At that, Cash lost what little patience he had left and snapped, “We’re going.”
“You’re not going,” Anthony returned.
“We’re going,” Cash shot back.
“You can’t go,” Lorna put in.
“Why the hell not?” Cash retorted.
“You have to save Abby and you’re the only one who can do it.”
They all turned at the new voice drifting through the air.
Ben’s voice.
Abby saw he stood in the opposite corner, also see-through, his phantom feet on the roof’s floor. Zee was sitting by Ben’s feet, his tail sweeping casually from side-to-side as if he stood beside his dead master a thousand times.
“Ben,” Abby whispered, her heart leaping into her throat making her voice sound suffocated.
“Not now, Abby,” Ben returned tersely, his eyes on the door in the floor and at that moment, it flew open.
Abby jumped, Cash positioned himself in front of her and took two steps back, guiding Abby to the middle of the tower, his hands behind him, fingers curled into Abby’s sides.
Angus emerged from the door, grunting and straining, pulling the golden rope.
He came fully into view and kept tugging. Vivianna came after him, still fighting frantically against the rope at her waist. Cassandra was last through, her wand pointed at Vivianna, a pale, slim thread of gossamer gold coming from the wand and hitting Vivianna in the back, its purpose, Abby suspected, aiding in binding the ghost.
“Jesus,” Cash murmured.
“We got her, laddie,” Angus proclaimed stoutly.
“Jesus,” Cash repeated.
Abby wasn’t paying attention.
She was watching Ben, Anthony and Lorna position themselves in a circle around Angus, Cassandra and Vivianna. Zee had started prowling the edges of the roof, his yellow cat eyes turned to the restrained ghost.
“Not gon’ get away now, are you beastie?” Angus taunted.
Abby examined Vivianna who had stopped fighting against the rope and her head was whipping this way and that taking in her fellow phantoms, Cash and Zee.
It dawned on Abby that the spectre actually looked scared.
“If you’d paid attention this morning, son, not only would Abby not have wrecked your car but I would have guided you to Vivianna’s Book of Shadows,” Anthony noted mysteriously, his words causing Cash’s body to grow still, his eyes never leaving Vivianna.
“It’s hidden behind a secret panel in one of the bookshelves of the library,” Lorna put in. She, too, didn’t take her eyes from Vivianna and stayed close to the bound ghost.
“Vivianna’s invincible… almost,” Anthony noted. “Only her Book of Shadows holds the secret to her demise.”
“And that would be?” Cash, his eyes also locked on Vivianna, asked.
“Her death has to be re-enacted,” Ben answered.
Cash replied instantly, “She committed suicide.”
Cash and Abby were moving round in a slow half-circle watching as Angus and Cassandra positioned Vivianna to the edge of the tower closest to the tor. Once there the three other ghosts and Zee moved in.
“She didn’t commit suicide,” Lorna said quietly.
“She didn’t?” Abby whispered.
“She poisoned her ex-lover’s wife. Killed her,” Anthony picked up the story. “In order to commence her plan to rain terror on Penmort throughout eternity, she drew him up here and confessed to the crime. In a rage, he threw her over the side,” Anthony told them and Abby gasped.
Then Abby gasped again as Angus whipped the lasso over Vivianna’s head, freeing her, and Cassandra dropped her wand, the gossamer thread disappearing.
They both stepped away.
“Cash!” Abby cried even as she felt and saw Cash’s body get tense.
But Vivianna was going nowhere. She was pinned to the spot, hovering several feet off the ground with Ben, Anthony and Lorna’s hands extended to her somehow, though Abby had no clue how, they were imprisoning her.
“You’re safe, love,” Anthony’s voice was gentle and it reminded her exactly of Cash’s (except, of course, with an English accent rather than a Scottish one) as it slid through the air all around her. Anthony went on. “There’s a reason Vivianna didn’t appear before any of the masters of this castle.”
“Because they can touch her,” Abby guessed.
“Yes, dear,” Lorna affirmed, “they can touch her. She’s only vulnerable to a master of Penmort.”
