Page 72 of Echoes at Driftwood Cottage

Rowan brought over the main course, dishing out a portion on everyone’s plate before placing the platter in the middle of the table. “Scott is the only reason I know about the gravestone. He’s ruined everything I ever thought I knew about Jim and Lynette.”

Will looked confused. “Don’t tell me you believe crap like that.”

Mamie laid a hand on Will’s arm. “Au contraire, my darling. Where I come from, they say you have no soul until you’ve seen a ghost. As a child, I walked the streets of Natchitoches where I grew up. Ghosts there were an everyday part of the lore. We thought when we saw a ghost that we were ever-so special. From what Daniel tells me, Scott does the reverse. He chooses the people he wants to help, the people he wants to see him.”

“To have Scott get involved in your life is sort of like a ring of honor around here,” Rowan explained with a laugh. “Only your life has to be a real mess if you’re chosen. And here I am.”

“Ghosts are so predictable like that,” Mamie deadpanned. “I hate it when they act all superior as if they held the key to all life’s little mysteries.”

Daniel tried to hide a grin. “I hate to tell you, Will, but Scott Phillips is a legend around here. You can’t throw a rock without hitting someone who’s seen him.”

“Fascinating stuff,” Will said, as he picked up his fork. “Maybe there’s something in the water.”

“Or maybe you need to sit back and wait for him to find you,” Mamie teased. “The food smells delicious. Now, on to another matter, something I need to get off my chest, then I’ll leave it.”

Rowan lifted her glass. “You’re among friends. No need to hold back. Whatever you have to say, I can take it.”

Mamie’s lips curved in a devilish smile. “Don’t judge the people you thought were your grandparents too harshly.”

“Jim and Lynette,” Rowan supplied.

“Yes. Those two. Whatever they did, they probably did it out of love,” Mamie pointed out.

“We’re talking about murder,” Daniel stressed, dishing more meat and vegetables onto his plate.

“You don’t know that yet,” Mamie returned. “Wait for all the facts to come together before you send them into oblivion and disavow them for good. That’s all I’m saying.”

Rowan let out a sigh. “I could never obliterate them from my past. They were my grandparents in every way possible. But surely you understand how confusing this is for me. There are two people dead in a grave they paid for. Something isn’t right about that. It’s not looking good for either one of them.”

“Of course, Daniel explained all that. I’m simply saying don’t jump to conclusions. Keep an open mind until you find out otherwise.”

“Then what?” Rowan pressed. “If Brent is the slightest bit successful in uncovering what happened, I’m about to discover things about my past that are bound to get ugly and messy.”

“It’s not your past that’s ugly. It’s theirs,” Mamie stressed. “If they created this mess, it belongs to them, not you. Just as Daniel isn’t responsible for his mother or father’s decisions, neither are you. Then there’s Will. He’s not responsible for that boat going down in a storm. Life is messy. Trust me, whatever comes along, you’ll deal with it.”

As the meal progressed, Rowan mulled that over. But she mostly listened as Mamie regaled them with stories from her childhood. She had grown up with old money in Natchitoches Parish during a time when change hadn’t come easy. But her parents had instilled in her a deep sense of social responsibility, sending her off to Tulane University in New Orleans to broaden her horizons. There, she majored in law, earning her degree in 1976.

“The day of my birth, my father—Daniel’s great-grandfather—sat down and wrote out a complete history of our family’s heritage. I have no idea why he took the time to do that. Maybe after their firstborn died, a boy from diphtheria back in 1949, he was so overjoyed at having a child that he poured his heart out to me in his journal. Whatever the reason, I’m forever grateful he wrote down everything he ever wanted me to achieve. All his hopes and dreams that he had for me came pouring out. He wanted more than anything for me to follow him into law. I worked my tail end off every day to make him happy. Two years after I passed the bar, on the Fourth of July, Daddy dropped dead of a heart attack, standing in the middle of Church Street Bridge gawking at the fireworks, like he’d done as a boy. Three days later, we laid him to rest under an old dogwood tree at the cemetery on 2nd Street. Not two weeks after that day, I decided I didn’t want to be a lawyer, not in the slightest. Sure, I was smart enough and tough enough to do the job, but it didn’t suit me. I wanted to see new places, do new things, and experience life to its fullest. I wanted to see somewhere else other than Louisiana. And you know what I did?”

“What?” Will asked, drawn into her story.

“I packed my bags and got on a plane, flew across the country to start over in Sacramento, California, of all places, where I worked as a paralegal in a law firm until I passed the bar there. Three weeks after I found a job, I met my husband. The love of my life walked through the door, a man sixteen years older than me and full of surprises. John Cardiff had the kindest heart. I loved every minute of our life together. The day John asked me to marry him, I was over the moon. I was not a naïve child bride. Remember I was twenty-five when I passed the bar for the first time. Some would’ve considered me a spinster at the ripe old age of twenty-seven. But somehow, I managed to have two babies within two years. Life opened up for me like it hadn’t back in Natchitoches. By the time the boys were in kindergarten, we’d moved to Pasadena, where John opened up his own practice. We took the kids on weekend trips to Disneyland, enjoyed riding the roller coaster at Space Mountain, and went to the beach every chance we got. I can safely say that we made the most of our time together.”

“That’s why you were so open to Daniel leaving his job at the tech company,” Rowan assessed.

“Life is far too short to spend it doing something you hate. I loved my family, but I had to spread my wings, in my own way. I haven’t forgotten a thing about growing up in Natchitoches. I wouldn’t trade my time there for anything. I still remember picking pecans at the Melrose, sliding down the hill on 4th Street on an old garbage can lid, walking through the azaleas in the springtime, eating meat pies with my best friends, and hanging out at the old Dairy Queen when I was a teenager, flirting with all the boys. But you can’t sit still in life. Change is inevitable. And here Rowan has made a huge change in her life already.”

Rowan glanced up at Daniel. “I’m a little older than twenty-five but the decision already has its benefits. I met your grandson last December. I couldn’t stop thinking about him. He’s worth moving to Pelican Pointe for, even if I have to come to terms with the darker side of Jim and Lynette.”

Daniel reached to take her hand and placed a kiss on the palm. “She makes delicious lavender ice cream, too.”

Mamie’s eyes twinkled with tears. “Seeing him happy means everything to me.”

Over coffee, Will prompted Mamie for more stories that left them all grateful for her warmth and humor. As the night wore on, Rowan realized that she had completely forgotten about her problems.

“Thank you for that,” she told Mamie as she cleaned up the mess she’d made in the kitchen.

“For what?”

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