Текст книги "A Silver Wolf Christmas"

Автор книги: Spear Terry

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Chapter 2

CJ tried to tell himself that painting the wall had revealed someone’s old stencil job. Yet he knew that wasn’t so. The walls hadn’t been painted in forever. Everything else disappeared underneath the fresh coat of paint—the shadows where the pictures had hung, the plaster filling the picture hanger holes, everything but the letter that hadn’t been there when he started painting.

It didn’t bode well that he was going to be staying in the attic. Even so, he would do anything to make it up to Darien and the pack for allowing him and his brothers to return after they had left their family behind. And he would do anything for Laurel and her sisters to ensure they didn’t have any trouble. For now, that meant watching the ghost busters. He paused to look at the letter on the wall, the huge block of fresh paint making the letter show up even more.

Maybe at night under the chandelier lights it wouldn’t be noticeable. Or maybe the women had a big picture they could hang over it. If the letter was still there in the morning.

“He’s staying in the attic?” Ellie said from the room upstairs and laughed. “Better him than any of us.”

He smiled a little. He wasn’t afraid of any ghosts. He turned to see Laurel watching him, done with her job, it appeared. She was frowning, her soft green sweater bringing out the emerald of her eyes, her gaze capturing and holding his attention. As an alpha wolf, she didn’t drop her gaze but instead arched a brow in question.

Despite trying to deny it, she seemed to be as interested in him as he was in her. She lowered her chin a little, waiting for him to say something. If she truly couldn’t have found the time or inclination to bother with him, she would have looked away and done something else. But more than that, she had allowed him to stay and help. Hell, maybe she’d only asked Darien to tell CJ and his brothers their help wasn’t needed because there had been too many of them underfoot. Eric had been a bit bossy, telling the ladies how he thought they should do things.

Maybe Laurel was perfectly happy to have CJ help them by himself. He assumed things were changing between them now and for the better.

“The paint dries quickly. Two hours tops. I’ll paint over it again in a couple of hours. Tom said that an X was painted on one of the ceilings. Did you need me to paint over that too?”

Laurel pushed a lock of curly red hair behind her ear, maybe not in a flirtatious way, but it sure was sexy. “We actually painted over that ourselves and it worked out fine.”

“That’s good.” He felt a bit of relief that they didn’t have another mark that they couldn’t get rid of. Maybe the same thing would happen here. “Did you want me to help you hang some Christmas lights next or do anything else?” He wasn’t leaving if he could help it. He wanted to prove he really could be of service and not a hindrance. And to get to know her better.

She hesitated, then let out her breath. “With my sisters leaving so early in the morning, I’m afraid I won’t get it all done before the grand opening. If you don’t mind, I’d appreciate your help.”

Thrilled, he smiled, trying not to look overly enthusiastic and make her change her mind. “Not at all.”

About that time, Meghan and Ellie headed down the stairs, both eyeing him with suspicion. Then Ellie saw the wall. Her face paled a little. CJ looked back at the letter, imagining that droplets of blood were now dripping from it. But the letter was just…white. And still there.

“What’s next?” Meghan asked, as if the C was of no importance.

Laurel lifted a piece of paper off a marble-topped sideboard buffet. “You said you’d hang the garlands and red bows on the fence and the garland on the mantel. Ellie, you said you wanted to decorate indoors.”

Meghan made a disagreeable face. “If I had known how cold it is here in the winter, I would have opted for Ellie’s job.” She attached some evergreen garlands to the fireplace mantel.

Ellie lifted a cardboard box and headed back up the stairs. “Last year, when Laurel was making up all these lists of things for us to do, I was smart and checked the weather forecast for this time of year here.”

CJ smiled a little. The she-wolves were from Florida, and he suspected it might take them a while to get acclimated. Then he frowned. He hoped that they got used to it and didn’t leave because they didn’t like the cold weather. “Where can I wash out the paint rollers?”

“The basement has a sink for gardening stuff and the like,” Meghan said quickly before Laurel could respond.

If it had been summer, CJ would have washed the paint out of the rollers with a garden hose. The basement was where he’d been scared to pieces. He had never been back. Not that he was afraid, but it just didn’t feel right down there.

“I’ll go with you.” Laurel came around the counter.

Meghan gave her a warning look. From the stairs, so did Ellie.

