Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
A scream echoed through the house, its sharpness slicing through the sudden stillness left in the wake of the power outage. Robin’s heartbeat skipped and leaped and hopped, her body instinctively freezing in place as her ears strained to locate the source of the cry.
She’d been standing at the kitchen island, wiping down the counter and mentally ticking off the final items for tonight’s big dinner. Gravy, rolls, put the desserts out to thaw.
The lights had flickered once, twice, and then—nothing. The hum of the refrigerator went silent, the overhead lights blinked out, the Christmas tree had gone dark, and the only illumination now came from the dim shafts of early evening sunlight filtering through the windows.
Another cry pierced the air, this one closer, more frantic.
Her pulse quickened as she turned toward the sound, her hands still clutching the damp dishcloth. “Jamie?” She called out, the name tumbling from her lips before she could even process where it came from, instinct guiding her thoughts.
Robin tossed the dishcloth aside, hurrying across the kitchen and into the foyer, where shadows lengthened and distorted the familiar grandeur of the space. The once-warm glow of the Christmas lights and the roaring fire in the hearth had been swallowed by the growing darkness, and with it, an unsettling feeling began to take root in her gut.
“Mom.” Jamie’s voice trembled as she came barreling down the stairs. She clutched her phone in one hand, the screen casting an eerie blue light over her pale face. “It’s so dark up there, and—” She broke off, her wide eyes searching Robin’s face. “What’s happening? Why did the power go out?”
Robin pulled her daughter close, wrapping her arms around Jamie’s slender shoulders, trying to lend her strength. “I don’t know yet,” she said, forcing calm into her voice even though her mind raced with possibilities. “But I’m sure it’s nothing serious. Just a breaker or something.”
A flashlight beam moved toward her, and Duke said, “I’ll see what I can find.” He turned toward the basement and started down the steps, Aaron and Paul on his heels.
“We’ll find the breaker box,” Aaron said. “Have things back on in no time.”
“Do you know if it’s downstairs?” Robin asked.
“They usually are,” Paul said, and he too disappeared into the darkness leading into the basement.
“There’s no outages on Rocky Ridge,” Alice said from the living room. The fire crackled in the hearth, putting out light for the manor too. She lowered her phone, but Robin could still see her eerie, grim expression as she said, “So it’s just the manor.”
Of course it was just the manor.
Robin’s gaze flicked toward the windows that lined the back of the house. The sky outside had turned a dull slate-gray as thick clouds had rolled across the horizon. Winter storms weren’t unusual this time of year, especially on Rocky Ridge, but this felt different. More ominous.
And Mandie and Charlie had gone out in that. Robin shivered as she pulled her phone from her pocket to text her oldest daughter.
Another cry rose into the air, this one from the living room where the younger children had been playing, and drew her attention. Robin exchanged a quick glance with Jamie before hurrying toward the sound, her daughter trailing close behind.
In the living room, Kelli knelt on the floor, cradling Daphne in her arms while Asher and James toddled around, their cute little faces seemingly nonplussed about the disappearance of the electricity.
“It’s okay, sweetheart,” Kelli murmured to Daphne, her voice soothing even as her eyes darted toward Robin with a mixture of concern and frustration.
Robin reached for Asher, who blinked up at her with wide, inquisitive eyes, his toy car clutched in one hand. “It’s okay, buddy,” she said softly, picking him up and ruffling his hair. “We’ll have the lights back on soon.”
But even as she said it, the unease in her chest grew.
Where were Duke, Aaron, and Paul? They should’ve had this figured out by now. They were smart men—resourceful. If the power was out because of a blown fuse or a tripped breaker, surely they’d have fixed it by now.
“Mom?” Jamie’s voice wavered from behind her.
Robin turned to face her daughter again. “Yes, sweetheart?”
Jamie hesitated, her phone still casting that ghostly glow over her features. “Do you think—do you think this is because of the, you know, the house?” Her words hung in the air, as heavy as the thickening shadows.
Robin swallowed hard, hating that she couldn’t give Jamie the immediate reassurance she so clearly needed. She didn’t believe in ghosts, not really. Nothing about a few flickering lights and fluttering curtains had convinced her that this house was haunted.
But she couldn’t deny that something about this place had been off since they’d arrived. The manor was physically magnificent, yes—opulent, sprawling, with its celestial-themed decor and rich history. But ever since they’d uncovered that hidden office, whispers of the Everleigh’s tragic past had seemed to weave themselves into the very fabric of the house.
It was just a house. Bricks and mortar and wood. A house couldn’t hurt them.
“I’m sure it’s nothing,” Robin said, injecting as much confidence as she could into the words. “It’s probably just the weather. We’ll get it sorted out.”
