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Autumngrinned, something twinkling in her eyes. “Mmm.Iguess so.Hangon a sec,” she said, and disappeared into a small room behind the reception desk marked “office,” emerging a few minutes later with a paper gift bag. “Here.Tomake your stay as comfortable as possible.”Rosalietook the bag, peering inside.Therewas a toothbrush and travel-sized toothpaste, a hairbrush, a soft pink scrunchie, a mini deodorant, and a package of makeup removal wipes.Therewere also a couple of vouchers for local businesses, including a free drink atPourDecisions.
“Thankyou,” saidRosalie, feeling oddly touched.Ofcourse, this was something an upscale, boutique hotel like this did for their guests all the time and it didn’t mean anything.Butstill, it was nice to feel…cared for.Itwasn’t a feeling she experienced often, she realized.
“Ofcourse!Ifthere’s anything else you need, just let me know.Here’syour room key.Takethe stairs here,” she said, gesturing to the massive staircase behind her, “and it’s the last room on the right, way at the end of the hall.Ifyou’re hungry, we have a restaurant just through the lounge,” she said, pointing straight ahead and into a cozy looking lounge with a crackling fire and leather furniture. “Ourchef is currently on leave, but his replacement is killing it.”
Rosalienodded and turned to go, wanting to get settled into her room so she could get some work done before figuring out what to do for dinner.Shekept thinking about that pub she’d seen withIndy, so maybe she’d venture out into the snow to check it out.Shedidn’t know why, but she felt almost compelled to go there.Strange.Maybeit was just the power of suggestion, since she’d seen the voucher in her gift bag.
“Oh, one other thing,”Autumncalled out, andRosalieturned back. “Wehave two friendly ghosts on the premises.So, if you see, smell, or hear anything a little strange, it’s probably just one of them.Don’tworry—they’re friendly.Helpful, even.”
Rosalie’seyebrows rose.Autumnhad said all of that with such a straight face, but she couldn’t be serious, could she?Ghosts?Thishad to be a joke she played on unsuspecting guests.
“Oh—okay,” she said, uncertain what to say in the face ofAutumn’searnest expression.Sheseemed friendly and sweet, but maybe she was just as crazy as the guy on the subway who claimed to beJesus.Shebacked away slowly, then turned towards the stairs, hurrying up them.
Crazymanager or not, the hotel was absolutely beautiful.Thecarpet was lush beneath her feet as she walked down the hallway, large windows between the rooms looking out onto the sprawling grounds and the forest beyond, everything covered in a blanket of pristine white.
Shefound room number ten easily, slid her key into the lock and opened the heavy wood door, which relented with a soft creak.Thefloor was hand-scraped wood in a warm reddish-brown color, and covered with patterned area rugs.Aking-sized bed sat in the middle of the room, looking snug and inviting with its fluffy white duvet, layered blankets, and tasteful arrangement of throw pillows in cream and soft yellow tones.Achandelier made from the branches of a birch tree hung above the bed.Acrossfrom the bed, a flatscreenTVwas mounted to the wall, and to the right was a large floor-to-ceiling window that looked out onto the hotel grounds and the forest.Agas fireplace was nestled into the corner, ensconced in arched stone.
Tothe right of the large window was a doorway that led to a small living room, with a loveseat upholstered in soft chocolate brown leather, a matching armchair and a large ottoman, all oriented around the window, which faced the same direction as the one in the bedroom.Bookshelveslined the walls, full to bursting with books both old and new.Whichwas good, becauseRosalieliked to read, but didn’t have anything with her.
Shewalked back into the bedroom and then into the bathroom, which was hiding behind a sliding barn door next to the fireplace.Thebathroom was done in gleaming white subway tile and sage green paint.Alarge soaker tub sat directly beneath a set of skylights, andRosaliewas already envisioning taking a book from the shelf in the other room and enjoying a long, hot soak.
Justthen, she heard a thump from the other room.Herheart pushed up into her throat asAutumn’swords about ghosts came back to her, but logically she knew it was probably just the sound of a guest moving around in another room, or the old pipes rattling.Butstill, she found herself moving back into the sitting room.Shegasped when she saw a book lying on the floor.Shewent completely still when she saw that it was a worn copy ofWutheringHeightsbyEmilyBrontë, one of her all-time favorite books.
“Whatis this place?” she whispered, bending down and tracing her fingers over the softly frayed edges of the book.
Shecould’ve sworn she heard someone whisper the wordhome.
