Beach House Mystery

Chapter 3

MORGAN LED THE WAY into the living room where she had the Christmas decorations laid out for inspection, Gabe close behind her. He was so close that when Morgan came to a dead stop at the sight in front of her, Gabe plowed into her, grabbing her shoulders to keep her from losing her balance. Together, the two of them looked at the sight in front of them and burst out laughing.

"How could she possibly create this much disarray in such a short time?" Gabe asked with a shake of his head.

"Because she"s a master. Look, not one ornament is broken," Morgan answered, stepping to the table to inspect the mess.

"True, but I don"t think there is any ribbon left on the bolts, either."

Morgan was having a hard time keeping a straight face. Picking up an end of 1/4-inch plaid ribbon, she rolled it back up on the empty plastic cylinder.

"I"d better help, or you"ll be at this all day," Gabe said as he grabbed an end of red velvet. Before he wound the ribbon, he pointed toward the staircase. "At least we know what direction she went -She must have had a couple of ribbons in her mouth as she ran."

Morgan looked to where he was pointing and saw ribbon draped along the stairs. Glancing behind her to say something to Meredith, she discovered her aunt had disappeared as silently as she had arrived. Morgan had gotten used to Meredith"s comings and goings. She never asked where her aunt"s spirit wandered off to, but she knew Meredith would reappear in her own good time. Turning her attention back to the task at hand, she wound the assorted ribbons back on their bolts, calling out warnings to the cat as she did so. It didn"t take long to finish, and Misty had wisely stayed hidden. Gabe noticed Meredith"s absence and looked around for his old friend.

"She"s gone again. I don"t think she even followed us into the house. Probably knew what kind of trouble Misty had created," Morgan said when she noticed him looking for her aunt.

"She"ll be back. I know how much she was looking forward to your first Christmas together on the island. She"ll still want to be part of it. In the meantime, all this decorating has given me an appetite. How about I treat for coffee and donuts at the pastry shop? We have time before Ben shows up. What do you say?"

"Have I ever said no? Let me grab the key to the golf cart and then we can go."

Morgan didn"t wait for his answer. She raced to the kitchen where the key hung on a cup hook by the back door. Her car keys were there too, but they rarely got used. Golf carts and bicycles were the primary modes of transportation on Pearl Island, and she had adjusted to the slower pace of island life when she returned. And except for the murders and crime she had found herself involved in, life was peaceful. Unless a certain sea witch made her presence known.

***

THEIR ARRIVAL AT THE island pastry shop was perfectly timed. They had missed the early morning crowd who always grabbed a cup of coffee before heading to the ferry to go to the mainland. Gabe held the door open for Morgan and following behind, he repeated the good morning greeting from the owner of the shop.

"Good morning. How about two cups of coffee and a breakfast sandwich for each of us?" Gabe added to his greeting as the smell of fresh-baked bread and bacon reached his nose.

"Sure thing, just grab any table." The short-haired woman waved toward the empty tables and then added, "Hey, Morgan, I"ve got a new blend of coffee. You want to try it?"

Morgan answered with an eager nod. She loved the blends the owner came up with and knew she had been experimenting with some holiday coffee. The anticipating taste of cinnamon was already making her mouth water. The other patrons of the shop greeted the two as they made their way to a table by the window looking out on to the main street. Their waitress wasn"t too far behind them with a cup of coffee for each, promising their sandwiches wouldn"t be too long.

Morgan took her first swallow of coffee, almost scalding her mouth. There was the taste of cinnamon and something else she couldn"t identify. She knew better than to ask Kayle what the ingredient might be because the woman rarely revealed the ingredients in her special blends. With a sigh of contentment, Morgan leaned back in her chair, the cup of coffee warming her hands. The winter wind had a bite to it, and Morgan, having gotten used to the heat of the summer, had been unprepared for the jarring drop in temperatures. This was the first cold spell of the season. It was a welcome change to most, because it was sure to put shoppers and residents in the holiday mood.

Gabe was silent, enjoying his coffee as he waited for their food. It was a comfortable silence, the type shared between good friends. There was no reason for idle chatter; the two were so close, they were often thinking the same thing, and sometimes finished each other’s sentences. Their friendship was based on more than two people who got along well. They based it on legends and decrees that had bound their families together for generations.

"Here you go," Kayla called out as she placed the hot plates in front of them. She didn"t stop to talk. Another customer was calling for a coffee refill.

"Mm-mm, this smells delicious." Morgan breathed in deeply.

Gabe didn"t answer, handing her the pepper shaker without being asked. In return, she passed him the ketchup she knew he would dose his home fries with. After doctoring the food to their preference, they grinned at each other and took their first bites.