For heaven’s sake, he wasn’t going to ravish their sister. Though in her emerald-green sweater and with her pretty red hair curling about her shoulders, she was seriously attractive. And so was her voice. The sisters all had lovely Irish accents, but Laurel’s was like a siren’s lure.

So why was she coming with him? To make sure he didn’t steal anything? He didn’t trust her motives because of the way she and her sisters were so reserved with the pack. Maybe they had their reasons. Bad wolf experiences. But surely they could bond with some of the women.

Laurel unlocked the basement door, turned on the light, and then preceded him down the stairs. The place smelled slightly damp and musty. The block walls were gray, the cement floor just as gray—and it hadn’t changed since he’d come down here with Tom so many years ago.

“Maids’ quarters.” Laurel led him to where a gray utility sink stood. A small bathroom with a sink, commode, and shower stood next to that.

A door led outside, the window letting in a little gray light. The weather had turned overcast and snowy again. He couldn’t imagine having to live down here. “Are you going to fix these up so you’ll have additional guest quarters?” He began to run water over the paint rollers.

“Maybe later. The hotel is booked to capacity right now. But would anyone want to stay down here?” Laurel shivered and rubbed her arms.

“Maybe with some fresh paint to lighten up the place, tile floors, and a bigger window in the door, or even a glass door to let in more light. Add lots of lighting and a dehumidifier to take the moisture out of the basement, and it could work.”

“Great for vampires—if we painted the window black and left everything as it is.”

He smiled.

She leaned against a wall and watched him. “Is there any way you can ensure that the ghost busters don’t report the place as haunted and ruin our chances at renting out rooms?”

He wished there was, but he couldn’t lie to her. “I don’t think so. People will believe what they want. If folks want to stay here to see if they experience any hauntings, they will.”

Looking contemplative or maybe a tad worried, she chewed on her lower lip. Which made him want to pull her into his arms and kiss away the concern.

She took a deep breath and let it out. “Are there any other buildings that are supposed to be haunted in Silver Town?”

“One of the silver mines nearby and one of the miners’ huts. And a ghost wolf is seen in the woods on the drive out to Darien and Lelandi’s home from time to time.”

“But nowhere that is inhabited?”

“No.”

“Do you believe in ghosts?”

CJ finished wringing the excess water from the last paint roller. “Do you?”

She raised her red brows. “For the sake of our guests, no. For your sake, yes. And a warning. The attic is haunted.”

* * *

The hotel was haunted, truth be known. At least, paranormal happenings had occurred in every room in the hotel since the sisters had been here. Nothing bad, except for the appearance of the letter C on the wall downstairs, and that was more annoying than anything. It ruined the whole look of their new decor.

Laurel wanted to warn CJ so he’d be prepared and not let the ghost busters know that the hotel was haunted. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to believe in ghosts, and the notion that his room was haunted hadn’t caused any kind of reaction.

CJ set the rollers aside to dry. “After I repaint the wall, if the letter is still there, did you want me to hang a painting over it?”

“Yes. I hadn’t planned to hang one there for now because my sisters and I couldn’t agree on one. But we do have a painting hanging over the fireplace mantel in our house that we could use in the interim. It’s a lovely rendition of a field of purple daisies with a backdrop of the Rocky Mountains and a forest of pines. It’ll look fine there.” Except that it would leave a blank spot over their mantel.

“My cousin Jake does beautiful photography. I’m certain he wouldn’t mind offering a photo so that you could showcase it. No charge to you.”

She appreciated the offer, but since Jake hadn’t offered, she didn’t want him to feel obligated. Mostly though, for the Victorian feel, she thought a painting would fit in better than a photograph. Someday, they might find something that would suit the period that they could hang there.

“Thanks. Does…does anyone know why any of the places are haunted? The silver mine, and so on?”

“Over a hundred years ago, a mine collapse killed several miners. Some speculate that a few of their spirits are trapped down there. As to the miner’s shack? Fight with another miner over a card game. One pulled out a revolver and shot the alleged cheater, fatally. The wolf? Hit by a car. That’s pure conjecture though.”

“Was it a real wolf or lupus garou?”

“Supposedly one of our kind. Rumors are that sometimes she’s seen as a naked woman and at other times as a wolf. Truthfully, I haven’t seen her or anything ghostly in the silver mines or the miner’s hut either.”

“Maybe you’re not as sensitive to their presence. That could be a good thing in your case.”

He smiled a little, as if he truly didn’t believe in the paranormal. “What are you going to do if the ghost busters learn you do have bona fide ghosts living here?”

