Gifts of the Ghost

“We can handle it.” Liam spoke with confidence.

“Aunt Linda just left to go get some food for everyone. We can work on opening a few crates until she gets back. What do you think?”

“That was very thoughtful. I’ll have to remember to thank her.” Liam threw the words over his shoulder as he walked ahead of us into the house.

“It’s the least we could do to thank you,” I blurted to Wes. “I know we couldn’t have attempted this on our own.” I wished we’d been strong enough. I didn’t mind Wes being here at all, but Liam…

“Liam, you’ll want to take a right.” I followed him as Wes kept up with me.

“You never knew about the doorway until you found the blueprints?” Liam’s questions held a hint of suspicion. “This is all so insane.”

“Never knew,” I said.

“Unbelievable,” he muttered under his breath.

We moved down the stairs and into the tunnels.

“I forgot my flashlight. Keep going toward the first alcove on the right. That’s where the crates are located. I’ll be right back.” I hurried up the stairs and out of hearing range.

“William,” I called quietly. “Come here.”

He appeared, but it looked like it was difficult. His face turned taut and haggard. “I can’t sustain this distance from my body or Wes for long.” He struggled to stay there.

“Why are you so against them coming?”

“I can’t see the future, but I just feel that it’s a terrible idea.” He blinked away.

The guys were talking loudly, and I hurried back down to join them.

William stood between Wes and Liam, watching them work on the first crate.

I shined my flashlight on the crate, and Wes looked up at me with a grin.

My return smile faded when I saw Maggie there, too.

The crate must have something important if both ghosts looked horrified watching it open.

Liam pulled off the top with a deafening squeal of the nails and stepped to the side with the lid.

I stepped forward. Everything inside was in much better condition than the other things left in the tunnel.

A hodgepodge of stuff greeted us. From old toys to cookbooks, to other handwritten documents. I glanced through them before passing them over to Wes and Liam.

“Do any of these have something to do with our family?” Liam scowled at the rattle in his hand.

“Not that I can see. They are all labeled as items from my family.” There were several handwritten notes outlining who the items had belonged to. “There could be something since it was buried here with your ancestor.”

William spoke up from behind them. “There won’t be. I was just here to speak to a family member. I was in the tunnel because it was a place to escape my brother’s attempt to kill me.”

“Why was the journal in the tunnels to begin with?” Liam glanced around, making no attempt to hide his disgust. “Wes said you turned over the paperwork on Howe. It’s odd that our families are tied together.”

“It’s more likely that our family just found the journal somewhere.” I didn’t want to tell him the truth. “I haven’t seen anything that ties them together besides the body and the journal.”

“That’s a pretty big tie-in.” He shook his head in disbelief.

If I could tell him the truth, he wouldn’t believe it anyway, so I turned to the next crate. He’d have to remain suspicious.

19

“What do you know about how William died?” Liam questioned me, his voice harsher than before.

I didn’t want to tell him, and William stood there beside him, urging me to be quiet.

A confused expression crossed my face as I tried to buy some time. It just occurred to me that I didn’t know precisely where William's body was. How would I explain to Liam how I knew the body was here? The grave would be undisturbed.

“Wes mentioned he thought the viscount knew a way around the title and inheritance but hasn’t revealed the plan to me.” He stared at Wes pointedly.

“I don’t want the title or the estate.” Wes bit his lip to keep from saying too much. “I’d like to stay here in this town and settle down.” It was curious that Wes had brought his brother to town but hadn’t told him the plan.

Wes gave his brother a withering look. “William was coming here to make things right, but then he died before he could. The journals are the road map to answering all the questions you have, Liam.”

“I’ve read those journals. He was coming to rat out the General for his marital indiscretions. It’s such a stupid plan.” Liam scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“He was trying to get out of inheriting the title in the same way I want to,” Wes declared. “Since it can’t be passed, he was trying to have it revert back to the American’s family.”

“Is that even possible? Could they fight for the title?” Liam considered the options, looking none too happy about it.

