Mercy E-Book

Jan Coffey

• Herausgeber: Book Duo Creative
• Kategorie: Abenteuer, Thriller, Horror
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 142

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

  A vengeful ghost. An old secret. A weekend getaway they'll never forget. Julia Klein's life has begun to unravel—her daughter Amy has been suspended from school, Julia is about to lose her job, and her boyfriend Garrett is being transferred thousands of miles away. Overwhelmed, she and Amy leave for a weekend at a rambling old colonial inn. Julia never suspects that Garrett, desperate to find a way to keep Julia in his life, has decided to surprise her by joining them. Nor does she expect her daughter to befriend a mischievous ghost…or that she herself would be possessed by the malevolent spirit of a long-dead mother. As a dark secret emerges, Julia, Amy, and Garrett find themselves pitted in a fight for survival against a ghostly presence that intends to resurrect/repeat/relive a crime committed two centuries ago. And this time, Amy and Julia will be the victims.

Leseprobe

MERCY

JAN COFFEY

withMAY MCGOLDRICK

BOOK DUO CREATIVE

Thank you for reading this ebook. In the event that you appreciate Mercy, please consider sharing the good word(s) by leaving a review, or connect with the authors.

Mercy . Copyright © 2012 by Nikoo & James McGoldrick

All rights reserved. Except for use in any review or face-to-face educational use, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher: Book Duo Creative

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

Cover Art by Dar Albert, WickedSmartDesign.com

CONTENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Epilogue

Edition Note

Author’s Note

Preview of TRUST ME ONCE

Preview of GHOST OF THE THAMES

Also by May McGoldrick, Jan Coffey & Nik James

About the Author

1

The six-year-old ran her fingers along the smooth wood panels. The white painted surface was warm to her touch. She explored the perimeter of the room and listened to her mother talking on the phone with her boyfriend, Garrett. They were talking about his new job in Atlanta. He was leaving Boston on Monday. Amy was listening carefully, but so far, there was no mention of the trouble she’d gotten into at school yesterday.

Amy reached a corner where the wall jutted out into the room. Her finger traced the seams of the panels and then stopped. There was a tiny knob.

“I’m glad you got the message. This was totally last-minute. I had to take her away. There’s a lot I have to sort through this weekend.”

Her mother moved to the window and looked out.

“Not now. She’s here,” her mother whispered. Her shoulders were sagging.

Her fingers twirled the dangling cords of the window blinds.

“One of those last-minute deals.” Pause. “Yeah, it’s a beautiful inn. On the second floor. Right on the bluffs, just outside of downtown Newport.” Pause. “They have lots to do here this weekend. I needed a couple of days away from everything that’s going…well, going on in my life right now.”

Amy heard the hurt in her mother’s voice. She looked back at the knob. She pulled it and the wood panel swung open. It was a door.

The space behind the wainscot was dark and smelled like dry hay. She liked that smell, but it made her think of Monday.

The first graders had all gone to a farm near her school for a field trip. She liked the animals. As usual, she was last in the group. Then, in one of the barns, she stopped to tie her sneaker.

When Amy heard the two girls behind her, she knew they were going to hurt her. These same girls had been calling her names and pushing her around since the start of the school year.

Before she could run, the taller girl grabbed her by the jacket.

They were both bigger than Amy and much stronger. In the two months since school started, she’d been pushed into the cubbies, elbowed in line, and tripped in the playground enough times to know there was no point trying to fight them. They’d just hurt her more.

“Hey, stupid! Let’s see how you get out of this.”

Dragging her to a dark corner of the barn, they shoved her into a stall and slammed the heavy wooden door. She heard the latch shut.

“That’s where you belong, with all the dumb cows.”

The stall was quiet and full of the smell of hay and animals. Amy felt safe in there.

“She’s been suspended for a week, pending an evaluation.”

Amy didn’t want to hear her mother tell Garrett the bad thing they said she’d done yesterday. She ducked her head and leaned into the open space. It was dark, but the light from the bedroom showed that one side was all brick. The chimney from the huge fireplace downstairs.

She crawled in.

“We’ll be back in Boston Sunday night. It’ll be late. No, you shouldn’t come over.”

Her mother’s voice drifted further away. Amy moved into the space, her thin shoulders brushing against the bricks and the wood from the wall. She spied a small stool sitting where the chimney ended. She inched toward it into the darkness.

Her mother’s voice was faint. “I can handle it. We’ll be fine.”

Amy turned around and sat on the chair. It was the perfect size. The panel door suddenly swung shut. She held her breath. It was darker, but a thin line of light shone along the edge of the door. Her mother’s voice was just a murmur.

There was a soft giggle. Another child.

My secret house.

