Chapter 42 Beth
Beth
“Oh my God,” I say, backing up, backing away from the horror in the dining room.
“What is it?” he asks, turning the light to shine into my eyes.
“It’s dressed like her, like Sunny, the night she died,” I babble, my head spinning as I step away, holding my hand up to block the light from his phone.
“Relax, Beth. You’re seeing things. Stress will do that to some people, drive them crazy,” Ryan says. “We need to find the kids.”
I turn back to look at the dining room, to find the woman, to find Sunny, but without Ryan’s phone flashlight, it’s too dark to see her. Something is very wrong. With everyone in this house. I need to find my daughter, and we need to get out of here.
“Celeste!” I yell, coughing and choking on dust as we make our way to the kitchen. “Celeste! Where are you?”
“Mom!” Celeste yells. “We’re in here. Inside the pantry.” We watch a door open, and she and Zach are revealed, wide-eyed but fine. Celeste gives me a big hug and takes my hand. “I was so scared.”
“So was I, but we’re going to be fine. We need to stay together,” I say. And we need to get out of here as soon as we can, I don’t say.
“OK, let’s get you back to the other part of the house,” Ryan says, wrapping Zach in a hug and leading the way. “I’m not sure this addition, this part of the house is safe. It may have been compromised when the tree fell through the roof.”
“Wow, that’s what happened? The noise was crazy. See, I told you we’d be fine,” Zach says to Celeste. “Your mom and my dad to the rescue.”
“Let’s take them to my room; it’s part of the original house, right?
” I ask Ryan. I’d like to avoid going the same way we came because I don’t want to see her again.
A chill runs down my spine, but I stay strong.
For Celeste. I also don’t want to go back to the living room with all my so-called sisters and the dead body adorning the piano.
I want to get to our room, find my car keys, and hit the road—travel warning be damned.
“Sure, yes, that works. Let’s go to your room,” he says, and we walk quickly in a tight group to get there. When we finally reach the door and hurry inside, it’s a surreal world of calm on the other side of the hallway.
I turn on my phone flashlight and shine it at Celeste, making sure she’s unharmed. Her pink dress is now coated in dust and dirt like everyone else’s. I have twigs and leaves in my hair, scratches on my arm. But we’re safe.
“Well, looks like this engagement party is over,” I say as a wave of relief fills my heart.
“Maybe I’ll host one for you. Back home.
Nothing fancy, full of friends and love.
We can take our time. No rush.” I’m still not sure what’s going on here, with Ryan and Gentry House, but it’s creeping me out.
Did I really see Sunny darting through the dining room?
No, it was my mind playing tricks on me, it must have been.
“Sounds good to me,” Zach says. “This weekend was all my mom’s idea, as you all know.”
“A bad one,” Ryan says with a frown. “As usual.”
I look at Ryan, his face uplit by his phone’s flashlight, distorted by the light, half illuminated in the darkness, and for once, I see him as a stranger.
I don’t want to stay in this room with him.
I don’t want Celeste in here, but it’s safer here than near the collapsing roof.
And Zach is here with her. He loves her, or does he?
I’m having my doubts about him, and about this entire family.
I walk to the bathroom and splash water on my face, cleaning the grit and grime from my eyes, nose, and mouth as much as I can. I dry my face with a washcloth. And that’s when I see the letter, taped to my mirror. It’s typed.
Dear Beth,
Oh, how I’ve missed you all these years.
You were my best friend, the one person I could trust no matter what.
But now, everything has changed. This is all your fault.
You never should have come here. To my home.
You weren’t there for me the night I died, were you?
No, you weren’t. I know where you were. And now you come to my home and ruin everything good and pure.
Do you feel guilty, Beth? Do you? You should.
You took everything from me, but you won’t do it again. Go away, Beth.
My hands shake as the note drops to the bathroom counter. My stomach clenches when I see the scrawled signature at the bottom of the letter. My heart races.
Love, Sunny
No. This is not from my dead best friend. It can’t be. Sunny’s ghost is haunting me? Me? I look at myself in the mirror. “I’m sorry, Sunny,” I say to my reflection. I loved you, I still love you. I pick up the note again.
Do I feel guilty?
I bang my hands on the bathroom counter. This isn’t Sunny’s note. It’s from somebody alive and not well. I take a deep breath and walk back into the room.
“You know what, I’m going to go check on the others. Jamie may need my help with Roxy because Amelia is no help, as usual,” I say, grabbing my purse. I’m going to try to find out if the driveway is passable, if my car is OK or damaged by the storm. “Ryan, could you stay here, with these two?”
“Of course I could, but I think maybe I should go with you,” he says and walks me to the door. He puts his hand on my shoulder. It should be a comforting gesture, but it’s not, not anymore. But I smile. I need to keep him happy, on my side, until we leave.
“I’ll be right back,” I say and pat his hand.
“Be careful out there. And do not go near the dining room. If you need me, I’ll be right here waiting for you. With Celeste.”
I know he added her name as a warning. I know. Message received, loud and clear. I have one more question I need answered, and unfortunately, the answer is in the living room with one of my sisters.