Three
JackShephardwasn’t normally a huge fan of snow.Notbecause he didn’t like the white, fluffy stuff, but because snow usually meant road closures, accidents, power outages, and other emergencies that meant he was out in it when everyone else was snuggled up at home with a warm drink and a good movie.Asthe chief of police forGossamerFalls, he usually didn’t have that luxury.
Butnot tonight.Tonightwas one of the rare occasions where he wasn’t only off duty, but he wasn’t even on-call.Now, he knew there was a chance he might get called in if things got particularly hairy, which was why he was limiting himself to one beer tonight, even though he wanted to down a whole keg.
Hewanted to drink until he couldn’t feel the hollowness in his chest that was threatening to swallow him up if he didn’t get a handle on himself.Hewasn’t going to, but the idea of drowning his sorrows was an appealing one.
“Ican’t believeNorah’sengaged,” saidJack’sbrotherBeckettfrom behind the bar atPourDecisions. “Imean,Ican because she andIanhave been solid for a while now, but still.Shit, man.”Hewiped out the inside of a freshly washed pint glass and stowed it on the shelf behind him.
“Yeah,” saidJack, because for once, he was truly at a loss for words.Therewas a time whenNorahhad been everything to him.Hishigh school sweetheart, his first love, his firsteverything.They’dmarried young, fresh out of high school, mostly becauseJackhad enlisted in theArmy, and he’d wanted the peace of mind that came with knowing she’d be taken care of should anything happen to him.She’dnever been thrilled about his military career, and instead had stayed behind, going to college, visiting when she could.They’dbeen married, but living entirely separate lives.Whileshe’d been studying, graduating, and getting her career going, he’d been living onArmybases between deployments toIraqandAfghanistan.Aftereight years, he’d come home toNorahand toGossamerFallsand become a police officer.
He’dcome home to a stranger, in all honesty.Inthe time they’d been a long-distance couple, they’d both changed.Grownup and evolved and become different people.ButJackhadn’t seen that as a set back.He’dseen it as an opportunity to fall in love with his wife all over again.
Andfor a few years, things had been great.They’dreconnected, both physically and emotionally, andNorahhad gotten pregnant.ThedayChloewas born—eleven years ago now, holy fuck—was still one of the happiest days ofJack’slife.
Butby the timeChloewas four, they’d grown apart again.They’dfelt like two people standing on either side of a giant boulder, trying to wrap their arms around each other.Intentionsdidn’t matter when there was so much other shit in the way.Itwas a distance that, in the end, had proven to be insurmountable, despite their efforts.Despitea year of counselling and trying everythingJackcould think of to save it.Butit hadn’t mattered, because whenChloewas in first grade,Norahhad told him that she cared about him very much, and she’d always love him asChloe’sfather, but she wasn’t in love with him anymore, and hadn’t been for some time.Shedidn’t want to break up their family, but she also knew that they both needed to move on because they weren’t happy.
Still,Jackhad held out hope that they’d get back together.Thatwith time,Norahwould see thatJackstill loved her.
Whenshe’d started dating someone else, about three years ago,Jackhad been forced to face the reality that the only woman he’d ever loved had moved on.
Andso he’d moved on, too.Mostlywith tourists from out of town, because while he wasn’t looking for a relationship, he enjoyed sex.Alot.Buteven still, his reputation among his family was greatly exaggerated.Ithad all started when his older brotherAdamcaught him sneaking out of the hotel early one morning, and one assumption had led to another.Yes,Jackhad fun when the opportunity arose, but his reputation as a bit of a manwhore wasn’t exactly true.But, for now, he was happy to let the rumor stand because then his family left him alone about dating and love and all that shit.Hewasn’t interested in putting his heart out there again.Ithad already been through a blender once.Hewouldn’t survive if it happened again.Besides.HehadChloe, he had his family, he had a job he loved.He’dbe downright greedy to wish for more.
Beckettpoured a pint and set it down in front ofJack, not saying anything.Heflipped one of theTVsover the bar to theRangers-Penguinsgame, and then ran a cloth over the gleaming wood.
“Careto make it interesting?” he asked, tipping his head in the direction of theTV.Everyonein theShephardfamily was aRangersfan, with the exception ofBeckett, who cheered for thePenguins.Theirmother denied it, but he’d clearly been dropped on his head as a baby.Therewas no other explanation.
Jacksipped his beer.Thebar was pretty quiet tonight, thanks to the snow.Afire crackled in the fireplace, and a few people were gathered around tables.Heshrugged. “Whatdid you have in mind?”
“Loserhas to shovelMom’sdriveway tomorrow morning,” he said, grinning.
