Just then, the fog closed in and pulled Honor from the scene, returning her to her seat at the parlor table.
“What did Darcy do with all her jewelry?”
Margaret chuckled. “Darcy sold pieces of her collection each time Hannah and Hope needed additional funds, replacing some of them with paste duplicates. When it became obvious that she was dying, her step-sons beseeched her to reveal the location of her hidden jewelry collection, but she refused to tell them. She became conveniently senile in her last days and said she couldn’t remember where her jewels were hidden. Why, I do believe those men searched every nook and cranny of that house for years, looking for her missing jewels!”
Honor chuckled at the thought of the greedy heirs searching for a jewelry collection that no longer existed, but then her smile faded.
“It’s incredibly sad that Darcy’s entire life was devoted to caring for a husband and step-sons she did not love, so that she could finance a family who didn’t know she existed.”
Margaret clucked. “A life dedicated to anonymous service is the most honorable of existences. My friend deserves your admiration, not your pity. Tonight she left this realm glowing with satisfaction, knowing the result of her selflessness was the creation of an astounding legacy. Darcy’s blood spawned generations of remarkable women, and now it flows through your veins. You must make the most of the spec of time allotted for your life. Like your ancestors, you, too, can accomplish extraordinary things, but there’s no time to waste.”
Honor nodded, thinking about her family. “Margaret, since Darcy didn’t share a connection with my mother, how did you come to know her?”
Margaret paused, reflecting on the past. “I think my close friendship with Darcy made it easier for me to connect with her relatives. But the true link between Faith Macklin and me was our mutual love of the stock market.”
Honor’s bewildered expression caused a sly smile to spread across Margaret’s face. “Faith and I both loved the rivalry of the business world and we were drawn to the stock market because it was a forum in which we could compete with men on equal footing. When Faith came here to the Belleview to attend a lecture about investing and stayed over for a night, we connected.”
“She never mentioned it.”
“She tried to tell you, but you weren’t receptive to her discoveries about the afterlife.”
Honor groaned, remembering how dismissive she had been of her mother’s quirky ideology.
“Faith and I enjoyed great visits. I always hoped she would connect with Darcy, but in the meantime, we spent our evenings together developing investment strategies, which she would later implement and track. We enjoyed a rather successful run in the market, if I do say so myself.”
Honor was puzzled. “You thought my Mother invested money in the stock market?”
“Well, you inherited a stock portfolio, didn’t you?”
Honor shook her head, dumbfounded.
Margaret knitted her eyebrows. “Then she must have maintained a false profit leger, so we could pretend to invest in the stock market without any real risk.” She sighed. “Too bad. Well, it was fun, even if it was just a game. I’ll miss my visits with Faith.”
Both women grew quiet, lost in their private thoughts. Honor noticed the mist beginning to swirl around her.
Just before she disappeared into the fog, Margaret said, “Any life worth living involves taking real risks. When you won’t risk losing what you have, you stand almost no chance of acquiring something even better. That new enterprise of yours could inspire countless women to take the risks that are necessary to realize their dreams.”
Honor heard a noise coming from another room in the suite and turned toward the sound. She felt herself falling through the fog and wasn’t surprised to find herself back in her own bed when she opened her eyes. She listened for a moment, then got up, put on a robe and crept in to check on Cody. He was sleeping peacefully.
While Honor gazed at him, she thought about her visit with the spirits. She was sad that she would never again share Darcy’s memories, but prayed that her great-great grandmother would find peace at the end of the lighted path.
Suddenly the hair on Honor’s neck stood on end. She whirled around, sensing that she was not alone. She balled her fists, ready to attack anyone who might try to harm Cody.
Then, somewhere in the darkness, she heard Becky say, “Ouch!” and realized her guest had gotten up to go to the bathroom and was innocently stumbling back into her bedroom, unaware that anyone else was awake at this hour.
When she heard Becky close the door to her room, Honor took a deep breath, unclenched her fists, and tried to calm her heart rate. While she waited for the adrenalin to slowly dissipate, she bent over and tucked Cody’s blanket under his chin, then kissed his cheek. Like Hannah before her, she may not have given birth to her child but Cody was hers now, and Honor knew she would have given her life to protect him.
