Chapter Nine

A Stout Head Wind

"I don't remember the old place being this creepy," Jonathan muttered as he stood looking all around the gloomy old warehouse.

He reached one hand to the row of dusty switches beside the door and flipped them on. The overhead lights didn't illuminate. Dust and cobwebs hung everywhere.

Jonathan sighed. "I guess Claymore isn't bothering to pay the electric bill either. How are we supposed to see anything in here? It's been ages since we played here."

"Leave that to me…" Daniel waved one hand, and branches of candles suddenly flared in the dark mustiness of the old place.

"You really gotta show me how you do that, sometime," Jonathan approved. "It would be a whizz at parties."

"I want you to think back and show me exactly where every trunk was. Everything you found that came off my ship. The trunks will all have my name affixed to them with lead lettering. At least I could trust my first mate with my possessions."

"Aye, aye, Captain…" Jonathan saluted briskly. "I asked Candy what she remembered, and she drew me this map…" He took a folded piece of paper from the pocket of his jeans. "I guess X really does mark the spot." He grinned as he unfolded the sheet of paper and held it up to the light of the candles.

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"Oh, but these are truly wonderful…" Carolyn slowly turned the tattered, salt-stained pages of one of the journals with reverent hands. "I think we will do very well with them. They explain everything."

She was seated in the old rump-sprung armchair in the wheelhouse. All around her were stacked piles of the books. There had been more than Daniel had remembered. And other treasures he'd brought back to the house. Now they were all safely stowed away from Claymore's reach.

"Yes, I do believe I did have rather a flair for penning a good yarn," Daniel preened slightly before he shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "But they were also for my private thoughts and there are some passages, Madam, where I… I… ah…"

He cleared his throat. "Where I…"

"Where, you?" Carolyn prompted. "Ah, I see." She nodded as she smiled in complete understanding. "What were their names?"

The Captain sighed as his gaze became unfocused. "The lovely Consuela was a rare beauty. And there was the bewitching Lady Freebairn-Smythe, to name a couple. And then there was Molly and Theresa… ah, Theresa…"

He sighed again dreamily before recalling himself under Carolyn's deeply interested gaze. "But, ah, of course, none of them could ever hold a candle to you, my dear," he avowed stoutly. "You outshine them all."

"Thank you, Captain. I think…" Carolyn shook her head at him before going back to her reading.

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That night, Carolyn got ready for bed in the silence of her room. The captain had not appeared all evening, leaving her to wonder where he was and what he was doing.

"Probably reading his journals, catching up on all about his past amours..." Carolyn shook her head as she slid between the sheets and lay down.

She tried not to be jealous. Those women had been lucky enough to know Daniel when he was alive and had no doubt been well-loved by him. All she could ever have was a dream…

She sighed as she closed her eyes, dropping almost instantly asleep. Behind her closed lids the world she knew shifted and began to change once more…

With the sun setting behind her, the Carolyn sailed a steady easterly course toward London across an ocean that appeared to be made of waves of molten metal. Heeled over slightly before the wind, she cut a smooth path through the darkening waters, her sails, sheets, and halyards all creaking and groaning in the wind.

Her decks were deserted, the crewmen being either at their rest or taking supper. The ship's first mate stood alone at the wheel guiding their path toward the coming night.

Carolyn stood in the bow, holding fast to a halyard as she watched the sun sink into the dark waters behind them. The ocean seemed limitless, and they were alone.

Daniel had thoughtfully provided his bride with an extensive trousseau of fine Victorian clothing, along with everything a lady might need to wear with the elegant gowns. There were bonnets, gloves, shoes and beribboned under-things made of both silk and fine cotton.

Carolyn was now dressed in a gown of apricot satin cut low across her shoulders. Her long blond hair lifted in the breeze, playing across her skin. She felt incredibly feminine and well-loved.

Walking along the deck, Daniel paused to admire the picture she made, before he walked up behind her, carrying a fringed silk shawl in his hands. He lifted it around her shoulders and Carolyn leaned back into its warmth.

"Have I ever told you how truly lovely you are?" Daniel whispered, his hands settling on her shoulders as he studied the beautiful curves of her cheek and neck.

