The Gilded Curse: Will the young heiress be the next victim of her family's curse? (15 page)

“No, thank you. I can manage.” Lexie placed her foot in the stirrup and threw her other leg over, wiggling to get comfortable in the saddle.

“All right. You enjoy your ride. Angel here’s a real sweet girl. She won’t give you no trouble.”

Lexie noted the man’s starched white shirt, unusual attire for working in a stable. “Thank you for meeting me this morning. I hope I didn’t interfere with your plans.”

“No, ma’am. I’ll be goin’ to church now and spen’ the res’ of the day there, so no harm done.” He waved good-bye over his head as he walked away. After taking a few steps, he stopped and turned around. “You jus’ put her back in that first stall there when you git back.” He motioned to a trough beside the barn. “Let her drink some water first if she wants it, if you don’ mind. I’ll take care of the res’ later.”

“Will do. Enjoy your day!” Lexie watched the man’s back as he sauntered away, whistling a tune. Leaning over, she patted the horse’s
neck. “Angel, huh? What a coincidence on a Sunday. Well, Angel, I hope you plan to watch out for me. You might have your work cut out for you, though, the way things have been going.”

Lexie nudged the horse with her heels, and the animal responded with a slow gait. She guided the horse down the beach road, enjoying the quiet and solitude. Would she be the only person not in church today? Well, if so, she would have her own service out in nature, enjoying God’s creation. Surely He wouldn’t fault her for that. She didn’t have to be in the chapel to appreciate the natural beauty of the island. The melody of the hymn she’d heard played through her mind. The tune was familiar, but remote, like a memory of a long-past event. Not able to get the melody out of her head, she found herself humming the tune.

A cool breeze ruffled the curls around her head as she trotted down the crushed shell road. The brilliant winter sun peeked through the moss-laden oaks, dappling her path in light and shadow. Days like these were what brought the first millionaires to the island to get away from the frigid cold in the northern states. Southern winters were so erratic, starting out chilly in the morning, then changing to pleasant spring temperatures in the afternoon. How could such a lovely place be cursed?

Had Mother ever appreciated its beauty?

Deep down inside, Lexie recalled days from her earliest childhood when Mother was happy and family outings here were enjoyable. Yes, there had been lovely days on the island at one time. Lexie caught glimpses of the Atlantic through the trees to her right. The water was so still, more like a lake than an ocean. Tranquil. Something Mother had not been, growing more and more troubled.

Lexie wanted to reach out and embrace the serenity of the moment, keep it for the next time her world was rattled. But how could she be peaceful with so many unanswered questions? Somebody wanted her here, but she didn’t know who or why. If they wanted something from her, why didn’t they present themselves and ask for it? The sight of the ransacked antique secretary flashed through her mind. Whatever they had been searching for must be important. And if they didn’t find it, were they following her around, hoping she might lead them to it?

Her temporary tranquility vanished as she glanced around her, watching for signs of another person’s presence. There were no other horses out today, so someone following by foot would have a hard time keeping up with her, but she urged Angel to a faster gait anyway. And
there were no cars either, at least not out this way. She shook her head. She was just being silly. No one knew where she was. No one except Russell, and he said he’d probably be at church by now. Surely he was honest with her.

She continued heading to the northern tip of the island, where she and Russell had ridden together on the bike. A smile crossed her face and she chuckled to herself. What fun that had been, riding on the handlebars! She could just picture the two of them flying down the beach in tandem. Angel seemed to know where Lexie wanted to go as she trotted onto the beach. At the water’s edge they stopped, and Lexie gazed out on the calm sea, barely lapping the shore.

Squinting against the bright sunlight, she shielded her eyes and scanned from east to west, stopping to gaze at the town of St. Simons across the way to the north. The white lighthouse tower glistened as if the structure itself could radiate light. On such a beautiful day, it was hard to believe there was a war going on in the world, even harder to believe there was an enemy threat close to their own shores. And yet, didn’t the people living at Pearl Harbor think the same thing the day they were attacked? She shuddered, and the horse nickered. Did it sense her fear? She’d heard animals could do that.

She stroked the horse’s neck. “You don’t see any enemies out there, do you?”

Angel answered with a whinny, and Lexie laughed.

“You know, you’re a pretty good conversationalist. You might even understand me better than anyone else.”

At that remark, the horse snorted.

“Ha! Okay, maybe that’s too much to ask of anyone, even you.” She pulled on the reins and turned the horse the opposite direction. “Let’s go down the beach, shall we?”

The horse nodded and proceeded along the hard-packed sand. Once again, Lexie relaxed with the rhythm of the horse’s gait and slow, steady swishing of the incoming waves. A lone white pelican soared over the gray-blue water, its eye fixed on an object below. He swooped and plunged in, surfacing with a fish he maneuvered into position. Then stretching out his neck, he gulped his dinner down.

Other than the bird, the vacant, pristine beach showed no sign of life, and Lexie imagined the scene must’ve looked the same to the first explorers to the new world. They, too, must’ve found the beaches empty. Little did they know they were being watched by native Indians hiding in the woods.

Lexie jerked her head toward the trees. The Indians were long gone, so who watched the shores now? She remembered Russell mentioning the club guards that were supposed to keep intruders out of the compound and off the island. A distant memory of the guards patrolling the beach on horseback came to her.

“Hi, little girl. What are you doing out here?” The man on the tall black horse gazed down at her
.