A whisper of cool air touched Amy’s neck, startling her. Someone moved close and knelt in front of her. A little girl. As Amy stared, the girl reached for her hand. Five ribbons of icy air touched her skin.

The chill seeped in and slowly crawled up her arm, just beneath the skin. Amy wanted to run out, but she couldn’t move.

Want to play with me?

* * *

“I really have to go. Why don’t you call me after you get settled in Atlanta?”

Julia ended the call before her welling emotions choked out the words. She blinked back tears and took a deep breath. Amy didn’t need to see this.

Her right hand was numb. She stared at her wrist. The cord from the window shade was wound so tightly around it that the circulation was cut off. She freed herself and stared at the red welts on her skin.

‘Pull yourself together,’ she thought.

Picking up their toiletries off the queen-size bed, she went straight into the bathroom.

Julia Klein lost her husband when she was twenty-five. Their life together had always been a challenge. They’d married young and money problems constantly crushed them. When he died two years ago, Julia was broke and had a half-finished nursing degree and a daughter who’d seen death firsthand.

Amy had been trapped for hours in the car that killed Julia’s husband, so no one was surprised when she showed signs of psychological trauma. The little girl had not spoken a word since, and from that day on, their life had been a constant uphill struggle—getting a job as a nurse’s aide, with marginal benefits; taking Amy to therapists and psychologists twice a week; trying to scrape together money for rent, food, and clothes. Every minute of Julia’s day was a fight for survival.

And then, three months ago, Garrett Spencer had somehow managed to edge into her life. Handsome, passionate, and funny, he had made her remember that she was still very much a woman.

Julia was surprised when he didn’t bolt after the first week, considering her complicated life. But she knew that there could be no ‘happily ever after’. She had too much baggage for any man to want to hang around for any extended time.

Her prediction was confirmed a couple of weeks ago when Garrett told her that he was being transferred to Atlanta.

At the time, Julia never imagined that Garrett’s news could become so trivial, but then everything else seemed to suddenly go wrong. Later that week, she was told that a large hospital had bought out the clinic she worked in. With no completed degree, she would probably lose her job by year’s end. And yesterday, the hardest blow struck.

Called to Amy’s school, she was told her daughter was being suspended for at least a week for violent behavior, pending the results of an investigation and further psychological testing.

Once again, tears blurred her vision. Julia blinked them away and stared into the mirror at the dark circles under her blue eyes. She knew her daughter. Amy didn’t throw temper tantrums. She was no threat to anyone. But Amy didn’t talk, so school officials could only go by the story the other girls told.

Julia took out the concealer from her makeup bag and applied a generous amount. The purpose of this last-minute weekend getaway was to separate the two of them from all the troubles, routines, schedules, and tensions in their lives. She wanted a chance for her daughter to enjoy herself, relax, have fun, and somehow communicate with her what had gone wrong.

The sound of Amy giggling somewhere in the distance was like a warm caress in an arctic wind. Julia focused. She hurried out of the bathroom and nearly tripped over her daughter’s open backpack. Amy’s Pequot ‘treasure’ basket sat on top. It had been a gift from Garrett the first weekend that the three of them had gone away. Pebbles, sea shells, and acorns peeked from the open top. Wherever they went, Amy brought the basket along and filled it with little treasures she found to take back home. Julia picked up the basket and put it on the bedside table.

“Almost four o’clock,” she announced loudly. “How about if we go downstairs and figure out what’d be fun to do on a Friday night?”

A thumping sound came from somewhere. Whispers. The secretive laughter of children.

Julia looked around the room. “Amy?”

The TV was off. Picture books were scattered on the white sofa, but there was no sign of her. Julia’s gaze darted immediately to the door. The bolt was on.

“Amy?” she called out louder, trying to keep the panic out of her tone. “Where are you, sweetheart?”

She looked under their bed. Nothing. Julia ran to the closet and yanked open the door. She pulled out the extra pillows. Her stomach began to churn. The sudden pounding in her head wouldn’t allow her to think.

“Amy!” she yelled, turning around.

Amy was standing in the middle of the room. Wisps of her blond hair had escaped her ponytail. Her face was flushed, as though she’d just come inside from playing.

“Amy, you scared me.” Julia took her into her arms.

For a few moments she couldn’t let go. This was the most important thing. This angel who was part of her. Somehow, she had to keep her safe.

She inhaled the scent of her daughter’s hair. Her chin rested on the soft golden tendrils. She wished she could freeze time. She wanted to shield her precious child from all that was wrong out there. The two of them against a world that was closing in.

Holding tight, she stared into her daughter’s blue eyes. “Where were you? Who were you playing with?”

No answer. There never was.

Julia watched her move to the bedside table and drop something into the treasure basket before coming back and taking her hand.

She was ready to go.

