Charli tilted her head. “I do?”
Miriam pursed her lips. “Mmmhmmm. Even Art mentioned it to me.” She smiled and patted Charli’s hand. “Remind me to show you some pictures of Dottie when she was your age. She was a real heartbreaker in her day—absolute hell on wheels,” she added, her voice melancholy.
Miriam cleared her throat abruptly. “What was in the box?”
The swift change of subject made Charli blink. “I don’t know yet. It’s locked, and we didn’t want to damage it, so we’re trying to find the key.”
Miriam grunted. “I wonder where it could be. Do you know what it would look like? That would help.”
Charli shrugged. “No idea. But everyone is on the lookout as we work through the house.” She gestured toward the structure. “You know, we should probably head back down before they find us up here. There would be hell to pay.”
Miriam followed Charli into the enclosure and stared out the far window for a moment. “Do you think Amelia approves of what you and Jack are doing?” she asked absently.
Charli opened her mouth to reply. But before she could say a word, a cold blast of air shot through the room, rattling the windows. Charli jolted, knowing what was coming, and Miriam shrieked, her eyes bulging.
“Shit!” Charli exclaimed. “I think she does! Let’s get out of here.”
Miriam didn’t argue and followed Charli down, both nearly tumbling in their haste. As soon as they reached the floor below, a shout came from their right.
“Hey!” Gus came powering out of one of the bedrooms after spotting their rapid retreat from the Widows Walk. “I’ve told you at least three times to stay out of there.” He shook his hammer with one hand as he chastised them. “That’s it, Charli. I’m telling Jack this time.”
Charli snorted and planted her hands on her hips. “Is that supposed to scare me? You tattled on me last time, Gus,” she reminded him.
His face pinched in frustration. “That’s beside the point.”
“Oh, don’t be such a nincompoop, Gus,” Miriam chided. “And since when did you turn into a little snitch? We were only doing some exploring. Nothing to get in a tizzy about.”
Gus huffed and rubbed his forehead, then met Charli’s gaze. “I’ve told you several times that it’s not safe up there.” He paused for a moment as if afraid to ask, then leaned in. “Did you see anything?”
Charli pursed her lips, wondering how much she should tell him. “Well, we didn’t actually see anything. It just got really cold.”
“Mierda!” Gus crossed himself again. “That’s it. I’m barricading this staircase off.”
“What’s got you so worked up, Gus?” Miriam asked, exasperated. “You’d think you’d seen a ghost or something,” she teased.
He turned a serious look on her. “It’s not funny.” He shook his hammer again. “I was up there the first time when Amelia decided to make an entrance. Fucking scared the shit out of me, so that’s not something to joke about.”
Miriam cocked a hip and mimicked Charli’s stance. “Yeah well, all we felt was a big gust of cold air. Nothing to get your knickers in a twist about.”
Gus huffed, then gave Miriam an evil grin. “You know I don’t wear knickers.”
Miriam cackled. “Yeah, I guess I do.” She pointed over their head at the landing. “Now don’t do anything crazy and board this thing up. We still have a mystery to solve.”
“You two are plain loco.” Gus scoffed and raised his hands. “What mystery is there to solve? This place is just haunted.” He crossed himself again.
“No.” Miriam gave her a firm shake of her head. “There’s much more to it than that. But don’t worry, Gus. We’ll figure it out soon enough.”
* * * *
Charli took a sip of her water and turned the page on the diary. She had just started the fourth diary and was thoroughly engrossed in Amelia’s detail of the Key West harbor and boats.
February 12, 1870
I finally convinced Gordon to take me with him down to the docks today, and I don’t know if I have ever seen such an amazing spectacle. The piers jut out far into the bay and are continuously surrounded by tall-masted ships. There were so many clustered around the piers that I couldn’t begin to count, and there were even more ships anchored outside the port awaiting their turn to unload. Dock workers and sailors were everywhere, and we had to be careful where we walked. Gordon even allowed me to accompany him onboard one of our father’s ships as he inspected the cargo. It was such a wonderful adventure! At one point as I followed Gordon across the deck, my shoe caught on a rope and I was rescued from a humiliating fall by a very handsome sailor with deep brown hair and golden eyes. My heart was truly in my throat at that moment and he was sostrong, tall, and gallant that I could barely thank him for saving me. He told me his name was Ian and that I was one of the bonniest lass he had ever seen. As Gordon and I left the docks that day, I looked back and found Ian high in the rigging, watching me leave. He waved a goodbye, and I felt my heart skip a beat. I do hope I see him again!
Charli was so mesmerized in this entry—Amelia finally mentioned her sailor!—that she didn’t hear the sound of muttered cursing and the crunch of gravel under a shoe until it was almost directly beneath her.
She peeked over the balcony railing to see Jack marching up her short driveway from the compound, a determined and grim look on his face.