William stood there wide-eyed, and Maggie stood beside him, looking equally stressed. She kept her focus on William, as if he could speak for her.

“Don’t tell him. Stop this conversation.” William sounded desperate.

I glanced between all of them, confused about how to keep this from getting out of hand.

“It could be disputed and taken from the child who received it through his mother. The one born after the illegitimate son over here in America. The title can be given away and would have already if William’s brother hadn’t killed him here in the tunnels.” Wes continued explaining, even though Liam was looking completely disgusted.

“What do you mean?” Liam spat.

“William was killed over this stupid title. His brother murdered him to take his place, but because William already had a son, the brother could only step in and raise him. He didn’t get the title. This whole family has put more stock in a title than in the people who oversaw it. It’s destroyed the family time and again. Look at General Howe. He had the title, and he was a complete jerk. He thought it made him better.”

Liam stepped into the alcove with the crowbar, lifting it as he gestured wildly. “It makes us better. It literally makes us nobility.”

Wes looked back at his brother in disgust.

William yelled, “Grab Wes and run.”

I gasped as Liam continued gesturing wildly.

“You are destined to follow in William’s path. He was an idiot,” Liam yelled at Wes.

Wes didn’t look intimidated by his brother at all. “Liam! That title should never have belonged to us. It was always theirs to begin with. The title can’t be forfeited. I won’t pass that burden on to my children.”

“You’ve never respected the title and everything that was handed to you,” Liam roared. “You’re ungrateful and unworthy of the title.”

Wes nodded. “That’s what I’m saying. I shouldn’t have the title. None of us should!”

“That title will be given to that illegitimate heir over my dead body. It should have been mine. You didn’t deserve it.” Liam lost it, swinging the crowbar and hitting Wes on the side of the head.

I screamed and took a step backward into the alcove as Liam stood over Wes. “Go get help,” I whispered to William and Maggie. “Aunt Linda.”

Liam couldn’t hear what I said but stepped toward me angrily. “Shut up.”

“How can I explain Wes and his girlfriend’s deaths in the tunnels?” He paced at the entrance of the alcove, trapping me inside. “It could be a domestic dispute. Her house just burned. She could be the psycho.”

He muttered aloud ideas, and each one just got worse and worse. “Maybe I could light the tunnels on fire and burn the whole thing down.”

William blinked back into the tunnel.

“I tried. She’s too far away. Maggie stayed with Linda to express the need to hurry.”

Liam was still pacing and muttering, and I glanced toward Wes. He lay crumpled on the dirty floor, and the wound on his head was bleeding heavily.

I wanted to move over to him, but I was certain that Liam would hurt me if I attempted to do so.

“Should I say anything? If I did, what would I say?” He continued muttering about the best way to get rid of us and make it look like we’d fought.

With a sharp look at me, he frowned. “Linda.” He tapped the crowbar in his hand. “She’ll be on her way back now. I have no time. Something has got to be done.”

“It’s a long way to the restaurant,” I piped up. “She shouldn’t be on her way back yet.”

“I’m truly sorry you got involved in this. Sometimes things must be done for the greater good. This is that type of thing, unfortunately.” He smiled grimly. “Stay put.”

He marched to the other alcove, and I dove to Wes’s side.

Noises sounded throughout the alcoves, echoing off the walls. Liam was moving things around. Crates were being opened until Liam said, “Thank God.”

I put my finger to Wes’ neck to check for his pulse. He was still alive. Blood covered my hands, and I knew I needed to put pressure on the wound to stop the bleeding. What if I put too much pressure and hurt him instead? Why hadn’t I taken those first aid courses the hospital offered?

Fear clutched my throat and stopped me in my tracks as Liam came back toward me. I went hot and then cold. The sound of water spraying was ominous enough until the smell of oil reached me. He was going to burn the tunnels. There were wooden beams here and there helping support these alcoves.

