Wanted: One Ghost (30 page)

“It’s about time you showed up!” Dr. Moreland greeted her as she walked into the Historical Society, shaking snow from her cap and coat before hanging them on the coat rack.

“Dr. Moreland,” April replied with a brief smile.

“You do know we are on equal terms now. You can call me, Bob.”

“Old habits.” She shrugged. “It’s good to see you. What brings you to Kings Mill?”

They’d spoken only briefly since he’d called her with the news of Kenneth Miles’s accident. He’d called upon hearing from one of Mr. Miles’s representatives that Kenneth would be postponing his trip until a later time.
Well, yeah
. The man had suffered severe head trauma and had been pronounced dead during an emergency operation. April didn’t think he would be very active in such a short amount of time.

In the past few weeks, the news followed the medical reports of his miraculous return. Even the doctors were stunned at the rapid rate of his recovery, saying it was Kenneth’s own determination moving him on. All April knew was she’d seen his stocks fish-flop due to the uncertainty of his health. The media reported the NYSE had his secretary and account reps on speed dial.

Dr. Moreland placed a finger to his lips. “I have some exciting news, but I wanted to wait for Beth before I announced it. She’s coming down in a minute.”

Beth walked down the stairs and made an entrance. And what an entrance she made. Her normal neutral business attire was replaced with a pair of casual, flowing black slacks, a deep teal silk blouse, and waterfall-style sweater. This accented the silver blonde crop of hair she’d styled recently into a short, pixie cut framing her long, narrow face beautifully. April raised her brow in amazed appreciation. The look Bob gave her and the slight blush Beth returned told April all she needed to know. Something was going on between the two. More than just a visit from a professional colleague was accounting for the ‘new look.’

“So what’s the news?” April asked, eager to find out why Bob was so excited about sharing news he’d waited this long to tell them. She could see by the way Beth was dressed they had plans for later. Dinner maybe? She felt bad for not knowing what was going on in Beth’s life. She’d been so wrapped up with her own. Still, all she wanted to do was return to her desk and finish her work today, before she left for her small bedroom to face another night without James. She wasn’t the best company lately.
Gee, I wonder why!

“Sit down. This news is so big, you’ve got to be sitting to hear it,” Robert Moreland gushed in excitement. He was not typically a gusher, so unless he’d found the Holy Grail, unearthed Atlantis, or located the Fountain of Youth there wouldn’t be much for him to be excited about.

“Kings Mill Historical Society is getting a million dollar donation!”

She and Beth looked at the man as if he’d just grown another head and replied simultaneously, “Get outta town!” and “You’re full of crap!”

“Nope.” Bob reached into his breast pocket with a grin on his face and pulled out a folded piece of letterhead. “Guess who it’s from?”

“Bill Gates? He would be one of the only ones who might be able to,” April said with jaundiced surprise, getting an eye roll from Bob. “I give up, who?”

“None other than Kenneth Miles, and he’s coming to present it himself next week.”

“Miles is making his grand entrance back into society in Kings Mill, Maryland?” Beth gasped.

“Read it for yourselves. I received this letter yesterday and called to confirm. I talked with his secretary this morning.” Unfolding it, he handed it to Beth. “It’s real.”

“Oh my God! Oh my God!” Beth read the paper thoroughly, as color drained her cheeks. She gasped. “April, we have a million dollar grant to make plans for.”

James Addison stood in front of a full-length mirror, primped and prepared to meet the public for the first time since the accident. He smoothed back his short, dark hair, much shorter than he ever wore it, but a more professional style according to the latest in men’s fashion.

It had all been a bit convoluted, coming out of a near death experience and awakening in a stranger’s body. But then, he’d been without a body for a long time. It wasn’t until he’d met April Branford that he’d felt whole again. His heart thudded excitedly in his chest. He would see her today. After nearly a month of recovery, he’d be with her again. It was the ability to see her that put him in the frame of mind to recover as quickly as he did.

“Your car is waiting, Mr. Miles.”

“Thank you, Peter.” He turned to his assistant Drew, who was taking a small lint brush to his suit coat still hanging on the hook. “Is everything in my briefcase?”

“Yes sir. I have the check and blueprints for the proposal to the site in there.” Drew came around with his coat and carefully helped him into it, taking care of his healing body.

Some days the aches and pains from the injuries of the car accident slowed him down. He didn’t want today to be one of those days.

“Good.” James grabbed the classic, silver-tipped walking stick he’d purchased to replace the cane the hospital had provided. His leg was still not healed completely, but a few more months of physical therapy should suffice.

“You need to take it easy while here, sir,” Drew commented. “The doctor didn’t think you should’ve taken this trip.”

