“The only question is, who will be going with me?” Althea said harshly.
“Are you asking me if I can play nice with others?” Shawn suddenly was upset.
“Normally, I’d be directing this question to Faith. I had gotten used to the banter and teasing the two of you shared before you teamed up. Heck! It made for some entertaining moments on and off film. Frankly, what I’m seeing today has me more than a little concerned. And more than a little surprised, since I would have sworn on my last Emmy that the two of you were about to get back together. What happened?”
“If you need to drop me from the projects, I understand,” Shawn said, not wanting to reveal the events of the previous evening.
“Shawn, we can’t drop you,” Althea said in a softer tone. “You must know how much you’re in demand at the moment. If I have to make a change, it won’t be you.”
“Wait.” Shawn jumped to her feet. “You can’t fire Faith. Not again.”
“I won’t fire her,” Althea promised. “But if you can’t work with her, then I’ll have to reassign her.”
“Right,” Shawn grumbled. “Everyone knows that you head up the good shoots. She’ll end up looking for aliens at a self-serve gas station in Roswell. I can work with her. I swear.”
“I’m asking as your friend, not your boss, Shawn. What happened? You and Faith looked very cozy last night,” she added in a sly tone.
“Deb happened.” Shawn plopped back down onto the bench. “Damn good thing I felt her coming, or she would have gotten quite an eyeful.”
“You’re still with Deb?” Althea sat next to Shawn. “Girl, just when are you going to smarten up? She doesn’t respect you. And what you have with her doesn’t hold a candle to the sparks flying off of you and tall, dark, and moody.”
“I know, and I sent Deb packing last night,” Shawn said. “One day too late. By the time I caught up with Faith, she was otherwise engaged. Can’t blame her. How many times can you hear, ‘I have a girlfriend,’ before you hit the bricks?”
“Okay, now I’m confused. You know, for a psychic, sometimes you’re completely clueless…” Shawn stared at Althea as her voice trailed off.
Shawn shivered, and a strange feeling crept up on her. She looked off to the side and spied a familiar brunette approaching them.
“Ms. St. James, what brings you here?” Shawn asked cautiously. Something about this woman bothered her, and she knew what was causing her mistrust. Delia St. James wasn’t being completely honest with her. Shawn couldn’t get a reading on the woman, and it was driving her nuts. As much as she hated being privy to people’s innermost thoughts, at times not knowing could prove to be far more frustrating.
“I got a very confusing telephone call late last evening,” Delia said, twirling a large manila envelope between her fingers. “It was from Ms. Charles, and she sounded, well, she sounded drunk. She said she wanted to talk to me about Whispering Pines. I was visiting my family and promised to stop by for a chat.”
“I’ll get her,” Althea said and hurried back inside the castle.
“I’m surprised to see you here, Dr. Williams.” Delia hesitated slightly, seemingly in search of something to talk about. “When I met Ms. Charles, I got the impression that the two of you weren’t getting along.”
“Now there’s an understatement.” Shawn laughed as Delia took a seat next to her. “It’s your work!” Shawn suddenly blurted out with surprise. “That’s what you’ve been hiding. I don’t understand. You’re very good at what you do, and your work is important.”
“That’s really annoying.” Delia looked over at her with a dumbfounded expression. “Yes, what I do is important. I build buildings that not only look good, but will continue to stand no matter what. But it’s how I developed my technology that bothers me. My grandfather said that we must learn from the past, and he was right.”
“Yes, he was,” Shawn agreed as she felt the source of the young woman’s anguish. “You learn from tragedy. You feel like you’ve earned your success by others’ dying, instead of remembering that you’re helping prevent more lives being lost.”
“Now you’re starting to sound like my mother,” Delia said, still twirling the envelope.
“So the call from Faith must have made you happy,” Shawn said. “Come to give us another sales pitch?”
“In a manner of speaking.” Delia smiled. She handed Shawn the envelope just as Faith approached them.
Shawn’s mind spun as she saw a flash; then she heard laughter and voices. “You keep it, Richard. That way we’ll always be there to watch over you,” Anna’s voice echoed.