"Once, long ago, on a very special Christmas night just like this…" Carolyn turned in his embrace, smiling.

"Yes, I remember…" Daniel replied softly. "All I could give you then was the gift of a dream."

"And I have always treasured that dream. I wanted to ask you if this was another such gift, but it seemed too precious."

"Everything I have to give is yours. From the moment I first saw you walking up the path to Gull Cottage, I knew you were the one. I am only sorry it took us so long to find each other. If only we had been born in the same time…"

"Yes, but we are here, together, now. I don't think I have ever been so happy." Carolyn sighed. "And this is more than a dream, isn't it?"

"This is the only place we can truly be together," Daniel replied in a gentle, tender tone. "This is all we can have, for now…"

"Then we will make it enough," she whispered.

"Yes…" Not caring who might be watching, he drew her closer, savouring the moment. His hands rose from her shoulders, his open palms cupping the softness of her face.

Carolyn went willingly, her arms sliding around his waist, her fingers gripping his linen shirt, as their lips met in a deep kiss of love and understanding. Time appeared to stand still.

Finally, Daniel lifted his head, looking down at her, as if he was only seeing her for the first time.

"I love you, Captain Daniel Gregg…" Carolyn sighed as she turned her head to rest her cheek against his shoulder, revelling in the steady beat of his heart. "I think I always have…"

"I love you, Carolyn Gregg, more than life itself. I always will…" Daniel sighed as he bent his head to claim her lips again and the only sound was the voice of the wind making its own music through the creaking stays and sails of the Carolyn…

And they all lived, and dreamed together, happily ever after…

Or so they all thought…

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Six weeks later…

Carolyn was busy in the living room, cleaning up after a hectic birthday party for Johnathan. No matter if her son had turned eight years old not long after they arrived at Gull Cottage or was a growing teenager who'd soon be off to college, there would always be debris left behind.

Of course, he was being a responsible young adult by making sure the last of his out-of-town guests caught their transport home on time. His mother had no qualms about allowing him to drive her newly purchased car. Jonathan was a studious young man who took his responsibilities very seriously.

Now almost as tall as Captain Gregg, with a head of floppy blond hair coupled with clear blue eyes, he seemed more than a little bemused by the ongoing attention from the young women of the town. His books and music held more appeal for him, for now.

"I swear this doesn't get any easier…" Carolyn straightened, easing the ache in her lower back. The Captain was sitting at his ease on the window seat watching her work.

"You could offer to help, you know…" she exclaimed testily, gathering up a tangle of coloured streamers that had been flung over and down the back of the couch.

"Madam, only ten minutes ago, you accused me of being more of a hindrance than a help. I believe you declared I was being too nineteenth century for suggesting you should sit down and put your feet up until Jonathan returns." Daniel shrugged as he stood, using his height advantage to gather streamers from the window's curtain rails.

"I'm sorry…" Carolyn apologised contritely, tucking the fall of her hair back behind her ear. "I didn't mean to snap at you. I still have the urge to mother Jonathan, no matter what age he reaches. I enjoy looking after him. Candy is far more of an independent thinker and doer. Her, I don't need to worry about."

"Understandable and apology accepted. Perhaps now you will consent to sit down and take a break. Coffee?" Daniel offered solicitously.

"Please…" Carolyn huffed a short laugh. "That sounds like heaven."

"Coming right up." Gull Cottage's resident ghost winked at her before he dematerialised.

At the same moment, the front doorbell sounded a strangled chirp. Carolyn frowned. "Another thing Claymore needs to get around to fixing," she muttered, mentally adding it to an already long list of things that needed attending to in the house. "Whenever he decides it's safe enough for him to come out here again."

After his last run-in with the Captain's ire over the sea journals, Claymore hadn't dared to venture near Gull Cottage. Soon Carolyn would be forced to track him down. Or send Daniel to visit him.

She frowned as the doorbell burbled again. She wasn't expecting anyone. Of course, those familiar with the house always used the large brass knocker in the centre of the door.

Suddenly the knocker sounded a short, sharp rap. "Who could that be?" Carolyn pushed her last handful of streamers and deflated balloons into a nearby cardboard box.

