And because I didn’t want to be anything other than what I was.
She couldn’t stop me from being there. And she couldn’t expect me to stay away from Noah and my friends. I was accepted here, welcomed and wanted. I’d never felt that at Bell Hill. Never felt it anywhere except with Lark, and she was the blood to my spirit. It wasn’t the same thing. She and I shared a bond neither of us had asked for. These ghosts welcomed me as one of their own, and they’d probably never know how much I appreciated that, since not even my own mother would accept I existed.
Yes, Lark would just have to learn to understand.
“If Haven Crest has its own spectral energy, how does it feel about the renovations?” I asked. It was a very Lark question to ask, which I wasn’t certain was a good thing.
“She doesn’t like it,” Noah replied. “All those breathers stomping around, ruining our home.”
“But the renovations will actually restore the buildings. Isn’t that better than destroying the place? If nothing else, there will be plenty of the living around to scare.” I smiled on that last part.
“Ghosts aren’t big on change, Wren. You should know that.”
His tone wasn’t condescending, so I didn’t get defensive. “Yes, but at least you’ll still have homes. Anchors.”
“Through which an endless stream of living will pass, polluting us with their stench.”
Ghosts didn’t really have a great sense of smell for the most part. I’d worked hard to develop what I had, but it still wasn’t on par with a human’s. “You can smell them?”
He waved a hand. “Figure of speech. The sentiment is the same. I would rather stay here alone forever, with the walls falling down around me, than spend my days surrounded by breathers.”
“They’re not all that bad,” I said. “My sister is a breather.”
“Lark is the exception, though I’m fairly certain she’d much rather salt my bones and burn them, just like Emily.”
I froze, my gaze locked with his. “You knew Emily? Emily Murray? My ancestor?”
“Yes.”
I was numb. After neglecting to mention his connection to Kevin, this was more than just a surprise. This felt purposeful. “And you’re just telling me now?”
He seemed surprised by the hotness of my tone. “I didn’t know her well. I saw her about town when I was alive, and then I saw her once or twice after I died. It’s not like we were friends.”
It hadn’t occurred to me that he would have been alive when Emily was. It reminded me just how old he was. “I wish you had told me. Have you seen her lately?”
Noah shook his head. “Not for more years than I can count. I assumed she moved on.”
“She hasn’t,” I confessed. “She’s visited Lark and me a few times. We think she may be a prisoner.”
Noah studied me intently. “What does she want?”
They really couldn’t have been close if he didn’t ask about her being held against her will. “To know what happened to her sister, Alys. Alys was...like me.”
He smiled that charming smile of his. “There’s never been anyone like you.”
Flatterer. “Did you know Alys, too?”
He shook his head. “I never had the pleasure. As I said, I barely knew of Emily. I think I owe you an apology for not having told you sooner. Please, believe me that it never occurred to me to even bring it up—that’s how little I knew her.”
I put my hand on his arm. “Please, don’t apologize. It’s just that Lark and I know so little about what we are, that information on Emily and Alys would be very helpful.”
“Then I will apologize for elevating your hopes only to dash them.”
“You didn’t dash them. I’m just disappointed.”
“Wren, you are the dearest girl I’ve ever met.” He set his hand over mine. “I would never want to upset you in any way.”
I glanced away. “That’s sweet, thank you.”
A finger under my chin turned my head back so that our gazes locked. “I didn’t say it to be sweet. Wren, you must know that I have the greatest admiration for you. I cannot remember the last time I was this drawn to anyone. We’ve known each other only a few days, but I feel, in my soul, that I’ve known you forever.”
“Oh.” It was like I was in a romance novel. I couldn’t believe my ears.
Noah smiled. “‘Oh’? Is that all you’ve got to say? You crush me.”
“I like you, too,” I said. “A lot.”
The hand over mine tightened around my fingers and lifted them. “Come with me.”
I let him pull me toward the stairs. On the next floor he turned the corner toward the men’s wing. He took me into a room as abandoned and run-down as the others, but the moment we walked in, it began to change. Noah made it look the way it had been—or the way he wanted it to be. When it had finished, it was a beautiful space with cream walls and a huge four-poster bed.