Page 15 of Love Over Time

Russ bounced in place. “God, Henry. ’Bout fucking time.” He pulled the blueprint holder over his head. “I told you I’d come in handy. Didn’t I say that?” He took out a blueprint, walked to the new tunnel, and switched on the light. “Electrical already goes through here. I took some liberties.” He winked at me.

“Thanks.” I squeezed his shoulder. Guy talk for I owe you big.

He laid the blueprints on the ground and pointed to the labels. I recognized the overall design. It was a drawing of Cavalier Manor, with my great-grandfather’s signature at the bottom of the page. The only difference was the title. It readThe Speak Softly Shop. Unlike the drawings for the manor, this design had every tunnel marked. It had been the Prohibition Era, and staying a step ahead of the police was the main priority. Tunnels had been shut down and rebuilt as needed for a better part of the decade. At least that was what Grandad used to say. He’d been thirteen when the Prohibition ended along with the secret tunnels and clandestine bars.

This tunnel led straight to the manor. According to the drawings, it went all the way up to the coat closet in the Cavalier Hotel, Nikki’s side of the hotel. Had she chosen that side because she knew or because she was being nice and wanted me to have the bar? Not fucking likely. She knew about the passages in the Cavalier Hotel and how this one in particular connected to the Cavalier Manor. She must’ve used this tunnel to sneak into our house the night I found her stealing Mom’s money.

“You’ve gone through it?” I asked.

Russ shook his head. “Electrical only runs for about a quarter mile. Beyond that, I couldn’t get the guys to keep working without answering questions that, well, are for you to answer. So this gives you direct access to Cavalier Manor. What now, Henry?”

Finally, a step in the right direction. A flush of calm settled in my stomach. I should be running to Cavalier Manor. I’d been waiting for this moment for months. I had the answers right in front of me, but for the life of me, all I wanted to do was run upstairs and tell Nikki about it. Would she come with me if I asked her? Or would she turn me down once again? I rubbed my hand on my face.Get her out of your head already.

Time to check out the Speak Softly Shop. “As they say, let’s see how deep the rabbit hole goes.”

“Left a couple of suits and light equipment in here, just in case you were up to the task.” Russ flashed me a grin and went into the tunnel. “I would’ve been so disappointed if you’d said you wanted nothing to do with the tunnel. Unlike your uncle, you sure know how to live up to the Cavalier name.” He chuckled.

“Yeah. I’m the boy who ran away to a different country, scared out of his wits, remember?” I donned the gray suit he offered. It fit tight around my thighs, but the arms had plenty of movement when I squeezed them together to test it out. After I zipped it up, I picked up an ax off the pile of tools Russ had brought.

“You can’t blame yourself for that, Henry. You were only sixteen. But now you’re here. And you finally have the chance to make things right.”

I nodded. “Let’s hope you’re right.”

Past the half-mile mark, the tunnel got narrow, veered right, and dead-ended. According to the blueprints, this tunnel led all the way to Cavalier Manor. This wall wasn’t supposed to be here. After all these years since Prohibition ended, why had someone taken the time to close it off?

I gripped the pickax and started chipping away at the concrete, knowing my old house lay less than a mile away. Russ joined me, and together we beat at the wall. The muscles in my arms burned from the effort, but I couldn’t make myself stop. Not until I was through to the other side. Minutes or maybe hours slid by before Russ stopped and slumped next to me. I let go too, falling to my knees. “Fuck.”

“I know it doesn’t look like it, but we made progress.” He braced his hands on his knees. “Damn. Looks like they just poured on the cement in here.”

“Yeah.” Someone had been in a hurry.

“How about we pick it up again tomorrow?”

I fixed my gaze on the wall. Nikki’s face appeared, all blonde hair and bigger-than-life smile. Things always seemed so easy when she was around. How did she do that? I wiped my brow. My chest tightened every time I thought of her.Nikki.

I jerked to my feet, found the pickax, and stabbed the wall again. Again and again. I’d been mad at Nikki all these years for not showing up to our meeting place. We’d made a promise to run away together. Yeah, she hadn’t shown, but I never went looking for her either. I’d let her down too. I’d broken our promise.

Somewhere far away, Russ’s voice sounded urgent and scared. My arms were on fire, but nothing mattered. I’d left this place once empty handed. No way I was letting that happen again. My goddamn life was on the line. Another blow, and the ax went through the cement like butter, taking me with it. I fell in among the rubble. My lungs burned as I gasped for air.

“Fuck, Henry.” Russ placed a hand over his mouth and coughed against the puff of dust in the air. “I think we’re through.” He climbed over me and got to work on removing the debris.

I couldn’t move a muscle. “Are you sure?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, come take a look.” He threw more chunks of cement over my head.

I got up and followed him through the small opening. On the other side, the tunnel continued. We walked the rest of the way in silence. My whole body trembled while my hands throbbed, raw and bleeding. What was waiting for us on the other side?

“Okay.” Russ pointed up the steel ladder. “The blueprints showed this manhole is about fifty yards from the house, off the manor gardens.”

I froze. That was my mother’s favorite place. It was also the place where I’d kissed Nikki for the first time and then said goodbye, not knowing I’d never see her again. I wasn’t ready to see Mom’s garden again. It was probably in worse condition than the hotel.

“Come on, Henry. You’re almost there.”

Right. I’d come this far. I climbed the rungs and shouldered open the manhole cover. I peeked out and felt as if someone had punched me in the gut. Of all the things I’d imagined I’d find when I returned to Cavalier Manor, this was the last thing. Or the last person. My mother was still here. Or at least the shadow of what she used to be was here.

A few months before Dad died, Mom had fallen ill. No one could figure out what was wrong with her. She simply didn’t have the strength or will to get out of bed anymore. After Lisa was found over Dad’s body, Jonathan thought it’d be better for Mom’s health if we took her to a place where she wouldn’t be reminded that her husband was dead. It all made sense at the time. What never made sense was that she didn’t want to see me. I’d tried for years to reach out to her, but eventually I gave up on her too.

Later when Jonathan sent me to boarding school in Canada and told me never to return to the manor, I told myself it was time to move on with my life. Or rather, I buried my head in the sand along with my feelings. Why was Mom here?

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