Ominous Visions, Grave Decisions by K.D. Upton

Author:K.D. Upton
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: IM²
Published: 2024-02-02T17:43:09.793677+00:00

CHAPTER 18

E ly scooped up his mother and exited the room, her gown dragging behind, wrinkled and stained. She puffed her cheeks, flailed her arms, and wailed, her head lolling backward towards me. Clawing at the air, she screeched.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Thane Collins clinked his crystal wine glass with a fat soup spoon. “Please excuse my wife. She’s unwell. Enjoy the festivities. Maestro?”

The harpist caught Thane's pointed stare and the music erupted. The rest of us gathered ourselves.

A bone-chilling cold seeped into me and I looked around the long table. A man openly stared at me from the furthest seat near the musicians. Amidst the gossip and small talk, he maintained a stoic demeanor, unwavering in his scrutiny of me.

I leaned over toward Joshua Moore and asked, “Who is that?”

He followed my gaze. “That’s Lucas Hartman. He’s the other real estate agent. One of the best around these parts. I got my home for a steal. Are you planning on selling Honeysuckle House?”

I tore my gaze away from Lucas. “How do you know about Honeysuckle House?”

Joshua’s spoon clattered into his bowl. He hastily pulled it out of the soup and cleaned it with his napkin. “Clumsy hands.” He chuckled nervously. “Poor woman. Lorelei’s not been right ever since…”

“Lorelei?” I glanced at Thane Collins, who was avidly discussing something about horses with my grandmother. “What about her? How did she get into that state?”

“How well do you know Mrs. Collins?” Joshua pushed his soup bowl aside and a waiter hurriedly replaced it with a plate of Caesar salad. He picked up the salad fork and stabbed a cherry tomato.

“Fairly well.”

He chomped on the tomato, swallowed, and turned his attention to a carrot, pushing it around his plate. “About two years ago, her eldest son died in a car accident. She hasn’t been the same since.”

“Eldest son?” I frowned. “Ely doesn’t have a brother.”

Joshua attacked his lettuce. “Since it's common knowledge, I'm not breaking any laws by saying it. Colter was the product of an affair. Apparently Lorelei's family's money and property inheritance were the main reasons why Thane married her, however, she loved Thane and believed he reciprocated her feelings. After their marriage, he transferred the property deeds to his name. Anyway, she can’t get rid of him without losing everything, and he wasn’t exactly faithful to her either. Practically anyone who has been here for a while claims he has slept in many beds. Lorelei, as a rebellious young woman, welcomed a man into her bed. The result was Colter.”

He poked at another cherry tomato while I processed the information.

“If Thane had accepted him as his own, I would have known about him. Who looked after Colter?”

“Ah,” he jabbed the fork at me, grinning, “that’s an interesting story. Thane discovered their relationship and forbid Lorelei from ever seeing her lover again. He sent her off to Maine, where she had her son, and then he demanded she return once she had regained her youthful shape. The boy was adopted by some family there.

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