“If you think that’s something, wait until you see the two ballrooms,” said Miles.
“Two?” I stared at him. I was stunned. “Are you serious?”
“Yes, two,” Miles smiled.
I turned and walked through the doorway and into the storage room, and Miles closed it behind us.
“Lock it too, please, just in case,” I said. I heard the key turn as I looked around.
Chests of drawers, a massive wardrobe, and several cedar chests and trunks filled the room. There was no wallpaper, and no wall hangings. The wood floor was bare, although several rugs were rolled and stacked against one wall. There was also a bed, which I found surprising.
“So this is where you put the overflow guests, huh?” I commented.
Miles laughed at the thought.
“I suppose if we ever invited the entire state, once this area became a state, and everyone came, we might’ve needed it. But no, at some point in time someone wanted different furniture, so this was stored along with the other pieces,” he said, and he pointed out the matching furniture in the room.
“It is just crazy,” I said, turning in circles as I surveyed the contents of the room. “If a person in your family wanted to go shopping for furniture, then hey, let’s go check out the storage rooms. Whatever we want, it’s probably already here.”
Miles opened a drawer and sorted through the contents, as I opened the door to the wardrobe and looked inside.
“You do know this isn’t how other people live, right?” I questioned.
“Of course. Other people didn’t live this way when I was still the all-me solid guy I used to be, either. Life here has always been different than what I would agree is normal,” Miles said. As we continued to search, he added, “The castle does have a television, so between that and the internet, I haven’t been entirely isolated from the rest of the world in spite of not being able to interact with it.”
“You watch TV?” I don’t know why that surprised me.
“Sure,” said Miles. “Sometimes. Enough to have an idea of how society has changed over the years. I saw that with the Bannermans who lived here, as well.”
“Huh. No wonder you seem like just another guy born around the same time I was,” I said, then gave that some thought. “Aside from the fact that you’re a lot more fun to talk to.”
“Thanks,” said Miles. “I like talking to you, too.”
“Yeah, it’s not like I’ve got a lot of competition,” I pointed out.
“I’d enjoy talking to you even if there was. I like your sense of humor. You’re different than other people that have come and gone over the years.”
“Well, let me just say, if you were some other semi-transparent guy, I wouldn’t have come back! I’d probably still be running.”
Miles laughed at that thought, and so did I.
I continued sorting through the wardrobe. A very elaborate hat was in my way, so I plopped it on my head, rather than find a new place for it. I picked up a pile of books and papers I found on the shelf, and turned. Glancing up, I saw Miles giving me a very funny look.
“What?” I asked.
Oh—the hat.
“What do you think?” I spun around, nearly dislodging it from my head, and almost dropping the books and papers in the process.
“Hmmm….” said Miles.
It was obvious he was trying not to laugh.
I caught the spilling papers and lay them on the dresser top, then spun again, and looked in the mirror set in the door of the wardrobe.
I looked hideous, if I do say so myself. Who would wear this thing... on purpose?
“What, this isn’t a good look for me?” I asked, my hand on my hip.
“That’s not a good look for anyone,” Miles smiled. “You should have seen my Aunt when she wore it. Between that and the dress that matched, she looked like some sort of deranged rooster.”
I laughed, and put the hat back where it came from.
As I continued to rummage in the wardrobe, and Miles dug through the drawers of a large dresser, I was impressed—in one way or another—with the various articles of clothing I unearthed.
“There have been some strange fashion trends over the past couple of centuries,” I commented.
“Yes, yes there have,” agreed Miles, with a shudder. “And that particular Aunt tried as many of them as possible. Delevan and I wondered how our Uncle could stand it, and why he never said anything.”
“It’s called self-preservation, baby,” I laughed. “Your rooster-Aunt would have about pecked your Uncle to death, if he had.”
Miles laughed too.
“You’re probably right.”
“Did you have a large family?” I asked.
I saw the portraits the day Chip and I were hiding out from the rain, but I paid more attention to Miles’ than any of the others.
“When I was very young. By the time I was ten, I believe it was just my immediate family and grandparents living here at the estate.”
“You don’t know for sure?” I asked.
“Have you seen the size of this house?” Miles asked.
“Point taken. And how creepy, by the way, to think of people living in the same house and not even knowing it!”
“Now that you mention it, yeah. Stuck here alone at night, it’s enough to make me glad I’m semi-transparent guy.”
“Even though it’s daytime, I’m glad I’m with you, and that you’ve got semi-transparent guy superpowers,” I said. I finished placing the contents of the wardrobe back inside. “Well, I think we’ve exhausted the opportunities in this room.”
I looked around, hands on my hips, and blew a loose strand of hair out of my eyes. Maybe I should give up and just cut some bangs, it would be easier to see.
“So, on to the next one?” suggested Miles.
“Lead the way,” I agreed. “I feel sure that somewhere in this massive house we’ll find something… but I sure do wonder where! It really is a needle in a haystack we’re searching for.”
“That it is,” agreed Miles.
“But we’ll find it!” I said, pointing at him.
