Page 22 of This Haunted Heart

The conductor lifted the curtain that separated his seat from the cabin and poked his head in. His sable coat and mustachehad gathered a great deal of traveler’s dust. “But the post, sir,” he said, glancing forlornly at the mail bags. “They’ll be delayed.”

The promise of more money ensured he did not question me long. Once we’d cleared the township, we ate a quick meal. The driver slowed the stage so we could walk beside it for a stretch to work the soreness out of our joints without putting us farther behind schedule.

Rynn kept her word, eating when instructed and strolling where I told her to. I was not foolish enough to believe that this compliance would continue indefinitely, and I did not let her out of my sight.

But why had the bridge upset her so?

I wondered over her outburst as we stretched our legs. I could make sense of her resistance to being so close to the old estate we’d grown up in, but why that bridge in particular? It was miles from the old manor. Its significance gnawed at me.

There were so many questions I wanted to demand answers to. It was growing harder to remain patient and careful around her. But knowing who I was would only make transporting her even more difficult. She’d reacted poorly to Light Lily’s covered bridge. She’d react even more viscerally to my identity.

Fortunately, I’d cast off my adopted surname as soon as I could. She didn’t recognize Finley and knew nothing about the birth mother and sister I’d reconnected with in adulthood.

Gray clouds gathered over our heads like harbingers of doom. It began to shower, so I helped the conductor throw a canvas over our luggage. To avoid getting a stuck wheel, we waited out the worst of it under a collection of thick maple trees. After the rain calmed, we set off again. I found thesteady beat of the light drops against the roof comforting. Rynn gnawed on her thumb nail like the opposite was true for her. She flinched at every sound.

Soon the rain ceased and the skies cleared. I filled my lungs with the refreshing scent of renewal that wafted in through the windows, glad the roads remained free of other travelers. We were alone out here, a state I preferred.

As evening began to darken the skies and night loomed closer, we came upon an inn near a small apple orchard and an empty trading post. A hanging sign labeled the collection of workers’ cabins behind the large two-story cottage as Drasland.

I frowned at the state of the carriage house. There was a buggy and a simple buckboard wagon out front already. I’d had enough of being near strangers. It had taken a lot out of me to endure them in the way I had these last few days.

“What’s wrong?” Rynn asked, peering out the window beside me.

“It’s busy,” I grumbled. “I’d rather it wasn’t.”

She snorted sharply. “This isn’t busy.”

“Maybe to a city person like you.”

Easy for her to say, considering her former lifestyle. Rynn had always liked people. Meanwhile, I spent most of my time with only ghosts for company, and as spirits were not corporeal, they did not crowd and never tried to engage me in tedious conversation.

If they didn’t suffer caprices of their own, I’d prefer their company.

“It’ll be dark soon,” she said, an edge of nervousness in her voice. Her spine pulled up straight.

I was no fan of the dark either, and my shoulders stiffened. “We’ll be settled inside long before then.”

“Not if you don’t climb out of the stage,” she said pointedly.

“I’m going . . .”

“No, you’re not. You’re quite literally just sitting there.”

“I’m not in the hurry you apparently are.” I slid my top hat onto my head, crossed one leg over the other, and rested back against the seat cushion.

A malicious amusement lit her hickory eyes. “Are you waiting for the lot of them to go inside first so you don’t have to speak to them? There’s only . . .” Leaning over me, she made a quick count. “Three! There are three people out there, and not a one of them looks particularly intimidating. Especially the petite one with the lace flowers on her dress.”

“I don’t like a crowd. People exhaust me. We can wait until they’re done being overly polite with each other. It won’t hurt either of us to sit a bit longer.”

“Finley, this is not by any stretch of the imagination a ‘crowd’. They could fit inside this stage with us if we were so inclined, and there would be elbow room to spare.”

I shuddered at the mental picture she drew, though she was right. This Concord was built for at least six passengers. “By my definition it’s practically a horde out there.”

Rynn brought her face closer to mine, eyes narrowed to slits in her angriest hellcat expression. “If you thought I behaved dramatically before,” she warned, “just wait until you see what happens when night falls and there aren’t big city streetlamps about to light the way.”

I rolled my eyes at her. “Fine then, come on, hellcat,” I said, shoving open the door and climbing out. I’d nearly forgotten that we needed to behave as though we were married. Turning back, I offered her my arm reluctantly.

She frowned at it.

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