“Are you judging my decisions, Drew?” He adjusted the collar on his coat and pulled at his sleeves to keep everything from bunching. “I need to be here. I owe it to Kings Mill and Dr. Branford for her research.”

He did. Not as James Addison, but as Kenneth Miles. He owed more to April Branford than he could ever repay with his millions. It was still difficult at times to distinguish between who he was and who he had been. He was James Addison. All of his memories were of James Addison, from his time in the 1700’s to his brief encounter with the present shared with April.

But a great part of him was still Kenneth Miles. It was as if he were both men in one body. It had taken him time to come to terms with what had happened. But he knew that fate had played her role. In a time when James Addison was due to finally move on, his descendant was scheduled to die. Perhaps it was meant to be—perhaps it was coincidence. But the timing of the souls merging into one man’s body couldn’t have been planned by anyone but fate. Weren’t those the last words Catherine had said to him?

The limo awaited him outside the hotel. It was the same hotel he’d shared with April the night when Henry had angrily forced them out of the house. He swore they would share one of the suites again soon and continue where they’d left off.

They passed by Lilac Grove Cemetery on the way into downtown Kings Mill. It was Kenneth’s first time here, but James felt as if it were only yesterday that he’d been walking the streets aimlessly, searching for the truth and someone to give a damn. He’d found it all in one woman. His heart quickened and he took a deep breath to calm the excitement coursing through him. It wouldn’t be long now. The driver pulled up to the side of the courthouse and James looked out at the grounds.

A small group of reporters from Washington D.C. and Baltimore, along with CNN, Fox, CSPAN, and other national and international media were in attendance, their vans parked in various areas blocking the daily traffic. It was to be expected. This was Kenneth Miles’s first appearance in public since the accident and a rare appearance in general. Whereas after centuries alone, James enjoyed greeting people, Kenneth abhorred the masses.

Peter opened the door for him, helping him out as Drew handled the crowds gathering at breakneck speed, wanting the first glimpse and exclusives. James buttoned his long wool overcoat around him. Peter held a black umbrella over his head as a light sifting of snow began to fall.

“I want to take a minute to check something out, Peter.” James walked without a response from the man as he went in the opposite direction from the crowds of reporters.

Aunt Vickie’s house had been behind the county building. He’d walked these streets the first night meeting April, taking her home. He turned the corner to see the skeletal remains of what had once been a historical, stately home. Now it was just a pile of rubble and memories with the woman he loved. A small yellow earthmover and bulldozer stood silent sentry around the taped off area. Charred support beams and brick chimneys were all that remained. “Sir?”

He looked at Peter. The man questioned him with the simple word. “I’m fine. Shall we proceed to the ceremony? I think there is a back way into this building where we can avoid much of the media. Notify Drew to meet us in there.”

***

All week long Beth had run them ragged, and Dr. Moreland had finished up his end of term classes in Williamsburg early so he could help them. It was a good thing he did. By Tuesday, the day before Kenneth was to arrive, April didn’t have the energy she needed to keep up with her normal workload, much less the extra push Beth put on her. It took her hours to fall asleep, and once she did, she found it difficult to wake up.

Mourning James was the culprit. How could she have fallen so hard and fast for a man? She hadn’t felt this deflated and morose over her break up with Jason, and they had shared two years as a couple.

The morning of Kenneth’s arrival, Kings Mill was teeming with activity. The phones hadn’t stopped ringing as news of Kenneth Miles’s arrival had leaked out to the public. Like members of the Secret Service, they could neither confirm nor deny anything about him coming to Kings Mill or the donation until the actual ceremony in the historical courthouse.

April splashed water on her face again to help wake her up. The small mirror in the bathroom of the old building didn’t reveal her best self. She was supposed to represent the historical society. She’d played a big role in recent historical research. But she didn’t feel presentable. Her wan cheeks wouldn’t look good for the cameras. She tried to add a hint of pink lipstick to give them a fresh healthy glow but it only made her look washed out
and
pink. It was winter. She was in hibernation mode and moody. So it only figured her complexion would reflect dreariness.

“It’s about time you came out,” Beth scolded as she emerged from the bathroom. “Mr. Miles is in with the County Commissioners and Board of Directors right now. They’ll call us in soon.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “Bob will be doing the introductions since he was the one to connect Kenneth with Kings Mill.”

April only nodded. This was the man she was supposed to have shared a celebratory dinner with five weeks ago. Had it only been five weeks? Lately it felt like forever since the night. It was ironic how everything came together in a neat circle. Fate was funny.

