The rest of the week, Honor struggled to divide her time between Soft Fix and The Circle. Soon it was Friday and she was waving goodbye to Becky as the airport shuttle bus pulled away from the hotel curb.
“See you after the holidays,” she called. She checked her watch. In just a few hours, her sisters were scheduled to arrive for a meeting at the title company, where they would sign ownership of their mother’s house over to Honor, in exchange for a large chunk of her retirement savings.
Honor wasn’t thrilled about leaving her posh suite to spend the night on air mattresses, but Chase refused to stay at the Belleview Biltmore, and Patty and Cherry thought it would be fun to spend one more night in their mother’s home before the work crews started the renovation. With no time to waste, Josh cleaned the grill, while Honor and Cody shopped for groceries and a second air bed.
When Chase’s cab pulled up, Honor raced out to greet her baby sister with excited shrieks and hugs. Chase was heavier than Honor and wore her dark hair in a short, straight bob, but they both had green eyes and possessed similar facial features.
Cody hid behind his father’s legs while Josh paid the cabbie and retrieved Chase’s overnight bag from the trunk.
Honor introduced Chase to Josh, and she hugged him, too. “I’ve never heard my sister speak so highly of any man before.”
Josh blushed and mumbled, “Good to meet you, too.”
“And that’s Cody,” Honor pointed.
Cody continued to hide behind Josh.
“I think I have something for you in my purse, Cody,” Chase teased. She rifled around in her large handbag, knowing she had Cody’s full attention. “My sister said you like some superhero, but I just can’t remember which one it was.”
Cody stepped out from behind Josh; his eyes glued on her purse. “Spiderman,” he said.
Chase smiled. “That’s right, Spiderman.” She pulled a Spiderman action figure from her bag. Excited, Cody practically snatched the toy from her.
Josh prompted, “What do you say, Cody?”
Cody gushed, “I don’t have this one!”
Josh prompted him again.
“Thank you,” Cody mumbled. He allowed Chase to give him a hug.
“Come on inside.” Honor suggested, “Cherry and Patty are going to meet us at the title company, but we have time for a drink before we have to leave.”
“A cold beer sounds great.” Chase stopped in the foyer and looked around. “Wow, it’s strange to see the house so empty.”
“You know, it’s not too late to change your mind about sleeping in our suite at the Belleview Biltmore.”
Chase pretended to shiver. “No thanks…I had a bad experience there when I was a kid.”
Josh and Honor exchanged a bewildered glance as they moved into the kitchen.
“You can’t make a statement like that and expect us to let it slide,” Honor prodded as she opened three beers.
Josh nodded in agreement.
Chase rolled her eyes. “No fair. Josh just met me and he’ll think I’m a kook!”
“Try me. I’ve heard some pretty bizarre stuff since I’ve been with your sister.”
Chase took a swig of beer before conceding. “For some reason, our mother liked to spend a weekend at that hotel every couple months, right Honor?”
Honor nodded, “That’s true.”
“Well, one summer, while I was still too little to go to sleep-away camp with my sisters, Mom decided to take me along with her. I remember we sat in huge wooden rocking chairs on the porch and ate ice cream. It was great having our mom to myself.”
“Sounds nice,” Honor commented.
“At first it was. But that night, Mom was tired and wanted to go to bed early.” Chase paused to take another drink of beer. “I guess I fell asleep and had a scary dream, but it was so unbelievably real, I still remember it.”
Honor coaxed, “Tell us about the dream.”
“I dreamed that I woke up in the middle of the night and saw a ghost. I was scared and heard Mom talking in the next room, so I got out of bed and ran toward her voice. But when I came around the corner, I froze. Mom had turned into a ghost, too! She was sitting at a table sipping tea with another ghost, and acting as if being transparent was just as normal as can be. I ran back to bed to hide under the covers, and when I jumped in, I thought I found Mom’s body!”
Chase shuddered at the memory. “She was just asleep, of course. I started to cry and she woke up. When I told her I had a nightmare, she hugged me and said everything was fine, so I should go back to sleep. I plastered myself against Mom and tried to sleep, but I could still hear the ghost voices in the next room. Anyway…I never forgot that night and I guess the hotel brings back that scary memory.” She took a long drink. “So, now you think I’m crazy, right?”
Honor shook her head. “Chase, I don’t think you were dreaming. I’ve had several similar experiences at the hotel. When Patty and Cherry get here, I’ll tell you guys about them.”
Chase cracked, “Oh goody… an old fashioned sleepover, complete with ghost stories!” Changing the subject, she asked, “What time is the closing?”
Honor glanced at her watch, startled at how quickly time had evaporated. “Actually, we should get going right now.” She stood and reached for her keys. “Josh, do you have everything you need for the barbeque?”
