Chapter 16
On the way to Locke Pointe, Morgan thought about Quinn and Travis Mason. Like Brett, something about the man didn’t sit right with her. He seemed hesitant to talk about himself, yet he knew a lot about the Easton family.
She pushed the troubling thought about the newcomer from her mind, grabbed her bags and headed inside.
Having dropped Chester off earlier, the pup met her at the door, pawing at her leg and greeting her with a friendly woof.
Morgan stooped down to pat his head. “Sorry I couldn’t take you to the school, buddy. The good news is we get to hang out together for the rest of the day.”
She cut through the dining room and trekked into the kitchen where she found Tina sitting at the counter, an open laptop in front of her. She turned, giving Morgan her full attention. “How did the science fair go?”
“Tristan received an honorable mention ribbon.” Morgan filled her in on the details. “We figured out who the two kids are who have been picking on him.”
“Who are they?”
“Naomi Renaud’s great-grandchildren. Grandmother Elizabeth recognized their names.”
“No kidding.” Tina tsk-tsked. “This doesn’t surprise me.”
“Me either.” Morgan checked to make sure they were alone and filled her in on what had transpired the previous evening with Tiff and Austin, how she and Wyatt caught them sneaking into the attic.
“I’m surprised you didn’t kick them out.”
“To be honest, my first reaction was to ask them to leave. However, their Legends of the Great Lakes YouTube channel has lots of subscribers and views. I decided to make lemonade out of lemons.”
“You figured since they already snooped why not give them the inside scoop.”
“Exactly. Hopefully, the video will get viewers excited about Easton Island, and a percentage of them will book a stay.”
Tina tapped the side of her forehead. “You’re a smart woman, Morgan Easton. Leave it to you to figure out a way to make it work to your advantage.”
“I look at is as a small favor for a potentially big reward.” Morgan changed the subject. “Have you seen Greg this morning?”
“He stopped by earlier to fix a leaky faucet.” Tina placed her hands on her hips. “He’s down in the dumps.”
“About Hailey?”
“Mm. Hmm. He told me what happened, about how they mutually agreed to take a break.”
“I think it’s a good idea,” Morgan said.
“I couldn’t agree more. As I said before, there’s something about the woman that isn’t sitting right with me.”
“Part of it is the fact that she avoids talking about herself, her past, her family other than her aunt.”
“Like she’s hiding something.” Tina shrugged. “The bottom line is Greg needs someone who complements him, not makes him want to rip his hair out.”
Morgan grinned. “I couldn’t have summed it up better.”
The tinkling of laughter echoed. Austin, with Tiff by his side, rounded the corner. “Hey, Morgan.”
“Hello, Austin, Tiff. I trust you slept well?”
“The suite is sweet.” Tiff made a pillow out of her hands and placed her head on top before closing her eyes. “We slept like babies.”
“We’re uber excited to interview you,” Austin said. “Our followers are going to be geeked.”
“You’re the experts. I’ll let you tell me what the plan is.”
“We were thinking maybe we could start outside, do a panoramic shot of Locke Pointe before working our way inside and upstairs to the attic.”
“Giving us a little background and history about your family would be helpful,” Tiff added. “We noticed family photos in the living room. It would be the perfect backdrop for the interview.”
“Let’s get cracking.” Morgan escorted the pair to the front porch and down the steps. They walked all the way to the picket fence at the end of the sidewalk. “I’ve run several ads featuring Locke Pointe from this angle.”
Austin removed his cell phone from his pocket. He introduced the inn, giving a brief synopsis of the location, touting it as a high-end bed-and-breakfast, and then zoomed in on the sign out front.
“Tiff and I are thrilled to have Morgan Easton, granddaughter of Joseph and Ann Locke as well as Elizabeth Easton-Ainsworth, with us today.”
Tiff popped into view, and she and Austin bantered back and forth, sharing a funny anecdote about the ferry ride over. The couple strolled across the meticulously manicured lawn as they made their way back inside.
Austin tapped the screen. “The first segment is ready to roll.”
Watching them from the sidelines, Morgan had to admit she was impressed. The vloggers had it down pat, from the opening dialogue, offering interesting tidbits and trivia about Locke Pointe, to giving a brief history of the island. Clearly, the couple had done their homework.
The trio stepped into the living room. Austin set up his tripod, facing it toward the fireplace and family photos lining the mantle.
Directly above the fireplace was the Locke Pointe artwork Morgan’s mother had painted.
Tucked in behind it was where she’d found her most important clue: numbers that initially made no sense but would eventually lead her to the medallion.
Tiff eased in next to her. “You’re staring at the painting.”
“I am.”
“This is it,” she said. “The painting where you found the slip of paper.”
“It is.”
The young woman’s eyes lit. “It’s a fascinating story, one of the most interesting Austin and I have ever covered. I want to apologize again for last night and thank you for being so gracious and allowing us to interview you. We don’t deserve it.”
“You don’t,” Morgan agreed. “However, I admire your entrepreneurial spirit and enthusiasm. I may have already mentioned that I checked out your YouTube channel. You have a strong following.”
“Austin and I have worked hard to get where we are. We love what we do.”
“It shows.”
“Ready to go.” Austin gave them a thumbs up.
Morgan took the chair opposite Tiff, with the fireplace as the backdrop. A vase of fresh flowers sat on the antique Chippendale table between them. Tiff picked up where they’d left off, introducing Morgan and reminding viewers where they were.
The woman gave a brief snippet of the estate’s history and then rolled right into her first round of questions. Perfect prompts. Seamless transition from the current B&B, guiding viewers through the past and then right back to the Shifting Sands Medallion’s discovery.
Morgan told Tiff and the viewers about her mother’s painting, finding the slip of paper and how she and Wyatt had finally put the puzzle pieces together.
The segment ended with Morgan showing Austin and Tiff where they had found the medallion and how the moon and windows played a part.
Tiff, with Austin and Morgan in front of the camera, wrapped up the segment, inviting viewers to visit Locke Pointe Bed-and-Breakfast. She added a disclaimer at the end, warning those who planned to visit that the attic was off limits for safety and security reasons.
“It’s a wrap.” Austin gave Tiff a high five and turned to Morgan. “You were the perfect host. At the risk of sounding like a broken record and repeating what Tiff said, thank you for sharing your story, for giving us a firsthand glimpse at how it all went down.”
“We’ll send you a copy when it releases unless, of course, you would rather preview it,” Tiff added.
“There wasn’t anything I disapproved of. I say let ‘er rip.” Morgan waited for the couple to pack up their gear and head downstairs.
After they left, she lingered in the attic, thinking back to that night, how equally shocked and thrilled she and Wyatt had been. History unfolded right before their eyes.
“I know you’re close by.” Morgan found herself drawn to the window. “We get to tell your story and share a small piece of the family legacy.” She tapped her heart. “No matter what curveball life throws my way, you’ll always be here with me, Mom.”