Before Jamie could respond, voices came up the steps from the basement, and Duke appeared, saying something over his shoulder. Robin hugged Jamie to her side as they faced him, and she didn’t like the grim look in his expression when he reached the first floor.
“Only one of the breaker boxes is downstairs,” he said. “And they’re all working.”
“How do you know there’s more than one?”
“For a house this big?” Aaron asked as he rejoined everyone in the living room. “There should be three times the breakers we saw down there.” He turned in a full circle, pausing on El for a moment. “There might be one on every floor.”
“Have you guys seen a breaker box in your search of the house?” Paul asked, moving to Laurel’s side.
She shook her head, and Robin couldn’t recall seeing anything electrical besides light switches and outlets as she’d gone through the manor.
Robin’s stomach tightened as she searched their expressions for reassurance, only to find none. “Great,” she said. “We’ve got dozens of people in this house, and no power right before dinner.”
“Could just be an outage,” Arthur said. “For the island.”
“I just said there are no reported outages on Rocky Ridge,” Alice said, her phone lighting her face. “I’m looking right at it.” She glanced up. “No outages, so it has to be just this house.”
“Let’s check the bathrooms and laundry room,” Duke said.
Robin closed her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath to steady herself. She couldn’t afford to panic. They had plenty of food, even if it wasn’t the roast turkey dinner she’d planned and worked on. She thought of all electricity did, and they’d need hot water to shower, to use the pool, and so much more than just dinner.
She opened her eyes, half-hoping the lights would flare back to life. They didn’t. “I guess we’ll just have to make do, won’t we?”
She glanced around the room, taking in the mix of worried faces, young and old. Kelli still cradled Daphne, her expression pinched with concern. Kristen stood near the doorway, her hands clasped tightly together as if in prayer.
“Mom,” Lena said. “It’s getting dark.”
“It sure is,” Clara murmured, her eyes stuck on Robin.
In fact, everyone looked at her. Her, of all people.
El moved to her side. “Okay,” she said, and Robin squared her shoulders and plastered on the most confident smile she could muster. “Candles, maybe?”
“Candles.” Robin clapped her hands, her mind working again. Duh—she didn’t need electricity to cook. “Here’s the plan. We’ve got a big dinner planned, and we’re not going to let a little thing like a power outage ruin it. The stove and oven is gas, so I can finish dinner, and I’m sure we have enough candles to light up the whole manor. We’ll make it work.”
For a moment, no one moved. Then Jamie stepped forward, her eyes bright with determination. “I’ll help get the candles.”
Robin’s heart swelled with pride as she nodded. “Good girl. Check the kitchen drawers. I’m sure we can find some matches in there too.”
Jamie strode into the kitchen, her duty clear, and slowly, the others began to fall into action. Alice tucked her phone in her pocket and went after Jamie to help with the candles. Kelli passed Daphne to Robin for a moment, so she could get to her feet, and Kristen, AJ, and Jean turned on their phone flashlights and pointed their phones at the ceiling to illuminate the area where the kids continued to play.
Duke, Aaron, and Paul moved down the hall, and Robin hoped they’d find another breaker box. She believed in her husband, and she passed Daphne back to Kelli and went to help the others find anything they could use for light.
As she went past the table, the sliding door opened, and Mandie and Charlie stepped inside, their faces flushed from the cold. Robin’s gaze immediately flew to her daughter, searching for any sign of distress or unease. Mandie’s eyes met hers for a brief moment, and Robin’s heart clenched at the sight of the raw emotion there.
Something was definitely going on with Mandie and Charlie, but she hoped they’d learn to work things out between them. “Hey,” she said, making a quick detour. “The power is out, but we have a gas stove, so dinner is still on. We’re looking for candles and flashlights right now.”
“Okay,” Mandie said, and she cut a look at Charlie. He gave her a smile, and that made Robin’s heart sing. She wanted to fix everything for her daughter—and Charlie—to swoop in and make it all better, the way she always had when Mandie was a little girl.
She couldn’t do that anymore, not without pushing her daughter away.
Instead, Robin forced a smile and moved into the kitchen again. “Okay,” she said as Jamie set two jarred candles on the countertop. “I’m going to check on where we are with the food. It’s going to be an adventure—cooking by candlelight.”
A few scattered chuckles rippled through the group, and a small surge of relief moved through Robin. If she could keep them laughing, keep them focused on the task at hand, maybe—just maybe—they wouldn’t dwell on the strange, creeping sense of unease settling over the manor.
The shadows lengthened as the sun dipped lower in the sky, casting the house in deep twilight, but Robin paused to take stock of where she’d been with the dinner prep. She had no idea if she could pull this off in the dark, but she was determined to get through the night no matter what.