She headed up the stairs. “The only thing we can do. Advertise it as Silver Town’s only haunted hotel.” Smiling at the notion, she glanced over her shoulder at him.

He followed her up the stairs too closely, showing his wolfish interest in her. Sensing him so close on her heels, she should have given him a look to back off. But she couldn’t do it. She liked his persistence. Most wolves that she’d discouraged as much as she’d tried with him and his brothers would take a hint. CJ wasn’t buying it. And she liked that.

She and her sisters hadn’t had time to do any investigating into why the place had ghostly occurrences. Not with all their renovation troubles that had nothing to do with paranormal activities. Nor had they found anything in their investigations into their aunt’s disappearance.

“What about this place? Any rumors as to who haunts the hotel and why?” She wanted to know if others had seen their aunt “haunting” the hotel. She and her sisters hadn’t witnessed any apparitions here. Just lights going on and off when no one was there and things moving from place to place before they returned to work on the hotel the next day.

“No.” He held her gaze.

Laurel wasn’t sure she believed him. She sensed he might be hiding something from her.

“What made you come here? And not go somewhere else?” he asked.

She hadn’t expected that line of questioning, so it took her aback. She and her sisters had carefully rehearsed the reason. “We heard the hotel was for sale and that a wolf pack ran the town. We’re in the small-hotel renovation business—Victorians are our specialty—and we like quaint towns with a resort feel like this one. We liked that you have a ski resort close by and not much lodging available. And…the pack is an added benefit.”

She hoped that would satisfy his curiosity, but she wondered why he’d asked. Had she and her sisters given themselves away somehow? She changed the subject. “Why hasn’t anyone bought it before this?”

“Rumors that it’s haunted. And Darien has been picky about who buys it. All of the businesses in town are run by our kind, and he wants to keep it that way. A couple of big out-of-town developers were interested in buying the hotel, giving the song and dance that the place was in such bad shape it would have to be torn down, that the area wasn’t developed enough to really bring in business, and so on. They were just trying to get Darien to come down on the price. But he kept the price up, making it so unreasonable that no one would have invested in it unless the investor was a wolf, looking to settle down with the pack.

“Folks around here knew he’d bring the price down if any wolf members thought they could renovate and run the hotel. No one had any experience at it though, or any desire to give it a try. When you and your sisters showed some interest, Darien and Lelandi were thrilled. So he gave you a real bargain price to make it work.”

And that they happened to be she-wolves? She and her sisters had noticed that more of the population was male than female and there were lots of bachelor males. “Ahhh. Okay. I wondered about that. We worried that maybe more people had died in the hotel recently, scaring off prospective buyers. Then Darien suddenly dropped the price way down because of too many hauntings, and it really wasn’t a good bargain at all.”

CJ grinned, but then his smile faded. “You say ‘more’ people died in the hotel recently. What made you believe anyone died here in the past?”

She ground her teeth. This was one of the reasons they had avoided having much to do with the pack. Hiding the truth was damned hard. “I assumed it since the place is haunted and had been abandoned for so many years.”

“Ah.”

She couldn’t tell if that satisfied him, not as indecipherable as his expression was. She made a mental note never to play card games with him.

As they climbed the basement stairs to the main floor again, one of the rollers rolled off the roller tray in the sink where CJ had left them to dry. They both looked back at it. “I must have set the roller too close to the edge of the tray and it rolled off.”

“Right.” Laurel wanted to believe him, just like she tried to explain away anything that seemed supernatural. “So how long have you lived in Silver Town?”

“Since I was born.”

She was afraid of that. If any wolf was new to the area, she could scratch that person off their list of suspects in their aunt’s disappearance. Darien had given her a list of the pack members’ names so she and her sister could get to know everyone. But she was really using it to narrow their list of suspects by determining who couldn’t have been in the area when their aunt had been living here.

Then again, the person—wolf or human—who might have had a hand in their aunt’s disappearance could be dead or maybe had just been passing through.

Even so, this was all she really had to go on, and she hoped to cross a lot of the people off the list since it totaled nearly three hundred wolves. They definitely could eliminate newly turned wolves, children, and those who had moved here more recently. She really needed a local wolf who could help her with this. Someone they could trust. But they couldn’t really trust anyone. At least not yet.

