JanesPrize (16 page)

I bet
, Jane
said to herself.
What they mean is any skeletons have to be well and truly
buried.

It was the turn of the third man in line.
Had they rehearsed this smooth delivery? More likely they had done it many
times before. “So any skeletons we should know of are best laid out before us
now.” Jane shot him a glance. Had he been reading her mind? The man gazed
serenely at them. She’d been in the world of the paranormal too long.

She cleared her throat. “What kind of
skeletons are we talking about?”

The last man spoke. “We’d like to know if
you’ve been married before, if you have children or any other encumbrances.”

Jane bristled but held on to her cool. “I
have never been married. I’m a teacher, a professional educator. And even if I
had any I wouldn’t consider children an encumbrance.”

It was back to the man at the head of the
table. “Please, Ms. Chartraine, we mean no offense. But much of our business
comes from litigation through divorce or separation and the claims of children
on the estate. We pass no moral judgments but we need to know what kind of work
our firm is likely to be called upon to do. It also has a bearing on the
recommendation we would be comfortable in making to Mr. Newland, Senior
regarding any rewording of his will. “

Pierce took Jane’s hand, lying on the
table. “Neither of us has been married before. Neither of us has children. We
are excited to begin our life together with the approval of my cousin Alex. I
assure you we will bring no disgrace to the family name, nor will we cause the
family undue expenditures for lawsuits of any kind.”

“I’m happy to hear it. Then Ms. Chartraine
will not object to the prenuptial agreement we have drawn up.”

Jane sucked in her breath. That’s what this
was all about.

Pierce rose to his feet and since he was
still holding her hand, she stood alongside him. “We’ll take a copy of the
document,” he said. “And if it suits us we’ll sign it. But I tend to think that
my fiancée and I will not require any such document.”

Jane squeezed his fingers. Pierce took the
papers the lawyer held out to him.

“Read it through,” the man said. “If I told
you how many people have vowed to us that they would never need a pre-nup, then
spent half their income fighting a messy divorce, you might be more inclined to
agree to it. You will inherit a large estate with considerable cash and
valuable property, Mr. Newland. Think about it.”

“We will,” Pierce replied, with emphasis on
the “we”. “Thank you for your time and your concern.” He released Jane’s hand
to shake hands all ‘round then together they left the room.

In the elevator Jane leaned back against
the wall. “They might be right, you know.”

“How so?”

“I might be just marrying you for your
fortune and as soon as I can I’ll be off with half of it.”

Pierce stepped toward her and took her in
his arms. “I’ll make it my life’s work to keep you happy,” he whispered against
her neck. “I’ll never give you a reason to want to leave me.”

Jane sighed. “As soon as one obstacle falls
there seems to be another. We’ve overcome the identity, your cousin, the
lawyers. Now we have to tackle your stepmother.”

Chapter Eighteen

They spent a couple more nights in Boston,
where Pierce exclaimed over all the changes in the last ninety-odd years.
Finally they made their way home, fighting the tourist crowds along the way.

Jane put the key in the lock of their own
front door with a sigh of relief. Inside, she dumped her bag in the hallway and
closed the door after Pierce, shutting out the rest of the world.

“Next on our list is to get you a driver’s
license,” she said, pushing her damp hair away from her forehead.

“Next on our list is a cold drink and a
shower.” Pierce headed for the kitchen. Jane heard the fridge door open and
water running.

Pierce brought her a glass brimming with
ice and lemon. “Thanks.” She sipped gratefully and walked to the window,
stretching out her stiff shoulders.

“Pierce! There she is!”

“Who?”

She instinctively took a quick step back
from the window. “The woman,” she whispered, although she had no idea why she
lowered her voice. There was no way the woman could hear through the glass but
Jane’s heart was thumping away like a mad thing and she had to fight the
instinct to duck and hide.

The woman stood in front of the small
apartment building and appeared to be scanning the windows.

“Look at her! Is it your stepmother?”

Pierce came close behind her. She felt the
warmth of his body pressed against hers. He placed a hand on her shoulder,
warm, solid and reassuring.

The blonde woman wore a flowing dress in a
gauzy apricot material. Her hair was neatly curled and Jane could see the red
slash of her lipstick even from the third floor. Oversized dark glasses
shielded her eyes.

The sun was strong and the woman stood
directly in the light. Her image was burning onto Jane’s eyes. She thought of
Selma Thaddeus and her dread of the dark and waited while Pierce peered through
the window.

At last Pierce let out a sigh. “I think it
could be. Or her double.”

“Let’s talk to her.” She whirled around but
Pierce held on to her tight.

“What are you going to say?”

“I have no idea but I’ll think of
something. We need to get this settled one way or another.” She shrugged free
of his hold and put her glass down on a side table. She pulled down her
wrinkled T-shirt and wriggled her toes deeper into her sandals. “What’s her
name? You never told me her name.”

“Maria Teresa.”

“Maria Teresa Newland? Polish, right?”

