Page 60 of The Guests on South Battery
“What?” She actually leaned away from me, as if I’d uttered a really bad expletive.
“Am I fat? I need you to be honest with me.”
She took a deep breath and settled back into her place next to me. “No, Mellie. You’re not fat by anyone’s definition. You’ve definitely filled out more since your pregnancy, but it suits you. You might have been a little too thin before—although I have no idea how you managed that, since I’ve never seen a person eat that much junk food and not bethe size of a house—but with the added pounds you have female curves in all the right places.”
“So you’re saying you can tell that I’ve gained weight?”
“Sweetheart, your body has just created two of the most precious children—you should honor it by adoring it and treating it well. Most important, you need to realize that dress size is only a number. A woman can be beautiful in any size, as long as she conducts herself with self-confidence. That alone is worth all the makeup and expensive clothes in the world.”
I leaned into her. “Where were you when I was sixteen and really needed to hear this?”
“Yes, well, that’s part of your problem, I’m afraid. But we’ll work through this together, all right?”
I nodded, then sniffed. “Jayne has the body I used to have, doesn’t she?”
“Yes, she does. Well, except for the bust. You never had a bust like that. But you’re not Jayne. And Jack picked you. Never forget that.”
“Thank you,” I said. “If it means anything to you, I’d say you’ve more than made up for lost time. It seems a shame that all your wisdom is wasted on just one child.”
A shadow passed over her face, and I looked up, surprised to find a bright blue and cloudless sky. She smiled, casting aside any hint of clouds or shadows. “Yes, well, that’s what grandchildren are for. And because of you, I now have three whom I adore. So really I should be thankingyoufor making my old age not nearly as bleak as I once imagined it might be.”
Without a tissue I resorted to wiping my nose with the back of my hand while my mother pretended not to notice. “So,” I said as I stood, “you ready to fight some ghosts?”
My mother stood, too, delicately wiping the seat of her pants as we turned to look up at the house. “As ready as ever. I got a good night’s sleep and I’m well hydrated—and I’m prepared for what’s coming. I think that could have been the problem when we met with Veronica.I was completely taken off guard. This won’t be easy, and it will probably weaken me, but I’ll be ready for it. And you’ll be here to hold my hand so we can be stronger together.”
“Deal,” I said, unlocking the door and leading her into the foyer. “Why did you suggest we come in the middle of the day? I thought you said that the spirits were always more active at night.”
“They are. There are fewer electrical disturbances at night, so they have more energy then. I thought it best that I first meet them when I’m not the one at a disadvantage.”
“Good idea,” I said as I closed the door behind me. The house was an even bigger mess than the last time I’d been there because, I was sure, of Jayne’s reluctance to decide what she wanted to do with all the furniture. So it had to be moved and stacked in a different room as the renovations progressed. The only rooms Sophie had marked as out-of-bounds were the attic room and Button’s room because of their personal nature. But, as she’d mentioned, the roof repair wasn’t going to wait much longer and something would need to be done sooner rather than later. As long as she promised not to move any of it to my house for safekeeping until Jayne decided, I didn’t really care what happened to it.
Ginette lifted the hair off the back of her neck, a sheen of perspiration already making her face dewy. “It’s cool outside, but my body can’t seem to regulate its temperature, so I’m either burning up or freezing all the time. I guess that comes with age.”
“It’s cooler upstairs with the window unit—assuming they remembered to keep Button’s door open.”
“I think it’s about to get a lot colder.” Her gaze met mine. “Do you feel it?” Her voice was barely louder than a hush.
I nodded. “I hear lots of voices, but I think that’s just because we’re both here and we’re acting as a portal for lost spirits. But there are two strong presences—although there might be more. It’s just that they’re overshadowed by these other two.”
My mother nodded and stared at the staircase just as a flash of white disappeared around the corner of the landing, followed by the very faintsound of running feet. Very slowly and deliberately, Ginette began to remove her gloves finger by finger. “I feel them. One is gentle; almost sweet, I think.” She turned to me, her eyes wide. “She wants to show us something. She’s the one who wants our help.”
I nodded. “I think I just saw her. Running up the stairs.”
“You can see now?”
“Yes,” I said with some relief. “Like I said, it comes and goes. But nothing’s blocking me now.”
Her lips pressed together in a grim line. “Button loved this house. It’s so sad to see it this way.” She spun around, taking in the holes in the plaster and the warped wooden floor planks. “I guess it was more than she could handle as she got older.” Her forehead creased. “I wonder why she didn’t leave the lake house to Jayne instead of this one.”
“The lake house? Amelia mentioned Button’s family had one, but I assumed it was sold or something, because it wasn’t part of the estate as far as I know.”
She nodded, her head tilted back to see the gaping hole where a Baccarat chandelier had been removed and now sat in a corner covered with an oilcloth. “Well, the Pinckney family owned a house on a lake, not too far from Birmingham—that’s where Jayne’s from, right? Lake Jasper, I believe. In Alabama. I used to go up there for weeks at a time during the summers with Button and her family. The house had actually been designed and constructed by Anna’s father’s company. That’s how the families met, I believe.” She smiled to herself, her expression blurred with memories. “The Pinckneys must have let it go at some point. It’s a shame, really. It wasn’t as grand as this place, but it was cozy and beautiful, and right on the lake. We spent many happy times there. Jayne might have found it easier to be at home there instead of in a place like this.”
“Unless it’s as old as this place,” I said, only half joking. “I’ll ask Jayne—maybe her lawyers mentioned it. If not, we’ll just have to assume that it was sold years ago.”
I led the way upstairs, feeling someone watching us, someone waiting. For what, I wasn’t sure. All I knew was thatitknew we could senseit, could tell that we knew it was coiled and waiting to spring. Probably knew that I was petrified and on edge. And for a brief moment, I wondered why I’d thought that losing my psychic abilities would be such a bad thing.
We paused in the upstairs hallway, my mother looking down the hall toward a closed door. “Can I go see Button’s room? I don’t think I’ve been in there since we graduated from Ashley Hall.”