When she and CJ reached the lobby, both of their gazes were trained on the freshly painted wall to see if the letter had disappeared. It hadn’t. “I’ll bring the painting over in the morning if the C is still there after you paint the wall again in a couple of hours,” she said.

“How do you know the attic’s haunted?” CJ suddenly asked.

“Since you don’t believe in the supernatural, I’m sure you’ll find nothing that will go bump in the night up there.” Surprised he’d asked, she figured there was no sense in telling him what they’d seen or heard. It was better to let him experience it for himself and come to his own conclusions.

He glanced back up the stairs, but he didn’t look concerned. “So how did you want me to help with Christmas decorations?”

“Could you hang the Christmas lights along the roof of the hotel and some around each second-floor window?”

“Sure. I’ll call my brothers and see if one can help out too. That will make it go a lot quicker.”

“Thanks.” She felt guilty about asking him to do all this when she had said no before, but he was so eager.

Meghan gave Laurel a chiding look, then put on her coat, hat, and gloves. She gathered up more garland and red bows, but couldn’t manage all of it on her own. Laurel hurried to dress in her warm clothes so she could help. They carried the garland and bows outside, and CJ followed them out.

“Okay, Brett. See you in a few.” CJ pocketed his phone.

To Laurel and her sister’s surprise, CJ took one end of the garland and stretched it out along the white fence railing. Laurel held the other end, and Meghan began securing red bows around the garland and the fence.

“So what do your brothers do?” Laurel asked. She knew that CJ was a deputy sheriff because she’d seen him in uniform.

“Eric, my eldest brother—only by a few minutes, but it’s enough to make him think he’s the boss of all of us—is a park ranger. The next oldest is Sarandon. He’s a trail guide, nature guide, whatever kind of guide his clients want him to be. He and Eric love the great outdoors. Not that the rest of us don’t, but they could spend weeks in the wilderness and be perfectly happy. Brett is a reporter for the pack’s new newspaper. He’s always looking for a story—as long as it’s not wolf-related. Unless it’s to showcase wolves in a good way.”

“Full wolves or our kind of wolves?”

“Both, actually. Humor, human interest, special goings-on. He’s the one assigned to do a feature on your newly renovated hotel and some of its history.”

Laurel perked up at the sound of that. “So he’s done some research on it?”

“Yeah. Anytime you want to see any of the old documents, pictures, information on who owned the hotel over the years, any of that, feel free to ask. Darien has more old data—census records, tax information—stored at his house.”

“Thanks. I will. I’m fascinated with the old place and it’ll be…fun to see pictures of it back in the day.” More than fun. Maybe CJ’s brother or Darien had the clues they needed to solve the mystery. And pictures of their aunt at the hotel to learn if she had been a guest or a maid, if they were lucky.

Meghan paused from tying bows on the garland and fence. “And you’re a deputy sheriff.”

He smiled. “I’m one of them. But we all are available to help new members establish their businesses as long as there’s no trouble brewing anywhere.”

Meghan tied off another section of the garland. “We’ve heard it’s a fairly safe place to live.”

“We’ve had a few problems. But nothing we couldn’t handle. It does help to have both human and wolf protection. We run everything here from the jailhouse to the clinic, so we’re all set for any trouble we might have.”

Meghan had been the most excited about moving to a location where wolves ran the town, and she’d already made several comments about setting down roots here. The problem was that Ellie was in total agreement with her. Laurel wasn’t used to that. Usually, her sisters agreed to whatever she said.

CJ wasn’t wearing his uniform, just jeans, a pale blue wool sweater, and cowboy boots. Laurel had to admit that he looked warm and accessible. In his uniform, he seemed friendly but more…official.

As if reminding Meghan why they were here, Laurel said, “So about the mine collapse or other things like that—”

“Ghost-related, you mean?”

“Yes. Do you have newspaper clippings about that?”

“Unless another town reported on it, probably not. We didn’t have a newspaper here until recently.”

“Why not?” Meghan sounded skeptical.

“I guess no one was interested in running one. I don’t know. Sure, there were some rags printed in the early years, but none of them survived.”

“Would there have been police reports? Surely some kind of documentation exists.” Laurel stepped back to consider what they had done. It looked really nice, perfect for the time period of the hotel.

“We have a cemetery full of headstones giving the names, dates of birth, and dates of death, in addition to a note that the miners had lost their lives in the silver mine. Also, we did census reports like any other law-abiding citizens, but we had to change some of the particulars to hide our true ages.”