Another flash hit her. A shimmer of light was catching something that was reflecting the light. She heard a man grumbling and a small boy giggling.
“Dr. Williams?” A voice called to her as her hands trembled and the envelope slipped from her fingers. Shawn ignored the voice as she buried her face in her hands and began to rock back and forth.
“What did you do to her?” A different voice demanded as Shawn felt comforting hands on her shoulder and face.
“Nothing, I swear,” she heard Delia St. James say with a hint of fear.
Shawn blinked, opened her eyes, and saw Faith kneeling in front of her. It was Faith’s hands that were offering her comfort. She could see the fear in Faith’s eyes as she caressed Shawn’s face.
“I’m fine,” Shawn said weakly.
“That was a bad one.” Faith’s voice trembled, and her fingers drifted up to Shawn’s furrowed brow.
“No, just strong,” Shawn said, trying to stop the world from spinning.
“Hmm, those kind usually leave you with one hell of a headache.” Faith picked up the envelope.
“No kidding.” Shawn tried to smile. “Consider it payback for making you drink too much last night.”
“Why are you here?” Faith asked Delia.
“You called me.”
“I did?” Faith furrowed her brow and opened the envelope. “Wow, they look a lot better when you can’t see through them.” Shawn peered at the old photograph of two women seated with a small, dark-haired boy nestled happily between them.
“So, again, I have to ask what happened here, Ms. St. James?”
“Faith, you’re scaring her.” Shawn continued to study the photograph.
“I am not,” Faith said. Delia nodded her head. “Sorry,” Faith said with a frown. “So, the little boy would be your grandfather?”
“Yes.” Delia backed slightly away from Faith. “That’s the only picture ever taken of Anna, and the only one with the three of them together.”
“No,” Shawn mumbled as she slipped the large photograph from Faith’s grasp. Her fingers tingled slightly as they brushed against Faith’s. “They had to take the picture three times. Something kept reflecting the flash. Something metal, something to Richard’s right,” she said, studying the photo. “Holy shit!” Her eyes widened.
“Such language,” Faith said with a playful smile as Shawn handed her the photo and pointed to Anna’s wrist. Faith’s eyes bugged out as she spotted the object Shawn was pointing to. Shawn drew back the sleeve of her jacket and held the bracelet up so they could all see. “How?”
“That’s what I haven’t been telling you, Dr. Williams,” Delia said. “I noticed it immediately the first time we met. I thought maybe that was why they let you stay in the house. The captain either burned or sold off their possessions. I have to ask where you got that bracelet.”
“It was a gift,” Shawn said, feeling herself blush. Faith continued to stare at the photograph. “I didn’t receive it until after my stay at Whispering Pines. This is just a coincidence, Ms. St. James.” Faith’s head jerked up with surprise. “As earth-crunchy as you think I am, Faith, I do know that coincidences do happen.”
“But—” Faith began to say.
“I have to ask, do you know where the bracelet came from?” Delia said. “Perhaps another psychic could get something from it, and I can finally find out what
happened.”
“A small antiques shop in Boston, on Charles Street.” Faith clasped Shawn’s wrist and began to trace the bracelet with her long fingers. “The owner said it had been lost in the shuffle and sat in storage for years. He only found it a few weeks before I bought it. He didn’t know the history, since it was probably purchased by one of the previous owners. He was certain that it was French, probably crafted around the turn of the century. The previous one,” she amended.
“I asked my mother about it,” Delia continued in a hopeful tone. “She said her father told her that his mother never took it off since it was a gift from Catherine.”
“We don’t know that it was Anna’s,” Shawn said as she caught the pleading looks coming from both women.
“I was drawn to it,” Faith whispered as she continued to caress Shawn’s wrist.
“You were drawn to the symbolism of it,” Shawn said, finding it strange that she was the voice of reason in this conversation. “Milo saw that.”
“Perhaps Milo should take another look?” Faith said as her caresses grew bolder.
“Are you sure the two of you don’t get along?” Delia asked.
