13
Ronan
On the way back from Provincetown, Blake Chambers called to say he would arrive at the beach house around half past ten and would have some relics of the Whydah shipwreck with him.
Ronan was thrilled with the news. They still had a little more than a week to go on this trip and he wanted to focus on fun in the sun, not three hundred year old pirate ghosts and their lost loves.
Jude and Fitz had made BLTs for dinner with crispy French fries.
That night’s movie was Finding Nemo, as it was vociferously voted for by Ezra and Lizzie.
Ronan watched as the kids’ eyes grew heavy toward the end of the movie.
He was hoping they could get all the kids to bed, with the exception of Everly, before Chambers arrived.
He assumed it would be easier to attract the spirits of Maria and Sam if there weren’t a bunch of rowdy kids on the beach.
“Okay, everyone, time for bed,” Cope announced when the movie ended.
“I’m not going to bed, Daddy,” Wolf said. “I’m staying with Everly to keep her safe from Sam Bellamy’s ghost.”
“Me too,” Aurora quickly agreed.
“We’ll take the little ones to bed, so you all can talk.” Ten scooped up Ezra and Cope did the same with Lizbet.
“Do you remember when we first got our bird feeder and you three were upset because the birds never stayed to eat?” Ronan asked.
“You said we were being too loud,” Wolf grumped.
“Exactly,” Ronan said. “If you come to the beach with us, you need to sit quietly, so the spirits feel safe to approach us. Do the two of you think you can do that?” He looked between Wolf and Aurora.
“Yes, Uncle Ronan. Nothing means more to me than Everly and I’ll behave if it helps keep her safe.”
Ronan couldn’t help but be impressed by Wolf’s loyalty to Everly. “What about you, Aurora?”
“I’ll be quiet too. I saw how upset Everly was the night she saw the vision of the shipwreck. I want to support my best friend.”
“Just as important is to stay quiet when Everly starts speaking to the spirits, if they come. You might not be able to see or hear what’s happening.
I promise we’ll explain it to you later.
” Ronan knew the kids would do anything they could to help Everly, but there was going to be some level of excitement when things started to happen.
So far as Ronan knew, neither Wolf, nor Aurora had ever seen a spirit before.
As Ronan was about to ask if the kids had any questions, the doorbell rang. “I’ll get it. It’s gotta be Chambers.”
When Ronan opened the door, he was surprised to see Blake Chambers wasn’t alone.
“Hey, Ronan, this is my son, Jax. He’s worked closely with me on the Whydah wreck for the last thirty years.”
“Nice to meet you, Jax. Please come in.” Ronan stood back as father and son walked into the house. He noticed Blake was carrying a locking pouch, the kind used for night drops at the bank.
“I’ll go get Ten and Cope,” Jace said. “They need to be here for this.” Giving Fitzgibbon’s hand a squeeze, he headed for the stairs.
“My father told me that you’ve met Maria Hallet.” Jax sat across from Everly and wore a curious look on his face. “I’m not so sure I believe that.”
“I understand. I met her a couple of mornings ago on the beach,” Everly confirmed. “I’ve never met such a sad spirit before. I really hope we can reunite her and Sam tonight.”
“Me too,” Jax said. “When I was a little boy, my father would tell me bedtime stories about pirates and their adventures on the high seas, but it was my mother who told me the story about Sam and Maria. What happened to them was just so unfair; her father not allowing them to marry and then Sam dying in the shipwreck. I always thought those two deserved a happy ending. Maybe tonight is the night they get it.”
“I hope so.” Everly turned to Blake. “What did you bring from the museum?”
Blake reached into his pocket and pulled out a key, which he used to unlock the bag. He pulled out three items. Each were carefully wrapped in what looked like chamois fabric.
“Hi Blake, I’m so glad you’re here,” Ten said as he reached the bottom of the stairs. Cope was behind him. “And you brought your son. Nice to meet you, Jax.”
“Same. My father told me about his meeting with you and your daughter. If the two of you can do what you claim, this will prove to be a momentous night.”
“Jax is a skeptic,” Everly said. She rolled her eyes.
Ronan snorted. Jax would learn soon enough just what Ten and Everly could do. There was no doubt in his mind that Everly would reunite the lost lovers. There was nothing he enjoyed more than when his daughter strutted her stuff.
“Back to what we brought,” Blake said. He unwrapped the first item, which was a silver coin. He set it on top of the cloth and reached for the second bundle. Opening it revealed a gold coin. Lastly, the third item, which was a gold ring with a flat top and something engraved into it.
