Page 88 of Ghost Walk
June 28, 1789- Silly as it seems, I’m quite looking forward to the 4thof July celebration this year.
For once, I feel as if something exciting might actually happen in this dull town!
From the Journal of Miss Lucinda Wentworth
“Huh?” Grace blinked at Eugenia in astonishment. Vaguely she wondered why Lucinda’s sister was at the 4thof July celebration. Shouldn’t she be in mourning? “Wait, who’s doing what? What are you…?”
“Edward Hunnicutt! He has a knife and I think he’s going to stab her to death!” Eugenia grabbed Grace’s wrist and started pulling her in the opposite direction that Jamie had gone. The last rays of daylight faded, casting her face in shadow. “You have to come now or I’m not sure what he might…”
Grace cut her off, trying to process this new twist.“Ned Hunnicuttis attacking Clara? You’re sure?”
“Yes! He must have killed my poor sister, too!” Eugenia pulled harder on Grace’s arm, trying to urge her along. The girl was stronger than she looked. “I think the man has lost his mind! We have to stop him!”
Grace yanked away from her, shaking her head. What was going on? It didn’t make any sense. “Ned isn’t the murderer. His fingerprints don’t match.”
Eugenia gave her a mystified look, her frantic expression fading. “What?”
“His fingerprints! They’re different. It couldn’t have been him. Someoneelsekilled the girls.”
Eugenia’s eyes narrowed. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about forensic evidence. Science.Facts.” …And suddenly a few of the facts from Lucinda’s diary were starting to fall into place. Grace stared at Eugenia, her mind whirling.
The Pirate charmed even the unlikeliest of targets with his wicked smile.
No beau will ever seek Eugenia’s hand. Although I sometimes get the feeling she’s set her eyes on one.
Father likes to say that Eugenia is the brains of our family.
“We don’t have time for this!” Eugenia snapped, ignoring the dawning horror on Grace’s face. “You have come with meright now!”
Grace shook her head harder. “I’m not going anywhere with you.” She got out, panic filling her as she realized the truth.
Now it made sense how the killer had evaded capture at the Wentworth mansion the night Lucinda died… Why there had been barefoot prints in the room… Why Eugenia had originally told everyone that she’d heard Lucinda sneak out of the house… Why there hadn’t been any evidence of a sexual assault on the body… Why, when Grace had arrived at the scene, it seemed as if Lucinda had been dead for far longer than made sense in Eugenia’s accounts of that night…
Standing back from all the individual pieces, Grace could abruptly see the whole picture.
“You killed Lucinda.” She whispered. “All this time, it’s beenyou.”
Eugenia --the plain, pinched-lipped, overlooked sister of the town’s most beautiful mean girl-- slowly smiled. “I had a feeling you were a clever one.” She said, in an eerily calm voice and her pretense about Clara’s peril faded away. “Jamie only fancies girls who are smart or pretty.” She extracted a long-bladed knife from the folds of her black skirts. “And really, let’sbe honest, you’re just not that pretty.”
Ah crap… It seemed that Jamie had been wrong. Gracewasn’tthe only Sunday school teacher who’d fall for a pirate. Damn it, why did he have to be so frigging appealing?
“Umm…” Grace checked over her shoulder and didn’t see anyone headed her way to help. “Let’s just stay calm and talk about this, okay?” She tried nervously. “No reason to do anything crazy.”
Not that Eugenia seemed to need much of a reason.
“The first time I saw the pirate I knew he was the one for me.” Eugenia mused, a far off look in her eye. In a way, it seemed like she was glad to be found out. It gave her a chance to freely talk about her obsession with Jamie. “He was so handsome and strong and free. He was walking with my sister, much to my father’s horror… and I knew I had to have him for myself. It was our destiny.”
“So, you’re some kind of creepyFatal Attractionbunny boiler?”
Eugenia glared at her, annoyed that Grace wasn’t listening in reverent awe to her story of true love. “You’re not from around here, are you?” She guessed peevishly. “I declare, I don’t understand half of the bizarre things you say. Try as I might, I can’t quite figure out where you came from or why you’re in Harrisonburg.”
“I’m here to save Jamie from you.”
That was probably not the smartest thing she could’ve said to the president of his psycho fan club. “Jamie ismine.” Eugenia bit off, a raw and primitive madness flashing in her eyes. “Not yours. Not Lucinda’s.Mine. He’s finally beginning to realize that, too. When he held me in his arms at the ball, I could tell that he sensed our eternal bond.”
“Jamie danced with you. Once. And you think that means you’re soulmates?” Grace translated. “He inadvertently showed you some attention and you couldn’t bear to give it up.That’swhy you did all this?”
