Page 21 of Dreams That Bind Us
He chuckled. "No, Anna, I am not. This isn't the first time I've heard about Paradise West being haunted. Annette and Gus have both mentioned her quite a bit. I’ll admit, at first I wondered if it was a gimmick they were using to increase interest in the bed and breakfast. But they swear by her. I've been at Paradise West several times and haven’t noticed anything."
"Her name is Amelia. You should ask Gus about her as she's taken a particular interest in him." Anna leaned toward him. "Would you like to hear the full story, or just the condensed version?"
"The full story, please," he answered, entranced by the gleam in her turquoise gaze. Plus, it was the first topic in which she seemed willing to engage in a prolonged conversation. Any progress was good.
Anna settled her forearms on the table, the expression on her face magnetic. "Amelia Brown and her family lived in the main house of Paradise West in the late eighteen hundreds. Her father was a wealthy shipping merchant, and the family was well respected on the island."
She took a sip of wine and continued. "Sometime during the summer of 1870, when Amelia was eighteen, she met a young sailor named Ian Kennedy. According to her diary, they instantly fell in love and spent every moment they could together, which was not easy because her family would not have approved of Ian."
James held a hand up. "Wait a minute. According to her diary? Her diary is still in existence?"
Anna nodded, her eyes twinkling. "It is.Theyare. Charli found them wrapped in oilcloth in the Widow's Walk of Paradise West. They were in a hidey hole that Charli tripped on. That was how she found them."
She nibbled at a piece of mozzarella cheese, completely unaware of her overall appeal. "Anyway, Ian and Amelia wanted to marry, but Ian told her he had to sail to Cuba one more time before he could marry her. He had planned to start his own wrecking business in Key West and needed one more trip before he could buy his own boat."
"Let me guess," James interrupted. "He never came back."
"Oh no, he came back. But it was too late."
"What do you mean, too late? Did Amelia die before he returned?"
Anna laughed as she crossed her arms. "Well, if you'd quit interrupting, I'll finish the story."
James chuckled and held up his hands in surrender. "So sorry. Please continue."
"Well, like I was saying, just before Ian left on his trip, Amelia discovered that she was pregnant and they made a promise to marry the moment he returned. But the 1870 hurricane season was bad and his ship was caught in one and went down off the coast of southeast Cuba."
"But you said he came back."
Anna primmed her lips and arched an eyebrow. James laughed out loud. "Sorry."
Anna was obviously annoyed, but he was enjoying this exchange more than he could express. He delighted in seeing this side of her.
"Anyway, it wasn't long before Amelia's family learned she was pregnant, so they shipped her off to stay with her aunt near Jacksonville until she had the baby. Then the family gave the baby—a boy—to her sister to raise, all the while planning to marry Amelia off to a local businessman."
James grimaced. "Good god. That's awful."
"Yes, it must have been beyond horrible, because shortly after she returned to Key West with her son, she jumped off the roof of Paradise West and killed herself."
"Damn." All his enjoyment for the story evaporated. It was leaving a bad taste in his mouth. "What happened to Ian? Did he survive the ship sinking?"
"Yes." Anna held up a finger. "By a twist of fate, he had contracted yellow fever at a previous stop. The crew had removed him from the ship to recover at a convent. The ship went down right after that, but no one knew that Ian hadn't been onboard."
"Jesus, this story just keeps getting worse. So Ian comes back to Key West and finds out that Amelia is dead and that his son is being raised by her sister?"
"Yes. But he let Amelia’s sister raise his son. He built his shipping business and became one of Key West's wealthiest shipping merchants."
"Huh. And now Amelia haunts Paradise West. Seeking revenge, maybe?"
"No." Anna shook her head. "Haunt is the wrong word. She resides at Paradise West, but not for revenge. Amelia's motives are loving and peaceful. When Charli arrived from Boston, she and Jack inherited Paradise West together after Charli's aunt died. The inn had fallen into disrepair and they were charged in her aunt’s will with restoring it to its original splendor, fully funded by the estate. Charli unraveled the mystery of Amelia and learned that Amelia had actually been Jack's many-times great grandmother. The young son she had to give to her sister was Jack's great, great, great grandfather, rather than a great uncle as he'd been told."
"Well, this story is full of twists," James commented lightly. "How does this involve you?"
"Annette and Gus drove over to my warehouse one day. At first they only asked if I was interested in the furniture order for The Majestic. But then Annette divulged that after Amelia's mystery had been revealed, they assumed she would be at peace and move on. But she's still around and nothing has changed. So they asked me to speak with Amelia before Paradise West opened and guests arrived."
James's eyes widened. He rested his chin on his hand as he leaned forward. "And did you speak to Amelia? Was she there?"
"I did." Anna stared off for a moment and took a deep breath. "It was the first time I had connected with a spirit in a very long time, so it was as meaningful for me as it was for Amelia."
