“You don’t have to be scared, Dad,” Everly said, taking a seat beside him.
Ten grinned. “Can you see the weather with your gift? I’ve never been able to do that.”
Everly shook her head. “I can’t see the weather either, but I know that Daddy, Uncle Jude and Fitz will keep us all safe. I heard Daddy tell you he was gonna talk to the hotel about their plans, but after that, I think they’re gonna make a plan of their own.”
“I agree.” Ten felt foolish for being scared in the first place. He knew Ronan would never let anything happen to their family, especially not so that he could get in one more precious beach day. “Are you ready to reach out to Vivienne?”
“I am.” Everly reached for Ten’s hand and shut her eyes. “Vivienne? Are you here? Dad and I need to talk to you. It’s about Lainie.”
Ten focused on Everly’s energy, adding his own, in hopes that Vivienne would hear them and appear.
“We’re not going to hurt you, I promise.” Everly crossed her heart.
“Here I am, little one,” Vivienne said.
Ten opened his eyes and saw the same spirit he’d spoken to a few days before on the porch. She stood a few steps in front of the coffee table. “It’s good to see you. Thank you for coming.”
“It’s my pleasure. I’ve been meaning to have a chat with Everly.” The ghost smiled and offered a little wave.
“Hi, Vivienne!” Everly waved back to the spirit. “I’ve been able to feel your warmth and light since we got here. Thank you for sharing that with me.”
Ten couldn’t believe his eyes, but Vivienne blushed. He supposed she hadn’t gotten a lot of compliments in life and even fewer in death.
“You’re welcome. What did you need to tell me about Lainie?” Vivienne came closer and sat in the chair to Everly’s left.
“Her boyfriend, Kurt, put his hands on her and was arrested as a result,” Ten said. “He had bail set, but it’s a very small amount of money. We imagine he’ll be back at the hotel before dinner.”
“I heard Lainie crying in her room. Nothing I tried seemed to comfort her. She’s such a sweet soul with so much love to give. She reminds me a lot of myself, back when I spent my summer here at the hotel.”
“Can you tell us more about that, Vivienne? I know it’s hard, but you’re so brave. I believe in you.” Everly reached out a hand, which the ghost took.
“We were in the middle of the Depression. Jobs were hard to come by. Walter heard that hotels catering to rich people needed wait staff and chambermaids, so we took a chance and came here. I was hired to be a chambermaid and Walt was a bellboy during the day and served drinks in the club at night.I waitressed. It was the time of my life. I was singing, making money, having fun, breaking the law, and was so in love with Walt. My life was perfect, or so I thought.” Vivienne’s smile turned sad.
“When did things take a turn with Walt?”
“Almost from the start. He’d started behaving in ways I’d never seen before. I chalked it up to being in a different place with him. We’d only ever been on dates together, we hadn’t worked or lived together. As the summer went on, Walt got more and more angry. The first time he got physical, he pushed me, the next he hit me. I was trapped here. If I left the hotel early, I wouldn’t get the bonus I was promised. I needed that money to survive over the winter.” Tears fell from her eyes as she spoke. “I was going to end our relationship when we got home, but I never made it back.”
“I’m so sorry, Vivienne,” Ten said. “I hate to ask, but how did things end on that last day? It’s very important to know the details.”
“We knew the storm was coming. Preparations were being made to board up the building and evacuate all the guests. I’m not sure what happened, but the storm came faster than the radio said it would. We thought we had one more day, but Walt saw the surf building. The waves had started crashing past the beach and onto the lawn leading to the hotel. We both grabbed our bags and hurried to the car. In all the anxious rushing around, I realized I’d left my purse in the Taproom. I told Walt I had to get it and ran back to the hotel. I thought for sure he’d follow me, but he didn’t. Water was starting to seep into the bar. I knew it wouldn’t be long before everything was underwater. I grabbed my bag and was hurrying toward the door when I heard strange laughter. I hadn’t realized Walt had followed me after all. He wasstanding beside the wooden door that protected the bar from prying eyes. I ran toward him, but noticed there was something wrong with his eyes.”
“What was it?” Everly asked.
“They were just wrong.” Vivienne shook her head, as if to hope the right word to describe Walt’s eyes would be jarred loose.
“Wrong?” Ten had no idea what Vivienne meant.
“It was Walt’s body and Walt’s face, but his eyes weren’t his own. He rushed at me, shoved me back against the bar and wrapped his hands around my throat. He shouted horrible things, none of which were true. I was doing everything I could to get him to let go, hitting, kicking, pinching, but he didn’t stop. Soon my vision blackened and then nothing.” Pulling out a handkerchief, Vivienne dabbed her damp eyes.
Everly swiped at her own tears. “When did you realize your spirit was still here?”
“I’m not sure. When I woke up again, the hotel was empty, mostly destroyed. I found my body lying behind the bar. People came and found me. Took me away. I knew I was dead and that it was my fault. When the light appeared, I ignored it. Time and time again, I walked away from it. I didn’t deserve to go to heaven after all I’d done.”
“That’s not true,” Ten said. “You didn’t do anything wrong. I promise.” He paused. There were several more questions he needed answered, but didn’t want to upset Vivienne any more than necessary. “Did you ever see Walt again?”
Vivienne shook her head. “I’ve been so frightened that he’d find me and hurt me again.”
“He can’t hurt you, Vivienne,” Everly said. “Have you seen or heard any other spirits here at the hotel?”