She returned to bed and curled her chilly body into the warm curve of Josh’s back. When she slid her arm around him, he captured her hand and held it in his own. She smiled and closed her eyes.
***
Honor woke to the sound of cartoons and Cody’s voice, telling Becky about Spiderman’s run-in with one of his arch enemies. She pulled on a thick robe and shuffled into the parlor.
As soon as he spotted her, Cody called out, “Mommy’s awake!”
Honor stifled a yawn. “Good morning, you two. Where’s Josh?”
“He said he had to get to a jobsite early, so I told him to leave Cody here with us.” Becky rubbed her hands together. “You know, this old hotel needs some work on the heating system. I woke up in the middle of the night and this suite was freezing!”
Cody nodded in agreement. “The invisible people make it cold.”
Honor decided to use Josh’s old explanation for Cody’s unusual outbursts. “Cody has a lot of invisible friends. I guess he thinks they mess with the thermostat at night.”
Becky smiled broadly at Cody’s imagination and played along. “They do, do they? Well…we’ll have to put up a sign saying ‘please don’t change the temperature in this room,’ won’t we?”
Cody, satisfied the problem had been solved, went back to watching cartoons. Honor showed Becky her systems design checklist and in no time, they were back at the dining room table, bouncing ideas off each other.
Eventually, Cody came into the parlor and announced, “I’m hungry.”
Embarrassed, Honor realized that she had momentarily forgotten Cody was even in the suite. Some mother, she chided herself. “I’m sorry, Sweetie. Sometimes I get busy and forget to eat, so I’m glad you reminded me.”
Cody admonished, “Daddy says I have to eat so I can grow up to be a big boy.”
Honor smiled at Josh’s quote. “He’s absolutely right. Just give me a minute to get cleaned up and we’ll go out for breakfast. You know, Cody, when we move to a regular house, you’re going to discover I make great pancakes.”
The thought of moving to a new home spurred Cody’s imagination and he followed Honor to the bathroom, listing everything that would be different once they moved. He chattered away the entire time she was brushing her teeth. Finally, Honor interrupted him.
“Okay, Cody… you need to scoot and close the door, so I can take my shower.”
Obediently, Cody walked to the bathroom door and closed it, but to Honor’s astonishment, he remained in the bathroom with her.
She laughed at the misunderstanding and tried to explain. “Uh…Cody…you need to leave the bathroom while I shower.”
“Why can’t I talk to you while you’re taking a shower?”
Flustered, Honor said the first thing that popped into her mind. “Because girls aren’t supposed to take showers when boys are in the room.”
His quick mind immediately countered, “But you came in here when my Daddy was in the shower.”
Honor tried to dodge the comment. “That’s different.” As soon as the words escaped her lips, she knew what he was going to ask next.
“Why, Mommy?”
Honor smiled at the sound of her new name, wondering how long it would take her to get used to it. She took him by his hand and led him to the door. As she opened it, she explained, “It’s about privacy, Cody. But I’m not ready to have that discussion this early in the morning, so you’re just going to have to take my word for it. Now scat!”
Cody put out his bottom lip. Honor smiled and tried another tactic. “Do you think you could draw a picture for Becky while I’m in the shower?”
His lip retracted instantly, all signs of upset gone as quickly as they had appeared.
As he left the bathroom, he yelled, “Becky… I’m going to draw a picture for you!”
From elsewhere in the suite, Honor heard Becky answer, “Great, Cody. Why don’t you come sit here at the table with me?”
Honor closed the door, then leaned against it and shook her head over the embarrassing encounter. She made a mental note to ask Josh how he thought they should approach the privacy subject with Cody. There were so many things she had to learn about being a mother. Feelings of anxiety began to blossom, but as she stepped into the warm shower, she recalled Margaret’s words. ‘Darcy’s blood spawned generations of remarkable women, and now it flows through your veins’.
Honor thought about her female ancestors. All of them had been wonderful mothers and now their blood was flowing through her veins. The thought calmed her, although she couldn’t help but wonder if any of them ever had to deal with a child as inquisitive as Cody.