it have something to do with the vow you were unable to keep?”
“Aye.” He nodded, still staring off at nothing, or something only he could see. “I’d vowed to my mother that I would make a fortune, return to Ireland, and we’d start over. I wanted to buy land near a port, build a fine house and bring my family together again. We’d farm some, and I’d planned to purchase a few good ships, start an import-export business.” He glanced at her. “Imports and exports that would benefit Ireland and our people, not the Brits.”
“What about Charles? Did he intend to return to Ireland as well?”
“Nay. He was to stay here and run our mining interests, which would in turn finance the startup of our new business venture. Once the gold ran out, he was to manage this end of our import-export business. Charles wanted to settle on the East Coast. Mining was nothing more than a means to an end for us both. Unfortunately the end came sooner than expected. Such grand plans we had, and all for naught.” He heaved a sigh, and the dust devil disintegrated.
Daniel came to sit beside her again. “Tell me about yourself, Meredith. I wish to learn more about you and your fae-gifted family. My own granny had the sight, and I suspect I may have a touch of fae blood as well. I’ve wondered if that might be why I sensed your presence the very moment you arrived.”
He’d sensed her arrival and wanted to know about her? Argh! “Maybe another time.” She stood up from the platform. “Judy is eager to meet her ancestor, and I don’t want to keep her or Mr. Klein waiting.”
She viewed her role as a ghost whisperer similar to that of a therapist. Listening as ghosts shared what had happened to them, or what kept them in the earthly realm often helped reconcile their issues so they could let go. Spirits were self-centered, entirely focused on whatever trauma or attachment prevented them from passing.
Clearly Daniel didn’t fit any ghostly mold she’d ever encountered. No other spirit had ever asked her personal questions before. Everything about Daniel unsettled her. Even more confusing was her own unrealistic and inappropriate desire to know more about him as well.
“Will it upset you if I’m present while Frederick and his granddaughter converse?”
“Not at all.” Yes, it would. The more time she spent with this ghost the more her own—you’re dead; I’m alive—boundaries blurred. She liked him. If he were corporeal, she’d be wildly attracted to him, and that was beyond awkward and well into weird. “See you there,” she said, hurrying down the hill to rejoin the living.
“What did you find out?” Judy asked the moment Meredith stepped into the cabin.
“Frederick is eager to meet with you, and he’s waiting for us at the saloon right now.”
Judy buried her face in her hands. “I can hardly believe this is finally happening,” she mumbled through her fingers. “I need a minute.”
“Let’s go meet him before you lose your nerve.” John put his arm around his wife’s shoulders and guided her toward the pegs where they all hung their jackets and sweatshirts.
Oliver flashed Meredith a look of uncertainty. “Should I stay here?”
“After what happened to you earlier, I think it would be best.” She picked up the battery-operated camping lantern from the kitchen table. “This is the safest place for you. After we leave, light one of the sage bundles I keep on the kitchen counter, and smudge the entire interior. Try not to set the cabin on fire,” she teased as she walked to the front door.
“Speaking of sage, I picked up a bunch at the Walmart near Missoula today,” John said as he shut the cabin door behind them.
Meredith laughed. “Walmart carries sage bundles?”
John gestured for her and Judy to precede him down the steps of the porch. “Yep. I did a search to find out where I could buy some in Missoula, and Walmart came up. I figured we’re going to go through quite a bit this summer, and now we’re fully stocked.”
“Thanks for thinking of that,” Meredith said. Interesting cabinmates, she mused as the three of them walked toward Keoghan’s. Turned out she liked all three, even the kid who had the common sense of a gnat.
Thinking of Oliver set off thoughts of what had transpired earlier that day. She, John, and Judy had put the saloon back together while Oliver remained behind with one of the bags of foil-wrapped