“I’m not refusing to go,” Addie said. “I’ve never refused to go. It’s just that—” Her words dissolved into tears.
Jess dropped to his knees in front of his wife, putting his head on her stomach. “Addie, I’m so sorry. Let’s not have angry words between us.”
Addie didn’t respond. She was looking the other way, anywhere but at her husband.
“Please, Addie. I’d rather die than hurt you. I love you more than you can imagine. You and our baby are my whole world, my whole life. You mean everything to me. And Sally? It’s not even appropriate uttering her name in the same sentence as yours.” His voice had a hint of desperation to it, Kate thought. As though he was trying too hard. “I will let Harrison know, discreetly, that you don’t want to be at any of the same functions as that woman—that we don’t want to be there. Would that make you happy?”
“And tonight? What about tonight?”
“Sally is not in Wharton at the moment.” Jess seemed to stumble over his words. “Not that I know of, anyway. She will not be at Harrison and Celeste’s tonight. It will be just the four of us. You like Harrison and Celeste well enough, don’t you?”
“I do, yes,” Addie admitted.
“Then, will you consent to go, or should I call it off?”
Addie sighed and smiled wearily at the man she had loved her whole life. “We can attend,” she said, stroking his hair.
“Spend the day pampering yourself,” Jess said. “Take a long walk on the lakeshore if you like.”
“I have the washing to do. I can’t be a lady of leisure today.”
“No, you don’t, and yes, you can, in that order.” Jess smiled. “Starting today, Harrison is sending down one of his girls to help you twice a week until the baby is born, and after that, we’ll talk about engaging her permanently.”
“A maid?” Kate heard Addie saying. “Oh, Jess, I don’t think—”
“That’s right, don’t think about it,” Jess interrupted, laughing. “It’s settled.”
Kate walked Addie’s husband to the door and felt his arms snake around her again. Kate felt herself wrapping her arms around his shoulders. She closed her eyes.
“Take good care of my baby today,” Jess whispered into Addie’s ear.
“Take good care of my husband today,” she whispered. He wiped her eyes.
“I hate it when we fight,” he said softly. “I hear myself sounding just like my father, and I hate it. I don’t want to go anywhere today. I want to stay here with you and make you smile.”
Kate looked into his eyes.
He kissed her deeply, murmuring, “I love you so much, Addie.”
“I love you, too,” she said. “It’s all right. Now, off with you.”
When the door closed behind Jess, Kate walked into the bedroom—the same white bedroom she had visited in her dreams when this all began—and smoothed out the comforter and pillows. She caught sight of the woman in the mirror, her auburn hair tangled around her shoulders, her belly swelling beneath her dress.
She has no idea what’s coming. That man is going to kill her.
Then it occurred to Kate: Maybe I can warn her. Kate began screaming inside of her head: Get away! Leave this place! Your husband is going to kill you and your baby! Kate tried many times to speak the words aloud but could not. Kate was an invisible mute, trapped inside this scene, this body. Nonetheless, she kept trying, silently screaming the words as loudly as she could. Get away! You’re in danger!
She approached the mirror, picked up the hairbrush, and, as she brushed that long, auburn mane, Kate stared into the eyes of the woman in the mirror. Listen to me! I’m here to help you! You’re in danger! Kate screamed in her mind. But Addie simply brushed her hair. Addie Stewart! Hear me! You are going to die on April 24 if you don’t do something about it! Get away from this man!
Addie dropped the hairbrush and stared deeply into the mirror. A look of confusion came over her face. Was there a flash of recognition? Kate screamed louder. I’m here! Listen to me! You are in danger! You will die if you don’t leave this place! Save yourself! Save your baby! Addie turned and looked behind her, this way and that. Kate felt her heart beating. Could she be reaching her? Jess is going to kill you and your baby!
Kate was astonished as Addie, staring at her own reflection in the mirror, began to silently mouth the words that Kate was screaming inside her head: “You are in danger.” Kate shouted in time with Addie’s lips: You are in danger, until the two women were repeating the words together, over and over.
Addie ran to the door, opened it, and looked outside. She saw Jess walking down the street—he was nearly three blocks away by now. Somehow he sensed her, turned and waved. She put up her hand in greeting, and then Addie—and Kate—watched Jess Stewart until he disappeared from view.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Kate awoke to a tear-soaked pillow and looked at the clock. Three thirty. She tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable enough to drift back into sleep, but soon she admitted defeat. There would be no more sleep for her tonight. She pulled on a robe and padded down to the living room, sat on the couch, and looked out the window toward the water.
Take good care of my baby today. The man who had whispered those words softly into Kate’s ear was arrested for her—or rather, Addie’s—murder. How could he have possibly done it? Why would this man have killed his wife and baby? For an affair? Images from the dreams bombarded her mind. The lilacs, the sweetness, the whispered words, the love. Sally, the other woman. Was all of it a lie? How did the life they shared go horribly wrong? Did he spin out of control and kill her in a moment of passion?
More images washed over her. The body on the beach. The white gown. The baby. Tears stung her eyes and clouded her vision.
“What a bastard,” Kate said aloud in the dark. “His own wife and child.” She heard a low yowl. It was Alaska, curled up in a ball in the corner of the room, tail covering her nose.
“Am I making too much noise, Lass?” Kate said softly, and walked over to her drowsy friend. “Did I wake you?” Kate scratched the dog’s snout and behind her ears.
Kate felt like walking. She was restless and needed to clear her head, to shake off what she had learned in the library and especially this latest dream. That it was the middle of the night didn’t concern her. Not even the most dangerous predator would be fool enough to try to do Kate harm with an enormous, fierce-looking dog by her side.
“Should we see what’s happening in the outside world?” she whispered to her dog. Alaska’s ears perked up at this familiar phrase. The dog unfolded herself from her sleeping position, stretched, and trotted off in search of her leash. A few minutes later, after Kate had pulled on a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt, she and Alaska stole quietly out the door and into the chilly night.
The night sky in Wharton never failed to amaze Kate, no matter how many times she saw it. Usually, in towns of any size at all, the stars were at least partially obscured by the lights of the city. But here, they were so bright, so big, and so tangible that it seemed to Kate the town itself was a bit closer to the heavens than the rest of the world. As Kate walked with Alaska down the sidewalk, she drew her breath in at the sight of the starry universe laid out before them. The deep blackness of the sky contrasted with the stars’ brilliance. The sight of it obscured the day’s events for Kate, and she lost herself in the vastness of space.