The Bride Wore White by Amanda Quick

Author:Amanda Quick [Quick, Amanda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2023-05-02T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

Maud Hollister moved into Clara’s bedroom and set the breakfast tray with its perfectly poached egg, toast, orange juice, and coffee on the small table near the window. In addition to the meal were a copy of the morning edition of the Burning Cove Herald and an envelope.

Clara, dressed in a robe and slippers, her gray hair secured in bobby pins, closed the door and turned around. Her eyes were feverish with excitement. The strange glitter made Maud uneasy. Clara had been prone to fits of nerves in the past few weeks. Her odd turns had become decidedly worse since she had learned of Gilbert’s death. Last night she had awakened in another panic attack. It had taken some time and another dose of medication to get her calmed down.

“Well?” she said. “Any news of the creature?”

Maud picked up the morning paper and handed it to her. “There’s a mention on page three in the Visiting Celebrities column. Madame Ariadne has an early-afternoon appointment at a local spa.”

“Call the spa. Find out when she is due to check in. When you are sure of the time, tell Henry to have the car ready.”

“I know you are set on confronting Prudence Ryland face-to-face, but I don’t think doing so in such a public place is a good idea.”

“I don’t care what you think,” Clara said, practically vibrating with the energy of her anticipated revenge. “Gilbert made it very clear in the vision last night. She must know what is coming. She is a witch and she will die by fire. I am to witness her punishment.”

“It was just a dream, Mrs. Dover. You should not take it seriously.”

“Normal people do not take their dreams seriously, but I am not a normal dreamer. My dreams have meaning. They are the means by which I access my paranormal senses. I cannot and will not ignore them.”

Maud sighed. “I will make sure Henry has the car ready at the proper time.”

When you worked for Clara Dover, you learned early on that once her mind was made up, there was no talking her out of a plan. You also learned that there was no point delaying bad news. Maud took a deep breath.

“Rollins phoned before you woke up,” she said. “He was at a gas station. He informed me that he and Ella are on their way here to Burning Cove. They got on the road early this morning and expect to arrive midafternoon.”

“What?” Anger flashed in Clara’s fever-bright eyes. “He intends to interfere with Gilbert’s plan. That is so like Rollins. He was always jealous of his brother. Now he cannot abide the knowledge that Gilbert is able to contact me from the Other Side.”

“For the last time, Gilbert is dead,” Maud said. “There is no plan to punish Prudence Ryland. Your sleep has been very disturbed of late. You are—” She managed to stop herself before she let the word hallucinating slip out. Any reference to mental instability was guaranteed to drive Clara into a fury.

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