Slowly, she opened the folder, and laid the papers out one stack at a time. The first was of a cemetery, and a newly turned grave. “This is for Janette. Her headstone will be placed in a few weeks, when it’s finished. You see the stones next to her? Those are her parents. There are police reports that show they looked for her, and missed her very much. She’s resting with them now.”
Stuart’s lower lip wobbled, and tears stood in his eyes. But he nodded bravely, stoic in the face of sadness.
The next stack of papers showed another graveyard. Another grave. Nearby stones readAlvin MarshandPauline Marsh, their granite faces marked by time and weather. “These are your parents’ graves. I found them by looking up your family. They had two children, after you were gone, and those children had grandchildren. You haven’t been forgotten by any of them. Your nieces and nephews talk about how their parents spoke of you, the brother who never came home. You were always missed, Stuart. Always loved.”
Now, the ghostly boy crumbled. His shoulders shook with sobs no one could hear, and spectral tears poured down his cheeks. Hanna’s heart ached to hold him, to rub his back while he cried.
“That grave is yours. Right there next to them. Your headstone is being made, too. When you rest, you won’t ever be alone. You’ll be back with them.”
His head shook as hard as his shoulders, over and over again.No. No.
Hanna understood. She set out another stack of papers, one with a recent picture paper clipped to it. Darlene in a prison jumpsuit, locked in shackles, standing in a courtroom. Police flanked her, on their guard, and Hanna knew it was because Darlene had given them nothing but trouble. Hanna had seen recordings. Sometimes, Darlene sounded like herself, as the original soul fought for control. Sometimes, though, she sounded like an offended Englishwoman who wanted everyone dead.
“This is Darlene. It is also Marion Pritchard. She’s being brought on charges of assault, murder, and attempted murder in England, as well as a charge of murder and falsifying police reports in the United States. I could have forced the spirit out of that body before she was arrested, but I didn’t. Do you know why?” Hanna asked.
Stuart bit his lower lip and shook his head one more time.
“Because I realized why you were still here. It wasn’t that you were trapped. Not like Janette, or the other children. You weren’t here because Janette remained. You were here because you admired your father. He always caught the bad people and brought them in to face what they’d done. The woman who killed your governess, who killed you, had never been brought to justice. And you, like your father, had to see justice done.” Hanna tapped the picture again.
Behind her, Gregory gasped. Stuart glanced up at her in surprise.
“The Widow Pritchard will stay trapped in that body, in jail, for the rest of that body’s life. Darlene deserved prison for what she did, and so did Marion. They can serve their sentence together, one imprisoned in a body, the other in a jail, until they pass on. Justice at last for both of them,” Hanna said.
Stuart stared at the photo for a long, silent time. Then he stood up and walked with a tired gait to the window. Hanna looked past him to see a flock of sparrows sitting on the edge of the roof, watching and waiting for the time they knew was close at hand.
He’s ready now. At last.Hanna pushed herself to her feet and crossed the room to join him. The window opened without a creak, allowing in a breeze that smelled of fresh earth and plants. Her eyes slid closed as she imagined herself riding that breeze, wind beneath her feathers and small, valiant soul secure in her grasp.
The sun shone brightly as Stuart Marsh flew beyond the sky and left the world that had mistreated him behind. And then, there were no more ghosts to walk the corridors of Greenhill Hall.
19
And They Lived Happily
“This is quite the view, isn’t it?” Gregory said from behind her. His arms wrapped around her to pull her to his chest.
She snuggled back into him, wrapping her arms over his in a backwards kind of hug. “It’s gorgeous. Sunset, overlooking the Pacific? I’m not sure you could have found a better hotel for us to call a temporary home.”
Though she supposed it wasn’t so much ahotelas aresort.An exclusive one, nestled against the California coast, where the ocean air smelled of salt and sand. She’d already been to the resort’s private beach twice to splash around and find seashells to send to Athena.Tokens from the rich and famous,Athena had called them with her usual, wry amusement.Free shells from now-homeless sea life.Hanna had laughed and promised to send more, along with the kitschiest, tackiest paperweight she could find.
Gregory set his chin on her shoulder. “It should be a few weeks before Gran’s wing of the house is complete. I thought we should have a place to stay that’s as beautiful and warm as you are.”
Hanna blushed. “You’re going to make me look sunburned.”
“If that is a consequence of speaking the truth, I will not be even a little sorry.” Gregory held her tighter. “Once the house is finished, do you want to throw a party? We should welcome the new board of directors. Show them we value them. Parade them around the estate. Martin said he knows your schedule is packed with work for Gran’s nonprofit, so he’ll handle it if you want. He said it would be more fun to plan than the last one.”
“Anything is more fun than the last one.”
“Hey, now. It had its good points.” His arms loosened, but only enough to turn her around in his embrace. “We danced. We kissed. You were brilliant, and gorgeous, and I haven’t stopped thinking about how desperately I loved you that night. I might try to forget the rest of that night, but never you. I still love you that way. Desperately. Completely.”
The look in his eyes, full of love and admiration, almost undid her. She melted against him, arms snug around his middle and head against his chest. After she had almost lost him, the sound of his heartbeat had become dear to her. A comforting rhythm that proved he still lived.
“I love you, too,” she said. “More than anything. Yes. Let’s have a party. It’s the start of a new era, both for us and the company. The two of us, side-by-side.”
“There’s nowhere else my future wife should be,” he said, voice rumbling in his chest.
Startled, she pulled back to look up at him. “What?”
He grinned down at her, as adoring as he was impish. “My future wife. The woman I want to marry. Though, I was thinking. It wouldn’t feel right to ask you to take my name.Pierceisn’t exactly covered in glory, just now. I thought, if you would do me the honor of being my wife, I might take your name instead. Gregory Sparrow does have a nice ring to it. Oh. And the ring.”
While she stood there, stunned past thought, hands over her mouth and tears in her eyes, Gregory dug into his pocket to pull out a velvet box. Though the golden sunset glow caught the diamond that stood proudly at the center, what Hanna noticed first was the band beside it. Two sparrows flew through the platinum sky, towards the diamond that now so reminded her of the sun.
“They fly spirits beyond the sky,” Gregory murmured, as he bent down on one knee. “They take souls to a place full of happiness and light. Just as you have done with mine. Marry me.”
“Yes,” she said, voice soft and small as it escaped the lump in her throat.
Her hand trembled as he slipped the band onto her finger. Then he stood, eyes full of joy, to sweep her up into his arms. His lips pressed against hers, and the world fell away, leaving him and only him to fill her heart.
Hanna Sparrow had always dreamed of a passionate kiss in a romantic locale. When she received it, she found the locale didn’t matter. Nothing mattered at all, as long as his lips pressed to hers, and the ever after she found was in his arms.