I give you a bit of advice?” Ben asked.
“Of course,” she said.
He looked down at her kindly. “Tomorrow, and the day after that, and next week, we will keep on moving further and further away from this terrible night. Once again the tongues in the village will stop wagging, the sheriff won’t be coming up here to ask questions, and life will resume a degree of normalcy at Witherswood.”
“I look forward to that,” Daphne said. “But what’s the advice?”
“We shouldn’t allow you to forget that you have a rather daunting task ahead of you. My little cousin Christopher can be a handful. He hasn’t ever gotten over his mother’s death a few years ago. It was quite tragic.”
“The poor boy.”
“And ever since, he’s been acting out. Uncle Pete was too old, in my humble opinion, to have a child, because now that he’s hit seventy he just doesn’t have the energy or the patience to give Christopher the attention he needs. So you’ll have quite the job reaching him, let alone teaching him.”
Daphne smiled weakly. “So what do you suggest?”
“It’s what Uncle Pete said earlier. You are his authority. Let him know from day one that you’re in charge. That he can’t boss you around or manipulate you—or try to scare you.”
“Scare me?”
Ben laughed. “Have Ashlee and Suzanne tell you how he scared them when they first came here. Just pranks. But elaborate ones. It’s pretty amazing what that kid can concoct. It’s his way of trying to have the upper hand.”
Daphne was nodding. So maybe there was more to her so-called hallucination earlier than she realized. Maybe she’d been too quick to write it off as her imagination. She thought about describing what had happened to Ben, but decided against it. Already Abigail thought she was a flighty scaredy-cat. No use making Ben think so, too. She’d just take his advice. She’d be firm with Christopher, and find out what she could.
“Thanks, Ben,” she said. “I’ll set the ground rules right away. It’s good advice.”
He smiled. “Well, sleep well tonight, Daphne. Or at least try to.”
“Thank you. I will.”
“Oh,” he said, remembering something. He reached inside his jacket pocket and produced a small silver flashlight, just about four inches long. “Here’s a little welcome gift for you. You’ll find we lose the power often up here, so it’s a useful tool to keep on you.”
Daphne accepted the flashlight. “Well, thank you.”
Ben winked. “Don’t want you to find yourself alone in the dark.”
She smiled as he headed off.
Donovan might be the more traditionally handsome, but it was Ben she watched as he walked away, her heart filling up with something ... something she couldn’t quite describe. She had never been in such close contact with so many handsome men before. Daphne felt warm, tingly.
Until she suddenly shook her head to free herself of such foolish romantic notions.
She noticed that Ben and Gabriel had gone in one direction, Donovan and Suzanne another. She guessed that the different families had different wings in the great old house, and shared the parlor, dining room, and kitchen.
Suddenly she was utterly and completely tired. Exhaustion threatened to knock her over like a charging quarterback. With the exhale of one long, weary breath, she headed up the grand marble staircase back to her room.
But first, before she crawled into bed, she thought she might pay a call on the one remaining member of the family she had yet to meet.
Daphne paused outside Christopher’s door. It was now completely closed. She could hear music coming from within. A small, tinny sound, barely audible, that only the utter silence of the corridor could permit her to hear. Daphne raised her hand and knocked.
The music went on. It was some kind of rap or hip-hop, she thought. She knocked again.
Still the music continued without any movement from within. It occurred to her then that the softness and tinniness of the
“Of course,” she said.
He looked down at her kindly. “Tomorrow, and the day after that, and next week, we will keep on moving further and further away from this terrible night. Once again the tongues in the village will stop wagging, the sheriff won’t be coming up here to ask questions, and life will resume a degree of normalcy at Witherswood.”
“I look forward to that,” Daphne said. “But what’s the advice?”
“We shouldn’t allow you to forget that you have a rather daunting task ahead of you. My little cousin Christopher can be a handful. He hasn’t ever gotten over his mother’s death a few years ago. It was quite tragic.”
“The poor boy.”
“And ever since, he’s been acting out. Uncle Pete was too old, in my humble opinion, to have a child, because now that he’s hit seventy he just doesn’t have the energy or the patience to give Christopher the attention he needs. So you’ll have quite the job reaching him, let alone teaching him.”
Daphne smiled weakly. “So what do you suggest?”
“It’s what Uncle Pete said earlier. You are his authority. Let him know from day one that you’re in charge. That he can’t boss you around or manipulate you—or try to scare you.”
“Scare me?”
Ben laughed. “Have Ashlee and Suzanne tell you how he scared them when they first came here. Just pranks. But elaborate ones. It’s pretty amazing what that kid can concoct. It’s his way of trying to have the upper hand.”
Daphne was nodding. So maybe there was more to her so-called hallucination earlier than she realized. Maybe she’d been too quick to write it off as her imagination. She thought about describing what had happened to Ben, but decided against it. Already Abigail thought she was a flighty scaredy-cat. No use making Ben think so, too. She’d just take his advice. She’d be firm with Christopher, and find out what she could.
“Thanks, Ben,” she said. “I’ll set the ground rules right away. It’s good advice.”
He smiled. “Well, sleep well tonight, Daphne. Or at least try to.”
“Thank you. I will.”
“Oh,” he said, remembering something. He reached inside his jacket pocket and produced a small silver flashlight, just about four inches long. “Here’s a little welcome gift for you. You’ll find we lose the power often up here, so it’s a useful tool to keep on you.”
Daphne accepted the flashlight. “Well, thank you.”
Ben winked. “Don’t want you to find yourself alone in the dark.”
She smiled as he headed off.
Donovan might be the more traditionally handsome, but it was Ben she watched as he walked away, her heart filling up with something ... something she couldn’t quite describe. She had never been in such close contact with so many handsome men before. Daphne felt warm, tingly.
Until she suddenly shook her head to free herself of such foolish romantic notions.
She noticed that Ben and Gabriel had gone in one direction, Donovan and Suzanne another. She guessed that the different families had different wings in the great old house, and shared the parlor, dining room, and kitchen.
Suddenly she was utterly and completely tired. Exhaustion threatened to knock her over like a charging quarterback. With the exhale of one long, weary breath, she headed up the grand marble staircase back to her room.
But first, before she crawled into bed, she thought she might pay a call on the one remaining member of the family she had yet to meet.
Daphne paused outside Christopher’s door. It was now completely closed. She could hear music coming from within. A small, tinny sound, barely audible, that only the utter silence of the corridor could permit her to hear. Daphne raised her hand and knocked.
The music went on. It was some kind of rap or hip-hop, she thought. She knocked again.
Still the music continued without any movement from within. It occurred to her then that the softness and tinniness of the
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