“Yes, but her English was excellent.”

“I remember.” She did recall the sultry
voice from the ghostly reenactment of the murder. There had been the faintest
trace of an accent. She turned.

“Look,” Pierce followed her out the door.
“I don’t think this is—”

Jane wasn’t listening. She had had enough
of the wondering and worrying. The woman was on a busy street in full daylight.
What could she do?

“Stay here. I don’t want her anywhere near
you until we’re sure she won’t harm you.” Without waiting for a reply Jane
clattered down the stairs, too impatient to call for the cranky elevator. She
burst through the doors of the apartment building just as the woman turned
away.

“Wait! Mrs. Newland! Maria!” For a moment
Jane thought the stranger would continue walking away but she wheeled to face
her. Jane drew in a deep, deep breath and willed her hands to stop shaking.

“Yes?”

Jane took a tentative step forward. “It is
you? Maria Teresa Newland?”

The woman remained still as a statue. Her
porcelain skin and perfect makeup gave her the air of a dressmaker’s model.
“Who would like to know?”

There! There it was, that lilt of an
accent.

Jane swallowed. “My name is Jane
Chartraine. I was in the house when Pierce—” What did one say? Came back from
the dead? She let the sentence remain unfinished. If this were Maria she would
know what was meant. “You do know Pierce?”

A slow smile curved her ruby lips. “I know
Pierce. How is he?”

“He’s well. Thank you.”

This was incredible, standing on the street
in full summer talking to a former ghost. Jane forced herself to believe it.
After all, it wasn’t any more mystifying than most of the other things that had
happened since she’d agreed to spend two nights in the Newland house.

“How did you come back?”

“I copied my stepson. I touched someone.”

“My friend Annice.”

“No.” She smoothed her dress. “It was a
young policeman who came around to check the house.”

“You mean Pete Burrard?”

“That’s right.”

“Does he know you’re here?”

“Of course. When you bring someone back
you’re responsible for them. But he doesn’t really believe I’m a ghost. He
thinks I was looking over the house at the same time as he was doing his
rounds. He was happy to help me.”

Jane’s mind boggled at the idea of Pete
confronting this woman as she rematerialized. Doubtless she was cunning enough
to have him satisfy her every whim and believe everything she told him. A few
drops of sweat beaded Jane’s forehead and she brushed at them with the tips of
her fingers. She had enough worries of her own without bothering to wonder how
Maria was managing in the new world.

“Pete has given me almost all I need but
there is one thing I need to do.”

“What?” Kill Pierce? Send him back to the
world of shadows? He had spoken of being in a deep sleep like a coma. Selma had
talked of the darkness. Suddenly Jane was cold.

Maria was watching her closely. “Do not
worry. I will not harm him.”

She was a mind reader too?

“Can we go somewhere to talk? I need your
help.”

She placed a slender hand on Jane’s arm.
Her fingers were cool and Jane suppressed a shiver. She glanced around. It was
full daylight, an ordinary street in an ordinary town on an ordinary day. There
was nothing to fear. “There’s a park at the end of the street. We can talk
there.”

“I know it. You can tell my stepson it is
safe to come out now.”

Pierce was already striding down the
walkway to reach Jane’s side. He took her hand and pulled her close. “What is
it you want, Maria?”

“We can talk in the park.”

Maria turned in a swirl of apricot chiffon
and led the way down the street.

Jane and Pierce followed Maria’s tapping
heels to the small park on the corner of the street. A young woman was pushing
a toddler on one of the swings but the climbing frame was empty. Maria made her
way to a bench under a large shade tree. She had never looked back once,
confident that her companions would follow. At the bench she turned to face
them. “We’ll sit here.”

Jane placed herself as unobtrusively as
possible in front of Pierce, holding his fingers behind her back, still laced
in hers. If Maria was dangerous she would have to climb over Jane first before
she got to Pierce. “We’ll stand.” She felt safer on her feet.

“Just as you wish.” Maria settled herself
on the bench like a queen holding court. The dappled light played over her face
and hair.

“Tell me what you want.” Pierce took a step
forward but Jane held tight to his hand, keeping him out of his stepmother’s
reach.

“My, my, such vehemence.” Maria’s red lips
sketched a smile that did not reach her eyes. “I see you are as impatient as
ever.” She looked at Jane. “He always was such an impetuous boy. Did he tell
you about the time—”

“We’re not interested in that. Get on with
the reason you’re here.” Pierce moved a small step forward again and Jane hung
on to him, feeling the tension through his hand and arm.

“Very well. First I want to say that I’m
sorry I poisoned you, Pierce. It was a foolish thing to do. Your father never
recovered from your loss and my life was miserable for the next few years.”

“I’m supposed to feel sorry for you?”

“No, of course not. I brought it on myself.
I realize that. But I did it for my son. What I didn’t know was that he would
die of influenza in such a short time. I died too, and because of my crime we
were linked together for eternity.” Her eyes glittered but Jane could not tell
if real tears beaded her lashes. “Death is a great equalizer.”