“I know you will,” Miles smiled. “I have faith in you.”
“Good,” I said, and smiled back.
We searched until it was past time for me to collect Chip and go home for the evening. Miles and Trixie walked us out. With a quick “see you tomorrow,” we headed home.
I never stayed late at my last job, I thought, as we crossed the bridge and I marveled over the colors of the sunset staining the sky and clouds vivid shades of pink and purple. But then again, I never before worked with someone I got along with so well. Miles was fun to be around and it made all the difference.
The job wasn’t half bad, either. It was exciting to see the estate come to life as Nate and Molly did their work. And who wouldn’t enjoy searching for clues in a castle!
Chapter 6
“Hello Miss Riley,” said Nate the next morning, as Chip and I emerged from the forest path and stepped into the garden.
“Hello, Nate,” I waved, as we headed toward the castle.
Here came Trixie, walls and locked doors didn’t slow her down any. She ran up to us, and she and Chip began to play.
“Is this dog yours also?” asked Nate, indicating Trixie.
“No, she’s... the estate dog,” I said, not exactly sure what else to say.
Nate accepted that.
Well, he ought to. I’m the boss, after all!
“I’ve thought about getting a dog. These two are sure friendly,” he said, as they stopped in the midst of running past, to receive affection from him.
“They are. Both are excellent breeds. Although… I hear that golden retrievers are notorious for leaving hair on everything,” I remembered. I looked toward the castle. “See you later, Nate. Keep up the good work.”
“Wait, Miss Riley...” said Nate, and I turned back to look at him. “A couple of my guys found something you might not be aware of.”
“Oh? And what’s that?” I asked. I was anxious to see Miles.
“There’s a path over there,” Nate said, as he pointed to one side of the estate grounds. “It leads to a family cemetery.”
“Really?” I was surprised.
But come to think of it, of course the Bannermans would have one. They added two wings to their already huge house in order to accommodate every member of the family that ever lived. Of course they’d have a cemetery on the grounds, to accommodate every member that ever died.
“Yes. It’s overrun just as the garden was. Do you want my guys to take care of that, as well?”
“Yes I do, Nate. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I’d like you to care for that, just as you are the rest of the estate.”
“Very good, Miss Riley. I’ll get some of the guys right on it.”
“Thank you, Nate.”
I continued on my way to the castle, and hurried up the stairs and through the front door.
Miles was waiting for me in the entryway. I listened carefully and looked to Miles for confirmation.
“They’re upstairs,” he smiled.
“Okay then,” I acknowledged. “Hi.”
“Hi back,” Miles smiled.
“Ready to search?”
“You bet,” he said.
“Alright then. Lead the way, sir,” I said.
We investigated yet another storage area. I wondered how many this huge estate had, after all! We didn’t find anything useful to our endeavor, but Miles had all sorts of stories about growing up in the castle, and the various family members that lived there over the years. The time passed quickly as we talked.
“Wait, you’re kidding—right?” I said, holding up my hand.
This was one story I was finding hard to believe.
“No, I’m completely serious. We were out prowling around the forest, and Delevan thought bringing home that baby skunk was a great idea.”
“Oh my goodness. How old were you?”
“I was eight, and Delevan was eleven.”
“What on earth happened next?”
“Well… Delevan thought the parlor was the perfect place for his new pet.”
“Oh, no!”
“Oh, yes. It was as tame as a cat, and maybe it would have been fine if something hadn’t startled it… but something did.”
Miles began to laugh, remembering.
I started to laugh too.
“I have never seen anyone as angry as my Mother was, that day. And I’ve seen a lot of people over the years!”
I had to stop searching for the time being and sit down so I could laugh, as I imagined Mom’s reaction if I brought a skunk into the house!
“It’s funny now, because it happened so long ago, but believe me, I was not laughing then!”
“I can’t believe he did that!” I gasped out.
“He only did it once,” he smiled, and I laughed some more.
“Were you in trouble, too?” I asked.
“I was charged as an accomplice, so my sentence was lighter,” he said, and smiled, as I attempted to overcome the amusement I felt over the whole crazy scenario. It didn’t seem quite appropriate to laugh hysterically over him getting punished as a kid.
Miles laughed to himself though, as he thought about it.
“Honestly, I’m a little surprised Delevan and I made it past the ages of eleven and eight, considering.”
Appropriate or not, that was my undoing. I gave up and laughed so hard, I fell over.
There was a knock at the storage room door.
I clapped my hands over my mouth and froze, staring wide-eyed at Miles. Whoever was out there must have heard all that. Or… my part of it, anyway.
Miles quickly held his hand to his ear
“Phone,” he said.
I gave him a thumbs-up, and pulled my iPhone out of my pocket as I unlocked and opened the storage room door.
“Oh, hi Molly. Hang on just a minute,” I greeted her. Into the phone, I said, “Gotta go, I’ll call you back.”
I returned my iPhone to my pocket, and looked at Molly expectantly.
“I hate to interrupt Miss Riley, but I wondered if you’d like to see our progress before we leave for the day,” she said.
