Blackwood Farm (49 page)

“ ‘I'm the man of this place now,' I said, my voice echoing off the limestone walls. ‘I'll have to run it from Europe. That won't be an easy feat.'

“ ‘I have another promise I want from you,' he said, looking out the door, as if to make certain no one was coming up on us. ‘If you do see this creature again, try not to think of anything that she can read from your mind. I know this is obvious, but try to use definite techniques to cleanse your mind of anything important. You wouldn't want her finding out, for instance, as I have this very afternoon, that you have a new relation by the name of Tommy Harrison whom you've come to like—if not love—in a brief meeting yesterday morning.'

“I was shocked. I wasn't conscious of having thought of Tommy.

“ ‘You give that fodder to Petronia,' Stirling said, ‘and she'll use it against you, the same way she might use Mona. And believe me when I tell you that it's a good thing Aunt Queen will soon be beyond her apparent reach as well.'

“I shuddered. ‘Aunt Queen,' I whispered. Then I remembered the way that Petronia had taken her leave of Aunt Queen and the words she'd spoken:
You've been very gracious to me. I won't forget it.

“ ‘I wish I had this gift for reading minds,' I said. ‘I'd know what you're holding back.'

“ ‘It isn't such a great gift,' he said as we walked on up the slope towards the house again. ‘You can't take Tommy to Europe with you, can you?' he asked.

“ ‘Oh, that would be splendid. I don't see why not. I bet Terry Sue would allow it. Not with Brittany of course. That's the little girl. She's the workhorse. But Tommy. Tommy's the dreamer who reads books in the woods. I'll talk to Aunt Queen about it.'

“ ‘Whatever you do, try not to do it after nightfall. If you must make plans, and certainly you must, do it in New Orleans. Do it perhaps at the Grand Luminière Café in Mayfair Medical. That ought to give you time to see Mona. She'll be in the center all day today and into the evening. I'm meeting her and Michael and Rowan there for dinner myself.'

“ ‘You know, I like your outspoken manner but it amazes me, the ease with which you make your suggestions. Again, I know you're holding something back.'

“ ‘Know this, and I mean it from the heart. I hold back what I think I should hold back and nothing more than that. Take your Aunt Queen and Nash to dinner at the Grand Luminière Café tonight. Heed my advice on that.'

“ ‘But why is it so important?'

“ ‘Because creatures like Petronia don't like witches. And they never go where they are.'

“I was dumbstruck. I couldn't quite imagine what he meant.

“ ‘She's a mind reader, no? And a trickster on top of it, wouldn't you say?'

“ ‘Yes,' I answered.

“ ‘Take my word for it,' he replied. ‘She'll never get within a hundred yards of Mayfair Medical. Rowan Mayfair would know she was prowling in an instant. So would Mona.'

“ ‘But what do you mean when you say they're witches, Stirling?'

“We walked on to the Mercedes, which was parked in the shed. I opened the door for him and then came around to the driver's side.

“He waited for me to back the car out and head down the road. I crossed in front of the house, turned right and went down the long pecan-tree drive.

“ ‘A witch to those of us in the Talamasca,' he explained, ‘is a mortal man or woman who can see spirits and manipulate them, bring up spirits and exorcise them, communicate with them and control them, talk to them and hear their talk.'

“ ‘Then I'm a witch,' I said, ‘on account of Goblin.'

“ ‘Very much more than likely,' he said. ‘Though I don't think you've experienced all the aspects I just explained.'

“ ‘No, I haven't. But I think that I could. And if Rebecca comes back, my powers of exorcism may be taxed.'

“ ‘I'll be here for you if you need me. I don't think Rebecca will tempt you anyplace but here.'

“ ‘Is that the way it is with ghosts?'

“ ‘Some of the time,' he said. ‘It depends on the type of haunting. Sometimes a person is haunted, sometimes a place. Do you yourself know whether Goblin's a spirit or a ghost?'

“ ‘Oh, most surely a spirit,' I said. ‘He knows nothing of where he came from or where he goes when he leaves me. There's no life for him except in my consciousness. He's probably with us right now.'

“I made an attempt to feel his presence, and I felt the answering grip of his hand on my shoulder and saw his face in the rearview mirror. He was very near me, of course.

“ ‘I love you, old buddy,' I said to him.