No, she didn’t believe in fate! She might believe in ghosts, but fate? How could she when nothing would bring James back to her.
Where was fate now, James?
She wanted to be angry and ‘fate’ was as good a scapegoat as any. She didn’t believe, so what did it matter.

She yawned and tried to stifle the embarrassing gesture as media from Washington D.C./Baltimore and even some national news agencies were milling about in the narrow lobby of the two hundred fifty year old building.

“What is wrong with you lately? Well, besides the obvious. You’re tired all the time and you look like death warmed over,” Beth asked quietly from the side of her mouth.

“Gee. Thanks.”

“Dr. Freelane, Dr. Branford, they’re ready for you now. Please follow me.” The publicity assistant escorted them to the side door to receive the large display check for the grant and greet the man of the hour.

“How do I look?” Beth paused, taking a deep breath and adjusting her new lime green suit.

“Well, you’re not tired, and you don’t look like death warmed over,” April mocked before she sighed impatiently. “You look fine. Let’s get this over with so I can go home and sleep.”

They stepped into the room. April followed a few steps behind. She smiled and walked in front of the reporters and cameras. Beth came to an abrupt halt halfway across the floor in front of the governor, mayor, aldermen, and county officials sitting up on their dais. Hearing Dr. Freelane’s gasp, she was afraid her friend was going to faint.

Dr. Moreland was doing the honors of introducing the two parties. April couldn’t see around Beth so she stood where she was. Bob announced her name as being an instrumental part of the James Addison research project. Her heart somersaulted at the mention of James’s name.

Don’t cry now, April.

Beth moved to the side. April pasted on her best fake smile for the cameras as Kenneth Miles stepped forward. Her heart literally stopped for a brief second as she looked up into familiar steel gray eyes. He brought her hand to his lips and brushed a kiss over her knuckles. “It’s a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance, Dr. Branford.”

She swore the man standing before her was James. Everything about him was James incarnate. Every minute detail reminded her of James. Then—
everything
went black.

***

Her hand hurt. April tried to open her eyes but felt so weak. Why did her hand hurt? She opened her eyes half-mast and looked about. She was in a hospital room. Fresh flowers in a vase sat beside the bed on a bed tray, a Mylar balloon read
Get Well Soon.
She looked down at her left hand and saw a tube connected to a needle in her hand and a bag of saline IV solution on a computerized stand. A nurse was checking the instrumentation and changing the bag.

“It’s about time you woke up.” A blurry face leaned over her. “How are you feeling?”

“Ask me again in the morning.”

Confusion and disorientation warred within her as she tried to rouse herself from a lethargic fog. Her eyes came into focus. Dr. Moreland leaned over her, his smile warm and casual. Looking around she noticed the room was dark and still, except for the blinking lights from her IV monitor. The nurse smiled and said she’d be back to check on her in an hour.

Bob Moreland went to the window on the far side of the room and pulled back the heavy, institutional drape. Sunlight streamed in across him as he squinted at the blinding rays. “It is morning. Thursday morning to be exact.”

April tried to sit up, panic setting in. “You’re kidding?”
She’d missed a full day?

Bob dropped the curtain, hurrying back to her side. “Easy! Easy now. Let’s not pull out your IV.”

“James, where’s James?” She mumbled. “I saw him—”

“James who? I’m not sure what you’re talking about, April.” Bob shook his head.

James, she was thinking of James and wondering why she thought she’d seen him. Her mind was so focused on him, his smile, his eyes, but it wasn’t him standing in the courthouse. Kenneth Miles, it had been Kenneth Miles she’d seen. Tears threatened to overwhelm her at the cruel irony. The man she’d feared meeting looked so much like her James. It wasn’t fair!

She didn’t care if they shared the same lineage. Kenneth Miles was supposed to be an old curmudgeon with a balding pate and an over-sized gut. That’s what she’d expected—not a virile man in his mid-thirties who looked exactly like James.

She could have dealt with the image she created. The shock of meeting him and the stunning resemblance was too much for her. It was as if James was there again, and she’d seen a ghost. Now she wished it had been. She felt like hell and didn’t want to think anything more about Kenneth Miles. He was not James Addison!

April lay back down, too weary to fight. “Why do I feel like crap? What is wrong with me? ”

“You mean besides being exhausted, undernourished, slightly anemic, dehydrated, and pregnant? Why nothing at all.”

Listing the ailments in her fog clouded brain, April didn’t hit on what Bob had said, immediately. Did he say pregnant? She was pregnant.

“Pregnant? Really?” She closed her eyes and tried to process the news but succeeded in only having tears seep from under her lashes. “No. Impossible!”