His eyes skidded away from hers, but he wasn’t about to tell her that she was letting her imagination run away with her. Not after what she’d been through tonight.
“Kendall, I don’t think that at all. I think you’re bright and charming and extremely talented, and the best thing that’s happened to my brother since…in years. But, let’s face it, there are already a lot of odd things going on, and then tonight…”
“Jeremy, I think my mistake has been rationalizing everything.” She hesitated. “I think we’re not seeing the things we should be seeing, so the ghosts—or just our subconscious, speaking to us in our dreams, if you’d rather look at it that way—are trying to help. The thing is…who knows what a ghost really is? A memory? Energy? Energy doesn’t die, the scientists say. Maybe ghosts come to us when we’re sleeping, because in sleep we’re more open, more receptive.” She stopped short of telling him that her experiences with ghosts weren’t limited to her dreams. She knew now that the ghost of Henry LeBlanc was haunting the property and the bar. He’d been a good man. He’d saved what was left of the family, and if he was here now, it wasn’t to hurt anyone. It was to help.
Maybe when he came to the Hideaway he was trying to warn possible victims. Henry knew that a killer—an evil man just like Victor Grebbe—was at work, and he wanted to stop him.
There was a knock at the door. Jeremy rose quickly and she knew that he was armed, just as his brother was these days. She followed him down the hall, too nervous to stay by herself at the back of the house.
“Kendall? Jeremy?”
It was Aidan’s voice.
Jeremy unlocked the door and let his brother in.
“Everything all right?” Aidan asked.
“Fine,” Jeremy told him. “Now that you’re here, I’m going to get going. I’ll stay out at the plantation tonight, just to keep an eye on things.”
“Thanks, Jeremy,” Aidan said.
Kendall gave Jeremy a quick hug. “Yes, thanks. I’m sorry you got stuck babysitting me. I’m not usually such a weenie.”
“Hey, strange times call for…careful action,” Jeremy said a little lamely. “Talk to you tomorrow,” he told his brother.
The minute Jeremy was gone, Kendall found herself shivering suddenly.
“What is it?” Aidan asked, locking the door.
“Paranoia setting in,” she said. There had been someone in Sheila’s house. That was a fact, and she’d been right to be afraid. There was not someone in her courtyard, trying to spy on her through the drapes. Being afraid now was paranoia.
“Come here,” he said gently, folding her into his arms.
“Is it wrong of me to be glad you carry a gun?” she told him.
“Of course not.” He lifted her chin. “Are you all right?”
“She’s dead, Aidan. I know it.”
He didn’t try to contradict her; he just held her.
She let herself cry for her friend. Other people might say she was being ridiculous, giving up hope so quickly. But she knew Sheila was dead, and now all she could do was make sure Sheila’s killer was caught.
God help her, she wasn’t going to be afraid to face the unknown. She was going to accept all the help she could get from the living or the dead to bring the killer to justice.
For Kendall, the next day seemed to last forever. Mason was as upset as she was. All morning, he kept suggesting that Sheila must have gotten tired of the academic life, that she had decided to go wild and crazy, and have fun. She had met some people and gone with them for a frolic in the islands.
“The police are investigating,” she assured him.
Vinnie was depressed, too. “It’s hard to think about having a party,” he told her.
The one bright spot in the day was Jean’s article on the plantation. Not only did she set the record straight about the cousins, she implied that the local historical society was likely to look into Victor Grebbe’s life and he might at least be condemned by history, since it was far too late to see that he paid appropriately for his crimes during his lifetime. The article ended on a whimsical note, saying that the cousins’ ghosts, now exonerated of any malicious intent, should be resting far more peacefully.
Ady came in just after lunch. Kendall was afraid to read for her, but she had promised herself that she was going to try to read every sign. But Miss Ady shook her head when Kendall led her into the back room and asked what kind of tea she wanted for her reading. “I’m just here to say thank-you. The doctor called me about the scan. He says they’re going to give me a little shot of radiation, and some chemo. He says we caught the cancer before it could spread.”
“I’m so thankful, Miss Ady,” Kendall said, taking the older woman’s hand.
“I heard about all the commotion last night,” MissAdy said.