“I saw his poker face break into a childish grin.

“ ‘You don't know how much I've needed you, old buddy,' I said to Goblin. ‘These last twenty-four hours have been mad.' It was marvelous seeing that grin.

“Stirling smiled.

“During the rest of our time alone Stirling told me about the Talamasca, pretty much reinforcing what Mona had explained to me—that they had existed for centuries, that they had vast libraries pertaining to the supernatural, that they had a huge history of Mona's family—confidential of course.

“ ‘Ah, but you see, I am a Mayfair,' I said, ‘am I not? Oncle Julien told me I was, remember?'

“ ‘You have a good point there. But you don't have time for Mayfair history right now. You have your own adventures. You're going off on an odyssey. Have you made up your mind about little Tommy?'

“ ‘I'm totally for it. Can't wait to ask Aunt Queen. But I have a question for you,' I said. ‘What is your honest opinion of Nash?'

“ ‘A wonderful man, brilliant, very well-read, very refined. He'll be a marvelous teacher and guide for you in Europe. Don't you think so yourself?'

“ ‘Yes, but I sensed something between you, that you didn't like each other. Was I wrong?'

“ ‘You were right to sense something,' he said. ‘He doesn't like me. He suspects my motives. He doesn't understand the nature of the Talamasca, and not understanding our rules and our role he thinks me guilty of a brand of self-interest. When you come home, if you and I become friends as I hope we will, maybe he'll change his mind. For now, please don't trouble yourself about it. He's an extraordinarily nice man.'

“ ‘I know what you're talking about,' I said. ‘He feels a lot of insecurity about being attracted to men. I don't really.'

“ ‘You don't?' he asked.

“ ‘I thought you could read minds,' I said. ‘I hope that sounded agreeable. I meant it to sound agreeable. I've had an unusual life is what I ought to have said. I lost my virginity with Rebecca, then had fun in the shower with Goblin, then fell in love with Mona, and I'm not certain what's next. If Mona will marry me I'll be happy to my dying day.'

“He didn't answer me.

“ ‘What's wrong?' I asked. ‘Do I sound too cavalier for your taste?'

“ ‘No, you don't at all,' he said. ‘I was just thinking about Mona, and whether or not to say what came into my mind.'

“ ‘Oh, please do say it. I wish I could read it.'

“ ‘If you marry her, it's likely to be until her dying day before yours.'

“ ‘No,' I said. ‘No. That's not true. That's not true. Dr. Rowan Mayfair knows that's not true. They're working on it night and day. They'll reverse Mona's condition. I mean they'll halt it. They'll fix it. It's not going to be that bad. She'll probably even—' I broke off. ‘I'm sorry,' I said.

“ ‘You owe me no apology. I owe one to you. I shouldn't have said what I did. I thought last night you'd understood what they were talking about.'

“ ‘I didn't want to understand,' I said. ‘But I knew.'

“We talked some more about the Talamasca.

“Anytime I wanted to visit Oak Haven I was welcome. Now it was time for parting and I drove Stirling back to his car. It was a handsome brown Rolls-Royce with cream-colored upholstery. He said the Talamasca spoilt all its members with fine cars and fine furniture.

“ ‘And what do we do in return for it?' he asked rhetorically. ‘Live like celibates and work like dogs.'

“ ‘I like you very much,' I said. ‘Thank you for coming to lunch and thank you for standing with me.'

“ ‘I had no choice,' he said. ‘Please call me when you can. Let me know what's happening. Here's a card for your shirt pocket and one for your jacket and one for your inside pocket too, and here, put this somewhere also.'

“ ‘Don't worry about me, Stirling,' I said. ‘I know I'm much better off on account of your advice. I'm never going back out there at night, and I'm going to do what I can to get everyone out of this house before nightfall.'

“ ‘Yes, and something else too, Quinn. It's very tricky, fighting a being like Petronia, but something tells me that you've been wise in putting up a fight, in using Goblin as you've done, and I wouldn't hesitate to do that in the future. I hope you enjoy your trip to Europe. I hope you enjoy it immensely.'

“Very reluctantly, I told him good-bye, and I watched until the car had made its long slow journey down the avenue of trees and turned towards the highway. He seemed a wise man. And I wonder now if everything would have been different if I had confided in him more, trusted him more, not gone against him and everybody else in my pride and impetuosity.”