2

“Monster Mash” was playing in the large front room that had once served as a pub for the inn. Children of various ages, dressed in their Halloween costumes, sat on an oval, braided carpet in front of the wide, walk-in fireplace. Parents hovered in the background. A small fire crackled in the fireplace.

“Should we go back upstairs and dress up?” Julia asked. Halloween was still five days away. On their way out of the house, she’d dragged out Amy’s Red Riding Hood outfit, just in case she got into the spirit of things.

Amy shook her head and burrowed closely against her mother’s leg.

A young woman, dressed in a long black witch’s outfit, came from behind the reception desk.

Cold, thin fingers slipped into Julia’s. She held her daughter’s hand tight, knowing Amy’s apprehensiveness about strangers.

The ‘witch’ bent down, greeting the child. “Hi, I’m Rachel. What’s your name?”

“Amy. Her name is Amy,” Julia said quickly, long ago giving up hope that her daughter would pick an arbitrary moment like this to answer a stranger.

“That’s a great name. My sister’s name is Amy. How old are you?” she asked, leaning toward her.

Amy slipped behind her mother, refusing to have anything to do with the friendly witch.

“She’s six years old,” Julia offered, caressing her daughter’s hair and motioning to let her be. “We were hoping to get some information about age-appropriate activities that might be going on tonight.”

“Well, this is an awesome weekend to be here,” Rachel said brightly. She stood up and gestured toward the children gathered around the fireplace. “Our inn is part of the Newport Haunted Trail. All this weekend, a number of places are having tours and presentations about ghosts living in their houses. You can see we have a lot of children here for our story hour.”

“I’m not sure that’s really what we’re looking for,” Julia said. “This inn isn’t really haunted?”

“Not haunted in a scary Hollywood way. But we are visited occasionally by a little girl ghost. Her name is Mercy Turner. A seafarer’s daughter from the 1700s.” Rachel paused with a smile as Amy reappeared and peeked up at her. “In fact, the storyteller will be coming out in a minute to tell us all about Mercy. We have cookies and cider, too. And I’m guessing that she’ll be passing out candy after she tells her stories.”

Julia looked down as Amy slid her small hand back into hers. Her daughter’s fingers were freezing. Amy shook her head.

“I don’t think so,” Julia said. “Other suggestions?”

“Well, at the end of Lower Thames Street, there’s also the Pirate Express Hayride. And at the visitor’s center tonight, there’s a children’s Halloween Party with games and crafts.”

Amy didn’t like those options, either.

Julia glanced at the inn’s front windows. For late October, it was still pleasant and they had perhaps an hour of daylight left.

“How about finding a playground?” Julia crouched down and looked into her daughter’s eyes. “And then we could get some dinner. And see a movie if you want.”

The child’s blue eyes brightened, and the decision was made. While she was getting directions to a nearby playground, Julia was surprised as an older man delivering flowers came into the lobby with a large vase of red roses and baby’s breath, intended for her.

“How nice!” Rachel said, looking at the card. “This is Ms. Klein, right here.”

There was only one person in the world who would send her flowers. Garrett.

Tender feelings flooded through Julia. Her throat tightened as she touched the red petals. She pressed her face into the bouquet, and the sweet scent calmed some of the worries that were crushing her spirit. She opened the little card.

You’re the bravest woman I know. And the most beautiful. You’ll get through this.

—Love, Garrett

The flowers, the room, and the faces instantly became a blur. He was moving to Atlanta, but he’d made no mention that he wanted to end what they had. Not that she could handle a long-distance relationship. She struggled and blinked back tears.

“I can have this delivered up to your room, if you like,” the receptionist offered pleasantly.

“That’d be great,” Julia managed to say. “Wait.”

Pulling one of the roses from the bouquet, she handed it to Amy with a smile.

“Look what Garrett sent us. Aren’t they beautiful?”

Amy nodded happily, smelling the flower as they went out the door.

3

As Garrett waited to get his key from the ‘witch’ behind the reception desk, he looked around at the huge fireplace, the colonial-era furniture, and the Halloween decorations.

“We had to go through a major reshuffling of our guests to make this work for you.”

“I appreciate it.”

Garrett’s assistant at the production studio had made the call and pulled every string necessary to make this happen.

And it was going to happen.

Julia was the answer to every doubt he’d ever had about relationships and trust. She was the first woman who, from the first moment they’d met, had been unwaveringly straight with him. There was caution in her—and with good reason, he’d learned—but never deceit. No games. And no playing him. Ever.

Garrett had felt a kick in his gut the moment he’d laid eyes on her. Never mind that she was beautiful. There was something about her face. Character. The way she looked right at you. She also had a wicked sense of humor.

Before Julia was done checking his vitals the day they met, he’d asked her out. Her answer had been a simple ‘no’ as she turned away. But he hadn’t given up then, and he wasn’t giving up now.