The Rosaries (Crossroads Series) (27 page)

“You put the rosary in the suitcase??”

“Yes. I figured it would be safer there than in any carry-on bag, in case we got robbed or something.”

“Goodness, Natalie; we need to make sure it is still in there. Please find it and give it to me.”

Natalie was surprised at
Lakeisha’s
tone of voice, but didn’t argue with her. She found the pouch under her undergarments and handed it over.

“Thank you. I just need it for a moment.”
Lakeisha
appeared relieved. She dug into her own carry-on bag and pulled out the book of secret prayers. “After I finish with this, you will need to wear the rosary, Natalie, and not take it off under any circumstance.”

“Okay…what are you doing now?”

“The rosary must be charged now. The elders taught us that it must be kept dormant until it comes into possession of the final keeper. I didn’t activate it until now, because I thought the final keeper was Catherine’s daughter, but now I know it is you.”

“But…why? How do you know?”

“I was told so by the girl herself, Natalie.”

“What girl?
Lakeisha
, are you feeling okay?”

“I’m feeling great; in fact, I’m better now than I have felt in years – feel the heat coming out of my hands.” She didn’t explain who the girl was and Natalie didn’t pressure her any further. She wasn’t sure if
Lakeisha
was joking around to spook her, or if the kind woman was experiencing some late side effects of the concussion she had suffered, but Natalie decided to keep her concerns to herself.

“That’s okay,
Lakeisha
. Why don’t you go ahead and do what you must, while I go look for Tom and see if I can get a little more tea? The plane ride left me dehydrated.”

Lakeisha
nodded and went back to leaf through the pages of the book, while Natalie silently slipped out of the room and went downstairs. Tom was still in the kitchen, cutting up some vegetables.

“Tom, would it be okay if I have another cup of tea?”

“Of course, Natalie,” he said pointing toward the kettle on the stove, “help yourself.”

She poured hot water into a cup, and dropped a tea bag into it; then, she took the cup and waited for the tea to steep. Tom was still busy chopping carrots.

“I have a question for you, Tom…”

“Sure, Natalie, what is it?”

“Aunt Catherine wanted me to find her daughter. She said in her letter to me that you had some leads.”

Tom stopped chopping and kept his eyes lowered to the cutting board, then turned the knife in his hand a few times, as if he was checking the blade for sharpness. Natalie waited for a moment before repeating the question.

“Do you know how to find Aunt Catherine’s daughter, Tom?”

“Catherine’s daughter is dead, Natalie. I had leads, and I figured I would find her to surprise my friend, but when I started digging deeper, I discovered that she had run away from home when she was a teenager, and no one knew of her whereabouts until she was found dead in a seedy apartment in
East London
. Her adoptive mother said that Suzanne never felt like she really belonged, and that even as a young girl she attempted to take her life a few times. When she began using heroin, her parents tightened down on her, and she ran off. An autopsy revealed that she was pregnant when she died and the cause of death was an overdose.”

“Oh my God…that’s so sad…”

“It was heartbreaking, Natalie, and I never found the courage to tell Catherine.”

“Oh Tom, I am so sorry…”

“I am too, Natalie. Catherine’s greatest wish was to find her daughter. The truth would have destroyed her.”

Suddenly, what
Lakeisha
said upstairs hit home.

The girl herself told me…

“Excuse me Tom, I forgot something upstairs.”

She dashed back up, two steps at a time until she got in front of the room she shared with
Lakeisha
. She didn’t hear any sounds inside, so she knocked gently before opening the door.
Lakeisha
was sitting down at the small desk, her eyes closed and a peaceful expression on her face. When Natalie walked in, she opened her eyes and smiled in her direction.

“Everything is working out according to the plan.” She said in a low voice.

“
Lakeisha
, how did you know Aunt Catherine’s daughter is dead? She is the girl you were talking about, isn’t she?”

Lakeisha
nodded. “She knew you were coming, Natalie, and she is watching over things.”

Natalie was too shaken to ask anything else.

“Here you go, Natalie.”
Lakeisha
said as she handed her the rosary. “She said you must wear it at all times, and never take it off, no matter what happens. The rest will unfold on its own.”

Natalie wanted to know what the rest was, but she was secretly too afraid to voice out her curiosity. She took the rosary and placed it over her head and around her neck. She didn’t feel anything in particular when she did, and wondered for a moment if this wasn’t just a nice fairytale. She thought she heard the sound of distant whispering, but it was gone before she could consciously
listen.

Ryan kissed Ashton on the forehead, before walking out of the room where she was sleeping peacefully. He didn’t have the nerve to tell her about the trip to
England
, and preferred to just slip out and say nothing. He would call her later and tell her that he had to go on an emergency trip to
Colorado
for a week – she would never find out about his plans to join Natalie in
London
for the art show. His secretary would tell anyone who called that Ryan was on a business trip, so even if Ashton called there his tracks would be covered. He hated to lie to her like this, but at this point of the game, he felt like he had no choice.

Chapter Seventeen

The Spencer House was all that Melody expected and more. The ceremony was being held in the Great Room, and she and the rest of the bridesmaids had gotten ready in Lady Spencer’s Room, a large chamber adjacent to the Great Room.

When Olivia walked in, accompanied by a very nervous Paul, she looked stunning. Melody felt tears welling up in her eyes, and swallowed the knot she felt in her throat. Graham was standing by his best man and looked anxiously across the room toward the door. When Olivia made her grand entrance, his face lit up and Melody gave up her fight to keep tears at bay. The ceremony was not too long, nor short, but Melody felt as if they were suspended in time.

