Page 48 of Love At First Fright
“It’s their unfinished business.”
“Yes, I suppose.”
“So he won’t be able to move on until Ellis lets him go?”
Cecilia nodded. “If he stays too long, he will fade even more, and he won’t be able to pass on to…whatever is next.”
Rosemary thought of everything she’d been taught at Sunday school, and her nana, her mama. She had to ask.
“When you died, did you see…?”
“What comes after?” Cecilia tilted her head. “I think for a second, perhaps. It was a choice, to stay here, you understand. Juliet died first, and when I saw her, and saw myself lying there, I felt…it was utter peace. I think if I had let myself follow that peace, I would have moved on. But I saw Juliet, and she was staying, and even if she won’t admit it, she needs me. So I stayed, too.”
Rosemary felt the weight of Cecilia’s words; what she was really saying.
“And now she won’t even speak to me.”
Rosemary nodded. “Maybe I could help? Sometimes it can help to tell someone else. And I imagine it’s been a long time since you’ve spoken to someone.”
Cecilia brushed her silver tears away. “This is where Juliet lived, you know? Her father was a first son, heir to the estate, and he married well, and Juliet never needed for anything. It was not as simple for me. My family lived in a more modest house in the village; my elder brother was the curate, and when my parents died, he took me in until I could be married. My brother was not a kind man. But it didn’t matter, because Juliet and I were friends. I spent most of my time here. Luckily, her father didn’t mind.
“But when I turned twenty-one and was still very much a wallflower, my brother gave me an ultimatum. Either Imarried, or he would send me north to a parish he knew in Yorkshire that needed a governess.”
“You would have been separated from Juliet.”
“Yes. I courted in secret and accepted a proposal, but it was the last thing I wanted. Even if she didn’t know that I…felt for her, I didn’t want to leave, or ever be parted from her. I was going to tell her, that day, to explain it all. But then we died and when I chose to stay, rather than move on, she—” Cecilia pressed her fingers to her mouth, caught in a memory.
“She kissed me. I don’t think she understood why she did it, and she was so furious at herself for so long after.”
“So, before you died, neither of you ever…?”
“No, not at all. I wanted to, of course, but Juliet was raised in the Church. She would never have crossed that line. I think she tells herself that she only kissed me out of relief.”
The two of them sat in silence for a moment. Rosemary recalled the watercolours in the room where Juliet had been the last time they’d spoken, the ones painted by Cecilia. They reminded her of those paintings you saw in art galleries of two women who were undeniably queer, where the labels always said something like: “Lady X and Lady Y, just two best friends who lived together for their entire lives and never married.”
Rosemary remembered the way Juliet had looked at those paintings.
“I don’t think Juliet is angry at you for not telling her about the proposal, not really.”
“Then what?”
“I think she feels the same way. I think that when she found out you were going to marry a man, even if that was hundreds of years ago, she got scared.”
“Juliet will never admit how she feels.” Cecilia shrugged,but then her shoulders slumped. “But I have waited this long, and I will wait as long as I need to. For her.”
Rosemary squeezed the ghost’s hand, feather-soft and cool to the touch. She realised now the reason they were both still so present, not fading, after all this time. Juliet and Cecilia were each other’s unfinished business. And it was up to Rosemary to help them figure it out, before they caused more havoc on set.
“I’ll speak to her,” Rosemary assured Cecilia.
“If you want to find her, look for the ruined chapel in the heart of the wood. That’s where she goes when she wants to torture herself.”
Rosemary left the ghost in the glade, her mind full. She wouldn’t have time to find Juliet immediately. It was nearly midnight, and the second unit director had invited her to come and see what they were up to, filming in the trim manor gardens, getting exterior shots. It also meant she wasn’t likely to bump into Ellis tonight, but she needed the space to think.
She would need to tell him about Hank. She didn’t want the little dog’s spirit to fade into nothing, but that meant Ellis would need to let Hank go. And how could he do that without Rosemary telling him her secret, that she could see ghosts?
She texted Dina again.Oh wise, beautiful witch.
What do you want?Dina replied.
