Chapter Twelve

Franklin moved out of the inn and back into his parents’ house a few days before Mrs. Potter’s return. They’d been so busy with redecorating and repositioning things that he’d lost track of time.

He’d found Lorraine Potter to be a gentle and kind woman. She wasn’t a bit shocked that he was working at the inn, and he attributed that with the town gossip. Mrs. Potter had been a citizen of Clover for decades, so she knew his father’s history.

He was grateful to his parents for allowing him to move around as he had without any demands. But it wasn’t as if his father put aside his hate for the Davis family.

That was water under the bridge, so to speak, and now he was back home. Franklin continued to try to find opportunities to reach his father. Being back in the house could yield a conversation between them.

Sitting on the bed, unpacking his things, he heard his father before he saw him standing in the doorway.

“So, son, are you back for good or are you moving on again?”

“I’m here for now. I promised Kira that I’d help her get the inn back in shape.”

“Mrs. Potter is back, so why can’t they handle their own business now?” His father walked into the room and sat on the edge of the bed. “Is there something going on between you and Kira?”

Franklin hadn’t mentioned anything to his family about his attraction to Kira. Since he’d been out of the inn, they’d seen each other a few times, but it was mostly for updating on the inn project.

“I’m not going to lie to you, Pop, I do have feelings for her.”

His father stood, rubbing his hand over his face. “Franklin, you’ve got to stop seeing this girl. You are putting yourself in a situation that may end badly.”

“We care for each other. That’s all.”

“You say that now.” He pushed his hands down in his pockets. “Does her family know that you’re seeing each other?”

Before Franklin could answer, his father continued his line of questioning. “I bet they don’t know, especially her father. Samuel Davis is a son of a gun. We used to be friends, so I know a lot of his secrets. It is not going to sit well with him.”

His father had it all wrong. But if Kira’s father or the rest of her family knew Franklin’s identity, they didn’t act like it mattered the other day. He did, however, feel that her aunt Mary Louise had some inkling that there was something between them.

From his father wringing his hands, Franklin could see that it bothered him deeply. “Pop, if it will make you feel any better, I promise to be careful with the whole gang.”

“Good. But listen, I want you to know that the rumor mill has affected your mother’s business.”

“Affected it how?” Franklin frowned, confused. If there was gossip, he’d have heard it by now, but he hadn’t. There were people coming in and out of the inn all the time that knew he was Charlie and Shirley Bennett’s son.

“What’s wrong with Mom?” He put the last of his things in the drawer near the bed and closed it.

“There’s nothing physically wrong with her, but she’s gotten many new clients.”

“That’s a good thing, isn’t it?” His father made it sound like it was bad.

“Your mother never knew much about my past, but with folks whispering and of course pretending, in my opinion, to slip and say certain things to hurt her.”

Franklin pointed to himself. “That’s not my fault.” His mother had nothing to do with what transpired between his father and Sophia Davis. But what made him even more put off was the fact that his father didn’t share the details of his past with his wife. What was he hiding? What really happened to Sophia Davis?

Franklin stood, his concern for his mother increasing by the second. “Why didn’t you say something before? If you didn’t want to come out to the inn, you could have called. You could have even told me when I was here the other day.”

“I hate the thought of her thinking that I was a murderer.” Charlie dropped his head.

“Did you tell her the truth, Pop?” In Franklin’s mind, it was the easiest thing in the world, especially if you’re talking to someone you’re supposed to trust. She was his wife, after all.

“There was no need to dig the hole deeper, son. It was because you came back to Clover and started working for the Davis family.”

“Oh, so you’re trying to say this is my fault?” Franklin stood. “No, this was your mess, and it was here before I was even thought of, so I don’t take any responsibility.”

“I’ve been living my life without any problems until now.”

“People in and around this town talk entirely too much.” Franklin paced, his frustration filling him with the need to move.

“I’m sure it will die down now that you’re not working there anymore.”

“Maybe.” He stopped and faced his father. “I’m going to continue to help Kira. I may not live on the premises, but I will be there every day until we’re done.”

“Big mistake.”

“I gave her my word, Pop.”

He threw his hands up. “There you go again, putting the Davises over us. You ought to be ashamed of yourself.”

“I’m not putting them over us. You could clear up everything if you’d only tell your side of things. What happened that day?”

He stood, coming face-to-face with Franklin. “It’s not as easy as that.”

Franklin walked to the door. “I’ll talk to Mom myself, then. I’m sure she can tell me about the players in this gossip chorus.”

His father grabbed his arm. “Leave it alone. It will die down if you stay away from there.”

“Didn’t you teach us that your word is your bond?”

He nodded. “I did, because it is. Never make a promise you can’t keep.”

“I’m not going back on it, Pop.”

Franklin watched his father carefully. He sighed and his body relaxed.

“Tell you what,” Franklin said, “I won’t mention you and Sophia if I can continue the project at the inn.”

“We’ll see what happens.” His father sounded weary now, and Franklin felt for him.

“I was thinking I could come down to help you with the business. I know that Aaron is slammed.”

“If you’re working with them,” his father pointed out, “I don’t know how you’ll have time to help us.”

“Let’s talk about it with Aaron, and I can assess where I can be more useful.”

He walked to the door. “Okay.”

Franklin sat on the bed and waited until his father had disappeared before he pulled out his phone and sent Kira a text message. He wanted to know if she’d heard the gossip around town about him. There would always be gossip, but it was his duty as their son to see after his parents.

