4
Tennyson
After the last minute debacle of things going missing before they’d left on the Memorial Day Weekend trip, Ten made sure everything was packed the night before, especially Mr. Moo.
He’d snuck into Ezra’s room after the little boy had fallen asleep and Moo-napped the cow, stuffing him into Ezra’s backpack, which Ten left near the front door with all the other luggage for the trip.
At half past seven, Ronan took all the luggage outside, where he and Jude loaded it into the van, while Ten made breakfast for the kids. Cold cereal in paper bowls, so that they could be thrown away with the trash, which he would bring out before they left.
Another difference in this trip was that the adults had placed a grocery order they’d be able to pick up on the way to the rental house.
He figured the more they did before they’d even left the house, the easier the trip would be.
Especially when the notorious Cape traffic was factored into the equation.
All Ten needed to do now was get everyone into the van. They were running on schedule with a little time to spare. “Okay, guys, finish up breakfast and hit the bathroom one last time before we leave.”
“Me first!” Ezra bounced out of his seat and ran toward the restroom.
“Wash hands and face, Ezzie!” Ten called after him. “I’ll know if you didn’t.”
A loud groan came from the behind the closed door.
“Done!” Ezra ran out of the bathroom and toward the living room before Ten intercepted him. The little boy slapped his still-wet hands against Ten’s cheeks. “Me wash. All keen.”
“Yup, you’re all clean.” Ten wiped his face on Ezra’s shirt. “Daddy’s waiting for you by the door. Go get him.”
“Bye, house!” Ezra called out and dashed away from Ten.
“I’m ready to go too, but I won’t wipe my hands on your face.” Everly pointed to Ten’s left cheek. “You missed a spot.”
“Thanks, little miss.” Ten grabbed a paper towel and dabbed his cheek with it. “Are you ready to go?”
“All set,” Everly agreed.
“Are you getting any vibes about the trip?” Ten had seen smooth sailing so far, but knew things could change in a heartbeat.
“We’re gonna have a great time, Dad. I’ve got a plan to help make sure things go smoothly.”
Ten grinned. “What plan?”
“I’m not gonna talk about the ghosts I see. I’ll help the best I can. If I need backup, I’ll tell you and we’ll take care of it together. If Daddy and Uncle Fitz don’t know ghosts are around, they’ll relax and have fun.”
Ten mulled over what his daughter was telling him. “What if the ghosts were murdered and can help solve their own case?” For the last nine years, Ten had used his gift to help Ronan and the cold case team solve the unsolvable. What would happen if, instead of investigating, they walked away?
“We wouldn’t be walking away,” Everly said. “We’d listen to whatever ghost is talking to us and pass the message along to the police in that town.”
“So we gather information about physical evidence and we place an anonymous tip?” Ten had to admit the idea was genius.
“Yeah, something like that. You know Daddy is like a dog with a bone, he doesn’t give up until every loose end is tied up in a pretty bow.
Uncle Fitz and Jude too, but if we don’t give them the bone in the first place, they won’t have anything to investigate.
They can relax and read books on the beach or stare at hot guys in tiny bathing suits or take naps. ”
“If your father is off-duty, what will you be doing? Staring at hot guys too?” Ten snorted at the idea of Everly going gaga over boys.
Everly giggled. “Me and Aurora will do what we always do. Work on our tan. Talk about clothes. Read books and magazines, splash in the water.”
Ten raised a questioning eyebrow at this daughter. “That’s it?”
“Okay, maybe we’ll look at cute boys too.”
“I know you’ve said you think it’s your job to help ghosts, but does doing it ever get you down when we go on trips or you’re doing something fun that gets interrupted by spirits?” Ten had been meaning to ask Everly this question for some time. To be honest, he was afraid of the answer.
“Sometimes,” Everly sighed. “You and Daddy are always saying you just want me to enjoy being a kid. I want that for myself too, but if someone is suffering, I feel like I have to help. It would be the same for Daddy if he walked past a man having a heart attack on the sidewalk. He’d stop to help no matter what.
The only difference with what I do is that the people I help are invisible to everyone but us. ”
Ten nodded. “I hear that. Let’s stick to your plan. Handle what you can on your own. If you feel like you’re in over your head, tell me. If I feel like we need to involve your father, I will, but only in the case of a real emergency.”