“Will you take me for a ride on your horsey?” She extended her arms hoping he’d pick her up
.

“Sure. I’ll take you for a ride. Where’s your mother?”

“Over there.” Lexie pointed behind her.

“All right. We’ll ride over there and see her.” He leaned over and lifted her up to the saddle, putting her in front of him with his arms encircling her as he held the reins. She was so high above the ground
.

The panic on Mother’s face was not the greeting she expected when the guard rode up with Lexie
.

“Lexie! What are you doing?”

“I wanted to ride on the horsey!”

The man lowered Lexie to her father’s arms. “Thank you,” her father said before the man tipped his hat and rode off
.

“Lexie, you are never to ride on one of those animals again! Why, you could have fallen off and broken your neck!”

Tears clouded Lexie’s vision as she re-lived the crush of disappointment she’d experienced from her mother’s words. She wiped her eyes with the back of her gloved hand. Mother’s reaction had only deepened Lexie’s desire to ride again, but she had to wait until she went away to college to fulfill that desire. And so far, she hadn’t fallen off and broken her neck.

She glanced around her. No beach patrol was in sight. In fact, she hadn’t seen them since she’d been on the island.

As Angel plodded along the shore, Lexie studied the sand, looking for seashells and admiring interesting pieces of driftwood. How curious that sun-bleached dead trees could be such works of art. As she rounded the bend, she glanced up and saw a lone figure standing some distance away. The man appeared to be gazing out at the ocean, holding an object in his hands. She stared at the person, trying to figure out what he was doing. Maybe he was one of the guards.

Binoculars. That’s what he held. The man looked familiar. Just as she realized who it was, he turned and looked straight at her. She pulled up the reins, stopping the horse, and looked directly at Abner Jones.

Chapter 17

R
ussell stood up from the piano bench and straightened, stretching his muscles. After sitting on the hard seat for two hours, he was stiff. He’d been so engrossed in the sermon, though, he hadn’t even thought about being uncomfortable. Of course, it didn’t help that he’d come in an hour early to practice. Even though he could play most of the hymns blindfolded, he still liked to warm up beforehand. To be honest, playing hymns before anyone else came to the chapel was comforting and helped him get into the right attitude for worship.

A few of the congregants made their way over and thanked him for playing.

“We’re so blessed to have someone with your talent playing for us.”

He nodded and smiled in return. “Guess those piano lessons were worthwhile.” Not to mention that minor in music at college. At the time, he’d entertained the notion of playing professionally. Father’s heart attack put an end to those plans, though. The club members had agreed with his father’s recommendation that Russell was the best qualified to take over the position of club superintendent. So maybe God had a different plan, and playing music in His house of worship was the purpose for Russell’s talent. Fame and fortune would have to wait a while longer, if ever.

He shook Reverend Wright’s hand and thanked him for his message.

“Will you be able to preach for us all season?” Sometimes finding ministers to come to the island was difficult, especially those with their own congregations.

“I’ll do my best. I told Mrs. Prentice I would definitely commit for January and maybe for February, too, if I can work it out.”

“We appreciate your willingness to come. I understand you’ll be joining some of the ladies at the club for lunch?”

“Yes, they’ve been nice enough to invite me. Since the missus passed away, I enjoy the opportunity for a nice meal when I can get it.”

“You’re welcome to join us any time as our guest.” Russell patted the
reverend on the back as they walked down the aisle to the front door. “Mr. Sullivan will take you back to the launch when you’re ready to leave.”

The reverend nodded, put on his hat and coat, and walked out the door and down the steps where a cluster of women waited, their hats bobbing in unison as the man approached. Russell smiled and waved, whether anyone noticed or not. Then he walked back in and closed the piano before turning off the lights. Sunlight illuminated the Tiffany stained glass window at the rear of the chapel, sending rainbows throughout the room. He loved the feel of the small chapel, the sacred quiet now that he was alone.

He crossed his arms and stood before the stained glass, commissioned as a memorial window for a former club president. The scene depicting King David on his throne reminded him of the sermon. It was about Joshua, who became the leader of the Israelites when Moses, the great prophet, died. God told Joshua three times to be strong and courageous. Joshua must’ve felt the same way Russell did when he took over his father’s position. Maybe David felt the same way following the footsteps of King Saul. Sometimes it was hard to follow someone who’d been in charge a long time. Wonder if Lexie felt that way about taking over the family responsibilities after Robert died?

Lovely Lexie. Why didn’t she want to come to church? Her family used to be regular attendees—they’d sat in the fourth pew on the left. If his memory served him right, though, Lexie’s mother and father had become less frequent worshippers, and Lexie attended with only her grandparents. He and Robert sat in the back pew, making jokes about everyone else in the sanctuary. Robert said his mother didn’t like the carved animal heads that adorned the end of the rafters. The grotesques, part of the building’s Gothic architecture, frightened her. Russell shook his head. What nonsense. But fear took many forms and prevented many people from thinking clearly. How well he knew that.

He checked his watch, noting the time was half past twelve. His stomach growled, reminding him it was lunchtime, but he had an urge to saddle up and find Lexie. He had no idea where she’d gone; however, she was bound to be on a main trail. What would she think about him showing up uninvited? He chuckled to himself. When did he need an invitation to go horseback riding? The stables were his to enjoy as much as anyone else. He glanced down at his suit. This wouldn’t do—he’d certainly look ridiculous riding up in this attire. Better hurry and
change if he hoped to catch her before she came back, whenever that was.