“That ring belonged to Sam,” Everly said without hesitation, a look of excitement in her eyes. He wore it all the time and used it when he sent messages and letters.” She turned to Tennyson. “I don’t understand why, but he dripped candle wax on the letter and pressed the ring into it.”
Ten grinned. “It’s a signet ring. People used them to seal letters as a way to prove who the sender was. If you got a letter from Sam Bellamy without the ring’s design stamped into the sealing wax, then you knew the message didn’t actually come from him.”
Blake and Jax exchanged a silent look, before the elder Chambers held the ring out to Everly.
“It’s an S for Sam!” Everly traced her fingers over the stylized letters.
“We found the ring with the skeleton with the broken arm,” Blake said.
He pulled out his phone and tapped several times before setting it in front of Everly.
The grisly picture showed the ring on the skeletonized remains of a hand.
“Pirates liked to wear the jewelry of the people they robbed as a sign of their ferocity and strength. We’d wondered if the ring was something stolen or something that was handcrafted for a particular person. ”
“Dad, there’s no way she can know this ring belongs to Sam Bellamy,” Jax said, with a small shake of his head. “She probably saw it in the pictures you showed her of the remains with a broken arm.”
“We never saw a picture of this ring,” Ronan said, angry that he had to stand up for Everly’s integrity. “I also don’t remember seeing it displayed at the museum.”
“We’ve never put it on display,” Blake said. “It’s been locked away in a bank vault since 1995 when I found it. Jax didn’t meet you the other day, he doesn’t understand what you can do.”
“It’s okay,” Everly said with a grin, as if she knew something Jax didn’t know. “We need to get down to the beach.” She hopped off the sofa and went to the sliding glass door.
Ronan was right behind her. When he stepped onto the deck, he was bathed in light from the full moon. He couldn’t ever remember seeing the moon that bright before. Taking Everly’s hand, he led her down the path toward the beach. “You feeling okay?”
Everly nodded. “Yeah, I’m good, but you need to make sure Uncle Fitz stays close to Aurora. She’s gonna be scared. Woofie’s gonna be excited and will want to run to Sam. Uncle Jude needs to make sure that doesn’t happen until after Maria and Sam find each other.”
Ronan nodded and gathered Fitzgibbon and Jude, quickly filling them in on what Everly had said.
“Do you think I should take Aurora back into the house?” Fitz asked. He looked worried and a bit scared himself.
“I don’t think she’d go willingly.” Ronan pointed to where the kids were standing at the edge of the sea, holding hands.
“Good point.” Fitz watched as the kids broke apart and walked back toward the adults.
“I’m ready, Blake,” Everly said. “Can I hold the ring?”
“I don’t think that’s the best idea,” Jax said.
“It’s fine,” Blake pulled the ring out of his pocket and handed it to Everly. “Work your magic, Everly.”
With a nod, Everly walked back toward the water, stopping when gentle waves were crashing onto the sand. “Sam? Are you there? It’s me, Everly. Can you come see us?”
There was no response to Everly’s questions. Several minutes ticked by with Jax looking more and more smug as time passed.
“What’s that?” Ronan asked, catching sight of a faint light further up the beach. He couldn’t see what it was, but knew it was coming closer.
“The light?” Blake asked. “I see it too.”
“Me too,” Jax said, sounding bored. “It’s probably someone walking their dog on the beach.”
“It’s Maria,” Everly said.
Jax shot her a look of disbelief, but kept his eyes on the approaching light. The closer it got, the wider his eyes went. “Oh, my God!”
A shadowy figure dressed in black was outlined by the light of the lantern it was holding. Ronan watched as more details materialized. He could see it was a woman wearing a long black dress.
“Hi, Maria,” Everly said, staying put, waiting for the spirit to come to her.
“You returned, little one,” Maria said.
“I promised you I would.” Everly smiled at the spirit. “I brought some friends to help me tonight. I hope that’s okay?”
Maria nodded, as she turned her attention to the others.
Ronan had seen spirits before, but never one like Maria. Her spirit was nearly invisible, with the light from her lantern keeping her silhouette outlined. He waved to the spirit and noticed Aurora and Wolf doing the same.
“Holy shit, and all the ships at sea.” Jax tumbled backward, landing on his ass in the sand. “That’s a g-g-ghost!”
“Have you seen my darling Sam?” Maria asked, seemingly unbothered by Jax’s histrionics.
“Not yet, but I have something that will catch his attention.” Everly opened her fist to reveal the ring sitting on the flat of her palm.
“That ring belonged to Sam,” Maria said. “He sealed his letters with it, so I would know the message came from his heart to mine.”
Everly reached for Maria’s hand. When she took it, the spirit materialized further.