There was silence at the table for the next few minutes while they enjoyed their breakfast. Once their initial hunger was satisfied, they relaxed and continued their conversation from earlier.

"Are you ready for the Christmas Eve concert?"

"Yes, I have four of my most promising students accompanying me this year. It"s nice to share the limelight with such raw talent. I"m hoping the experience will encourage them," Gabe answered before taking another bite.

"I"m sure it will go well; I"ve heard them practice with you. But I have to be honest, I"m looking forward to hearing your violin. I don"t know if you realize it, but you play differently when you"re in front of an audience then when you"re just playing for fun with the rest of us," Morgan said, referring to Gabe"s position as a concert violinist. He had done tours all over the world but loved being on the island most. Often, he and Morgan would sit on their favorite rock down on the beach, creating music. She would play her small recorder while he played his violin. Some songs were easily recognized, while others were songs that spoke to Morgan"s soul. Songs from her childhood, or songs that told of her heritage.

"Yeah, whether I play differently, this is my favorite type of concert. Small town, friendly, and with the promise of talent coming for others to find." Gabe paused until Morgan had swallowed her coffee before he turned the conversation toward her work. "Did you get that large order of Christmas books done for your client?"

"Yes, and I think she will be pleased with them. They turned out better than I had hoped. When the shipment arrived, they were so damaged I wasn"t sure I could repair the covers back to their original state. But thankfully I was able to find the right materials, and they turned out fantastic."

Morgan restored antique books for both private collectors and museums. Over her lifetime, she had built up a reputation for excellent work. But it never felt like work to Morgan; it was more a labor of love. She was of the firm belief that books were meant to be shared and enjoyed, and if she could restore an old book to its former glory, then she felt she had accomplished something wonderful. Like the books she was just finishing. They were a collection of Christmas stories that had been in a family"s library for years. It was only recently that they had discovered them, and the grandchildren had gathered them all and sent them to Morgan to be restored in time for Christmas, when they could present them to their grandmother. Morgan could think of no finer Christmas present, and she took pride in being able to accomplish the task.

"How does it feel to be doing all your work from the beach house rather than traveling to the customers?"

"It feels right,” Morgan said. “I don"t know how else to explain it. All those years I was traveling, it seemed like I was always moving toward one destination: Pearl Island. And now that I"m here, I feel a sense of contentment and homecoming. With today"s technology, it’s easy to work from home; there"s no reason I need to travel. Oh, I"m sure I will for those special assignments, but it"s working out pretty well. If I could keep Misty from stealing my tools, it would be a little easier."

They shared a laugh as each remembered some of the antics the kitten had gotten into since she had come into Morgan"s life, appearing out of the mist on her first night on Pearl Island. The kitten always seemed to be by Morgan in times of trouble, and more than once had warned Morgan of danger approaching.

Their conversation was interrupted as the pastry shop door opened and a lively group entered, calling out greetings to everyone. An older couple were in the company of three rambunctious children who were talking a mile a minute. Gabe and Morgan raised their hand in greeting, but the children were too busy racing to the display window of pastries to pay any attention. Dr. Wright and his wife returned their wave, but they focused their attention on the children, making sure they didn"t get carried away with their order.

The couple was as different as night and day, but they were also a completion of each other. Dr. Wright was tall and skinny, quiet, and reserved. His wife was short and stout, with a love of gossip, and a heart of gold.

The children with them could have passed for the three musketeers; they were inseparable. Two girls and one boy who had forged a special friendship over the summer months. Sam was a typical eight-year-old boy. With windblown hair and a mischievous smile, he was the trickster of the three. Grace, a chubby redhead with a mass of freckles across her nose, was the quiet one of the group. She was the peacemaker who kept the strong personalities of the other two in check. And finally, there was Cordelia, the newest member of the group, recently adopted by the Wrights.

Where the other two children had grown up on the island, Cordelia had just arrived. But she knew more about Pearl Island and its legends than anyone Morgan had ever met. Morgan watched the children pick out their favorite pastries, smiling at their decision-making tactics. It appeared they each had a favorite, and she wasn"t surprised when they ordered and asked Kayla to cut each order into thirds. The children were wonderful about sharing.

When Cordelia reached up to grab her order, Morgan noticed something different about the children. They weren"t dressed in their normal beach clothes. Instead, they each wore a part of a pirate costume. Whether it was one costume they had divided between the three of them, or they"d each picked out their favorite piece, it was hard to tell. Sam was sporting a buccaneer’s hat pushed back rakishly on his head. Grace, of all things, had a pirate"s patch over her eye, and she looked adorable. And Cordelia had attached to the belt on her side a plastic sword, perfect for making someone walk the plank.