“Sure, that’d be great. Lead the way.”
I followed, and as I left the room I turned and mouthed the words “I’ll be back” at Miles, and he nodded.
I walked with Molly into the main part of the house, and she showed me around the freshly cleaned hallways and rooms.
“Thanks Molly, your girls are doing a fantastic job!”
“You’re very welcome, Miss Riley,” said Molly. “We do appreciate the business. I declare, you’re the only client we need, you’ve got so much for us to do!”
“I don’t doubt it,” I laughed along with her. “So you’ll be working on the second and third floors of the main house the rest of the day, correct?”
“Yes, that’s right. We’ll be here until four o’ clock.”
“Sounds great. Thanks, Molly!”
I hurried back to the east wing of the house, to the storage room Miles and I were searching before Molly came calling.
“They’re all set,” I said, after shutting the door and locking it with the ancient skeleton key, for good measure. “There shouldn’t be any more interruptions.”
“No problem,” said Miles, as he placed items back in a trunk. “So far, I haven’t found anything that will be of use in achieving our goal.”
“Well thanks for the phone idea, I was too stunned to think what to do! The ideas I had weren’t very good.”
“Like what?”
“Oh, climbing out the window, for example.”
Miles laughed.
“Yeah, that would convince the cleaning crew there’s something not quite right about you. Especially since these windows don’t open.”
I laughed at that, as we resumed our search.
In a trunk filled with books and papers, I found something.
I sat on the floor, staring at the documents I held in my hands. I was reluctant to tell Miles what I found. As uncomfortable as it made me, I wondered what it would do to him. Finally I looked up.
“Miles… I found something.”
“What?” he asked, as he sat beside me.
I held the papers out to him.
Miles read in silence for a moment.
“It’s kind of surreal, seeing my own death certificate. I mean… it’s not telling me anything I didn’t already know, but… still.”
I sympathized in silence, then looked at Miles in shock.
“This proves you didn’t fire the first shot, anyway,” I said. “So that’s something! But not enough? You’re still here.”
Miles rubbed his chin as he thought.
“That alone makes it look as though Delevan shot me twice, then I shot him in the back after he turned away. It changes the story, but it doesn’t tell the truth. Now my brother’s guilty of shooting me first, and I’m guilty of shooting him in the back, for what... revenge? And this doesn’t absolve me of the claim that I wanted to take Sarah from my brother,” said Miles, a slight frown on his face. “I would really like to prove otherwise, if I have a choice.”
I looked at the papers in my hand and frowned, lost in thought.
“We really need a letter or diary telling what happened,” I said.
“I’m afraid the only one who could provide that would be the only other decent person in the clearing that day,” replied Miles.
“Sarah,” I said.
“Sarah,” Miles nodded, rubbing his forehead as if his head hurt.
I reached out to put my hand on Miles’ shoulder, but then stopped, remembering that my effort would be futile.
“We’ll find proof, okay? Don’t give up. I can understand why you would after all these years, but you aren’t alone now. I’ll search until I find it, no matter how long it takes. I promise you that.”
“Thank
s,” Miles said with a shadow of a smile. “I won’t give up.”
“Why do you have more than one ballroom?” I finally remembered to ask, thus changing the subject.
Miles thought about that.
“Your guess is as good as mine.”
“Hm, well then let me think,” I said, shaking out the linens I found folded in a drawer. “It helps to have an extra ballroom, when… you forgot to clean up, after the last party. Now it’s your turn to come up with one.”
“Okay, I’ll have to think about this,” Miles said.
I jumped in.
“It helps to have an extra ballroom, when you have friends that don’t get along and you know if they’re in the same room they’ll fight, but if you don’t invite them, they’ll hate you.”
Miles laughed.
“Hey, I thought it was my turn!”
“You’re too slow, Mister!” I said. “It helps to have an extra ballroom, when you want to waltz in one room and rock out in the other.”
Miles laughed again, and I kept going.
“It helps to have an extra ballroom, when...”
“When you have a party, and want to have dancing in one and rollerblading in the other,” said Miles triumphantly.
I laughed.
“That’s a good one. I can see actually doing that.”
“Do you rollerblade?” asked Miles.
“I have,” I said. “I wouldn’t say I’m good at it, though. I’ve got some scars to prove it.”
I pulled back my sleeve to reveal a faint scar just below my elbow.
“That must have hurt,” said Miles sympathetically.
Not nearly as bad as the scar on my hip, that wasn’t up for discussion.
“Yeah, it kind of did.”
I pulled more heavily embroidered linens out of a drawer, and searched them for hidden papers or diaries or anything else that might be helpful.
“How about you, how did you get that?” I indicated his jawline, where I’d seen a very faint scar.
“Funny you should ask,” Miles said, holding up what I recognized as items used many years ago in shaving. “I’ve no idea why these things would be stored, but I got this in a shaving mishap.”
“Oh, no! That had to hurt.”
“It did. Guys these days have no idea how good they have it, compared to how shaving was done back then.”
Miles Page 10