“Depends on what day you ask,” Shawn teased as she felt a surge of warmth. Her mind spun as she caught the image of a bartender bringing one drink after another, then a flash to the toothy, young girl snuggling up beside Faith’s body. The image faded as she heard the words, “Why not?” echoing. She snatched her hand away. Faith looked up at her with a confused expression.
“I’ll have a colleague look at the bracelet, Ms. St. James, and I’ll get back to you,” Shawn said abruptly. She almost knocked Faith over when she moved around her. She marched back towards the castle, hearing Faith’s frustrated grumble behind her.
She was fuming by the time she met up with Althea.
“A meeting with Delia St. James?” Althea gushed. “Should I be getting some contracts ready?”
“No,” Shawn refused, even as she felt that all roads were leading her back to Whispering Pines.
“Oh, crap,” Althea said. “Am I making staff changes to the up-coming schedule, instead?”
“No.” Shawn was angry with Faith and herself, but she couldn’t let Faith’s career suffer because of it. “I told you I would play nice, and I will.” She was about to walk away when she felt Althea’s hand on her arm.
“Shawn, this is really none of my business,” Althea said softly. “I don’t know what you think happened last night, but Faith slept on the sofa in my suite. She showed up in the wee hours, really drunk and looking for a place to crash. I asked her what happened. All she said was, ‘Bite me,’ before she passed out.” Shawn was dumbfounded as she tried to understand just what had happened last night.
Chapter 27
Danvers, Massachusetts
2005
Faith was in a miserable mood that night. She didn’t want to go back to the hotel room she was sharing with Shawn, but didn’t have a choice. She needed a shower, clean clothing, and most of all, sleep. She felt sick knowing she could open the door and find Deb waiting inside.
Faith let out a sigh of relief when she discovered only Shawn in the room. Her relief was very short-lived. She caught Shawn’s glare as she closed the door.
“Where did you sleep last night?” Shawn demanded in a hurt tone.
A flush of anger surged through Faith. “What do you care?” She tossed her card and wallet onto her nightstand. She had had enough of this game and was too exhausted to deal with Shawn’s tirade. All she wanted was a long, hot shower and sleep.
“I care.” Shawn folded her arms across her chest.
“I’m far too tired to deal with this,” Faith said, kicking off her shoes and shrugging out of her jacket. “I’m not asking how your birthday celebration went with your girlfriend, am I?”
“I dumped her. Then I went looking for you, only to find you leaving the hotel bar with some youngster.”
“Great,” Faith grumbled. “Not that it’s any of your business, but nothing happened. I kissed her, that’s all. It wasn’t right. I called St. James wanting to know more about Whispering Pines. Then I crashed in Althea’s room. I may have thrown up at some point, although I’m not entirely certain about that.”
Faith felt defeated. Unable to deal with the conversation, she began tugging her shirt out of her pants. “When are you going to believe me? When am I going to stop paying for one mistake? Tell me, Shawn, just when are you going to understand that it’s you that I want?”
Faith’s head was pounding, her body ached, and her heart was broken. To top off her miserable day, she had just exposed her heart to be hurt once again.
“Mmmf,” was the muffled sound she made as Shawn knocked her down onto her bed and captured her lips. She was far too stunned to react at first. Once her mind caught up with her body, she eagerly returned Shawn’s kiss. Her hands were gliding along Shawn’s back as the kiss deepened. She became lost in Shawn’s touch. Faith’s hands drifted down to Shawn’s firm, round bottom. She squeezed Shawn’s cheeks through her jeans, and slipped her hand between Shawn’s thighs.
“We can’t,” Shawn gasped, pulling away from Faith’s touch.
Faith looked up at the woman straddling her body.
“Huh?” She was completely baffled by the situation. She hissed when she heard a knock on the door.
“It’s Milo,” Shawn said sheepishly. “I called him to come take a look at the bracelet.”
“I hate my life,” Faith whimpered as Shawn climbed off of her. Faith cooled instantly, missing the heat of Shawn’s body pressed against her own.