“Enough of the schmaltzy philosophy.”
Pierce’s harsh tone cut into the moment of silence. “You have some kind of
agenda here and we want to know what it is.”

“Does it involve Pierce?” Jane hoped a few
pertinent questions would move things along.

“No, I don’t think I can use Pierce.”

Use?

“I think it is Jane I need.”

“Forget it. You’re not going to involve
Jane in any scheme you’ve dreamed up.”

Jane laid her free hand on Pierce’s arm.
“Let’s just hear what she wants.”

“Thank you.” Maria’s signature half smile
lifted the corners of her mouth. “I assure you it’s not dangerous.”

“Go on.”

Jane saw Maria take a deep breath. She
smoothed her hair with one hand and her fingers showed a slight tremor. Beneath
the hard façade there was a real emotion.

“I told you I committed my crime for my
son.”

Jane nodded. “But he died. We know all
that.”

Maria stood. “I want to bring him back.”

Jane stood speechless. Of all the reasons
for Maria returning to earth, she had not thought of this one.

Maria stepped closer and Jane pulled Pierce
tighter behind her. “Don’t be afraid. I know you have no good reason to trust
me but I beg you to believe me. I want to bring my Stanislaus back to life and
enjoy a few more years with him. I want to see him grow up and marry and have
children.”

“And why exactly should we help you?”
Pierce shot back at her. “I must have missed something here.”

“You will help me, or rather Jane will do
so, just out of the goodness of her heart. She has a good heart. You, Pierce,
know what it is like to be trapped between worlds. Think of my boy, eternally
linked to a mother who cannot move fully into the afterlife because of what she
did. Think of him waiting out the centuries with no mother, no brothers and
sisters, no close family.” Real tears now glittered in her eyes. “I beg you to
help me. I swear I will not ask anything else from you. You will never hear
from me again once my son is back in my arms.”

Selma had been right when she said you had
to find out what a ghost wanted.

“But how could I do that even if I wanted
to?” Jane felt Pierce’s hand tighten around her fingers. “He has moved much
further on than you or Pierce.”

“No, he hasn’t. I found out later that my
boy was a witness to Pierce’s death—”

“Murder!” Pierce interjected.

Maria’s chin lifted. “Murder, I admit it.
He was hiding in the room, in one of the big sideboards, so he has been part of
the reenactment ever since, even though no one ever saw him. Now both Pierce
and I have gone and he’s alone, completely alone. Every night he must hide in
that cold, dark room and wait for a murder scene that never happens.” Maria
stretched out her hand to clutch Jane’s arm. This time Jane did not flinch.
“Please help me. If you do it and I’m reunited with little Stan I’ll leave.
I’ll never ask for anything from you.”

“Wait here.” Pierce pulled Jane away by the
hand and took the dozen steps to the climbing frame. A young mother with the
toddler gave them a questioning glance, looking from Maria back to Jane and
Pierce. Maybe a complete stranger could feel the tension crackling in the air.

Pierce turned Jane so her back was to Maria
but he kept his eyes constantly on his stepmother.

“We can’t do it,” he said.

“Why not?”

“It’s too risky. We have no idea what she’s
really after. Maybe she wants to take you from me.”

“She can’t very well do that. It’s more
likely she’d send you back there. But I don’t think she will. What she says
makes sense. I know I’d bring a child back to my side if he’d died and I had
half a chance to let him live again.”

Pierce shook his head. “I don’t trust her.”

“So, what could we do to make it foolproof?
So we can help her and protect ourselves at the same time?”

Pierce rubbed one hand over his face. “We
could talk to Pete Burrard. Tell him the story.”

Jane gave a short laugh. “Fat chance he’d
believe any of it.” She thought for a moment. “We could call Selma and get her
advice.”

Silence hung between them for a long beat.

“Maria’s lonely. She’s back in the world
but part of her is missing. She has nothing to gain by harming you except a
long-awaited and by now imaginary vengeance. She can’t claim any of your
inheritance. She has no legal link to you anymore. We have the possibility of
condemning her to a bleak, loveless existence full of remorse and longing. Do
you want to do that?”

Pierce shook his head. “She wouldn’t be
loveless for long.”

“Maybe not, but she wants her child more
than she wants anyone else. I think I’m willing to do it, provided Selma says
it’s okay.”

They walked back to where Maria sat,
watching the child on the swing.

She looked up as they approached. “When I
was young,” she said, “I had a hard heart. I could never understand the bond
between mother and child. To me it was all a myth created to keep women in
servitude to a man, to a family. I was egocentric and selfish. But when I held
Stan in my arms and watched him grow up I began to comprehend. When he got sick
and died I thought my heart would break. Can you imagine what it has been like
for nearly a century, knowing he was crouched inside the cupboard of that
sideboard and never able to see him or touch him or tell him his mother still
loved him?”

“We’re going to make one phone call,” Jane
said. “And if all seems well, I’ll do it for you.”