“Deal.” Everly hugged Ten. “I’ll grab my bag and go get in the van.”
“I’m right behind you.” Ten grabbed the trash and followed Everly toward the door. He slipped his phone and keys into his bag, which sat next to the door. “Bye, house!”
“Is that everything?” Ronan asked, meeting him halfway up the front steps.
“All you need to do is lock the door and turn on the alarm.” Ten carried the trash to the can and set the bag inside.
“Morning, all!” Ten climbed into the van and took a seat in the middle.
Close enough to help the kids if they needed anything, but far enough away not to hear every word they said to each other.
He grabbed a book from his bag and reread the blurb on the back cover.
“Wagons roll,” Ronan said, slamming the door shut behind him.
Fitzgibbon pulled out into traffic and headed for the highway.
“Is everything okay?” Ronan asked in a low voice. “That conversation with Everly sounded serious.”
“Did you hear what we were talking about?” If Ronan knew Everly’s idea to keep her mouth shut, he’d spend the entire vacation worrying or interrogating their daughter. Neither of those things was part of the arrangement.
“No. I heard you whispering and I went back outside. I assumed it had to do with ghosts.”
“What ghosts?” Fitz asked, eyeing Ten and Ronan in the rearview mirror. “I thought we were going to have a spirit-free vacation.”
“There are no ghosts,” Ronan said. “Before we got in the van, Ten and Everly were talking about a spirit she’d been speaking with, but they’re not coming on the trip with us. I promise.”
“What about a pirate ghost, Uncle Fitz?” Wolf asked, perking up in the back seat. “It would be wicked cool to meet Blackbeard or Captain Kidd.”
“Wolfie has a point, Fitz,” Jude said, with a grin.
Fitz sighed dramatically. “Okay, fine. I’ll allow pirate ghosts, so long as I don’t have to walk a ghost plank.”
The kids laughed.
“What’s the plan for today?” Ten asked. He’d only been half listening the previous night while Fitz, Jude, and Ronan were discussing the plans.
“We can’t check into the rental house until 3:00 P.M. So we’ll get to the Cape as quickly as we can,” Fitz said.
“There’s going to be a lot of traffic on Route 3, out of Boston, as well as on Route 6 when we get onto the Cape.
I figured we’d stop for lunch somewhere on the way, maybe in Hyannis.
There’s this great place called Baxter’s which has great seafood. ”
“We’ve been there,” Ronan said. “Remember, babe? The restaurant is on a little island in the harbor with a view of a cute little lighthouse. Best fried scallops I’ve ever eaten in my entire life!”
Cope snorted. “We’ve been there too. Hyannis is where Jude and I rented one of those cute pedal boats, which my darling husband somehow managed to sink.”
“I’ll have you know it was the speeding sailboat who swamped us and sent the boat down to Davy Jones’ locker.” Jude muttered, crossing his arms over his chest, obviously still bitter over the adventure gone sour.
“When Jude ended up in the water, a piece of seaweed brushed against his leg and he thought he was getting eaten by a shark.” Cope held his stomach as he laughed.
“I remember that video!” Ronan chuckled. “Jude was screaming for help, and you were calmly wading back to shore.”
“Anyway,” Fitzgibbon said. “I thought after lunch we’d go to the Whydah Pirate Museum in Yarrrrmouth until we have an hour to go until check in. It’s a forty-five minute drive to Wellfleet from there. The kids will love seeing the gold and other artifacts found on the wreck.”
“Me too,” Ronan agreed. He unzipped his backpack and grabbed a book of his own. With a happy sigh, he cracked it open and started to read.
Ten had to admit Everly’s plan became more appealing by the minute.
He couldn’t remember Ronan being this relaxed in a long time.
The cases they’d worked this year had hit the detectives harder than usual.
All three deserved a break. As did the husbands, for that matter.
It was Ten, Cope, and Jace, who supported the detectives every step of the way.
Ten was going to do everything in his power to make this trip free and easy. If a pirate ghost happened to turn up, they’d find out where he buried his booty and then cross him over. Dead men tell no tales, as the saying goes and for once, Ten’s lips were sealed.