo nodded curtly. “Not a problem, Sir,” he told Jack. “May I make some suggestions? I’ve been to the area several times, and there are a few activities I would recommend to anyone visiting.”
Meghan smiled. “Absolutely,” she told him. “We would love your recommendations.”
Hugo opened the notebook and scanned Jack’s itinerary. “The hiking trail is a good one, the restaurant looks good... I would add just one thing.”
“What’s that?” Jack asked.
“Before you visit the Totem Heritage Center, hike over to the Deer Mountain Trailhead,” Hugo advised. “Ketchikan is a beautiful, mysterious place with a fascinating history,” he explained. “It is a sacred place for many of the native Alaskan tribes. It is tradition for visitors to pay tribute to the tribes at the Deer Mountain Trailhead. This will bring you good luck.”
“Good luck?” Jack asked skeptically. “Why would visitors need good luck?”
Hugo furrowed his brow. “With the town being so off-the-beaten path, rumor has it that it is the perfect location for some... off-the-beaten path activities.”
“What do you mean?” Meghan questioned. “Is it unsafe for us to go ashore?”
“Not at all,” Hugo assured her. “The long story short is that many Russian oligarchs have secret caves and firms in the Ketchikan countryside. They have disrupted ancient spirits, and those spirits can strike visitors with bad luck.”
Jack pondered for a moment. “That sounds like a long stretch,” he told Hugo. “You’re telling me that powerful Russians are hiding out in the Alaskan countryside, and those Russians’ presence made ancient spirits angry, and now the spirits will haunt guests if those guests don’t pay tribute at the trailhead?”
“Precisely,” Hugo agreed. “When you arrive, go to the trailhead and say a blessing to the ancient spirits. If you do that, you will be safe.”
“A blessing?” Meghan wondered. “How do we do that?”
“It can be anything positive—a prayer, a meditation, you can choose,” Hugo told her. “But don’t forget to do it.”
“What will happen if we don’t?” Meghan asked.
Hugo’s face went dark. “It won’t be good,” he warned her. “If you don’t pay tribute to the ancient spirits, it won’t be good at all...”
16
The next morning, Meghan and Jack rose early to prepare for their day off of the cruise ship. Meghan tugged on a chunky beige sweater, a blush vest, and black leggings, feeling cute and stylish as she modeled the outfit for Jack in their large closet.
“My wife is gorgeous,” Jack told her. “I’m gonna look like a chump next to you, Babe.”
She shook her head. “Let’s see what you’re wearing.”
He dug through the closet and retrieved a pair of khaki pants, an olive green pullover, and a maroon and white vest. “What do you think?”
She grinned. “We look like we could be on the cover of an Alaskan magazine, I think. Winter clothes look good on us.”
He gave her a kiss. “Let’s get to it, my love. We have a big day ahead of us.”
Jack escorted Meghan out of the suite and down to the lower deck, where attendants were helping guests into small boats to go ashore. “I didn’t expect this many people to be going ashore,” Meghan whispered as they were led to a boat. “Ketchiken isn’t a glamorous destination, and with it being cursed…”
Jack shot her a look. “Babe, don’t say that; Hugo told us a story about the town. He didn’t say it was cursed.”
Meghan shivered as she remembered Hugo’s warning. “It sounded cursed to me,” she insisted. She glanced over her shoulder. “Oh, no…”
Mrs. Sheridan was being led to their boat by a surly looking attendant. “You are walking too fast,” she complained as the attendant showed her to the boat. “I’m out of breath now.”
Meghan waved. “Hey, Mrs. Sheridan.”
Mrs. Sheridan was helped into the boat. She hobbled over to Meghan and glared at her. “Oh, it’s you.”
Meghan laughed. “Yes, it’s me. How are you? How is Frank doing?”
Mrs. Sheridan narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. “He’s still ill, and I don’t know why,” she told her. “And I still don’t know why you chose to be so rude to us yesterday. You ran away from us in a hurry, and it wasn’t polite.”
“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I was overwhelmed after going to the gym, and I think I had some sort of reaction on my skin. It’s all fine now. I’m sorry I was rude.”
“It’s fine,” Mrs. Sheridan said gruffly. “Just don’t let it happen again.”
The boat was lowered into the choppy waters, and Meghan’s stomach lurched. “That isn’t a good sign,” she commented as Jack squeezed her shoulder. “These waters don’t seem safe for these small boats.”
Mrs. Sheridan’s eyes grew large. “This town is cursed, you know,” she informed them matter-of-factly.