“I’m going to take a shower.” She climbed off of the bed and grabbed some clothing. As she entered the bathroom, she couldn’t shake the nagging fear that the lip-lock she had just shared with Shawn hadn’t changed anything.
Chapter 28
Stewart, Massachusetts
1914
“He won’t be pleased.” Anna almost snickered as she looked about her home, now decorated from top to bottom for the upcoming holiday.
“To hell with him,” Catherine muttered under her breath as she glared over her shoulder at Miranda, who was skulking about as usual. “He’s away on a voyage. You should be able to enjoy Christmas for once. Don’t you agree, Miranda?”
Anna’s hand flew up to her mouth in an effort to suppress her smile as she watched the maid jump with surprise.
“Whispering Pines is a beautiful manor, and it’s only right that it be included in the joyous celebration,” Catherine said triumphantly once Miranda proved that she was incapable of answering.
“Thank you, Sister,” Anna graciously said as she gazed about the manor that finally looked like a home. “Richard will be beside himself,” she added happily, knowing it would be well worth her husband’s wrath. For now, she would simply enjoy the holiday with her son and her lover. For the first time in Anna’s life, it would truly be a merry Christmas for her. In her heart, she knew that the joyous celebration wouldn’t have been possible without Catherine’s guiding hand. She felt the blush spread in her cheeks as the word lover echoed delightfully in her mind.
“Whatever you’re thinking must be truly wicked for you to blush like that,” Catherine whispered in Anna’s ear. Anna trembled when Catherine’s breath caressed her skin. She bit back a moan as she felt her body swooning.
“I don’t know if I can wait for tonight,” Catherine added, brushing her fingers lightly against Anna’s bottom before stepping away.
Anna felt as though she were melting. She regretted that there was no way for the two of them to sate their needs until after the staff departed for the evening.
“This is going to be a very long day,” she muttered.
As Anna went about her chores, she couldn’t erase her blissful smile. Many times, knowing that they had to wait before they could be intimate only made her even more excited. She had never known that love could feel so good, and that making love could be so intense.
> Later that evening, her long hair clinging to her brow, she collapsed against Catherine’s body. She smiled when she heard her lover’s contented sigh. Catherine’s arms were wrapped around her waist, and Anna pressed her ear against Catherine’s breast. It was her favorite time, when her body was sated, and she could just nestle against Catherine and listen to the steady beating of her heart.
Soon, Richard would be home and the three of them would enjoy a real Christmas as a family. She and Catherine would have to be careful around her son. Catherine had been hinting that perhaps they should flee once Richard returned. Anna knew it would be impossible to escape from Horatio’s grasp. If the attempt failed, she would lose her son and her lover forever. She also suspected that the captain would be returning soon. He had never been absent whenever Richard was home.
“That Miranda is a pill,” Catherine muttered softly. She stroked Anna’s naked back. “Pity you can’t dismiss her.”
“You know I can’t.” Anna sighed deeply. She lifted her head and met her lover’s gaze. “The staff is beholden to the captain. He pays them far too well for them to betray him, and he owns most of the town.”
“I wouldn’t mind her spying and sour demeanor so much if she were at least a decent maid,” Catherine joked. Anna laughed softly. “We could leave the moment Richard returns.”
“If I only knew how long the captain would be gone,” Anna said in a pitiful tone. “If we could be certain that we could escape, I would agree in a heartbeat. But he could return at any moment. I won’t risk losing either of you.”
“Maybe his ship will sink,” Catherine hissed.
“Catherine,” Anna said, “I don’t care for your brother, but wishing him ill will isn’t the answer. I know I’ve often uttered those very same words, but it isn’t right. He is so much older than we are, and someday we’ll be free. If you can’t wait for me, I understand.”
“I would endure an eternity in hell just to be with you,” Catherine vowed. Capturing Anna’s hand, she brought it to her lips. She kissed the bracelet that never left Anna’s wrist, before she brushed her lips lightly against Anna’s palm. The simple promising gesture awakened Anna’s passion, and soon the two lovers became lost in a fiery embrace that would last until dawn.
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