And there was Tess, a vacant look on her face. And Jane, noticing her. “Tess.” She motioned to the others. “There’s something wrong with Tess.”
Tess dropped her devices and put her hands over her ears. Wyatt grabbed both of her arms, but Tess’s head flopped to the side like a rag doll’s.
There in the kitchen, Tess gasped at what she saw.
And then the next verse.
I’ll always love you and make you happy
If you will only say the same
But if you leave me and love another
You’ll regret it all someday
And then, laughter. Horrible, menacing laughter. Tess hadn’t heard that before.
Now it was Hunter’s turn to jump back in his chair. “Holy mother of God, what is that?”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
The crew just looked at each other. No one spoke for a moment. Tension, fear, and confusion hung in the air, as tangible as the fog in the studio. Hunter downed the rest of his Scotch in one gulp and poured another. Grant joined him. Wyatt reached for Tess’s hand and squeezed it.
And then, a booming voice broke the silence.
“Tess!”
It was the same voice she had heard earlier. Wasn’t it? For a split second, Tess thought she was the only one, again, who could hear it. But everyone jumped. The energy in the house decidedly shifted into—what?—it seemed like a sort of chaos.
“Who’s there?” Wyatt shouted.
Everyone stood up from their chairs and tensed, ready for whatever was going to come.
And then Tess saw what it was.
Indigo Bell strode into the kitchen with a flourish, as he always did. The man knew how to make a grand entrance. His stark-white hair was still thick and wavy for a man in his seventies. Behind his modern horn-rimmed glasses, his blue eyes shone. He was dressed in a black coat and fur hat, with a purple paisley scarf wound around his neck.
Tess’s mother, Jill, was close behind. She was wearing the magenta cloak Tess had given her the previous Christmas, with skinny black pants and high-heeled black boots. Her salt-and-pepper hair was cut short, showing off her perfect skin and strong jawline. Tess had always wished she had inherited her mother’s eternal youth.
Tess blinked at them, not quite comprehending, for just a moment, what she was seeing.
“There you are, honey!” Jill said.
“What is all this?” Indigo wanted to know. “Why are all of the lights off? We thought you weren’t here, and then we heard voices.”
Tess pushed herself out of her chair as her mother took her into her arms. “It’s so good to see you, sweetie,” Jill said, smoothing Tess’s hair.
“It’s good to see you, Mom,” she said. “And Dad. But . . . I don’t get it. How did you get here?”
Indigo looked amused. “The conventional way,” he said. “We hopped on a flight. And we took a shuttle here from the airport in Duluth.”
“It was a planes, trains, and automobiles situation,” Jill piped up. “Layovers, that sort of thing. We’ve forgotten how difficult it can be to travel to Wharton from Florida in the winter.”
So that was why they hadn’t answered the phone when Tess had tried to call, she realized.
“I see you’re having a gathering,” Indigo said. “Splendid!” He pointed at Wyatt. “You, young man, I know. How are your parents and grandfather?”
The two men shook hands. “Great on all counts, thank you,” Wyatt said. “Tess and I took Pop out for lunch yesterday.”
“Good for you,” Indigo said, patting Wyatt on the arm. Then, he turned to Grant and Hunter. “And you two? I’m sure I’ve seen you both around town, but we’ve never been introduced. I’m Indigo Bell.”
“Dad, meet Grant and Hunter,” Tess said. “They helped open up the studio.”
“I see,” Indigo said. “Good, good, good.” He looked around, smiling slightly. “I see everyone has a drink but me,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “Darling, pour your old man a Scotch, will you?”
Wyatt did the honors, handing a glass to Indigo.
Meanwhile, Jill had hugged Jane, and the two were chatting.
“I didn’t expect you back until spring,” Tess said. “What’s going on? Why didn’t you call and tell me you were coming?”
A look crept onto Jill’s face, then. Guilt, mixed with a bit of chagrin. “You know your father. When he gets something into his head . . .”
Tess noticed Grant and Hunter were quietly putting away the devices and the laptops.