That still wouldn’t help her and her sisters learn the truth about their aunt or the hotel.

“Brett’s getting together all the information that he can and bringing it over to see if you’d like to look at it and add any comments for the article—”

“Now?” Meghan looked way too eager.

“Tomorrow. He hadn’t finished gathering it when I last saw him, and for now, he’s dropping everything to help string lights along the roof of the hotel.”

Now Laurel wished they hadn’t sidetracked Brett. But they couldn’t tell CJ to call his brother back and say that the history of the hotel was more important than decorating the place for the grand opening.

Once they’d finished hanging the garland on the picket fence, they moved to the railing around the front porch.

Within twenty minutes, a man drove up and parked. Brett Silver got out of his car, dressed casually in a royal-blue-and-tan-striped sweater and jeans. His hair was a lighter brown, and his smile infectious.

“You remember Brett?” CJ asked.

“Yes,” Laurel said. Between Eric telling them what to do, and Brett taking pictures for posterity’s sake before they could remodel, the men had been a hindrance. “CJ was telling us you’re doing a story on the hotel. We’d love to learn all there is about it.”

“Yeah, sure. I’m getting a bunch of stuff together for you, old photos and the like, that I can bring over tomorrow.”

“Thanks,” both Meghan and Laurel said at the same time.

“We have the job of putting up the lights along the roofline and around the windows,” CJ told his brother.

Brett smiled at him, since CJ wasn’t letting go of the garland as Meghan secured the last bow to hang it on the porch railing. It really was nice having the men’s help. Although she and her sisters had meant to keep their distance from all of the pack members, Laurel decided they needed to have the brothers over for dinner to thank them.

“Darien said that ghost-buster crew made reservations at your place for tomorrow,” Brett said.

Laurel heard the annoyance in his voice right away. As far as she was concerned, the ghost busters were most likely frauds. Ghosts did not make scheduled appearances for TV shows. They appeared when they appeared.

Then again, it was too bad that she and her sisters couldn’t have contracted them to paint, since they most likely wouldn’t have been spooked by any ghostly happenings like the others were.

“Darien’s worried about them being here.” Brett set up the ladder to begin hanging the lights.

Laurel held the first wreath up to the window while CJ secured it for her.

“Darien figures these guys might witness something more paranormal than ghosts.”

“Can you usually run safely as wolves around here?” Meghan asked.

“Sure we can. In the forests. After the ski resort is closed for the night, we often also run through that area. Snow graders plow in the morning, grooming the trails but also hiding the evidence of the wolf tracks in the more heavily used areas. If you and your sisters would like to run with us any time, let me know. We’ll show you the sights,” CJ offered.

“Tonight? Before the hotel opens? It’ll be the last time we can all run together. Someone will always have to be on duty at the hotel otherwise,” Laurel said before she could stop herself. Meghan’s mouth gaped as she stared at Laurel.

Laurel figured they needed a fun break before the hotel opened. She and her sisters deserved it. What harm could there be in that?

“Tonight would be great,” CJ said.

“I’m game,” Brett said. “Because of the fresh snowfall, a lot of wolves will be out there tonight. We’ll have a great time.”

“We’re glad you decided to open up the place.” CJ hooked up the last of the lights on the windows. “It’s a beautiful hotel and has been neglected for far too long.”

Laurel and Meghan exchanged looks. This was the hardest part to deal with—that everyone was genuinely happy to have them here. But only until they learned why they were truly here.

Before long, Laurel and Meghan were hanging garlands on all the upstairs balconies while CJ and his brother strung the lights along the edge of the roof. Meghan’s cheeks and nose were red, and Laurel imagined hers were just as rosy.

“Jake said he’d take some professional photos, free of charge, of the hotel in all of its Christmas finery to add to his photography website. And he’ll give a copy to the newspaper to run a free, full-page ad,” Meghan said.

Now, Laurel felt guilty that she hadn’t jumped at the chance to hang some of Jake’s photography over the letter C in their main room.

She spoke softly for Meghan’s ears only. “I can’t believe how everyone’s going all out to make us feel welcome.”

“Yeah, they’re glad we’re improving the look of the place and bringing in more income. And it probably doesn’t hurt that we’re single females.”

“Did you want to go in and tell Ellie we’re going to take a wolf run tonight?”

“With pack members? She’ll be shocked and thrilled.” Meghan headed into the hotel to give Ellie the news.

Laurel hoped the plan wouldn’t backfire.