After formally giving his daughter away, Paul took his place beside Melody, and watched spellbound as Olivia and Graham declared eternal love to one another. By the time the pastor finally announced that it was time to kiss the bride, Olivia threw all semblance of etiquette to the wind, and clung to Graham’s neck with both arms, kissing him passionately and making him blush a deep shade of crimson. Her spontaneous gesture drew collective laughter among the crowd – mostly friends and extended family of the groom.

The reception was delightful and graced by the classy touch of London’s finest caterers. The food was amazing and the service superb. After the bride and father dance, Melody stole Paul away and took him out to the dance floor.

“So, old Papa Bear, how do you feel?”

“I don’t know how to feel right now, Melody. It was an incredible day.”

“It really was. Olivia was as beautiful as a princess. Graham really did the right thing by renting this place.”

“This house is something else,
ain’t
it? I didn’t even know places like this exist.”

“Yeah…
Europe
has some fine treasures.”

“I never thought I would travel this far, Melody. I guess it took the love I have for my daughter to make me get on a plane before I get to fly off with my own wings.”

Melody laughed, but Paul’s last comment made her a little uneasy. “Are you feeling okay, Paul? This has been quite tiring for you…the trip, and then the strong emotions…did you see your doctor before you left?”

“Yes, yes…I sure did…Damn, Melody, you’re worse than Olivia. Being a worry wart must be a family trait.”

The music ended, and Melody kissed Paul before going off in search of Mario. She found him talking on the phone on one of the balconies. Since he spoke in a low tone, she waited at the door, not wanting to disturb him.

“I think you will really like it” she heard him say, “No, it wasn’t. I just wanted to bring back a little something.”

Melody wondered whom Mario was talking to, but she remained where she was, waiting for him to end the conversation.

“Look” he continued, “I will call you tomorrow, okay? There is so much we need to discuss, but I don’t want to rush you. I prefer to take things slowly rather than to risk losing you.”

He closed the conversation and stood on the balcony, staring off into the horizon. When Melody walked outside, he jumped at the sound of her footsteps.

“Mario, I was looking for you.”

“I’m right here, Honey. I was talking to Branson, at the office.”

“Oh…did you buy him a souvenir?”

“What? Oh yes, I forgot to tell you. When you were out with Paul, yesterday, I saw a book on fox hunting that I’m sure he will love; you know how crazy he is about hunting.”

“I thought Branson hunts for deer, not foxes.”

“He does, but he loves hunting in general, and I thought…what would please my old pal more than a book about a type of hunting that is so British?”

There is so much we need to discuss, but I don’t want to rush you; I prefer to take things slowly rather than to risk losing you…
Melody could not silence the deafening sound of those words. “You guys must have gotten really close while working on this case. Is he planning on retiring early?”

Mario hesitated. “Yes…um….he mentioned the possibility. I couldn’t imagine him not being there as my partner.”

“That’s great, Mario. I’m glad you two tied up so closely. Are you ready to go in now? I think Olivia and Graham are getting ready to leave.”

“Of course. Let’s go.”

They went back inside together, and said their goodbyes to the newlyweds. Melody saw Paul hug Olivia and went over to put a hand on his shoulder when his daughter gently broke off from the embrace and left with her new husband. “Are you ready to go, Paul? You can walk with us, if you want; we thought of catching a cab, but it is really pleasant outside and a little fresh air can only do us some good.”

Melody really needed the fresh air to clear her thoughts. The last words she heard Mario tell the person on the phone were playing over and over in her mind.

“…
I don’t want to rush you; I’d rather take things slowly rather than lose you.”

Who was Mario really talking to? As she walked out of the reception hall, where a union had just begun, Melody hoped her own wasn’t coming to an end.

“We are here at the hotel, Natalie. We just checked in and your mother is freshening up a bit, but we can meet you for dinner.”

She couldn’t believe it…they were really here. For a while, after her father told her he and her mother were going to come to London, she hoped he was joking – the man never attended anything she did…why start now,  and why with an event that was taking place four thousand miles away from home?

“I need to check with
Lakeisha
and Tom, Dad. They are both at the house – I just went out for a minute to fetch some sugar.”

“
Lakeisha
? You mean Catherine’s housekeeper? Oh, that’s right…she did tell me the two of you were going. I am still a little puzzled that you became friends.”

“It’s a long story, Dad, and she wasn’t a housekeeper. She was Aunt Catherine’s nurse and caretaker. I will call you back a little later.”

Before he could say anything back, Natalie hung up. The show was tomorrow, and she was nervous enough already. Not only would she have to face the world when Tom finally unveiled who Marcie Walker really was, now she had to do the unveiling in front of her mom and dad. Could things get any worse? And what would they say about her paintings? Even if she pretended not to care, Natalie knew that she always longed to be admired by her parents. Appreciation would make her happy. A discouraging word, right now, could be detrimental to her confidence.

She placed the cell phone in the front pocket of her jeans, and suddenly realized that she probably took the wrong turn while she talked to her father. She looked around and saw nothing familiar at first, then something surfaced from her memory – she had seen this street before, but couldn’t remember where...maybe she had gone through this area the last time she was in London. Although she couldn’t really bring the recollection into focus, she knew she was experiencing a
deja
-vu. When she turned at the next corner, desperate to find even the shred of a referral point, her awareness exploded. The street she was walking on was the one she had seen in the dream a few weeks ago. Fear washed over her, thick and palpable, as she remembered the man she was running from when she met her other self.