“You have to push her over the side,” Ben informed Cash and Abby’s hands came up to clutch Cash’s waist.
Ben’s eyes dropped to her hands and she pulled them quickly away.
Then Abby heard, “She doesn’t love you.”
Abby’s head shot up and she stared at Vivianna. The spirit’s eyes were pained and afraid and they were staring beseechingly at Cash.
“She’ll never love you,” Vivianna’s voice, strangely pleasant and warm, filled the air. Even so, Abby felt a cold chill slide across her skin that had nothing to do with the frosty night. “She’ll always love him.” Her head moved to motion to Ben and Abby felt her chest grow tight.
“Push her,” Ben urged.
“I love you. I’ve always loved you,” Vivianna told Cash and Abby bit her lip, feeling her body tremble, knowing this reaction too had nothing to do with the bitter night. “I’ll always love you.”
“Damn it, man, push her!” Ben demanded, eyes on Abby.
Cash took a step forward and Vivianna quailed.
“You deserve better!” she cried desperately and Cash stopped.
Abby’s eyes slid to Cash’s face and she saw he was listening, he didn’t like what he was hearing and worst of all, it was penetrating.
Abby felt her pulse start beating wildly in her throat and blood started rushing to her ears because of course this would penetrate. Cash knew how she felt about Ben. He’d thrown it in her face during their first, colossal fight.
He just didn’t know how she felt now.
Vivianna carried on. “You deserve someone who loves you, who’ll take care of you, who wants no one but you, who longs for no one but you!”
“Shut it, ghosty,” Angus growled but Vivianna ignored him.
“Her heart belongs to another man. It always will. She’ll never feel that way for you, my love, my dearest heart. Never!” Vivianna wailed.
Abby could take no more, putting her hands over her ears and stomping her foot, she shouted, “Stop it!”
Vivianna’s eyes moved to Abby and she spat, “You’ll never be good enough for him!”
Abby took her hands from her ears, planted them on her hips, stepped clear of Cash and leaned forward, shouting, “I know! That doesn’t mean I don’t love him!”
The air and all of the beings on the roof went deathly still.
Abby, beside herself and definitely not in control of her own actions (most specifically her mouth), turned to Cash. “I love you, all right?” She was still shouting, not the least bit romantically, not that it mattered. She was in the iron jaws of the freak out to end all freak outs and she didn’t notice Cash’s body jolt at her words but instead jabbered on, “I know it sounds stupid, we’ve only known each other a short time and blah, blah, blah.” Abby circled her hand in the air like an idiot and kept rattling away. “Doesn’t matter, I know what I feel. I knew it with Ben the minute I saw him, I knew it with you.” Abby turned to Vivianna. “So, you can go straight to hell, okay? You don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re just mean and nasty and a poor loser! Haunting a castle for centuries and killing people because your boyfriend broke up with you. Who does that?”
“Abby,” Cash called, interrupting Abby’s rant and her eyes cut to him.
“What?” she snapped.
“Come here, darling,” he demanded quietly.
“I don’t want to. I’m freaking out. All right? And I’m cold. And I need a drink. Tequila. Stat.” she turned back to Vivianna and threatened, “A
nd if one, single bugle bead on these shoes is missing after tonight’s fiasco I’m holding you responsible.” She finished while jabbing her finger in Vivianna’s direction.
“Abby,” Cash called again and Abby’s eyes sliced back to him.
“What?” she shrieked.
“I said, come here.”
Abby rolled her eyes heavenward, sighed heavily and stomped the two feet to Cash.
His hand came up and his fingers curled around her neck as his chin tipped down to look at her.
“You’re in love with me?” he asked softly.
“Yes, like, no duh,” she retorted sharply then she called as if he was a block away, “Hello! Cash! I totally freaked out when I thought you were in an accident.” Abby turned her head to Anthony. “Your son is very clever but it would seem he can be a bit –”
She didn’t finish, Cash’s fingers tightened at her neck and jerked her forward, making her body slam into his.