"I'll get it, Martha," she called to the housekeeper, who was busy dealing with the leftover food in the kitchen.

She crossed the foyer to the front door and opened it. A tall, thin, dapper-looking man was standing on the porch. He was folding a large umbrella before propping it against the door frame. He straightened to raise his hat to her, courteously.

"Mrs Muir?" he asked, giving her a small bow. "Mrs Carolyn Muir?" He blinked at her myopically through wire-rimmed spectacles that appeared too large for his thin, rather anxious face.

"Yes…" Carolyn nodded slowly. "Can I help you?"

At the edge of her vision, she saw the captain about to leave the kitchen carrying a tray holding the coffee pot and two cups. To the unexpected visitor, she knew the tray would appear to be floating in mid-air without support.

"Um, why don't we talk outside…" She took the man's arm, smartly about-facing him toward the porch. "It's such a lovely afternoon."

"But it's raining…" her visitor exclaimed, resisting her efforts to usher him outside. "We'll get wet!"

"Oh, but I just love the rain, don't you?" Carolyn enthused, grateful to see that Daniel had turned back into the kitchen with the tray.

"I detest getting wet," Her visitor complained, pointedly removing his arm from her grasp before smoothing at the abused fabric of his coat sleeve. "Mrs Muir, my name is Peregrine Montgomery…" He paused significantly, raising his rather spidery eyebrows at her as if expecting her to know his name.

"I'm sorry…" She stared at him blankly.

"I see…" He reached into the inside pocket of his suit coat. "Then here is the proof of my identity…" He held out a pristine business card. "I thought you would have been anticipating my arrival for some time now. I did state I would be arriving today at precisely this time."

"I really don't have a clue why you expect me to know you…" Carolyn frowned. "I'm afraid you have me at some disadvantage, Mr Montgomery."

She accepted the card without looking at it, studiously trying to ignore the Captain who'd appeared beside her unexpected visitor and was inspecting him thoroughly as if he was some kind of distasteful curiosity.

"Shall I fetch my cutlass and see him off the premises, Madam?" he asked hopefully. His nose wrinkled with suspicion. "He carries the whiff of the city about him. He looks furtive. I suspect he may be a con artist. He seeks to take advantage of you with his smooth ways."

"No, no, no… look, why don't we talk inside?" Carolyn attempted to steer her visitor into the house, waving the captain away behind her back.

"Mrs Muir, this is all very irregular," Montgomery complained, again forced to remove his coat sleeve from her grasp. "And please desist from taking hold of my arm in such a hysterical way. It's most unsettling." He removed his hat as he stepped away from her and over the threshold, looking all about with deep curiosity.

"Sorry about that…" Carolyn apologised, frowning at the Captain as he followed them into the house. "We don't get a lot of unexpected visitors out here."

"Don't think I'm about to leave you alone with this charlatan," Daniel replied to her look. "I say he's up to no good!" Beyond the house, lightning flashed in tune with his displeasure at the unwanted intrusion.

"I think we'll allow Mr Montgomery to tell us his business. Shall we go into the living room?" Carolyn indicated the open double doors.

"Who are you talking to?" Montgomery again raised his eyebrows at her as he entered the room.

"Occupational hazard, I'm afraid. You see, I'm a writer," Carolyn waved aside his query. "I talk aloud to myself all the time. It helps with my composition. Sometimes I'm not aware I'm doing it."

"Then that explains your need for such splendid isolation. I prefer to live in more spartan surroundings with my books and research close to hand." Montgomery crossed the carpet to frown up at the captain's portrait above the mantel. "I gather this is the original owner of the house. The rather elusive Captain Daniel Gregg? I'm impressed. He looks to be a fine figure of a man."

"Yes, that's the captain." Carolyn frowned. "Ah, just what, exactly, is the nature of your business with me, Mr Montgomery?"

"You haven't read my card," her unwanted visitor pointed out impatiently, indicating the business card she still held in her hand. "And I did make every attempt to correspond with you over a month ago, but I received no reply. I deeply dislike having to repeat myself."