34

“I HURRIED
inside. There was much to do and I meant to do it quickly—and was overjoyed to discover Aunt Queen and Nash already making plans for our European adventure.

“ ‘Can Tommy go too?' I asked. ‘I can have him back here in an hour with his birth certificate and all his clothes.'

“Aunt Queen appeared to give it instant and deep thought for a long moment, and then, before I could make my legal case, inquired: ‘Is he worthy of such a trip, Tarquin?'

“ ‘Just the word,' I declared. ‘You have chosen it perfectly. He's worthy, and it will be so very right for him. You'll find him to be a delightful boy, I swear it to you. And if you don't, we'll line up a nanny for him, and he can be off on a day-by-day regimen of his own, but that won't happen.'

“ ‘Well, then, I say, by all means, let's take him with us.'

“ ‘Petty cash,' I replied. ‘In case Terry Sue puts up an argument.'

“ ‘You mean she'd sell the boy!'

“ ‘Aunt Queen,' I replied, ‘it's to sweeten the deal. The boy's worth the ransom. Terry Sue is the merely practical mother of six hungry kids.'

“I was soon furnished with the cash and rushing out the door. Goblin appeared at my side.

“ ‘We've got to win this one, old buddy,' I told him. ‘You agree with me? The child's brilliant. I can't leave him behind.'

“ ‘You always know what to say, Tarquin,' said Goblin. ‘But how can I go with you to Europe? Tarquin, I am afraid.'

“I felt a sudden stab of sympathetic fear.

“ ‘You're very happy, Tarquin,' he said. ‘Don't forget me. Don't forget that I love you. Don't forget that I'm here.'

“ ‘No, I haven't forgotten,' I pledged. ‘I'll hold your hand; remember, I told you. All the way to Europe, I'll hold your hand. That's how we'll do it. You'll sit next to me on the plane.'

“I doubled back into the house to make sure Aunt Queen understood this need for the extra first-class ticket for Goblin, to which she replied that she wouldn't dream of putting such an important member of our party in the coach section, and what sort of an aunt did I think she was?

“Once again I was headed for the trailer, but Goblin, riding beside me, was still insecure.

“ ‘Europe is far away, Tarquin,' he said.

“ ‘That doesn't matter, old buddy,' I said.

“ ‘Stirling said there were two kinds of hauntings,' said Goblin. ‘Hauntings of a person and hauntings of a place.'

“ ‘God, you hear everything, don't you?' I asked him.

“ ‘Not everything, Tarquin,' he answered. ‘I can't be in two places, and sometimes I wish that I could. I'd go to the Retreat House of the Talamasca, Tarquin, and learn from them about spirits, Tarquin, so that I'd be the finest spirit ever made. I know I need you to see me, Tarquin. I know that I love you. I know those things are true even when I hate you, Tarquin.'

“ ‘That's never, Goblin,' I said sharply. ‘You have your moods, that's all. But be quiet for now. I have to do this all-important job.'

“I had reached the trailer and found that all was topsy-turvy, as Grady Breen's ‘ladies' were moving ‘everything' out to the new house in the Autumn Leaves development, on the outskirts of Ruby River City. How splendid that things were happening so fast! I had decreed it but not believed it. And who should come up to me but my nine-year-old self, with his black curly hair and in his navy blue Catholic school blazer?

“ ‘Do you want to go to Europe tomorrow night?' I asked. ‘I'm not kidding you!'

“He was speechless. And then in a white-faced stammer he shook his head and said, ‘I can't leave Brittany.'

“ ‘I'll make it up to her, I swear. And I'll tell her that myself. Okay? I can't take her from Terry Sue right now. You know that.'

“I caught Brittany's arm as she drew close. She had heard what we had to say. ‘I will make it up to you, sugar plum, I promise,' I said. ‘Let me take him now on this trip, and I swear by God I'll see you get to go too sometime real soon. Cross my heart. I'll see that good things happen.'

“ ‘Oh, that's okay,' she said. ‘Tommy, you go on, you're the one that's always talking about books and things.'

“ ‘Brittany, you're going to have fun in the new house,' I went on. ‘You're going to have new playmates and a new school, and there's going to be a maid to do the work and a nanny to help with the children.'