Panic coursed through me. My heart pounded. I couldn’t lift Wes to carry him out of a fire. I also didn’t want to leave him.

“William, what do I do?” I groaned in despair.

The ghost flickered back and forth from one side of the tunnel to the other. “I will try to keep the smoke out of the alcove, but I can’t do that and go to Linda. I won’t have enough strength for both.”

“Stay, and I’ll try to keep Wes alive. If you can, keep both of us alive.”

“Sorry,” Liam called one more time as light came around the corner of the tunnel. “I have to do this.”

The door scraped shut, and I pulled my sweater off to lightly put pressure on Wes’s head. “I’m trying to be careful and not hurt you.”

Smoke filled the tunnels, but William had managed to put a bubble around us. Very little smoke was coming into this alcove, and the fire hadn’t reached us yet.

Along the edges, I could see it spreading to the other alcoves slowly. It was getting harder to breathe. More smoke was slipping in.

“I am sorry. I’m not able to keep it all out,” William apologized.

“Thank you for what you’re doing.” I looked down at Wes to be sure he was still breathing.

“Did I choose the wrong plan? Should I have tried to pull him out?” I was second-guessing myself. The fire was over the front door now. Even if I had the strength, I wouldn’t be able to move him now.

“You would not have been able to get him up the stairs by yourself before the fire overtook you,” William reassured me.

My ears perked up as I heard my name being called by male voices.

“Someone is coming from the other side of the tunnels.” William smiled at me. “Hold tight.”

“Is there another entrance to the tunnels?” I crouched next to Wes, waiting to be rescued, as close to the floor as I could get without lying prostrate.

“Not that I know of.” William shook his head. “I never made it further than the alcove where I died.”

“Mags,” the voice called out again, but it was much closer this time.

“Here. We’re in here,” I yelled out, realizing that it was Don.

Don came through the smoke with another man about his size, in a matching uniform.

A cough escaped me, and I let out a relieved breath.

“Linda called us,” Don informed me. “The remainder of the house is on fire, and the tunnels are full of smoke as well.”

Don pulled me up and looked down at Wes.

“His brother, Liam, hit him in the head with a crowbar,” I explained. “He’s hurt really badly.”

Don’s eyes widened at the amount of blood pooling under Wes’s head.

“Grab her,” the other man ordered. “I’ll get him.”

“I can walk,” I coughed out. “You have to be careful and get Wes out.”

Don looked like he wanted to protest, but he joined the other officer.

“The fire and smoke have spread everywhere. I’ll do my best to get you out,” William promised as we left the alcove.

We went right, leading further into the tunnels, and we had to dodge bursts of flame coming from the wooden beams. One crashed down in front of us, blocking the path and forcing us to stop.

Don blurted out a cuss word.

“Scotch Bonnet! What do we do now?” I asked. We all looked around, trying to find a way out.

Maggie appeared and gestured for us to follow her.

“This way,” I yelled to Don and turned to see where Maggie wanted us to go. I’d explain away how I knew where to go later. After a couple of turns, an exit appeared just ahead.

Smoke poured out behind us as we made our way out of the tunnel and into the woods behind the house before stopping to gasp for breath.

“Over here.” Don waved then called EMS over the radio on his shoulder to come find us.

I turned to look at Wes. He had gone clammy, and he’d lost all color. “Is he alive?”

Don reached down to check his pulse. He nodded but grimaced as sirens filled the air. “Barely.”

“Come on, come on,” I muttered.

Don stepped away from Wes to look me over.

Covered in ash and soot, I was a dirty, bloody mess. “I’m fine. Nothing serious, but a few bruises.”

The ambulance pulled up and the paramedics came running through the brush with a stretcher.

“She’ll need to be looked at and treated for smoke inhalation, but him first.” Don directed the EMS, and they hurried to try to save Wes.

20

Aunt Linda rushed into the hospital room.

They’d insisted that I ride with Wes to be checked out at the hospital, then someone had attached oxygen to my nose, but it didn’t stop my auntie from hugging me tightly.