He glanced around at the scattered remnants of Jonathan's party with distaste. "I have been forced to contact you in person because you didn't respond to my letter. It's not my usual way of going about my research. I have limited time to go on wild goose chases."

Thunder muttered across the sky outside, causing the lights to flicker. Montgomery glanced out the windows uneasily.

"Research? What kind of research?" Carolyn asked worriedly, dropping her gaze to the business card. "Peregrine Montgomery…" she read slowly. "Naval historian from Bangor, Maine…"

She frowned as the reference niggled at her memory. Elvira Grover had said her ghost writer of non-fiction works on naval history also came from Bangor.

Carolyn shook her head. Surely it was just a coincidence. There had to be any number of naval historians in the state. This man looked as if collaboration would be a nasty word.

"Naval historian?" The storm outside immediately abated as Daniel walked up behind Carolyn to peer over her shoulder. "Oh, be careful, Madam, I smell an even bigger rat. But he has my interest." He fixed his attention on their visitor, studying him even more intently.

Montgomery puffed out his narrow chest, suddenly looking well-satisfied. "I'm sure you must have heard of me. I'm known for my detailed biographies on the subject of Maine's many celebrated, nineteenth-century sea captains."

"I see…" Carolyn shook her head. "But I fail to understand how that has anything to do with me. Or the captain."

"You live in the house that once belonged to the man I have come to research." Montgomery pointed up at the portrait. "I will admit I was in complete ignorance of his existence. But now that I am aware of him, it would be very remiss of me not to include him in a chapter of my upcoming book."

"Oh, I don't think that would be a very good idea…" Carolyn prevaricated, sinking onto the couch. "I'm told the Captain very much valued his privacy when he was alive. I do not see the need to change that, now he's dead…"

"Why?" Daniel demanded to know. "At least allow the man to say his piece, Madam."

"We're talking at cross-purposes. I'm not here to seek your permission, Mrs Muir." Montgomery shook his head. "This is merely a courtesy call to take a gauge of the man himself. I have already secured a firm understanding with the current owner of the property, a Mr Claymore Gregg."

He looked pleased. "Yes, he wrote back to me immediately. A most civil letter. He has been well compensated for his help with my research. I have his full permission to investigate every inch of this house at any time of my choosing. He is very enthusiastic about the whole idea."

"Ah-ha! That quivering bowl of blancmange!" Daniel flared, making Carolyn jump. "I knew he had to be at the bottom of this debacle somewhere! I suspect he intercepted your letter, Madam! He was never one to allow a dollar to escape his greedy grasp!"

A sudden burst of thunder rattled the windows and rain lashed down. "No wonder he's been keeping a low profile! He was wary of being found out!"

"You certainly have the most unusual weather patterns out here," Montgomery observed rather uneasily. "The skies were clear when I drove out from town."

"I will not allow you to trample all over my house," Carolyn held her ground. "I have never met the Captain." She crossed her fingers behind her back. "Nor am I likely to do so since he was not born in my time. But if he was alive, I'm sure he would agree with me."

"If the good Captain was alive then I would have absolutely no interest in him," Montgomery replied testily. "My area of expertise is strictly historic, never modern."

He frowned at her. "I have been informed that the Captain actually haunts this house. What could be more intriguing than to converse with the ghost of a man who's been dead for over one hundred years? A Maine sea captain, too. Think of all I could learn from him."

"If the house was haunted, I assure you I would know. I've lived here for more than five years. I haven't encountered any ghosts in that time." Carolyn frowned repressively. "If I had received your letter on time, I would've replied telling you it was pointless coming all the way out here on such a wasted journey. There is nothing for you, here."

"I see…" Montgomery shook his head. "Not receiving my letter must have been an oversight on the part of the mail service in these parts, no doubt. I was only recently alerted to the existence of the captain by my sister, Miss Evelyn Montgomery."

He cleared his throat pointedly. "It seems she has developed a rather alarming penchant for novels of a rather steamier nature than her usual fare. She has even joined the Bangor Ladies Reading Circle, much against my wishes. The president, a Mrs Cooke, is an acquaintance of my family. It was she who introduced my sister to said risqué novels."