She tilted her head back and her breath caught at the intensity in his eyes right before his nose touched hers.
“You love me,” he stated in that low, deep, rough voice which was one of the many things she loved most about him.
Abby realised what she was about at the same time she realised that in all her many years of stupid, stupid, stupid behaviour, this was, by far and away, the stupidest.
Still, she couldn’t stop herself from whispering, “Yes.”
Close up, Abby watched Cash’s eyes smile and her heart leapt at the sight.
“Well, this is going to make eternity interesting,” Ben remarked drolly from his place at Vivianna’s side.
Cash’s head came up and Abby’s turned to the side.
She wasn’t sure but she thought she could actually feel her heart breaking.
And it hurt.
A lot.
“Ben,” she murmured.
“Abby,” Ben replied, his mouth twitching.
“I’m sorry,” Abby whispered.
“Honey, why? Because you’re alive and happy?” Ben asked and Cash’s hand dropped from Abby’s neck as Abby turned fully to face Ben but she felt Cash’s other arm slide around her waist and he pulled her gently into his side.
“Um,” Abby answered Ben hesitantly, “yes?”
Ben laughed.
No joke.
He laughed out loud like she was hilarious, his laughter curling through the air around them.
When he stopped, his gaze was on Cash and he informed him, “She’s a little nutty.”
“I’ve noticed that,” Cash murmured.
“It’s cute,” Ben went on.
Cash’s fingers at her waist flexed as he said, “I’ve noticed that too.”
Abby looked between Cash and Ben, her heart had stopped breaking but her blood pressure had started rising before she demanded to know, “What’s going on?”
“I know what’s no’ going on,” Angus cut in impatiently, “and that’s the fact that no ghosty she-bitch is being hurtled over the side of the tower straight to the depths of hell. That’s what’s no’ going on.”
“Yes, Conner, do you think we can get on with this? Abby’s cold,” Anthony added.
“And, I hate to bring this up, but Cassandra told us we don’t have much time,” Lorna noted.
Abby looked at Cassandra and muttered in a threatening tone, “You have a bit of explaining to do.”
Cassandra shrugged. Then she grinned.
Abby decided she’d deal with Cassandra later and looked to Cash.
Cash was looking at Vivianna.
It then occurred to Abby that even though she was a ghost, and a murderess six times over, not to mention not very nice, it still couldn’t be a fun to be the person who had to send her plunging to the depths of hell.
Abby looked at Vivianna and asked, “Do you think you can play nice? You know, not murder anyone else and maybe not scare people?”
Vivianna’s eyes narrowed, her face twisted with hatred and she hissed, “I’ll see your broken body at the bottom of the tor before I –”
She didn’t finish.
Without hesitation Cash strode forward, put a hand to her chest and thrust her over the side.
Abby’s blood ran cold as Vivianna’s chilling scream split the air.
Abby ran after Cash, put one of her hands to his back, one to his stomach and plastered her front to his side.
Then she, Cash, his father and grandmother, Abby’s dead husband, her ghost hunter, her clairvoyant witch and her cat peered over the edge and watched as Vivianna’s body plummeted down, her skirts billowing, her hair wafting, her arms reeling, until they could see no more through the dark.
Mere moments later the scream died and a burst of violet and lilac sparks shot straight up the tor, the side of the castle and they all stepped back to watch them fly into the air over the parapet.
Abby stared up as the sparks glimmered then faded away.
Cash’s arm curled around her body, holding her close to his warmth.
She felt weird, thinking she should be happy that Vivianna was gone but instead she was somehow sad.
“Well, that’s done then,” Cassandra mumbled.
They heard scuffling then Mrs. Truman shoved through the door in the floor, Kieran on her heels, hand reaching toward Mrs. Truman as if to detain her, Jenny right behind Kieran.
Once she gained the roof, Mrs. Truman whirled on them, planted her hands on her hips, her breath coming in huffs, her eyes cutting amongst the humans and ghosts and she shouted, “What’s the meaning of this!”
But Abby’s eyes were on Kieran and Jenny, both of whom also were on the roof and both were staring at Ben.