“She couldn't absorb it. I could see that plainly. But she was fascinated.

“Terry Sue was headed our way with the baby on her hip. She was dressed up in a pink polyester suit and pumps, and her hair was washed and combed, and she was sporting a brand-new set of drugstore fingernails.

“ ‘Why are you doing all this for us?' she asked. ‘Pops never did it.'

“ ‘Never mind. Just let me take Tommy to Europe. Let me take him now. All I need is his clothes and his birth certificate. I have to make it to the federal passport office in New Orleans before it closes.'

“ ‘I don't have no birth certificate,' she said. ‘Tommy, go get your clothes. Did you say “Europe,” you mean, like in Europe?'

“ ‘Hurry up, Tommy,' I said. He ran for the trailer. ‘I can get the birth certificate at the courthouse. Thank you, Terry Sue. Here's five thousand dollars.'

“She stared at the envelope. ‘What's that for?' she asked.

“ ‘I was going to give you this if you argued. Seems you ought to get it since you didn't.'

“ ‘You're crazy, Quinn Blackwood, just as Pops always said you was. He said you'd never come to nothing, but I tell you, you're sure somebody in my book!'

“ ‘Well, thank you, Terry Sue,' I said. ‘That's really consoling. Someday you'll have to tell me everything else Pops said. By the way, that's not his baby, is it?'

“ ‘You're not getting any complaints from me, are you?' she answered. ‘I don't know whose baby it is, hush your mouth.'

“Tommy flew at me at a dead run, with all his books in one arm and a pillowcase of clothes over his shoulder. I backed up, laughing, and threw my arm around him.

“ ‘You mind Tarquin now, Tommy Harrison, you hear what I say,' said Terry Sue. ‘And you do your homework, too.'

“I put my right arm around her and kissed her forehead. ‘I'll take good care of him,' I said. ‘I'll write the school board. Grady Breen will take care of everything just the way he said.'

“Off we went.

“Of course it was too late to make the passport office in New Orleans, but I did get the birth certificate from the courthouse in Ruby River City.

“Then it was back to the house where I sat down with Allen and went over all the renovations that would be done to the Hermitage while I was gone. There was no doubt in my mind that I was doing this for myself. I loathed and despised the mysterious stranger! The vision of the Hermitage was mine.

“Thanks to last night's written request, Allen had already gotten me paint chips and samples of marble, and I was able to choose the most appealing colors and tile for the new floors. As to the bronze stairs, I drew pictures, and we agreed on a ‘baroque' look to things and that he would call the local architects Busby, Bagot and Greene, who presided over all the antebellum restorations, and they could advise on the design of the windows and the construction of the bathroom, which was something I really couldn't do.

“ ‘Be fearless,' I said. ‘You know my tastes, you see my drawings and my requests. Don't wait for my approval. It's more important to complete the task. And remember I'll be calling to talk to you. Forge ahead.'

“I could see that he was delighted to have something so interesting to do. Nevertheless, he shook his head and said it would be difficult, he wanted me to know that, hauling all that marble out there, but he did know how to lay it and he wouldn’t trust anybody but himself. As to painting, well, the hard work was the preparation, and again, that was hard, really hard, but he didn't trust anybody but himself.

“ ‘You're my hero,' I said. ‘You can get it done. Now comes the final warning: Never be there after dark.'

“ ‘Oh, you don't have to tell me that,' he said. ‘We'll be out of there by three o'clock.'

“ ‘Promise me,' I said.

“ ‘You've got my promise.'

“ ‘All right, you'll get your first call from me next week.'

“And so the tasks of Manhood were done.

“Around four o'clock the twilight anxiety came over me with unprecedented ferocity. I thought that the swamp was creeping up towards the house—Birnam Wood coming to Dunsinane—and my desire to see Mona became absolutely uncontrollable.

“In all this time I had never for one second forgotten about her, and how agonizing it would be to tell her good-bye. Why, I had not even told her I was going. Such pain lay ahead.

“I tried to call her at Mayfair Medical but I couldn't get through. The switchboard said she couldn't take any calls, and my lack of knowledge of where she was and what was being done to her was unbearable.