He sighed brusquely as he inspected his cuffs, tidying and primping them into rigid order. "Putting aside the more lurid nature of the work, I took a rather keen interest in the historical nature of those novels. The critics said they have a brilliant ring of authenticity."

He cleared his throat. "After some research, I discovered that the author, the somewhat elusive Miss Carol Gregg, is well-known here in Schooner Bay. I had hoped to find her and demand an explanation of her expert knowledge."

"I have heard Miss Gregg's name mentioned…" Carolyn watched him with a heavy sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. "But I'm unaware of her identity or her whereabouts. Nor do I care to know. Her business is her own."

"Yes, well, having assessed the accuracy of her novels on all things naval, I found them quite astounding, for a woman." Montgomery frowned at her. "Which leads me to question of why and how a female author of such dubious fiction could have access to such detailed knowledge?"

Carolyn rose to her feet, handing back his card. "Whatever deal you may have struck with Claymore Gregg, I have a signed, twenty-year lease for Gull Cottage. This is my home. I will not allow you to force your way in here on the dubious hearsay of some novel."

"Novels, Mrs Muir," Montgomery replied patiently. "I believe there are six at last count. And I would have thought that you, as a fellow author, would be sympathetic to my need to research the captain and bring him to the attention of the world. Verification that he haunts this house would be an added bonus. Think of the tourists and the benefits for the whole town."

He paused significantly. "I have researched you too, Mrs Muir. I am willing to pay you handsomely for any information. As a widow living alone, with two grown children to put through college, I'm sure you cannot be too choosy about how and where you obtain your funds."

"What bare-faced impudence!" Daniel snarled. "Now will you allow me to fetch my cutlass, Madam? I will dissect him from nose to naval!" He slashed his hand through the air.

"What I'm sympathetic to are my own work and my privacy," Carolyn replied repressively, managing to keep her eyes averted from Daniel's mutinous expression. "I think we won't agree on the matter. Please don't try and contact me again. I've already told you, there are no ghosts, here."

Montgomery appeared unmoved by her vehemence. "When pressed with an extra incentive, Mr Gregg did admit there exist certain journals written by the Captain. He said this elusive Miss Gregg removed them from his protection some weeks ago and he has not received any payment for them."

He frowned at Carolyn. "I would be very keen to secure them for my research. They would be invaluable to me. If you will assist me in tracking down this author, I will be more than happy to leave you in the peace you crave."

"I'm sorry, but I'm unaware of any missing journals," Carolyn had no compunction about lying to the man's face. "And Mr Gregg's business dealings hold no interest for me. Now, if you'll excuse me?" She walked pointedly toward the front door.

Montgomery followed her with obvious reluctance. "Very well, I will leave you in peace… for now," he added significantly. "I have taken rooms at the local inn while I conduct my investigations into Miss Gregg's identity and the whereabouts of the captain's journals. My publishing deadline looms, so I'm rather pressed for time. I expect we'll be seeing each other again, very soon."

He replaced his hat on his head, as Carolyn opened the front door. He walked outside, picking up his umbrella as he frowned at the rain. Thunder rumbled and a streak of lightning flashed across the sky.

"Very unusual weather for this time of year," he observed again before settling his hat more firmly on his head and putting up his umbrella. "I bid you a good day, Mrs Muir." He stalked off down the front path toward his car.

"Goodbye, Mr Montgomery." Carolyn shut the door firmly behind him. She leaned back against it, breathing a cautious sigh of relief.

Daniel appeared to lean back against the door beside her. "I will admit I did rather fancy having a chapter to myself in a book about nineteenth-century Maine sea captains," he observed wistfully. "I would hate to think I've been forgotten."

Carolyn shook her head. "We both know where that sort of publicity could lead. We can't risk that kind of exposure."

"Regrettably, yes." Daniel sighed. "Though I have the distinct impression we haven't seen the last of Mr Peregrine Montgomery. He has an air of dogged persistence I don't like. Blast, Claymore for his treachery!"

"You have my full permission to deal with both of them in any way you choose." Carolyn pushed herself away from the door. "Right now, I have a living room to set straight before dinner."

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