“My God,” Kieran breathed.
Abby, nor Ben, had any chance to explain.
Cassandra moved forward and said urgently, “We don’t have much time. We have to get them back home.”
Before anything could be said Lorna moved in front of Cash and Abby. Her eyes were on her grandson.
“You’ll be happy?” she asked, her voice soft but fervent, her face intent.
Abby looked up at Cash and saw his jaw clenched.
Then he replied, “Yes, Gran.”
Lorna smiled and looked at Abby.
Quietly she murmured, “You remind me of…” she hesitated and then the sad look came back into her face, “well, me… a long time ago.”
Abby’s heart went out to her and she asked, “Is ‘home’ a happy place for you?”
Lorna nodded. “Yes, my dear. Very happy,” her face went soft and the sadness again disappeared, “now it will be even happier.”
Her eyes moved back to Cash, roamed his face fondly then they turned to Cassandra and she nodded.
Cassandra lifted her wand, muttered some rhyming words, ended it with “so mote it be” and a spark of bright, silver light shot from her wand and hit Lorna.
Lorna’s gaze turned to Cash, she smiled, her entire body started glimmering then she faded away.
Abby’s arm slid around Cash’s waist and she held on tight.
Without delay, Anthony moved in front of them.
“You’ve taken care of Alistair?” he queried, eyes on Cash.
Cash nodded and Anthony nodded in return.
Quietly Anthony stated, “She’s different, you know, where she is now.”
Abby felt Cash’s body grow rigid at her side and she knew Anthony was talking about Cash’s mother.
“Healthy?” Cash asked.
Anthony nodded again. “And happy.”
Abby swallowed the tears crawling up her throat and pressed deeper into Cash.
“I don’t want you taking the Beaumaris name,” Anthony announced. “I want you to usher in the era of the Frasers. Your grandfather deserves that, as does your mother.”
Cash jerked his head in agreement and Anthony looked at Abby for a moment before training his eyes back on his son.
“This one’s going to be a handful,” he declared and Abby didn’t know what to make of that.<
br />
She heard amusement in his voice when Cash replied, “I’ve already figured that out.”
Anthony grinned and Abby caught her breath.
His grin melted the forbidding, somewhat scary look of his face and morphed him into an almost exact heart-stoppingly handsome replica of his son.
Anthony’s eyes went back to Abby and he noted roguishly, “The Beaumaris men have always had good taste.”
“I’ve heard that before,” Abby muttered.
He threw back his head and laughed, the same, rich, deep, beautiful laugh as Cash.
When he was done, he turned to Cassandra and gave her a sharp nod.
She lifted her wand and spoke again, the silver beam shot from her wand and hit Anthony.
His eyes went to Cash, his body glimmering and then fading away.
Before he was gone, Abby saw his mouth move, his body disappeared but the words shimmered in the air around them.
“I’m proud of you, son.”
Abby tried hard not to emit the hiccoughing sound of her sob but she didn’t quite achieve this feat. Cash turned to her, both his arms moving around her and he kissed her forehead.
Then Ben appeared before them and Cash pulled slightly, but only very slightly, away.
Abby held her breath then let it go to say, “Ben.”
“He’s freaking tall,” Ben commented, eyes shifting to Cash.
“Oh Ben,” Abby whispered, torn asunder, wanting to laugh and wanting to scream and lastly, but most especially, wanting to cry.
She also wanted to touch him, having lived for that opportunity for four years. But oddly, even as she wanted it with a desperation that was the definition of longing, at the same time she did not want it, but instead wanted to move on.
“And kind of bossy,” Ben continued, breaking into her confused thoughts.
“He is that,” Abby murmured and Ben grinned.
Cash showed no reaction at all.
Ben’s eyes came to Abby and he told her gently, “You gotta let yourself be happy, honey.”
“I –” she started but he shook his head, lifted his hand as if to touch her and Cash tensed.
Ben’s hand dropped away not because of Cash but because Ben couldn’t touch her and Abby saw the frustration slide through his expression before he hid it.