Don came in a few seconds after. He gave me an encouraging smile. “Hey, you’re looking a little better.”

Dang. I must’ve looked rough before, because there was a mirror over the sink in the corner and I was a fright right now.

“What happened down there?” Linda asked.

I shook my head and shrugged. “We were right about Wes’s brother.”

Aunt Linda looked panicked, but her worry turned to anger as I told them all about Liam.

I took a shuddering breath. “He hit Wes over the head and then found some lamp oil to start the fire before he left us there to die.”

Aunt Linda turned to look at Don with wide eyes. “Are you going to do something?”

Don held up his hands. “I’ll have someone come take a statement, but I’ve got to get a warrant started. We’ll need officers out looking for Liam.” He placed a gentle kiss on my cheek. “I’ll be back.” Then Don fled the room to begin the search.

Tears filled my eyes once it was just me and Auntie Linda.

Aunt Linda wrapped her arms around me again. “I’ve never been so scared in my life. When Maggie showed up with William, I knew something was wrong. William could barely talk, and I had to rely on Maggie’s signals about the tunnels and to get help.” Aunt Linda held a hand over her heart. “I drove the rest of the way at illegal speeds. We shouldn’t tell Don that, though.”

I laughed at her words.

“When I saw the smoke, I called Don and Chief Oswald.”

“How did you know about the other entrance to the tunnels?” I was curious because she hadn’t mentioned it before.

“I tried to come down there, but it was so full of smoke and fire. It was Maggie that showed me where to go. Then I was able to tell Don how to find you.” She winked at me. “Don got here before fire and rescue. He really does like you.”

“Well, thank God he does. We wouldn’t have made it much longer in all the smoke.” I shook my head. “Liam was going to kill us both over that foolish title.”

Aunt Linda squeezed my hand.

I glanced toward the door. “Have you heard anything about Wes?” I was eager to find out how he was. “William came back to me once, but all I could understand was surgery.”

Aunt Linda frowned. “I haven’t heard anything.”

As I finished explaining everything that happened, a nurse came in to check on me.

“What are they going to do with my niece? Are they keeping her or sending her home?” she demanded of the poor woman.

“We’re monitoring her for now. They ran a few tests, and when we get the results back, then I’ll have an answer for you.” She didn’t respond to Aunt Linda’s testy attitude. She was probably used to it. “The doctor will make that decision if you get to stay or go home.”

“I’m not leaving the hospital until I know something about Wes,” I said, unable to keep the tears at bay.

The nurse smiled in understanding. “There isn’t any news yet. He’s still in surgery, but that means they’re doing the best they can for him right now.” She patted my leg. “I wish I could give you some good news. We’ll know soon enough.”

Officers arrived after a bit and took both of our statements.

“Don is working on finding Liam. You should both get some rest while you can. There will be an officer outside the door to keep you safe,” the officer taking the statement reassured us.

It sounded like a good idea. My eyes were already halfway closed as he said the words, though I couldn’t stop thinking about Wes. I also couldn’t stop the exhaustion.

When the doctor came into the room, it felt like I’d just closed my eyes for a nap, but it had been several hours.

Aunt Linda stretched as she woke up, eager to hear what the doctor had to tell us.

“You are a lucky lady,” the doctor said, studying his tablet. “Everything looks wonderful for now. We’re going to give you a round of antibiotics as a precautionary measure, but the nurse should be in to help you get ready. We want to leave you on oxygen for as long as possible to give your lungs a little extra boost before we send you home.” The doctor smiled, as if this was the best news ever.

I had mixed feelings about toting an oxygen tank home with me. I hoped that wasn’t what they meant. But whatever it took to get better.

The nurse brought in the discharge papers and gave me a big grin. “Wes is out of surgery. He did phenomenally and is now in the ICU.”

“If he did so well, then why have they put him in the ICU? Doesn’t that mean he’s still in danger?” I chewed my bottom lip.