“What?” Meghan cried. “Jack, see? I’m not the only one who thinks so.”
Jack frowned. “What gives you that idea, Mrs. Sheridan?”
“It’s a fact,” she declared. “If you study ancient Alaskan history, you will learn that these grounds were very sacred.”
“When did you become an expert on Alaskan history?” Jack questioned, but Mrs. Sheridan continued.
“The burial grounds and sacred holy temples were disturbed by tourists in the late twentieth century, and now, the town is cursed.”
Meghan nervously looked at her husband. “Babe, I think we should stay on the ship,” she murmured, leaning into Jack’s body.
“Meghan, don’t you worry,” he reassured her. “It will be a fun day. We’ll do the little ritual Hugo suggested, and then you’ll feel better. I promise.”
“Okay,” she agreed. “But if I get scared, we have to come back.”
When they arrived onshore, they parted ways with Mrs. Sheridan. She, along with most of the other passengers, were escorted to a pack of waiting vans. “Where are you off to?” Meghan called out as Mrs. Sheridan walked away.
“The spa,” she yelled back. “It looks like everyone but you two signed up for the spa excursion. They have real hot springs.”
Meghan turned to Jack. “Is it too late to join them?”
He bit his lip. “I really thought you would like the totem activity…”
She placed a hand on his cheek. “I will,” she promised him, sorry she had suggested abandoning his itinerary. “We’ll have the best day. Let’s go, babe.”
They set off toward the Deer Mountain Trailhead, and Meghan was in awe of the colors and scenery of the little Alaskan town. “The village is so cute,” she praised as they passed a row of colorful shops. “These
buildings really stand out against the gray sky. They look like something you would see at Disney World.”
Jack laughed. “Don’t tell anyone from here you said that,” he urged her. “They might be offended that you compared an ancient Alaskan village to Disney World.”
She giggled and reached for his hand. They walked through the village and down the main street of town until they reached the forest line. “Babe? Which way?”
Jack looked down at the paper map they had been given on the ship. “It’s just south of town. Let’s go right up here at the fork in the road.”
They trudged along the tall trees, enjoying the quiet. Finally, they reached the trailhead; it was a small clearing in the forest filled with moss-covered boulders, exotic vines, and towering green trees.
“I can sense something,” Meghan told Jack excitedly. “Like something is going to happen. Something big.”
Jack laughed. “Okay, honey. Whatever you say. Let’s just do this ritual.”
“What should we do?” she wondered. “A prayer? A poem?”
Jack sighed. “I don’t know, Babe. Just decide something, please; our appointment at the Totem Heritage Center starts in fifteen minutes, and we have a bit of a hike to get back down there.”
Meghan closed her eyes. “Let’s just silently ask the spirits to leave us be,” she told him. “And then we can clap for them. That seems like a good ritual, no?”
“Perfect,” he agreed, closing his own eyes.
After finishing their little ceremony, Meghan felt better. “Now, let’s go have our best day.” They wandered through the forest and back into town, and both Irvins enjoyed the morning spent creating their family totem pole.
That afternoon, after a quick picnic by the beach of sandwiches purchased from a convenience store and gift shopping in town, Meghan and Jack were excited about their big dinner at Bar Harbor Ale House. They had just enough time to enjoy a meal before the ship departed.
They were seated, and Meghan was delighted to see Laia in a booth across the restaurant. She was wearing a hat, and all of her hair was pulled up beneath it.
“Babe, do you see that woman?” she asked her husband. “That’s Laia.”
“How can you tell?” Jack wrinkled his nose. “She looks like any other lady to me, honey.”
“I’m a superfan,” she insisted. “I know it’s her.”
A man joined Laia at her booth. He held a folder, and they began reviewing the papers inside of it. “Who do you think that is?” she asked Jack.
“I don’t know. Her husband? A manager, maybe?”
“No, not her husband. Laia isn’t married. Maybe her manager, though he looks more like the lawyer type.”
Jack laughed. “Can you imagine being so rich that you had to take your entire team on vacation when you travel, including your lawyer?”
Meghan giggled. “It would be fun to be that rich. What would you do if you had millions in your bank account?”
He thought for a moment, leaning back against the vinyl seat and pursing his lips. “I would make you happy,” he finally said. “I’d give you whatever you wanted. Speaking of which... what would you want with that kind of money, Meghan? A vacation? A horse?”
“I would expand Truly Sweet,” she answered without skipping a beat. “I would add a line of packaged goods we could sell, and I would add a classroom to host cooking classes.”