The urgency to find out what happened between Sophia Davis and his father was even greater now. Something just wasn’t right.

He needed to see if anything in the attic of the inn could help him figure this out.

…

Franklin was never one to have an anxious or eager nature. With his line of work, patience was a necessity, but since he’d been back in Clover, the one thing that he’d always been anxious about was his father’s story. Kira agreeing to go to the attic made his pulse race. He had no idea what they’d find up there or even if it would have anything to do with his father. The fizzy feeling in his belly just made him want to mark it off the list.

Kira twisted the knob on the door that led to the attic. Once she opened it, all he could see was a steep and narrow flight of stairs in the darkened area. He could already smell the stale air.

Kira motioned to put her foot on the bottom step.

“Wait one minute,” he said, feeling around the wall for a switch. “It’s pretty dark. I was trying to find a light.”

“It’s been ages since anyone has been up here, so Aunt Mary Louise said. But I think the switch is at the top of the staircase.”

Franklin shook his head. “Well, that’s a great place to put it. You could break your neck before getting to the top of these steep things.” He pushed at the railing to gauge its sturdiness, then pulled his phone from his pocket. “We’ll use the light from my phone. The battery is fully charged. I don’t want us to get hurt trying to walk around up there in the dark.”

He pressed the flashlight app, and the glow from the light illuminated the area.

Kira turned around and looked him in the eye. “Franklin, you act like we’re in a sci-fi movie or something. I don’t think we’re going to find any ghosts up here.” She snickered after he gave her a mock-angry expression.

“Just walk, missy,” he said, joking as they moved along.

Once they got to the top of the stairs, another door met them. Franklin searched the walls for a way to turn on the light. “I thought you said the switch was up here. See, I saved us with my trusty flashlight on my phone.”

Kira turned the crystal doorknob and pushed, but nothing happened. She held up the key her aunt had given her after the presentation. “I guess I should use this,” she said, pushing it into the keyhole in the door.

The door creaked as she pushed it open. The space was pitch black. All he could see was the dust particles in front of him. “Man, it smells like it’s been closed off for decades.”

Kira took his phone out of his hand and moved it around the room. “I told you that no one’s been up here in a long time.” She handed it back to him. “Now, what are we looking for?”

Franklin shrugged. “I have no idea, but I think we can make this one trip, so we don’t have to come back. You need to look for things we can use at the inn as well as anything that has to do with my father and your aunt.”

“Let’s go together so that I can see, too,” Kira said, weaving her way through the boxes, trunks, and old picture frames, toward the center of the room.

Franklin lifted his phone to see if there was some kind of light fixture. He couldn’t believe that a place this big wouldn’t have something that would illuminate such a dark place. He noticed a receptacle. “Stay right here. I see a light over there.” He moved as swiftly as he could while watching where he was going. He pulled a string hanging on the side of a bare bulb wired to a ceiling beam, and instantly, the whole room lit up.

“Now, that’s better,” he said, turning in her direction as she walked toward him.

They both scanned the room. “My goodness, there’s so much stuff up here,” Kira said. “It will take us a few days to go through all of it.” She held her nose. “I don’t know if I can stay up here in all this. My allergies would give me hell.”

Franklin looked around, and his eyes caught the corner with the worn box filled with old children’s toys. “Let’s start over here.” Several boxes of Christmas decorations and dusty sheets thrown over the top of furniture that could be antiques were covering something underneath. He walked over and moved the dirty, rolled-up rugs and put them to the side. “Step back. I’m sure this sheet is filled with soot.” He pulled it off and uncovered a chest.

“Hey!” Gail’s voice cut through the quiet air.

Kira nearly jumped into Franklin’s arms. He made sure that she was still upright as he watched Gail come toward them.

“What are you guys doing up here?” she asked, moving some old picture frames out of the way.

Kira looked at him curiously, and Franklin cleared his throat. “We’re looking for anything that we can use to display around the inn that has a sentimental connection to your family.” He knew if he’d told her his real reasonings, she would make a big deal about it, and that would only waste time.

“I thought you’d left already, Gail,” Kira said, walking over to her.

“I did, but I came back because I had an idea that I wanted to throw past you. I’ve been looking for you all over the place.”

“Do you want to go over your idea with me now?”

Gail shook her head. “Nope, I think I’d rather help you look. There’s no telling what’s in all this junk.” She stood with her hands on her hips as she scanned the room. “We need to have a garage sale or something.”

“You know that’s not up to us,” Kira replied, then she looked at Franklin, who was watching their exchange.

“That’s cool, but it’s so dusty up here, why don’t we come back in the morning? This little light won’t be enough,” Kira suggested.

“Great idea,” Franklin replied, happy that they didn’t have to share the space with Gail. There would be too many questions that he didn’t have an answer to. The drawback was he’d have to wait another day to get some answers about his father, and what if Gail found something that could explain it all? He’d have to take that chance.

Kira sneezed.

“Okay, ladies, let’s get out of here,” he said. “You guys go over to the door, and I’ll turn out the light and meet you at the stairs.”

Gail and Kira did as he asked while Franklin turned on his flashlight, pulled the string, and escorted them out. Before he closed the door, he flashed the light and gave the room one more look. He had a feeling that if the things in that room could tell a story, it would be a tale that no one was ready for.