“I put on the laser disc of Kenneth Branagh's
Hamlet,
and ran fast to the scene of Ophelia drowned under the glassy stream, and kept playing it back over and over again, switching between it and Gertrude's (Hamlet's mother's) description of how it had come about, haunted by the words:

Her clothes spread wide,

And mermaid-like a while they bore her up;

Which time she chanted snatches of old tunes,

As one incapable of her own distress.

“And then finally as the darkness thickened outside and Stirling Oliver's warnings came down heavy on me, as I thought of Rebecca and her wiles, as I thought of Petronia—I went downstairs to inform Aunt Queen, who was chatting away with Tommy and Nash, that we had to leave at once for New Orleans.

“Jasmine had already packed Aunt Queen's bags, Nash was packed, Big Ramona had finished with my luggage as well and Tommy's humble and entirely temporary wardrobe had been put into one of Aunt Queen's many spare suitcases.

“I announced that we must all head for the Windsor Court Hotel, book the finest suites available and then head for the Grand Luminière Café for supper. As I could not get Mona on the phone, I was more or less bound to go, as, surely, based on Stirling's promises, she was expecting me.

“Of course, I was hit with questions and objections. But I was adamant, and won out, finally, simply because everyone was so excited about our trip and the only thing preventing us from getting on the plane was the matter of Tommy's passport, which could be got with airline ticket in hand the following day.

“In truth there was one other very important matter. It was the matter of who was to run Blackwood Manor in our absence. And it was a very important matter indeed. And after much commiseration on the subject, it had already been decided that Jasmine was going to do it, but to alleviate her fears, it was also decided that she need take no new bookings and only fulfill those already made, and maintain the house for those drop-ins who came to see the site of their engagements or weddings, et cetera, or merely to visit the pretty house about which they had read in the guides.

“Now, Jasmine was very upset. She didn't feel up to it. But Aunt Queen knew that she could do it. And so did I, and most significantly, so did Big Ramona, and so did Clem. Jasmine had the education to do it. Jasmine had the smarts. Jasmine had the good English, and Jasmine also had the sophistication.

“What Jasmine lacked was the confidence.

“So we spent our last hour at Blackwood Manor trying to convince Jasmine that she was up to the task and once she got hold of it—she was already doing ninety-nine percent of the work—she would do fine. As to her pay, it was to be tripled. And Aunt Queen would have worked out a percentage of the profits, except that the percentage system frightened Jasmine, who didn't want to have to figure it out.

“At last it was decided that our attorney Grady Breen would take over the bookkeeping and that Jasmine could devote herself entirely to supervising and to hostess work, and Jasmine seemed a good deal more calm. That way Jasmine could get her percentage without fearing she'd signed some sort of pact with the Devil. Meantime, all of us told her how beautiful she was, how polished she was and how overqualified she was, which did not help as much as we had hoped.

“Clem and Big Ramona promised to back her up completely, and with kisses and embraces, as well as Jasmine's tearful farewell, we hit the road for New Orleans in Aunt Queen's stretch limousine.

“When after a brief stop at the hotel to approve our fabulous digs we reached the Grand Luminière Café, Mona rose from the table and flew into my arms, making me the envy of every man in the place. She was wearing one of her big white shirts, complete with white ruffles and bows at her wrists, but I could see the intravenous port with its evil carbuncle of tubing and tape on the back of her inflamed right hand.

“I sat down at the Mayfair table with her, and in an intimate voice told her of what the doctor had said to Aunt Queen, that this might be her last trip to Europe.

“ ‘Oh, I approve utterly and totally of your going,' Mona said. ‘You must, you absolutely must. I'm doing fine. My condition is stable. Look, I have to be wired up again tonight.' She held up the bandaged hand. ‘Do you want to come up to the room? It's not all that appetizing, I can assure you—.'

“ ‘I'm coming,' I said. ‘I never made love to anybody who was wired up.'

“ ‘Good,' she said in a sweet whisper, ‘because I have three or four baby quilts to ruin, and then we can read
Hamlet
to each other. I have a copy of Kenneth Branagh's version with all the screenplay directions, and we can pretend we're seeing it all over again. In fact, you can recite Gertrude's speech describing Ophelia's drowning, and I will lie as if dead on the pillow. I've already strewn flowers all over the bed. Oh, I am Ophelia forever,' she sighed.