“We could do that now, honey,” he told her quietly. He reached over and took her hands in his. “Meghan, I want to make you the happiest woman on earth. I have some savings that I have been keeping for a rainy day, and if you want to use that money to expand the bakery, we can do that.”
“Really?” she asked. “You would do that for me?”
“For us,” he corrected her gently. “I would do it for us. You are my priority, and our marriage is our priority. If this is what would bring you joy and advance your career, I’ll do it.”
Meghan stared at her husband in awe. Jack was the best man she knew, and she could not believe that she was married to such a kind, handsome, caring person.
“I love you, Jack,” she told him as she stared into his blue eyes.
“I love you too, Mrs. Irvin.”
“Welcome to Bar Harbor,” the waitress interrupted them as she placed menus on the table. “Just take a look. I’ll be right back.”
She walked away, and Meghan noticed Laia was getting up to leave. She waved, but the popstar didn’t notice. Moments later, she nearly hid under the table when Reuben and Beth Winterburn walked in.
“Jack, look. It’s Reuben and Mrs. Winterburn.”
He shook his head. “Meghan, let them be. They are allowed to enjoy an evening out. We aren’t getting involved, remember?”
She frowned. “Honey, I know they have something to do with Oliver Winterburn’s murder.”
“Meghan,” he said sharply. “Leave them alone. Can’t you just enjoy your time with me?”
Overcome with embarrassment, she nodded. “Sorry.”
They returned to peruse the menus, but Meghan snuck several looks at the trio. Beth, Reuben, and Laia’s associate sat at the table with grins on their faces.
“I wonder what they’re talking about,” Meghan wondered, but not wanting to offend Jack, she tried to focus on their dinner.
After enjoying a hearty meal of crab cakes, lobster bisque, and freshly baked bread, they rose to leave. Meghan looked down at her shoes, not wanting to make eye contact with Beth or Reuben, but as she passed their table, her heart sank as she heard Beth’s chatter.
“We’re rich,” she said gleefully. “We’re rich, and now, there’s nothing anyone can do to keep us apart.”
17
An hour later, Meghan and Jack were in line to board the small boats to be taken back to the cruise ship. Meghan was deep in thought as the chilly Alaskan air bit her cheeks; she couldn’t stop thinking about the conversation she had overheard between Reuben and Mrs. Winterburn.
“Hey, Earth to Mrs. Irvin,” Jack said playfully as they were led to one of the boats. “You okay, honey?”
She forced herself to smile. “I’m fine, sweetie. Just a little chilly.”
Jack wrapped his arm over her shoulder as they settled into the boat. “Hey, look who it is,” he whispered to Meghan. “Isn’t that the Captain of the ship? That guy over there?”
She followed his gaze. “Yes, I think it is,” she replied.
“Hey, Captain,” Jack called out as the man turned around. “I’m Jack Irvin, and this is my wife, Meghan. We’re honeymooners, and we’ve had a quite a time on your ship.”
The Captain smiled brightly. “Well, that’s good to hear,” he told Jack. “Congratulations on your marriage. How has the trip been?”
“Thank you,” Meghan said sweetly. “This trip was a surprise. I never expected to set foot in Alaska, but here we are.”
The Captain nodded. “It’s a gorgeous place. I spent my summers here as a young man; my father worked in the lumber industry, and each summer, my family would travel here for his work.”
“That must have been fun,” Jack commented as the boat began to speed away from the Ketchikan coast. “I’m sure you made some fond memories here.”
“You bet,” the Captain grinned. “Now, tell me about your experience on the ship. Has the staff been attentive to your needs, I hope?”
Meghan nodded. “Our Butler, Hugo, has been incredible,” she gushed. “And I had a hard workout with Celia Hendon. She’s the real deal.”
He laughed. “Celia puts everyone to shame,” he agreed. “We’re lucky to have her aboard. She really elevates our client experience.”
“She nearly killed my wife,” Jack joked.
“Hey,” Meghan warned him playfully.
“Where are you folks from?”
They told them about their lives in Sandy Bay, and as Meghan finished telling him about the bakery, the Captain beamed. “A bakery, huh? Have you visited the ship’s kitchens yet?”
&nb
sp; She raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t know I was allowed to…”
The Captain nodded. “I could arrange a private tour, if you’d like; our chef and his assistants are always available to visit with guests, answer questions, and do demonstrations. Like I said, we pride ourselves on quality guest experiences, and if it would please you, I would like to make an appointment for you to have a tour. What do you think, Mrs. Irvin?”
Meghan smiled. “That would be incredible. I would love that.”
