“I agree. I’m not comfortable leaving her here no matter how much she insists she’s fine. This is too weird. And this house is creepy.”
The two spent another forty-five minutes discussing various aspects of what was happening then turned in after Henry brought their luggage to their rooms. Their plan was to be up early and meet most of the household at breakfast.
Chapter 20
Josie sat at the table sipping tea, a plate of eggs and toast in front of her. Next to her, Gray was sipping coffee, reading the morning paper. Charlotte was already up as well and had joined them for her morning coffee and toast. Not long after they had all settled in, Michael and Damien appeared.
“Oh, good morning!” Charlotte said in a cheerful voice. “Did you sleep well? Breakfast is on the sideboard.”
“I slept great!” Michael said. “And breakfast smells delicious, thanks!” The two made their way to the buffet and helped themselves to eggs, toast, bacon and a cup of coffee.
As they were making their way to the table, another woman entered. Petite and blonde with a shoulder-length bob, Josie recognized Avery. “Well, good morning everyone,” she said. “I see the children aren’t up terrorizing you all yet,” she laughed. She poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table.
“Good morning, darling. No, the children aren’t down yet. Michael, Damien, this is my daughter, Avery. Avery, this is Michael and Damien, friends of Celine’s.”
“Hi, I’m Avery,” she said, extending her hand to Michael, then Damien.
“Nice to meet you,” they both said. There was a lull in the conversation.
Avery sipped her coffee then said, “So, how was your first night back in the house, Aunt Celine?”
Michael and Damien exchanged a glance at the mention of the word “aunt” as Josie answered. “Ah, it was fine. You know, I think I’ll take a walk,” she said, springing up and leaving some of her food on her plate.
“I’ll come with you,” Damien said, jumping from his seat.
“No, you finish your breakfast, I’ll be back later,” Josie said, already heading toward the door.
Damien, not sure of what to do, returned to his seat to finish his breakfast, not wanting to appear rude to the rest of the family in case they needed to extend their stay beyond the weekend.
“That was abrupt. Was it something I said?” Avery said, laughing. She looked at Michael and Damien, “Don’t worry, if you were hoping Aunt Celine would give you a tour after breakfast, I’m sure that my kids, Max and Maddy, would be more than happy to show you around the house, the property, and most likely the town.”
“Thanks. We may take them up on that,” Michael said. “I bet they’re great tour guides.”
“Oh, the best. They’ll show you every dark corner and cobweb this place has,” Avery said as two children came through the door. “Speak of the devils. Here they are now. Max, Maddy, come over here, meet some of Aunt Celine’s friends. This is Michael, and this is Damien.” Both children shook their hands, and they all exchanged pleasantries. “I was just telling them you’d be willing to give them a tour. Aunt Celine had a few things she needed to take care of this morning and she can’t show them around.”
“Oh, yeah, we’ll show you all around,” Max said.
“Yeah, ALL around,” Maddy added. “I hope you aren’t afraid of ghosts.”
“We are,” Michael said, “but we’ll have you to protect us, right?”
“Yeah!” both children said in unison, giggling.
“Okay, well first, let’s get you both something to eat and then you can commence on your grand tour of the estate,” Avery said.
The four of them finished their breakfast and Max said, “Okay, are you ready? I need to grab some flashlights and we’ll meet in the foyer. Maddy, why don’t you take them there?”
“Be sure you give them the full tour now, don’t skip anything,” Gray said.
“I expect they’ll have you traipsing all over the house and into every forgotten corner. I apologize ahead of time if they wear you both out!” Charlotte said, smiling.
“I think we can keep up. It’s an interesting house, I can’t wait to explore every corner!” Michael said.
The two followed Maddy into the foyer. They waited a few moments before Max appeared with an armful of flashlights, passing one out to each of them. “Ready?”
“We’re ready, Max,” Maddy said.
“Okay, you probably already saw this part when you came. The best part of this room was the portrait of Mina Buckley. It used to be there on that wall.” He motioned to a blank wall. “But it went missing a while ago, no one knows where it is and everyone is really upset about it.”
“Upset about a missing painting?” Damien asked.
“Yeah, no one can find it and everyone is in danger until we can.”
“What? Because there is an art thief on the loose, you mean?” Michael asked.
“No, because the legend says that painting was hung there over two hundred years ago to protect this house and everyone in it and as long as it hung there, everyone in this house was safe. Mina Buckley was always watching over everyone in the house for as long as the painting hung in this foyer. But now it’s gone, so Mina isn’t here to watch us anymore. Now we’re all in danger.”
“I see. Sooooo, Mina Buckley was a friendly spirit who took care of the people living in this house?” Michael asked.
“Yeah, that’s right. And someone took her away and now we’re all doomed,” Max said, matter-of-factly.
“Doomed? That’s a little dramatic, isn’t it?” Damien asked.
Max shrugged his shoulders. “That’s what all the grown-ups said when the painting disappeared. They said ‘We’re doomed’ and then Uncle Gray said he had to find Aunt Celine, she was the only one who could help.”
“Your Aunt Celine was the only one who could help with what?” Michael asked.
“She’s not really