Josh nodded. “Sure do. You guys take your time. I turned up the heat on the pool, so we’re going for a swim while you’re gone.”
Honor gave him and Cody a quick kiss and then she and Chase rushed out the door.
Cherry and Patty were already at the title company when Chase and Honor arrived. Both sisters had dark hair, but their eyes were light brown and they had inherited their father’s longer nose. Cherry’s hair was pulled back in a knot, held in place with a clip, while Patty embraced her curls with a short, carefree cut.
It was great to be together, even if they did have to sign a mountain of paperwork. The closing was completed without a hitch and soon they were on their way back home. Except now, it belonged to Honor.
***
After everyone had been properly introduced, Honor put Cody down for a nap and Josh started supper. The autumn weather was perfect, so they all sat outside and amused Josh with stories from their childhood, while the foil-wrapped potatoes, carrots and onions roasted on the hot grill.
As the sun sank lower, the temperature dropped, making it easy for Honor to recruit indoor kitchen help. The sisters prepared the side dishes and then sat on the living room floor, drinking beer and reminiscing.
Patty remarked, “I think Mom would be happy to know the house is staying in the family.”
“Speaking of Mom,” Honor confessed, “I need to tell you guys something. Her spirit is still here.”
“I feel her, too!” Chase interrupted.
“Really?” Patty questioned.
Cherry shook her head. “Nonsense. You guys are letting your imaginations get the better of you.”
Just then, Cody shuffled into the room, rubbing his sleepy eyes.
“Hey there, little guy…did you have a nice nap?” Honor reached out and pulled him onto her lap.
Still tired, he yawned and curled up comfortably, resting his head against Honor’s shoulder. Immediately, she noticed his skin was cold. She tensed. “Is everything okay, Cody?”
“Grandma came to visit while I was sleeping.”
Honor knew her sisters wouldn’t understand what Cody was talking about, but she decided to let him tell her about the visit and then explain everything to her siblings afterward.
They listened, fascinated as she urged, “What did Grandma have to say, Cody?”
Cody rubbed his nose, still trying to wake up. “Grandma said she’s glad everyone’s together and happy. Now she can go join Grandpa.”
“Grandma said she’s joining Grandpa?”
Cody nodded. “Yeah. She’s been lonely without him.”
More awake now, Cody sat up straighter in Honor’s lap. “She said she wants to leave before the carpenters start tearing down walls. I tried to tell her how much fun it’s going to be, but…” he shrugged, unable to understand how anyone could find the prospect of home remodeling less than awesome.
Honor encouraged him to continue. “Did she want you to tell us anything else?”
Cody screwed up his face, concentrating. “She said she loves everybody and when we get really, really, really old, she’ll be waiting for us at the end of the lighted path.” He paused and then added, “And she said to remember her favorite saying… the one on the sign that used to be in the kitchen…about laughing.”
“I remember that sign. It said ‘Live well. Laugh often. And love much’.”
Cody nodded. “Yep, that’s it.” He clambered to his feet, now wide awake. “I’m thirsty, Mommy. Can I have some juice?”
Honor smiled. “Sure you can, Sweetie…let’s go to the kitchen and I’ll show you where that sign about laughing used to hang.”
She glanced at her sisters, who were staring open-mouthed at the two of them. She wasn’t surprised. Even though she accepted the fact that Cody was a medium, she was still amazed by his ability to form a bridge between the living and the dead.
Looking over the kitchen island into the living room, she could see her sisters whispering to one another, but she couldn’t make out what they were saying.
She handed Cody a drink box. “Daddy should be just about finished cooking our steaks—are you hungry?”
Cody nodded enthusiastically.
“Why don’t you go check on Daddy to see what’s taking so long?”
Needing no further encouragement, Cody ran towards the door to the back yard.
Honor called after him, “Walk! Don’t spill your drink.” Then she took a deep breath and walked back into the living room to face her sister’s questions.
They fell silent as Honor approached. She sat down. “Okay, I know that was pretty strange…”
Cherry interrupted. “Strange? That’s an understatement, don’t you think? I mean…Cody just called you ‘Mommy’ for goodness sake!”
Honor laughed, “Mommy? That’s the part that caught your attention?” Her laughter became contagious. They all laughed so hard, they didn’t even hear Josh and Cody come in the room.
Josh asked, “What’s so funny?”
Before Honor could explain, Cody interjected, “I know why they’re laughing, Daddy… Grandma told them they were supposed to laugh a lot.”
His explanation sent them into new fits of laughter. When they finally calmed down, Honor suggested they postpone the rest of their discussion until after dinner, hinting she had a lot to tell them about their family’s history.